Episode 114 Various Intentions
The simulated fleet battle between mercenaries was, in plain terms, merely a mediocre engagement.
They collided head-on without strategy. They attempted makeshift tactics that were obvious failures. When the fleet began to disintegrate, they withdrew and reorganized—repeating the same pattern.
"Is it the same for the Fidere side? Are they adapting to the other mercenaries?"
Dawson tilts his head. He believes Fidere capable of more.
Fidere is an employee of the corporate side. He is here to investigate the inner workings of Coaster.
To gather intelligence, he needs to maintain a favorable position within the mercenary group. That is why he became one of the coordinators.
To someone aware of these underlying circumstances, the ineptitude of this fleet movement conveys only one impression: it does not match his capabilities.
"Simulated combat. No one dies even if they hold back."
Dawson, however, found the situation problematic and sent a message to Fidere.
"Since this is simulated combat, try more variations."
The message was straightforward.
Yet Fidere, knowing Dawson had recognized the truth, could read between the lines.
In response to Dawson’s expectation, the fleet under Fidere’s command altered its movement.
The fleet reorganized into a spherical formation.
"Sphere-scale formation—what a subtle choice."
The tactic, known as the Sphere-scale Formation, was a space-adapted version of the terrestrial Fish-scale Formation.
The execution was identical: all vessels moved sequentially along the spherical surface, with only those positioned at the front-facing edge engaging in fire.
The advantage of this formation is the ability to maintain continuous fire, the opportunity to rest and repair ships when moving to the rear of the formation, and the distribution of damage due to constant movement, which slows the collapse of the fleet.
There is a weakness. The formation is spherical, with only the front facing the enemy. This means no fire from the vessels at the rear, resulting in actual striking power that only reaches half of what the entire fleet could deliver. Additionally, the low striking power must be compensated by continuous, sustained attacks. This requires high difficulty in fleet maneuvers along the sphere’s surface.
A formation that requires extensive training to use in actual combat. Most commanders consider it better to learn simpler, more effective formations instead.
Yet it was also true that the tactic was suitable for Fidere's simulated combat use.
The low striking power and difficulty in fleet maneuvering meant Fidere’s fleet was overwhelmed maintaining formation. Consequently, their ability to respond to Passer’s fleet diminished, resulting in a restrained engagement.
Dawson nodded, impressed by the insight, and sent a message to Passer.
‘If you’re a pirate, use the experience you gained as one.’
No further explanation was provided.
Yet the advice suited Passer. Immediately after sending the message, the fleet’s movement changed.
Previously, the fleet had moved as a single unit. Now, it split into several detachments, each moving independently.
Apparently, Passer judged that controlling all vessels was unfeasible and delegated some ships to subordinate commanders.
This decision proved effective for Passer’s fleet. The fleet’s movement improved dramatically.
‘Then I’ll just do it my own way!’
Don’t fall behind the others! Advance!
Use them as bait—strike where it matters!
The communication load on Passer’s fleet increased. Shouts and commands, indistinguishable from one another, were exchanged.
The words were unmistakably those of pirates, yet the fleet’s movement was far more dynamic than when it had mimicked military formations.
“Divide-and-conquer tactics aren’t exactly praised in theory.”
As Dawson muttered, Passer’s fleet had split into several units. Each unit acted independently, making the formation appear as if small groups were charging the large Fidere fleet from multiple directions.
From a strategic standpoint, dispersing forces is considered a mistake. It risks being defeated in detail.
Yet with skillful tactics, a mistake can become a masterstroke.
And starting with Passer, most mercenaries had origins in piracy and were accustomed to hit-and-run tactics with small units.
It was logical that deploying them effectively required small units rather than large formations.
In essence, what appeared to be Passer’s tactical error was, in fact, the optimal approach for utilizing mercenaries with a pirate background.
‘Hahaha! Never fought something that spins around like this before!’
‘Hit and retreat. Hit and retreat. Same as pirates—just like that!’
‘No need to collect the prize—mercenaries like us have it easier!’
The crew’s morale rose as they fell into familiar patterns of operation.
Conversely, the Fidere fleet, forced to execute complex maneuvers, moved sluggishly.
‘Will Fidere recover from here? Or will they accept defeat?’
Dawson observed with interest, but ultimately the Fidere fleet was driven to total destruction without recovery.
The Passer fleet cheered victory in the simulation, while the Fidere fleet sank into dejection over their defeat.
Amid this, Fidere transmitted a message to their own fleet: "The loss was my fault."
It was dutiful behavior, but lowering one's head too readily risked contempt from mercenaries.
"Perhaps he thinks it would be acceptable if they mocked him and demanded a change in leadership."
Fidere's actions had consistently aimed at second place since the strategic board phase.
Given that, it was not unreasonable to suppose he might deliberately maneuver to relinquish command and settle into a deputy role, rather than remain fleet commander.
He would prefer to remain in an unobtrusive position, but it’s likely a request from the corporate side.
While gathering intelligence for Coaster as a spy, he would eventually absorb Coaster’s sympathizers into his own forces when the time came.
To fulfill both tasks, it was more convenient to stand above the mercenaries without reaching the top.
He understood the intention. Still, leaving a capable individual idle was also a loss.
Dawson devised a new plan. He began moving to keep Fidere as the coordinator among the mercenaries.