Not One Step Back! House Liao and Static Defenses
Overview: While the other houses have their own distinct advantages, the origins of House Liao's interest in the SDS system go back farther than any other-back to the Star League's fading days and the Border War. During that stretched-out conflict before Richard Cameron's majority, Barbara Liao found that her words were well defended, but still being pushed back. Ultimately, she would demand that Richard help her build a SDS for Sian as a precondition of support for one of his post Executive Order 156 edicts, and those construction brigades were still in Sian when the Amaris Civil War broke out, as Barbara had demanded massively expanded fortifications.
Cut off from their homes in the Hegemony, and not technically members of the SLDF, the construction brigades were slowly released to work with the depleted invasion of the Hegemony as their replacements-good Capellan citizens-could be trained to operate much of their equipment. Over the next 30 years, these citizens would fortify several worlds, until a warship bombarded the under-construction sites on Capella itself, in the Second Capellan Bombardment, an event that dwarfed the first bombardment in the Age of War. By this point however, their construction equipment and line of supplies were being worn down, and replacements for the sites could come only at the cost of new Warship production. A corundrum significantly simplified when warship production ceased, allowing the sites to limp along into the 31st century.
Sian: Decadence and Excess
By far the most lavishly equipped planetary SDS in the Confederation is that of Sian itself, with titanic heavy naval PPC batteries scattered strategically around the planet, abundant laser defenses hidden in disguised tower blocks to shoot down dropships attempting to land in cities, and massive numbers of strategic missiles. In terms of planetary armament, Sian is equivalent to ten Star league Battleships (six McKennas and four Texases, with a few dozen missle launchers extra.) It is also painfully deficient in all other areas, with readiness of the fortress defenders and staff being chronically low or non-existant. Promotion out of this post requires strict attention to cleanliness, as the weapons are mostly irreplaceable, so they are slathered in fresh coats of paint regularly, to keep them looking pristine at try to attract good recommendations from officers. Many of the officers want to be promoted, but also crave the good attention of the Celestial Palace, or are virtual prisoners to ensure the good behavior of their families. Sian is not an intentional dumping ground but that is what it has become by the year 3000.
Tikonov: Drill Baby Drill
The alert sirens at a Tikonov SDS base are a familiar sound to anyone posted to one. The Tikonov SDS, by long tradition, is the most heavily drilled in all the Capellean commonwealth, and a stark contrast to the Sian fortresses. Although the Tikonov SDS is only eight stations, spaced around the planet roughly like the points of a cube, its forts are a constant evolution of military order. Troops constant train, maneuver, train, test their soldiers, train, and then train some more. Squads and lances shuffle from one fort to another on long marches, or vanish into hidden tunnels only to reappear half a continent away. Here, the guns are not silent display pieces, but are tested in fire. The result is a highly trained-and highly pent up-force. Accidents happen-in 2998, an inbound dropship was blown away when a targeting drill failed to properly engage safety interlocks. Frustration is high among the forces of Tikonov, who believe they are more than ready for an invasion-but await it with probably no hope of ever seeing it.
St. Ives: Down Down, Underground.
The famous St. Ives 'pop up fortress' is more ready than Sian, but is also a chronically depressed and morbid force. Seldom getting to see the sun does that to soldiers. Most members of the St. Ives SDS garrison live more than a kilometer underground, tending the vast Castle Brian and keeping it in order, chasing off the occasional still or Servitor Revolutionary Front that springs up in a disused barracks. Long tubes serve as the access to the surface for men-and for missiles. Unlike Sian or Tikonov, St. Ives SDS is entirely missile based, and thus can in theory be 'shot dry' However, massive underground warehouses can hold enough missiles for a long, long siege.
Sarna: Renewable Power, Renewable Firewpower.
Sarna has seen a slow decline over the Succession wars, but this is more due to endemic problems of agriculture and available resources than any attack. With over eighty individual fortresses, SDS Sarna remains one of the most potent defensive positions in the Confderation, though it is remarkably one-dimensional. Each fortress is of identical construction, and consists of an outer anti-Mech wall, an inner courtyard of solar-surfaced ferrocene, and a central keep with a laser batter at it's apex. Underground, enormous capacitors store enough charge for 10 full power shots, even if the reactors or solar panels drop out of the circuit. However, due to the remoteness and dullness of duties, some stations are regarded as punisment stations, and are at low-readiness, leaving the network somewhat more porous than might otherwise be true.
New Canton: One Ping Only.
The New Canton SDS is unique in that it was engaged heavily shortly before it was finished by the FWL Navy. The three-month long dance between Warships and defenders saw several methods tried to destroy the SDS-including long range NAC bombardment from a high-speed passing target. While the New Canon SDS lost several stations, the network as a whole did not fail. After the retirement of the FWL, Barbara Liao ordered the planet's reinforcement, which saw the launch of the submersible carriers Mu and Lemuria Each equipped with over 100 bays for conventional or aerospace fighters, Barracuda missiles for air-defense, and able to dive to over a kilometer, the two carriers prowl the oceans on year-long patrols, followed by a return to their base for repairs. Rumor has it that their preferred patrol area is within the Shinyang Sea, an area which is conspicuously a fishing preserve and kept off the normal trade routes for internal shipping.
