Dounby Station

From Discovery Wiki
Dounby Station
Owner
Independent Miners Guild
Location
C-5, Orkney

CLASS: Rousay

GRAVITY: Complete

DOCKING: Yes

AMENITIES: Yes

CREW: 300

Once a backwater station owned by the Independent Miners Guild, Dounby was built orbiting the resource rich Eday 801 AS. The Guild predicted the planet could be mined when asteroid showers were less frequent, but the frequent accidents and near misses made the base a risky investment.

When the Council breached Westray, opening the way to Sirius, they made contact with the Guild, revealing the realm of House Gallia. The breach left the miners tangled between Council and Royalist forces, and so operations were temporarily suspended. Later, an accord was struck between the Guild and the Gallic Crown, resuming mining operations. Harvested minerals were mostly bought out by passing Gallic freighters.

In 824 AS, the Gallic Brigands launched an attack on Dounby. The Guild was vastly overwhelmed and the installation fell to Brigand hands, who later rechristened the base to Dinard Station. Its mining equipment was jettisoned to make room for drinking, drugging, and whoring.

In 827 AS, a combined IMG and Gallic Navy force recaptured Dinard for the Guild, restoring her name to Dounby. Back under Guild administration, the station underwent extensive renovations and restructuring to serve as a primary connection to the Gallic markets.

In order to avoid fatal collisions with stray asteroids hurling towards Eday, Dounby is equiped with several engines to avoid direct impacts from the larger rocks.

While it avoided detection by the Nomads during their purge of the system, the operations onboard the station effectively ceased, and it's continued operation is being brought into question.

Bribes & Missions Offered

Bribes
Missions


Commodities

Imports
Commodity Price
Robotics 41$
Energy Field Equipment 65$
Gin 57$
Medical Equipment 54$
Detroit Light Arms 137$
Outcast Pilot 68$
Gallic Brigand 64$
Slog 134$
Hydrocarbons 27$
Oxygen 22$
Food Rations 30$
Kyushu Rice 35$
MOX 38$
Basic Alloy 22$
Construction Machinery 34$
Pharmaceuticals 32$
Hull Panels 43$
Daumann Side Arms 151$
Gallic Enfer Blasters 72$
Hangar Provisions 264$
Prometheum 27$
Synth Paste 45$
Wine 54$
Industrial Materials 40$
Munitions 67$
Promethene 40$
Xenobiotic Filters 76$
HazMat Canisters 113$
H-Fuel 122$
Exports
Commodity Price
Deployable Mining Container 50,000$
Iron 6$
Casualties 34,131$
Tungsten 31$
Toxic Waste 30$
Water 21$
Mining Machinery 36$
Consumer Goods 40$


Ships sold


Ship Class Price
Annapurna Freighter 62,726$
Dromedary Freighter 24,266$
Voyager Freighter 22,126$


News

[835 AS] Coronado disaster sparks panic

YUMA -- 835 -- Public data feeds have lit up with distress calls from Coronado, after a system-wide EMP pulse wreaked havoc. Emergency requests for aid have been issued by the Crayter Republic and IMG, with early reports indicating that the system’s Trade Lane project has been destroyed. Ageira has confirmed that the Jump Gate remains unaffected thanks to post-Blackout safeguards, allowing relief to be delivered from Bretonia and Liberty. Panic erupted on many Liberty worlds after footage was released showing an energy field around the moon Jericho, seeming to indicate another activated alien site. President Hawthorne has called for calm, and reiterated that security forces were moving to contain the situation.

[835 AS] Gallic threats raise Tau fears

SCALPAY OUTPOST -- 835 -- The Taus are once more on edge, after Gallia threatens the use of force to retrieve the Tau-23 to Tau-31 Jump Gate. Bretonia constructed the first Jump Gate in the system, which was later annexed during the Gallic War. Bretonia was gifted the current Gallic Jump Gate by Kusari during their invasion of Gallia, and has held it since -- with Gallia formally ceding its Tau claims through the Treaty of Rishiri. Bretonia has historically refused to discuss the Gate’s status until its own demands on the extradition of war criminals and payment of Gallic War reparations are met. The Bretonian government has warned that Gallic aggression or threats “will not be tolerated”.

[834 AS] Independent Miners assert Jericho rights

PECOS -- 834 -- The Guild has issued a new set of ultimatums to Yuma. This time, Guildmasters are demanding that Crayter withdraw the defense grid around the moon Jericho. The miners assert the grid infringes the Guild’s claims, which they say includes exclusive rights to exploit the moon’s resources. Pecos miner Shane Harlon noted, “there’s probably a whole lot of Uranium down there, given the radiation band. If there is, it’s ours.” So far Crayter has dismissed the demands, calling the mineral claim “nonsense” and stating simply that their troops were stationed on site for “public safety”.

[834 AS] IMG and Crayter relationship deteriorates

JAVA STATION -- 834 -- The Crayter Republic and Independent Miners Guild have been drawn into a fierce dispute, marking yet another low point in their tumultuous relationship. Despite limited cooperation against the Outcasts, the two groups have been mired in mutual hostility and suspicion since the Aland Crisis of 826 AS. More recently, Crayter forces attacked and destroyed an IMG refugee liner they claimed was smuggling weapons into Gallia. The Guild has called the claims “preposterous” and formally expelled all Crayter representatives from their stations. Gateway Shipping has offered Lewes Shipping Platform as a venue for mediation to try and resolve the situation.

[834 AS] Nagapasa destroyed by Crayter troops

JAVA STATION -- 834 -- Following a complex and perilous rescue operation of former Outcast slaves from Freeport 10, the Liner Nagapasa was attacked by Crayterian ships in an unjustifiable act of aggression. Crayter claims the vessel was being used to smuggle goods into Gallia, however the Nagapasa at no point entered Gallic territory, and was at the time maneuvering to avoid Outcast patrols. It is believed three Guild crew and seven passengers were killed in the assault, with survivors rounded up and transported away to Crayter territory. The Guildmasters have demanded the immediate return of all IMG members, and expelled Crayter vessels from IMG stations while an investigation is conducted.

[832 AS] Corsairs on the Rise

FREISTADT -- 832 AS -- While the northern Tau territories of Hispania are grappling with the relentless advance of the Outcasts, the situation unfolds quite differently in the Omegas. Here, the Corsairs, another faction bearing the legacy of Hispania, are steadily gaining momentum and expanding their influence.

This shift has been particularly evident in recent events, as the Corsairs grow increasingly assertive across the Omegas. A stark example of this newfound vigor occurred when the famed space bazaar, the Battleship Hood in Dublin, met a merciless end at the hands of a Corsair battlecruiser. Furthermore, the once-unassailable Red Hessians now find themselves locked in a fierce struggle to safeguard their positions in the Dresden system against the relentless advance of the Rheinland Military.

The Corsairs appear poised to intensify their pressure on all independent and free-spirited individuals in the Omega Region, spurred on by the defeatist sentiments expressed by certain Zoners and independent miners who might consider Corsair protection if it promises safety.

Despite the imposing presence of our pivotal IMG station, Freistadt Base in Omega 7, which remains under the watchful guardianship of the formidable Elbe Border Fortress, the situation in the deeper reaches of the Omegas portends increasing complexity in the years ahead. Combined with the diminishing influence of Bretonia in the region and the resurgent Rheinland's efforts to reclaim its lost Dresden system, the Corsairs' audacious pursuits are set to escalate.

[831 AS] Allied forces breach Omicron Alpha

CARRIER MALACHITE -- 832 AS -- Crayter's Senate has approved the deployment of the Carrier Malachite in support of the ongoing Maltese slave rebellion. Heavy casualties have been inflicted on the expeditionary force by the Dreadnought Basilica and Malta's defense grid, however the latter has since been disabled through the valiant action of liberated slaves. IMG Guildmasters are now drafting plans for orbital drops to supply or evacuate the resistance battalions, while the Crayter military prepares to tackle the hated Basilica.

[832 AS] Outcasts bloodied in Tau-37

FREEPORT 10 -- 832 AS -- The Outcasts have suffered a blow in the Taus, after months of conflict with a coalition of BHG, Crayter and IMG forces. The intense campaign was provoked by the withdrawal of most Outcasts to their homeworld in response to a massed slave uprising. The few defenders left to hold the Bermejo Cloud have been forced to retreat, after an allied assault destroyed Genoa Base. Freeport 10's Zoners have noted that the trickle of Cardamine shipments through the system seem to have now ceased altogether. An anonymous Crayter commander has declared they intend to breach Omicron Alpha and "burn the plantations to the ground."

[831 AS] Gate corps clash over 'Blackout'!

ABBEVILLE -- 831 AS -- EFL's 'Resilience Taskforce' today reported its findings on The Blackout, claiming to have gathered forensic evidence that proved the cause as Ageira negligence. A spokesperson claimed that the destruction of the Dublin Jump Gate by Molly separatists had created a hyperspace feedback loop that was propagated and amplified through the Ageira gate network.

Ageira disputed this finding in their own press release, calling EFL 'fantasists' and countering that their own scientists had narrowed the cause to a rare 'hypernova' stellar event that originated outside the Sirius sector. Both corporations claim that network-wide hardware safeguards have been implemented that would prevent a similar occurrence in the future. Independent researchers have sharply criticized the corporate announcements, accusing both of self-interested misdirection.

Professor Sophia Nagel from Heisenberg Research Station called EFL's accusation 'incoherent' and the hypernova explanation 'nonsense' that did not explain the characteristics of the 'Blackout Pulse'. Despite multiple different Pulse recordings being widely disseminated across the neural net, public efforts have so far failed to triangulate its source.

[831 AS] Jump Hole Upheaval Causes Chaos

HEISENBERG -- 831 AS -- Jump holes across Sirius have become increasingly volatile and chaotic over the last year, with Professor Sophia Nagel from the Heisenberg Research Station linking the unusual phenomena to the Pulse. The Pulse was an unprecedented blast of hyperspace energy that was detected immediately prior to last year's Jump Gate Blackout.

Professor Nagel and her team are certain the Pulse originated from outside Sirius, but are otherwise no closer to identifying its source or mitigating a future Blackout event. "Following the Blackout, we began to see immediate signs of jump hole destabilization in multiple different regions, with many ultimately falling out of phase alignment altogether", she commented. The dramatic upending of Sirius' jump hole network has already prompted many groups to abandon stations and withdraw from systems that appear to risk being cut off.

While months-long trips between the stars are possible thanks to the Liberty Engine and many centuries of innovation, few ships are designed or provisioned to make such arduous journeys. Those who were displaced by Sirius' redrawn map hope that system connections will return, while adventurers and explorers rush to discover new routes.

[831 AS] Slave uprising on Malta

JAVA STATION -- 831 AS -- A slave rebellion on Planet Malta has sent shockwaves through the region. The Independent Miners Guild quickly requested weapons, supplies, and ships to support a daring plan to smuggle arms to the embattled slaves. Within a week of the IMG's call, the Crayter Republic dispatched an expeditionary force to render aid, with support from Bounty Hunter mercenaries. The Allied force is intent on driving the Outcasts out of Tau-37, breaching Outcast defenses surrounding Planet Malta, and assisting the revolutionaries in toppling the Outcast regime.

[831 AS] Pulse phenomenon linked to Blackout

AMES RESEARCH STATION -- 831 -- Independent researchers have announced that a hyperspace pulse of unprecedented strength was detected moments before The Blackout, destroying many of the sector’s most sensitive and finely tuned observatories. Surviving data about 'The Pulse' has been widely shared across the neural net in recent days, prompting mass speculation. Professor Katsuma Oster of Ames Research Station described the signal as “astounding”. “These readings are unprecedented, as if reality itself were struck like a gong.” House authorities have remained tight lipped, refusing to share their own observatories' data.

[831 AS] 'Blackout' causes jump network failure

MANHATTAN -- 831 AS -- Two days ago Jump Gates failed simultaneously across Sirius, freezing commerce and neural net access across the sector. When communications resumed 31 hours later, the news broke of Bretonia's loss of the Dublin system. This twin shock has plunged markets into chaos, prompting fears of sector-wide economic recessions. Interspace estimates that the stoppage alone caused billions of credits in losses. Gallia immediately accused Liberty of causing the outage, claiming the destruction of Dublin's Jump Gate instigated a cascading failure in faulty Ageira infrastructure. Ageira has sharply refuted the allegation, claiming such a systemic effect would be physically impossible.


Rumors

Independent Miners Guild
  • The Outcasts use the same jumpholes we do to move around the area. They often have raiding parties waiting at the jumpholes, so we don't go anywhere without a few escorts. Our transports and freighters are small and well armed. The Houses don't like that, but it is how we stay alive out here.


  • The remains of Reunion station and the mine field still linger near the Languedoc hole, the Royals have renamed it "Cordes" now. It's best to stay clear unless you have business there. Most of the mines are still active, and can chew through your shields in seconds. Even if you make it to your escape pod, who will risk their neck to pull you out of there?


  • I hear our prospectors found another small patch of Cobalt in the Westray. The density is very low though, so mining the stuff will be slow. Still, if it is enough to keep this base running and everyone on it breathing, I'm not one to complain.


  • This system used to be the most quiet corner of Tau space. Sure, there were Outcasts here, but that's the Taus for you. But aside from the occasional scrapes with those, and a lost Gaian now and then, noone ever bothered to go here. Until the Council blew through that ruddy minefield...


  • Several Council and Gallic Navy wrecks still float among the asteroids here. There's also a few near the minefield around the Languedoc hole. If you're interested in a deep scan of Gallic ships, checking one of those out should get you what you need. Some of them might even have some equipment left on them.


  • A few days before the Gallic Navy started to pour into this system by the hundreds, a large fleet of Council transports moved through, heading to Tau-23. I'm not sure where they have gone to from there, but the convoy was massive.


  • We've detected small amounts of Cobalt and copper in the Westray field which this base is in. Nothing to write home about yet, but we're not done surveying the entire asteroid field. There might be isolated pockets worth mining. I'm sure Gallia will buy up whatever resources we can mine here.


  • The Gallic Police and Gallic Navy don't like going into the asteroid fields. I guess they have grown to rely on their big guns. Can't say I blame them, since they seem to have a lot of those, but big aren't much help asteroid fields. Suits me, us miners prefer to be left alone anyway.


  • We come across Gaians every now and then here in Orkney. I'm not sure where they are coming from, we're a long way from the Harris terraforming project. Not sure what they're doing out here either, unless they've thrown in their lot with the Gauls.


  • Dounby was originally intended as an exploration outpost from which we could survey the asteroid fields and planets in this system. That's mostly out the window now, we're still on a Gallic supply route and too close to their space. If Gallia starts to expand, Orkney is likely to be their first port of call. Besides, initial surveys didn't reveal much of use in this system anyway, aside from the resouces here in Westray.


  • Bretonia used to claim this system as part of their house. Well, I've yet to even see a single Bretonian vessel down here, aside from those belonging to the Guild. Bretonia didn't give a damn about this corner of space, a mistake they are now paying for. The Gallic Navy moved every last ship fighting on that front exclusively through here.