Jonathan_S wrote:Though having Gail heading up the Galton strategy team hints that the MAlign may have made a poor personnel choice. No matter how excellent she is as an analyst they might have been better off having her provide input to an actual MAN officer who'd spent serious time in simulated combat. (Though it's possible the issue was at a higher level and none of the MAN officers she'd have been feeding her analysis to, while still on Mesa, were brought to Darius. She may have been the best at hand once the top levels of the MAlign decided that Darius had to generate and provide strategic planning input for the defense of Galton)
cthia wrote:I certainly agree with everything you said. I would like to add the possibility that the MA could have intentionally picked Weiss for the job so that they could save showcasing their better talent until a later date. IOW, I can conceive of wanting to keep a lid on showing your best strategy and tactics as well as any new hardware.
After all, her post might imply that there is a Tactical Analysis 1 and 2.
Ironically, I don't think many of the officers from Galton could have survived the experience to be able to pass any of it along.
tlb wrote:I see no reason for the Malign to handicap the defense of Galton more than they did by withholding the knowledge of the spider drive.
Well, maybe, but I really think there is something to be said about keeping the lid on unprecedented tactics, as well as hardware. The tactics the MA used for defense utilizing the hastas is impressive. Surely if they would have kept this tactic under wraps until the final showdown - when all cylinders are firing - then the GA would be in some deep shit. The only reason they had to unleash the tech was because it needed to be field tested. But, since Galton was to be a sacrificial lamb anyways, any other reason besides a field test would have been insane to unleash the tech. But since they were going to unleash the tech anyways, because they
had to unleash the tech, then what they needed to know is its
native effectiveness. As is. Without the use of any superior and unprecedented tactics - which unprecedented tech enables - that the enemy does not yet need to see.
At any rate, I can believe that Gail may not be the best strategist or tactician in MA clothing. However, I can also believe that Gail has a lot more to offer with all of the MA's toys in play. It makes me wonder just how much hardware she
is privy to. Does she know about the LDs and the Sharks? The Streak Boat?
tlb wrote:Yes, Galton was expecting to lose in the end; but how much sweeter for them if the defense could put an enormous dent in the forces of the Grand Alliance. If they could beat off the first attack, they might eliminate some of the best and brightest on the other side. Obviously Galton would fall in the end, but the more that took the less people would question.
Absolutely. You said a mouthful there. Recall upstream or in one of the other threads when I said that the GA took a huge risk with so many of the officers on the who's who list participating at Galton. Honor was almost bragging when she was name-dropping almost everyone on the list. Even Allen Higgins made the trip. (Did anyone seriouely not think of roseandheather then?)
But, yeah, I agree, that battle could have went very bad for the GA. Would have went very bad had it been Darius.
I still maintain, that if the author really wanted to entertain killing Honor, dying in a battle against the MA would be believable. Thank God for a sane Sharon Weber.
Question. Did the GA showcase any new toys?