Created Saturday 12 February 2022
People speak of the double Hägg Hammers, but in fact there are three. One on the massive rocky planet, another on its moon (that was the Hermit's first clever stratgem), and later---decisively---a third in the atmosphere of the third-largest gas giant, something between Saturn and Uranus/Neptune. Not mineral rich, but sure a hard target to hit in there. Hm. I don't know. Another rocky planet is too easy. A gas giant really a stretch. Maybe just Uranus/Neptune-like. Really high pressure, but really cold.
It is a mineral-rich system. 16---count them---16 gas giants (mostly Neptuner class, but one super-Jupiter) and five rocky inner planets. [And yeah, eventully make sure that this knid of system could at least theortically exist.] With a massive main-sequence star of 84 sols. Nearly as big as a star can get. [Trying to find the name of some mythological character who ate tehir sibling, but---even after looking around the anicent Greeks---didn't find any.] Anyway, the star used to be a binary pair, but one ate the other (less dramatically, they merged) into this big boy.
The planet the Hermit is told to plant the Hägg on it the farthest rock from the sun. It, too, is large; just shy of having 3 G. But is in a tidally-locked orbit with its also big---and still close---moon. And that moon's gravity lightens the gravity on the lunar side (and sure, increases it a bit on the lune-far side.
He's told to plant it smack in the center of the lune-far side. This way, the Hägg can establish a extra-planetary perimeter faster since it only needs to set up lunar stable strongpoints. They can all rely on the moon being right where it is and not have to cycle through defensive & offensive postures as the moon gets in and out of the way. Can make stronger defense in time, too.
But he sets it up right under the moon. Use the moon as a shield while he hacks the Hägg, steals a blueprint (each one is unique; one aspect of a Hägg's design ensures no two are alike and in unknowable ways: No strategy proven against one Hägg is ensured to win against an other) and plants another Hägg on the planetary side of the moon. He doubles down on planetary defense. Sure, he can't shoot out so well, buthe's as hard to unroot as is a Landingpad for in-coming Blnker Blasters. And he's got a hell of a big planet's worth of heavy metals to throw at those dirty birds. Two big planets.
And he has stolen the plans for a third Hägg that he "twists" into floating in one of the gas giants. And with up to 20 planets between it and the sun, it's a pretty darned cold place. A hard place to take even for a Hägg, sure, but that's nothing compared to tryin gto take such a place from a Hägg.
It's the Somme of battlefields. And fought with very few humans there. But some are still needed, and everyone there is going to die. And soon. Maybe sooner than you can send reinforcements, so hurry. The Landingpad has been sparkling with newly-arriving Blinker Blasters.
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This battle changes Humanity's view of interstellar strategy. They realize it's an inherently defensive war. Of being able to establish strong points quickly---and feinting your enemgy into attacking there a lot to wear your enemy down. (Maybe the Blattids weren't just being nice letting Busskills build the Pyreships.) Outside of odd (if rare) innovation building their ships lent back into the Blattid Empire, there certainly doesn't seem to be much reason to let the Buzzkills invest that much into that. I mean, it sure does also make for a nice decoy.