The Broken Gates

[Macavity116]

The AI is probably just being weird though.

Knowing PDX games, this is almost certainly the case.

In my CK2 games, Norway's capital more often than expected floats to the Islands

That's an interesting quirk. Maybe Norwegian politics is so cutthroat that the King just hides out offshore to preserve his own life.

While Dermot has a n/a pact with England, it does not prevent English vassals from waging war against him. King William can even wage war against the High Irish King for Maudhnait's claim to Ulster. Oh, what a fun place to play even without the Stellaris by-play.

This detail right here has been hard for me to wrap my head around. In Stellaris, Vassals cannot independently make war on a foreign target. The first time I saw it happen in CK3 I was very confused. Took me quite a while to understand this was an intentional gameplay mechanic and not a bug.

I remember some complaints around the time of Stellaris launch about why didn't the game have a Civ style "Cultural victory". Then the AARs started and it was immediately obvious why that was the case.

Back in version 1.0 of Stellaris, the only victory condition was "Control 40% of all Inhabited Planets." The obvious solution, the only way to win, was to drastically reduce the Galaxy's population to just yourself. Luckily, Stellaris provides the player with a surprisingly vast number of ways to "remove excess population."

Calling Stellaris a "Futuristic Genocide Simulator" is an understatement.

To be fair, the Olinbari have probably got the most "El Pip" friendly characteristics of any Stellaris content, being Stellaris' take on the concept of Space Romans

In that case, I'll predict that Chapter 5 or 6 might be the points of this story @El Pip takes an interest in.

---

I am amazed to see so much interest in this new story. The thread has reached 4 pages and the Prologue still isn't up! (It's coming tomorrow, folks. Be ready!)

Thank you all for your time and engagement. As always, I have no real expectations for this project, I'm just out here to tell a story and have fun along the way.

See you tomorrow for the Prologue!

 

[CBR JGWRR]

"El Pip friendliness" is a relative term of course.

 

[Chac1]

The fact this means absolutely nothing to me does not bode well for me following the story.

This is an interesting by-product of the forums. The readers can signal the author how much context needs to be provided. These @Macavity116 stories are deep with information from the universe he has built in other stories but he usually finds a way to keep folks who are new to his work in the fold. That's what I found out in the last story, Song of the Solitaire. But that's also a note to the authAAR that a new audience is here. Explanations will be needed.

To be fair, the Olinbari have probably got the most "El Pip" friendly characteristics of any Stellaris content, being Stellaris' take on the concept of Space Romans, although a lot of the details are left to the player to fill the blanks with, and there's also been quite a few centuries since their Roman origins between then and the Stellaris start date, and quite a few millennia between that and Song Of The Solitaire and The Broken Gates.

And here's an example. As someone who doesn't play Stellaris, I had no idea the Olinbari are supposed to be Space Romans. That doesn't come across in Song of the Solitaire, as @CBR JGWRR says, likely because so many millennia have passed.

This detail right here has been hard for me to wrap my head around. In Stellaris, Vassals cannot independently make war on a foreign target. The first time I saw it happen in CK3 I was very confused. Took me quite a while to understand this was an intentional gameplay mechanic and not a bug.

This speaks to the independence of vassals during certain historic periods and the way governments were more loosely organized. Even today, if a terrorist or criminal group strikes a target and they are from a certain country, is the government of that country responsible? Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, no.

As for gameplay, this is one of the aspects of the game that I personally like. Let your vassals gobble up the borderlands to expand your empire while you are held blameless as the ruler of the country that gets to expand.

I am amazed to see so much interest in this new story. The thread has reached 4 pages and the Prologue still isn't up! (It's coming tomorrow, folks. Be ready!)

Take a bow. Speaks to how folks value your writing. Also, as you have noted, some of these sub-forums are more active than others.

 

[The Kingmaker]

@Macavity116: What @Chac1 said. We know it’s going to be a compelling story and we’re excited to see what you’ve come up with!

 

[CBR JGWRR]

This speaks to the independence of vassals during certain historic periods and the way governments were more loosely organized. Even today, if a terrorist or criminal group strikes a target and they are from a certain country, is the government of that country responsible? Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, no.

Yeah, CK works with the feudal system, where - simplistically described - it is a matter of contractual obligations and personal loyalty; from your people to you, you to your liege and them to their liege up to the king or queen. Nation states as we know them today were largely a forgotten concept in the western world that provides the fundamental context for CK.

As Stellaris has a much more comparable rate of travel to CK than it does to conventional faster-than-light sci-fi, CK style vassal mechanics are perhaps a better representation of the actual authority a central ruling state is actually able to impose than Stellaris' conception of vassalisation, but that is a very separate discussion.

 

[Macavity116]

Okay, we've finally made it! It blows my mind that we could get all the way to page five before the story actually starts. One more time, thank you all for showing your interest. I hope this short introduction gives you a taste of what's to come.

Our protagonists, Aisling and Dermot, do not appear in this chapter. Instead, I will be setting up one of the major elements of "The Battle of Ulster Castle," the primary combat scene I'm planning to depict in this story. Aisling and Dermot will make their first appearance in Chapter 1. Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy!

---

Welcome to Last Days of the Emerald Isle! Thank you for showing so much interest at such an early stage!

Next (Chapter 1: Friend of the Fairy Fort) ===>​

Prologue
The Arrival


Ostium Megalith, the Luminous Frontier
Stardate 9977.08.15 (Local calendar) ​

Lieutenant Nonus Arcavius closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He knew the next few minutes would redefine his life, be it for good or ill. He gathered his thoughts, and then turned up the volume on his radio while a voice began to speak.

“Attention all units, this is Prefect Ravilla. The operation is a go. Advance through the Gate and take defensive positions at your assigned limit of advance. You are authorized to go weapons free at this time. Good luck!”

From the passenger seat of his Light Attack Vehicle, Lieutenant Acravius turned to his driver and said:

“Move out.”

A great noise filled the Ostium Megalith, a planetoid-sized space station located in the outer limits of the Luminous Frontier. The noise came from nearly one hundred military vehicles as they powered up their engines and began to drive along a specially marked pathway.

The convoy moved across a wide-open space, advancing toward a glimmering metal archway that stood in the center of the staging area. The arch itself was nearly two-hundred meters tall and just as wide. Both of its legs were planted firmly into a rocky surface of clay and silicate.

The arch had been built on the surface of an asteroid. The gargantuan Ostium space station was built around the asteroid.

But Lieutenant Arcavius was not interested in the arch, or even the asteroid it was built on. Just like the other military men and women now driving toward the arch, he could not take his eyes off the thing inside of the arch.

In the space just under the arch, a shimmering, rippling band of light hovered in midair. Deep crimson light radiated out and away from the ribbon, giving it the appearance of a bloody wound in the fabric of the universe.

This is an Astral Rift, a tear in the fabric of spacetime… through which alternate realities and parallel universes may be accessed.

The first platoon of Armored Assault Vehicles rolled forward and passed through the Gate. Lieutenant Arcavius held his breath as the tanks in front of his own LAV vanished into the dancing curtain of red light.

“Here we go.” Arcavius breathed.

From the autocannon turret, a female voice called out:

“Hey Heartbreaker, what are you gonna do if there’s no women on the other side?”

Sergeant Vipsania Avita, a petite soldier, had to shout to make herself heard over the engine noise.

“It wouldn’t be natural.” Arcavius replied. “I’d tell the Board of Directors to close the Gate and forget about it.”

“Standby for Astral Plane-shift!” the driver called out. “In three, two, one…

---

Kinsale Forest, Duchy of Munster
28th of June, 1116 (Local calendar)

​

The actual moment of transition felt sickening. Arcavius felt nauseous as his body suddenly appeared in a world where the atmosphere composition, air pressure, and local gravity were all slightly different from what he left behind. But there was no time to recover.

“Contact front!” Sergeant Avita yelled from the turret.

Daylight hit the LAV, and so did something large and muscular. A four-legged animal crashed into the LAV, while its rider jammed a long spear into the wheel well.

“What was that!?” The driver shouted.

“We’re under attack!” Sergeant Avita screamed from the turret. “Returning fire!”

The LAV’s autocannon thundered into action, spraying tungsten rounds into the mob. At the same time, all of the other military vehicles did the same. Armored Assault Vehicles tore into the foe with their much heavier rotary guns. Railgun tanks, unable to use their primary weapons, maneuvered around the battlespace, crushing some of the bipedal primitives under their treads.

Lieutenant Arcavius unholstered his Gauss pistol and turned to look out the side window. It was his first look outside, his first introduction to this new world: The convoy had arrived on a rocky hilltop, surrounded by a forest… and they were not alone.

Hundreds of bipedal aliens were swarming the site. They wore primitive armor made of chainmail and plate metal, while wielding equally primitive blades and blunt weapons. Flags and banners waved frantically around the scene as colorfully-decorated leaders attempted to direct the mob.

The primitives were clearly part of an organized military force, but the last twenty seconds or so had utterly destroyed any semblance of cohesion. Dozens of primitives were slaughtered each second as the convoy retaliated, and the dead were quickly beginning to pile up while the remainder panicked. Many chose to flee, while a few tried to continue fighting. They struck at vehicles using swords, spears, clubs, axes, and even daggers. This did no noteworthy damage. In return, each of these fighters was quickly gunned down.

A voice sounded from the back of the vehicle. It belonged to Sergeant Paulus Valgus, second-in-command of Arcavius’ team.

“Sensors AI confirms, this is the same primitive military force the other recon team spotted four days ago. They must have occupied the hilltop. They were waiting for us!”

“And now they’re leaving it!” Avita announced from the turret.

After ninety seconds of furious combat, the primitive army was nearly destroyed. Survivors fled in all directions, and once it was clear that enemy was routing, the order to cease fire was given.

By this point, the majority of the military convoy was now through the gate and onto the hilltop. The local field commander, Prefect Ravilla, took command and gave orders for a headquarters to be established. While his forces began to dig in and secure a beachhead, a small fleet of drones took to the skies, fanning out to search the area for settlements and resources.

Inside of his LAV, Lieutenant Arcavius put his gauss pistol on safe and returned it to the holster.

“Now that’s a first impression you’ll never forget.” He said.

“Oh, hell yeah!” Avita cheered from the turret. “I killed, like, thirty primitives!”

From the back, Sergeant Valgus said:

“This will be an incredible mission, my friends. One for the books.”

“You got that right.” Arcavius replied, opening a dashboard compartment and producing a handheld hologram communicator.

The device was very old, a relic of a time long since passed. But with a little luck, Arcavius might just get to participate in a marvelous process that had not happened in almost two hundred years.

Arcavius activated the hologram emitter. A three dimensional image appeared in midair, depicting a blue-skinned man dressed in a magnificent gold trimmed outfit. He held his arms out in a friendly gesture and began to speak. He said the same thing three times, first in the mother tongue of Olinbar, then the Sutharian language, and repeating himself one last time in Nagyari.

“Congratulations. Your civilization has been selected. Enlightenment may not be free, but at MSI, it’s always worth the cost.”

For the first time in living memory, the interstellar megacorporation known as Minamar Specialized Industries was going to carry out its primary mission:

The technological uplift and societal enlightenment of primitive people.

---

Chosenpai: Is that Astral Rift one of the Rifts you depicted in Song of the Solitaire?

Macavity116: Kind of. Near the end of the story, I did say MSI was planning to go through a Rift and start uplifting primitives again.

Chosenpai: Also, that Vipsania girl is coming across as really messed up.

Macavity116: That’s on me. I’ve never written a sadist before, so I’m leaning really hard on stereotypes for now.

Chosenpai: Is she a sexual sadist? I can work with that. ( ಠ‿<)

Macavity116: For the love of Jericho, can you NOT think about writing romance and smut for thirty seconds!?

Chosenpai: No.

Macavity116: At least you’re honest.

Chosenpai: (─‿‿─) ♡

Macavity116: Any other notes?

Chosenpai: Spelling error on page 3. Its “nauseous” not “nauseous.”

Chosenpai: Repetition during the battle scene. You used the word “were” twenty-nine times. Find some synonyms.

Chosenpai: Also, a continuity error on pages 2 and 4. You need to specify exactly where in the LAV Paulus is sitting, because you made him both the driver and sensor operator.

Macavity116: Found and fixed all. Thanks.

Next (Chapter 1: Friend of the Fairy Fort) ===>​

​

 

[CBR JGWRR]

Uplifting through superior firepower. Sounds very MSI.

 

[jak7139]

Very interesting. I have no idea who the MSI is, but I'm sure I'll soon find out. However they define "enlightenment" can't be good for the Irish (or any humans).

 

[The Kingmaker]

Are any of these interstellar invaders of human descent? If so, might it not be potentially hazardous to the stability of the space-time continuum to start randomly killing people of the past? What is their connection (if any) to the Sidhe?

 

[El Pip]

The technological uplift and societal enlightenment of primitive people.

These euphemisms for slavery and genocide just get ever more elaborate don't they?

 

[Macavity116]

Uplifting through superior firepower. Sounds very MSI.

After everything I put them through in the previous installment, fire superiority has become MSI's go-to answer in a crisis.

Very interesting. I have no idea who the MSI is, but I'm sure I'll soon find out. However they define "enlightenment" can't be good for the Irish (or any humans).

Minamar Specialized Industries, or MSI for short, is a Galaxy-spanning megacorporation added to Stellaris during the First Contact DLC released last year. They seek out young civilizations and sell them the knowledge and technology needed to become a spacefaring society. Normally, MSI will extract a catastrophically steep price for the privilege of being uplifted. The typical result is these client civilizations become dependent on MSI just to function and are reduced to vassal-states, subservient to MSI.

You can learn MSI's story in the First Contact DLC trailer on Paradox's youtube channel. (Below)

Are any of these interstellar invaders of human descent? If so, might it not be potentially hazardous to the stability of the space-time continuum to start randomly killing people of the past? What is their connection (if any) to the Sidhe?

The answer here is complicated.

In terms of the Blue-skinned MSI invaders being of Human descent? Technically, yes they are, with a lot of asterisks. In the previous installment, Song of the Solitaire, it was revealed that the Olinbar (the blue-skinned people of MSI) are the result of interbreeding between Humanity and two (possibly three) other spacefaring species. It was also revealed that my version of the Olinbar and MSI came into existence approximately 250,000 years after the days of Humankind, and the two species never overlapped.

The MSI invaders depicted in the prologue are the same ones who appeared in my previous Stellaris story, Song of the Solitaire. They are inhabitants of a greater Universe I have been building on the Stellaris AAR forums for the better part of 6 years now. Time travel is actually a very important element in the Stormbreaker Universe as a whole, which is why I (the author) have placed very strict rules on time travel. That's why I tired to make it clear in the prologue that MSI is invading an "alternate reality" and not going back in time, because it's not possible.

They can jump forward in time, absolutely. They can even reach the "end of the universe" and loop around to the beginning.

But going directly backwards in time? Absolutely not.



Fortunately, I intend for this story to be a Standalone Sequel to Song of the Solitaire, which means very few of these details will be relevant to the plot going forward. My hope is to present information in a way that makes it easy for new readers to follow along without needing to double-back to Song of the Solitaire.

 

[Macavity116]

These euphemisms for slavery and genocide just get ever more elaborate don't they?

Ha! You must have slipped through as I was posting.

And yeah, MSI's variation on slavery and genocide is the most tame iteration of what Stellaris Megacorporations are capable of.

 

[CBR JGWRR]

What is their connection (if any) to the Sidhe?

No direct connection, but I'm kind of expecting the Sidhe are going to comply with the established rules of Psionics @Macavity116 has set up for the Stormbreakers/Song Of The Solitaire, and if so, there is a list of space-magic powers here.

He may of course decide different Astral Rifts have different rules of course.

 

[Midnite Duke]

What does primitive earthlings have that they can even pay to MSI as extortion? Would it not be easier to just eliminate the primitives and extract whatever that they want? MSI is like a combined Mongol/Aztec invasion to a factor of a gazillion. Thank you

 

[The Kingmaker]

So because it's an alternate timeline, they aren't potentially killing their own ancestors, just the potential ancestors of their own alternate selves.

What's their motivation for invading the past of an alternate timeline/dimension?

 

[El Pip]

What does primitive earthlings have that they can even pay to MSI as extortion?

I would expect most survivors to be worked to death as slaves in the mines. Or perhaps used as raw material in make cyborg drones. Certainly some kind of awful crime against sentience, this is Stellaris after all.

 

[El Pip]

What's their motivation for invading the past of an alternate timeline/dimension?

Easier to take slaves when they can't shoot back.

 

[Macavity116]

What does primitive earthlings have that they can even pay to MSI as extortion?

There's quite a lot that MSI could be interested in. Resources that the primitive earthlings simply don't know about.

If you don't know it's there, it doesn't exist. What harm is there in granting mining rights to these visitors? They said they don't want the gold or iron. They want the minerals and alloys we're not using ourselves.

So because it's an alternate timeline, they aren't potentially killing their own ancestors, just the potential ancestors of their own alternate selves.

My friend, be grateful you were never subjected to the absolute insanity that was my earlier Stellaris stories. Back when the Stormbreaker series was at its apex, Akira Robinson killed off at least 100 alternate versions of herself. Time travel is restricted in my greater shared Universe because the timeline is already very badly mangled. Escaping to the alternate reality of Last Days of the Emerald Isle is practically a vacation for me. Speaking of:

What's their motivation for invading the past of an alternate timeline/dimension?

It's a blink-and-you'll miss it detail in Song of the Solitaire: I had to suddenly change my most recent Stellaris AAR after Paradox released a DLC called "Astral Planes." In the new DLC, interstellar empires gained the ability to travel through rips and tears in the fabric of spacetime to visit alternate realities and parallel dimensions. In the Epilogue of Song of the Solitaire, I stated that MSI was planning to go through their first-ever Astral Rift right as the story was ending.

And by a combination of luck, happenstance and the actions of a currently missing-in-action villain, that first-ever Astral Rift lead MSI to the southern shore of Alternate Ireland, where we are now.

I would expect most survivors to be worked to death as slaves in the mines. Or perhaps used as raw material in [making] cyborg drones. Certainly some kind of awful crime against sentience, this is Stellaris after all.

I mean... you're not wrong.

 

[CBR JGWRR]

What does primitive earthlings have that they can even pay to MSI as extortion? Would it not be easier to just eliminate the primitives and extract whatever that they want? MSI is like a combined Mongol/Aztec invasion to a factor of a gazillion. Thank you

Quite a lot:

1. Said primitive earthlings as Indentured Assets in the immediate
2. Retail market for obsolete and trivial to produce and process resources and artefacts of limited or no value in the galactic community but are the stuff for which primitives go to war over
3. Retail of theoretical data for obsolete technologies on finance over centuries
4. retail of advanced technological assets beyond current Enlightenment stage also on finance over centuries
5. Callout fees for maintenance and repair of said assets, also on finance over centuries
6. Consultancy fees
7. Commercialisation of cultural and social institutions
8. Intellectual property and assets belonging to said primitives
9. Retail of financial instruments, derivatives products and speculative investments to other members of the galactic community based on the primitives
10. Social research from study of the primitives
11. Acquisition of advanced resources that the primitives are not aware of true value thereof
12. Other even more evil uses of the primitives, such as using them for livestock, medical or "medical" experiments, computational substrate, as heavy labourers and for sexual slavery

Plenty of opportunities for profit from Enlightenment of primitives.

 

[Macavity116]

@CBR JGWRR created the definitive portrayal of MSI on the Stellaris AAR forums. (Life2.0 - A Broken Shackles Narrative) He knows whereof he speaks.