TO: IMG, IMGG, friendlies in the Java/Tau 31 & Tau 37 vicinity, ICMG, RDA, Colonial Remnant (via store and forward buffer)
BCC: Zoner Alliance command.
FROM: John Sanders on behalf of chief Erynel Rolace
RE: Turf war
I hate to have to admit it people, but this little turf war the Colonials have stirred up with the Outcasts is bad for our mining operations. Continuos, day by day assaults by Outcast supercapital ships on the Java and Falkland bases are highly disruptive. Not to mention we now seem to have another group of Gallian pirates to contend with. I understand there is little we can do to stem this tide, but the fight over Java seems to only be escalating. Now there's report of some kind of zoner involvement, and another faction, SCRA, as well?
I strongly urge that all of us interested in the -defense- of our mining operation in the Taus, have a sitdown and let us figure out a better strategy then "be attacked, counterattack, brace for the counter-counterattack, arm for the counter-counter-counter attack" and so on.
We're miners, not soldiers. Defending our mining operation and increasing it's efficiency should be our primary priority. Giving the Outcasts a bloody nose when they poke them into said operations should be secondary to that, and accomplished with large, on-call amounts of strikecraft stationed at beforementioned bases, with the intent to strike, destroy the target, and return to base. I recommend as a result, to -not- pursue the enemy if they come into 5K of the Cali base, or in Tau 37, about midway. Driving them off is enough, and brings home the point that we are not defenseless, that should suffice.
In doing this, we'll cease being much of a military threat to the Outcasts, and I suspect they will soon realise that expending the supplies to keep sending supercapital ships our way, is pointless.
Panzer's choice to pursue the enemy right onto Malta's doorstep was a huge misstake. It has cost us. It's time to cut our losses and consolidate. If not, we might as well move the entire mining operation and abandon Java and Falkland alltogether.
TO: IMG, IMGG, ICMG
FROM: John Sanders on behalf of chief Erynel Rolace
Subject: Alternate mining locations, prospecting
Attached is the recent mining report for the Carsten Miller:
After being driven off of the Tau 23 and 37 Niobium sites, our crew has started a bit of a trek in search of new mining grounds. We have sampled the following areas:
- Tau 29, near the Kyushu gate. Ore mined: Hydrocarbons.
We have sampled roughly 500 units of these as a test. The field still seems to have plenty of ore and the nearby Tsushima depot in Kyushu offers a reasonable price at roughly 900 credits per unit. The site is more or less secure from piracy: Should pirates overwhelm the miners, one can retreat through the jumpgate. If pirates pursue, battleship Nagumo stationed on the far side of the gate will give them something to consider. The profit however, is marginal, for a short trip on a fairly safe site. Occasional Outcast patrols frequent the area, trade traffic is light, and there are significant Kusari patrols securing the site.
- Cambridge, asteroid field 2 near planet Cambridge. Ore mined: Beryllium
Much more remote and secure then the bustle of the Tau systems, Cambridge would be a good candidate for a larger mining operation. The asteroid field seems to have been completely overlooked by BMM, and is rich in resources. Initial scans have sensed a complete absense of any bases or jumpholes in the vicinity. The nearest base would be the planet Cambridge and the nearby Cryer facility. The field is also huge - we won't run out of ore any time soon there.
There are occasional Corsair light patrols to contend with, but they are manageable. The lack of any nearby jumphole makes this site a potential hazard for pirates who like to have an escape route handy, and the field size suggests it'll take them quite a while to find any mining op in the deep of the field.
Establishing a small storage and resupply base at the rear of the field would greatly increase security of such an operation, but under the circumstances, it is doubtful the Bretonial authorities would permit us to. So far we have harvested three full loads of our heavy miner. The Berlin Ring offers the best price at 8500 credits a unit of ore, but denies us landing rights. It was no matter, the Junkers proved a useful intermediate (and hinted they would be willing to help again, for a fee). But if we establish a full mining operation there, we could likely hire additional transports not affiliated to the IMG, to assist us in this matter.
- Leeds, Stokes asteroid field. Ore mined: Niobium
The BMM's misfortune could become our fortune. With Stokes no longer under BMM control, the field has basically become a contested ground. 'Though most of it has been mined out, there are still some Niobium deposits in the center of the field which can be harvested. BMM still holds a presence in the form of scout patrols, likely keeping an eye on the field from afar and being the eyes and ears for the Breton Armed Forces. Occasinally a Molly seems to get lost in this field too, but those seem rare. They prove little more then a nuiscance.
The field however has a rather poor yield, and it's deposits are small. I recommend against a full mining operation in this vicinity - The field would be exhausted before the operation would reach full capacity. It is a viable, slower alternative to the Tau 23 and 37 fields in times where mining there is too dangerous. Profits in Cambridge would probably be higher.
Two full holds have been brought to planet New Berlin, through the Kushari-Sigma 13 route. I recommend this route due to the BMM presence in Bretonia which could stir trouble for our traders, if any.
- Colorado, Silverton asteroid field. Ore mined: Silver
Only for those with an angel's patience. This field is all but mined out, but trace amounts remain. I project it would take the Carsten two full days of mining to fill up on this field. Not a viable option for heavy mining. Xenos and Liberty patrols, along with bounty hunters, run into scrims every now and then here. Mining near the Pueblo facility is reasonably safe. Trade traffic through the nearby lane is high. The one advantage is it's proximity to the best selling point: Narita. Still, the yields are so abyssimally low that I recommend this option be abandoned. 200 units delivered to Narita, at over 10000 credits per unit.
We also sampled the Copperton field but it appears to be completely mined out, with no copper remaining. This could work in our favor if Liberty ever has need of copper ore, seeing as our mining base in Tau 39 has an abundant field of it. That field needs to be resampled once the situation in Tau 23 calms down.
- Pennsylvania, northern asteroid field. Ore mined: Silver
Not much to report about this field. Visibility is poor and the yields are comparable to those in Silverton. Interference from the nearby nebula created a lot of static on the comms. Pennsylvania just isn't worth the effort now the hydrocarbon, platinum and silver fields are all but exhausted. The cryogenic conditions in the nebula near planet Eerie would cause havoc with our engine systems, and is not an option.
- New York, Detroit scrap field. Scrap mining operation.
With our disappointment at the silver yields we tried our luck in the Detroit scrapfield just to see what it will do. We quickly found the Hegemon completely unsuited for this kind of work. The metal confused our sensors an a Rogue gunboat coult approach almost unseen - We outran it though. We'll leave this kind of harvesting to the junkers. It also soiled the tanks with hazardous waste scraps left in the debris. We'll leave this work to the junkers from now on.
- Omega 7 - Ice fields near the Cambridge gate: Water
To purge our hold we headed to Aland and had the shipyard's facilities give us an overhaul. Also we upgraded our mining emitters and replaced our turrets with faster tracking ones. Chief Erynel still isn't certain about this but I am positive we'll need the faster tracking. His dream of driving off gunboats with heavy turrets is a dangerous one. Crew majority vote, kill the buzzers, dodge the bulls. Aland advised us their water storage tanks were low and asked us to gather some in exchange for the work done. The field around Aland itself was sparse, but the area around the Cambridge gate held water in abundance. It took us all of 15 minutes to fill the single use tanks Aland had provided. The base is now well supplied, for at least another month or so.
It should be noted that a standard Hegemon class vessel is poorly equipped to handle gaseous or liquid materials (although with a seal refit at a nearby shipyard, it is possible).
We have also considered a brief prospecting round in the Omega systems but decided against it. There were too many enemy signatures and reports of battle. Since our comrades from the ICMC have indicated their intent to set up an operation there, so I suspect their miners and forces should have little problem getting this information. Rheinland remains largely unprospected by our crew, we will make a point to investigate it next.
*****GuildComm Deactivated*****
Wide awake in a world that sleeps, enduring thoughts, enduring scenes. The knowledge of what is yet to come.
From a time when all seems lost, from a dead man to a world, without restraint, unafraid and free.
Mostly retired Discovery member. May still visit from time to time.
