LogDeniable Asset-Jason-25

Game log for the 2025/07/06 session of Star Wars - Deniable Asset, as taken by Jason

TL-DR convinces the ag cartel to let him make a call, and calls the ship to request immediate submission of digital bona fides. Con, raised by rich people in the Core, knows all about this stuff, and whips up something convincing in record speed. The droid and Myyla have no trouble leaving with dignity and under their own power.

The villainous inspector seems to be somewhat migratory, travelling as needed to perform his inspections where the cargo is.

Myyla, having seen the scope of the ag cartel, thinks the New Republic needs to be aware of the opportunity here. A great many worlds could benefit from the food grown on Tabercore. The team flies back to Haslett to meet with Tarek Hanko in the Ambassador's office. The tactical logs of two encounters with Interdictor cruisers, combined with the intel about the crooked inspector, convince the New Republic officials that this work is worth doing. Bringing capital ships into non-aligned space is not going to be an easy sale, but fighter patrols ought to be workable. They may also be able to bring in a Q-ship. If we could guarantee that the Star Destroyer would show up, the odds of the New Republic bringing in warships increase. Hanko suggests that if they installed concussion missiles on the Deniable Asset and we put a modified tracking missile into the Star Destroyer, the New Republic Navy would trace that signal and blow up the Destroyer, for sure.

We had back to Tabercore and begin investigating the Department of Weights and Measures in Holcomb's Landing. Con, Igli, and TL-DR stay on the ship while Myyla, Phex, and Gar attempt to infiltrate the Department and establish an uplink for Con. Phex cases the place, and identifies several potential points of entry, of which the best is a pressure vent in the service tunnels to the facility. Entering those tunnels poses no trouble at all. They head toward the office of our least favorite inspector, successfully evading the sentry droid, the overweight Mon Calamari security guard, and a few custodial droids on the way. The office is of course locked tight, but that won't keep our intrepid heroes out. Phex searches the office for hidden comps or comms, but find nothing, so they move on to the computer uplink. Gar has no trouble installing it, and then Con goes onlines. He slices right through the security. There's no sign of how he's communicating with the remnant, but Con can grab his schedule for the next two weeks. Everything is so clean and above board that the inspector must have some other way of getting word out. Con finds a hidden macro that changes one character in a string for the inspection. The stamp goes into the system-wide shipping control system, so anyone in a related function could be inspecting it and passing it on. Con now knows this flag, and could fake it if needed. The team packs up and attempts to exfiltrate. The team slips out, sauntering past the sleeping Mon Cal guard.

Gar checks some records and concludes that the Imperials intercept a ship about every three weeks, plus or minus how large the last haul was. We return to the embassy and Haslett to review the plans. It will take a couple weeks for the New Republic to stage, but they will bring in a Q-ship, several squadrons of Y-wing, and a squadron of X-Wings. This gets bureaucratic fast. The X-Wing leader (Fexel Blah hates Igli on spec, which is bad, but they install a concussion missile launcher on the Asset and fit three tracking warheads. The Q-ship captain jumps in and negotiates for a cargo, and then Con and Gar slip the "intercept me" tag into its inspection slip. Gar computers the interception point.

The Q-ship, escorted by the Asset, traipses through hyperspace, and flies right through the intercept coordinate without anything happening. We miss by a good 20 minutes, which is going to screw up the interception geometry for our fighter cover. Welp. Gar makes the signal for help to come running.

Igli fires up the engines to get the ship moving, but can't provide any useful info to the gunners. TL-DR provides fire discipline. One squadron of TIE fighters makes the mistake of assuming too tight a patrol formation, and Phex opens fire before they can shift to a looser combat formation. Debris from the first couple ships hit impacts other fighters in the formation, and ends up destroying all of it. The other TIE squadron in our area is out of range, but Myyla begins drawing a bead on them. Gar informs our reinforcements of our location, helped out by Con's effort to ensure the transmission gets through the Interdictor's jamming. The cruiser, having learned that the Asset is a formidable opponent in their previous encounters with us, makes us the primary target. TIE fighters absolutely light the ship up. The Interdictor tries to join the game, but it can't hit something as maneuverable as us. The fire cuts out early as the TIE fighters close in. The Q-ship turns to "run for it".

Igli continues to accelerate, fails to force the TIEs to collide with one another, and commences evasive maneuvers. TL-DR provides fire discipline again, and Phex is able to destroy two more TIE fighters, and Myyla kills another TIE. Gar angles the shields rearward. The remaining TIE misses. The Q-ship blows its fake plating. Con boosts the shields.

Igli gets the Asset up to top speed, and gets the advantage on the lone TIE currently pursuing. TL-DR once again executes fire discipline. Phex blows up the last TIE fighter in space. Myyla fires at the Interdictor, doing no damage, but helping to keep their attention off the Q-ship. The Q-ships's massive proton torpedo volley tears up the Interdictor, causing it to bear away. Con slices the Interdictor and lowers its front defense.

Igli evades and ensures that the Interdictor doesn't. TL-DR performs some emergency repairs, just to make Con jealous. Phex rakes the Interdictor with his guns and scores a laser hit. Myyla's fire doesn't penetrate the hull, but it does weaken the Interdictor's shields. Gar commits hard to angling the deflectors, which is just in time, because the cruiser actually manages to make a hit. Igli can see that the cruiser is turning off the interdiction field. The Q-ship rolls over. Con jams the cruiser's communications. The New Republic strike force arrives, on an attack vector.

Igli senses blood in the water, or whatever it is etheric rudders react against, and focuses on flying his own attack vector. Phex's fire is highly effective, disabling their navicomputer and their shields. Myyla's fire damages the cruiser's engines. Con calls the Q-ship and advises them to hold fire and let the fighters finish off the cruiser, but they don't get the memo to their gunners in time. Their torpedo broadside is apocalyptic. The cruiser is cripped and its interdiction bubble destroyed. Then the Star Destroyer shows up. The New Republic fighters immediately change course.

Igli shouts for Phex to come to the cockpit and aim the concussion missiles as closes to within concussion missile range. TL-DR provides fire discipline again. Phex manages to get his torpedo past their shields. Myyla fires lasers at them, doing minor damage, and Gar turns the ship around. The Y-wing command asks the Asset to finish off the Interdictor. The Star Destroyer can't hit nothin'. Con slices the destroyer, reduces its defenses, and also disables one of its tractor beams. The Y-wings begin launching torpedoes, and draw some blood.

Igli lines up an attack run on the crippled Interdictor. Phex riddles it with more holes, and Myyla adds enough to weaken the armor. The Star Destroyer plants a turbolaser hit on the Asset that cracks the ship wide open. Con does what he can do, which is to try to take some strain off the ship.

Igli flips switches frantically and somehow the ship comes back to life. TL-DR quickly provides fire discipline for Phex, who manages to make that thing explode. The crew hear that the Star Destroyer has the Q-ship in a tractor, and Con tries to slice it just to deactivate the tractor, but fails. Gar punches the hyperdrive.

The ship sputters to a halt again a few minutes later, but Con is able to perform some repairs and get the ship moving again. We head for a New Republic shipyard. Later on, we hear that the fighters made a few passes until the TIEs launch, then leave. The Q-ship self-destructed to avoid being boarded. The Remnant forces have no idea there's a tracker on their ship, and now New Republic capital ships are hunting it. This might just be the end of Harkin the Ghoul.