Author Topic: Saddling an Iron Beast  (Read 2520 times)

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Offline Wadden

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Saddling an Iron Beast
« on: August 15, 2021, 12:58:26 PM »

To:- The Majestic Dragon-Emperor of Lijiang.

His Majesty the Sultan of Waddan had decreed that his Royal Forces are now required to utilise tanks. Following a significant search across Mundus we believe that your Taotie tank would fit our needs well. As such I would like to come to your nation to review your tanks and if possible reach an agreement to acquire them if upon inspection they meet our requirements.

I hope this is an arrangement you would be open to.

With Respects

General Rachid Alkari



To:- The Her Celestial Majesty, Queen of Cassiopeia

His Majesty the Sultan of Waddan had decreed that his Royal Forces are now required to utilise tanks. Following a significant search across Mundus we believe that your Brontes  tank would fit our needs well. As such I would like to come to your nation to review your tanks and if possible reach an agreement to acquire them if upon inspection they meet our requirements.

I hope this is an arrangement you would be open to.

With Respects

General Abdullah Qassim

Offline Cass

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #1 on: August 15, 2021, 02:03:58 PM »

To:- General Abdullah Qassim

It is with regret that as things stand I do not think we are able to comply with your request. Our nation is close friends with the Empire of Paracambi and their stance on slavery is one that we share. As such we believe that it would be against our ethics to sell military material to a nation that still allows the practice of slavery within their borders. We would not wish to see machinery originating from our nation utilized in keeping people in servitude. As such we shall only be willing to sell should the slaves used by some tribes within your nation are freed.

I apologies for not being able to help at this time but hope perhaps in the future we can be of help.

Her Celestial Majesty Queen Atalanta II

Offline Lijiang

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #2 on: August 15, 2021, 11:20:07 PM »

To:- General Alkari

As our two nations begin closer co-operation in terms of trade I would be delighted to showcase our tanks to you.

We would be happy to invite you to our nation to evaluate our machines and see if they are fit for your needs.

I look forward to your visit at your earliest convenience.

Best Wishes

Dragon-Emperor Tielin II

Offline Wadden

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #3 on: August 17, 2021, 08:27:57 PM »
General Alkari was a 60 year old man and the closest to war he'd come to in his 45 year long military career was skirmishes with some troublesome tribes in the desert. The closest he'd come to a tank was a bulldozer with a .50cal machine gun attached. He also had discovered that while he was a little nervous flying over the desert he was petrified flying over the Kyne. He had never seen this much water in all his life and he began to question whether the plane would ever reach the other side. He gave a sign of relief when the aircraft passed over land again and found himself pressed to the window of the airplane as he looked at all the greenery of Lijiang. He gave a final sigh of relief when he touched down and upon reaching the tarmac he found himself compelled to kiss his hand and touch solid ground once more.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet us." General Alkari greeted his host with an outstretched hand.

Offline Lijiang

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #4 on: August 22, 2021, 09:34:56 PM »
High Lord Huan Chang of Gāodì was a military man. He had served as a military police officer with special operations experiences. He was now the Dragon-Emperors Minister of Defence in all but name. He was a proud man and believed he oversaw the Province from which the Empire was born. He had harboured outside hopes of being the Dragon-Emperor himself but that was not to be and so as a man bound by honour he did his best to serve at Tielin's pleasure. This was a day he was rather looking forward to, the chance to entertain a foreign dignitary and better still to discuss military issues. He was surprised by the General's gesture upon arrival but was keen to impress a warm welcome. "General Alkari, welcome to Lijiang." Chang had brought with him two of his old military buddies and they had a Longma mobility vehicle waiting. It was just big enough for the group them and Chang took the driving seat allowing Alkari to sit in the passenger seat. "I've arranged for us to head out to one of our military training areas, the tanks you are interested in are out there and we can take a look at them, you can see them in action, I'm sure we could even get you to have a drive of them. Then we've a dinner arranged with some of the regions senior military figures. If there is anything you need or want while here let me know." The trip soon saw them head off the highway and along narrow country lanes where the vehicle was being tested in terms of its own suspension but after an half hour of bouncing through the countryside the sound of booming gun fire could be heard and Chang turned off the country land and headed cross country until coming over a rise the scene before them was full of military vehicles and soldiers carrying out drills. Seeing the vehicle then men stopped and Chang pulled up alongside one of the tanks. "Where would you like to start General?" 

Offline Wadden

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #5 on: September 12, 2021, 08:13:24 PM »
General Alkari was rather excited to be in the Longma, back home the armies vehicles were often poorly maintained and just reconditioned utility vehicles, often with whatever weaponary could be acquired strapped to them. Improvisation was a key part of the Waddan military, any new equipment they had soon became bogged down with issues of maintainence and spare parts and that in turn lead to the mechanics taking parts from one machine to put in another until the numbers just dwindled. Alkari was determined that would change. Then Chang offered the chance to drive a tank. "I believe that I may then become the first Waddanite to drive a tank." he chuckled half with excitement and half with genuine enjoyment of the thought. He was also intrigued by the dinner and a chance to speak with others of a more modern military. "All I need Lord is a chance to review the tanks and perhaps some discussion if possible about arrangements for their operation." The green countryside was a radical change from the dusty lands he was used to back home and he enjoyed the ride, the lumps and bumps being just what he was accustomed to. He was impressed by the training going on and couldn't wait to get to see the tank.

Pulling up alongside it he began to walk a lap of the metal beast. "If possible Lord Chang I'd like to perhaps have a ride in one, perhaps I could sit instead of the gunner, after all we are not going into combat." He chuckled again and was already keen to get inside.

Offline Lijiang

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #6 on: September 20, 2021, 10:07:38 PM »
Chang barked a few orders through the hatch of one of the tanks and within a few second a young uniformed man slid out through the hatch. "If you'd like to slide in General the men inside will help you get set up." The Lijiangians waited for the General to clamber in and as he slid down through the top hatch a young soldier smiled.

"If the general wants to take a seat there." He pointed to the now empty seat where the gunner would sit. As the General got settled a loose seat belt was put around him and then the tanks chief, a sergeant, handed him a helmet. "When we start driving it'll help you hear us as its a built in radio, more importantly it'll stop you smashing your head." The crew laughed and once everything was set up. Once the crew were satisfied they turned the engine one and the vibrations instantly began shaking them. Looking through the front hatch the driver set off across the exercise grounds allowing the tank to take in some of the lumps and bumps, head through a small river and then flat out across a few kilometers of flat land. They had made their way to the range where about 1km away a series of targets were set out.

"If you want to see us fire you can load up for us." A rack of shells sat next to the General and the crew talking him through the process of loading the gun and then moving it to line up a shot. When ready they pressed the button and the entire tank seemed to bounce as the shell spun away. "It was a miss, sorry, close though sir." The Sergeant informed the General before racing the tank back around the exercise area the way they'd come until they got back to Chang. The crew helped the General out.

"So what do you think?" Chang asked.

Offline Wadden

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #7 on: October 10, 2021, 07:56:34 PM »
General Alkari was still a man more than capable of mounting a horse so the idea of climbing up into the tank was not a challenge for him, however it would be a little un-nerving as he'd only ever really seen images of the inside of tanks and they looked rather cramped. He waited for the locals to get him set up and then clung on as they raced around the various obsticles and routes of the training area. It was not in his view a pleasant experience. How could you enjoy travelling at such speed and not truly see where you are going. Even through the small slot for him he was struggling to see much other than various flashes of green and blue as they bounded around.

The shells were heavier than he had anticipated and he nearly dropped one. He wondered if that would have spelt disaster but listened carefully and had the tank loaded eventually. He looked through a scope and moved things up and down, back and forth as instructed and happy he was on target he pressed a buton and felt the entire vehicle jump and almost fell out his seat. He was disappointed to have missed but  an infant first being taught how to use a rifle wasn't expected to get a hit the first shot, it was a refined art. He suspected another three or four shots and he'd have it down but it seemed that was not to be as they were off again until Alkari was pleased to feel the fresh air rushing in when the lid was opened.

As Chang asked what he thought the General contemplated for a moment. "I have no desire to be a tank soldier, its far too cramped in there" he said honestly "But I am a man who is sensible enough to realise the importance these things can have on the battlefield. Its swifter than any horse and such power. I know that if we reach a sensible arrangement my Sultan will be delighted with them. I think therefore I would need to know a price from where to begin our haggling?"

Offline Lijiang

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #8 on: October 21, 2021, 09:17:43 PM »
The price was not something that had really crossed Chang's mind. He left the General alone in the company of the soldiers while he made a phone call or two before reappearing. "Having spoken to a few people we have around 100 of these tanks that we can make do without. We would be asking for around $500,000 per tank but I am confident that some arrangement could be made for bulk purchases."

Offline Wadden

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #9 on: October 23, 2021, 11:40:35 PM »
The General had a budget that he was expected to stick to and he believed he could maximise that with some discussion.

"I believe that we would initially like a fleet of 20 tanks and for $10million, however included in that price must be an instructor per tanks to work with our military for six months and a team of five mechanics to help train our military how to look after them. Should things go well then we would like to potentially buy a further 20, so would it be possible to have these put aside for incase we do make the decision to increase our order once we see how the first batch goes."

Offline Lijiang

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #10 on: November 10, 2021, 08:53:29 PM »
"All of that is acceptable to us. Having a chance to work with your military will be an excellent way of cementing the growing friendship between our two nations. In addition to what you suggest perhaps we could also host members of your military to train them in larger numbers here at the centre that you have seen today. Either way we can agree to the sale of the tanks."

Offline Wadden

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #11 on: November 11, 2021, 10:31:09 PM »
"Your offer is very generous." The General was pleased that it had been this easy, he wasn't a man accustomed to negotiations as he simply gave orders and things happened. He knew the Sultan would be happy and that was a good thing as a happy Sultan rewarded those who made him so. "While I would like to accept your kind offer of training men here that will be a decision for the Sultan to make as I merely serve him but rest assured I will recommend that we accept as it will be a great way of my men gaining experience with new equipment beyond just the tanks perhaps, that too could benefit you as our soldiers will become familiar with your equipment and as such who knows perhaps more weapon purchases in the years to come? For now I think it best we shake hands on the purchase and I will pray we speak soon to confirm the training offer. Is that acceptable?"

Offline Lijiang

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Re: Saddling an Iron Beast
« Reply #12 on: November 15, 2021, 08:42:32 PM »
"General it has been a pleasure." High Lord Huan Chang "Naturally you must, just as I do, follow your chain of command but I am confident both your monarch and mine will be pleased with what we have in place. I am in a fortunate position where my Province is home to a military academy so of course we can invite you as my guests regardless of the Dragon-Emperor's stance, unless he forbids it which I know he will not. I look forward to welcoming your men as soon as you can make the arrangements."