The Mech Touch

Chapter 6163  A Costly War Strategy

People weren't stupid. Those who reigned at the top of human society were often first-raters who managed to stand out from the rest of their highly augmented and well-educated rivals.

Given the available data points, it was safe to assume that Ves' secret project could significantly disrupt the entire mech market and mech industry.

While the benefits of living mechs had always been hard to quantify and compare with products developed by other mech designers, the benefits of fielding a partially wooden mech that could transform into a juggernaut-like tree were clearly recognizable to the most ignorant laymen!

Who wouldn't want to have a mech that could take root and increase their immediate combat power by at least an order of magnitude?

Even if the commercial variants of mechs like the Elegant Rage were 'only' able to become 3 to 5 times stronger after transforming into trees, that was already a game changer as far as customers were concerned!

Since the opening of the Red Ocean to human colonization, most battles in the new frontier overwhelmingly took place in high orbit or in deep space.

This trend heavily slanted the focus of the mech community towards spaceborn combat.

Mechs that could effectively fight in space received a lot more development resources.

Machines that operated exclusively in planetary environments became neglected as most colonies were too small and underdeveloped to merit large garrisons and defensive works.

All of that changed since the start of the Age of Dawn. As the native aliens began to raid planets located in the border regions on a larger scale, a lot of unprepared powers suddenly discovered that neglecting planetary defense had real consequences!

To be fair, the reason why many colonies in the border regions lacked enough ground-based defenses was because humanity had been too optimistic about conquering the Red Ocean.

The Great Severing happened so abruptly that so many groups stuck in the Red Ocean immediately plunged into a civilization-wide crisis!

From lacking financial support to an inability to receive vital shipments from the old galaxy, a lot of states and organizations had their hands full with trying to fix their messy and incomplete internal situations.

They did not have the time or resources to rectify their borders and increase their defenses!

This caused the border regions to suffer a lot when the Red War truly kicked off. Even now, red humanity still suffered from their inability to fortify the zones adjacent to alien space.

This made it all the more important to grasp every possible defensive advantage.

Ves found it rather strange that Master Dervidian put so much emphasis on the possible use of Woodsap mechs in defensive warfare.

"If all of my Woodsap mechs gain the ability to transform into large trees, people might not welcome them onto the battlefield, especially within our own territories." Ves cautiously warned. "By the time a large group of Woodsap mechs have barely managed to repel an invading alien force, the terrain and ecosystem of a prosperous planet may end up ruined to the point where it is no longer worthwhile to develop its colony settlements any further."

The projection of Master Termaneo Dervidian smiled but shook his head. "It is not about retaining the value of our planets. It is not even about halting the encroachment of the native aliens. It is about making the enemy bleed for every step they take. In order to discourage our enemies from conquering our star systems, we must increase the cost and reduce any gains that they can make to the greatest possible extent. Think about it, Ves. Would you like to conquer a moderately defended planet that will remain mostly intact after the fighting, or would you prefer to assault a more heavily defended planet that will lose much of its value and become a complete burden to the victors?"

"..."

"War forces us to be cruel." Master Dervidian spoke as he stood up and placed his hands behind his back. "According to our analysis, our technological edge is growing by the month. Our best researchers and mech designers are constantly developing newer and better applications of hyper technology that help us overcome the enormous disparity in numbers. Your Woodsap mechs can be counted among them. What we need to do is buy more time, and if that comes at the cost of ceding ground and ruining many of our planets, then so be it. The more we make the aliens suffer, the more we can deter them from advancing further."

Ves minutely widened his eyes. This was high-level strategic information that would never fall into the ears of ordinary people!

This was because the open admissions made by Master Dervidian could have a significant impact on the morale of human defenders!

Although Ves was already aware that the higher ups had chosen to adopt a strategy where they would trade territory for time, there was always an assumption that people could one day regain everything they lost.

However, if Woodsap mechs were allowed to take root on a large scale in order to inflict greater losses to the invading aliens, then large parts of a planet's ecology as well as mineral endowments would become utterly ruined!

If red humanity regained the advantage and began to take back the zones that had previously fallen to the native aliens, it would become a lot more difficult and much less profitable to recolonize the ravaged star systems!

"Isn't this going a bit too far?" Ves questioned. "I get why this can give us an advantage in the short to medium term. However, the lack of development potential of all of these ruined star systems may screw us in the long term."

"We have already made these considerations. Our strategists are far more far-sighted than you. The Red Ocean may be tiny relative to the Milky Way, but it still encompasses many star systems. Certainly, the planets left untouched by colonization or warfare are not as rich in resources, but they can still serve as adequate substitutes. Besides, you have to realize that red humanity only occupies a corner of this dwarf galaxy. There are many more star systems beyond our borders that offer abundant resources. As long as we can buy enough time to field superior mechs and warships, we can not only take back our lost territories, but make large inroads into prosperous alien territories."

That… made a lot of sense. The sacrifice of employing Woodsap mechs to their fullest may be painful, but it could still be highly profitable!

Ves quickly frowned when he thought about another uncomfortable factor.

"Woodsap mechs can not only be employed in a defensive capacity, but also for offensive purposes. In fact, I think they are more suitable to assist in launching attacks because they can drain planets that are currently occupied by our enemies. It is just that employing Woodsap mechs like this on a wider scale may end up evaporating the benefits of conquering alien territory."

"Then we must control and restrict their usage." Dervidian plainly stated. "The power of Woodsap mechs must be regulated in a similar fashion to warships. The greater their capacity for mass destruction, the greater the need to restrict their usage. This task falls within the mandate of the Red Association, so we will properly address this issue. Your task is to continue your development on these interesting mechs and ensure they will become available within a reasonable timeframe."

Ves nodded in understanding. The division of responsibility was clear. His job was to develop the products. The mechers would ensure they would be put to good use. There was no need for the two parties to interfere with each other's duties. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

They talked a bit more on the subject. Ves eventually addressed an interesting point.

"The Terrans have expressed great interest in my Woodsap mechs." He told the Master Mech Designer. "I suppose everyone is interested in a mech like the Elegant Rage, but I think the Terrans may be particularly suitable to invest in this future product."

"Oh? What do you have in mind?"

"If it is permitted, I would like to cooperate more closely with the Terrans to speed up the development of Woodsap mechs." Ves proposed. "One of the most important factors needed to make a stronger and much more strategically significant first-class Woodsap mech is to develop exceptionally strong and resilient wood materials that possess connections to very strong tree organisms. The R&D institutions of my clan are improving, but they are far from ready to conduct research in such a demanding endeavor. I think we can shave one or two years off the release date of the first mass production version of a Woodsap mech if I can partner up with the Terrans. Both of us will take what we need from each other. This is a mutually beneficial arrangement."

Master Dervidian looked intrigued as Ves laid out a thoughtful development plan.

There was only one problem.

"Why do you wish to turn to the Terrans? Why not turn to us instead? We are already involved in the development of your Carmine mechs. We have granted you access to numerous facilities and given you multiple conveniences."

"It's not enough." Ves retorted. "I know you guys are rich, and I know you guys have a lot of research teams. However, the Red Association is preoccupied with so many affairs that it is impossible for you to slant a huge amount of resources towards any single priority. There are too many mechers who are all clamoring for manpower and resources. I don't want to make enemies out of them. Since the Terrans have expressed the strongest degree of interest, why not take advantage of them and encourage them to invest heavily into the development of Woodsap mechs? The results will ultimately become available to everyone, including mechers like yourself. Isn't it nice to sit back and relax while waiting to obtain free stuff?"

Although Ves described this scheme in crude terms, Master Dervidian quickly accepted the logic behind it. Letting the Terrans do much of the heavy lifting was indeed a rationally sound decision.

However, there were other considerations that Ves had not mentioned. Variables such as trust, intimacy and dependency also mattered.

Master Dervidian frowned. His authority was not enough to make a major decision on this matter.

If the Evolution Witch was available, then she could issue a verdict without any problem.

The imminent alien offensive would soon occupy all of their attention to the extent that many leaders had no time to address other issues anymore.

The Transhumanist mech designer stared at Ves for a moment before choosing to overstep his boundaries. He knew the temper of the Evolution Witch and understood that she would approve any measures that could accelerate forward progress.

"You have my permission to seek greater cooperation in the research and development of Woodsap mechs." Master Dervidian stated. "Until you are ready to unveil your first Carmine mechs to the public, you must keep this collaboration as secret as possible. It is best to join forces with a select group of individuals hailing from a single ancient clan."

"You have my permission to seek greater cooperation in the research and development of Woodsap mechs." Master Dervidian stated. "Until you are ready to unveil your first Carmine mechs to the public, you must keep this collaboration as secret as possible. It is best to join forces with a select group of individuals hailing from a single ancient clan."

"I plan to explore whether it is possible to collaborate with the Devos Ancient Clan first."

"Good choice. You are already operating in its territory, so it is much easier to maintain confidentiality. The Devos Ancient Clan is also a relatively small and weak group within the Terran Alliance, so the Devosans will likely remain honest in their cooperation."

That was all Ves needed to hear. His projects became increasingly larger and more technically sophisticated in scope. The time where he could design all of his prestige projects by himself had passed. It became more important than ever for Ves to build up relations with other powerful parties and take advantage of them to further his own research!