Ronneburg Base

CLASS: Meinhoff

GRAVITY: Complete

DOCKING: Yes

AMENITIES: Limited

CREW: 470

Ronneburg is the name of a Red Hessian base located near the infamous Hammen Hole in Omega-5. Functioning almost solely as a resupply and repair station, it is known among the ranks of the Hessians as "the last gate to hell".

Originally founded in 724 AS (before the beginning of the actual Hessian - Corsair conflict) Ronneburg was a base composed of a few asteroids joined together to create a strong outer crust, while still allowing for an installation to be built within. Originally, the point of this was to protect the base against collisions with other, nearby rocks. Ronneburg was to become a major staging point for Hessian raids into Omega-3 and Omega-7. The Omega-5 system, although without any clear purpose or resources, contained abnormal amounts of jump hole anomalies leading to all across southern Sirius. Such a crossroads system was immediately recognised as being extremely valuable for the purposes of launching supply raids further and further away from the Dresden system.

When the Corsairs began their all out assault on Hessian bases in 740 AS, Ronneburg was quickly established as the very frontline, and the focal point of the Hessian defence until a few years later, when the Corsair offensive had lost the initiative, and the Hessians successfully managed to push the attackers back towards their own base in the system. For the next seventy years a nigh constant string of conflicts would rage on between the two bases, obliterating men, ships and asteroids alike, slowly clearing a large empty area in-between the bases which eventually became known as the Hammen Hole. Strong defensive lines created by both sides on either side of the Hole quickly brought the war to a stalemate, as neither side was strong enough to breach each other's defences. Battles would still rage on in the middle, with both sides sending small raiding parties to distant jump holes. A careful, if not terrible, balance would be achieved at the cost of hundreds of lives lost in this drawn out war. Despite all this, Ronneburg still serves as the most important defensive point and supply base for the Hessians in the distant Omega systems, particularly for raiding parties and convoys heading to the Casablanca and Viernheim bases in Omega-48.

## News

The defenders despite being outnumbered valiantly kept the enemy occupied while Battleship Kassel got into position to ambush and critically wound the Strausberg, forcing the enemy to withdraw, and eventually scuttle the vessel, becoming a monument to Hessian control over the system. Unfortunately, the Leipzig was beyond saving, but their sacrifice will not be forgotten.
The loss of Strausberg caused riots sprung up all over Rheinland against Kaiser, demanding his resignation, which are further incited by numerous supporters to our cause. We expect a concentration of Military forces in the core systems, allowing us to pillage the border worlds all more easily as a result.

After declaring a massive 5%% increase in military spending and hurling a bunch of insults at us, we do not expect much to come out of this announcement, but as a precaution, command is issuing minor reinforcements of our most vulnerable asset: Leipzig Station. A number of fighter wings are being redeployed, including the Schalke Squadron, our latest addition to our forces, ready to show the Kaiser what they're made of!
We expect it all to be a crude attempt at increasing popular opinion without actually doing anything, but report any unusual Military movements directly to your superiors.

As Crete demanded the Zoners of Theta turn over any Hunters aboard their stations and surrender docking control, the Freeport 9 administrators were confident that some kind of compromise could be found. A delegation from Gran Canaria was requested to assist with negotiations, due to the close ties between Zoner and Corsair communities on the planet.
Tragically, the Corsairs interpreted this delay as refusal, and launched a surprise attack while the delegation was en-route. Many of Freeport 9's crew are now being held as hostages while the Corsairs pillage the station. An urgent conclave has been called on Gran Canaria to discuss the Zoner response, while militias on Pygar have taken up arms in case the violence spreads.

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.

For decades the Zoners of Freeport 9 have kept themselves safe from Corsair reprisals by offering useful services, with their biodomes providing Crete with respite from the famines that once ravished it. Despite this, outrage has swept Omicron Gamma after a flight of Hunters killed Commander Juan Garcia, before retreating back to the No Fire Zones of Omicron Theta.
The Council of Elders have ordered the administrator of Freeport 9 to attend Planet Crete to hear their demands. Elder Garcia has vowed that the station's halls would "run red with blood" unless the Zoners turned over all BHG aboard the Freeport. The Zoners are yet to respond, likely trying to anticipate how the Corsairs will react.

The Corsairs see the Pygar colony as a direct competitor for the region's scarce resources, with Elder Garcia warning that there would be "dire consequences" should Freeport 9's biodomes reduce or divert their exports to Planet Crete. Whispers of alien ruins and Artifacts discovered below Pygar's surface may also antagonize the Corsairs, who rely on the Artifact trade as a source of wealth. The hardship of Pygar's extreme conditions and the uneasy relationship with the Corsairs has already led many colonists to consider a return to the now liberated Gran Canaria.

## Rumors

* This is where Daumann and Kruger are coming, so this is where we must be. I don't think it's worth it. The Hammen Hole is where Hessians and Corsairs have staged their largest battles. Out there you'll find good salvage -- if you don't become salvage yourself.

* The Corsairs have better ships and many of them are better pilots than your average Red Hessian. Usually a Corsair will win one on one, but we have numbers on our side. I am confident of victory; it is just a matter of wearing them down. Besides, I've lived long enough to learn how to kill Corsairs on my own.

* The Omega-3 Jump Hole is where you'll find the action these days in our war against the Corsairs. Both sides run patrols there. We lie in wait so if any Corsair ships come through we can hit them. Funny -- the Corsairs do the same thing.

* Everything that we need at this base comes from Darmstadt, Freital, or Freistadt. Not just basic supplies, but Side Arms and Engine Components, too. This base is a military operation, so other Hessian bases funnel supplies here.

* I used to loathe Daumann more than any other, but that's changed. I hate the Corsairs as much as I could hate any. Of the forty pilots who came here as part of the Red Hessian Twilight Squadron in 797 AS, there are four of us left.

* This system is an important one for the Hessians; it has Jump Holes that lead to Cambridge, Omega-3, Omega-7, Omega-11, and Omicron Theta. That's a lot of traffic we can raid, and that's why it can't fall to the Corsairs; if they gain control we will be able to expand no further.

* The Hessians in Vogtland will tell you that we are chasing Daumann and Kruger operations here to Omega-5; it seems to me that it's the other way around. We came here originally to build a new main base of operations. Now we are entrenched in a bitter battle.

* I have a friend who is stealing Diamonds in Omega-11. The greedy swine was supposed to come here with me to help win the war against the Corsairs. He said he didn't want to die poor and unimportant. Unimportant indeed -- I have fought my way to squadron leader.

* Omega-5 is the site of a full scale war between the Corsairs and Hessians. The two factions are vying for control of this critical Jump Hole crossroads in the Omega Sector. Within the area of the no-man's-land and the Hammen Hole are numerous dead ships from both sides. Most are picked clean, but there are some that may still yield some weapons.

*NOTE: Page generated on the 28/10/2023 at 17:59:45 UTC*