I confess I took a tiny liberty by nodding at BSG who mixed US and UK navy terms around in their dialogue. So we're not operating on NATO standard rather something in between.
As to the low rank, well it's not that low. Lowish perhaps but any higher and you wouldn't send him out by himself I don't think. Besides, junior officers have one trait that so endears them to the higher ranks - they're expendable...
You saw a quick glimpse as we landed, but I'll concede not perhaps sufficient to make an assessment. Well unless you want to start looking at the images and judging how big the landing pad vs the base was and the size of Vanguard when on it. Then again we could wait a few days and see ourselves
The switching branches probably didn't do him much good I suspect...
Also, peacetime remote force. The command is probably quite small so rather like most small peacetime military, promotion is often at the expense of "dead men's shoes"...
Why would a simple lt.engineer be ordered to carry a sidearm at all times,? And if he is assigned to the crew why Walker doesn't know who he is? And what happened to Harris? And why was the lieutenant assigned to the crew on such short notice?
Nope. Sarah actually outranks Annie (hence why the MC wasn't that impressed in some dialogue branches with how Sarah and Annie interact "Surely she's not scared of an NCO..."
Nope. Sarah actually outranks Annie (hence why the MC wasn't that impressed in some dialogue branches with how Sarah and Annie interact "Surely she's not scared of an NCO..."
Why would a simple lt.engineer be ordered to carry a sidearm at all times,? And if he is assigned to the crew why Walker doesn't know who he is? And what happened to Harris? And why was the lieutenant assigned to the crew on such short notice?
Why would a simple lt.engineer be ordered to carry a sidearm at all times,?
His rank is irrelevant in this case. The order to carry a sidearm is determined by the threat level. Would you send him down to a planet where we know there is native life unarmed when we don't know what he will have to do to complete his mission? Probs best to get him to draw his pistol from the armoury just in case.
And if he is assigned to the crew why Walker doesn't know who he is?
Why should she? He's a Lt ground engineer. She's project lead and a senior scientist . The rank difference there is huge.
And what happened to Harris?
Chris and Annie have the answers to that one in Chapter One.
And why was the lieutenant assigned to the crew on such short notice?
Because Harris fell "ill" and they needed a ground engineer. He was available. He's not part of the Vanguard crew of course, they are merely dropping him off. After all Chris and Annie refer to him as "Self Loading Freight". As to why him in the first place, could well be his name was next on the list. After all Chris has complained about how the military mind works when discussing the state of the Vanguard.
Also, note how those little conversations -really- start to add up in terms of putting it all together? Becca did warn people not to spacebar through it for a reason
Seriatim:
(and then I am off to bed!)
Why would a simple lt.engineer be ordered to carry a sidearm at all times,?
His rank is irrelevant in this case. The order to carry a sidearm is determined by the threat level. Would you send him down to a planet where we know there is native life unarmed when we don't know what he will have to do to complete his mission? Probs best to get him to draw his pistol from the armoury just in case.
And if he is assigned to the crew why Walker doesn't know who he is?
Why should she? He's a Lt ground engineer. She's project lead and a senior scientist . The rank difference there is huge.
And what happened to Harris?
Chris and Annie have the answers to that one in Chapter One.
And why was the lieutenant assigned to the crew on such short notice?
Because Harris fell "ill" and they needed a ground engineer. He was available. He's not part of the Vanguard crew of course, they are merely dropping him off. After all Chris and Annie refer to him as "Self Loading Freight". As to why him in the first place, could well be his name was next on the list. After all Chris has complained about how the military mind works when discussing the state of the Vanguard.
Of course you have an answer to every single question, but what if the lieutenant is lying about his past service career? What if his files were altered?
It definitely seems like something strange is going on, but I honestly would be extremely surprised if the MC is anything but the Engineer we have been told he is. Occam's razor "Simpler solutions are more likely to be correct than complex ones" still applies in this context. Sure, we know that something strange is going to happen, since it's a game / visual novel and it needs an interesting story, but not everything has to have a dark hidden secret. Probably are quite a few of those out there, but as for as the MC goes, it wouldn't really make sense for us to have any. Unless we are unknowing sleeper agents of course, that would be an interesting curve ball.
Looking at real world navies, a Lt seems to be a pretty decent rank for someone who started as a grunt.
Besides, if I were to set up a space-going navy, I'd certainly give my engineers good benefits and plenty of authority. If something goes wrong, everyone suffocates, or the whole operation disappears somewhere in deep space.
Isn't it normal that the highest ranking specialist in any given operation makes decisions?
You saw a quick glimpse as we landed, but I'll concede not perhaps sufficient to make an assessment. Well unless you want to start looking at the images and judging how big the landing pad vs the base was and the size of Vanguard when on it. Then again we could wait a few days and see ourselves
Also, peacetime remote force. The command is probably quite small so rather like most small peacetime military, promotion is often at the expense of "dead men's shoes"...
Besides, if I were to set up a space-going navy, I'd certainly give my engineers good benefits and plenty of authority. If something goes wrong, everyone suffocates, or the whole operation disappears somewhere in deep space.
Isn't it normal that the highest ranking specialist in any given operation makes decisions?
It does, actually.
However, the guide could just be a promotional ad with "artistic views" of how the base would have looked like if the project had gone through, kinda what they use when selling condos that haven't been built yet...
Naaah! Conspiracy theories are way more interesting!
Why would a simple lt.engineer be ordered to carry a sidearm at all times,? And if he is assigned to the crew why Walker doesn't know who he is? And what happened to Harris? And why was the lieutenant assigned to the crew on such short notice?
The injury occurred when Harris remarked that "It sure is hot today." Sarrah responded saying she had an idea, but before Chris and Annie could stop her she shouted "Hey, Koolaid!", causing the Koolaid guy to burst through the hull sucking Harris into the cold vacuum of space.
As mentioned Mia has the same job as Chris. So in a topsy turvy universe where certain beardless people have beards. MC would be on her ship and we would have a magazine showing Chris's skills off.
Also, damn, I missed page 69. The perils of workaday with internet filters!
My bet on the toolbox is that it contains schematics for Tritanium. I can't wait to see what structures, both mundane and perverse, we will be able to make with that. Turn a dildo into a key into a door into a sword into a LGM cage into exotic bondage gear.
Damn, who's in charge of the licensing the fan fiction, Notty?
