The history of Magyari's Irregulars
Part I – Formation and Early Years
(EDITOR’S NOTE: This section is based in the very vague recollections of a Mechwarrior Second Ed. game I played in over a decade ago. Set in the early 31st century, it was about the misadventures of a small mercenary unit. My character, Sel Magyari, was its commander and also horribly ill-suited for the job… so how it always ends up going.)
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Magyari’s Irregulars first came together in 3012 on Galatea, formed by a quartet of then unemployed mercenaries who had all arrived on-world relatively recently. Between them, Sel Magyari (A former bikini model), “Professor” Grunthos (Lecturer in Mechatronics at the university of Helsinki), Mackie Kusanagi (Rumoured to be a former bounty hunter) and George W. Butros III (Some guy) were big on ambitions but lacking in actual experience, making the formation of the unit an ad-hoc affair. Sel somehow wound up becoming the newly-formed unit’s commander for reasons that remain unclear. (EDITOR’S NOTE: Sel was the only one of the PCs that had the Leadership or Tactics skills)
The newly-minted Magyari’s Irregulars managed to do well for themselves, finding a niche in the low-level warfare that was so common in the early 31st century. A combination of skill, planning and more then a little luck saw the unit not only survive but also thrive with the unit managing to avoid severe defeats and losses. Even if they were on only short-term contracts for the most part, the unit still managed to do well for themselves.
Even by the standards of a lance-sized unit, Sel proved to be a “lead from the front” type. Her Thunderbolt was often at the front of any battle, but at the same time proved to be rather resilient to harm (Sel herself was prone to flights of vanity, however. The one time that she was injured in battle her largest concern was if she would be left with a scar). Rather, Mackie Kusanagi proved to be more of a problem, with his Orion (The ominously-named “Lucky II”) often taking a lot of punishment.
Their biggest boost, however, would come around largely by accident. During a pirate-hunting operation, the Irregulars found themselves facing a much larger force than expected. Matters turned around, however, with the discovery that half the pirates were, in fact, a mercenary unit that had been stranded and forced to cooperate. Some quick negotiations saw them agree to join forces, the captive mercenaries turning on the pirates. Overnight, the Irregulars had doubled in size.
Besides boosting the unit’s strength, the new arrivals bought other benefits. Alice was a skilled financial manager and administrator, and helped bring a degree of control to the unit’s oft-unstable cash reserves. (Her skill with kicking things in her Javelin didn’t hurt either). Similarly Jon-Jon possessed a wide range of infiltration and demolitions skills that would prove to be both useful and problematic.
It was “Professor” Gunthos who would prove to be the most resourceful, however. His technical skills saw him perform a number of modifications to the Irregulars’ BattleMechs, resulting in a series of unique variants. One of the most extensive was a salvaged Zeus that had been rebuilt in a new, entirely unique configuration. The ‘Mech was given to Mackie as a replacement after his Orion was destroyed, only to itself be destroyed in the very next battle. After a round of binge drinking (and, allegedly, reshaping Mackie’s skull with a wrench), Grunthos proceeded to rebuild a salvaged Marauder which Mackie promptly did not write off.
In spite of these problems, the unit continued to grow, reaching a full company by 3016. And while they continued to be successful on the battlefield, other issues would dog them no matter where they went. Mackie and Jon-Jon in particular proved to be rather prone to getting in to trouble, often managing to pick fights with supposedly allied units. “Professor” Grunthos would often end up being dragged into these things as well, and only occasionally be an unwilling participant.
(Another notable gaffe occurred when George W. Butros III went into a bar frequented by Infantry and then promptly referred to them as ‘cannon fodder’. It did not end well)
The worst of these incidents came during a post-civil war contract with the FWLM, the Irregulars being a part of a raiding force heading into Lyran space. Partnered with another mercenary unit, Raymond’s Roughnecks, the plan called for strikes on several targets in order to recall Lyran forces from the front.
However, early in the operation, tensions broke out between the two units. The exact source of the conflict is unknown, but accusations quickly flew back and forth between the two groups. This lead to a late-night gunfight, in which Mackie, Grunthos and Jon-Jon were accused of trying to sabotage the Roughneck ‘Mechs and assault their personnel. Sel’s efforts to defuse the situation came to nothing, especially given a lack of evidence from both sides as to what actually happened.
Matters came to a head during the first actual battle of the campaign. A “miscommunication” left the Irreguars isolated and without backup from the Roughnecks, not to mention facing down a superior number of Lyran defenders. Stuck in a bad situation, the Irregulars did their best to try and survive and fight their way to freedom. And, in their own strange fashion they did, managing to extract themselves with badly damaged but still functional ‘Mechs, but yet surprisingly light casualties.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: That was the end of the campaign after several years of gameplay. However, the Irregulars would live on)
Magyari’s Irregulars Roster, 3016
Command Lance
Captain Sel Magyari, TDR-5HG Thunderbolt
Mackie Kusanagi, MAD-3HG Marauder “Sideways Bob”
George W. Butros III, BLR-1G Battlemaster
“Professor” Grunthos, PXH-1HG Phoenix Hawk
Battle Lance
Lieutenant “Pops” Fleegman, CPLT-C1 Catapult
Michael Matthews, DV-6M Dervish
Thomas Carlyle, CN9-D Centurion
(?)
Recon Lance
Lieutenant Jenny K., WVN-6M Wolverine
Alice O’Neil, JVN-10N Javelin
Jon-Jon, ASN-21HG Assassin “Stone Killah”
Rachel Huang, FS9-M Firestarter
(EDITOR’S NOTE: The last member of the Battle Lance has been lost to history. It’s fair to assume there was one, however)
Mao's Rifles
MRBC Update 01-01-3145
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History
While the Cappellan confederation depicted its push into the Republic as a victory of it and its people, liberating their long-oppressed brothers from the hands of the occupying Republic, not everyone saw it as such. Mao Xingyang was a wealthy businessman who, despite his Cappellan background, actually enjoyed life in the Republic. An active leader in his community, he enjoyed the Republic’s ideals of freedom and responsibility, rather than the restrictive nature of the Confederation.
As the Republic’s forces began to wither and withdraw, Mao turned a lot of his wealth towards trying to build his own militia unit to help protect those who, like him, had no love for the Confederation and no desire to rejoin it. Support from the Swordsworn helped train the unit, but with the RAF’s withdrawal into Fortress Republic, it quickly became clear that fighting the CCAF was a losing cause. Battered, Mao’s forces were forced to abandon their posts, retreating across the shrinking Republic to Galatea.
While now serving as mercenaries, Mao and his people harbor a desire to return to their homeworlds and reclaim them for the Republic. However, Mao is also a realist, and knows that is unlikely to happen given the current strength of the CCAF. Like many, he holds out against the idea of the Republic re-emerging from behind the Fortress Walls and reclaiming its lands, at which point he will gladly join them. For now, his unit serve as mercenaries, doing what they can to survive and build their strength.
Force Strength
While on paper Mao’s Rifles are a combined arms battalion, in truth they fall somewhat short of that. Mao’s command company consists of two BattleMech lances, filled with older designs that mostly predate the Jihad. The company has been under-strength for some time, and as yet, efforts to bring it back up have failed. Bravo company is equipped with a mixture of tanks and hovercraft, again primarily older designs.
Charlie Company is lead by a mixed platoon of assorted Battle Armour designs, again mostly older suits with a few upgrades in among them. The rest of the company is made up of conventional infantry, who in turn are composed primarily of dispossessed crews or those looking for an opportunity. A lack of transportation assets means that the conventional infantry rarely see the field, instead being used primarily for security.
Support
At present, the Rifles’ technical crews are able to cover all of their support and maintenance needs, albeit very closely. In the advent of major battlefield damage, the technical crews would be struggling to get their units back into fighting shape. In order to support them, many of the unit’s combat personnel have some degree of technical training to assist where needed, somewhat alleviating the burden.
Financially, the Rifles are in much the same state. Marginally in the black, a single defeat or breach of contract could send them spiralling into debts. While founded initially from Mao’s own reserves, those have long dried up and with his assets now in Capellan hands, it is unlikely that he will be able to draw from them.
Transport
Mao’s Rifles boast a single dropship, the Sing Little Birdy. A centuries-old Triumph-class transport, the ship is very much run down and in dire need of an overhaul and refit, something that is unlikely to happen any time soon. The ship is completely ill-suited to combat, which combined with the Rifles’ lack of aerospace support, is seen by some as a disaster waiting to happen.
While the Rifles lack their own Jumpship, Mao is on good terms with several captains courtesy of connections made during his days as a businessman.
Insignia and Colours
The Insignia of Mao’s Rifles is a pair of crossed red laser rifles on a yellow five-pointed star. The unit’s equipment is painted in an olive drab with alternating red and yellow highlights.