A note for those unaware, the last turn is a part of thread 5, which was archived, and no plans or votes were put into place before it got archived so...Yeah. Sorry about any inconvenience that causes.

>>5519409
No aces killed hon hon hon hon
We have no bombers left sadly so all we can do now are air superiority missions.

Have Bleu and Noir secure Air Superiority over Leeuwenborg
Rouge and Vert on CAP and interceptions over our own lines

>>5520052
Medium operational intensity

>>5520052
Maybe have Bleu bust balloons?

Given that most quests here are of the Choose Your Own Adventure or Visual Novel sort, maybe a How-To-Play pastebin in the OP would be good. Otherwise, this game may be intimidating to newcomers.

Airframes: Transfer 1x Verany from Rouge to Noir

Pilots:
Bleu: Descombes to TRACOM. Bachelot and Ponce to Reserve. Chaney to Active.
Blanc: Send the whole squadron, including ground crew, on leave this turn. Again, you have de Saint-Pierre duplicated.
Rouge: Marchal and Flandin on PR Tour.
Vert: Maret to Reserve. Charbonnier to Active.
Noir: Maitre and Delannoy to Reserve. Beauvau to Active.

Orders:
Either >>5520052
Or
Bleu to bust balloons
Rouge on Defensive CAP
Vert on Offensive Counter-Air, possibly in cooperation with 15e.
Noir as additional escort for 15e Escadre, if they are in the Area of Operations.

High Optempo.

Issue guidance that when fighting Falkes in the new Veranays, try to avoid extended dogfighting and favor boom-and-zoom. Let's use that high Evasion to our advantage, especially since we are not defending our own bombers this turn. Amelie's dogfight confirmed my suspicion that the Verany is less Agility than the Falke.

The idea is that we have the advantage; time to press it. Again, I am okay with >>5520052
if we do not have a tie-breaker.

I was tempted to pull Desjardins into Reserve this turn, but I am not willing to let that nugget Bonnot command Rouge. Pulling out Marchal next turn instead risks a nugget Capitaine taking command.

While we we wait for another vote, I wonder how the interrogation of Vincent went. Did he have anything to say about the planes and pilots he flew against, particularly the one that shot him down? Is he tired from too many sorties? Is his squadron getting enough replacements?

And I was actually tempted to have Valmont fly in one of the bombers last turn to underline the seriousness of the Circus effort. Bullet dodged.

By the way, I do enjoy the vignettes that accompany the turn reports -- they really make this quest for me.

Also, is there a rivalry between Rouge and Vert? Given Adelaide is no longer the top ace of the Wing, and she is in command next turn, Vert might take some crazy risks.

Okay how about I fuse >>5520052 and >>5520677 with this:

Rouge and Vert on CAP
Bleu to bust balloons
Noir to escort 15e
Medium Optempo

>>5520719
I'll support this

Terribly sorry about the delay, but the turn will be finished tomorrow. I lost a bunch of progress in writing. At the very least the crunch side of things is done.

File: Western Front.png (59 KB, 789x796)

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To my Mother and Father

I hope this letter is reaching you well. I know that you likely recently received news about my disappearance but I would like to alleviate your concerns. While I cannot say in all honesty I am in good health, I am alive. And I am being treated for my wounds. While I would love to say that I managed to make a daring dash across the trenches back to friendly lines, that is not the case. I am currently a prisoner of war, downed by the same enemy pilot who was responsible for the disappearance of my good friend not a week ago. Luckily much like myself, they managed to survive the landing. While I very much wish I could continue to fight the good fight for our home away from home, I do not believe that there will be a prisoner transfer that will see me back in the skies. And from what I have heard escape attempts are punished severely. Still, despite the circumstances, I am alright, and haven't been treated poorly. I do wish however this never came to pass and I could instead be telling you of yet another heroic showing from myself that would make you proud. But, I hope confirmation of my survival will be enough.

Your beloved son, Marcus.

With the next orders for the rest of the month, the pilots once more go up into the air and find quite brutal fighting once more. Yet, it's fighting that goes fairly well with 14e Escadre Mixte "Liberté" once more proving itself. For Bleu, while some combat with enemy aircraft occurs, the flying is mostly calm, with only one instance of a mostly inconclusive fight between Bleu and some Falke's that takes the life of one pilot. Yet, otherwise Blue has done it's role in downing enemy balloons fairly well. And Remy Ponce has proven exceptional at destroying these balloons. Operations in defense of our own airspace have also gone quite well mainly thanks to the efforts of Vert and Rouge. The former mainly down to the two aces, Adélaïde Guilloux and Ermengardis Duverger. The former managing to down the ace Macrus Lehmann with another quick, clean victory. The enemy pilot's engine going out over a forest, and being low enough to be unable to fly past it. He was badly wounded in the crash, with a number of broken bones, and naturally captured. Similarly, Ermengardis also downed an enemy ace, all be it a very different one. She managed to engage a number of Koerkamp T.II's and shot both down. The first due to good luck and managing to strike a fuel tank in such a way to cause it to burst and the latter with a lot of fire. And the latter happened to have the gunner Emiel Kroeze on board, firing at Ermengardis as it went down. And alongside all these victories these two pilots of Vert had, l'As also downed a Bergen and Ermengardis additionally downed a Fryg CL.II, a Fryg CL.IIa, and a Bergen D.I. Yet while things went well for these two pilots, Joiha Hémery was shot down and killed. While a single loss, given the skill of the rising ace who's life was cut short, it is certainly a blow.

Rouge meanwhile had a more balanced spread when it came to victories, with Roselyne, Amélie and Catherine adding two Bergen D.I's to their victory tally. While Calantha managed to get a Fryg CL.II and Oriolda downed a Bergen D.I and two Fryg CL.II's. Yet while this should be cause for celebration, there was one major thing that happened near the end of the month that put a damper at these decent performances for the pilots of Rouge. Haydee died. Much like Aude, so soon after becoming an ace, she was struck down from the sky from the burst of a Falke that sent her aircraft tumbling out of the sky on fire. Her corpse was not found inside the aircraft however, instead ending up roughly twenty or thirty meters away. Her cause of death not being the flames but the fall. If she fell out during the decent or if she jumped because of the flames that were reported by some is unknown. But in the end that doesn't really matter. A shame too, given the circumstances. Though, at the very least a replacement either from within the escadron or from a new officer fresh from training can be quickly arranged. Arguably the only good thing given she was arguably the closest Escadron leader serving under you. It begs the question however. Will any of the pilots who were with you from the start of the war survive it without ending up in a prison camp on the other side of the lines or a grave? Regardless, the pilots of Rouge haven't taken it that well either. Especially the pilots more close to Haydee.

Lastly of important note is the efforts of Noir. While a number of aircraft broke through and attacked the escort, and the engagements with enemies quite intense and numerous, Noir managed to walk away with relatively light casualties. Admittedly, most of the light casualties these past two weeks are down to the fact most of the remaining pilots are battle hardened veterans, but for Noir that isn't really the case. Though they lost the most out of any individual escadron, including a pilot lost to an enemy ace from Lothring. However they did an acceptable job, not downing too much but at least ensuring most of the escorted aircraft completed their mission and returned home. However while things in the air are quite intense, the front hasn't moved. Both sides ground forces currently recuperating and preparing. However an operation to try and take Tilhof will commence in the latter half of next month, and after an attempt at retaking Leeuwenborg.

While this was all there was left for reports on the activity on your own Escadre, there was two other things of importance not necessarily related to it. The first being another murder. Or rather, a massive string of murders. A large number of wealthy men on the outskirts of Woluzen were killed and left in the entrance hall of a closed down hotel. While they were left the same way as the other murders the main and strangest difference is the fact that only a couple of prostitutes were among the diseased, the vast majority being men of generally high standing. Or at least, who were believed to be such. Interestingly, left on their corpses are a number of letters to 'associates' and a number of shady dealings, mainly revolving around prostitution. It seems that the killer wasn't lying with their previous letter. Though there was one other noteworthy thing left near the corpses. Two numbers and a line dividing them. 1/12. Immediate presumption is there is likely to be 11 more mass killings.

The other thing of note unrelated to these killings was a telegram sent to you by an old business partner. Arguably something far more comforting than the terror caused by whoever is doing these killings...

Dear Lieutenant-colonel Helene Valmont -(stop)-

I believe it has been some time, but I feel it is important to remind you of a project that I told you about some months ago -(stop)- While I haven't managed to get any updates on it I have no reason to believe it's work has been delayed -(stop)- I hope you can do something about it shortly. -(stop)- On the bright side some of my connections with the navy you have set me up with have born fruit -(stop)- Expect the Army to be a bit upset about a certain project sooner rather than later -(stop)- I hope this won't impact your funding but I believe even if it does it will be worth it -(stop)-

Best regards, Monica Conley -(stop)-

Well, this could be bad in more ways than one...

Squadrons, aircraft, pilots, and other information.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KT0JJxoLsbcNFC7RqtsWKke9iTnLQ8blSCf_8dZ4jWw/edit?usp=sharing

(Better late than never I guess. Also feel free to do some conversations if you want it. There's a few things you certainly can investigate.)

Uh, the pilot rotations from >>5520677 got lost. That said, I am okay with with continuing with the turn's results, let's call it a staff mixup.

As a result, some pilots like Maret are really fatigued. Need to write some orders that will stick.

>>5526877
I apologize for that. You simply said a mix of the two and one didn't have pilot rotations so I wasn't too sure...

Also I'm curious what your thoughts are on the 3 sort of major side plot things that are going on. Even if you kind of missed/never investigated one

Requisitions:
14x Verany C2 = 112 RP
3x SUD Caraque R with bomb racks = 30 RP
18x Pilots = 3 RP
1x for each Escadron = 5 RP

Airframes:
Blanc: 3x SUDs, 2x Duponts as Recce hack
Others: 7x Veranys

Pilots:
Bleu: Descombes on PR Tour. Bachelot and Ponce to Reserve. Chaney to Active. 6x Nuggets.
Blanc: All active. No replacement allocation.
Rouge: Desjardins on PR Tour. Flandin to TRACOM. 4x Nuggets
Vert: Maret to Reserve. Guilloux to TRACOM. Charbonnier and Courbet to Active. 5x Nuggets
Noir: Maitre, de la Croix and Delannoy to Reserve. Noir and Beauvau to Active. 3x Nuggets

Orders, similar to last turn
Bleu against balloons again.
Blanc to reconnoitre Leeuwenborg and Tilhof, and bomb targets of opportunity.
Rouge on CAP
Vert escorts Blanc
Noir escorts Blanc

>>5526912
Actually, make that
Bleu against balloons again.
Blanc to reconnoitre Leeuwenborg and Tilhof, and bomb targets of opportunity.
Rouge on CAP
Vert on CAP
Noir escorts Blanc
Medium optempo

>>5526911
Conley is a nice way to tie in the tech side of the air war. I intentionally ignored l'As, because I figured the less controversy, the better for the war effort. As for the murders, well it was an excuse to get to know the NPCs better. . .

By the way, I am jealous of the Fletcher Swan.

>>5525735
RIP Haydee. Maybe have another talk with Rouge?

>>5526912
+1

The serial killer thing is worrying even though we aren't personally threatened. Should we start checking pilots who did not have an alibi at the time of the killings?

I'm terribly sorry for the delay. The turn was intended to go out tomorrow, but on the bright side it will come today. I've had a fair bit of work to do this turn due to a number of events, and a good deal of combat with enemy aces occurred this turn too. So I hope you at least look forward to it. Big things are happening in the war.

During the early hours of the morning, Roselyne Chopin engaged in a patrol mission like any other. While resistance was expected was the flight getting attacked almost immediately after they flew to no mans land. A enemy patrol managing to fly close enough to spot Roselyne's and vise versa, causing the two to turn to face each other. Naturally, a battle engaged, and Roselyne noticed an aircraft with a ornate knight painted upon it, the rest of the aircraft colored in green, black and white. The aircraft, being a Bergen, was naturally not an easy mark given the clear signs of it belonging to an ace despite the aircraft clearly being outdated. The enemy was aiming to catch up with another pilot of her flight which was pulling back and naturally Roselyne turned to engage, coming quite close when the rival pilot broke off the pursuit of their target to deal with the Vérany that suddenly turned on their tail. Turning, the two orbited each other, Danchmer pulling up slightly and bringing the nose down in a elliptical fashion, soon breaking off as Roselyne's superior aircraft clearly was out turning the Bergen. So, he turned to the other direction slightly and pulled, entering in a loop that brought him upon Roselyne's tail, who thanks to the superior aircraft was able to keep just out of the line of fire for the enemy ace who didn't fire yet, knowing he wouldn't be able to hit. This continued for about twenty seconds before Danchmer pulled away and tried keeping the altitude advantage, pulling into various loops to get onto Roselyne's tail. And while he did almost get a head on pass from above down onto Roselyne, they weren't able to bring their guns to bear on them and soon ended up once more just out of reach of getting a chance to fire at Roselyne. Yet, after a while, for a brief moment they managed to get a shot off. A few rounds passing through canvas and causing minor, superficial damage at most. However soon, they tried repositioning again so they could get a shot off, and Roselyne capitalized, managing to actually get behind Danchmer and opening fire in a few bursts that didn't hit home. And with this, Danchmer was now on the defensive with the altitude advantage removed and soon given to Roselyne as they briefly entered a scissors as Roselyne overshot but was spared any return fire by the altitude she had gained. Yet, in their duel, this advantage would shift to one pilot to the other multiple times, and as Danchmer managed to get a near head on pass and a few rounds into Roselyne's wing, she soon brought the aircraft swiftly around with quick use of the rudder and a hard turn, getting a pass at Danchmer that managed to get a lucky few rounds into the engine ending the long fight.

Yet, while Danchmer's engine died and he was stuck gliding, Roselyne didn't stop. now practically helpless, Danchmer tried to maneuver without an engine as best he could once Roselyne didn't give up. And after a few passes, his elevators were shot off along with part of the tail, and he went down to his death when he otherwise would have survived...

It was clear to any who paid attention that Roselyne wasn't going to spare her foes.

With orders once more sent out to the Escadrons you once more are left to wait on news with regards to how things went with the various missions that were sent out. And it's not exactly pretty for some of the Escadrons. Firstly, Bleu suffered tremendously at the hands of Prußenmark pilots, and in one pilot's case, their anti aircraft guns. Every single aircraft Bleu had was shot down, although luckily despite this Chaney wasn't lost despite encountering an enemy ace, Danchmer, alongside the rest of the Escadron. Of which two pilots who encountered him weren't so lucky and a third, Lemaigre, managed to return to base with their aircraft heavily damaged. However while Lemaigre was able to avoid any injuries in his return, the encounter saw a bullet strike Chaney in the chest. A wound which he is currently recovering from. Though he'll certainly be out of action for a while despite some optimism about his condition. Whether resistance was so stiff because of enemies defending the Balloons or if Bleu just got unlucky and ran into defensive patrols is unknown at this time, but the results are clear whatever the case may be. Blanc also suffered these past two weeks. As despite a decent sized escort, very heavy resistance was mounted by both Lothring and Prußenmark pilots. A few of the top Lothring aces managing to engage and cause problems, along with Prußenmark's own. Despite the escort's best efforts, and the efforts of the pilots put in the Duponts, the losses were noticeable. While luckily only one SUD was lost, the two Duponts also were, and with them their skilled pilots. If it's any consolation, the gunners that normally would be with them were spared from the fate of the pilot they originally were attached to but that isn't much considering how long and useful the pilots were to Blanc. The experienced pilots being lost will undoubtedly be a problem in the future until some grow skilled enough to become adept.

However, while news regarding the first two Escadrons was poor, the others fared much better. Rouge especially. Firstly, Rouge did well, with Roselyne downing Danchmer, much to the relief of the few pilots left in Bleu who had to deal with the same pilot that struck a good few of them down. Similarly, Roselyne had an encounter with an even more deadly ace in the form of Braun Pfÿffers, the third highest scoring living ace in Prußenmark's air force. And unlike Danchmer, they were in a Falke D.II. Of course, Roselyne simply survived fighting the ace, mainly through escaping after some bad damage, but that alone is impressive. And while not an ace yet, her future is certainly promising. However it is clear it won't be without controversy, as the striking down of Danchmer was done despite his aircraft being out of action with no way to return to the fight without an entirely new aircraft. Still, thanks to the efforts of the Escadron though, six enemy two seaters were shot down and more damaged and ideally forced to abort their missions.

Vert also did quite well in their escort missions, with Liliane downing Reginald Schwartz in a long, protracted engagement that eventually went close to the ground, with Reginald taking heavy damage yet still managing to use his aircraft to it's utmost, even intentionally entering a stall due to the close proximity and with a twist of the rudder buying some much needed time. Yet, eventually, these maneuvers cost him one of his ailerons which broke off, and from there his movements became desperate. And with a dying engine, and poor maneuverability from the damage sustained, he took a turn that entered a shallow dive that, at the altitude the two were fighting at caused him to clip the wing of his aircraft into a tree and quickly ended his story. Though Liliane had to do quite a bit of work to catch up and regain altitude to meet up with their flight. Still, while Vert did well, Noir was where Blanc started to take losses. Though even so, Noir certainly put up a good fight and while not able to keep pressure on the enemy enough for them to spare the bombers, they certainly didn't make it go without cost. Although, no where near as much as the loss of two enemy aces likely did.

With all of this in mind however, important news has come in from the frontlines elsewhere. In the eastern front, the Varuskie forces have suffered from a major counter attack from the Steyerland-Magyria Empire which had pulled many troops off the Illyrpsja front to support this counter offensive. They have retaken much of the lands lost to Varuskie and managed to deal a harsh blow to the Varuskie Tsardom in a surprising display of competence for the time being. While Prußenmark has for the time being mainly had mostly inconclusive combats with a few tactical victories in toe. However in the central front, with Vitulia and Illyrpsja, things have not gone well at all. Illyrpsja, while originally thought to be able to last until the end of the year has been absolutely devastated by unrelenting Bulģhakia attacks pushing deep into their territory. While Prußenmark forces in the area push from the north to aid their Steyerland allies in capitulating Illyrpsja. The Steyerland-Magyria Empire using this to pull resources away and shore up the fronts in the east to great effect and also in the west on the border of Vitulia, where the fifth battle of the Sontius has ended in disaster for the Vitulians. And a harsh counter attack on the weary, exhausted, and demoralized Vitulians with reinforcements from the Illyrpsja front has caused a slight rout that has pushed the borders back to pre war status, the mountainous region having prevented Steyerland from fully capitalizing on the victory. Other than all of this, Lothring has asked a few bothersome questions about Hilvermeer...Though our diplomats are doing well to ensure that no secret gets out from that place. And of course, to ensure that any sort of rumor or fact they find out is discredited as propaganda...

It's certainly been a busy few weeks. Though there's plenty more that will happen these next two weeks given the offensives planned...

Squadrons, aircraft, pilots, and other information.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KT0JJxoLsbcNFC7RqtsWKke9iTnLQ8blSCf_8dZ4jWw/edit?usp=sharing

(I hope this all makes up for the time it took to actually get this out. Anyway I'm exhausted and probably going to pass out now. Also if you are wondering why there's no picture, the front didn't change and 4chan doesn't want me to repost the same image twice.)

Thanks for the post QM!

First off, if Blanc gets annihilated the next turn, do the other players want to
> Keep the Escadron going with some replacements the turn after or
> Disband it

Our RPs are insufficient to keep five squadrons at full strength, so I am inclined to go for the latter and become a pure fighter wing.

Bleu getting creamed really hurt; sorry for trying to balloon bust three times in a row.

Airframes:
Bleu: 3x Veranys
Blanc: SUDs
Others: 4x Veranys

Pilots:
Bleu: Vaugrenard and Ponce to Active.
Blanc: No change
Rouge: Chopin to Reserve. Hauet and Desjardins to TRACOM. Bonnet on PR Tour. Flandin to Active.
Vert: Duverger to TRACOM. Guilloux to Active.
Noir: Longchambon, Haillet and Beauvau to Reserve. Noir -- Noir's first ace, what a pun -- on PR Tour. De la Croix to Active.

Two order packets for other players to vote on:

> Set 1
Rouge and Bleu on CAP
Blanc, Vert and Noir on Circus

> Set 2
Bleu, Rouge and Vert on CAP
Blanc on Recce, similar to last turn
Noir to escort Blanc

>>5533888
PS -- Switch Descombes from PR Tour to TRACOM.

>>5533819
Fuck me, we got clobbered last turn

>>5533888
>Disband it
Many wings started out as mixed ended up specialized with one type of aircraft. Nothing wrong with it.

> Set 1

So, terribly sorry once again for the delay. Crunch side of the turn is almost done, so the turn should be up in a few hours. I don't have much of an excuse other than I think I had a bit of burn out as I really didn't feel like working on the turn till today. But I think the week off from this has helped. So, ideally turns will be once every other day or so provided at least two people vote. I do hope you have been enjoying thus far though.

>>5533252
Also I only now noticed I wrote tomorrow when I meant yesterday here...

File: Western Front.png (59 KB, 789x796)

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Providing for the frontline and protecting it from incursions was always difficult. They had been short on pilots, what with them dropping like flies all the time, short on aircraft, due to most pilots dying by crashing the things, and short on time, as always in this damn war. Yet, the Trois pilotes violets as they called themselves did their duty, as they were angry about their losses and the hefty duties put upon them, but blue. Diving on enemy flights and driving them away from their side of the lines, shooting down or driving off the occasional two seater, and constantly being called up to intercept aircraft that seemed to be heading to important area's. It was exhausting work, but Remy had a fix. Coffee. Lots, and lots of the stuff. It helped, but didn't solve the problem of tiredness. And while effective for a while, it would be later in the second week, so close to a potential rotation out for other pilots, that one of them would make a mistake while dealing with a flight of Fryg CL.IIa's and their escort, and with a bit of tunnel vision, the trio became a duo. And with further mistakes, the duo separated, leaving Remy alone against three Falke's and two Fryg's. Yet, he kept high, and from an angle dove on the two Frygs. His shots were true, and one went down with a dead pilot and the other's engine was set alight. And from there, Remy simply left for home in a shallow dive, using the superior speed of the Vérany to leave the Fryg's behind. He was exhausted, and there was no need to throw his life away so soon after making ace by trying to go one against three when the threat to the soldiers on the ground or the operation was dealt with. He pushed his luck enough already, and he wanted to make sure that his one surviving friend Huistase was okay. He'd be distraught to find the old man had taken multiple rounds, one to the stomach, one to the shoulder, and one to the left leg. But somewhat relieved to hear he was still alive amazingly... At least he didn't end up like Arnoul...

Further to the north, a day and two hours later, a flight from Rouge returned, without Sarra, bringing Yda to fear the worst. Yet, hours later, she learned Sarra had crashed from damage in a field and suffered a number of broken ribs. Yet, she still lived, and swiftly Yda rushed to try and get to the field hospital that Sarra was temporarily brought to...She didn't know what she'd do with the only real close friend she had in the Escadron. And the only one who understood her after that one dreadful sortie...

The orders were sent out and as always, the pilots of 14e Escadre Mixte "Liberté" continue to do their best to bring the Prußenmarkians and their allies down to the ground in flames. Unlike earlier in the month, there was significantly less casualties. Although this is probably helped by the fact there was significantly less aircraft from our Escadre in the air due to the heavy losses. Still, the Escadrons do their work as best they can and Bleu does quite well with only three pilots. Although, even with a modest tempo of operations, they are worked quite hard given they were the only three available. In fact, two of the three became aces, the third meanwhile was shot down just before the end of the month, and despite the successes the two survivors had, one is currently badly wounded and will take quite some time to recover. As for the other Escadron's, Blanc predictably has tragically been completely destroyed. While it can be rebuilt, potentially as a fighter Escadron instead given certain desires to make the Escadre a dedicated fighter one. This is no fault of the pilots on escort, it's just become extremely difficult to maintain offensive patrols with two seater aircraft. Work on a new model is underway though, to ideally have something that won't be easy fodder, and potentially taking inspiration from the Pretans own efforts with a craft that is focused on being capable of properly dogfighting when not carrying a bomb payload. But that's for the engineers to work on.

Rouge meanwhile has done surprisingly poorly, with all but one aircraft still operational. While Amélie naturally did decently, adding a a Falke and a Koerkamp C.I to the tally and even having a minor inconclusive encounter with "Skarabäus", the others of the Escadron who were up and in combat? Not so much. One of the pilots, Sarra Anouilh, was lucky enough to survive. Although while not shot down directly, damage while returning caused their aircraft to crash, and the pilot in question to break a few ribs. Regardless, not much was actually shot down by Rouge, and Bleu for once actually outshined them, which is certainly a surprise. Though, like Bleu, one of the pilots did become a new ace. Vert meanwhile had essentially a flawless end to the month, with Adélaïde catching up to Amélie in terms of victories with three CN-III's downed personally while the rest of the Escadron managed to down at least one CN-III per pilot. And Noir likewise managed to do quite well as their luck has seemingly continued. In fact, as a bit of a joke and irony, they officially made the symbol of their Escadron that of an angry black cat.

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However while things went well for our own Escadre, for the most part, things for other Escadre's have not gone so well, as the famed ace and, for a time, top ace of Gallonia, Sous-lieutenant Richart Gaumont has died. He was shot down over enemy lines by the dreaded Leutnant Andreas Goßhain, the top ace of the war so far. In other news, unrelated to the air corps, the fighting near Tilhof has started with a combined effort of our own and Pretan forces. Much to our surprise however, resistance was far, far tougher than we had thought. Even with all the time they had to dig in, they seemed to actually know at least some of our plans, and prepared accordingly, most specifically the Pretan's plans of attack. Our own offensives struggled, and some lost steam and faltered, however the Pretan's despite this major setback were able to gain ground over on our foes thanks to one thing. The Mark 1 Tank. Powered by a CnC V12, an engine from the CSA and a certain business associate, the tank is a new and unique weapon on the battle field. Able to shrug off machine gun fire and lay down it's own harshly. There is a variant with a naval cannon in the wings and a variant with machine guns. While there are some issues, mainly in reliability, it was key to making a few breakthroughs and actually advancing and taking some of the enemies trenches. Clearly, they are still new technology with teething issues, but as development continues, it is possible that a new avenue in combat on land might open up. You get the feeling Conley is going to be ecstatic about this, though also that she already knew this was going to happen...Still, the appearance of these machines was crucial to the initial parts of the offensive actually working. Maybe they'll prove to be a wonder weapon that will end this war once and for all?

Other than this, further to the south in the Sāriqīn Empire, the Varuskie's forces have suffered harshly from lack of supply, despite the best efforts of their logistics, and a major attack from the Sāriqīns has destroyed a number of depo's with what little supply they had, and that's not including the bullets, men, guns, munitions and medical supplies used up in the fighting. On the bright side, this came at a staggering cost for the Sāriqīn's, though concerns exist that the losses in attrition might grow to make the losses more equal as even food has become scarce. And retreating is being considered potentially the best option at this stage. A bit further south from this, the Pretan's have hit a wall in the form of actual Sāriqīn resistance that has managed to commit to a proper counter attack. One that is much the reverse of the situation with Varuskie's forces, with the Pretan's expeditionary forces taking plenty of losses and being forced back to a more defensible position. Needless to say things could be better, though partisan work is still causing hell for the Sāriqīns...

And despite all of this, in the papers you notice unrest in Kileshadra has been on the rise apparently...But it's probably nothing to worry about.

Squadrons, aircraft, pilots, and other information.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KT0JJxoLsbcNFC7RqtsWKke9iTnLQ8blSCf_8dZ4jWw/edit?usp=sharing

(Again, sorry for this taking so long. I hope the turn is enjoyable at the very least)

File: vf-31-14-tomcat-last-crui(...).jpg (35 KB, 300x400)

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Angry black cat? Nah, he looks happy to me. Felix rules!

And weekly is fine for turn updates, QM. We all have real lives.

Requisitions:
22x Verany C2's for 176 RPs
1 RP of resupply for Bleu
1 RP of resupply split between Rouge and Vert
12x pilots for 2 RPs

Airframes:
Blanc placed in suspended animation. Ground echelon to perform depot-level maintenance for the rest of the wing.
8x Veranys for the other squadrons.

Pilots:
Bleu: Ponce on PR Tour. Descombes to Active. 7x replacements.
Blanc: Suspended animation, no pilots.
Rouge: Flandin to TRACOM. Desjardins, Hauet, Bonnet and Lafleche to Active. 3x replacements.
Vert: Charbonnier to TRACOM. Duverger and Nicollier to Active. 2x replacements.
Noir: All active except Delannoy. No nuggets.

Order packets for others to vote on:
> All defensive CAP
We are getting bossed around on our side of line the last few turns.
> Bleu and Vert on CAP. Rouge on Offensive Counter-Air. Nor to bust balloons.
The typical two offensive, two defensive stance.

Conspiracy theory: Amelie is the killer and shoots down the current Rouge Commandant whenever she comes close to accusing the Angel.

>>5540740
I have to say, that conspiracy theory got me to laugh. Rouge really has had bad luck when it comes to it's commander position. It's like a curse. Especially if you manage to get to ace status with it.

>>5540490
Go all out in Tilhof to seek and destroy all enemy fighters

>>5540740
>> All defensive CAP

Might as well roll a dice between the last two choices.

>>5542401
> All defensive CAP
What anon said is true, plus we will have numerical superiority this month. That said it won't help our army much in their offensive.

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It all happened so fast. An aircraft painted black and white with a tinge of red struck her own. Her engine almost immediately died and she thanked her lucky stars she wasn't too. Her aircraft swiftly was forced to glide down while her fellow airmen kept fighting. And as she went down, she noticed another aircraft fall out of the sky. A Falke missing it's upper left wing, and the lower left soon joined it as the craft's wings were ripped apart by the speed, before suddenly it hit the ground hard. She struggled to keep the aircraft level as she suffered from her wound, but soon enough she'd crash land in a field, the spars for her wheels breaking, the propeller too, and the lower wings suffered a number of snapped spars. With this harsh landing, she crawled out of the craft, clutching her wound. And soon after, consciousness failed her. Ten minutes later, help arrived in the form of a few Pretan Medics and soldiers. And some time later, Ermengardis woke up in a field hospital, eventually finding out she almost became another victim of Andreas Goßhain

Elsewhere in the skies, something similar happened while Catherine was in an intense dogfight. Calantha dived on a fairly unique looking Falke while its pilot tried avenging the two others of their flight that Catherine took out and was in an intense fight with her, noticing only too late the guns trained on them as Calantha swiftly delivered a few rounds to it's pilot. Later, it would be found out that Albertt Wickten was the one that Calantha had struck down. Something that came to a surprise to her. It seemed as if the many aces the enemy had were starting to finally be brought down in these bloody past few months...

Sending out orders for the start of the month see's mixed results. Bleu and Vert have taken a bit of a beating due to enemy activity, especially that of enemy aces. They were responsible for one of our own even almost dying, and luckily thanks to the efforts of Calantha, one of them won't bother us anymore. In fact, Adélaïde even fought Braun Pfÿffers. Though for better or worse that duel ended in the enemy pilot driven off rather than downed. Still, that aside the efforts of all our Escadrons being on close air patrol and defending the front has clearly helped, as many Bergens and a few two seaters were downed. Something that will ideally limit the enemies offensive ability and even their own defensive capabilities. Still, while there wasn't too much to report in this regard, there was a new ace out of all of this, as the Noir pilot Osanna Beauvau managed to get her fifth victory. Somewhat related to this, tragically five pilots with three or more victories died before they could make it to ace status. In other words, half of all the losses sustained were these fairly adept pilots.

Of particular note however was the new Kronlein G.III that was flown and fought against. It is a large bomber aircraft of sorts and now a few of them are operating in the area of operations that currently exists for the Escadre. It's just as hardy as the Lothring's own bomber, and more dangerous due to both better skilled crews and perhaps more or better firepower. However, much like the threat once posed by the Koerkamp T.II, a skilled pilot shouldn't have too much issue dealing with one. Although, given the much larger economy of Prußenmark, it is expected they might become a much, much larger problem than Lothring's bombers. Especially given these were purpose built for war unlike the conversion that is the Koerkamp T.II. Still, while some losses were suffered due to these aircraft, the ones encountered were driven off. The Escadre did it's job in protecting our side of the lines, and this was quite important to the advance, however slow, continuing. Parts of the outskirts and furthest parts of the city of Tilhof has fighting ongoing now. And while the push is slow and costly, it's still a push. Which is more than can be said on other fronts. While not exactly ideal, it is not a terrible situation either, and if by the end Tilhof falls, it likely can be considered a victory. The question is if that will actually happen or not.

In other news, a report from your superiors has come in regarding Blanc. Given it's current status, it can potentially be reorganized for it's eventual reformation. If such is desired, the Escadre could be made into a volunteer Escadre, one staffed by Colonial pilots, it's name changed, and more if desired. Obviously, by the time it actually get's reformed time will have progressed a fair bit given the current supply situation, but it potentially would be good for the future...

(Pick one, each has a benefit)
>Leave Blanc as is
>Reform Blanc to be a Volunteer Escadron
>Reform Blanc to be a Colonial Escadron

(Pick one)
>Leave Blanc with Male Pilots
>Reform Blanc to be staffed by Female Pilots

(Pick one)
>Leave Blanc as a Two Seater focused Escadron
>Switch Blanc to a Scout/Fighter Escadron
>Switch Blanc to a Bomber Escadron for future heavy aircraft in development.

Given this report, a part of you wonders if there will be an increase in the budget and the supply that the Escadre has access to. Regardless, given enough time the Escadron would likely be reformed. Though, chances are this also was possibly an opportunity to switch the 14e Escadre Mixte "Liberté" to merely the 14e Escadre "Liberté". Despite this though, you are informed that you and your pilots are expected to fight throughout the winter. Unlike last year, there will be no time on leave. Though given the intensity of the fighting now, and how the front has basically been brought to a true crawl due to trench warfare, this is honestly more than understandable. However, perhaps it might be best to do more than just give orders for the last month of autumn?

Squadrons, aircraft, pilots, and other information.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KT0JJxoLsbcNFC7RqtsWKke9iTnLQ8blSCf_8dZ4jWw/edit?usp=sharing

(This was way later than intended, sorry. So much for being more active I guess. Ideally that changes sooner rather than later though. At bare minimum I hope to have one turn a week. But I'd hate it for things to slow down to such a crawl.)

>>5551787
What's the difference/benefits of a volunteer, colonial, or female squafron?

>>5552101
The benefits for the first two are secret and will be found out after being picked. Though I think you can perhaps make a few guesses as to what the boon might be. The female pilots thing is just fluff and has no mechanical effect outside the pilot's names and the like though.

>>5551787
>Reform Blanc to be a Volunteer Escadron
>Leave Blanc with Male Pilots
>Switch Blanc to a Bomber Escadron for future heavy aircraft in development.

>>5551789
Airframes:
Transfer one plane from Noir to Vert

Pilots:
Bleu: Ponce to TRACOM.
Rouge: Lafleche to Reserve. Chopin to Active.
Vert: Charbonnier to Active.
Noir: Noir on PR Tour. Delannoy to Active.

Orders: All defensive CAP again, unless someone wants to go balloon busting again.

I am tempted to rotate out Descombes, but I want at least one veteran pilot per squadron. And Yda Lefleche got two kills -- pretty impressive for someone in her state. Jauffret, a noob with FEXP 18, got three kills. And I suppose Duverger will have time to write her book Maybe detach a staff flunky to take dictation from her?

I am worried that the next turn though, so a squadron might need to be stood down for rest the turn after next.

Oh, and as I said earlier, maybe it is time to visit the hospital? Other players can make the call.

>>5551787
(Only if QM needs a tie-breaker; I already have too much say by handling the micromanagement).
The ground crew is already male, so
>Leave Blanc with Male Pilots
I am tempted to go Colonial, but Volunteer is fine too.
>Leave Blanc as a Two Seater focused Escadron
Because I doubt we can afford bombers. Also, we can buy outdated but cheap SUD Type R's for only 3 RP's each, crew them with meatshields (hence my preference for non-Metropolitan pilots for Blanc), and send them on Circuses and suicidal missions like the Bergen caper from early in the game. Actually, I would really like an unarmed, single-seat Verany equipped with a camera that can fly fast, evade and still perform recce, more than a bomber.

>>5552865
Two things to note

1. Ermengardis Duverger will likely be able to work on her book while she is wounded. Likely while recovering. Chances are provided something doesn't happen she'll be close to finishing in roughly three more months of free/PR time. Though, obviously, war time censorship will do some editing, which likely will take a bit of further time.

2. Ground crew is easily replaceable. Especially given the vast majority of them have just been transferred to Bleu for the time being. It's an entire reformation. Though, at the end of the day, it's just fluff...

Also I will be kind and give you guys a hint after thinking about it a bit so as to give you an idea as to what they might do. Colonial and Volunteer pilots help in a unique way. Both are tied to pilots. And both have a minor trade off that can cause problems with improper use. Keeping it as a 'normal' Escadron gives a different boon. One is a major short time boon, the other two are more minor long term ones. I'll leave it to you to guess which is which and what the boons are. Though I think you can at least get a vague idea now.

Oh also, that request for a Verany with a camera? You could've totally do that if a nation with Aircraft Designer Connections was picked at the start.

>>5551787
>Reform Blanc to be a Colonial Escadron
inb4 BLACKED
>Leave Blanc with Male Pilots
>Switch Blanc to a Scout/Fighter Escadron

>>5551789
Continue with the last turn's orders

>>5551787
>Reform Blanc to be a Colonial Escadron
>Leave Blanc with Male Pilots
>Leave Blanc as a Two Seater focused Escadron

Sure, we can visit the hospitals

Rolled 2 (1d2)

Since you settled on collie. Also, plan on getting a turn out likely tomorrow aka 16ish hours from now, but will work on a bit now.

Also after I write the turn result we can do hospital stuff if you guys want. Since I notice two of you are interested in it.

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It was a simple defensive patrol like any other. The flight was lead by the leader of the Escadron, Gabriel Descombes. Once they got to no mans land and properly started their patrol, things were fairly calm for the front. Sure, artillery rained far below. But up in the sky, it was peaceful. Nothing but the droning of the engine and propellers of their aircraft and the clouds. Yet, just before they were to turn back to land, the flight spotted a group of Fryg's escorted by Bergens heading across the line. Naturally, the flight moved to engage. Initially, Gabriel went for the escort, while the rest of the flight chose their targets independently, one such pilot, Julien Masson, chose to go after one of the Fryg's. Yet he never pulled up from the dive, the gunner having sent a round straight through his head. For the other pilots, things seemed to go well, with Arnoult Lebas' strike on the bomb laiden two seaters going far better, striking one from the flight before being forced into a dogfight by the escorting Bergens. Meanwhile Gabriel was right on the tail on a Bergen. And with a skilled burst, the aircraft's engine set alight. Yet after securing his twelfth victory, he turned to check his six to see a Bergen that had taken advantage of his tunnel vision.

Swiftly after felt a sharp pain as multiple rounds entered his chest. Yet consciousness did not fail him immediately. Despite the sudden weakness he felt, he struggled to pull the aircraft away and force his slumping body to cooperate, trying desperately to force the stick up. And, to an extent he succeeded, entering a far shallower dive. But he'd not manage to do much more than that. The engine was completely overrevved in this dive, and hot oil splattered on him as the engine broke down from the stresses, but the wings remained steady. Unfortunately, he found himself unable to pull back once he was close to the ground, as finally, he succumbed to his wounds and drifted into a sleep he would never awake from. The aircraft slamming into the ground mere seconds after.

He would soon be joined by another ace of 14e Escadre Mixte a few days later.

With orders sent out to defend the lines once more, you are pleasantly surprised to find only three pilots have been lost in the closing weeks of the month. However this seemingly good news ends there, as what originally seemed like good news turns sour as you learn just who actually had died. The biggest loss was the leader of Bleu. Gabriel Descombes. Yet another blow was Annas Picard. Who was, much in the same was as Gabriel, shot down by a Bergen D.I. And worse, the pilots who achieved this were unknown until their recent success. Meaning that it wasn't an ace who struck them down, but normal pilots. Still, despite the loss of some important pilots, the defensive patrols work quite well. Only a few Prußenmark aircraft manage to get through and preform recon or bombing runs, though it is noticeably an uptick compared to before. Likely due to the attrition our side has faced, and not just our own Escadre. Regardless of this, our pilots have held the line well, and over twenty enemy aircraft have been claimed as victories by our Escadre. Were it lesser pilots who were lost, these past two weeks would surely be considered a resounding victory. But alas...

However, other than Picard and Descombes' death, there isn't too much to note with our own pilots exploits. No Escadre did especially well or poor, and most Escadrons did their job and achieved a fairly equal rate of victories thanks to a few of their pilots. Yet, that doesn't mean there isn't something important learned by other pilots. Apparently, there is a new Falke in the air. The main difference in appearance seems to be that the wings are rounded and slightly longer, the same goes for the tail of the aircraft. However performance wise we are unsure how much better compared to the D.II it is. Regardless it is something important to keep a note of. And probably fairly important. In other news, our own designers at S.U.D have begun production of two new aircraft. One a heavy bomber, the other a two seater. While the former costs quite a bit, and probably is out of our current budget, it perhaps is something to keep in mind. Meanwhile the other is perhaps a possibility, provided our own losses remain low and our supply remains high. Lastly, a telegram from Conley arrived. At least, you presume it's from her. All it say's is "Lothringsche Fabriek van Luchtvaartuitrusting" and an address you presume leads to some place in Lothring, specifically Den Lagen...

On the ground meanwhile, things have swung somewhat in our favor, mainly due to relentless charges combined with support from the Preten Expeditionary force. Specifically their tanks and two seater aircraft. However, the city of Tilhof has not fallen fully yet, and the losses are building extensively. While our soldiers desire to avenge the humiliation we had faced in the past, there is only so much they can be pushed through. But for now, they certainly are showing a surprising amount of spirit despite the conditions. Perhaps something to consider inspiring. What isn't inspiring confidence is the ability of the MP to investigate this murder case, as three separate groups of men and a few women have been found butchered in traditional fashion this killer seems to go by. And worse, they are all in various stages of decay. The first found, which had a 2/12 scrawled nearby, was in Maasberge. The corpses were found to be dead for quite some time, and worse another slaughter near Coloroux was found, listed as 3/12. The last and most recent found was in Vitrociennes, listed as 4/12 nearby. The biggest problem with this is that the times of death for all of these people is a complete mess. However, more concerningly is that this string of murders has removed the 1st Vesperia Division from the suspect lists. Unless someone abandoned their post completely. Yet, there is something that doesn't add up with these reports...How could a mass slaughter of over twenty people take weeks to be found?

On the bright side, prostitution rates are down. And plenty who previously ran the 'business' have abandoned it in fear for their lives. Though, this whole situation would likely be making more of a mockery of the Gallonian police force than the Ripper did for Pretany if it wasn't for the war that was going on. Still, you were considering speaking to some of the pilots who were WIA and in field hospitals. Though, while good for morale you get the feeling you won't likely find out anything about the case from them. Then again, maybe it was best to just talk to Botrel about it. He seemed to know the most about it and unlike the MP's was willing to disclose quite a bit...Or maybe you should simply stop worrying about it, at least for now. They weren't targeting any of your pilots after all... The last thing of note is a fair few notes regarding Southeast Asu and Blanc. Along with strange names like Châu Thanh Toàn. A bit of a surprise to be honest, you expected the colonial regiments to come from Al-Jazāʾir, given their proximity. Though it doesn't exactly matter where they came from, does it?

Squadrons, aircraft, pilots, and other information.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KT0JJxoLsbcNFC7RqtsWKke9iTnLQ8blSCf_8dZ4jWw/edit?usp=sharing

(A bit late, but at least not that bad, relatively speaking.)

Requisitions:
18x Verany C2's for 144 RPs
24x Metropolitan Pilots for 4 RPs
Bring all fighter Escadrons to 80% supply for 7 RPs
5x <s>Coffins</s> SUD Type R's for 10 RPs

Airframes
Blanc reforms with the SUDs
9x Veranys each for the other escadrons

Pilots:
Bleu: Bachelot to Active. 6x Replacements
Blanc: Time to take those 10x Pilots
Rouge: Desjardins to TRACOM. Bonnet on PR Tour. Flandin to Active. 6x Replacements.
Vert: Guilloux to TRACOM. 5x Replacements.
Noir: Beauvau and Delannoy on PR Tour. Noir to Active. 7x Replacements.

Orders for others to vote on:

Set A:
> Bleu to bust balloons
> Vert and Rouge on defensive CAP
> Blanc on Recce
> Noir to escort Blanc

Or Set B:
> Bleu, Rouge and Vert on Defensive CAP
> Blanc on Recce
> Noir to Escort Blanc

Give orders that flights are not to devolve into individual aircraft, and when intercepting enemy aircraft, boom-and-zoom tactics with a quick withdrawal is preferred. Frankly, Descombes got himself killed. Maybe Adelaide should write a tactical manual for flight leads?

And yes, that new Falke is not making me keen on running another Circus.

>>5559127
Noooo, not Gabriel. Who's the flight leader now?

Set Bleu and Vert on Defensive Patrols
Rouge, Noit and Blanc on Offensive sightings and Patrols

>>5560430
By technicality, the Escadron leader is now Andry Chaney, though a replacement will likely be shipped in with the next turn. Speaking of death and injuries, I suppose I should more directly allow a visit to the hospital next turn rather than just say you can.

Also if you votes/agree with the current plan quickly enough I actually might be able to get another turn out tonight.

>>5560602
Will support set B of this >>5560026

Alright. While I work on the turn I may as well tell you the difference between Colonial, Volunteer and normal.

1. Normal/Metropolitan Pilots obviously are normal pilots. You already know how they work.

2. Colonial pilots, be they from Al-Jazāʾir or Southeast Asu, have a 1 in 10 chance of having normal morale and the same bonuses that Normal Pilots have on top of Colonial Bonuses. This is guaranteed for Escadron leaders. All other's have roughly -20 morale and are not effected by the Revanchist trait. Despite this, all Colonial pilots work as if the nation had the Skilled Pilots trait. Their training also stacks with current training bonuses your pilots have from TRACOM for the first turn a Squadron is formed. However after training bonus is halved.

3. Volunteer Pilots are unique in that they can come from any country in the world that you aren't fighting against. Pilots from some nationalities (Those from Pretany, CSA, Reemi/Varuskie, and Daloyaume.) will also hold onto their own national traits on top of your own. However, their skill varies wildly from very skilled on par with Prußenmark pilots to as awful as the worst Pretan Pilots. On top of this, you cannot buy replacements for them. They come in at a inconsistent rate determined by the success or failure of the volunteer squadron and it's pilots along to a lesser extent the wing as a whole.

I hope this clears some things up. I'll be working on crunch bit by bit now.

>>5560917
So Colonials would be better Fighter than Bomber pilots. Oh well, at least the narrative will be fun.

>>5560991
Colonials actually get a boost to both Mission and Flying EXP. So they are quite good at both. Anyway, turn will probably be out in a few hours.

>>5561001
I think willingness to press home the mission and sustain horrific losses is more important for bomber squadrons than skill -- bomber casualties, proportionally, were second only to the Infantry for the World War II USAAF. It will be interesting to see how the new Blanc holds up.

Crunch is just about done, finally. I would like to say one of the new pilots had absolutely insane luck and went from zero to hero real fast by getting a double ace... Think I'm not gonna the turn out today, but I can hammer it out shortly after I wake up I think. Still quite fast most likely.

>>5561034
Also, as for this. That's a fair statement, given morale is key with them. Though they are in two seaters so they shouldn't be as bad off as a proper tactical or strategic bomber. Well, if they were in the most up to date ones anyway. Them being in obsolete craft that should be flying night missions or used as trainers at this point is not the best... But as a slight spoiler, escort did their job and then some. Especially said zero to hero.

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Levia was quite annoyed after hearing the briefing. She expected that her first mission would be something to allow her to prove herself as a competent pilot that would show up the other members of her escadron. Especially one certain up and coming ace who kept teasing her about her height. But no, that bastard had to get their fifth victory all while preventing her from getting anything. She would show them. She had to. And so, with the next escort mission she flew, she was determined, with the commander she actually liked, Commandant Magota Gouin leading the flight. But most importantly, the only ace with them was Noir, and not that smug De La Croix, or any of the other pilots that teased her. Naturally, the start of the sortie was calm, and frankly, boring. But that would change soon enough.

Shortly after they crossed no mans land, a flight of CN-III's rushed in to try and deal with the recon craft she was tasked to protect. And, fairly casually, she pulled her aircraft high, and let her fellow pilots distract her foes. The first aircraft she noticed was a CN with an odd set of stripes painted on. Someone important perhaps? It didn't matter. She dove and struck them down just before their enemy could send a burst into Gouin. Unknowingly at the time, Levia's first victory would be an up and coming ace, Koen Bakker. Yet even if she knew it wouldn't matter to her. All that did was her next target. Another CN-III. And, while they tried diving away from one of her allies, she was in a perfect position to capitalize. And while the pilot tried pulling off to avoid her strike, Levia scored victory number two. She pulled away from her dive and tried to regain altitude when she noticed a CN-III going after her, and as she dodged it's fire she was relieved to see it soon downed by Noir. And as luck would have it, she was in a good position to intercept a CN-III going for one of the bombers.

One more burst, and that was victory number three. Needless to say, Levia was quite pleased with herself as the flight of CN-III's was mopped up and dealt with by the rest of the flight or forced away, and the escort re entered formation beside the colonial pilots they were escorting. Yet, before they got over the target they were again interrupted. This time by Falke's. Notably, one having far more rounded wings compared to the stiff and square ones that the other Falke's had, it's wings spreading out behind rearward. Likely for some aerodynamic nonsense. What did matter was the streamer obviously indicating the craft as the flight leader. Needless to say, Levia was feeling confident. And so, as the formation broke up she knew her target. Yet before she could engage she noticed one of the lesser Falke's heading right for her, and so, she sent a slight burst before pulling away, the shots managing to strike true as the aircraft burst into flames. Number four down. Just one more to go until she was an ace. And on her first week in the Escadron! Needless to say she was proud, but she needed one more thing to seal the deal.

And so, she continued her plan. The pilot of the Falke D.III was no rookie, and broke off their own attack upon seeing Levia's aircraft heading for them. And, a long drawn out duel would take place, Levia never getting a good enough position to shoot at them. It wasn't until one of the pilots of Noir almost crashed into them while dueling another aircraft that Levia would be able to get a shot off as the Falke was forced to pull into a disadvantageous position briefly to avoid crashing. Just enough for a few rounds to go in and do some damage. Enough damage to the aircrafts elevators to make things an even fight. A fight that Levia would win as the new aircraft's wing eventually snapped off from the stress of their duel. Kill number five.

Yet, there was still enemy aircraft around her. And, she still had ammo. And while Noir was dodging a Falke on her tail she took advantage of the enemies lack of awareness to get a damaging burst off that forced them off their attack and made them easy pickings for a follow up strike. Kill number six. While there were still enemy aircraft around however, she was out of ammo. Luckily, her allies drove them off and the trip home after this was mostly uneventful. But she was very pleased when she returned to base. And, in further sorties, she would down another four aircraft. Bringing her total to ten aircraft in only two weeks. Five CN-III's, including an enemy ace, one Falke D.III and Four Falke D.II's.

She was dismayed however when her Escadron mates started to call her Léviathan. Especially Acelina who she was confident got the others to start using that nickname.

Operations in the air, especially involving Blanc and Noir, have gone extremely well. One pilot, Major Levia Behet, has managed to rack up an absurd tally in quick succession, even managing an ace in a day. In fact, a second pilot of Noir also became an ace, with Major Acelina De La Croix managing to cross the threshold. Further more, Noir's protection has gone perfectly, managing to deny any of the aircraft of Blanc from being destroyed. Although, some did certainly need to be grounded for a time for repairs, and this wasn't without cost, as Noir did lose four pilots in the process. Noir's efforts weren't the only to be commendable however. As intel from Blanc provided crucial intel that finally allowed a breakthrough. And while the losses were staggering for the whole battle, with over a quarter of a million Pretan soldiers alone falling, and a similar number of our own, the edge our recon gave was enough to end it in a victory.

Our pilots in Bleu, Vert and Rouge should also not be forgotten, as Capitaine Eva Courbet and Sous-lieutenant Roselyne Chopin have also joined the ace club. Despite all this good news, there is some bad. Other than the horrible losses for the infantry, anyway. Sous-lieutenant Liliane Charbonnier took a lot of damage in one of their sorties and crashed her aircraft while landing, causing quite a bit of bruising on top of a bullet hole in her chest that narrowly missed anything vital. Upon learning of this, Adélaïde Guilloux has requested to be able to have a day away from TRACOM or other duties to visit her...Perhaps you should do the same?

>Go to the field hospital, and allow Adélaïde to go as well.
>Allow Adélaïde to visit their friend for a day.
>Disallow a visit. Someone with such valuable insight in flying cannot be spared.

In regards to the war however. Other than victory having been secured, the cost in manpower and resources has lead to the decision to delay the operation to take Leeuwenborg, and instead reinforce the area and build defenses to prevent what is likely an inevitable enemy counter attack. Other than this, in the far east of Asu, Cipanto forces have managed to claim most of the KLIL, with only two major islands remaining. However guerrilla tactics in some islands by surviving Lothring Forces, and a surprising fierce resistance on Yāvaka has delayed Cipanto conquest. Further, Illyrpsja has completely fallen and capitulated, only a few days after December started. Undoubtedly freeing up Bulģhakian and Prußenmark troops to march elsewhere. Further news regarding the eastern front is expected to arrive by the start of next month as well.

You also realize that chances are a certain project by Lothring is finishing up right about now...This could cause problems.

Squadrons, aircraft, pilots, and other information.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KT0JJxoLsbcNFC7RqtsWKke9iTnLQ8blSCf_8dZ4jWw/edit?usp=sharing

(Intended to get this out a bit earlier, but couldn't immediately work on it when I woke up as originally planned. Still, not too much later at the very least. Better than one post a week too. Still, hope you enjoyed the turn, and the absurd luck a new pilot had. Oh, also bit of a spoiler. I expect you to fear Lothring in a few turns.)

Airframes:
Transfer one Verany from Noir to Rouge.

Pilots:
Bleu: Gilet Lebas to Reserve. Chaney to Active.
Blanc: Still has that FNG smell.
Rouge: Flandin to TRACOM. Chopin and Hauet on PR Tour. A sans-culotte and a royalist, haha. Desjardins, Bonnet and Lafleche to Active.
Vert: Chausson to Reserve. Arceneaux to Active.
Noir: Montgomerie to Reserve. Noir and De la Croix to TRACOM. Behet on PR Tour. Longchambon and Beauvau to Active. I was going to put de la Croix and Behet together on PR Tour, but thought better of it.

Orders:
Many of the experienced pilots will be in Reserve this turn, so I am inclined to be circumspect. Bleu and Vert in particular are pretty raw. On the other hand, it might be interesting to send raw pilots over the line to see what kind of trouble they can rustle up.

Set A:
> Rouge, Vert and Noir on Defensive CAP
> Blanc to Recce the Tilhof and Leeuwenbort AOO.
> Bleu to Escort Blanc

Set B:
> Blanc to recce in the Tilhof AOO and try to rustle up some intercepts.
> Bleu and Noir to escort Blanc.
> Vert to bust balloons.
> Rouge on Defensive CAP.

And only if the GM needs a tie-breaker for >>5561894
>Go to the field hospital, and allow Adélaïde to go as well.

Noir seems to have a real flair for escort duty and offensive operations, but not so much defense. I wonder what Behet's starting FEXP was -- but yes, that was a heck of a story. It seems Arnoult Lebas from Bleu and Chausson from Vert got into hairy furballs as well. Also, Rouge's CO and XO both died when Flandin was flying, once again. And they were the only ones to be downed by two-seaters? Yeah sure. . .

>>5561999
Levia Behet started with 19 FEXP and immediately ran into an enemy ace. Considering she not only survived but won made me give her a bit extra. And then she just kept having encounters and winning.

As for the second point, kek. I didn't even notice that until you brought it up.

>>5561999

Supporting B

Given the thread is at page 10, I think I'll wait till the next thread for the next turn. Hope to see you all again then.

>>5563655
See you soon QM. Hospital visit next?

>>5564263
Yep. I'll probably do the crunch of the proper turn too sometime during the intermission of normal turns, and then just write the results of that after the hospital visit. Though I think there's a fair few things of interest that'll happen while at the hospital that I'm quite excited for that should be interesting for you too.

>>5564286
Clarification on that actually. If you vote for it then it'll happen. Given no one's voted other than one person I'll go with that one vote unless other's vote.

>>5564336
I'll vote for it