Talia Qen

Template:Military-Officer-Deceased Talia Qen (Viscountess Qen of Niram) (Talia Ducha Qen Niramah) was a military officer who served in the Draconian Navy during the Hapan civil war. She was a master tactician and rose to the rank of Vice Admiral while commanding the 5th Draconian Order's mighty flagship, the Fist of Ci'hani.

Her unconventional tactics in using the Tractia Heavy Cruiser in raids set the standard for how capital ship combat within the Hapes Cluster was carried out during the last two decades of the conflict and her writings on the subject are still mandatory reading at the Royal Hapan Navy's academy.

Early Life

Born in the Niram province of Anacalahad in 3947, Qen came from noble house of the Duchii class. Her family was part of the aristocracy, but not particularly wealthy. Her parents took pride in the conservative Hapan values they had, and taught her about the history and principles of the Hapes Consortium. Her early training shaped her life, and provided a basis for her beliefs and ideology. As loyal subjects of House Ci'hani of Varn, Qen was spoon-fed Draconian propaganda from birth.

Her early teens were spent off Anacalahad and rather on Varn where she attended university for young nobles.

Military Career

Crewpit Duty

As soon as she was old enough, Qen sought out to join the Draconian Armed Forces in order to establish the honour and integrity of her family. She enlisted in the Draconian Navy and was sent to the Draconian naval academy on Charubah. She graduated at the top of her class in 3965 at the age of 18 with degrees in naval tactics and capital command theory. By this time her parents had already passed away, making her Viscountess of House Qen. Having received a capital command certificate, she was assigned to Quasar Battle Cruiser Hand of Fate with the rank of Lieutenant Commander. She was given command of the starboard crewpit, in charge of tactical and defensive systems, such as the turbolaser batteries, of the capital ship. The Hand of Fate was the command ship of the 51st Draconian Assault Fleet, a part of the Varn system's naval forces.

Due to her relentless service in the cruiser, and her gunners’ efficiency in several battles in the Rim Worlds region, she was promoted to Commander in 3968. As the fleet was called in to assist House Olanji in the first battle of Charu the cruiser saw extensive action as the battle was a fight to the death over control of the system. The executive officer of the Hand of Fate was killed, paving way for her advancement.

Command Officer

She was officially named executive officer of the ship in 3969. The ship along with the rest of the fleet was assigned to patrol remote regions of the Rifle Worlds region, much to Qen's dislike. She was rash and eager to prove herself to her superior officers. In 3972 it became clear that the ship's commanding officer, Daniq Tal'pur, had plans of defecting to the Victory Alliance. Qen uncovered the plot and led a revolt against Tal'pur onboard the Hand of Fate. The incident caught the attention of Lady Ci'hani of Varn who was serving as Regent of the Draconian Union at the time. Qen was promptly promoted directly to the rank of Line Captain and transferred to the Eye of Ci'hani, command vessel of the 5th Draconian Order.

Qen became famous to the rest of the Draconian Navy after the second battle of Varn where she tried an almost suicidal attack at the 2nd Victory Assault Fleet's command ship. Admiral Re’en was killed in the destruction the command bridge of his ship, as Qen focused all her guns on it at close range. Many of the brightest tacticians of the Victory Alliance died in the attack, and the enemy fleet never recovered from the defeat. The victory earned her a rapid promotion to Commodore. Qen quickly became a naval hero, and her daring tactics became a legend for the Draconian Navy.

Fist of Ci'hani

The Fist of Ci'hani was completed in 3973 and was made flagship of the 5th Draconian Order. Qen was eagerly transferred over along with the rest of her crew from the Eye of Ci'hani as she was made executive officer of the 5th Draconian Order. She spent her time in command of the vessel well, developing new tactics for using Tractia Heavy Cruisers in alternative combat roles.

"The Stonewall" is probably the most famous tactic utilized by and credited to Qen. Her tactic was very simple yet effective. She formed up her capital squadron in diamond formation with the Fist of Ci'hani in the middle, surrounded by smaller vessels. The other ships would circle the Tractia Heavy Cruiser, firing their broadsides at the enemy. Every time one of the ships reached critical shield power or had to reload its guns, the formation would rotate, bringing a cruiser with fresh guns and shields in to action. The tight wall with various larger capital cruisers would ensure continuous firepower, while the ships in reserve could recover its shields and rejoin the battle shortly after. As a result, this wall of constant fire would sustain for a long time, as the ships could take more damage as the shields recovered.

She led the Fist of Ci'hani to victory in numerous famous space battles such as the second battle of Queen-Mother's Pearls and the nineteenth battle of Hapan. Ultimately her victories earned her ranks Rear Admiral and later Vice Admiral along with a top priority target mark from the other factions of the Hapan civil war who saw the Fist of Ci'hani as the biggest obstacle in any potential invasion of the Rim Worlds region. It earned the nickname "Guardian of the Irrea Mist as it unconventionally showed up in random places, intercepting smaller hostile task forces.

Ultimately the Qen, and Fist of Ci'hani with her, met her fate in the eighth battle of the Keltros Expanse, following an extensive cat and mouse game with an elite force from the Phoenix Movement.

Miscellaneous

Quotes

• "Hail Da'tanah!" - Last words.

Trivia

• The Stonewall or The Diamond tactic later inspired the rotating saucer modules of the Battle Dragon.

See Also

• Fist of Ci'hani
• House Qen

Nobility of the Hapes Consortium Varn System Niram province of Anacalahad
Preceded by: Ni Qen	Viscountess of House Qen 3964–3993	Succeeded by:<br./>House Dissolved
Error creating thumbnail: File missing Draconian Military Error creating thumbnail: File missing
Preceded by: Aani Tahre	Executive Officer of the 5th Draconian Order 3973–3993	Succeeded by:<br./>Dalii Maraq
Preceded by: Position Created	Commanding Officer of the Fist of Ci'hani 3973–3993	Succeeded by:<br./>Position Abolished Vessel Destroyed
Preceded by: 'Daniq Tal'pur	Commanding Officer of the 51st Draconian Assault Fleet 3972–3973	Succeeded by:<br./>Varsoon Palnar