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[Arioch]

Hey, I'm back. Is Umiak the plural of Umiak, I forget.

Welcome back. And yes.

[JeroOfBaconGrease]

Hi Arioch, love the enigmatic silence.

[Karst45]

I mean they can influence our dreams

hmm interresting point. but the question should be: do the lotai (mask/psychick *wink wink* shield) become less effective when we sleep? Is it innate; they cant just read our mind pattern (had a D&D game were goblin were immune to mind affecting spell. how can you affect something that dont exist

The other possibility is that it an active (thus shall not read!) or passive ability we dont require concentration to maintain.

[CaptainChaos]

Hey Arioch, first off let me say you've got a webcomic and I'd gladly follow it for another 10 years! Anyhow, I was reading the prior posts in this tread and I was wondering are the Lolori still trying to mind scan Alex (when he walks by in the hall, while he's asleep?) or have they just accepted that he's immune to mind probes and stopped trying?

[Arioch]

The first rule of Lotai Club is: You do not talk about Lotai Club.

These are questions that Alex doesn't know the answer to, so it's not really appropriate for me to discuss them now. They are addressed, to a certain degree, in the forthcoming pages of the current chapter.

[Voitan]

If a Loroi touches him without any context, or reason to do so, she's probably trying to probe him.

[Imbrooge]

If they do that then it's obvious that they can't probe his mind well, if at all, from a distance. Also, something tells me that the singing is going to kickstart some interesting things this chapter.

EDIT: My money is on Cloud whats-her-name being the one trying to wake Alex up.

[Michael]

Beryl or an unnamed character im thinking

[JeroOfBaconGrease]

I'm pretty sure it's Beryl, she seems to have become something of a liaison of sorts. And since she did refer to him as Captain when they left the bridge, I don't see the Beryl doesn't call Alex captain argument holding water. I wonder if we'll be seeing more of her inscrutable sense of humor.

[Grayhome]

Of course it's Beryl! The Loroi need to record every second of this contact so they can invent an excuse to invade Terran space later. Obviously.

[Durabys]

Of course it's Beryl they need to record every second of this contact so they can invent an excuse to invade Terran space later. Obviously.

One small error in your theory. At this moment the message/info package of a First Contact with the Terrans is probably "just" reaching the Loroi inner colonies - perhaps not even the Homeworlds.

It may take days before even a preliminary political/dimplomatic message response is send to the Tempest Group.

Weeks before an Intel team will be detached to the Tempest to properly debrief the Terran *I anxiously await watching the following fireworks when an Intel gal tells Fireblade that her mind probing was "inadequate". *.

The Loroi won't invade someone out of the blue - at least not immediately in a span of months - they will have to make logistical preparations, ground forces and ect. also somehow account for the fact that humans are "nils" on the psionic side of things will hinder and slow down any preparations and so some of the more hard-line naval chiefs of staff may therefore want to glass us from orbit immediately *just to get rid of the future frustrations and headaches of hunting down Terran ships - with psi-invisible occupants* ... which will in turn create a flame war of epic proportions with the side/group of officers that promote caution and when we count in the Loroi "sincere" *at least to their own kin* nature we can count on battle-chalanges being thrown around not long after that, which will prompt the Loroi ruler to shout to shut them up.

Simply, they will want to analyse this situation to hell and back and then it is still the Empress Regnants decissions that carries the day.

[Grayhome]

The Loroi won't invade someone out of the blue

Yes. Yes they will. Absolutely they will. The Loroi are a militaristic, arrogant society that has managed to make the entire galaxy their enemy. Invading without planning is what they did to the Morat, it is what they did to the Tithric and it is what they will do to the Terrans. Arrogance is like that and the Loroi will continue to make the same mistakes over and over again until they lose the war or until that arrogance changes.

The society the Loroi have seems to be a cross between Nazi Germany, Communist Russia, and the Sith empire. I do not expect an intelligent decision out of the Loroi, especially after we have witnessed Stillstorm's inept handling of first contact with Humanity. She tortured the frigging ambassador to a neutral power she met all of five minutes ago and knows nothing about in a time of war when her nation is losing said war. Badly. The Loroi need every ally they can get, but they do not seem willing offer anything to would be allies other than the old "serve us and you get to live" reward that tyrannies like to hand out as payment for enslaving smaller and weaker nations.

[GeoModder]

The Loroi won't invade someone out of the blue

Yes. yes they will. Absolutely they will. The Loroi are a militaristic, stupid society that has managed to make the entire galaxy their enemy. Invading without planning is what they did to the Morat, it is what they did to the Tithric and it is what they will do to the Terrans. Arrogance is like that and the Loroi will continue to make the same mistakes over and over again until they lose the war or until that arrogance changes.

It's hard to plan an invasion when you're reacting to the deployments of a superior force.
If they hadn't counter-attacked through Morat -and Tithric territories, they likely would have been defeated by the time the Outsider story began.

[Grayhome]

It's hard to plan an invasion when you're reacting to the deployments of a superior force.
If they hadn't counter-attacked through Morat -and Tithric territories, they likely would have been defeated by the time the Outsider story began.

And had the Loroi been clever enough to make the Morat and the Tithric into allies they would have won by the time the Outsider story began. The Loroi are not asking for friendship from their neighbors, they are demanding slaves. That has a tendency to provoke a negative reaction in a neutral nation, especially when they note that the Loroi have been losing the war for 25 years. BADLY.

[Mjolnir]

And had the Loroi been clever enough to make the Morat and the Tithric into allies they would have won by the time the Outsider story began. The Loroi are not asking for friendship from their neighbors, they are demanding slaves.

The other members of the Loroi Union are not slaves. The Golim are the closest to such a thing, but not through any deliberate action by the Loroi, and the Loroi have actually taken steps to maintain a Golim population not influenced by Loroi telepathy...not really in character for your arrogant bloodthirsty slavers. It sounds like the Morat sided with the Umiak only when it looked like they were about to win the war (which would in fact have happened if the Historians hadn't intervened), and the Loroi actually tried a diplomatic approach with the Tithric first, but the Tithric government stalled while apparently aiding the Umiak, who were performing mass exterminations of Loroi on captured colony worlds. They aren't perfect neighbors, but your description of them seems wildly inaccurate.

That has a tendency to provoke a negative reaction in a neutral nation, especially when they note that the Loroi have been losing the war for 25 years. BADLY.

They've been at a stalemate overall, with some losses and some gains. Things don't look good, but if they were losing badly, they wouldn't still be around after 25 years. "Losing badly" isn't something you can sustain for decades.

[Michael]

It's hard to plan an invasion when you're reacting to the deployments of a superior force.
If they hadn't counter-attacked through Morat -and Tithric territories, they likely would have been defeated by the time the Outsider story began.

And had the Loroi been clever enough to make the Morat and the Tithric into allies they would have won by the time the Outsider story began. The Loroi are not asking for friendship from their neighbors, they are demanding slaves. That has a tendency to provoke a negative reaction in a neutral nation, especially when they note that the Loroi have been losing the war for 25 years. BADLY.

Both outcomes involve the story ending before it begins. This makes for a very boring story, therefore both arguments are null and void....big smiles all round

[GeoModder]

And had the Loroi been clever enough to make the Morat and the Tithric into allies they would have won by the time the Outsider story began. The Loroi are not asking for friendship from their neighbors, they are demanding slaves.

The other members of the Loroi Union are not slaves. The Golim are the closest to such a thing, but not through any deliberate action by the Loroi, and the Loroi have actually taken steps to maintain a Golim population not influenced by Loroi telepathy...not really in character for your arrogant bloodthirsty slavers. It sounds like the Morat sided with the Umiak only when it looked like they were about to win the war (which would in fact have happened if the Historians hadn't intervened), and the Loroi actually tried a diplomatic approach with the Tithric first, but the Tithric government stalled while apparently aiding the Umiak, who were performing mass exterminations of Loroi on captured colony worlds. They aren't perfect neighbors, but your description of them seems wildly inaccurate.

What Mjolnir says.

They've been at a stalemate overall, with some losses and some gains. Things don't look good, but if they were losing badly, they wouldn't still be around after 25 years. "Losing badly" isn't something you can sustain for decades.

If I interpreted the little maps in history of the war section correctly, Azimol is a former Morat system. Wonder if that means the Loroi now have an extensive occupied Morat population in their empire.
Also, question on the star colors on those maps: Arioch, do those colors more or less depict the spectrum of those stars? If so, it looks like Donsil and Eiren Sipis are OB stars.

[Trantor]

The society the Loroi have seems to be a cross between Nazi Germany, Communist Russia, and the Sith empire.

Sounds pretty much like the current US of A. scnr.

I do not expect an intelligent decision out of the Loroi, especially after we have witnessed Stillstorm's inept handling of first contact with Humanity. She tortured the frigging ambassador to a neutral power she met all of five minutes ago and knows nothing about in a time of war when her nation is losing said war.

Hm. I more or less agree with you that about how the Loroi would handle us in general; maybe not as slaves, but surely we would be nothing more than wards.
But i wouldn´t go so far and blame Stillstorm for what she did - it is war after all, and she had her reasons.

The Loroi need every ally they can get, but they do not seem willing offer anything to would be allies other than the old "serve us and you get to live" reward that tyrannies like to hand out as payment for enslaving smaller and weaker nations.

And that´s why it is good to have other players as well in this theater.

[Grayhome]

The Loroi lost when they grew complacent and allowed the Umiak to overrun and destroy their veteran forces in the beginning of the war.

The Loroi lost when they forced the Morat to ally with the Umiak to expel their invasion. Any and all Morat systems claimed or destroyed by Loroi are not particularly relevant, the Morat are not the Umiak and the Umiak could care less about what happens to their slaves. Destroying the Morat's war industry does not halt the Umiak's ability to wage war, it does however help the Umiak further influence their now weakened Morat ally.

The Loroi Lost when they made an enemy in the Tithric they did not need and obliterated civilian population centers. No one will ever surrender to the Loroi ever again, all wars will be a matter of survival vs extinction. Again, this action does not harm the Umiak's ability to wage war in the slightest, it does help their cause by giving the Umiak ammunition for their propaganda machine. If anyone does not understand the value of this then there are no words I say that can influence you in regards to anything. This action was, in my opinion, the most harmful to the Loroi war effort of the entire war.

The Loroi lost when they fell into the obvious trap the Umiak laid for them when the Loroi retook the Umiak held worlds and launched a spear into Umiak territory which then got cut off and obliterated. That entire section of the war was designed by the Umiak to lure the Loroi in, give them emotional distress caused by witnessing the fate of their colonies, and then cut them to bloody ribbons when the Loroi military overextended themselves. A masterful plan, ruthless, cold and logical; how deliciously Umiak ... Arioch, well done.

The Loroi have been losing this war by inches from the beginning. Every move the Loroi military have made was according to the Umiak's designs and desires.

The Loroi are excellent fighters as Arioch has made very clear to us. When allowed to use their psionic and telepathic advantages to full effect they are unparalleled in the art of war. And that is why since the very beginning of this conflict the Umiak have not allowed the Loroi to use their psionic abilities to their full extent.

Both outcomes involve the story ending before it begins. This makes for a very boring story, therefore both arguments are null and void....big smiles all round

I know right? This is some epic storytelling right here.

[Grayhome]

The other members of the Loroi Union are not slaves. The Golim are the closest to such a thing, but not through any deliberate action by the Loroi, and the Loroi have actually taken steps to maintain a Golim population not influenced by Loroi telepathy

You and I seem to have differing ideas of what slavery constitutes then.

Do the other members of the Union have a military that can protect them and enforce their will? No they do not.

Do the other members of the Union have a say in what happens in the Union, in respects to seats on the Diadem council and who becomes the Emperor? No they do not and no they can not.

Can the other members of the Union expand to other colonies? No they can not (with the exception of the Neridi).

The Golim are the very definition of slaves, that their slavery is pleasant does not change anything, in fact it makes their enslavement seem all the more heinous. They are mind shackled slaves with a tiny portion of their population allowed freedom of will due mainly to Loroi guilt, and if anyone thinks that the Golim, a race that evolved on a high gravity world which can survive in hostile environments just happens to be highly vulnerable to an artificially created, telepathic race of fungus women who were grown in a laboratory test tube for slavery and food, then you should read more science fiction. There was a time before Loroi recorded history when so called "Gods" traveled the stars in Death Stars a little genetic tampering would not be nearly as difficult.

All augmentations Arioch has thus far stated which belong to the Loroi are things I would program into a slave race, save psionics. You make them more robust and healthier so you do not have to waste valuable money treating illnesses. Make them eat less so you do not have to waste money feeding them. Lower core body temp and lower life support requirements for the Loroi and you can crank down the life support and air in their slave pins. Weaken the males because the males are crazy, highly intelligent, creative, aggressive and persuasive (guess which one I believe Captain Jardin will embody).

Loroi psionics, I believe, is a mutation brought on by too much augmentation and too many species modifications, or perhaps due to exposure to a random element. I certainly do not believe those who had a hand in creating the Loroi were benevolent or that they meant for the Loroi to have those abilities.

Loving the responses, btw