turn 46 (october, 3028)
A big month. Another part of the Lyran offensive launches, hitting 6 more DC worlds while
the FWL cautiously attacks another couple worlds, formerly owned by them. The LC also launches a limited FWL front, with a counter-offensive at Gienah and a strike at the border world of Thermopolis.
The DC falls back from Weingarten, but continues to reinforce on Heiligendreuz and Sabik.
The war against the Dragoons continues on the FS border.
The CC launches their counter-attack; not blinded by stupid pills, they hit Styk with the entire Big Mac. Meanwhile, an attack is launched on Axton - no raid, but a full attack, and a raid is also launched on Kathil. A final, smaller counter-offensive is launched from Bharat at Arboris by a mixed bag of Capellan surviving units - 2nd Ariana
Fusiliers, Hamilton's Highlanders, Trimaldi's Secutors and MacGregors Armoured Scouts.
Fed Suns meanwhile rolls ahead with wave 4 of Operation Rat. A surprise raid on Sian is also launched.
Several mercenary units leave the Capellan Confederation and the Taurian Concordat. Their contracts are picked up by the FS in some cases, or by the Taurians in a strange trade.
Notes: The CC has a larger budget this month due to a serious lack of forces to have to supply. Between losing some mercs as well as severe losses at Tikonov and then subsequent desertion/mutiny, the CC is a shadow of their former self. It's what allows the counter-offensive to go ahead.
The Axton strike for the CC fails, as the Red Lancers and Freemont's Cuirassiers run afoul of the 11th Avalon Hussars. The militia
of the world is destroyed, but buys the Hussars the time they need to badly damage the Cuirassiers, while the Red Lancers
run afoul of repeated air strikes when the Hussars gain air superiority. Repeated artillery strikes badly damage the Hussars,
and several engagements prove the superiority of the Red Lancers, but they are unable to land a decisive blow, and so retreat by the
end of the month, rather then being drawn into a prolonged campaign. The net result is that the Cuirassiers 2nd battalion and battle group is effectively destroyed; the 11th Avalon hussars sustain approximately 60% casualties. The Red Lancers lose a few armour battalions and infantry
units, but remain combat effective.
Devon's Armoured Infantry successfully raid and damage Kathil facilities, hurting the FS economy that is already drained fighting the CC especially in light of a recent and brief Interdiction.
The Big MAC reclaim Styk for the Confederation, destroying garrison forces and the 20th Avalon Hussars... in exchange for losing 3 entire
regiments of the MAC. Analysts are uncertain if the cost was worth the gain...
On Arboris, a counter-offensive doesn't find the expected Davion forces, instead finding only the bolstered Blue Star Irregulars, who had
so victimized Capellan industry years before. Both sides hated each other with a passion, as the BSI had suffered head-hunter attacks at the hands
of Capellan troops. No quarter is given, nor received between these 2 forces. In the end, the Capellans are victorious, with the once proud BSI managing to withdraw
a single armour battalion and an air wing covering it. The Capellans after salvage are STILL down a mech regiment and an armour battalion, plus 1
air wing by the ferocious defence mounted by the BSI... observers again ask if it was worth it...
On the DC front, the DC reinforces at Heiliendreuz, but so does the LC - and where the DC sends Green forces in the form of the 13th Rasalhague Regulars, the
Lyrans send the Veteran 8th Donegal Guards who proceed to crush the 13th. The beleaguered 22nd Rasalhague look on in horror as their relief are utterly destroyed,
and now face numbers almost triple their own... Meanwhile, on the FS front, they continue their war with the Dragoons, which shows no sign of ending.
The FWL recaptures Epsilon, badly damaging the Lyran Guard regiment there. However, an attack on Mcaffe fails, as the Lyran Royal Guard regiment there is too much
for FWL forces to face; in the end, while they inflict more damage than they take, the FWL commanders enact a fighting withdrawal against the Veteran regiment.
On the LC front, the next wave of attacks capture another 5 DC worlds. The battle of Sabik continues, though the LC starts to seem to gain the upper hand, having landed
3 regiments against the 8th DR after destroying their reinforcing units as well as finally obliterating the pesky militia that somehow survived 4 months against the Lyrans (GM note; I was sad that the Lyrans finally managed to pin down and destroy this militia, that almost had become a Veteran unit due to experience).
Lyran assaults also begin the 3rd Battle of Buckminster and the 3rd Battle of Vega, in an effort to pin down or destroy more Draconis regiments. On Buckminster, the 10th Lyran
Guard spearhead an attack with the 23rd Arcturan Guard dropping directly on top of the 6th Arkab Legion while an air battle commences around them. The 6th are utterly shattered by the surprise tactic; the newly deployed 18th Benjamin Regulars attempt to face down the long odds of the 2 elite Lyran regiments, but in a battle that quickly overwhelms them are completely destroyed.
Buckminster again falls into Lyran hands. On Vega, Theodore Kurita's Legions of Vega and Dieron Regulars face elite units of the LC; the 20th Arcturan Guard, the 4th Skye Rangers and
the 3rd regiment of the 12 Star Guards. While the DCMS forces put up a valiant defence, the quality and numbers of troops that the Lyrans land, in addition to using the same tactics as Buckminster
of landing directly on top of the DCMS forces shatters them. The Dieron Regulars are crushed, and the Legion of Vega manages to get off-world, with Theodore Kurita again shaking his fist impotently at the Lyrans.
The LC also flexes their military might, counter-attacking at Gienah and launching an attack to claim the industrial facilities at Thermopolis. However, the 3rd Sirian Lancers
accompanied by Fuchida's Fusiliers repulse the attack at Thermopolis. Oddly, the Lyrans inflicted more damage than they took, but their morale was shaken and decided to withdraw before a disaster could occur, preserving precious forces.
The Lyran counter-offensive at Gienah destroys the 20th Marik Militia, at the expense of the 5th Donegal Guards. Lyran forces are still perilously thin on the FWL border, but holding...
As November rolls in, and 4 months of conflict have ended, a look at the results shows:
the FWL has re-captured 2 worlds from the LC that were lost years before
the LC still holds 5 worlds from the FWL that were captured years previous, as well as 42 worlds from the DC. There are 2 prolonged campaigns, at Heiligendreuz and Sabik, where the worlds are disputed. Both worlds have Lyran forces outnumbering local DCMS forces 3:1
The DC has so far gained no worlds from the FS, disputing 2.
The FS has taken 37 worlds from the CC, after accounting for losing Styk and Arboris to a Capellan counter-offensive. Admittedly, one of those worlds captured is Tikonov, a Regional Capital and Major Industrial World.
The CC counter-offensive restored some national pride; losses at Axton were tempered by a successful raid at Kathil and the re-capture of Styk, along with almost completely destroying the Blue Star Irregulars once and for all. War industries have kicked in for a desperate attempt to rebuild what they can in preparation for a better counter-attack.
So far, canon results are being basically upheld, though the Capellan counter-attack at least is a bit better than canon.