Last night on 100 I had a great discussion on how possibly each empire would invade and take their capital. I personally like this kind of analysis and it’s important to do this in every industry/sector from RL and even in Pixel gaming.



While crude I drew some lines on possible axis of advance by the Itani/Serco Personally I think Itani are well of strategically we have many systems for fortification of defense and resupply. Starting with how Sercos would likely to invade through grey, we have seen blockades make it to Edras on bolt sides so this is a very real possibility. Jallik will easily fall under the initial assault. But looking at how far they might go they hit a roadblock in Divinia and then Artana Aquilus! Both very developed systems militarily and economically. We would see fierce fighting there. The UIT have blocked both Itani and Serco fleets from using their space in the war so the serco supply lines will be stretched horribly thin from pirates to the greyspace hive.

Some thoughts on a Serco offensive, it’s a very long uphill battle for Sercos to take Itan through grey. So, what about overwhelming Deneb? That’s very possible as EO who reinforces Deneb’s supplies is not as developed as Divinia is. If Deneb/EO fall it will be a straight shot to Itan. However, the Itani hive is right in the way. We don’t know what might happen if the Hive is left unchecked. There are some scenarios with Itan/Valent Robotics helping in Hive R&D but it is likely that the Hive will explode and devour the entire west of Itani Space. In rapid time the Sercos don’t have the manpower to take Itan AND fend the hive off. (I won’t go into the Sercos own Hive)

Honestly if I was an Itani Admiral right now, the worst fear I would have is an experimental technology that allows the Serco fleet to jump to Itan. This is where it goes to cannon, but I really think it’s in the realm of VO this type of technology can be made my either side. It would destabilize all of VO as we know it.

Some thoughts on an Itani offensive. I personally think Itanis have their work cut out for them logistically if they wanted to overwhelm Deneb. It will take leveraging of every Itani asset on Deneb and in the nation especially in EO and the first battle will be bloody. The element of surprise needs to be our side. If Geira Falls Betheshee will fold due to its light fortifications and development. We would again be on the doorstep of Sol again. Something game changing would need to happen if Sol was to fall. Dantia needs to be taken out as it’s Sol’s only hope of reinforcing the line there. If Itani’s leveraged their massive resources/space/infrastructure, they are better suited for a two-pronged attack compared to the Sercos.

Final thoughts, Sercos invading Itan’s home world is a VERY tall order. Serco’s have their own hive to deal with. Multiple Itani points of fortifications to overrun. And fierce resistance on every planet and every system.

There are so many more ideas/cannon on how all 3 empires might react to one another it would likely fill many pages. Please share your thoughts! I know I didn’t touch on UIT’s view and Akan and a lot of it can go into cannon which is a slippery slope.

We valiantly defended I2 until our strategic retreat now the only thing the Serco have bothered to send are poorly trained recruits that can't properly calibrate their navigation systems to make it past the wormhole.

A proper invasion will never happen, the order won't allow it to last longer than a crate of tequila forgotten in a greyspace warehouse.

Heh last time pvp took place (that I know of) in I-2 serco forces were defending a single teradon it took ITAN forces 3-4 hours ONLY winning with numbers. Plus many of the secro forces weren't noobs in fact the person with the least time of playing VO in that defense was me and hell I have at least 1.5 years maybe 2.
Death it depends on if player could help with the invasion. As of right now itan/Itani will not win now if more itani players login(old vets)
Ohhh by God I'll admit they may even the playing field.i need to reread the lore but if I were leading the invasion I'd take over UIT. Iirc UIT and ITANI trade very well cutting off this trading will lead to economic downfall in itani space.
A full scale invasion between Serco and itani maybe 1-2 systems will fall but not the capital. The military powers are just about equal.

Don't forget the supposed "ring" of the outer region. After finding OR1 in Latos, I imagine all nations could be a bit more fervent in sponsoring their gravity surveyors in finding new regions to expand into. The serco can definitely be defined as "driven"; if deemed as important by SkyCommand, they'd likely have a sizeable exploratory force that would move faster than even UIT greed. Even if this road would be slow and long, it could be seen as more achievable than forcing their way through either side of the Itani nation.

...byt disregard all that, I suppose, as it hinges on the knowledge that the outer regions were likely to be "ring-like"...

@demnicat I agree with your observation that Itani's and UIT's have serious trade relations. How would UIT react if Sercos blocked all trade into Itani Space? They have made it clear that they will perceive that as an act of war. (Not sure if that's cannon or reasonable extrapolation) That in it of it's self would change the balance of power.

I would also like to think Itani's economy ranks 2nd UIT would be first and Sercos third. Combined with the vast space of Itani Space I think most things will go unhindered we would likely however suffer shortages of critical materials like Xi alloy and Hydrogen Ion Collectors CRITICAL for IHDPC production.

My view on this is that 'we' as 'vets' and experienced pilots are mere blips in the power struggle of the 2 empires. We grew up like any other civilian in every nation and so on and developed our experience over many years of battle. It is possible to look at us as major factors in the balance of power it's not outside the relm of cannon here!

@Luxen I agree it depends how these systems are shaped. We rely on WH's in the VO galaxy. I feel all 3 nations have identified WH's are weak points in their grand vision and are all working covertly to develop gateway technology. Would this technology be out of the relm of the VO galaxy? I honestly don't know as I have 0 references to how stations are built in VO.

A covert war really appears to be the most strategic to how the balance of power might shift this would entirely be all cannon sadly. And here we are at the stalemate in VO.

You with with inferior numbers because as soon as you spot one of us you rush to respond with a handful of trident otherwise you're about as capable as a plucked turkey on a cold day.

I wish we did have more concrete numbers it makes you wonder in Serco's description they do have the biggest fleet out of all three. But how much bigger is it? It's the reason why I rank UIT 1 in economy then Itani 2nd Sercos 3rd. Basic Econ 101 of the guns and butter example. Since Serco's economy is highly militarized it would be smaller in terms of prosperity for the individual people and of the state?

Since Itanis do have a smaller defense/attack force and navy hit and run tactics would appear to be the best option. I think given the pace of Itani's commercial and new generations of science might appeal more to the UIT and perhaps shift UIT more to the Itani cause?
Or we can look at it the opposite. Will Serco engineering advances appeal more to the Serco leaning factions such as Axia and Bio Com? TPG has undoubtedly benefited greatly from Itani Reactor technology we even see TPG having positive Itani relations if you check the stats on their moths.

Will the militarized Serco economy eventually fold due to the fact it's largely military based? I think prosperity makes for a solid nation to rally behind and fight back. When people are wealthy, happy, content and full it makes for any great nation. This stops short of literally comparing and contrasting the nations as it's out of the scope of the thread.

Who am I to say the militarized Serco economy doesn't benefit the Serco people also? It comes back to my Econ 101 statement of producing guns/butter the more ships(guns) you build you have to give up capacity to produce commodities(butter) I think this example can be applied to a degree even in space science fiction.

Some food for thought for anyone who reads this thread.

The Serco economy would be similar to any economy where the individual wealth of it's citizenry matters very little compared to state acquisition of natural resources. Rare ores and basic manufactured goods are likely how the Dominion pays the bills, so to speak. In that sense the potential for a larger navy supported by a smaller economy is explained. Of course this would mean that the standard of living in the Dominion would be much lower than UIT or Itani living standards. It would also imply that the Itani by attempting compete with Dominion's much larger navy is doing so at a unreasonable cost. Wars are expensive and I would hate to be an Itani paying taxes right now. Unless they are more militarized then we are being led to believe.

TL;DR
The Serco can win by dragging the war out.
The Itani can win by securing or destroying natural resources.

If SERCO are to take over uit and all trade becomes serco and none of the factions start a civil war given about 6 months serco can take itani head on. Mass capital ship Manu will be mandatory for the head on.
The only problem is if itani get word of UIT becoming serco they will put there forces through edras if serco would set up a ungodly amount of defenses to hold itani for at least 3 months the ships uit is manufacturing they can use the hold itani back which may lead to serco 's completed control over The Vo universe
ITANI side
If itani didn't have the manpower in or near Edras they would have to push for sol break the command communication. This may just turn the tides in the war. But then itani would have to block serco from uit yo keep the trade going and uninterrupted.