Operation Demnan Rendezvous: 3

This is the third and final part of the mission briefing for the advanced scout mission to the sector Incognita Citerior. See parts one and two for the first parts of the briefing. Led by the Varikuur, a demiliterised Gionetti class light cruiser, the ships are being sent ahead of the Deepnight Revelation mission, to act as advance scouts and supply ships.The final part of the briefing covers the Vanguard Reaches to Incognita Citerior.

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The Altarean Confederation is the final multi-world nation before heading into the uncharted wilderness of Iphigenaia sector, it is therefore important that as much information is gained as is possible before leaving here. The confederation is mostly populated by Murians, a species of ursoid-like humanoids that are not related to Terran life, but are native to Arcturus. They are for the most part non-aggressive, and have acted as an important balancing factor between the Zhodani Consulate and the other polities in the sector.

It is expected that they can be considered a friendly port, and they have a consistently above Imperium average level of technology, though don’t reach the heights of the best of what the Imperium has to offer. They are not part of the Comsentient Alliance, considering themselves neutral as far as the other local powers are concerned.

It is hoped that the Confederation will be able to provide significant information on the route ahead, since much of it is through uninhabited space littered with the ruins of the Ancients. Most of these ruins have been picked clean over the last millennium, though there is always the chance of unwanted surprises. For this reason it is expected that a couple of weeks will be spent here, gathering what information you can.

The Confederation is not far from Zhodani Consulate worlds in Yavakrbi sub-sector, so again as with the Corellian League, there will be Zhodani influence here so you will need to exercise caution. It is expected that the news of your arrival in the Corellian League will have made it back to the Zhodani naval base at Yavakrbi by this time, but we do not believe that they will have had sufficient time to prepare any teams to intercept you in the Confederation to try and either hinder or simply investigate you further. So any Zhodani agents you run into here will probably either be starting from scratch in their investigations, or acting with only limited guidance and pre-planning.

It is estimated that you will be leaving Arcturus around 1107-142, almost a year into the mission. From there, you will head to Shesta, and after that you will be on your own for about 180 days. Though the expected route will take you to systems with gas giants for refuelling, it is recommended that caution is used when approaching them. Though these systems are uninhabited, and mostly untravelled (to the best of our knowledge), it is possible that there are pirates operating in this area, or surprises left behind by the ancients.

Ships have been lost due to automated defence systems hidden in the upper atmospheres of gas giants, or in their ring systems, long forgotten and deactivated, suddenly coming back to life. For this reason, scan all worlds before approaching, and if in doubt favour safety over speed. If anything unexpected is discovered, leave a message buoy in-system. Placing them in high polar orbits around gas worlds which cause problems should reduce the chance of them being accidentally found, but they should respond to the Deepnight’s IFF requests should it come this way.

• J-4 to Shesta
• J-3 to 221-196
• J-3 to La Grone/1302
• J-4 to La Grone/1306
• J-4 to La Grone/1109
• J-3 to Tempoko/0711
• J-3 to Tempoko/0513
• J-3 to Tempoko/0214
• J-3 to Lisquitama/3116
• J-4 to Lisquitama/2718
• J-4 to Plok/2320

Plok/2320 is a notable world in that it is rumoured to have still active defence systems hidden in the seas of the main world. It is a interesting target for the Deepnight Revelation, and leaving a buoy behind with any information you manage to gather here from your own scans would be highly desirable. Using one of the outer jovian worlds for refuelling however is recommended.

• J-4 to Tynvegi/1922
• J-4 to Babadur/1523
• J-4 to Babadur/1225
• J-3 to Babadur/0926
• J-4 to Babadur/0528

At this point it gets complicated, since you will be approaching populated worlds again. Once you enter Theta Borealis sector, there are a number of independent human worlds, most of which don’t have star travel, though a small number do. Babadur/0528 in Theron sector is the decision point at what route to take, so assuming that extra knowledge about the populated worlds wasn’t obtained from the Altarean Confederation, the plan is to perform a quick investigation and then leave information for the Deepnight Revelation when it arrives.

• J-3 to Quadrant 01-569/0431
• J-3 to Quadrant 01-591/0233
• J-2 to Bengalaz/3232 Wimstudei

According to our records, Wimstudei is a TL-6 world with a C class starport. It is rated as Amber, mostly due to its world politics, so care must be taken. If things go wrong, then you will have enough fuel for a J-2 back the way you came. Star ports on these independent worlds tend to be controlled by the world governments, and don’t have the safety afforded to them that the Imperium provides. However, most worlds want to encourage trade, so though trouble may be possible, it should not be probable unless the world is particularly unstable or dangerous.

Despite the Amber designation, this world is a notable population centre and closer to the other highly populated worlds, so it will be a better source of information than the alternative route through Amethyst (Duhamel/3229). The Amethyst route also requires a J-4 to reach, so there is no turning back if there are problems there.

The plan of action at Wimstudei should be to determine initial threats, refuel as quickly as possible, then try to make contact with the local world in order to gain information on their neighbours. It is expected that your J-4 capability will be of great tactical benefit, since you should be able to outrun any information about you. Though there are some worlds in this region that have the capability to build J-4 ships, we don’t believe that many have actually been built. Moving quickly and staying in systems for as short a stay as possible is therefore recommended.

The most technologically advanced world is Jugartha, which has an extensive Belter culture of eight billion people, with a TL 13 level of technology. It is recommended that this world is avoided, since it’s bound to have extensive infrastructure around most of its worlds which will be hard to avoid, and they may be highly interested in an Imperium led scouting mission heading spinward.

As soon as you have gathered what information you can at Wimstudei, it is time to make use of one of your J-6 fast couriers again to take a message to Ubagil/0428, to leave a buoy around the outermost gas giant. The recommendation is that the courier uses drop tanks so that it can drop off a buoy and then jump immediately without needing to refuel, heading to Landfair.

The information that will be needed is detail on the independent human worlds in the region, the Percavid Marches which is the most powerful of the multi-world human polities in the region, and also the Korsumug Empire, which is the most dangerous of the powers here. The Empire is populated by the Jaibok, who are extremely violent and expansionist. Avoiding the Korsumug Empire will be important for both the Varikuur and the Deepnight Revelation, so knowing the full extent of their patrols should be a priority, if at all possible.

After the courier leaves, the Varikuur will jump to Landfair, refuel and then wait for the courier to catch up. Hopefully by this point enough is known about the Landfair system that a suitable point can be arranged for rendezvous.

If a rendezvous at Landfair is not possible, then the next destination for rendezvous is Westmach, which is the next planned point on the route.

• J-4 to Landfair
• J-4 to Westmach
• J-3 to Cayme
• J-4 to Wedton
• J-4 to Gurn
• J-4 to Manlowe
• J-2 to Snowdon
• J-3 to Hacany
• J-4 to Shief

Shief at Trasfalca/0435 has a class A staport, and is a tech level 11 world with a population in the millions. We know more about this system than others in Theta Borealis sector since we have first hand accounts from someone who grew up at the starport there. Shief is a relatively stable world which is willing to provide safe harbour to anyone looking to trade, since it’s a major trading hub in the sub-sector and relies on being a stable port for much of its income. It could be a good place to resupply and make adjustments to the planned route, though again this information is about 10 years out of date. We have provided contact details for influential parties likely to be friendly, as well as information that may convince them to give aid if it is needed.

From this point on, the Korsumug Empire is coreward, and independent Aslan colonies are Rimward, so it may be challenging to thread the needle. Unfortunately, due to the lack of systems with gas giants on the ‘safe route’, it may be necessary to go through Aslan held systems. Trade between the human and Aslan settlements does happen, so the current suggested route is to head rimward. Navigation is also complicated by the Separe Cloud in Cleft sub-sector. This dark nebula is also thought to be a Jumpspace Reef, making travel through it difficult.

The worlds within it are part of the Cleft Group – a small polity of humans known to be both xenophobic and aggressive, though exactly how much they are a single unified polity rather than a collection of worlds of similar culture isn’t known. Though their technology base is limited, they should be considered dangerous and avoided as much as possible. Fortunately, the chance of contact with them should be low.

If in doubt, play it safe, and send a courier ahead to check out the systems. Assuming a reasonably straight trip though, the final leg of the trip is expected to take about 160 days to reach Demnan.

• J-4 to Veld
• J-2 to Eahwiyho
• J-3 to Alrhea
• J-2 to Weahreh
• J-3 to Aiailr
• J-3 to Aihoilrual
• J-3 to Sieafao
• J-4 to Hfuheaas
• J-2 to Eioa
• J-4 to Arlan’s Moon
• J-4 to Invors
• J-3 to Caproxia
• J-4 to Melatte
• J-4 to Taboush
• J-4 to Amujan
• J-4 to Demnan / Incognita Citerior 3124

Caproxia is the homeworld of the Lanash, a humanoid race known to be aggressive but not dangerously so. They have limited technology with space travel, but should not be a threat. Since it is a triple system, it may be worthwhile finding a gas giant around one of the smaller stars which is unlikely to be patrolled. It is known that they are in conflict with the humans of the Cleft Group, and may assume that human Imperials are allied with them.

Amujan is populated by a large population of non-humanoid sophonts, broadly described as semi-aquatic serpentine carnivores. They do not have technology beyond steam power, so should not be encountered off their home world.

The final destination is Demnan, where a base should be set up to await the arrival of the Deepnight. It is expected that you will arrive at Demnan around 1108-273, though reality may vary this by several weeks either side. A limited exploration of the sub-sector is recommended. If it is possible to find resources that can be used to resupply then this is highly desirable. If there are population centres here, then making contact with them would be beneficial, but keep contact to a minimum needed for information and resupply. Demnan itself was chosen because it is believed to be an unpopulated habitable world which may provide a useful rest spot for the crew.

With the arrival of the Deepnight Revelation, you will receive final orders and will then be able to head home. It is left to you and your crew to plan which route you take on the way back, based on information you have gathered on your journey out, and also based on any new information that the Deepnight Revelation is able to provide.