Kalmar Hussars

[DOC_Agren]

I might recommend the Blazer Cannon as worth looking at...  :D

:o ::)  shocking you try to sell them on that

though it does kinda have a sweet spot until er and dhs are available, if you can find a Blazer

[Ecthelion]

Nice battle. :thumbsup:

Thanks! :thumbsup:

Aigle: Aftermath
During the battle, an important air purifying equipment was irreparably damaged. Colonist now needed to relocate their colony, because without it, air on Aigle will not be breathable in just a few weeks (too quickly to deliver new equipment even if they could afford it). As a place for a new colony/base of operation, they eventually decided to settle on Kalmar (thus making the Hussar’s original scam a reality). Iron deposits there were depleted, but WaiHydro is taking ice or water and Kalmar has more than enough of the second (and it has a breathable atmosphere as colonist now lost their air cleaning machinery). If they knew about Kalmar, they would probably have settled on that world in the first place, but info about the planet was lost. Hussars get a percentage of the operation for the protection on Kalmar and with enough colonists, they can resettle the lake city of Jezeri and nearby mothballed Free Worlds military fort on the southern hemisphere as a new base for Hussars.

After battle, many of the liberated slaves decided to come with them to Kalmar, while the rest will be transported somewhere where they can hitch a ride to their former homes. Rusalka made sure that every one of them got some money to get there from the cache Hussars got by selling Pirate Mech parts.

Aces Vindicator was crippled and Aces contract with Hussars didn’t give them any salvage rights. Rusalka waved it off. She gave Aces the destroyed Vindicator 1AA to be used for spare parts to repair the damaged Vindicator. They also recieved only slightly battered Thundebolt, so Aces were going to have Mech for Caballera, as she was almost fine to pilot again. After this, Aces decided to incorporate into Hussars as their lance and Hussars would take over debts the Aces accumulated. As Caballera was going to be the fourth pilot in Aces lance, Hussars took Shadow Hawk out and decided to create a brand new third lance to finish a full company. They will add salvaged Griffin and both Javelins to Shadow Hawk to create fast light-medium lance. Ironside was already a lance commander on McEvan’s Sacrifice, so he had the experience to lead it and all the Mechs were fast enough to be the recon/raider element in the new Hussar’s company.

Shi was killed in the fighting, holding the line and saving the day, leaving Rusalka as the last of the original Kalmarian pilots. Rusalka gave the Catapult (severely damaged but repairable) to Vandal, considering him ready for the job. They also recruited two Mechwarriors who were among the slaves the pirates were holding – Phoenix and Greyhound – and four to five further liberated slaves with some prior Mech experience, who wanted to join Hussars. They were still one MechWarrior short as the Edge was still too traumatised to sit in the cockpit of the Mech. Rusalka refused to cut her loose and put her in charge of teaching new reinforcements on Kalmar.   

Salvage: Thunderbolt TDR-5S (Rusalka will give it to Aces for Caballera), Vindicator VND-1AA (shot to pieces, but also given to Aces - parts of it will be used to repair damaged ‘Teng’), Griffin GRF-1N (PPC destroyed, Tessa will rebuild it to be a mobile brawler, as there are no PPCs available to replace it), 2x Javelin JVN-10F (both can be repaired again, but it will take time)

New Additions:
– Silke Schaefer ‘Phoenix’ – Woman about forty years of age. She was slim, her body was scarred with neural whip and her hair turned white in slavery. She used to be in Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces, but her Mech was destroyed during a pirate raid and she was captured alive after ejecting. She spent a decade as a slave, repairing Mechs for pirates (as a pilot, she was closest they had to Tech). Hussars offered to give her enough money to get back to Steiner space, but she learned that they often fight against pirates on Periphery. Convinced by their liberating of all the slaves and wanting to get revenge, she joined them.

– Anastasia Ivanovna Blomqvist ‘Greyhound’ – She never talked much about her past, but she used to be criminal, grifter and very probably even worse than that. She learned how to pilot a Mech as a part of a con and when she ended up owning a lot of money to the local criminal outfit, she was paying her debt by stealing Mechs from unsuspecting targets. A small mercenary outfit caught her stealing red handed. Instead of sending her to jail, they brought her in as their backup pilot and allowed her to escape the life of a criminal. She got her callsign because she was thin and hungry. They fed her and were nice enough to her. One day, their Dropship was hit by DEST agents. By pure luck, she was able to hide and was the only one of the mercenaries left alive. She escaped and tried to earn a living as a Mechwarrior, not wanting to return to her old ways. Unfortunately, she trusted the wrong people. Instead of an employ, they sold her to slavery and to the Red Scourge. After Hussars liberated her, she saw an opening for Mechwarrior and joined.

Rusalka decided to hire someone from outside to complete the Raider Lance, as none of the other newcomers had enough experience. Later they found Lancer who joined the Hussars to pilot the last Javelin.
 
- Rajbir Singh ‘Lancer’ – Middle-aged bronze-skinned gentleman hailing from Free Worlds League. He wears turban, is always dressed in immaculate clothes and his boots are polished to shine. He was a scion of a minor noble house, but it went bankrupt. After selling assets of the house and paying creditors off, all he had left was his ancestral Mech and an impoverished family he had to take care of. He worked as a mercenary in Free Worlds League, running protection for convoys or capturing fugitives. He built some reputation for himself as a resourceful Warrior, but his last mission went poorly. He had to eject, lost his Mech and barely escaped the planet with his life. As a dispossessed Mechwarrior, he struggled to find a job for a while. When Hussars showed up with a vacant pilot place for a Javelin, he jumped right in.

[Daryk]

If you're looking for something that would drive a colony to evacuate in weeks, I would focus on water purification, not air.  Atmospheres take a while to degrade.

:o ::)  shocking you try to sell them on that

though it does kinda have a sweet spot until er and dhs are available, if you can find a Blazer

Heh... the sweetest spot is actually after DHS but before the Heavy PPC comes in.  It's only real competition in that space is the Gauss Rifle (which, admittedly, is pretty stiff).

[Ecthelion]

If you're looking for something that would drive a colony to evacuate in weeks, I would focus on water purification, not air.  Atmospheres take a while to degrade.

I can't unfortunately. The water needs to be pure - the WaiHydro mine it here (in the ice form) and ship offworld. If they would have to purify it first, the cost would make the whole enterprise would be too costly to bring any profit.

I didn't made it clear (sorry about that  :-[ ), but my plan was for the whole planet have an unbreathable atmosphere. It has enough oxygen in it to be breathed short term (half an hour, hour at the most), but long term must everyone outside of the base wear a breathing mask that filters the air. So when the air filtring equipment was damaged by a stray shot, it starts to filter less and less until it stops completly in a few weeks. They need to be gone before that happens.
Does that make sense?

[Daryk]

A bit more, but yes, that would have made more sense if explained up front.  Tainted atmospheres are a thing, and if the central air purification for the housing was irreparably damaged, that would certainly drive everyone to leave ASAP.

[Ecthelion]

A bit more, but yes, that would have made more sense if explained up front.

Absolutely true and I am sorry that it wasn't. I had it all prepared in my mind... aaaand forgot to write it down. :'(
I will add it to the text when I get to it. I also want to post TO&E for Hussars after Aigle.

Tainted atmospheres are a thing, and if the central air purification for the housing was irreparably damaged, that would certainly drive everyone to leave ASAP.

Yep, that was the idea. They captured both Dropships Pirates brought, so they do have the capacity to GTFO.

[Daryk]

Even better!  :thumbsup:

[Ecthelion]

Kalmar Hussars: TO&E after Aigle contract
(be advised, most of the Mechs are still being repaired, hardly a lance of Mechs is battleworthy at the moment)

Rusalka’s Own (Heavy Lance) (220 tons)

- Orion ON1-K (75 tons) ‘Big Bad Wolf’ – Lieutenant Vera Novakova “Rusalka”
                -1x AC/20 (Right Torso; 2 tons of ammo – 10 shots); 4x Medium Lasers (2x Left Arm, 2x Right Arm; 2x SRM6 (Left Torso)
 
- Catapult CPLT-C1 (65 tons) – Tangaroa Marsh “Vandal”
                - 2x LRM 15 (Right Arm, Left Arm; 1 ton of ammo – 8 shots for every LRM); 4x Medium Laser (Right Torso, 2x Central Torso, Left Torso) 
 
- Blackjack BJ-1 (45 tons) – Kulbir Nkem Bartolis “Kukri”                 
- 2x Medium Laser (Right Arm, Left Arm); 1x Large Laser (Left Arm); 1x AC/5 (Right Arm)
 
- Panther PNT-9R (35 tons) – „Yūrei“
– 4x Medium Laser (Right Arm); 1x SRM 4 (Torso)

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Aces (Battle Lance) (190 tons)

- Vindicator VND-1R (45 tons) ‘Teng’ – Liu Zhong “Freak”
                -1x PPC (Right Arm); 1x LRM-5 (Left Torso); 1x Medium Laser (Head)

- Centurion CN9-A (50 tons) ‘Danger Zone’ – Leanne Carr “Outlaw”
                -1x AC/10 (Right Arm); 2x SRM-4 (Left Torso); 2x Medium Lasers (Central Torso)
 
- Thunderbolt TDR-5S (65 tons) ‘Stonewall’ – Awinita Emma Rojo Villanueva “Caballera”
               - 1x AC/5 (Left Arm); 2x SRM-6 (Right Torso); 4x Medium Laser (1x Right Arm, 3x Left Torso)
   
- Javelin JVN-10N (30 tons) ‘Sucker Punch’ – Katherine Elias “Harrier”
                -2x SRM-6 (Right Torso, Left Torso)

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Raiders (Recon Lance) (170 tons)

- Shadow Hawk SHD-2D (55 tons) – Jeremy deVries “Ironside”
                -1x AC/5 (1x Left Torso); 1x LRM-5 (Right Torso, 1 ton of ammo); 3x Medium Laser (1x Right Arm; 2x Left Arm); Jump Jets
 
- Griffin GRF-1N (55 tons) – Silke Schaefer ‘Phoenix’
               - 1x SRM-6 (Right Torso); 2x SRM-4 (Right Torso); 2x Medium Laser (2x Right Arm); Jump Jets
 
- Fire Javelin JVN-10F (30 tons) ‘Scylla'- Anastasia Ivanovna Blomqvist ‘Greyhound’
                - 4x Medium Lasers (2x Right Torso; 2x Light Torso); Jump Jets

- Fire Javelin JVN-10F (30 tons) ‘Charybdis' – (Rajbir Singh ‘Lancer’)
                - 4x Medium Lasers (2x Right Torso; 2x Light Torso); Jump Jets

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Spare pilots:
- Nijiko Onwudiwe “Edge”
- 4-5 liberated slaves with some Mech/IndustrialMech experience, but not pilots yet

Pilots killed:
- Kuan-Yin Vladislav ‘Avalanche’ (died before McEvan’s sacrifice)
- Jarmila Sun Rihova ‘Joyride’ (died before McEvan’s sacrifice)
- Jiri Bednar ‘Birdseye’ (died before McEvan’s sacrifice)
- Linnea Giske “Newt” (was killed by Taurian assassin on McEvan’s sacrifice)
- Chou-Dvorak Ju-long “Shi” (killed on Aigle as his last stand allowed the others to win)

[Daryk]

Not a unit I'd want to meet in a dark alley!  :thumbsup:

That said, some day, you might want upgrade that AC/20 to a Long Tom Artillery Cannon.  They're HEAVY and HOT, but totally worth it!  We have an Orion armed with one in our campaign game, and he's routinely our MVP.  Twenty AOE damage is hard to compete with, or even MISS with...  ^-^

[Ecthelion]

Not a unit I'd want to meet in a dark alley!  :thumbsup:

Thanks!  :thumbsup:

That said, some day, you might want upgrade that AC/20 to a Long Tom Artillery Cannon.  They're HEAVY and HOT, but totally worth it!  We have an Orion armed with one in our campaign game, and he's routinely our MVP.  Twenty AOE damage is hard to compete with, or even MISS with...  ^-^

Upscaled Helepolis? Nice. 8)

Campaign: Erdvynn

Next stop for Hussars is going to be an independent world of Erdvynn where Republicans toppled the royalist government and hold the deposed royal family captive. Still loyal elements pay Hussars to get royal family off world because they are afraid that the new government might try them before court or execute them outright.

Erdvynn used to be province capital during Rim Worlds Republic and after its defeat most of its industry was destroyed. Most of the planet skipped back to the level of civilisation equal roughly to 1. half of 20. century back on Terra, although it retained a sizable population. It was and independent world ruled by royal family after that. It disappeared from maps during Second Succession War, but it retained some importance as a trade hub between lost colonies in Aquila Rift, Lyran Commonwealth and independent worlds in former Timbuktu and Erdvynn provinces. It managed to manoeuvre Lyran politics enough to profit from some trade and evade being eaten up by the realm.

Former forces of the planet were made up of a Royal Guard loyal directly to the king - one lance of Battlemechs and one battalion of tanks (mostly Scorpions, APC’s and towed artillery) - plus 4 further lances of mostly old Battlemechs answering to 4 powerful Dukes and maybe 20 battalions of infantry dispersed around the planet.

When Republican attempted coup evolved into a full-scale civil war, maybe half of the Royal Guard and two thirds of the infantry forces joined their cause. But they managed to secure only a few of the Battlemechs as only Mechs of one of the dukes (who was murdered) ended up in the Republican army. Still, the royal army had the upper hand and crushed the Republicans in some of the important areas until rebels managed to secure funding from a yet unknow benefactor or benefactors. A mercenary unit, Terrell’s Troublemakers, battalion of Battlemechs strong, was deployed on the ground and quickly decided war in the Republican favour. Royal army was destroyed, with a few of the battalions which surrendered being incorporated into new Republican Army. Few surviving loyalist Mechs and Squads of the Royal Guard dispersed into remote areas and mountains, fighting a guerrilla war as they retreated. But the war was lost for the royal side and the king and his family were captured and placed under house arrest.

According to the intel provided by loyalists, the new republican government had at its disposal maybe a lance of its own or captured Mechs and ¾ of the mercenary battalion (it took noticeable losses during the war). To that number some tanks and maybe thirty of infantry battalions (about five of them made of veterans of the civil war, the rest were green conscripts of a questionable quality and loyalty). About half of the battalions were deployed around the capital, the rest in other provinces, hunting down the rest of the royal forces. That was still leaving at least 4 lances of Battlemechs and tanks to oppose any attempt to liberate the royal family.

I was inspired by Foxhaven and its structure of local Militia forces (I love the neo-medieval aspects of Battletech) and tried to think of something similar for Erdvynn. What do you guys think? Does that make sense? Are the militia forces adequate? Does it feel believably?

[Daryk]

Artillery Cannons aren't Artillery... they're direct-fire Area of Effect (AoE) weapons.  They were introduced in 3012 or so.  They're in TacOps.

Foxhaven was (and still is!) a lot of fun!  The only thing surprising about the set up on Erdvynn is that the Republicans haven't executed the royal family already.  The forces sounds pretty solid.

[snakespinner]

That would be the strength of a border world's militia.
Most of these militia infantry would only have a bolt action rifle, just cannonfodder.
So it sounds perfectly alright.

[Ecthelion]

Artillery Cannons aren't Artillery... they're direct-fire Area of Effect (AoE) weapons.  They were introduced in 3012 or so.  They're in TacOps.

Oh, my bad!  :-[ Have to read up on that.

Foxhaven was (and still is!) a lot of fun!

Absolutely.

The only thing surprising about the set up on Erdvynn is that the Republicans haven't executed the royal family already.

I suspect that they either have something sinister in mind for them or they still have a value for them as bargaining chip against the royalist/loyalist forces. They might threaten to execute them if the rest of royal army doesn't surrender. Until the royalist opposition is quelled, the lives of royal family still ahve some value for new masters of the planet. After that... not really.

The forces sounds pretty solid.

Thanks! :thumbsup:

That would be the strength of a border world's militia.
Most of these militia infantry would only have a bolt action rifle, just cannonfodder.

Yep, that was the idea. Footsoldiers with rifles, maybe some submachine or machine guns, moving around in trucks and halftracks. The real fighting force on the ground was the Royal Guard and Mech lances of the individual Dukes.

So it sounds perfectly alright.

Superb, thanks! :thumbsup:

[Ecthelion]

Sheer numbers against them meant that it was impossible for the Hussars to pull this one off themselves. Catapult was still being repaired, so they added Centurion to finish one lance. Rusalka also secured help of Le Comte’s Brigands, mid-heavy mercenary lance that has a lot of experience in urban combat. Its CO, Francois Riboulet known simply as “Le Comte” (the Count), dashing commander and Rusalka’s former friend. They had a falling out actually.

Le Comte sipped his tea and played with his set of dominoes, watching the game of pai gow keenly, when one of his Mechwarriors stormed into the teahouse. “Moon Rabbit? What is it? Est-ce que tout est en ordre?” Moon Rabbit retrieved her sidearm and loaded a fresh clip: “Not in the slightest, tóuzi. Soldiers closed both sides of the street, turning back pedestrians and clearing the area. I think they are coming here. Xià lǎozi yī tiào!” Le Comte cursed and tried his radio to warn the others, but Rabbit didn’t even turned her head: “Don’t bother. They are jamming the signal.” “Fils de putes! What do they look like? Locals?” “Nope. Gear too good. I saw an APC and emblem of some octopus or thing like that.” Dashing commander cursed for a minute straight, not once repeating his curse words. French is amazing like that. Rabbit wasn’t impressed: “Are you done?” Le Comte sat back heavily: “Pretty much. Octopus means Rusalka. I didn’t know she had infantry at her disposal.” “That jiàn nǚ rén?” “Don’t call her that.” “You called her worse.” “I did. And now she is here to get her payback. C’est la vie.”

He put one hand in his hair and combed his fingers through it: “Hide in the back. When the shooting starts, try to give them a slip. Merci pour tout, lapin.” Rabbit wanted to argue, but she heard soldiers coming outside, so she hid, pistol in her hand. Le Comte smiled and switched safety off on his two pistols. He muttered in a low voice: ”I hope they don’t shoot me in the face. It would be a loss for the whole mankind. Oh là là c'est trop jolie!”

Soldiers came in the room but they didn’t focused his attention on him. They just secured the room. Le Comte’s hopes rose, but sank again as the bold officer who came in, turned back and said: “All secured, Major. You may come in.” As he saw Rusalka’s slim figure, his heart sank. She smiled with an irresistible charm and sat in front of him, checking his pai gow tiles: “Your hand doesn’t seem good, François.” “It may very well be, Vera. You look beautiful as ever, though mon amour.” “Charming as always, I see.” “Are you here to get revenge? I did take your money after all. You might be advised that I don’t go out without a fight. Is old Shi out there? I remember that he plays mean pai gow.” Rusalka smile flickered and failed, her pain still too fresh, her sorrow too visible. Le Comte saw it and understood as only someone who have lost as she has lost may: ”I always put a foot in my mouth, mon amie. Je vous demande pardon. He was a really nice chap.” Rusalka smiled and nodded. She added one tile to his pai gow pile, giving him the winning hand: “Thanks. As for the first part of your question… no. I won’t kill you. Not now at the least. Actually, I have a job for you.”

Le Comte blinked. He didn’t blink often: ”You are not here to kill me? I had the whole last stand thing ready to go!” “Sorry to disappoint, big guy.” “And why the whole charade and infantry ambush?” Rusalka waved it off with a smile: “Ah, Captain Whistler was just being too cautious, that’s all.” Le Comte narrowed his eyes in suspicion: “Or did you wanted to show me how easily you can kill me if you wanted to?” Rusalka smiled again but her smile never reached her eyes: ”Everything is possible in this crazy world, ain’t it? Now, let’s talk business.” She stopped for a second as if she just remembered something: ”And tell Rabbit to join us. It must be awfully inconvenient to wait in the back like that.”

Rusalka took the 1st platoon of the Kalmar Milita (former Aigle Militia) with them to storm the compound where royal family is held. Both lances together are still considerably outnumbered, but they hope that a well-planned and prepared blitz attack should steer the numbers their way. 

Le Comte’s Brigands (220 tons)

- Jenner JR7-D (35 tons) – Yi Shih „Moon Rabbit”
   - 4x Medium lasers (2x Right Arm, 2x Left Arm); 1x SRM-4 (Centre Torso); Jump Jets

- Hunchback HBK-4G (50 tons) – Qing Yan Lai “Monkey”
   - AC/20 (Right Torso); 2x Medium Laser (Right Arm, Left Arm)

- JagerMech JM6-S (65 tons) – Xian Ting “Blue-green Dragon”
   - 2x AC/5 (Right and Left Arm); 2x Large Laser (Right and Left Arm)

- Grasshopper GHR-5H (70 tons) – François Riboulet “Le Comte”
                -2x Large laser (Centre Torso, Right Torso); 4x Medium Lasers (Left Arm, Left Torso, Right Torso, Right Arm); 1x SRM-4 (Head)

They arrive under the guise of a merchant mission to the second biggest city that has strong loyalist sentiments and with the help of loyalists on the ground manage to sneak their Mechs to the hidden base close to capital. They plan to sneak towards the capital, attack hard, punch towards the estate where royal family is held, secure it and get out of the city for the Dropships to pick them up.

[Daryk]

Well, being they have the opposing mercenary commander at gun point, I'd say they're in the catbird seat...  ^-^

[Ecthelion]

Sorry for the delay, guys. It took a while. Just a quick summary of the messy campaign - situation on Ervynn was a chaos, but Rusalka's lance and St Ivesians (Le Comte's Brigands were born in Compact, but had to leave it or face Capellan firing squad or prison, they were already on Maskirovka's radar) managed to pull through. After a chaotic urban battle against superior odds only sheer insolence of their attack and a heavy fog helped them to beat the Terell Troublemaker's back.

Their new Kalmar militia managed to save only the royal family, because the king himself was executed right after the coup (unbeknownst to loyalists) and they got the hell out of Dodge. They were nevertheless paid handsomely (alas they weren't able to bring any salvage with them). Hussars and Brigands divided the spoils equally and parted their ways amicably (this time). After this successful mission, Rusalka decided to expand their  infantry into a full company to add new capabilities to Kalmar Hussars.

1st Kalmar Milita Company (built from former Aigle Militia and new recruits on Kalmar)
91 Soldiers (64 Auto-Rifles, 2 Gunter MP-20 SMG, 3 Portable Machine Guns, 7 Portable Grenade Launchers, 6 SRM Launchers) // 5x Wheeled APC (10x Machine gun); 8x Half-track (8x Machine gun)
   
Command Squad (Captain Simeon Whistler) // 1x Wheeled APC (10 tons; better plating; 2x Machine gun)
7 Soldiers (4 Auto-Rifles, 2 Gunter MP-20 SMG, Portable Grenade Launcher)
(Commander, Field Medic, Comms Expert, 2 Combat Engineers, Grenadier, Rifleman)

1st Platoon (Lieutenant) // 4x Wheeled APC (10 tons; better plating; 2x Machine gun)
28 soldiers (20 Auto-Rifles, 1 Portable Machine Gun, 2 Portable Grenade Launchers, 2 SRM Launchers)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, Portable Machine Gun)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Support Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (3 Auto-Rifle, 2 SRM Launchers)

2nd Platoon (Lieutenant) // 4x Half-track (armour withstands only personal weapons; Machine gun)
28 soldiers (20 Auto-Rifles, 1 Portable Machine Gun, 2 Portable Grenade Launchers, 2 SRM Launchers)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, Portable Machine Gun)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Support Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (3 Auto-Rifle, 2 SRM Launchers)

3rd Platoon (Lieutenant) // 4x Half-track (armour withstands only personal weapons; Machine gun)
28 soldiers (20 Auto-Rifles, 1 Portable Machine Gun, 2 Portable Grenade Launchers, 2 SRM Launchers)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, Portable Machine Gun)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Support Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (3 Auto-Rifle, 2 SRM Launchers)

What do you guys think about this company? Would it do?
It is a little bit on the low-tech side (no fancy laser weapons, just SRMs to counter any armoured targets), bacuase Hussars are operating mostly on Periphery and money is tight, but mobile and decent for mercenary assigments in my opinion.

[Ecthelion]

Settling back on Kalmar again
WaiHydro and Hussars resettled an old town of Jezeri on southern continent of Kalmar. City fell into disarray after abandonment of the planet, but most of the buildings were sound and new colonists managed to clear the vegetation and repair a lot. Number of few hundred WaiHydro colonists and slaves liberated at Aigle were soon supplemented with Kalmar fishermen from smaller settlements that were still scattered on the planet. When they learned that the city and its space port were being reopened again and seen a few ships coming and going, a lot of them decided to throw in their lot with the new settlement. What decided for most of them was the fact that Rusalka was Kalmar-born, spoke their language and they knew they can trust her. There were a few thousand of them, much more than anticipated. They also sent a word to planets and sparsely populated systems around that WaiHydro was hiring workers and there was land to be distributed for new colonists. In time, there were quite a lot of a new colonists coming from Czech-speaking worlds of Karlstejn and Konopiste. City of Jezeri soon became a busy town, building a more permanent spaceport and offices of WaiHydro still hiring new workers.

They heard nothing from Free Worlds League government even though Wai Hydro was sending appropriate taxes their way every month. Not even a polite answer. SAFE nevertheless did sent a spy to the new community, under cover of a small convenience store merchant. Locals however, being Andurien through and through, spotted him pretty much right away as he stepped of the ship. But they weren’t doing anything illegal on Kalmar and most of them (Rusalka included) considered themselves Freeworlders anyway, so there was no need to do anything about it. They let him settle and send his reports without any hinderance. The devil you know and all that. There was some unrest in the city and disputes between all the new groups of colonists, but Rusalka (being able to yell at them in Czech, Chinese, Czech-Chinese pidgin and English, plus also capable of cursing like a drunken sailor in all of them, should the need arise) earned grudging respect of all of them and the peace was restored.   

Hussars took for themselves an old FWLM fort located on the cliff above the city. It was mothballed for decades, but mercenaries reactivated it and made themselves comfortable there. It was a small fort compared to regimental fortresses the FWLM usually use, but it had pretty good defences none the less. Rusalka spent some of their earnings from last mission to update them and replenish automated turrets. She also bought four old (not really state of the art, mind you, but on sale) simulators and one old battered training Locust for Edge so she can start training new Mechwarriors they saved at Aigle. That was going to be a long-term project, but Rusalka saw it as an investment into the future of the unit. Costly, sure. But it might pay off down the road.

[Elmoth]

Nice story of a small Merc unit. I like it!

[Ecthelion]

Nice story of a small Merc unit. I like it!

Thanks! I am really glad you like it.  :thumbsup:
I like the grand scheme of things (batallions of Mechs and big picture), but I thoroughly love and enjoy the smaller picture. Small lance or company of mercenaries trying to survive. Every Mech matter, every mechwarrior has a story to tell.  ;)

[Hawkeye Jim]

With small units, you can do more with individual members of the unit. You can build the characters instead of just throwing out names.

[Ecthelion]

With small units, you can do more with individual members of the unit. You can build the characters instead of just throwing out names.

Absolutely. That what draws me to them. Every Mechwarrior and Mech has a story, that I like to tell. :)

[Hawkeye Jim]

Some of those stories will be more interesting than just the battles. Interlacing both parts makes it even better.

[DOC_Agren]

I have to suggest and I know Daryk will back me up, drop one of the
Manoeuvre Squad pre Platoon
     Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
for a Marksman Squad
     Marksman Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, 2 Sniper Rifles)


   

[Ecthelion]

for a Marksman Squad
     Marksman Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, 2 Sniper Rifles)

Oh, there was a development concerning sniper rifles recently, wasn't there? I know I have seen it somewhere, but I can't find it right off the bat. Was there a stat change? I can't remember...

[KayEmm]

I really love the story you're creating here. Small-unit stories are the best, and you've done a great job on the worldbuilding. I especially love how you're focusing on the more 'fringe' elements of the universe

[Ecthelion]

I really love the story you're creating here. Small-unit stories are the best, and you've done a great job on the worldbuilding.

Thank you very much. I am glad you like it!  :thumbsup:

I especially love how you're focusing on the more 'fringe' elements of the universe

I usually find myself a niche that is not that well described and defined and fill it with my own stories. Periphery and planets that are not considered "important" (that fell of the grid and no one cares about them) are ideal for that. There is so much potential and so much interesting stories to tell! Planets like Kalmar that were written off by all bigger players... but there are people still living there, threatened by pirates, selfish corporations and merciless dictators... with no one to turn to for protection. But Hussars take jobs like that. Not much profit in jobs like that, but some. And it is not about the money. Not always anyway.

[DOC_Agren]

Oh, there was a development concerning sniper rifles recently, wasn't there? I know I have seen it somewhere, but I can't find it right off the bat. Was there a stat change? I can't remember...

The Shrapnel Issue #1 Sniper Rifles, Daryk did a review of them here.
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=69615.0

[Ecthelion]

The Shrapnel Issue #1 Sniper Rifles, Daryk did a review of them here.
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=69615.0

Right! Thanks for the link! I knew I read it here somewhere.  :thumbsup:

I think I will go for it. Notwithstanding the rules, it also has the more "elite" feeling as a force having capable snipers. I am also debating wheter to leave the portable machine gun in the first manouvre squad or not. Their half-tracks have machine guns on the roof... and even though their armor is paper-thin, they can still provide covering fire above the heads of advancing troopers. It might be better to give Portable Grenade Launcher also to 1st Squad to keep them more mobile.

Maybe something like that:

2nd Platoon (Lieutenant) // 4x Half-track (armour withstands only personal weapons; Machine gun)
28 soldiers (20 Auto-Rifles, 2 Portable Grenade Launchers, 2 Sniper Rifles, 2 SRM Launchers)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Marksman Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, 2 Sniper Rifles)
      Support Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (3 Auto-Rifle, 2 SRM Launchers)

[Ecthelion]

Ok, updated structure for the infantry - apart from adding sniper rifles, I dropped the machine gun from the Squads themselves (they have to rely on supressing fire from their APCs and Half-trucks more, that is a good thing from storyteller point of view). I also added a Mortar Squad (with light mortars) to give them some indirect-fire capabilities. I thought about heavy mortars, but they are there mostly to act against enemy infantry, so three lights sound better than just two heavies. It also rounds the company nicely at almost hundred men and women (98 to be precise), which I like.

1st Kalmar Milita Company (built from former Aigle Militia and new recruits on Kalmar)
98 Soldiers (68 Auto-Rifles, 2 Gunter MP-20 SMG, 7 Portable Grenade Launchers, 6 Sniper Rifles, 6 SRM Launchers, 3 Light Mortars) // 5x Wheeled APC (10x Machine gun); 9x Half-track (9x Machine gun)

----
   
Command Squad (Captain Simeon Whistler) // 1x Wheeled APC (10 tons; better plating; 2x Machine gun)
7 Soldiers (4 Auto-Rifles, 2 Gunter MP-20 SMG, Portable Grenade Launcher)
(Commander, Field Medic, Comms Expert, 2 Combat Engineers, Grenadier, Rifleman)

Mortar Squad (Sergeant) // 1x Half-track (4 tons; armour withstands only personal weapons; 1x Machine gun)
7 Soldiers (4 Auto-Rifles, 3 Light Mortars)

----

1st Platoon (Lieutenant) // 4x Wheeled APC (10 tons; better plating; 2x Machine gun)
28 soldiers (20 Auto-Rifles, 2 Portable Grenade Launchers, 2 Sniper Rifles, 2 SRM Launchers)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
                Marksman Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, 2 Sniper Rifles)
      Support Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (3 Auto-Rifle, 2 SRM Launchers)

2nd Platoon (Lieutenant) // 4x Half-track (armour withstands only personal weapons; Machine gun)
28 soldiers (20 Auto-Rifles, 2 Portable Grenade Launchers, 2 Sniper Rifles, 2 SRM Launchers)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
                Marksman Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, 2 Sniper Rifles)
      Support Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (3 Auto-Rifle, 2 SRM Launchers)

3rd Platoon (Lieutenant) // 4x Half-track (armour withstands only personal weapons; Machine gun)
28 soldiers (20 Auto-Rifles, 2 Portable Grenade Launchers, 2 Sniper Rifles, 2 SRM Launchers)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
      Manoeuvre Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (6 Auto-Rifles, Portable Grenade Launcher)
                Marksman Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (5 Auto-Rifles, 2 Sniper Rifles)
      Support Squad (Sergeant) / 7 Soldiers (3 Auto-Rifle, 2 SRM Launchers)

[Ecthelion]

As Rusalka, Freak and Ironside all moved off Kalmar to different tasks and contracts, their last Mechwarrior, Nijiko "Edge" Onwudiwe (in Draconis Combine, she would be called 'hāfu', meaning 'half', denoting people of mixed Japanese ancestry - in this case Japanese and African), scarred and traumatised by events on McEvan's sacrifice and her captivity, was left in charge of their training program. She has to face problems no one did forsee.

Dice threw parts of his auto-rifle on the table in frustration: “How should disassembling and assembling an auto-rifle help us drive the Mech?! This is BS!” Edge answered calmly: “It doesn’t. However. I am not teaching you to drive Mechs. I am teaching you how to be a Mechwarrior.” Dice laughed and moved towards her threateningly: “Yeah? And how would you know anything about that, ma’am teacher? You are too scared to drive a Mech! No wonder Hussars didn’t want coward like you in their lances!” Temperature in the room suddenly dropped a few dozen degrees. There were other students in the room, learning under Edge’s tutelage. All of them young and most of them former slaves saved by Hussars on Aigle. Blondie, Monk, Nighthawk, Trainwreck and Wildcat. They all raised their heads from their auto-rifles, that they were disassembling and assembling. Their faces were worried. Edge didn’t move a muscle, but their eyes looked at her side pistol, as if she had made a threat. Even Dice stepped a step back. Trainwreck tried to smile and calm the situation down: “Knock it off, Dice. He didn’t mean it, ma’am.”

But Dice wasn’t done yet: “Shut the trap, Trainwreck! I do mean that! I am done with her bossing us around! Do this, do that! I am better Mechwarrior than she ever will be!” Monk, at the back of the room, started to recite funeral sutras in a low voice as Edge moved to face Dice. Her voice was colder than the emptiness of the void: “Is that so, Mr. Dice?” Should Dice have any common sense at all, he would have backed down, but he was hell-bent on this path: “Oh, yeah! I am a Mechwarrior allright!” Edge narrowed her eyes: “Show me then. Simulators in fifteen minutes. Bring two of your colleagues with you. I give you advantage 3:1. You better not lose.” She left the room without a second look.

Dice smiled smugly: “3:1? She won’t know what hit her! Blondie? Trainwreck?” Trainwreck shook her head: “Don’t look at me. This is your funeral.” “Wildcat?” Silent nod. “Let’s go then! Victory!” Monk’s sutras followed them from the room.

----

Three Javelins wandered in blizzard between rock formations. “I can’t see a thing out there, Dice! And the storm is messing with our sensors!” “Be quiet, Blondie! Fan out! She is out there somewhere. It is three to one! We can’t lose that!” The dark silhouettes of Mechs with their searchlights illuminating the rock formations moved away from each other to cover a bigger area. Blondie’s Javelin on the left passed a very peculiar rocks that … with a little bit of imagination… could be another Javelin leaning against standing boulder, covered with snow and ice. But he didn't see it, his eyes focused on sensors.

Two other pilots heard the explosion of Blondie’s Mech and felt the tremor of his engine core going critical. Dozen short range rockets obliterated Blondie’s back armour and smashed the Mech out of the way like a ragdoll. Dice saw the signs of a Mech power-up, before he lost signal on his sensors due to the storm. “Damn! She dropped Blondie!” “She waited powered down in an ambush!” “You think?!” “Shut it and find her! We will get her!” “Only if you’re sure, oh-so-mighty leader.”

They searched for further ten minutes, but not a trace could be found. The started to lose their nerves, and screamed at each other, blaming the one another for the failure. When the signature of Edge’s Javelin reappeared, it took them few valuable seconds to react. Their turned their Mechs and fired all their rockets in the direction of the sensor contact. SRM’s exploded all around the rock formations, but Edge’s Mech wasn’t running on the ground, where their rockets could hit her. She used one of the boulders to jump. Her Javelin flew well above all their missiles and landed directly on Dice’s Mech, dropping it to the ground and crushing its plating under Javelin’s feet. Wildcat turned around only to receive another full salvo of SRM’s in the face. His Mech turned to the side, shaken and battered. Edge raced after him, shooting his Mech two more times, while Wildcat tried to land any hit against her, but couldn’t turn the torso enough to fire at the nimble opponent. Right as the Wildcat’s Mech fell to the ground, Edge turned back to deal with Dice.

Dice’s fallen Javelin tried to stand up, but it was more damaged that it seemed at the first sight. He tried to crawl towards the rocks and use them as a support, but Edge was faster. Last thing the Dice saw before the simulator kicked him out of the simulation, was foot of Edge's Javelin closing in on his cockpit...

---

Edge with her neurohelmet under her arm walked towards the defeated trio: “You had advantage three against one and didn’t score a hit. Think about that.” Blondie interrupted her: “It wasn’t a fair fight!” Edge snorted: “Fair fight is a result of a poor planning and gets you killed. You need to use every dirty trick in the book, every slight opportunity, every stab in the back, every edge you have to win the battle before it is fought.” She turned to Dice: “Mr. Dice, what you did was a mutiny and should you have been Mechwarrior already, I would be your end. Literally. But you are not yet and therefore I will give you one more chance. You are expelled conditionally. One more misstep and you are out of this program, out of this unit and out of this planet. You should head back to that auto-rifle. It won’t assemble and disassemble itself.” She turned her back on them and left the room. Luckily, she made it out of the room before the panic attack could overcome her.

Edge closed the door behind her and collapsed… her clothes pouring with sweat, hands shaking and tears in her eyes. She managed to get out of the room so they won't see her crack up. Barely. All her nightmares and memories… of all they did to her… came back the moment when she put that cursed helmet on. She spent a long time on that floor, sitting and leaning against the wall, unable to move… fearing that her students will open that door and find her. But none of them did.