From: Esperanza
To:   New Home
Week: 12

You want Neubayern and I want New Colchis and they both have a mutual defence treaty

From: The Thatcher.

My most illustrious and British interstellar friend,

O.K.,

Let’s face it. You want Neubayern and I want New Colchis and they both have a mutual defence treaty.

I have a cunning plan.

We arrange a date to ‘VISIT’ Neubayern.

I send elements of the 3rd and 4th fleets your way & you refit them to enable them to participate in actions involving your fleet. (Payment will be made for this from military funds). Unfortunately refits will have to be swift, limited to one week operations, i.e. computers, & weapons bays*, otherwise we may forfeit the element of surprise. The refits may be completed afterwards. One element of the 3rd or 4th fleets should arrive, be refitted, & leave each week. They will muster at a pre-arranged location in deep space within one jump of Neubayern.

*The bay weapons must already have been built beforehand. It may be possible to build a few of them before the fleet arrives. 50 ton missile and particle accelerator bays are used.

At the optimum VISIT time, word should be sent to the elements gathered in deep space and the week after the Royal Navy should jump straight to Neubayern and meet with the Esperanzan elements.

I suggest we assault the main world immediately. Control of a fuel source in system is not paramount as I can arrange for fuel transports from Sturgeon’s Law.

Message will get back to New Colchis and he will send a ‘rescue fleet’ to deal with out VISITING forces, however this will take 6 weeks, and in that time another 6 elements of the 3rd and 4th fleets will have been refitted & ready to deal with him. Any remaining elements can also be brought into the battle at TL11 if casualties were high but I recommend that some elements remain at New Home and continue to be refitted in case the frenchies take advantage and attack your homeworld whilst the Royal Navy is away.

In return for aiding the Provincialisation of Neubayern, we require a simple 50-50 split of the spoils of war - Current Neubayern funds, surviving ships,etc. and a copy of any Neubayern espionage data found.

When the 4th fleet arrives back from manoeuvres in Wellington I shall immediately send them in your direction. In Week 16, send a Courier to OI-0104-CCL1ST to meet with the fleet and lead the 5th and 9th Flights of the Right Wing of the 4th fleet back to New Home.

For your information the 4th fleet consists of 260 Tebbit class 10000dt Destroyers and 30 Hessletine class 6000dt Frigates, with a couple of support craft (One of which I believe you have already met - FCOUR 0008) and the 3rd fleet comprises 120 Tebbits, 20 Hessletines, 13 Major class 75000dt Battlecruisers (PAW spinal mounts) and 5 Currie class 75000dt Battlecruisers (Meson Gun spinal mounts). In the Right Wing of the 4th fleet, the 5th Flight consists of 10 Tebbit Destroyers and the 9th Flight consists of 5 Hessletine Frigates, making a total of 130000dt of ships. I believe you can cope with 95000dt at once at the moment. Send instructions with the courier in week 16 detailing how many ships can be received in one week and whilst the 5th and 9th flights are being refitted they will organise themselves into task forces of appropriate size.

One task force will leave the deep space site every week to maintain a constant and efficient stream of ships to refit.

The Thatcher.