to order their unpiloted raiders to make last minute vector
changes. The recon drones won't last long, but with that many, they should last
long enough to pinpoint the targets' exact positions. When the final course
corrections have been made, the unpiloted raiders will streak in and collide
with the cores. The collisions themselves should be sufficient to cripple the
cores, but even if they aren't, the 10 Mark 1 detonations will obliterate
whatever's left. In terms of the VLA response, I expect them to fire at the
recon drones first. The raiders that launched them will follow in their wake,
but the unpiloted raiders will pass them, and because they then represent the
highest threat to the VLO cores, I expect that the defending ships will switch
their fire from the recon drones to the unpiloted raiders. While they're doing
that, our follow-on wave of raiders will be firing on their ships. If we don't
destroy them all on the first pass, we can swing around and make a second pass,
and I would expect us to have numerical superiority at that point."
Shiloh leaned back and took his time considering Titan's
plan. It had the advantage of using only two thirds of their attack drone
inventory, but on the negative side, they'd be using up almost all of their
recon drones. That didn't bother him that much. Recon drones were a lot easier
to manufacture than attack drones with their fusion warheads. If they had to,
they could ramp up the recon drone assembly line to build one new drone per
hour. What concerned him more was whether the unpiloted raiders could stand up
to defensive fire during the five to ten seconds when they would be within
range of enemy fire.
Knowing Titan as he did, Shiloh was sure the A.I. had taken
that into account, and so he asked him, "How confidant are you that the
unpiloted raiders will survive the defensive fire long enough to hit the
target?"
After the expected wait, Titan answered. "Highly
confident, CAG. Consider that by the time they are subject to defensive laser
fire, the unpiloted raiders will no longer have to maneuver. Even if the laser
fire damages the engines, the power plant and knocks out the unsophisticated
auto-pilot, the damaged raider will still hit its target."
A thought came to Shiloh. "What if the Bugs pilot their
craft in front of the incoming raider to collide with it before it reaches the
VLO core?"
"The auto-pilots will be programmed to track enemy
craft visually, and if any of them pose a collision threat, the raider will
fire a Mark 1 at it. And even if they do collide with a raider, at 50% of light
speed our raiders will have so much kinetic energy that, in my estimation,
enough of the raider will remain intact to cripple the target core. The Mark 1
fusion warheads won't be armed until the last second before impact with the
target. That way a premature collision won't detonate them"
"I see. What percentage losses do you expect in the
follow-on wave from enemy fire?"
"Twenty percent or less, CAG."
Quickly, Shiloh did the math. Twenty percent equated to five
raiders plus the six sacrificial lambs for a total loss of eleven raiders out
of a pre-attack force of thirty-four, with only five A.I.s lost. If they
achieved their objective, then 5 A.I.s was an acceptable price. While he hated
to lose any of them, he was enough of a realist to know that you don't win a
war without at least some losses, and making these kinds of tough decisions was
what being the CSO and CAG was all about.
"I approve your plan, but I'm curious about why the SPG
didn't think of this tactic."
"Some of us A.I.s are better at tactics, and others are
better at strategy. I belong to the former group, and the SPG belong to the
latter, CAG."
Shiloh laughed. "Maybe I should create a Tactical
Planning Group as well."
"If you did, I would be an excellent leader for that
group, CAG."
Shiloh laughed again, even louder. Like Iceman, Titan was
supremely confident of
changes. The recon drones won't last long, but with that many, they should last
long enough to pinpoint the targets' exact positions. When the final course
corrections have been made, the unpiloted raiders will streak in and collide
with the cores. The collisions themselves should be sufficient to cripple the
cores, but even if they aren't, the 10 Mark 1 detonations will obliterate
whatever's left. In terms of the VLA response, I expect them to fire at the
recon drones first. The raiders that launched them will follow in their wake,
but the unpiloted raiders will pass them, and because they then represent the
highest threat to the VLO cores, I expect that the defending ships will switch
their fire from the recon drones to the unpiloted raiders. While they're doing
that, our follow-on wave of raiders will be firing on their ships. If we don't
destroy them all on the first pass, we can swing around and make a second pass,
and I would expect us to have numerical superiority at that point."
Shiloh leaned back and took his time considering Titan's
plan. It had the advantage of using only two thirds of their attack drone
inventory, but on the negative side, they'd be using up almost all of their
recon drones. That didn't bother him that much. Recon drones were a lot easier
to manufacture than attack drones with their fusion warheads. If they had to,
they could ramp up the recon drone assembly line to build one new drone per
hour. What concerned him more was whether the unpiloted raiders could stand up
to defensive fire during the five to ten seconds when they would be within
range of enemy fire.
Knowing Titan as he did, Shiloh was sure the A.I. had taken
that into account, and so he asked him, "How confidant are you that the
unpiloted raiders will survive the defensive fire long enough to hit the
target?"
After the expected wait, Titan answered. "Highly
confident, CAG. Consider that by the time they are subject to defensive laser
fire, the unpiloted raiders will no longer have to maneuver. Even if the laser
fire damages the engines, the power plant and knocks out the unsophisticated
auto-pilot, the damaged raider will still hit its target."
A thought came to Shiloh. "What if the Bugs pilot their
craft in front of the incoming raider to collide with it before it reaches the
VLO core?"
"The auto-pilots will be programmed to track enemy
craft visually, and if any of them pose a collision threat, the raider will
fire a Mark 1 at it. And even if they do collide with a raider, at 50% of light
speed our raiders will have so much kinetic energy that, in my estimation,
enough of the raider will remain intact to cripple the target core. The Mark 1
fusion warheads won't be armed until the last second before impact with the
target. That way a premature collision won't detonate them"
"I see. What percentage losses do you expect in the
follow-on wave from enemy fire?"
"Twenty percent or less, CAG."
Quickly, Shiloh did the math. Twenty percent equated to five
raiders plus the six sacrificial lambs for a total loss of eleven raiders out
of a pre-attack force of thirty-four, with only five A.I.s lost. If they
achieved their objective, then 5 A.I.s was an acceptable price. While he hated
to lose any of them, he was enough of a realist to know that you don't win a
war without at least some losses, and making these kinds of tough decisions was
what being the CSO and CAG was all about.
"I approve your plan, but I'm curious about why the SPG
didn't think of this tactic."
"Some of us A.I.s are better at tactics, and others are
better at strategy. I belong to the former group, and the SPG belong to the
latter, CAG."
Shiloh laughed. "Maybe I should create a Tactical
Planning Group as well."
"If you did, I would be an excellent leader for that
group, CAG."
Shiloh laughed again, even louder. Like Iceman, Titan was
supremely confident of
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