SDN Worlds 4 Commentary Thread IV

[Chaotic Neutral]

Have I not been clear on what our goals are?

Really, how blunt do I need to be?

[Darkevilme]

Unless i'm losing track these are the leaked messages so far:
MEH-Chamarra message partially decrypted by the Hiigarans.
MEH-Chamarra message then somehow lifted in full from Chamarran diplomatic service by Anglican space Connery.
MEH-Refuge message was leaked by the Refuge themselves i believe.
MEH communications to Tianguo and Shepistan intercepted and decrypted by the Haruhiist intelligence service.

Edit: And CN, you have been. The Trouble is your goals are to make constant references to conquest and a desire to expand while simultaneously asking for test subjects to go all Dr Mengele on.

[Steve]

I never said how MI-6 got their hands on the note, actually....

And apparently the similarity of the name "Bronson" to "Brosnan" hasn't made the likeness obvious. Oh well...

[Shroom Man 777]

To be fair, an interdimensional new nation would be of interest to the intelligence services of all countries, and with the content of MEH messages dealing with experimentations and having all sorts of very interesting words in them that might get flagged, well, it's no wonder that intelligence traffic and interceptions are hot right now.

[Chaotic Neutral]

I know, but what I don't understand is, how can they not know what my goals are when I've made them as clear as possible?

It's like their skulls are made of adamantium.

[Ryan Thunder]

I use neutronium, actually.

[Dark Hellion]

Code: Select all

Cranial Structure of Emissary Terrordrone

Composed of multiple layers of molecular-bonded titanium encased in a shell of smart carbon the Emissary Terrordrone is capable of surviving numerous small calibre rounds to the head without sustaining damage. Additionally, a small EM shield globe helps to diffuse incoming laser fire and detonate explosive rounds before they reach the skull proper.

[Kartr_Kana]

Part of the problem is you're being to blunt. There's no reason to tell people you want to conduct human experiments or go all genocidal on the Orks. Or to trumpet your leader as the most powerful being in the galaxy. IC because that's just going to make people nervous and likely cause them to contemplate a pre-emptive strike against you to nullify the threat (which the Refuge is already considering and the Hiigaran's are leaning towards.). OOC because it comes off as dick-waving wankery and general lack of thought and common sense.

[Chaotic Neutral]

If we didn't ask, how would we get prisoners then? What are we supposed to do, break into super-max prisions, and hope that we get psykers? And more than anything else, I just don't like subtlety.

Shroom: Thanks for the picture of the Chamarrans. I had this odd idea that they had tiger camouflage on their skin.

Also: Why does it need to be a "thinly disguised land grab" instead of eliminating a future threat? Why can't it be both?

[Shroom Man 777]

Your thinly disguised land grab and elimination of future threats can be an ink blot or a pretty butterfly, or both!

[PeZook]

If we didn't ask, how would we get prisoners then? What are we supposed to do, break into super-max prisions, and hope that we get psykers? And more than anything else, I just don't like subtlety.

You can mention it in confidential face-to-face talks.

As for interception, we try to do it to everybody. The success level varies, but Collectors do have a lot of processing power to throw at a problem if they think it's important enough.

And people who lack subtlety tend to get their faces smashed in in situations that call for it

[Siege]

Why do you need prisoners in the first place? Why not write up an add for Space Craigslist, offer a shit-ton of money, and have the psions fly over on their own accord for a few rounds of non-invasive tests and experiments? 'Cause, you know, I imagine that with all our tech the days you needed to vivisect some living dude's brain are long over.

Really, the way you're handling this is the most spectacularly dumb way you could've possibly gone about it.

[RogueIce]

So, am I doing something wrong, or is every single diplomatic communication intercepted and decoded?

The first three times were okay, but by the fifth it gets a little irritating.

Well part of it is likely the fact that you're new here and so people are probably sucking up anything that has you as the origin point.

With all the traffic the rest of the established nations generate we can hope to lose a little in the clutter. And perhaps others are just too polite to (generally) decrypt the messages of those they're friendly with or who they know well enough.

But messages have been intercepted before, and I imagine everyone knows that broadcasting through space is likely to have it happen at some point or another*, so any really secure or sensitive stuff is likely sent by hand through ship transit or even warp gate, if it's extremely time sensitive.

*Even if you're careful about how you broadcast, it still has to be received, and so could be picked up on the back end in theory.

[Simon_Jester]

Heh, Shroom.

Come to think of it, trying to disguise themselves as crew-cut, orderly none-of-this-librul-crap militaristicuff Shepistanis is about the best strategy the Centralist spies could come up with. They might be a little too uptight to make good Sheppoes, but they could do it better than they could impersonate, say, Umerians.

[Akhlut]

So, am I doing something wrong, or is every single diplomatic communication intercepted and decoded?

The first three times were okay, but by the fifth it gets a little irritating.

Given that your opening message was so unguarded and without restraint, you pretty much guaranteed that everyone would turn some pairs of eyes toward you and try to figure out what you wanted. Further, there are some very old alliances in place in this game, since everyone's known about each other for centuries and, in some cases, millenia; thus, some people are naturally going to share with their friends, especially when someone is so open about conquest and questionable experimentation on psykers.

Then there's the fact that once an intelligence agency does capture and decode a message, they might not keep that message so secured, given that if their enemies get a hold of it, it does them no harm and they can get a possible temporary cease-fire to gang up on the guy who is pretty much making a naked landgrab and is performing questionable experimentation on sentient beings in the open.

Quite frankly, you're going about everything in the wrong way. I don't think you should quit, and it's impossible to retcon things at this point, I think you should be able to salvage this if you put a bit more thought into how a government would operate, and not, seemingly, just type out whatever you have on your mind and then post without a bit of editing and questioning if you're doing things in a plausible manner. For instance, would a nation really be that upfront about experimentation on prisoner psykers?

Heh, Shroom.

Come to think of it, trying to disguise themselves as crew-cut, orderly none-of-this-librul-crap militaristicuff Shepistanis is about the best strategy the Centralist spies could come up with. They might be a little too uptight to make good Sheppoes, but they could do it better than they could impersonate, say, Umerians.

Well, they can't do it worse then native kipaktli.

[Simon_Jester]

Of course, conversely it's kind of difficult for human spies to pass for natives in T-Rexistan...

[Shroom Man 777]

Oh man, the Solarians are going to the BEEEF! Man, I wonder what kind of Bragulan response should be had.

[Master_Baerne]

Shroom, first a Space Ant cameo and then the inevitable WHORES WHORES WHORES? You're on a roll today.

[Beowulf]

So, am I doing something wrong, or is every single diplomatic communication intercepted and decoded?

The first three times were okay, but by the fifth it gets a little irritating.

Well part of it is likely the fact that you're new here and so people are probably sucking up anything that has you as the origin point.

With all the traffic the rest of the established nations generate we can hope to lose a little in the clutter. And perhaps others are just too polite to (generally) decrypt the messages of those they're friendly with or who they know well enough.

But messages have been intercepted before, and I imagine everyone knows that broadcasting through space is likely to have it happen at some point or another*, so any really secure or sensitive stuff is likely sent by hand through ship transit or even warp gate, if it's extremely time sensitive.

*Even if you're careful about how you broadcast, it still has to be received, and so could be picked up on the back end in theory.

Additionally, you're communicating with people who you've never communicated with before. How well encrypted can you make the message without making it impossible for the recipient to decrypt?

[Siege]

Oh man, the Solarians are going to the BEEEF! Man, I wonder what kind of Bragulan response should be had.

It's genius: either you let us in and we get a free look around Bragule (and maybe sell some big guns to bad people while we're at it!), or you don't let us in and we get easy propaganda because obviously it's all glasnot indeed! We win either way!

[Akhlut]

Does Biahwi survive? Will Kan Balam kill a shitload of people? What happens when the psykers come? Is Dr. Roxo getting enough cocaine? Find out in the next installment!

[Shroom Man 777]

But we won't hold it on Bragule! We will hold it on a Bragulan paradise, a frostbitten winter world with subzero temperatures - the perfect Bragulan vacation resort!

[Shroom Man 777]

Shroom, first a Space Ant cameo and then the inevitable WHORES WHORES WHORES? You're on a roll today.

Franco-Formic is a very catchy term too. French Ants!

[Simon_Jester]

Does Biahwi survive? Will Kan Balam kill a shitload of people? What happens when the psykers come? Is Dr. Roxo getting enough cocaine? Find out in the next installment!

Hah! Rampaging tyrannosauruses with rocket launchers! I knew it!

[Chaotic Neutral]

Quite frankly, you're going about everything in the wrong way. I don't think you should quit, and it's impossible to retcon things at this point, I think you should be able to salvage this if you put a bit more thought into how a government would operate, and not, seemingly, just type out whatever you have on your mind and then post without a bit of editing and questioning if you're doing things in a plausible manner. For instance, would a nation really be that upfront about experimentation on prisoner psykers?

That was my plan all along. I wanted my nation to be insane.