Vass' Chindits: Second Chances

[gleamingterrier]

This is my new merc unit. I'm playing a solo campaign with them on MegaMek, where I'm planning on taking them through the major wars of the 31st Century, through the Jihad if they don't get wiped out. I hope to post additional info (supplemental readouts, interviews, other media about them in the JHS style). Comments are welcome!

Vass' Chindits: Second Chances



Major Jennifer Vass was the AFFS liaison to the Screaming Eagles during the Fourth Succession War. On New Canton, where a brigade commander from the Eagles was responsible for war crimes, she witnessed the honor of the mercenaries when his own unit stood against him to take him into custody. On Menkalinan, where AFFS quartermasters were attempting to punish the Eagles for this transgression by withholding supplies (despite the loss it would have caused to the overall war effort), she effectively ended her career in the AFFS by calling in every favor she had to get the supply chain moving.

Faced with a stalled career and a fear of the eventual results of the Davion-Steiner alliance, she gathered a few friends from her service in the Crucis Lancers, her roommate from Goshen War College, and assorted Screaming Eagles who wanted a fresh start and made her way to Galatea. Naming her command after her company's nickname in the Lancers, Vass' Chindits were formed in late 3031.

The Chindits made a splash immediately, mostly through blind luck. They were hired by Curren Maclaw, the governor of Leximon in the Lothian League. Raiders from the Marian Hegemony had taken his son Patrick, serving as an infantryman in the Leximon Citizen's Militia, as a slave in a raid, and the Chindits were hired to rescue him before the pirate realized who it was they had. The raid was a success, but it wasn't until the next year, when a documentary describing the raid, came out in the League. Although it focused on the harrowing ordeal of the slaves, the intelligence gathering leading to the raid and the heroics of the Lothian commando squads who cleared out the slave barracks, the Chindits did feature come across quite positively in the film. “For Freedom Yearned” won 'Best Documentary' at the prestigious Oriente Film Festival, and the Chindits have since received a number of enticing contract offers.

The Chindits have no standard paint scheme, preferring to use whatever camouflage is suitable for the mission. Their logo is a heraldic representation of a Burmese Chinthe, a mythical creature which lent its name to an ancient Earth military force.

Dragoon Rating: D

Tactics: Captain Vass was on the career track in the AFFS until the New Canton incident derailed it, so she is largely predisposed to standard Davion tactics. Maneuver is very important to the Chindits, and elaborate cat-and-mouse games are often played with opponents, waiting until kill shots are lined up and frustration causes enemies to make stupid mistakes.

Support: Vass' poor reputation with the AFFS logistics and quartermaster have made hiring former Davion technicians difficult. She has been relying on a few former Screaming Eagle techs, but her Mechs are chronically under-maintained. Transport is also an issue, inasmuch as the Chindits have none, and are forced to rely on their employer.

Officers: Vass and XO Toni Val were roommates at Goshen, and further bonded when both their Whitworths were assigned to the same fire lance. They are the core of the Chindits long-range fire support, and have had many years of practice in rapid switching of targets between them. Lieutenant Marcus Holland is the lone Screaming Eagle officer to join the Chindits at its inception, and was given command of the recon lance to maintain esprit de corps among former Eagles. Despite the affection his men have for him, however, he is only an average MechWarrior and leader, and Vass fears the day may be coming when he may need to be replaced.

Vass' Chindits
Company/Regular/Reliable
CO: Captain Jennifer Vass
XO: Lieutenant Toni Val
Composed of mostly light and medium Mechs of Davion origin, the Chindits have no advanced technology. There are an unfortunate number of missile boats of varying sizes in her command, which Vass would like to replace with energy-based designs, having seen the sort of havoc a lack of resupply can cause.

[snakespinner]

An interesting start to a merc's life.
Now you just need tech's and salvage. ;)

[Hawkeye Jim]

Isn't Jennifer a female name? You keep referring to Vass as he.

[gleamingterrier]

Isn't Jennifer a female name? You keep referring to Vass as he.

Er, no I don't. The only 'he's' in the write-up refer to the Screaming Eagles commander cashiered in the 4th SW and Lt. Marcus Holland, commander of the strike lance.

[Hawkeye Jim]

Nice save.  8)

[Tiki Monkey]

I like what you have going here, now please let us see a TO&E.

[Snimm]

I'm going to guess Valkyries, Javelins, Whitworths, Dervishes, and maybe an Archer or two for the bulk of this unit.

[gleamingterrier]

[Male Voice 1]...thing on? Okay, this is Major James Jones, representing McCarron's Armored Cavalry. Also present for the MAC is our contract negotiator, Karl Pioli.
[Pioli]Yes, hello.
[Jones]If you two could introduce yourself?
[Female Voice 1]This is Captain Jennifer Vass, CO of Vass' Chindits.
[Female Voice 2]Toni Val, XO of the Chindits.
[Jones]And we're here today to discuss the possibility of hiring the Chindits for some work.
[Vass]Before we get too far, I just want to make it clear that while we have a great respect for McCarron's Armored Cav, and appreciate the offer being made to us, it's very unlikely that we will accept it. There are a number of members of my command who didn't even want me to take this meeting...
[Val, sotto voce]More than a few.
[Vass]But we don't have the luxury of picking and choosing our potential employers.
[Jones]Ouch. And you're the diplomatic one? Okay, this is not completely unexpected.
[Vass]Really?
[Jones]You're both Davion nationals, with AFFS experience. Frankly, that's a large part of why we want you for this job. We're looking for former Davion officers who lead units based on AFFS doctrine. You both fought in the last war, and you know as well as anyone how it turned out for the Capellan Confederation.
[Val]Damn right.
[Pioli]Lieutenant Val, please contain yourself.
[Vass]Tor, please.
[Val]No, why should I? We spent half our lives preparing to fight Cappies, do you really think there's a chance in hell I want to work for them?
[Jones]Well, that's the first thing you've got wrong. You wouldn't be employed by the Confederation. This contract is with the Third Regiment of the MAC, to act as OpFor during a series of wargames on Menke. Your payment would come directly from our operational fund.
[Vass]And you get it from the Confederation. Forgive me, but I don't really see a huge difference.
[Jones]Then you need to look again. This contract is our own decision, part of a training regimen to prepare for the next conflict and minimize loss of life.
[Val]Loss of Capellan life, you mean. I'm sorry, and MAC, of course.
[Jones]Or you could say that a well-trained and prepared Liao force will discourage further Davion adventurism, leading to a long-term detente in the region, saving lives on both sides of the border.
[Vass]Is that really what you think?
[Jones]Actually, it doesn't matter what I think. I don't get paid to worry about politics, that's above my pay grade. I am, like you, a soldier, offering you a chance to get paid to help other soldiers survive.
[Val]Come on, Jen, we're done here. We are done here, right?
[Vass]Settle down, Tori.
[Val]No, I won't! I can't believe we're sitting here listening to this! If we take this contract, we're going to find ourselves in the hands of the Maskirovka the moment we set foot on Menke.
[Jones, laughing]Right, because after the Fourth Succession War, and all the prisoners we interrogated during it, we're going to get some great secrets from a former merc liason and her substandard XO.
[Val]Substandard?
[Jones]Your range scores don't lie. Now, shut up, Lieutenant, and let the big kids talk.
[Val]Jennifer?
There is five seconds of silence.
[Vass]Sit down, Lieutenant. Any further outbursts and I will have you confined to quarters.
[Jones]Okay, then, let's talk for real...

-Recording of a contract negotiation on Outreach, October 3033

[gleamingterrier]

Vass' Chindits TO&E, October 3033

Command Lance
Captain Jennifer Vass, WTH-1 Whitworth
Ambrosious Dell, RFL-3N Rifleman
Zachary Johnson, PXH-1 Phoenix Hawk
Michael Noordorvliet, HBK-4G Hunchback

Recon Lance
Lieutenant Marcus Holland, PXH-1 Phoenix Hawk
Felix Wooten, COM-2D Commando
Percy Cleveland, VLK-QD Valkyrie
Mathias Hector, LCT-1V Locust

Strike Lance
Lieutenant Toni Val, WTH-1 Whitworth
Seth Murtada, FS9-H Firestarter
Aurelio Galindo, HBK-4G Hunchback
Phil Thomas, TDR-5S Thunderbolt

Aerospace Lance
Lieutenant Finley Carmack, SYD-21 Seydlitz
Dane Hartridge, SYD-21 Seydlitz

Chindits SAR
Jump Infantry Platoon
2 Ferret VTOLs

Fire Support
LRM Carrier
LRM Carrier
Saladin Assault Hover Tank
Saladin Assault Hover Tank

[gleamingterrier]

Dress Uniform

For their first two decades of existence, there was no standardized Chindit dress uniform. However, when Captain Vass was called in front of the Mercenary Review Board on Galatea in 3048, to answer to charges of piracy made by the Free Worlds League, a more professional appearance was called for. When having the uniform made, Captain Vass wanted black for an appearance reminiscent of the Kell Hounds and Wolf's Dragoon's dress uniforms. However, the tailor who was able to make the uniforms in time for the hearing had only enough material in black for the slacks, and Vass was forced to choose crimson for the jackets.

Based on the pattern of the F3018 Federated Suns dress uniform (circa 3025-era), it dispenses with the sunburst over the left shoulder, replacing it instead with a button-up flap for the uniform jacket. Rank insignia based on classic SLDF insignia are displayed as silver pins on the high collars of officers, and as shoulder flashes on the right arm for enlisted and non-commissioned officers. The left shoulder displays the Chindit unit insignia. Any decorations earned in previous military service may be displayed on the left side of the chest.

The slacks are black, with a crimson stripe running down the outside of each leg. Rather than the long slacks of the F3018 dress uniform, the bottoms are tucked into black mid-calf riding boots. Mechwarriors who have served in the AFFS are allowed to wear their spurs. The Chindits bypass the traditional officer's sword on their dress uniforms. It is replaced by a kukri, the traditional knife of the Gurkhas, which is strapped to the left hip.

Headgear consists of a crimson beret, matching the color of the jacket, with the Chindit insignia displayed as a small silver pin on the front. When indoors, the beret is removed and placed under the right epaulette of the jacket.

The review board was presumably impressed by the uniforms. The Chindit's guerrilla campaign on Loyalty was declared a legitimate military action, even if the contract was not arbitrated by ComStar, and the Chindit's capture of the prototype Tramp-class jumpship, decried as theft by SelaSys and the FWLM, was classified as salvage, not loot. The testimony of Ria Tannon, former member of the 4th Oriente Hussars, captured on Loyalty and given limited parole by the Chindits, was a major factor in their favor, as she joined the Chindits on the day her military service to the FWLM ended.

The true employer of the Chindits for their Loyalty mission remains uncertain. The corporation that wrote the checks, RHF Heavy Industries, was found to be a sham. The trail ran cold after a number of shell companies, and analysts posit a number of theories, ranging from corporate espionage to the whims of Romano Liao. If Vass knows the truth, she's not telling.

[Dave Talley]

tag

[gleamingterrier]

Lieutenant Toni Val, Executive Officer/Strike Lance Commander (3030-?)

Toni Val grew up with what was commonly referred to as "old money". Her parents were the owners of the largest rail transport system on Robinson, though it had been three generations since any Val had set foot on a train for anything other than a publicity photo.

When Toni, on a whim, told her parents of her intention to join the AFFS, they forbade her. With a rebellious streak, she signed the paperwork, and they mourned her as if she was already dead. In a final attempt to dissuade her, they cut off her generous allowance. Her trust fund, however, couldn't be touched. She used these funds on the day she turned 18 to purchase a Mech, a newly-repaired Whitworth salvaged by the Robinson Rangers. The remainder of her funds went to the War College of Goshen, as a 'donation' to aid her mediocre entrance exam scores.

Val was assigned to room with Vass, and as they both had Whitworths, they were also assigned to the same lance in most training operations. After graduation, they remained in touch, although Val had a series of uninspiring march militia assignments, while Vass was on the fast track to the general staff. When Vass formed the Chindits following the Fourth Succession War, Val had been informed that her recent re-qualification scores only barely passed, and that she was on probationary duty.

As a Mechwarrior, Val leaves much to be desired. She is, however, an excellent administrator, a role that, along with her friendship with Vass, keeps her an integral part of the Chindits. In 3052, following the Clan invasion and the destruction of her Mech, she retired from active MechWarrior duty to focus exclusively on the administrative side of the unit, as well as to raise her two children, Aurelio (b.3034) and Marcus (b.3039). Both were the product of her marriage with Chindit Aurelio Galindo, who was killed in action on Loyalty in 3047.

Lieutenant Sung-Hee Chang, Recon Lance Commander (3053-?)

In 3050, Sung-Hee Chang was a recent graduate of the St. Ives Academy of Military Science. She barely matriculated with her class, as her career was nearly derailed by a cheating scandal in her cadet company. Although a Board of Inquiry cleared her of wrongdoing, so St. Ives CO wanted her, and her stint in the Valexa CMM led to several fights, as she aggravated the warriors in her lance with pressure to perform up to line standards. As a final measure to keep her career afloat, she was authorized to be seconded into mercenary service with a unit serving the Federated Commonwealth. It was as a Chindit that Chang first encountered the Clans, first on Dompaire then on Blair Atholl.

Despite her issues, or perhaps because of them, Vass sees great potential in Chang. Her disciplinary issues seem to have been out of her control, and Vass feels that a more tolerant organization than the bloated FedCom and St. Ives alliance might allow her to flourish.

Edit: Corrected date of Marcus Galindo's birth (he was named after Marcus Holland).

[gleamingterrier]

Ambrosious Dell, Command Lance (3030-3046), promoted to Lieutenant, Fire Lance Commander (3046-?)

While most Chindits were former AFFS warriors or Screaming Eagles, Ambrosious Dell was the lone recruit from the independent Galtea circuit. He approached Vass prior to their first Lothian contract, offering his Rifleman and a set of of-the-chart gunnery scores. With claims of no prior military service and former MI2 analyst Aurelio Galindo unable to find mention of his name anywhere in the Successor States, it was clear that Dell was an assumed name, but Vass was unable to pass up his skills and machine, and signed him on, placing him in her command lance to keep an eye on him.

Dell proved his worth over the next two decades, fighting with skill and honor, earning a field promotion to Lieutenant and a captured Archer on Loyalty. He remained fairly solitary, making friends with other members of the Chindits, but rarely conversing with allied forces. He would, in fact, refuse to leave his cabin in the dropship when it was grounded on any world the Chindits were recruiting or trying to be hired, be it Outreach, Galatea, or Solaris. All this confirmed, in Vass' mind, Dell's status as a deserter.

His origins remained murky, however, until 3050, when, during the initial Clan invasion, the Chindits were assigned to garrison Dompaire. The Jade Falcons attacked the world, and the commander of the Dompaire Armored Cavalry didn't feel the need to include the Chindits in his plans for defense of the world. When the Cavalry was defeated and forced into guerrilla warfare, the Chindits performed a combat drop onto Dompaire Central Spaceport, in order to link up with survivors and lead them to the caverns the Chindits had found, where they planned for a guerrilla campaign of their own. However, as the Jade Falcons approached, Dell sent a tightbeam message to Vass, instructing her to "request a trial" for something he called "hegira." Confused, but trusting her officer, Vass complied, finding herself in combat with a Koshi whose pilot claimed to be the unit's commander. She won narrowly, despite the Orion she was piloting at the time outmassing her opponent by 25 tons. As they lifted from Dompaire unmolested with several squads of Dompaire infantry and vehicle crews, she pulled Dell into a wardroom, gun drawn, and got the whole story.

Ambrosious Dell was born in 2986, the father of a failed Elemental and a technician in the service of Clan Coyote. He earned a position as a MechWarrior despite his freeborn origins. When the Dragoon Compromise came about, it was to be staffed by Clan Wolf warriors. However, despite their primary composition being cast-offs and freeborns, five regiments of warriors was still a significant drain on Wolf resources. In response, they performed a series of harvesting trials against their allies, ritual trials in order to fill out the ranks with like-minded Wardens or troublesome warriors other clans simply wanted to be rid of. Dell was one of the new adoptees brought into Clan Wolf from Clan Coyote.

Ambrosious Dell, who is now suspected to have originally gone by Morris Astley, was a Sergeant in Wolf's Dragoons Delta Regiment, Able Battalion, LaSalle's Company. Reported killed on Misery, he actually went AWOL from the Dragoons, feeling that Jaime Wolf's feud with the Draconis Combine was a dilution of their mission from the Clans, and was a result of Wolf's corruption by the Inner Sphere. However, as he was taken into Vass' confidence, he fell victim to the same trust and bonds of friendship, realizing in the 3040's that he no longer felt beholden to the Clans: he was a Chindit.

In 3055, the Dragoons were on Outreach when the Dragoon Civil War broke out. Dell requested a leave of absence to reveal himself as a previous Dragoon and joined Alpin's forces. Although the survivors of Alpin's faction were pardoned, Dell was still a deserter, and faced a Trial of Grievance. He won the Trial, and though he would not face Dragoon justice, the Chindits were informed that they were no longer welcome on Outreach until Dell was no longer in their unit. When faced with loyalty to her unit versus potential patronage by the most powerful mercenary force in the Inner Sphere, the Chindits boosted for Galatea. All the Chindits, including Lieutenant Ambrosious Dell.

[gleamingterrier]

Just as an aside, Dell's background was an absolute B**** to do. I try to create my units in a way that they can be dropped flawlessly into canon, but Dell's was such that it required a whole lot of work. But in the end, there's nothing in it that can't have been said to have happened off-screen already.

[Nav_Alpha]

Just as an aside, Dell's background was an absolute B**** to do. I try to create my units in a way that they can be dropped flawlessly into canon, but Dell's was such that it required a whole lot of work. But in the end, there's nothing in it that can't have been said to have happened off-screen already.

I think it came out really well - it's always fun to fit your pcs in-synch with real life (well... Battletech canon real life) events.
As soon as I saw Dell was an ex-clanner I was a little leary. It seems every homemade merc unit has an elite clanner these days.
But his back story was great! Really liked the Dragoons' angle, especially the way that he deserted over Wolf going native.

Top unit - I'm really loving them so far!

[gleamingterrier]

Chindit operations, 3030-3049

Operation Hogtie - Recovery of Patrick Maclaw, extraction raid for Lothian League, 3030
Operation Corkscrew - Cadre training/OpFor for MacCarron's Armored Cavalry, Menke, 3031-3032
Operation Groundswell - Reconnaissance raid on Verlo for MacCarron's Armored Cavalry, 3032
Operation Title Card - Objective raid on Northwind for Capellan Confederaton, 3032
Operation Keystone - Pirate hunting near Lyran/Marik periphery for Lyran Commonwealth, 3033
Operation Blank Stare - Cadre training/OpFor for MacCarron's Armored Cavalry, Menke, 3034-3035
Operation Musketeer - Support for MacCarron's Armored Cavalry's assault on Texlos, 3036-3037
Operation Salamander - Garrison Duty on Holloway for Capellan Confederation, 3037-3038
Operation Hunker - Reconnaissance raid on Sadachbia for AFFS (preparation for War of '39), 3038
Operation Hexagon - Militia training for Free Rasalhague Republic on Goito, 3039-40
Operation Providence - Garrison/security duty on Illushin/Vandenburg Industries, Taurian Concordat, 3040-3043
Operation Smooth Pave - Mole hunting on Furillo, for Lyan Commonwealth, 3045-3046
Operation Blackpool - Guerrilla combat on Loyalty, for RHF Heavy Industries, 3046-3048
     -Operation Profound - Recovery of captured MechWarriors from 4th Oriente Hussars, 3047
     -Operation Javelin - Theft of Tramp-class jumpship prototype (later renamed Aurelio Galindo), 3048

Any operations sound particularly interesting for me to do a write-up of?

Edit: Corrected the dates for Profound and Javelin. These were both smaller operations that took place during Blackpool.

[Hawkeye Jim]

Sheesh, these guys have worked for almost everybody but Kurita!

Keystone, Profound and Javelin sound intriguing to me.

[Kojak]

Any operations sound particularly interesting for me to do a write-up of?

If it were me? Operation Hogtie, Operation Title Card, Operation Musketeer, and the last four on the list.

[snakespinner]

The Kojak 7 were the most interesting for me as well.
But if it came down to 2 Hogtie and Javelin intrigue me.

[Nav_Alpha]

Any operations sound particularly interesting for me to do a write-up of?

ummm..... all of them...
Blackpool, Hexagon and I'd love to hear more about Hogtie.

I find it interesting that this bunch of former AFFC mercs worked so heavily for the Cappies - especially following the XO's little outburst earlier
Seriously. Awesome stuff, love the unit

[gleamingterrier]

Rising Star: MechWarrior, film auteur... holovid actor?
by Michelle Restin

Vass' Chindits, a Mech company formed in the wake of Davion's war of aggression, made of officers and soldiers who could no longer stomach Davion warmongering, are currently providing opposition forces for MAC training exercises. The Chindits featured prominently in "For Freedom Yearned," last year's winning documentary at the Oriente Film Festival, detailing the rescue of a son of a prominent Lothian politician. Zachary Johnson was one of the darlings of the film, thanks to his charming interviews on-screen, not to mention his bravery during the mission. I recently had a chance to sit down with Zachary, where we discussed the mission, his time as a mercenary, and a potential new career.

MR: Thank you so much for sitting down with me! How are you enjoying Menke?

ZJ: It's been fantastic! Everyone's been great off the base, really taking the time to make us at home. You'd think we were the 21st Centauri Lancers, the way some of the restaurants treat us.

MR: Good to hear! From all reports, it's just returning the favor of your solid service for the MAC. You've been serving as training opponents for the units here, is that right?

ZJ: Well, I can't go into too many details. Suffice it to say, we're all coming away from the experience as better warriors.

MR: Of course, I wanted to ask you about the movie. "For Freedom Yearned" told the story of the mission your unit referred to internally as "Hogtie"?

ZJ: Right, Operation Hogtie. Well, as you know, in late 3029, raiders from the Marian Hegemony landed on Leximon, in the Lothian League. Typical pirate stuff, they were looking for whatever loot they could get away with, in and out. They ran across a company of the Leximon Citizen's Militia. The Militia had holed up in a building, and a Marian Firestarter had them pinned in place. Rather than let his men burn, the Militia Major surrendered. Which was the right move, by the way. The movie made the poor guy out to be incompetent, but if he'd held out, no one would have made it out alive. Anyway, he surrendered, and the Marians took slaves. Barbarians. What the didn't know is that one of the militiamen was Patrick Maclaw, the son of Leximon's governer Curren Maclaw.

MR: The documentary said that Corporal Maclaw tried to surrender himself to get the rest of his company released. But I've heard reports that version of events was embellished.

ZJ: Yeah, well, I wasn't there, so I can't tell you what really happened. The film says his men stopped him from revealing himself, and gave him the dogtags from a downed squadmate to hide his identity. But some of the talk on the burn away from Addhara... he didn't have the confidence of all of his men, let's just say.

MR: Interesting. What about the mission itself?

ZJ: Well, that was pretty much as seen in the movie. By the time the Chindits had been hired by Governor Maclaw and were making our way to the Periphery, Lothian intelligence showed that the militia slaves had been taken to Addhara. We met up with a Lothian strike team in between the Hegemony and Niops, and headed to a pirate point over Addhara.

MR: Then you split up?

ZJ: Right. Half of our Mechs, along with the strike team, which was mostly militia volunteers in repainted vehicles, landed the dropship and hit a silver mine on Kelton Island. We looked like typical pirate raiders. But on the way over the Toro Plains, the rest of us performed a cold-reactor assault drop.

MR: That mush have been terrifying.

ZJ: You have no idea. We'd practiced it before, in sims, when Captain Vass was my lance commander in the 3rd Crucis Lancers, but it's nuts for real. They basically just threw out Mechs out the bay doors, we dropped until we were clear on radar, then we quick-started our reactors to control our descent with jump jets. It was bad enough for me, and I've got a Phoenix Hawk. The Captain and XO both have Whitworths, and they've got notoriously weak leg joints. We're lucky we only had one 'Mech down at that point.

MR: The ROMs from Lieutenant Val's descent were nerve-wracking. She must be a great pilot to have landed that with as little damage as she did.

ZJ: (Laughs) Yeah, she's the best. Anyway, we made it down with no one on the planet being the wiser, and we linked up with the covert ops teams. They'd pinpointed the spot the militia were being held, this big barracks-slash-market near the ocean. It's kind of a country club atmosphere for the rich and famous: visit the beach, play some golf, come back with a few slaves to clean the dirty laundry you've accumulated.

MR: Disgusting.

ZJ: Different cultures, I guess. So, once we got there, the covert ops team took over. I know people roll their eyes, they're only Lothian. It's not like they're Death Commandos or anything. But still, these guys knew their business. They'd stolen two civilian APCs, these hover armored cars used to pick up money from banks, and they piled into the back. While the slow Mechs attacked a train station on the east side of the town, tilting over cars like they were looking for a specific cargo, the three of us, Lieutenant Holland's provo lance, raced in from the south, pacing the APCs, to storm the facility.

MR: Did you face any opposition?

ZJ: Not until we got there. It was as easy as pie until we were about three miles from the facility, then they realized what was up. We made contact six blocks before we arrived, and then we fought our way to the barracks.

MR: And then the infantry entered the building.

ZJ: And left almost immediately. I've seen my share of gun camera footage, but I've never seen anything like when they stormed that building. They were like those kids on the planetary networks and their video games, you know? The 13-year-olds who kill anything that moves, instantly? Just incredible. Lieutenant H. told us to guard the APCs for 15 minutes while they retrieved the prisoners. You know how long it took? I know exactly, because the moment they entered the front door, a Hunchback poked around the corner. I fired everything I had to drive him back into cover, and right as my temperature gauge dropped back into yellow, they radioed that they were coming out.

I tested it later, a dozen times, back on Galatea. Twenty-seven seconds. It took 27 seconds for my heat to drop from an alpha strike back to yellow, and 27 seconds for 14 men to clear out a two-story building of opposition and bring out their countrymen without a single casualty. Don't get me wrong, we Chindits did good work, but those commandos were [absolutely] incredible.

MR: That portion of the film was amazing. And the director says that was your idea?

ZJ: I have a good one every so often. (Laughs) After I did my interviews with him, I told Max that they should run each of the cams of the soldiers, one right after another, then play them all at the same time, in a grid on the screen. You don't realize how fast everything happened until you saw it all at once. He did a better job that I could have imagined, though.

MR: People loved you in the film. You've even got a fan club devoted to you on Leximon.

ZJ: Really? I didn't know that. I just tried to be myself on camera. Everything I said may have come across as really clever, but it's just the way soldiers talk. You've got to have a sense of humor when you do something so dangerous for a living. Some of the funniest things I've ever heard are about the unfunniest situations ever.

MR: So, with your screen presence and a built-in audience, at least back on Leximon, have you considered going into vids?

ZJ: (Laughs) No, can't say I have. I have enough of a hard time getting shot at. If you add in the pressure of staying one step ahead of the scandal vids? I don't think I could handle that kind of pressure.

MR: Wise man. Zachary, thank you so much for speaking with me. It's been a pleasure, and I know my readers appreciate it.

ZJ: The pleasure has been all mine, Michelle.
 

Originally Published in Menke Pulse, April 3032 edition

[Kojak]

Damn, this is some great fluff. You should be proud of yourself, I wish I could write this well. Looking forward to more.

[Cerberus]

Tagged for being a cool read.

[gleamingterrier]

Major Jennifer Vass, Commanding Officer, Vass' Chindits (3030-?)

Sergeant Peter Vass, Jennifer Vass' father, was a 26-year-old AFFS infantryman in 2997 when he captured a Kurita supply depot his squad stubled upon during a patrol. Awarded a severely damaged Whitworth, he spent the next decade sending money and scavenged parts to a friend in the Capellan Dragoons, a tech who promised to work on the Mech in his spare time. Back on Vass' homeworld of Ogilvie, Jennifer grew up knowing that this Mech was her birthright, and when it finally took its first unaided steps in 3009, twelve years after its capture, she knew she would pilot it for the Suns.

Following high school, Vass applied for a number of scholarships to academy positions. Lacking the connections for schools like Albion and NAMA, she applied to several smaller and private academies. Recognizing in her test scores and psychological profile a potential career officer, Goshen, seeking to expand its network of alumni further throughout the AFFS infrastructure, offered her a significant scholarship. She performed admirably, and upon graduation, received command of a fire lance in the 3rd Crucis Lancers in 3022. In 3024, she was promoted to Captain and received command of a company in the 3rd Crucis. In 3026, she was transferred to the 2nd Chisholm Raiders to serve as battalion XO, most likely to prepare her for a battalion command during the 4th Succession War.

While with the Raiders, Vass was injured during a training exercise in 3027. While she eventually made a full recovery, she was unable to reach full combat re-certification by the launch of Operation Rat. Instead, she served as the AFFS liason to the Screaming Eagles during the Fourth Succession War. After an Eagle officer committed war crimes, she witnessed the warriors under his command bring him to justice. Later, when AFFS quartermasters purposely withheld supplies to teach the Eagles a lesson, Vass called in every favor she had to get the supplies moving again. In doing so, however, she effectively ended her career in the AFFS.

Not wanting to give up military life, she gathered a number of friends from Goshen War College, her time in the Crucis Lancers, and several disaffected Screaming Eagles, made her way to Galatea and formed Vass' Chindits. Her career since then has been solid, and she faced down the demons of her past in 3040, when Opson Mathis, the former Screaming Eagles Colonel who instigated the New Canton massacre, located the location of her unit on Goito. Having turned to piracy, Mathis and his small band attacked the Chindits while they were training Kungsarme troops. The pirates were defeated, and Vass chose to face Mathis' Orion in a one-on-one battle that Ambrosious Dell would later describe as a spontaneous Trial of Grievance, and a major turning point in transferring his loyalty from the Clans to the Chindits. Vass defeated Mathis, who died from heat exhaustion after the running battle (Vass used the long-range capability of the Whitworth to wear down Mathis in a two-hour-long fight), and claimed his Orion as her own.

In 3041, Vass had a son, Jason, from a liason with a MAC officer. She is on friendly terms with the father, Captain James Jones (Jason is named after Jones' father), but she retains full parental custody.

[Nav_Alpha]

Can you tell us more about the former Screaming Eagles who came across after the 4th war?
I assume most of Marcus Holland's recon lance are ex-Eagles, seeing as he is.

Loving this unit by the way

[gleamingterrier]

Thanks! I'm about halfway through writeups on Marcus Holland, Mathias Hector, and the late Aurelio Galindo, so those should be going up in the next few days, along with another mission writeup.

For anyone wondering, Major Jennifer Vass is an actual canon character, at least the part about her serving as liason to the Eagles during the 4th SW. Something about her calling in all her personal favors in order to get the Screaming Eagles back in the fight really struck my sense of the dramatic while reading the NAIS 4th SW Atlas.

[snakespinner]

It is good how you integrated a canon character with the canon unit she helped.
Looking forward to seeing your write ups on the ex screamers.

[gleamingterrier]

Lieutenant Marcus Holland, Commander, Recon Lance, 3030-3039

Marcus Holland is a mercenary brat, born and raised. His mother was a MechWarrior in a merc lance optimistically named Langer's Legends. Not unexpectedly, it failed to live up to its name. After his mother was killed in action during the Third Succession War, Holland inherited her Phoenix Hawk, nicknamed "The Frog Prince" for its heavy-duty leg myomers, which gave it an appearance of powerful, bulky thighs. Holland was able to, despite his lack of experience, join the Screaming Eagles thanks to a contract stipulation in which he volunteered to will the Mech to the unit in the event of his death, rather than his family (of which he had none at the time).

Holland served in Opson Mathis' command lance during New Canton. Although he disagreed with Mathis at his order to seal enemy warriors in their cockpits and drown them, he did not stop the order from occurring. When warriors from Mathis' own unit confronted him on the battlefield, Holland did not, standing by his own commander despite his many misgivings. Mathis surrendered regardless, and Holland found himself in the uneasy position of appearing to be a Mathis supporter, even when he did not support his actions.

Afterwards, Holland was questioned by Vass, who wanted to ensure the loyalty of those troopers who stood by Mathis. Holland assured her that he had no hand in the orders, and did not support them, and was only maintaining the proper chain of command until his CO was relieved through proper channels. Vass was suitably impressed by the passion of his self-defense and honor that when she formed the Chindits, she invited Holland specifically to join her unit. Feeling the gaze of fellow Screaming Eagles on him every time his back was turned, Holland chose to accept the invitation.

Holland served as recon lance commander for eight years, masking mediocre leadership skills with superb teamwork among the other members of the recon lance, two of whom were former Screaming Eagles. In 3038, his lance was mauled during a recon raid on Sadachbia, however. Vass led the retreat from the planet on his recommendation without identifying the opposing unit, leading to a failed contract. Although records declassified by the DCMS in the mid-3060's identified the unit as the 9th Ghost, it was rotated off-planet prior to the War of 3039, leading to miscalculations by the AFFC, who invaded expecting a more significant defense, and were unprepared for the guerrilla conflict that followed. The Chindits were blacklisted once more by the AFFC, and Marcus Holland took the fall, being dismissed from the unit. Percy Cleveland chose to leave with his commander, and with the death of Felix Wooten on Sadachbia, it left Seth Murtada as the only remaining Screaming Eagle MechWarrior with the Chindits, although the technical corps remained more than 75% former Eagles.

Unfortunately, by the end of 3039, when it was assumed the Chindits had faced a previously unknown Ghost regiment on Sabachbia, Lieutenant Holland had been killed in a Class Three battle on Solaris. As he had no living relatives, Vass created the Marcus Holland Memorial Scholarship Program with his death benefits, a bi-annual scholarship to allow family-trained MechWarriors to attend the War College of Goshen's Reconnaissance Command Program.

[gleamingterrier]

Mathias Hector, MechWarrior, Recon Lance (3030-3049), Master Sergeant, Command Lance (3050-?)

Mathias Hector is a Shoreham native, and was assigned to Vass' lance in the 3rd Crucis Lancers straight out of boot camp in his family's Locust. He is a skilled 'Warrior, though not preternaturally gifted like some. Instead, he works harder than anyone in the unit, constantly clocking extra simulator time and always volunteering for extra duty if it allows him time in the cockpit. He is extremely well-read, consuming military treatises and memoirs in an attempt to keep up with those who may have more raw talent. While on active duty prior to the 4th Succession War, he earned a degree in economics from the University of Kathil, and earned a masters from that same institution via correspondence in 3044.

In 3038, Hector's Locust was destroyed by the 9th Ghost during the disastrous Sabachbia recon raid. Rather than replace his light Mech and operate in the rebuilt recon lance, he requested an opportunity to transfer to a heavier Mech. The Chindits had salvaged a Catapult in 3036, and although it was a much heavier machine, the similar physical configuration (notably the rear-canted legs) allowed Hector to quickly adapt to his new Mech. In 3050, as one of the remaining four active-duty Chindit MechWarriors who originally signed on with Vass, he was promoted to Master Sergeant and given a place in the command lance.

Aurelio Galindo, MechWarrior, Strike Lance (3030-3048)

Growing up on Mansfield in the Federated Suns, Aurelio was a juvenile delinquent. A gifted computerist, he was a hacker of note for several years, before being caught. Given the option of prison or enlistment (possible due to the non-violent nature of his crimes), he chose enlistment.

He was as surprised as anyone when he loved the military life, the discipline doing wonders for him. Originally signed as on an infantryman, he had decided to make it his career when was selected for Mechwarrior training. He was shipped to Albion Military Academy and succeeded despite his common origins, a fact that isolated him from many of his classmates. After graduation, he discovered that he had been selected by MI3 for intelligence training as a field analyst, with the feeling of isolation brought on by his attendance at Albion a standard recruitment technique. Aurelio's computer skills were already extremely advanced, and he was attached to the 3rd Crucis Lancers at the battalion level, where he first met Captain Vass. As a Chindit, Galindo's duties consisted of independent verification of employer intelligence. This required him to work closely with XO Toni Val, and the two formed a romantic relationship, marrying in 3032, and having two children: Aurelio Jr. and Marcus.

During the mission on Loyalty, it was Galindo's plan to hijack the prototype Tramp jumpship in orbit, as their contract stipulated full salvage on anything they could take out of the system. He programmed the computer virus that would allow the Chindits to take control of the Jumpships navigation systems, and led a mission to infect the SelaSys groundside facility with the virus, which would then be sent to the jumpship during the next routine software upgrade, a common occurrence on prototype vessels. His team succeeded, but was detected in the facility. A number of infantrymen were killed, and Galindo was captured along with two other members of the squad. A mission was launched to rescue them, and although the surviving infantrymen were recovered, Galindo sacrificed himself to allow them to escape.

When the Chindits left the planet, Galindo's plan, which involved a dropship landing on an airless moon and a decoy shuttle heading for a known pirate point, worked perfectly, drawing off defenders and allowing the Chindits to make off the the Tramp. As soon as the vessel was in orbit around outreach, Vass had the ship re-registered as the Aurelio Galindo.

[Nav_Alpha]

Another fantastic write-up!

Any chance we can see an updated 3050 TO&E?