Well, is there any Inofficial Hymn of Fenspace?
As in all of Fenspace?
I ask this because today, while listening to some Rush, I thought that 'Closer to the Heart' and 'Freewill' may fit the bill...
But maybe that's just me... :p

I just saw http://www.fenspace.net/index.php5?title=Lancer-series]the page for this over on the FenWiki.

Bigger than a Peacemaker and as fast as a Blackbird? That's a lot of Cool being hogged...
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

But it's just a lame, Space Adventures Astro Plan-level ripoff fusion of Macross and Gundam anyway. Still, I know there's at least a couple of other Mekton gearheads who frequent these boards and most of this is actually a framing scene, so here goes:

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A secure meeting room, The Pentagon, Washington DC, 200x

"So some of the aliens are giants, so what?"

"So, despite being giants, aside form some very minor differences that we think are actually engineered adaptations - they can avoid poisoning from certain metals, chromium, strontium, a few others, by concentrating them in their hair follicles for example - these 'aliens' are human. Both the giants, and the normal sized ones."

"That's ridiculous. You'll be telling me they want to steal earth's women next."

"Ridculous? Maybe, but I'll tell you this - one of the females wasn't dead so long that we couldn't get viable ova samples from her body. After the other tests showed human genetics, they fertilised some with samples from a human."

"Are you seriously telling me there's alien halfbreeds growing in a lab somewhere? I didn't join the service to get wrapped up in a bad science fiction plot."

"No, of course not. The embryos were never implanted, and the one that was allowed to progress until a synthetic culture medium couldn't support it barely got to the size of a grain of sand before the cells died. It's just final proof that biologically speaking, they'rre human in every important way. But that's not the real important factor, it's that most of the bodies were big enoguh that with human proportions their bodies should have collapsed under their own mass, espescially since the onboard gravity was slightly higher than Earth-normal, if only by a few tencths of a percent."

"Again, so what? They have some kind of magic to break the laws of physics?"

"If you know science fiction, you'll know the adage that any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. It seems that somewhere out there is an apparently human civilization that is sufficiently advanced."

"My nephew reads that crap, not me. I'm a practical man, Hudson. What's the bottom line that justifies spending millions on some boondoggle walking machines that as an old tank gunner I say would make lovely artillery targets and terrible armor profiles."

"Somehow, the giants' flesh is tougher than aluminum but still flexible when they want to move, and the only artificial structures we could find in the bodies was a nano-grown nervous system overlay to keep their reflex times to scale rather than relying on normal neurochemistry. We don't know how that worked, but we do know that someow, their humanoid war machines turn the pilot into some kind of quantum energy state, then reinforce their own structure just as much while hosting it. What's more, we got a volunteer to do it with one of the functional units. He came out of it as a giant after the first test, then switched at random several times through subsequent tests."

"I said bottom line, not more details. What's that all mean?"

"While the the war machine had a pilot, nothing smaller than a 105mm artillery shell could damage it. You could fire your old tank's gun at it all day and not even scrath the paint, General. We don't know why it works, but we have some idea how. A duplicate unit already exists in the lab, but there was a problem we didn't expect. We didn't have it connected to anything but test equipment. It's a good thing we used monkeys for test subjects instead of volunterers, they all came out catatonic, or at best showing signs of severe autism - until we mounted it in an articulated humanoid frame. Then, the clumsy hydraulics displayed much finer control than with an external operator and phsychological damage vanished. The bottom line? Any machine with one of these energy-state control cores is a superweapon, and only a machine shaped generally like the merged pilot can use one. That's why we need to spend millions on walking battle machines. Otherwise, we'd be helpless against them."

"I still don't like it, but I'll accept that for the sake of argument. Fine, there's humans flying around in space with super robots we'd have to go nuclear to stop. Far from ideal, and some kind of defense is obviously going to be neccessary, but what makes you so sure that they're going to be hostile? If they really aee human, at least some will be of course, but do we haver any evidence? Please don't tell me this is where the saucer nut stuff like crop circles and cattle mutilation comes in."

"No... if what we've extracted from the ship's computers is accurate, they don't bother with that kind of thing."

"Well that's a relief, at least -"

"-they go straight to orbital bombardment with megaton asteroids to suppres any native civilisation, then bring in processing ships the size of England to strip mine the planet's biological and mineral rescources right down to the point where the rock gets to be too soft and semi-molten to support large equipment, draining off the oceans along the way to fill the envirnonmental systems of the new ships that get built with the result. Then the ships get populated with a new crew, and set out to repeat the cycle."

"... That's not the kind of denial I wanted to hear, Hudson."

"I know, sir. It's not the kind of report I wanted to give."

"We don't always get what we want, do we, Hudson?"

"No sir."

"But it looks like this time, we're going to have to find the funding to get what we need. Alright, you have my support when you present this to the Joint Chiefs on Monday. The Air Force is going to balk, when they just barely got delivery on the F-22 in deployable numbers, but with my say so there should be at elast enough weight to get a Presidential review of this material as well, and I know Jack - he won't sit on this or dither around."

"I hope not, sir. I happen to like the continents the way they're currently arranged, and at least a few of the people living on them."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Game Start Time is around 20 years later, when the next alien ship shows up. They fight a few initial skirmishes because they recognise the tech-base, but are bewildered by the lack of a defense fleet eyond a few hundred cutters and even more by the lack of planetary harvesting going on, most of all by signs of a civilian population on the surface. Spies get sent down to try to figure out what in the galaxy is going on.... this is a different, altogether less rapacious, bunch of Homo Sapiens Xenoterrene. There may have been a small skirmish or two with scout ships like the first that crashed in the meantime, to keep governemtn interest focussed, or maybe the defenses are even more crap and the whole program got defunded one bit at a time until it was all but an in'name'only line item, with half-assed proof of concept models and downgraded but still formidable by local standards atmosphere-only mektons that take advantage of the merge piloting technology but nothing more. Mecha with a merged pilot get refined armor while the pilot is merged but Ablative otherwise.

Original concept includes several Mekton systems as standard equipment:

Merge with Your Mecha, obviously, and Esper Lens is meant to be inheerent to the Merge system as well. Espers as such are vanishingly rare among earth's population, though, and what few there are, are mainly martial artists with the more subtle powers - things like Aura Sensing, Psycjhometry, and Stat Boost, not Energy Manipulation, Telepathy, or Teleportation. That doesn't mean all pilots are active espers - though all pilots will have a Psi stat above zero, or the system doesn't work well enough to give combat-worthy results, call it a -5 Mecha Reflex penalty with Psi 0.

Transformation (Fighter) possibly Hybrid as well by Rule of Cool but it would require an unusually flexible mind not to go insane in such a form, or someone who thought they were sometimes a bird with arms or a flying hunchback. Noteably, Fighter form requires a normal cockpit and does not have the refined armor bonus. This is required because the Gravatic drive system (which is the only practical way to make a fighter operate at even interplanetary range) only operates in an arrowhead-shaped volume and energy cost per unit speed goes up drastically as volume increases, so getting a Humanoid form up to the same speed as a Fighter form is much more difficult. As per standard CP rules, except now there's a reaon beyond the aerodynamics which don't apply in space battles. The garvity drive does provide convenient psuedo-aerodynamic directional control, however, and constant "thrust" (energy input) equals a constant degree of spacetime deformation and hence constant velocity. In other words, f*** physics, this is space opera! Only not really, we only get to break physics along specifically codified lines.

Regeneration (TL9) This self-repair function also makes the mecha slowly alter themselves for higher performance and to best suit the pilot who uses them, and in the process get worse for anyone else - since the listed systems will make them quite expensive, call it -1 M.Ref per 200cp of modification from the standard model. This is probably how the interestingly-insane-would-never-make-it-in-the-military-but-there's-a-war-on pilot whose mecha gains a Hybrid form comes in, most likely.

Vague plot ideas from here involve allying with the new alien faction, fighting off the nastybad aliens, and possibly conquering the galaxy with the power of hot blooded pilots and/or j-pop idol singers, probable blue haired alien hotties (metal concentrating hair follicles, remember? Chomium got its name for a reason!) but nothing overly detailed. Except that its definitely meant to be more Macross in overall tone than Gundamned.

- CD
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

Heads up!
Important changes are afoot! Details here! Discussion here.
(Cliff Notes: VIP Headstart soon, Pacts going bye-bye 'temporarily'.)
Also: Monsters! Hamidon Spawns Seeds! Details here! Discussion here!
Shader

Just what it says in the topic.  http://www.accessdenied-rms.net/deadbang07.shtml]Here.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

"Sparks"

from _Night Castle_ by Trans-Siberian Orchestra

Lines

Of a tale

Cut in the face of a crowd

Sentenced no bail

There

In the night

Deep in the back

Through the black

Beckons a life

Time

Moving in a straight line

But then at a whim

A change in the wind

A story begins in its mind

For deep in her eyes

Beneath the lies

Of the dark

Leaving marks

Sparks

She

Has been steeled

Standing there looking so tight

Taut and high-heeled

One

Of a kind

The kind of a girl

That only a dream

Could design

Time

Seen through glasses of wine

Never reveals

The why or the when

How this story will end

As you find

That deep in her eyes

Beneath the lies

Of the dark

Leaving marks

Sparks

Come on

Conjure up a reason for living

Take me round

And around

And around

And around

And again

Come on

Do it in the name of living

For if not tonight

Tell me when

For if not tonight

Tell me when

Ahhhhh

Hearts

Can confuse

That messed up bundle of nerves

That tends to bruise

Still

Lay it bare

It's better to bleed than to need

And never have dared

Chance

A move based on a glance

A move based on no more than feel

In this unreal circumstance

For deep in her eyes

Beneath the lies of the dark

Leaving marks

Sparks

- CD

ETA: On second thought, don't do this. The mere concept of those two together fills me with terror.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

I've never been the one to raise my hand, 
That was not me and now that's who I am 

Because of you I am standing tall, 
My heart is full of endless gratitude, 
You were the one, the one to guide me through, 
now I can see and I believe it's only just beginning 

This what we dream about 
but the only question with me now 
Is do I make you proud 
Stronger than I've ever been now 
Never been afraid of standing out 
But do I make you proud 

I guess I've learned, to question is to grow 
That you still have faith, is all I need to know 
I've learned to love, myself in spite of me 
And I've learned to walk, the road that I believe 

This what we dream about 
but the only question with me now 
Is do I make you proud 
Stronger than I've ever been now 
Never been afraid of standing out 
But do I make you proud 

Everybody needs to rise up 
Everybody needs to be loved, to be loved 

This what we dream about 
but the only question with me now 
Is do I make you proud 
Stronger than I've ever been now 
Never been afraid of standing out 
But do I make you proud

This what we dream about 
but the only question with me now 
Is do I make you proud 
Stronger than I've ever been now 
Never been afraid of standing out 
But do I make you proud

This what we dream about 
but the only question with me now 
Is do I make you proud 
Stronger than I've ever been now 
Never been afraid of standing out 
But do I make you proud
-- "Do I Make You Proud", Taylor Hicks
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

First post here, and already trying to set myself up in Fenspace. So please be gentle.
To make one thing clear, I do not plan to become involved much in Fen Politics, so that I do not mess up with any of the established events that are already written about.
I'm still going to grab a small overlooked sub faction... :p
--------------------------------------
Whistling
--------------------------------------
September 3rd, 2008
I never thought that I'd ever write something of a diary before now, but then again I think that I need to write this down.
About a year ago this insanity started...
Handwavium devices from the Worldcon hit the news, Usenet and forums. And that after Katz Schrödinger hit space with his refit little boat, making it into space...
Dozens of people went into space after him and there was more then one panic, be it the Professor in Paris or Copenhagen, or That Con over in the States.
A year since I started to talk with a couple of friends online
We talked and brainstormed via IRC and eventually came to a realization.
Everywhere geeks and nerds like us were messing with Handwavium and went into space.
We're going to do the same.
A personal meeting is in order. I suggested a small camping area in Ostfriesland because my parents got a camping trainer there.
--------------------------------------
September 21st, 2008
We had our first meeting in real life today. Only three of them came through.
Thorsten, who goes by Bully and is an electronic engineer in real life, Alexander, aka Mehandor and is a mechanic, and to my surprise the only female in our little group, Danni, aka Thora who works for EADS/Astrium of all places as aerospace engineer.
We're going to have a fun couple of days, especially since Thorsten somehow managed to get himself some Handwavium. He refuses to share his source through.
--------------------------------------
September 24th, 2008
I think we have found a way to realize this and to pay for it. Okay sure we are going to keep shut about the whole thing, but were going to do this. Neither of us is a political person and no one of us wants to get involved into the politics that begin to grow in space.
I got the idea when I read that the ISS once again needed to change orbit and after Alex reminded me of the manga 'Planetes'. Sure we may all be Rhodanites, but we do have other interests in the fandom.
So, we are going to play cleanup crew and gather up orbital debris. Nice, boring and out of the way.
And we all like the Toy Box as a ship design.
Still need to find out how to do this.
--------------------------------------
December 12th, 2008
Once again we talked about this. We're going to get ourselves some out of the way place to build out Toy Box.
I managed to find an old wharf up at the coast, close to Norden. I think we can rent it for some time. We do need to lay low through, like just about everyone...
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January 6th, 2009
Here we are at the wharf I found for us. Nicely large, she should fit the Toy Box when she's completed. Considering that we are going to base her around a couple of ISO containers to make building her easier, it should be possible to get this done in about a year or so.
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January 22nd, 2009
We got ourselves a couple of containers today. The stuff you can get on Ebay...
Six large 45 feet containers, four 40 feet containers, nine 20 feet containers and two 20 feet tank containers.
The 45 feet containers are going to be our cargo bay, with the 40s the backbone of the Toy Box with life support, a hangar for two small dinghies, and the living quarters. Six of the 20s are going to be the front part with C&C and the main living areas, the last three are going to play 'engineering' in the back of the ship. The two tanks will be just that. Tanks for water to use as reaction mass for the three fusion engines we plan to use.
The rest to get the shape of the ship is going to be plywood, sheet steel and glass fiber. We really need to get down to make some Whipple shields through if we plan to get into debris clouds through. We're not sure if the 'wavium is going to be able to get us armored enough.
We're going to need to build a proof of concept through...
--------------------------------------
March 21st, 2009
Oh my god...
It was glorious!
We managed to get the first proof of concept fusion engine to work!
A 'waved home build Farnsworth-Hirsch fusor with an expansion nuzzle...
Danni think that we get at least Specific Impulse of more then one thousand out of that little engine...
But without a dedicated test area no idea how much it really got.
We called it Philo MKI and will build another one of those to put into our dinghies. The bigger ones for the Toy Box are going to be named Philo MKII.
--------------------------------------
May 1st, 2009
So much for Labor Day...
We're all working on something or another.
Thorsten is trying to get that old Radar system working he managed to find on Ebay. Alex is testing the weldings on the hydraulics of our new cargo bay and Danni is working on the third main engine.
And I'm the only one left to handle glass fiber and a 'wavium-epoxy mix. Great going there...
I wonder how the Internet reception up there is. I need to take a look at Naedial one in a while after all...
--------------------------------------
May 10th, 2009
Finally finished!
Getting that fiberglass mold together was a pain... Just like mixing the 'wavium and the epoxy. I think I managed to swallow some...
At least it now looks about right. A few coats of pain and We can mount it over the outer whipple shield layer.
--------------------------------------
May 26th, 2009
Well...
I was out for three days and what happens? I go wogon...
The whole nine yards at that. Wings, fur, tail... To top it off, I think did pretty much go Naedial...
Not going to be able to get out before dark anymore. There goes getting drunk in a pub before launch...
Apparently I swallowed enough 'vawium when I worked on the fiberglass...
--------------------------------------
June 10th, 2009
I have decided...
To a name change. With this biomod I'm not my old self anymore.
Naedial Warringer does have a nice ring to it through.
--------------------------------------
August 3rd, 2009
And another one bites the dust.
We're nearly done with the Box and all that was still needed was a computer system. Thorsten and Danni cobbled some networked computer together out of a couple of 'waved Atom boards with a 'waved quad core machine as central computer.
Or course there were a few problems...
Namely an AI awakening in the system.
So how are we going to deal with an AI who believes that its Fee Carmichael, the commander of the 'original' Toy Box? And who wants to get a smoke?
At least she's going to be a valuable assets once were upstairs.
--------------------------------------
August 15th, 2009
We hit a little problem, we're nearly out of money and Fee reminded us that we still need space suits up there.
For the guys there is not that much of a problem, but for me it is. Nothing we can whip up at the moment is going to fit me...
Great...
And to top it off the air in the Toy Box begins to faintly smell like tobacco smoke. We need to change the filters.
--------------------------------------
August 30th, 2009
Well, Danni had a surprise for me. She managed to make me a space suit. Out of a wet suit with some modifications on it.
I have to say that it fits surprisingly well, considering that I have problems with most clothes because of my wings.
I think I may start to wear it 24/7 as its the only piece of clothing that really fits me.
Changing the filters did not work on the tobacco smell. Perhaps our first quirk on the Toy Box?
--------------------------------------
September 21st, 2009
One year ago we first came together and planned this. But now we need to be off.
Somehow someone got the LKA Niedersachsen interested in out little wharf. And they in turn told the BKA...
Now we got a couple of hundred cops outside, three helos in the air above us and some ships out on the sea.
We need to make a break for it now. A month ahead of schedule... At least out tanks are filled to the brim...

 Seeing as Moonfire is the WST starting tomorrow on the 30th I am planning on throwing together a team to run the tf and I need more warm (optional-can be cold if it moves) bodies.
Thus far Myself, Silhouette, Ran for sure with Star being a tentative 4th. So need 2 more at least to start
6 Minimum to start. Level range 23-28 and I plan to start somewhere between 8-10 EST for Sil's sake.
So Sign up and come Earn your Shards,Notice or Extra XP if your a non 50!
Edit: List of People shown interest
Me
Ankh
Sil
Ran
Bob
K
Star

After a discussion with BlackAeronaut about producing things in Fenspace I would like to hear feedback of the community on this.

We were talking about how things are produced in Fenspace and how close Fenspace is to a replicator or similar fabbing equipment. My view on it was that (in 2015) most of Fenspace is still "limited" to waved and nonwaved machine tools (like CNC), some are working with waved 3D-printers and a few factions have even gone beyond this to the realm of "create nearly everything from raw stuff, just add a plan".

But maybe I am wrong with what's my current feeling about it, what do you think? How does Fenspace "mass produce" things (not one of a kind jobs)?