Wing Commander Prophecy Replay Week 1

Dundradal

Frog Blast the Vent Core!
Almost 9 months after the replay started and we've reached WCP! Congrats to all those participating!

The first two weeks of WCP I'm going to slow it down a bit because of the mission options that can open up based on your performance.

For week 1 we will only be doing the four missions in H'rekkah and in week 2 the four G'wriss. The same will go for H'hrass in week 3. I'm doing this because of the dizzying options that come up in T'lan Meth.

The great thing about WCP is we are returning to the level of branching that we first experienced in WC1.

Good luck and good hunting.
 
I'm hoping for another player or two to join this replay since we're now on the most modern Wing Commander with the exception of mods and Arena. The detail using the Zackensack(sp?) Glide wrapper AND the enhancement pack is really good. Take a look at some screen shots I took along the way for the first four missions and the intro. I uploaded videos for the first four missions to YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/davecaspermeyer

Photobucket screen shots will take some time since I'd like to get some good ones.
 

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I'm hoping so as well.

I know there are plenty of owners of WCP out there (and everybody has SO now, NO EXCUSES!). WCP is one game we haven't spent a real lot of time examining its missions and branching. I'm looking forward to seeing people exploring the different paths that can be taken.
 
WC Prophecy videos

Great job on the youtube videos, you have to tell me how you capture your missions so i can do the same, very cool.
i am waiting for the "Wing Commander Prophecy movie project"...
great job, cant wait to see next weeks mission replays.
 
Thanks! I really appreciate the comment. Doing the Wing Commander videos has been a learning experience on how to do recordings with various tools. So, to answer your question I'll begin at Wing Commander 2 and how I did those videos.

WC2 - Start the game, and then use the Fraps recording toggle. Alt-Tab out to Windows to make sure a video is being recorded. Alt-Tab back into WC to fly and complete a mission. Stop the Fraps recording, and use Virtual Dub to do editing of the unneeded frames. Compress using Xvid codec, and post to YouTube.

WC3 - Start the game using DOSBox. Enable the recording capability within DOSBox. Use Virtual Dub to again do editing and breakdown of missions into manageable segments. Again use the Xvid codec for compression and post to YouTube.

WC4 - This is where things started to go wrong, and I needed HCl's WC movie viewer. Start WC4 and enable Fraps recording for onboard cinematics. Stop Fraps recording and start again once the computer mission briefing was complete before takeoff(otherwise, it would crash the game). Fly mission and use Virtual Dub to cut out in flight cinematics(they would record corrupted with Fraps). Use HCl's WC movie viewer to extract and rip the necessary videos. Encode both with Virtual Dub Xvid codec, and post to YouTube.

WCP - Fraps fails miserably on my system due to its need for resources. Hiccups occur, and I get desperate enough to ask here for a solution. I find one myself with Growler Guncam. Tests of the program before purchase work without issues. Set up GG to use the same recording key I've always used since WC2, F11. Use GG to convert the recorded video to .avi. Use Virtual Dub for cleanup and editing of the .avi file, along with Xvid compression.

I'm hoping recording for WC1 will be basically the same as WC2, but I may have to learn slightly different procedures to get it to work well.

P.S. - Overall, for recording solutions I've purchased you're probably talking about $100. But I've gotten my money's worth for the most part from both Fraps and GG.
 
I tried recording WC1 with Dos-Box but it came back with a black screen for some reason. I don't know why.

Are you guys going to play the Prophecy Demo when you got to that part of the game as well? I think it would be a good idea.
 
Three hours to document the first two missions, but I included some parts of the intro. It feels right that fighter combat exceeds cinematics(with the exception of the first mission) for this go around.


During the reign of the Ancient Ones, Sivar appeared in a vision to the first Prophetess of Kilrah. The words were written in the Tome of Sivar. The prophecy reads, ‘There shall come a time when one who has the heart of a Kilrathi, but is not Kilrathi born, shall rain cleansing fire down upon us. And Kn’Thrak, a time of great darkness, shall embrace us.'

Near the shattered husk of the Kilrathi homeworld, a group of privateers are mining the asteroids for valuable minerals. One of the pilots in the small asteroid mining vessels picks up an unusual reading on their computer. The home vessel asks the pilots to check out the reading, and suddenly a gigantic wormhole is opened. Death itself pours forth in a veil of darkness. A massive capital ship comes out of the wormhole and blasts the home vessel to pieces with a large weapon discharge. The home vessel was able to get an SOS buoy launched from the vessel before its destruction. A considerable amount of other small ships pour forth from the wormhole.

I’m flying alongside an Academy friend on a transfer assignment to a new super carrier called the Midway. I give Maestro a little bit of an egging on him losing his touch, and he decides to return the favor by saying that he’s been ahead of me since the last jump point. Maestro kicks in the afterburners, and I follow suit. Maestro taunts me to watch and learn, and we come in for a landing approach on the Midway. They ask us to reduce speed and set our approach to the rear hangar bays. I admire the size of the Midway, but wonder if all of the bugs for a new ship of this size have been ironed out yet. Maestro tells me to relax since Confed has not seen any action in years. Maestro and I land Piranha fighters, and he is quite enthused to be here. I’m not as enthused since all we’re doing is ferrying the fighters to the Midway. Maestro says that he has the perfect thing to pass the time, and shows me some Altairian brandy. It’s not exactly a smart choice to bring contraband booze on board this ship, and I ask him how he got it. Maestro says that he borrowed it from the Consulate General’s private reserve. I ask Maestro to put it away before we get into trouble. A hard-nosed first lieutenant greets us in surprise, and Maestro drops the booze on the deck. It rolls right to her, and she introduces herself as Stiletto. She tells us that she is the acting commander of the Diamondback Squadron, and Maestro mumbles a question on how she got that assignment. She retorts by saying that she’s good enough to have earned this privilege. She then tells Maestro that the CAG would like to some him in regard to an incident with the Altairian Consulate’s daughter. Apparently, it was a very private reserve. Maestro tells me to shut up, and Stiletto says that I won’t get any slack just because my father was a famous flyer. I tell her that I’ve earned the merit of being on the Midway by my own merits. She says that pilots live or die by the flight stats here, and I point out that I did get the highest scores for any cadet of the same year in the Academy. Stiletto brings up the fact that I also had the highest amount of demerits, and that the Midway is on a make-or-break shakedown cruise. This means that she won’t have time to ‘babysit’ us. She asks us to get registered on the Midway’s system, and tells Maestro to put his contraband booze out of sight before he gets into more trouble from the CAG. Stiletto lets us do as she ordered, and I comment that it went better than I expected. Maestro thinks that underneath the gruff exterior, Stiletto liked him on first sight. I let the matter drop once I hear him wonder what ‘Stiletto’ means.


H’Rekkah 1
In the Rec room on the Midway, I overhear Maniac telling a story of how he dealt with a group of Kilrathi by himself without help from his wingman. I see the nearest table, and ask the people there if an open seat is taken. I sit down, and Hawk gets up to leave. I attempt to introduce myself, but the other pilot also gives me a cold shoulder. I accidentally knock over some glasses sitting on the table, and Maniac stops his story. He makes some comments about the smell in here, and that I’m the cause. I’m a ‘plebe’ in his eyes with my recent graduation from the Academy. He tells me to get lost and to leave the table since it is where members of the Black Widow normally sit. Maniac’s small crowd is dispersing as he’s telling me this, and he gets called away to the briefing room. He makes one more insult before departing by saying that he does not want to see me sitting at the table again. A pilot comes from his seat at the bar in the Rec room, and congratulates me on meeting Maniac and making him mad. He introduces himself as Zero, and takes his time to show me around pilot country. He points out the bar, the flight simulator(with some missions designed by Troy ‘Catscratch’ Carter), and the killboard. He shows me to my locker outside the Rec room, and also points out the flight log computer that will grant me access to the main ship systems. He does point out that the missions on the Midway will be for real instead of simulations like at flight school or in the Midway’s mission simulator. He tells me to meet him in the briefing room once I’ve learned enough familiarity with the ship and the areas of interest that he pointed out in the Rec room. I enter the briefing room, and Zero says that this is a primary focus of where Confed concentrated its money on. The briefing room is the nerve center, and I ask about the computer system used here since I don’t see any map tables around. Zero tells me that the Midway has a new ICIS system that is connected to all other computer systems on the ship. Our mission assignments will be relayed to the ICIS system by the tactical, intelligence, and science divisions. All of this information is relayed to screens on the briefing room desks with a point-and-click interface. Another pilot sitting in a chair in the briefing room says to think of it as a window to view the world if it works. Zero introduces this other pilot as Dallas, and says that he’s the resident cynic on board. Zero says that Dallas is probably already working on another letter to Senator Taggart, but Dallas says that he’s just tracking his investments. He believes that five more years at the rate he is being paid should lead to a wealthy retirement. Zero says that cash is all Dallas cares about, and he confirms that cash is where the real action is. He asks how much money Confed must have saved by building the stand-alone Midway carrier. Zero expresses his dismay that Confed has no backup to the Midway, so if it’s destroyed Confed space would be wide open for any offensive force. Zero then points out that Confed has all sorts of involvement in the economic system, and any cost for the Midway will eventually be made up by multiple revenue sources. Dallas advises Zero to not speak to Commodore Blair about the deficiencies of the Midway, and I go off on a rant about how we heard all sorts of things about Blair during our time at the Academy. I mouth off about wondering how old he is after hearing of all of his accomplishments. I then see Dallas get out of his chair and stand at attention. I realize that I’ve been overheard by one of the brass, and it is Commodore Blair himself! Blair walks up to me, and wonders if we’ve met before. I introduce myself along with my Confed registry number, and he recognizes me as the son of Iceman. Blair puts me in my place by saying that he flew with my father, and that he was a good pilot who followed orders and knew when to keep his mouth shut. The CAG steps into the briefing room, and she makes Commodore Blair stop his dressing down by just looking at him. I lament that I may have to kiss my plans of a productive career goodbye. Zero and Dallas take me to the bar in the Rec room to put out the ‘flames’. After a few minutes to recover, I head to the briefing room. Blair and the CAG are discussing something, but I can’t quite hear what they are saying. A pilot rudely bumps his way past me, and Maestro comes in to ask how things have been going. I admit that I’ve had a pretty cold reception and have managed to get on the wrong side of most of the senior staff. Maestro points out some choice chairs way up in the briefing room where I can try to avoid more scrutiny. Stiletto stops us, and says that our place is at the front portion of the briefing room. I can overhear Blair saying that most of the pilots assigned to the Midway are too green, and I ask who Blair is talking to. Maestro points out that it’s the CAG, and she’s much harder in terms of discipline than Stiletto. The CAG tells us that there has been a change of plans, and that the Midway is on full alert status. At 0400 hours, the Midway received what may have been a Kilrathi distress call. The tactical division has been trying to verify the message, but no further transmissions have been received. We’re the closest ship available to investigate, so Confed headquarters has asked us to check out the transmission source and assess the situation. The Captain of the ship comes in, and he tells us that an SWACS patrol has begun sending live data to the Midway. The Captain orders the channel of the transmission to be opened and displayed on the front screen in the briefing room. The pilots of the SWACS patrol identify a lot of wreckage and debris. They feel that at least three wings of Kilrathi fighters were lost, and only the Fralthi II ship survived a blast that destroyed multiple carrier groups. Due to no contact being available from other Kilrathi ships, the Captain has decided to make it a Marine operation to investigate the ship on the advice of Colonel Dekker. He turns the briefing back over to the CAG, and she tells me that Stiletto has recommended that I lead the Diamondback squadron for this mission due to my Academy record. The CAG points out that this is very unusual and that I am not to treat it as a training exercise. The CAG tells us to check our individual ICIS for mission details and assignments. I look over the briefing, and we’re backup for the Black Widow support of the Marine landing craft escort. We’ll escort the Marines to what is left of the Kilrathi fleet, and they’ll dock on the Fralthi II to investigate faint life signs on the ship. The Marines will also recover the ship’s data log, and we’ll escort them back to the Midway. The CAG then tells us that Commodore Blair has a few words for us. Blair points out that the Midway is not yet fully operational and that this will be the first mission for many of the pilots outside the Academy. He tells us that we’re the best Confed has to bring to bear, and to watch out for each other. The CAG dismisses us after wishing us good luck, and I thank Stiletto for this opportunity. She tells me to make sure that she does not have to come back to save me from destruction. I’m still a little shocked at getting handed this assignment, and Maestro says that it’s time to fly and prove what we’re capable of.

Just at liftoff from the hangar bay, Maniac chides us that it’s about time for our group to join him. We autopilot to the Fralthi II, and it’s a miracle that it is not in several pieces. I watch the Marines land and stay back at a long-range distance. As soon as the Marines start downloading the Fralthi II log, a group of rogue fighters come in. Maniac alerts us to their presence, Maestro correctly identifies them as NOT Kilrathi fighters, and the Marines are taking fire from the fighters. They get back on the transport and undock from the Fralthi II as quickly as possible. Maniac tells us all to engage the fighters, but I’m ahead of him. I start on a fighter with a little stinger called the Stormfire. I chew up a bit of my target’s rear armor, and he does a kickstop to make me swing past him a bit. I compensate and use short bursts of the Stormfire to continue hitting the enemy fighter. The flier of the fighter gets sloppy, and the Stormfire punches thru its shields and armor. Knowing that I have an important mission, I switch to another target as the first fighter explodes. I get on the rear of a second fighter and launch a heatseeker missile. It does minimal damage, so I let the Stormfire do its thing again. As I finish off the second fighter, I get a missile alert and drop a decoy to get it off me. Another of the fighters launches a missile directly at me. I can’t pull up or decoy it in time, but the armor of my Piranha barely held. I return a missile at the fighter, and finish it off with the Stormfire. Maniac says that he hopes we can make it back to the Midway without further help, and goes on to catch up with his patrol. We escort the Marines back to the Midway, and they thank us. I get landing clearance, and find Rachel chewing out various members of the crew to get the various ship systems working without problems. She then asks what I want, and I tell her that I’ve just landed. She tells me to use the computer to check my performance score and to go thru the elevator that leads up to a decontamination area. I find out that I have a good performance score for this mission, and head back to the Rec room after seeing Rachel deal with another ship malfunction.


H’Rekkah 2
Maestro, Zero, and myself are sitting at a table near the flight simulator and Dallas is nervously pacing. Zero asks him to sit down, and Dallas says that getting shot at was not what he was counting on. Maestro points out that getting shot at is part of the peril of being a pilot. I then chime in that we’re not certain who the enemies are yet. Zero then says he heard one of Dekker’s men say that the cats were cut up. Dallas asks for clarification, and Zero says that the bodies resembled a dissection. Hawk comes over to our table, and I get my legs off of a chair to let him sit down. Hawk tells us that the science division is working on breaking the code to the ‘black box’ Dekker and his men got from the Fralthi II. Rachel was asked to help, but she has a plethora of problems in getting the ship back online. I ask Hawk if what Zero said is true about the cats being cut up, and he says that it’s absolutely true. Dekker’s team also found a Kilrathi word spelled out with blood on the deck. Dallas asks what word the Marines found, and Hawk says it was Kn’thrak. Maestro asks what it means, and Hawk is not very good with Kilrathi. He thinks it means night, but Zero corrects him by saying that it has definitions of darkness, void, and evil. Dallas passes out on the floor after hearing that, and I hear the alert go off for us to get to our ships. Maestro smuggles the bottle out of the room, and most of us respond by getting in the closest available fighter. For this scramble, that means I’m in the Tigershark for this mission.

The Tigershark is supposed to be the evolution for the Hellcat fighter. I’ll get to see how it performs here, and the CAG comes on the communication line. She tells me that Maniac’s Black Widow squadron was ambushed while on patrol. I’m to escort the survivors of the ambush back to the Midway. The route planned on my navigation computer should help to avoid other hostile encounters. Another of the senior staff tells us that an unknown source is scanning all communication frequencies. Several of us head for Maniac’s position, and he’s relieved to see us once we’re there. I engage one of the enemy fighters, and the Tigershark guns gobble up an enemy fighter fairly easily. With a combination of lasers and mass drivers, the four guns of the Tigershark are pretty well-balanced. I go after a second fighter, and again the guns eliminate that ship. An enemy fighter attempts to take me by surprise with a missile launch, but I easily decoy it away. I take down a third fighter with guns, and another missile launch is heading my way. Again, the decoys help me to avoid the missile and I get on the rear of a fourth fighter. He just practically sits there while I pound his fighter to a pulp. As I wipe out yet another fighter, Maestro opens up the communication line to Lt. Finley. Two enemy fighters are taken down while I pursue my next target. My fighter also destroys him, and I assist in elimination of two more fighters. Maniac asks us if we were watching, and we head to the next nav point. There are no enemies here, and Finley comes on the communication line saying that analysis of the enemy communication is not giving any information on who or what we are facing. The next nav point has the same amount of enemy fighters that the first encounter did. I get after one of the fighters, and another works in tandem to shoot a missile at me. This time, the decoys don’t fool the missile and my left side armor is completely wiped out. I use one of the Tigershark’s missiles and its guns to quickly finish an enemy. I make short work of another fighter, and Maniac says that he’s almost impressed. I shoot down another fighter, and Maniac pitches in with a kill of his own. One of his wingmen is forced to eject after his ship takes too many hits. Another of the Black Widow pilots asks for assistance, so I again use a missile/gun combination to quickly take care of another fighter. I try another missile on an enemy, but it goes wide. I let loose with the guns and another fighter bites the dust. Maniac is almost impressed again, and one of the enemy fighters tries a missile launch against me. I actually enter into the decoy deployment area, and it’s enough to completely confuse the missile. I get two more of the fighters, and Maniac makes a kill as well. There are no more fighters, and I check the damage. Ouch! With one hit, my core took 20% damage. Rachel’s crew is going to be working on this fighter a bit once I bring it back. I also make a mental note that the Tigershark can’t take much damage, but it can certainly dish quite a bit out. As we return with Maniac’s group to the Midway, he asks the crew where they want our ‘stray’ Tigersharks. I make a landing in the hangar of the Midway, and again note a very good performance score for this mission.


P.S. - I don't see a reason that GBA can't be included for this replay, and the more the merrier in my opinion! :)
 
Wow, I forgot how target-rich Prophecy is! I think I'm closing in on 50 kills already.

H'rekkah 1:

Maestro and I are making our way to our new home, the TCS Midway. We've been making a race out of it to help pass the time and I have the lead as we approach our destination. The Midway doesn't impress me too much from the outside, we've heard enough about it on the news to have formed our opinions and I think I'd rather be out on one of the proven carriers. Unfortunately, that's not my choice to make so we follow the Midway's directions and land. The inside doesn't seem much better than the outside, with plenty of work still going on. Maestro thinks that his contraband brandy will help pass the time and he's probably right. That is, until a voice calls us to attention and we watch the bottle roll right towards a 1st lieutenant's feet.

She introduces herself as Jean Talvert, smirking as Maestro corrects her on his callsign. She's the acting commander of our new squadron, which means she must have a fair bit of skill to achieve that at her rank. She tells Maestro to report to the CAG about an incident on Altair that he hasn't quite filled me in on just yet before rounding on me for having a famous pilot as my father. I think my achievements stand on my own and defend myself with that until she backs off a little. She softens as says that this shakedown will make or break the Midway and she doesn't want to babysit us. Maestro thinks that she likes him as I go sign in with my own callsign, Boomer. No doubt there will be some talk about having the same callsign as the famous Christopher Blair but it's just what stuck coming out of the Academy. Maestro goes to visit the CAG, leaving me alone to introduce myself to the other pilots.

My entrance into the pilot's area could not have gone any worse. There's an old vaguely familiar-looking pilot telling war stories that I manage to interrupt three times and the first two people I introduce myself to just walk off. After that, the veteran turns around and starts hassling me calling me a Plebe. Apparently, he's a member of the more senior squadron on board, the Black Widows. Fortunately, the loudspeaker calls him off before it goes too far. Another pilot clarifies the guy's name for me, Maniac, before introducing himself as Zero. Finally, someone giving the new guy a shot. He takes me on a bit of a tour of the ship before we head into the Briefing Room. It's definitely more high-tech in here than at the Academy. He introduces me to another pilot, Dallas. Dallas is in the force for the money and planning to retire in 5 years as a wealthy. Not a bad goal in life, I think. Their discussion about the Midway reflects what I've seen in the paper, with arguments about the credits saved versus the extra risk of a single ship.

It all takes a turn for the worse when the subject turns to Blair. They must both have suddenly understand my callsign after I start off on a rant about how much we've heard about Blair and how I'm just a little sick of it. Of course, they forgot to mention that he was on the Midway and, more importantly, right behind me. I stand stock still for the inevitable chewing out. Fortunately, it's relatively light and Zero and Dallas take me for a drink to toast the end of my career.

I catch up again with Maestro as we're called into the briefing room. It seems like he's had a similar day to mine, though he's only had to deal with one pissed off senior officer. We try to retreat and hide but apparently the junior pilots sit right up the front. The next step gives us all a shock, the Midway has gone to full alert status. We've received a Kilrathi distress call that was cut-off midstream and we've been ordered to investigate the problem. The captain himself comes down to give us the view from a SWACS in the area. The wreckage of a Fralthi II would make most wartime pilots proud but now it's worrying to see such a powerful ship torn apart so easily. The captain has decided that the marines will lead an operation to dock with the remains and search for survivors and a data log. In a suprise move Stilleto has asked for me to lead the Diamondbacks, citing my academy record as a way of no doubt needling me. She certainly doesn't seem too friendly when I thank her after Commodore Blair's rah-rah speech.

Launching down the Midway's chute in a Piranha gives me a rush that all the simulations at the Academy haven't given me for a long time. It's enough to let me ignore Maniac's silly taunting as we head towards the debris field. As we sit in the debris field waiting for the marines to finish their operation I can't help but agree with Maestro's bad feeling. Just as Dekker reports finding a lot of dead cats some strange ships show up on our scanners, they don't scan as friendly and that scan is confirmed as they open fire. I order the wing to break and attack as I pull my Piranha in behind the nearest enemy. This is where I run into the Piranha's biggest weakness. I'm effortlessly avoid enemy fire but two lasers and an Ion gun isn't enough to kill anything and I'm forced to switch back and forth between the energy guns and the stormfire gun to make kills. Combine that with some well-timed missile fire and I manage to take down 4 of the 6 attacking fighters myself. One more and I'd be an ace! We return to the Midway with a successfull first mission under our belts.

I'm still a little high from adrenaline after I land so I get a little lost wondering what to do next. A very cranky old tech fills me in on how to check my stats. I hope she's in a better mood the next time we meet. Speaking of better moods, there's a very frazzled Dallas stalking around the Pilot's Lounge. He rather unreasonably expected to not get shot at during his time in the fleet. We decide not to linger on that and start discussing the rumours that have been floating around about our new enemies. The rumour that they were cut up and not just killed on the cruiser is confirmed by the senior pilot who snubbed me the other day, who also reveals another piece of information a Kilrathi word written in blood on the floor. Kn'Thrak. As Zero tells us that it means darkness or void, Dallas faints.

H'Rekkah 2:

Our conversation is interrupted by my very first real scramble. I grab my gear and rush to the launch bay to find that I've been assigned to a heavier ship, the Tigershark. The CAG fills me in as I launch. Maniac's patrol has been ambushed and we're being scrambled to assist. When we arrive at his nav point, I can understand the decision to give us heavier ships. Maniac's 4 Panthers are all damaged and facing off against a massive 13 enemy fighters. I order Stilleto and Maestro to engage and hit my afterburners to get behind the first target. Despite their numbers and strange ships, these new aliens certainly don't seem to be up to the Confederation's level of technology. The Tigershark's guns cut quickly through the enemy shields, allowing me to finish them off with the remainder of the gun capacitor and some Rockets. I received particularly high marks at the academy for accuracy with these and I'm glad to see it pay off in the real world. The 7 of us manage to take out the enemy fighters quickly enough that none of the Black Widows are lost. Our Nav course is supposed to lead us away from hostiles but instead leads us into a massive wave of 14 of them. Outnumbered 2 to 1, I have no choice but to order an attack and have the Tigersharks take the lead past the damaged Panthers. We manage to make it through the fight without and casualties and I return triumphant to the Midway. Now I'm definitely an Ace.

H'Rekkah 3:

Maestro calls me away from a conversation with a not unattractive squadron member to introduce me to a truly disgusting beverage called Boom-Boom. I've done my share of shots in my life but I still can't help but spit this one all over the place. He pours me another and asks me how rescuing Maniac felt. I'm just stretching my storytelling legs when same lady says that I sound just like him, full of adrenaline and testosterone. Maestro says that it sounds like a good combination and she slams her drink down exclaiming that it's a dangerous combination. At that, Maestro makes an escape to talk to another female pilot and I introduce myself to this new lady. She's our science officer, Aurora Finley, and her section is in charge of reading our reports and working out just what it is we're up against. I voice the suggestion that it's renegade cats, not really believing it myself, and she says they're trying to find out. The conversation ends amicably when she calls me a nice guy and says she doesn't want to see me crash and burn.

Today's mission brings mixed tidings. The Midway's primary sensors are now online, but they've detected a large enemy force between us and the Nephele jump point. Instead we're going to escape through a jump point to the G'wriss system. Alpha wing will be launched to clear one of the routes to this jump point and make sure the bad guys aren't in our way there, too. To that end, we're back in the Piranhas. Fortunately, we don't see quite the same number of enemies on this mission as it takes a while to kill them with the Piranha's weak guns. Unfortunately, we do encounter a new, heavier enemy fighter. This one packs a much bigger whallop with its guns and takes forever to kill using just guns. I end up finishing both of with a HS missile. We make the rendezvous with the Midway with plenty of time to spare.

After I land and check my scores, 99% isn't too shabby, the grumpy Chief Tech from earlier comes up to me. She apologises for her behaviour earlier and compliments me on my flying. I don't get much of a chance to say anything before I report that they've cracked the Kilrathi logs comes in and she has to go.

H'Rekkah 4:

Any chance of another conversation is cut off as the scramble alarm goes off. The CAG orders us to launch to intercept some bogies that have caught up with us as we head for the jump point. I'm in another new ship for the mission, the Wasp interceptor. I waste no time ordering my wing to attack and engaging my booster pack. Some differently coloured ships making a beeline for the Midway catch my attention and I decide to take those out first using the swarmer missiles. These missiles have some pretty impressive tracking ability as long as you keep the target in sight and are powerful enough to nearly destroy the heavier alien ships, leaving only a little bit of gunfire to finish them off. We manage to keep the enemy away from the Midway for it to reach the jump point despite the number of ships they're throwing at us. The captain recalls us to base just before the jump and I barely make it back to base on my afterburner before the Midway jumps into the G'Wriss system under heavy fire. Rachel says that my flying today would make my father proud.
 
Yippie! I'm caught up for this week for the WCP journals. WC4 is another story since I still have to journal Circe...


H’Rekkah 3
Maestro is at the bar, and asks me to come over. I break off my conversation with one of the female pilots, and he insists that I have to try a new concoction he created called Boom-Boom. I almost gag when drinking this, and spit it out. I tell him that it’s pretty disgusting, and he asks me to try another one. Maestro then asks how our new friend is doing, and for a few moments I wonder who he’s talking about. I then realize that he meant Maniac, and I tell him that his look was priceless once he realized ‘plebes’ were coming to save him. I express my thoughts that it looked like he might panic in the cockpit. A female crew member comes to sit at the bar and pour herself a drink, and says that I sound like Maniac. She expresses her amazement on how pilot ‘hotshots’ can so quickly get full of adrenaline and testosterone. She compliments me on setting a new record for cockiness, and Maestro says it sounds like a good combination to him. The woman adamantly says that it’s a dangerous mix to have. Maestro says that duty calls, and he leaves me to the mercies of Mrs. Freeze. I apologize to her, and admit that we’ve gotten off to a bad start together. She introduces herself as Science Officer Aurora Finley, and says that she read my mission report. I ask her why she’s reading a classified mission report, and she says that the reason is to find out what we’re up against. It certainly is NOT the Kilrathi since I saw the massive amounts of debris as well as the Fralthi II on my first mission. I express the possibility they are renegades of some sort, and she says that the Science Division is analyzing all available data to find out. She tells me that I look like a nice guy, and that her concern is that I might crash and burn during my assignment on the Midway. I try Maestro’s Boom-Boom drink again as she walks away, and I can’t figure out how both she and Maestro were able to swallow it with no problem. I enter the briefing room for details on my next mission, and the CAG asks us to check our ICIS. The primary sensors of the Midway are online, and a large amount of enemy contacts have positioned themselves between the Nephele jump point and us. The enemy group is on an intercept course, and will be within striking range by 0100 hours. The best escape route for us is to jump to the G’wriss system before the enemy fleet can intercept us. We’re to take a patrol to clear our escape route of hostiles and limiting options for reconnaissance and a pre-emptive strike. After eliminating all forces, we’re to rejoin the Midway at nav point 4 and must make the rendezvous by 0100 hours to make the jump with the Midway.

Upon takeoff, Stiletto tells me to stay focused since we have a job to do. At the first nav point, our computers identify the enemy fighters as Morays. I again let the power of the Stormfire lay waste to one of the Morays. Another tries to take advantage of any possible lack of awareness with a missile launch. I drop a few decoys to get it off my tail, and continue my attack against the fighters. Three more die the same way the first one did, and this zone is clear. At the next nav point are more Morays, and the first one is filled with Stormfire rounds. An enemy Moray shoots a missile, and I drop a decoy and turn on my attacker. I see the missile coming at me, and it curves off towards the decoy. I use two more decoys on missile launches, but one gets thru and hits my fighter’s rear. I’ve dusted another Moray, but realize that I need to be more careful since another hit could be dangerous. I mangle another Moray, and another pilot and I combine for a fighter kill. I’m pretty much out of Stormfire ammunition at this point, and switch to the Pirahna’s laser. At the next nav point are more of the Morays with a fighter craft I’ve not seen before. I decide to go for the bigger fighter target, and quickly realize that the lone laser will take a long time to penetrate its shields. I hit it with two heatseeker missiles, and that fighter is gone. I head after the other fighter of the same type, and take it down with a missile. An enemy missile is launched, and my Pirahna takes another hit. I get a Moray with a combination of missile and guns. I do the same on my next target, and it is eliminated. I check the damage to my fighter, and it has almost 30%. We head to the Midway without further fighter encounters. Stiletto congratulates me on my work, but I feel it needs improvement. After landing, Rachel comes over to apologize for her earlier treatment of me. She says that everything has been hell lately, and she shakes my hand. One of the other technical personnel comes up to Rachel saying that they’ve cracked the code on the Kilrathi log brought back by Dekker and his Marines. She says that this is her cue to continue her work, and she expresses her hopes that she’ll see me around again.


H’Rekkah 4
There is an immediate alert for all pilots to scramble, and I’m in a new fighter called the Wasp. I see multiple fighters coming from the rear of the Midway at very long range, but the Wasp has a bonus with a booster pack. I make sure I’m clear of the Midway before using it, and it takes a bit of time for the booster pack to be depleted. I’m still short of the enemy opposition, but my afterburners can close the remaining distance. The enemy has a small surprise when I hear them on the communication line speaking our language. Maestro thinks it was better when we did not understand them. I get in range of one of the larger fighter, and trigger a special surprise called the Swarmer missile against it. The fighter is extremely damaged, and I’m able to finish it off with a few gun blasts and one of the several Swarmer missiles that initially missed. I attempt to use another Swarmer missile attack, but am forced to evade enemy missile fire and lose the lock of the tracking Swarmers. I return to my target and pound on it with my guns. One of the Morays gets destroyed while I’m pursuing yet another of the big fighters. I lock on the fighter, and let it have it with a full Swarmer spread. It’s completely annihilated, and I change to my other missiles and start going after the Moray fighters. Another Moray dies from our group, and I blast one to bits. A Moray taunts that he’s bringing death, but I make my actions speak louder than his empty words. The Moray says that my victory over him is insignificant, but we’ll see which species survives this encounter. Zero warns me that more fighters are coming, and I see one of the larger fighters as a good target. A Swarmer launch weakens the fighter enough for me to finish it off quickly with guns. I turn on the Morays again, and another explodes in fantastic fashion. Spyder warns me to not get too cocky, and I see a nearby Moray. I use missiles and guns to end its thread, and target another of the Morays. I receive a communication from the Midway that they’re getting ready to make the jump. I use a missile against my enemy, but it goes wide. I finish that fighter with guns. Another Moray succumbs to a combination of missile and guns, and three more enemy fighters die very quickly to our defense. The Midway comes on the communication line to tell us to break off our attack and return. I’m heading back on full afterburners, and see one of the big fighters lining up for what looks to be a torpedo shot. Just a few moments before I reach the hangar bay, I receive a warning that the Midway will jump without me. I’m able to land without getting stranded, and the Midway successfully makes it thru the jump point. Rachel congratulates me on the good work I did here, and that my father would have been proud. I’m happy to have returned with an undamaged fighter for this mission.


P.S. - I'm close to 50 kills too, but I'm thinking that Lorien has a better chance to beat his 500 kills during the WC1 saga with the excessive kill count that Dundradal and I commented about earlier in a separate post.

P.S.S. - Since this is the only WC where I can choose my callsign, I picked Phoenix. It's where I live after all, and I felt it was an appropriate reversal to Iceman.
 
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