Author Topic: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)  (Read 4943 times)

Yulaw

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21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« on: 05 September 2015, 01:44:48 »
Remnants of the Defenders of Andurien.  The old traditions of Combined Arms is strong with this group.  Their members are all veterans of the Andurien Succession, and have all fought against prominent units of both House Marik and House Liao.

UNIT HISTORY
-----------------------

     Colonel Elliot Lawrence began his career as a Lieutenant of the Alpha Battalion, 1st Defenders of Andurien with his family's Warhammer on the Capellan Confederation world of Betelgeuse during the Andurien Succession.  He witessed there the near loss of the 1st due to aerospace assets, and the effectiveness of two of Chancellor Liao's relatively small but fierce Warrior Houses in action over the course of two years-particularly the devastatingly effective play of House Hiritsu's decimation of some Defender's supply depots.  His lance participated in pinning the Protectorate Guard in place so that the bulk of the 1st could crush it, only for the 1st to be repelled by all five regiments of McCarron's Armored Cavalry.  He was forced to fight the MAC in rearguard actions due to his 'mech not requiring munitions as did the majority of his lance, which relied primarily on long range missiles.  Fortunately his lance survived intact.  Due to his actions on Betelgeuse, and his skill at getting the maximum amount of mobility and motivation from his units and personnel, Lawrence was promoted to captain.
     Following the loss at Betelgeuse against superior numbers, Elliot's company was amongst the five battlemech companies used in defensive positions in the city of Mina on Shiro III versus three regiments sent by Captain-General Duncan Marik.   Again, against great odds, he participated in the Alpha and Beta Battalions assault, with his three lances engaging the Fusiliers of Oriente, which allowed several of his friends in the armored vehicles to retire to the dropships.  Again, due to his Warhammer's PPC's not requiring munitions, he participated in makeshift rear guard actions with other 'mechs which were mostly equipped with large lasers.  He barely got out of Shiro III alive, the twelve rear guard 'mechs and their warriors were wiped out, his Warhammer took a severe beating.  His company was smashed, reduced to a mere six battlemechs.
     Andurien proved to be a bloody battle.  Marik dispatched seven front-line commands, and the 1st Defenders was assigned to protect the city of Baroda.  At the chokepoint of Darnel Bridge, Elliot's company was part of the group that wiped out a company of Marik's 1st Militia.  He saw the results of the survivors' massacre by the mob.  Later, his company flanked and therefore trapped a battalion of First Marik Militia during the heavy fighting in the city.  By this point, Alpha and Beta battalions were exhausted, fighting against four commands, including the mercenaries Always Faithful.  During this action the Major was struck down, and Captain Lawrence was granted a field promotion to Major of the combined arms battalion.  The Battalion destroyed the infantry and armor assets of the mercenary group almost to the man, which reinforced the lessons Elliot was taught regarding effective support and unit cohesiveness in the context of combined-arms.  The fighting at Andurien lasted three months, with Elliot's force entrenched in Baroda's streets ever ready to fight on until the enemy backed off, the shooting ceased, and the confused Defenders were passed the chilling call over the radio by General Garibaldi to lay down arms, shut down their machines and surrender as per orders of the Duchess.
     In these nine long years of near constant warfare, Elliot Lawrence's force and the bulk of the D.A.K.'s personnel had gained heavy experience with mobile warfare, and static defense.  The tipping point in most of these engagements, he recognized, was the distance of attacking forces from the source where they can refit and resupply.  Even if a force were to run ONLY weapons without munitions, they are still limited by the essential human factors such as food and water on a large scale, and medical supplies.  It pays, then, to always break the lines of the enemy or bypass it and hit their line of communication or supply lines.  Otherwise it becomes a mere battle of attrition through which the larger, better supplied force grinds the smaller force into dust.  He also saw how a smaller, more cohesive force operated more effectively than larger, segregated units, especially as the 1st Defenders were whittled down and the enemy forces kept increasing in number, or in the case of House Liao's Warrior Houses.


TACTICS
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The old 1st Defenders tactics were to "employs its vehicular forces to tie up an opponent while its BattleMech forces are used conduct the killing blow."  The new Korps borrow heavily from ancient Earth's history, prominently Clauswitz's old addage about the "Culmulating point of Victory," using flanking attacks and massed long range firepower to destroy or capture enemy supply lines, thus forcing enemy withdrawals.

Typically the 'mech forces are used as the sword, and the vehicle and infantry elements are the shields, covering the retreat of the battlemechs so they may replenish supplies from the dropship.  Priority though is always placed upon capture of enemy supplies, obviously this allows the battalion to remain in the field longer while forcing the enemy to retreat.  On the advance, artillery clears the road ahead for the 'mechs to secure the battleline whilst the vehicular and infantry elements move up.  On the defense, mines and artillery are always used to control or deter the enemy's advance.  Regardless, the infantry and vehicles are always making use of prepared positions.

(Artillery)
(Towed Field Guns)
(Mines)
(Hull Down Rules)
(Digging In Rules)
(Improved Positions)
(Combat Engineers)
(Rearming Under Fire)


--------------------------------------
3040
21st Defenders of Andurien Korps (Combined Arms Battalion/Veteran/Reliable)
*C.O.:  Colonel Elliot Lawrence
   21st Company:   1 Warhammer WHM-6R
                               3 Catapults       CPLT-C1
                               8 Trebuchets    TBT-5N
   15th Company:   1 Hi-Scout Drone Carrier
                               7 Manticore PPC Carrier
                               4 Saladin Assault Hover Tank
   90th Light Co.     3 Motorized Platoons w/Towed Field Guns (4x AC/2's per Platoon)
*Alexandria - Fortress Class Dropship.

"When the well is dry you know the value of water."
« Last Edit: 12 June 2017, 14:17:09 by Yulaw »
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Yulaw

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #1 on: 05 September 2015, 02:52:43 »
PERSONALITIES
-----------------------------------------
Colonel Elliot Lawrence
Born January 10, 3009 at Jojoken, Andurien V
Elliot learned hard, valuable lessons through nine long years of fighting vs the elite of two Great Houses, Liao and Marik.  He, like many of the 1st Defenders of Andurien were shattered at the order to lay down arms, but saw a need in many of his brethren to fight on, somehow.  He thus rallied many others and stole away during the consolidation of their homeworld to live a harder life as mercenaries.  His battered WHM-6R Warhammer, "Lykourgos," has seen better days but still serves as a viable combat machine.

Captain Chelsea Brook
Born December 12, 3012 at Baroda, Andurien V
Once considered a prodigy, Chelsea found herself beaten down by the heavy fighting on Shiro III and then on Andurien.  She misses her hot shot days at the controls of a Phoenix Hawk but she is content leading the 21st company of the D.A.K. to victory in her battle scarred Catapult, the "Genocide Heaven."

Captain Samuel Friedman
Born November 17, 3001 at Mina, Shiro III
A capable leader, Samuel is resentful at Lawrence's self promotion from Major to Colonel at the inception of the Korps.  Due to the latter's overwhelming support from the majority, he focuses his energy towards ensuring the 15th Company's  primary duties of intelligence gathering, reconnaissance and artillery support are met.  He does not hesitate to snap at any perceived weaknesses in battle plans proposed from his senior officer however.  His new tank, a Manticore dubbed "Respite," is in pristine operating condition thanks to the brilliant efforts of his three other crew members.

Captain: Mitch "Stonewall" Sommers
Born March 27, 3005 at Jojoken, Andurien V
A ground pounder who doesn't think much of 'mechwarriors when outside their cockpits, Stonewall leads his 90th Light Company of motorized, battle hardened, dispossessed 'mechjocks and artillerymen with an iron fist. 

Captain Olivia Lee
Born August 5th, 3006 at Zi-Jen Cheng, Sian
Capellan born Olivia Lee's family immigrated to the Duchy of Andurien during the closing years of the 3rd Succession War, her father was a merchantmen who had heard rumors of an alliance between the Lyran Commonwealth and the Federated Suns and felt it was no longer safe for his family to remain in the Confederation.  Olivia lived a hard life growing up at Shiro III but was eternally fascinated by the stars since she was a child during that move from Sian.  She joined the armed forces of the Duchy of Andurien with aspirations to become a star faring captain.  She now commands the Fortress Class dropship Alexandria with respect, placing utmost value on communication throughout her chain of command.

Lieutenant Chris Bienko
Born March 19, 3012 at Baroda, Andurien V
Chris is arguably the best mechwarrior of the 21st Company, though that does not mean much considering Col. Lawrence's stance on individuality in the force.  He netted an impressive number of kills during the heavy fighting at Shiro III and Andurien before losing his Hunchback against the 1st Fusiliers of Oriente.  He now pilots a Trebuchet, which he calls "Boresome."

Lieutenant Kaylee Sommers
Born September 21, 3011 at Jojoken, Andurien V
Captain Sommers' young sister, Kaylee serves as the "eyes and ears" of the Korps at the helm of her Hi-Scout drone carrier.  It is a common thing to hear over the internal communications net, "Kaylee, status," or "Kaylee, updates."  It is equally common to hear a prompt response such as "Northeast, heavy," or "Southeast, light," reflecting the constant states of change (or lack thereof) on the battlefield.  She was torn between joining the D.A.K. or remaining on Andurien with the rest of the Defenders but decided to follow her brother in support of the Colonel.

MechWarrior Saul Leung
Born June 11, 3016 on Sarna.
Without doubt the most skilled MechWarrior in the battalion, Saul is renowned for delivering the coup de grace to heavy or assault 'mechs with his medium Phoenix Hawk in the midst of battle.  His machine moved as if he were one with it, and his prowess extended to the streets as his refined skill with his fists.  A Capellan by birth, he was orphaned and later adopted by an Andurien merchant and applied for the MechWarrior training programs as early as he could--the Andurien Succession was faring poorly and he wanted in.  He, like many others with the Defenders of Andurien lost their machines and joined the ranks of the Dispossessed, but fortunately for him Elliot had heard of his talents and sought him out for the Korps.  Like many others, he is disappointed with the selection of available equipment but he remains hopeful he will acquire a better 'mech as a prize of war.  The Trebuchet he pilots that he's calls "Lui Kuen" is in excellent condition.
« Last Edit: 12 June 2017, 14:18:15 by Yulaw »
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Yulaw

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #2 on: 06 September 2015, 00:04:26 »
*Reserved
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Yulaw

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #3 on: 09 September 2015, 06:54:48 »
* Reserved

**Had to change Col. Lawrence's T-Bolt to Warhammer because I cannot find my old T-Bolt :/
So long as I keep the PPC units to a minimum I am good.
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Yulaw

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #4 on: 17 September 2015, 07:34:26 »
* Reserved

Lost a lot of my old 'mech's over the last 10 years.
Gotta rebuild my collection so this force must be started from scratch.
I have some old school Warhammers, including a brand new one that is still packaged.  That will be Elliot's mech.  I saw a cool mod of a Guillotine with a spot light that actually worked, been saving the hammer for that ever since but got lazy.

Combined-arms always intrigued me, following Rommel's Afrika Korps and the British 8th Army and it's an excellent example, in my opinion, of Clauswitz's "On War" in action.
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Yulaw

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #5 on: 17 September 2015, 07:37:26 »
*Reserved

I like these smaller diverse units.
Read most of the earlier novels through Double-Blind.
Smaller units such as the Falcon Guards, Avanti's Angels, are intriguing.
And historical examples of smaller efficient forces are always enthralling to read
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Yulaw

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #6 on: 12 June 2017, 14:33:45 »
A long hiatus due to deployments.

Decided to update the initial setup of the battalion because I think the vehicles are not exactly matching that of what Andurien would have utilized-- namely the Saladin.  Manticore tanks are common enough for mercs and cheaper than Schrek's, and faster.
With the exception of the 90th Light towing their field guns about, with 4 AC/2's per platoon, the rest of the battalion can move at 60 kph minimum.

Got rid of the anti-air assets, which is a problem but whatever I think that gives the unit some flavor.
Working on building up the unit from scratch with some new mini's I am purchasing, focusing on the mechs.  New MechWarrior Online models that are 1/285 scale, perfect for TT.

The idea behind some of the changes:

- 4 Schrek
-3 Thumpers
+ 7 Manticore

Schrek's are dirt slow, and are a hindrance to the mobility of the battalion.
4 of them bring 12 PPC's to the table, 12 long range weapons.
The Manticore's bring 7 PPC's to the table, and 7 LRM-10's for a total of 14 long range weapons.
They can till reach out and punch holes through armor with 3025 tech up to 3045 with concentrated fire.
Got rid of the thumpers, because the dropship brings the Long Tom, the Hi Scout Drone Carrier can locate and direct artillery fire to crush supply lines, or if that fails the mechs can scout out and direct artillery fire or handle destroying supply lines themselves.

-3 Partisan Tanks
+4 Saladin Assault Hover tanks.

While losing anti-air ability for the sake of flavor for the unit, adding Saladin's rounds out the 15th and lets it handle fights on its own and definitely augments the rest of the battalion in a grind.  They combo well with the new 90th Light Co, and the 21st Company's LRM's.

The 90th Light Company, I was struggling to figure out what towed guns they should bring for the 3030/3040 era, and settled on the AC/2 for the great range.  So each platoon can now bring four AC/2's, so four extreme ranged shots per platoon, meaning 12 extreme ranged shots so hopefully these will be more accurate and will net critical hits vs typical 3025 tech opponents.  AC/2's means I can keep the 90th light at range, and their critical hits will count for a lot in the long run.
I figured everything else you can try towed gun wise would result needlessly in their deaths, and these mercs want to live--- at least until they can successfully pilot any captured mechs as they are comprised of more or less Dispossessed.

« Last Edit: 13 June 2017, 09:20:22 by Yulaw »
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Dave Talley

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #7 on: 13 June 2017, 15:49:34 »
Watching
Resident Smartass since 1998
“Toe jam in training”

Because while the other Great Houses of the Star League thought they were playing chess, House Cameron was playing Paradox-Billiards-Vostroyan-Roulette-Fourth Dimensional-Hypercube-Chess-Strip Poker the entire time.
JA Baker

Muad Dib

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #8 on: 30 May 2023, 13:39:15 »
Test.  This is Yulaw but I cannot access my old account.  No ability to access my old email or account associated.   So I'll stick with this one.

I am actually building up this force right now but I got these new T-Bolts I want to use so I will be switching Col. Lawrence's mech back to it and revamp the story/intro of the unit to match.  Call it my version of errata I guess.

DOC_Agren

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Re: 21st D.A.K. (Merc Combined Arms Battalion)
« Reply #9 on: 31 May 2023, 16:56:34 »
Welcome back.. only 9 more post to prove you are a real human not a smart AI
"For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast, And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed:And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill, And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!"