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I got this thought after reading the thread that talks about what the GTVA thinks of Alpha 1 in the main forum.
Assuming FS2 Alpha 1 survived Capella, how far do you think he would have got in the GTVA military? Would they have sent him to Sol after war broke out?
Also, assuming FS1 Alpha 1 is alive at the time of Blue Planet, what do you think he's up to?
That might be interesting to see a hypothetical meeting of the Alpha 1s.
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Without recalling the exact specifics, I do remember seeing a few mentions in BP about FS1 Alpha 1 being alive(?) and doing things for the UEF.
(I'm sure someone else will post in here soon with all the exact knowledge)
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Without recalling the exact specifics, I do remember seeing a few mentions in BP about FS1 Alpha 1 being alive(?) and doing things for the UEF.
(I'm sure someone else will post in here soon with all the exact knowledge)
As far as I recall, the FS1 Alpha 1 is stated to have been one of the founders of the Fedayeen with no mention of whether or not he's still alive.
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Well, let's consider the other pilots.
Xinny and Zero are still flying despite being nearly if not middle aged by now. Zero even comments on how old he is if you shoot him down. We also know the younger Bei was serving in Capella as a pilot and still operated as a pilot.
It seems GTVA officers serve for a really long time. There's a good chance he's still in active duty unless he got promoted/moved to the command track. Who knows. Maybe Alpha 1 is Steele.
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It seems GTVA officers serve for a really long time. There's a good chance he's still in active duty unless he got promoted/moved to the command track. Who knows. Maybe Alpha 1 is Steele.
IIRC In Blue Planet WiH there is data about the GTVA Admirals in Sol and it includes their career history. I forget what Steele's is exactly but he did start off as a fighter pilot.
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Steele was definetely SOC during the second incursion.
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Holy ****, it actually straight up never occurred to me that Bei must be, like, 40. God damn.
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Hidden Text: Chiwetel Steele - A Dossier • Show Name: Chiwetel Steele.
DOB: 13/07/2340
Education: Tertiary. Studied Bachelor of Battlefield Psychology at 3rd GTVA Officer Academy: Capella. Graduated in Class Number 45 on 5/5/2361. Attended GTVA Space War College to complete Master of Strategic Studies in 2380. Completed an influential treatise regarding the application and design of Allied Destroyers post-Nebula Campaign.
Rank: Admiral. Was fast tracked after exemplary performance during the VEGADEX series of fleet exercises post-Shivan Incursion. Changed occupational specialties in late 2367 after being reclassified Aviation Class: 4 during Operation Astute - 2367.
Alliance Occupational Specialty: Principle Warfare Officer. (AOS-1a)
Postings: 47th Cutthroats - Pilot (2363-2364), 66th Black Knights - Wing Commander (2364-2367), 99th Skulls - Unknown. Presumably pilot (2367-2367) |Undertook Change in Occupational Specialty to AOS-1a| GTCv Bretagne - Executive Officer (2368-2374), GTCv Naxos - Commanding Officer (2375-2379), GTD Aeneas - Executive Officer (2381-2384), GTD Atreus - Commanding Officer (2384-Present), 15th Terran Battlegroup (2384-Present)
Performance Evaluation (Comment Excerpt): Submitted by Admiral Armanjani - Commander GTVA 4th Fleet: [Steele's] highly aggressive and precise nature makes him an interesting corvette skipper within the fleet. He often plays on the psychology of his adversaries, implementing careful ambushes structured around feigned retreats that would earn him the praise of Genghis Khan. The Commodore's aggressive battlefield manner could be attributed to his fighter squadron background, however, he is yet to learn the art of restraint in regards to the pros and cons of overwhelming aggression during the engagement.
Decorations:
NTF Campaign Victory Star (2366)
Epsilon Pegasi Liberation Medal (2366)
Nebula Campaign Victory Star (2367)
Medal of Valor (2367). Citation: Lieutenant Commander Chiwetel Steele distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry, exemplary leadership and determination during Operation Astute, whilst serving as a Wing Commander with the 99th Special Operations Squadron, 23 March 2367. Whilst carrying out interdiction of Shivan supplies along the MSR, Lieutenant Commander Steele's wing encountered heavy Shivan resistance prior to engaging the mission target. Lieutenant Commander Steele maneuvered his wing into a flanking position and eliminated the bulk of Shivan resistance in a charge towards the target convoy. As the 99th engaged the target, Persevering despite tremendous pain from a combat injury, he continued to engage, providing cover for the attacking pilots. Lieutenant Commander Steele's actions saved the lives of the pilots on the sortie, and directly contributed to the success of the mission.
Allied Defence Citation (2367)
Conclusion: One of the youngest Fleet Admirals in the GTVA, Admiral Chiwetel Steele is a gifted strategist who appears to both despise and revel in the art of war. Tactical acumen combined with a deep understanding of the human psyche makes Steele a highly successful, if unorthodox commander. Personal contact with the Admiral leaves an impression of a well-spoken, mannered but distant personality, with a cool demeanour that gives many of his colleagues unease.
His command of the Atreus has been controversial, and he is often accused of 'mistaking his ship's subspace maneuverability for that of a fighter'. Though his reputation for insanity may be an uncharitable assessment of his command style, he is well known for pushing his ship and crew beyond GTVA regulation parameters. His crew rotations are 33% more frequent than most other destroyers in the fleet. Last audit suggested an increase in measurable fatigue among officers and crew serving on the Atreus, but with a proportional increase in combat effectiveness.
Holy ****, it actually straight up never occurred to me that Bei must be, like, 40. God damn.
You already forgot again?
<battuta> hahaha
<battuta> you know i just thought of something
<battuta> l o l see this is the kind of error that sneaks through
<battuta> gets through all the endless tactical discussions and careful outlines
<battuta> young pilot Samuel Bei finds himself once more under his estranged father's command
<battuta> bei is a combat pilot as of fs2, so probably at least 20-something
<battuta> he's got to be 40+ in AoA
<battuta> hahahaha
<battuta> lifespans are longer i guess!
(This was June of 2014.)
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I am pretty dumb, you see.
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And Bei Sr is probably at least 70.
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I am pretty dumb, you see.
I'm happy to see I'm not the only one who this happens to! :lol:
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Well, let's consider the other pilots.
Who knows. Maybe Alpha 1 is Steele.
It's been suggested before, but IIRC, his service records don't match up with FS2 Alpha 1's.
EDIT - See AdmiralRalwood's post
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So if FS2 Alpha 1 is still alive...would he support the GTVA's effort in Sol?
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Holy ****, it actually straight up never occurred to me that Bei must be, like, 40. God damn.
Well, it is the future. People probably live quite a bit longer and age slower in 2385 thanks to super advanced medical technology.
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Old Bei at 70 and young Bei at 40 isn't even implausible. Especially when skilled or veteran officers are at a premium for the GTVA (as pilots are expendable and **** seems to happen to capships) I don't see any problems with the story as developed. With attrition rates as they were in FS2 and in general with the GTVA mentality, nobody is expected to live long but those who do obviously have better skill at completing objectives and not dying for it. So a 70 or even 80 year old admiral wouldn't be a surprise
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sam's history at completing objectives is rather sketchy
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It's amusing that Bei Jr and Steele are nearly the same age and yet they're on completely different ends of the intelligence spectrum.
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I'm still convinced that FS1 Alpha 1 is Laporte's father or grandfather.
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It wigged me out a little bit when I figured out how old the Bei's have to be, but honestly, assuming lifespans are longer, it's not that bizarre. If one looks at the Honor Harrington series, where treatments allow people to live to be 300, military advancement takes on an entirely different role. Outside of catastrophic losses, there's no reason to prematurely advance people in those scenarios, so the military is going to take a keen eye to specializing people quickly and early and figure out where they do their best. Officer attrition and loss of institutional knowledge become non-factors, so you can afford to have people dilly-dally for 15 years while they figure out their niche in the fleet - there's no pressing need to find more flag officers, or specialists of a certain caliber, since the ones you've already got aren't going away any time soon.
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Holy ****, it actually straight up never occurred to me that Bei must be, like, 40. God damn.
Maybe Sam Bei was, like, 14 during the Capellan evacuation and was only piloting the giant robot space fighter because his father ordered him to do it
(http://i.imgur.com/KWcy8Am.jpg)
It's amusing that Bei Jr and Steele are nearly the same age and yet they're on completely different ends of the intelligence spectrum.
I can't recall if Steele's age is ever explicitly expressed anywhere (though I wouldn't be surprised), but admirals in current navies (much like generals in armies) tend to be older than in their 40s, especially during peace-time but also during war time. In time of war, the average age of both junior and senior officers of course drops, up to the ranks of captains and majors at least - sometimes even colonels, depending on how long the conflict lasts. But for a conflict to start reducing the average age of high ranking officers, it needs to be quite a long war indeed - and I would say that post-Capellan GTVA has been essentially peace-time (for what it's worth).
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With the desperate situation of FS2 and it being mentioned how the GTVA forces are stretched very thin several times, I wouldn't be surprised if they allowed younger than usual volunteers to pilot, or maybe even drafted such people.
And looking at the tutorial they didn't exactly learn much during flight school either. :P
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I can't recall if Steele's age is ever explicitly expressed anywhere (though I wouldn't be surprised), but admirals in current navies (much like generals in armies) tend to be older than in their 40s, especially during peace-time but also during war time. In time of war, the average age of both junior and senior officers of course drops, up to the ranks of captains and majors at least - sometimes even colonels, depending on how long the conflict lasts. But for a conflict to start reducing the average age of high ranking officers, it needs to be quite a long war indeed - and I would say that post-Capellan GTVA has been essentially peace-time (for what it's worth).
Steele's dossier says he was born in 2340. WiH takes place in late 2385. Steele's 45.
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It would be a little bit of a stretch for Steele to be only in his mid-40's and be a ranking officer, but we've been repeatedly told and shown that he's very capable in his position. (Maybe TEI had more than just ship and fighter designs--looking for a better kind of military mind as well?)
Bei Jr being about the same age and on an entirely different career track isn't odd, and there are references in the reading material that Bei Jr might've screwed the pooch once or twice--effectively dead-ending himself until retirement. At the same time, GTVA isn't going to fritter away experienced personnel after Capella, not if they can help it.
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Well, there was stuff about Bei Jr's 'consistently excellent flight record' somewhere. Aside from not saving that Elysium which would be pretty damn hard to do even for a player. Even if you go for the Nahemas the Dragons would just pump it full of Hornets and make it go boom pretty damn quickly.
He was an ensign in Capella and Commander 18 years later. 4 ranks in 18 years of peace time isn't bad, not everyone can rocket through the ranks.
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It would be a little bit of a stretch for Steele to be only in his mid-40's and be a ranking officer, but we've been repeatedly told and shown that he's very capable in his position. (Maybe TEI had more than just ship and fighter designs--looking for a better kind of military mind as well?)
Bei Jr being about the same age and on an entirely different career track isn't odd, and there are references in the reading material that Bei Jr might've screwed the pooch once or twice--effectively dead-ending himself until retirement. At the same time, GTVA isn't going to fritter away experienced personnel after Capella, not if they can help it.
I didn't say anything about career tracks, I just mentioned that it's amusing to me that Steele and Bei Jr are the same age because Bei Jr is very naive and a bit of an idiot and Steele is not.
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It's somewhere in the Granite Hunter files. Consistently good flight performance and good reports from his fellow soldiers, or something like that. He had a really bad day in Capella (and that was not really his fault). Otherwise they would've just screened him out on a psych evaluation. I'm just thinking that Bei's career really just stalled out and he didn't have the heart to just up and quit.
I know this might turn the conversation in a dark direction, but I think it really speaks to Bei Jr's character that he didn't just give it all up and suicide after Capella. His family dead, father estranged, probably lots of friends lost, future destroyed by Shivans...
In a way, Bei and Laporte's meeting during UT2 IS Alpha 1 meeting Alpha 1, though in a second-or-third-cousins kinda way. (I'm darting around a lot, and not explaining my thoughts very well here. Does anyone else here hate working night shifts?) Bei was an FS2-era pilot, whereas Laporte is Fedayeen--and FS1 Alpha 1 is/was part of that group.
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Maybe FS2's Alpha 1 is Al'Faddil (not sure if spelled right...) he's an experienced officer and pilot, (I think they'd send their best on a mission as important as the 14th BG) has a Eyrines for his personal fighter (they don't hand those out to just anyone), and Xinny and Zero come out to rescue him when he's captured.
Absolutely no proof, but he fits the profile. :nervous:
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Maybe FS2's Alpha 1 is Al'Faddil (not sure if spelled right...) he's an experienced officer and pilot, (I think they'd send their best on a mission as important as the 14th BG) has a Eyrines for his personal fighter (they don't hand those out to just anyone), and Xinny and Zero come out to rescue him when he's captured.
Absolutely no proof, but he fits the profile. :nervous:
This is now my headcanon.
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Since FS2 Alpha 1 fought in the Second Incursion (and since fear of the Shivans has led the GTVA to be more militarized in general than the UEF), would FS2 Alpha 1 support Steele's military campaign in Sol?
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Maybe FS2's Alpha 1 is Al'Faddil (not sure if spelled right...) he's an experienced officer and pilot, (I think they'd send their best on a mission as important as the 14th BG) has a Eyrines for his personal fighter (they don't hand those out to just anyone), and Xinny and Zero come out to rescue him when he's captured.
Absolutely no proof, but he fits the profile. :nervous:
Oh dear. Alpha 1 blew up in my game then. :(
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Maybe FS2's Alpha 1 is Al'Faddil (not sure if spelled right...) he's an experienced officer and pilot, (I think they'd send their best on a mission as important as the 14th BG) has a Eyrines for his personal fighter (they don't hand those out to just anyone), and Xinny and Zero come out to rescue him when he's captured.
Absolutely no proof, but he fits the profile. :nervous:
Oh dear. Alpha 1 blew up in my game then. :(
...How?
If you lose the fight, they extract him and then blow up the ship.
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I must have read it wrong then. Hurray!?
I thought the ship blew up following a chaotic firefight, leaving no survivors from either side. It's a tough mission though, not necessarily in terms of difficulty, but having to fight Xinny and Zero.