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BattleTech Player Boards => Fan Fiction => Topic started by: Billy Boy Mark II on 05 May 2019, 17:54:30
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22nd December 3060
Fox's Den
Grand Avalon Mountain Range
New Avalon
New Avalon Combat Region
Coreward Combat Theatre (Markessan Operation's Area)
Crucis March
Federated Sun's Command
Federated Commonwealth
Katherine Morgan Steiner-Davion, who considered herself Katrina Steiner-(Davion) had just finished announcing to the various Field Marshals, Marshals and General's of the AFFC that she had taken over from her younger sister Yvonne Steiner-Davion as Regent for her brother Victor Ian Steiner-Davion and sat back with a carefully crafted facade of reluctant acceptance of her duties. It was all a lie of course and everyone in the room knew that she was more than happy to take the reigns of the Federated Commonwealth from her younger siblings hands, but the forms had to be kept if she was to ensure the hidebound officers of the Federated Sun's complied with her takeover. Although if any of them thought she was going to be content to remain "Regent" until her fool brother Victor came home from his little crusade then they were frankly too stupid to hold the ranks they did. Ideally Victor would do the decent thing and get himself killed off in Clan Space, but if he did have the bad taste to survive and return then there wasn't a chance in hell she was going to let him return to New Avalon. With the credit of vanquishing the Clans and wiping out the entire Smoke Jaguar clan he would be in an insurmountable position here in the Federated Suns and might even be able to start challenging her within her own Lyran Alliance. To avoid such a future most of the men and women in this room would have to go, but for now she would play the dutiful daughter of Hanse Davion to win their compliance with her usurpation of power...
"No." A single word rang like a gunshot in the silence that had followed her speech.
Shocked Katherine stared at the man who had spoken up in almost confusion. All her intelligence reports and advisers, including her key political adviser Tormano Liao, had assured her that as long as she maintained a facade of legality to her takeover he wouldn't speak against her. It took her precious seconds to rally her thoughts and respond. "What did you say Marshal Davion?"
"I said: No, Princess Katherine. As in the opposite of yes. As in I will not allow this to happen. And it is Marshal of the Armies Davion." The grim faced Jackson Kennard Davion spoke almost softly. "I and the officers present will not allow you to usurp your brother's throne while he is off fighting to protect the entire reborn Star League from the Clan threat. While our brothers and sister's in arms may very well at this very moment be bleeding and dying under his command to protect us all. Nor will I or they betray our oaths and stand aside to allow a coup to take place in direct contradiction of the inheritance laws of the Federated Commonwealth and the Federated Suns."
Although the words were delivered softly there was an iron within them that spoke volumes of the likelihood that she would be able to win the Marshal of Armies over to her cause. Looking around the table she could see that his stand had placed steel into the spines of the other officers. Even those who had been subtly felt out by her agents about their willingness to go along with a change in regime were suddenly sitting a little taller and staring at her with hostility, their previous assumed compliance now a thing of the past. Even the Crucis March's Director of Logistic's XO Marshal Simon Gallagher was avoiding her eye and he had sworn her his loyalty secretly and was a Lyran by birth! While that smug bastard Ardan Sortek was grinning at her with undisguised satisfaction at her failure!
Rallying she nodded curtly. "Very well. If you wish to ignore the legality of my sister's abdication of the Regency in my favour then you leave me no other options but to leave you to your wretched little war games and return to Tharkad! I just hope that the people of the Federated Commonwealth will remember who attempted to help them in their hour of peril and who the cabal of officers were that refused that help!"
As she stood up and prepared to storm from the room she was stopped in her tracks again, this time by Prince's Champion Ardan Sortek's voice. "I think not..."
Stopping she wheeled on her father's oldest friend in a rage but felt her fury wither and die in the face of his cold pitiless stare as the old man stood up slowly. "Princess Katherine Morgan Steiner-Davion in my role as Prince's Champion I hereby place you under arrest for High Treason against your brother the Rightful Archon-Prince of the Federated Commonwealth. You will be held here on New Avalon in a secure location until such time as your brother returns and you will then stand trial... For that and perhaps other crimes Katherine..."
The last sentence and the sheer hate that the old man allowed to colour his voice tore the last shreds of anger from Katherine. He could only mean one thing. He knew. She had long suspected that her brother had known about her involvement with their mothers death and he had clearly confided that information in Ardan Sortek before he left for Huntress... She almost stammered out a reply. "I have no idea what you are talking about... But my bodyguards will not stand for this! I brought a combined-arm's regiment of the 1st Royal Guard's from Tharkad with me! They will not allow their Archon to be taken into custody!"
The derision on the faces of the assembled Federated Commonwealth officers spoke volumes as to how seriously they took that threat. Marshal Bishop Sortek of the 1st Davion Guard's RCT spoke for all of them when he snorted contemptuously. "My own 1st Davion Guard could handle a combat command from your parade ground toy soldier RCT with one hand tied behind their back's... Even without the assistance of the Davion Heavy Guards, New Avalon CrMM and the 1st New Avalon Cavaliers... Even the New Avalon CrMM could take them on their own frankly!"
"Enough of this. Prince's Champion Sortek please take your prisoner into custody. Her few infantry bodyguards outside will have already been seized by the resident 1st Davion Royal Guard's infantry... Marshal Sortek, Marshal Adelmana and Leftenant General Payne... If you could please co-ordinate the seizure of the detachment from the 1st Royals RCT, if at all possible without needless bloodshed but if the choice is between one of ours and one of theirs you know what to do... Please co-ordinate with the New Avalon Cavaliers, have them secure the NAIS and Albion compounds. Also deploy additional infantry and forces as you see fit to support your commands in maintaining law and order for the time being."
As Ardan Sortek advanced on her and motioned to two guards to assist him Katherine stared in horror as the three other officers mentioned nodded and quickly strode from the room. She was particularly wounded by the total lack of opposition to the order from the Duke of Augusta, Leftenant General Payne who she had counted on to be one of her supporters after she had seized power! Yet clearly the ambitious officer with long years at court had sensed which way the wind was blowing and had no intention to stand in support of a women who was facing treason charges!
Perhaps out of some residual fondness for the child he remembered or respect for her late parent's the Prince's Champion did not insist on marching her from the room in cuffs but as she passed by security post's who's soldiers had suddenly changed from ceremonial uniforms to full combat gear the Archon of the Lyran Alliance was in no doubt's as to the fact she was under arrest... This had not gone at all to plan!
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3060 - December
After the events on New Avalon on the 22nd December 3060 the Davion High Command moved quickly. Units which were off dubious loyalty were swiftly isolated.
Controlling the flow of information through formal channels the High Command swiftly ensured that the news of the traitor's failed coup did not get out. They were in no doubt's that some of the more "Lyran" units within the Federated Sun's Command had been contacted prior to Katherine Steiner Davion's arrival upon New Avalon and were likely merely awaiting a signal to help in her takeover. So they maintained a communication blackout for the rest of December and into the early days of 3061.
Meanwhile coded transmissions and jumpship carried message packets went out to those commands upon which the High Command knew they could rely implicitly. As well as to both Field Marshal's and Commanders of the Capellan and Draconis March's. Diplomatically the High Command did not send them orders, merely a list of suspect commands and suggestions that these commands be isolated and steps taken to ensure they did not rebel against the legitimate command structure of the Federated Commonwealth. They left it to the Duke's of New Sytris and Robinson themselves to make sure that no rebellions occurred within their March Commands. One area that was an exception to this was the Achernar PDZ of the Capellan March - the theory behind this was that it was a vital strategic location and had relatively recently been added to the Capellan March Command after the fall of the Sarna March in 3057 as well as being the location of a number of questionable units.
The following units and locations had been listed as being potential flash points.
Draconis March
Addicks PDZ
Although the 6th FedCom RCT had spent a considerable period of it's existence within the Lyran Command it was not considered a threat due to their refusal to join the LA in 3057 and the continuing command of Hauptmann General Isbella Rahn.
Kentares PDZ
The 5th Lyran Guard's RCT had of course been listed as a potential risk and this was included in the lists sent to Robinson. This would be countered by the forming of a task force formed around the 8th Crucis Lancers RCT and the Fighting Urukhai's 8th Striker Regiment backed up by an armoured brigade of conventional troops in early 3061.
Raman PDZ
The 5th Donegal Guards RCT would be countered by the reinforcement of the 41st Avalon Hussars on Benet III by a combined arms combat command of the Raman DMM and the Robinson's Academy Training Battalion supported by a mixed conventional brigade drawn directly from Robinson. Facing off against 5 battalions of Battlemech forces and a full RCT's worth of conventional forces the 5th Donegal Guards wisely agreed to stand down after a tense few days.
Le Blanc PDZ
As befitting the PDZ containing the capital of the Draconis March there was little if any trouble within the Le Blanc PDZ. All of the commands assigned to this PDZ were either already unquestionably loyal to Archon-Prince Victor or to the Duke of Robinson himself. Indeed a number of units from this region would be used to help contain possible flash points elsewhere, although Duke Sandoval was reluctant to leave his March capital bare even if there was a current detente with the Draconis Combine. He would additionally contact a number of FedCom RCT units who he had previously been the brigade commander off and use his influence to maintain calm.
Dahar PDZ
This was another PDZ which had few if any large Katherine loyal commands. The Sakhara Academy Training Battalion swithered on the edge of being considered a potential rebellious command, but the well known loyalties of it's staff were enough to have it bypassed as a potential rebel unit. The High Command and Robinson wisely left the teaching staff of the prestigious academy alone to deal with any issues in the cadet classes in their own way.
Bremond PDZ
With the Bremond DMM the only unit within the PDZ and it solidly behind it's March Commander no concerns were raised for this PDZ.
Bryceland PDZ
The 3rd Lyran Regulars were another unit which was considered a liability of rebellion by the High Command and upon seeing it upon the list of questionable commands James Sandoval concurred. He immediately ordered that the 1st Ceti Hussars RCT detach two of it's combat commands to support the 3rd Davion Guard RCT as well as the Conroe Training Battalion in moving to take the unit into custody. Faced with nearly twice it's numbers in Battlemech's and also facing nearly a full RCT of support forces the 3rd Lyran Regular's wisely stood down. Even then roughly a battalion from the unit attempted to breakout and make for the spaceport but were swiftly run down by Combat Command Alpha of the 1st Ceti Hussars. A few warning shots and the breakaway unit stood down.
Mayetta PDZ
A similar situation arose within this PDZ to that of the Bremond PDZ but it was complicated by a number of questionable reports about the officer corp of the Mayetta PDZ. A MIIO led investigatory team backed up by a number of personnel from the Department of Military Justice were sent out in early 3061. They were to be backed by the nearby Bremond and Milligan DMM if need be.
Milligan PDZ
The Milligan DMM found itself in the same position as the Bremond DMM in that it was solidly behind it's March Commander and no further steps were taken for units within this PDZ.
Kilbourne PDZ
The Kilbourne DMM was ordered to surround the Kilbourne Academy and it's Training Battalion and call upon the cadets to stay calm - given the well known dislike for the High Command this was considered a potential flash point. It was thought that using their "local" March Militia which had strong ties to the academy was less likely to provoke a reaction and this proved to be the case. Beyond a few demonstrations with placards denouncing a military coup the academy remained quite. This also freed up the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT to deploy from the PDZ to support more volatile spots.
Capellan March
Achernar PDZ
The Achernar PDZ was considered a special case and in this particular PDZ the response would be coordinated from New Avalon and not the local March Capital. If Duke Hasek took offence at this he kept quite about it and simply threw himself into containing other potential flash points. The Davion Assault Guards RCT was the lynchpin to the response here and was ordered immediately to move from it's posting on Tigress and take up position on Tikonov. Particularly within the capital city of Tikograd and it's key factories. It was to be reinforced by a number of known loyal conventional commands that would almost triple it's conventional forces.
Meanwhile the 1st FedCom RCT was ordered to take the command staff of the Nanking SMM into custody and promote officers who were known to be more loyal to the FedSuns as a whole rather than the Tikonov Region. Having done that they were ordered to leave a combat command upon Nanking to support the FedSun's loyalists and move the rest of their command to Achernar and do the same with the members of that world's Achernar SMM. Marshal Swanson of the 1st FedCom was authorised to leave Leftenant Fritz Tull of the Nanking SMM in place only if she was confident that he would stand by his oaths of loyalty to the FedCom - it was perhaps telling that the same authorisation was not granted in relation to the Achernar SMM.
Marshal Stromp of the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers was ordered to take full command of a task force consisting of her own unit and all 3 Vegan Ranger's mercenary units and reinforced by at least 2 infantry brigades of conventional forces. Using this sledgehammer she was to dive her forces in two and to descend upon Kansu and Algol and take disarm the 1st and 2nd Republican units after which she was to move to Yangtze and disarm the under strength 3rd.. With her own reinforced regiment of 'mechs and 3 mercenary regiments it was felt that she would easily be able to force the two under strength Tikonov Republican Guard units to stand down, particularly the 2/3rds strength 1st. Unfortunately this proved to be optimistic and both Republican units put up a fight when the Kestrel Grenadiers and Vegan Rangers attempted to force them to stand down. Although they were both swiftly crushed and forced to surrender their stubborn attempts (which lasted into late January 3061) to fight did buy enough time for Tikonov sympathisers within the PDZ to warn the 3rd Republican which managed to flee into space and disappear, going rogue. The damage to the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers was soon made up and orders cut to absorb some of the conventional troops to upgrade the unit to a full RCT while the Vegan Rangers were rewarded for their loyalty with the pick of salvage of the two destroyed Tikonov units.
Valexa PDZ
Stripped of the Alpha Regiment of the 12th Vegan Rangers to support operations against the Tikonov Republican Guard units Duke Hasek had fewer options than he might have liked within the Valexa PDZ. Judging the 3rd FedCom RCT to be the greater threat he ordered the 5th Crucis Lancers RCT, reinforced with 2/3rds of the Valexa CMM and the 1st Bell Training Battalion to reinforce the 1st Aragon Borderer's on New Aragon. He was proved right when the 3rd FedCom facing nearly 3 times their firepower stood down and accepted the situation with grudging compliance. This did however create a further rift between the 3rd FedCom RCT and it's sister RCT the 5th FedCom RCT, who had long had a "yellow" reputation within the AFFC. This reputation, at least to the members of the 3rd FedCom was now without question - as many of the unit felt that the 5th had betrayed them by not rushing to their aid. As it was the questionable 5th FedCom RCT was largely ignored both by Duke Hasek and the loyalist commands in the PDZ. For once this disregard was welcomed by the 5th. Although the assignment of 2 free armoured regiments in February 3061 to bring their RCT up to strength was considered by many within the 5th FedCom RCT as a reward for their standing down without being forced to do so.
Kathil PDZ
The 6th New Sytris Fusiliers RCT swiftly moved to support the 2nd NAIS Cadre on Kathil facing off against the 8th FedCom RCT. Even facing twice their number in 'mech's however the 8th FedCom RCT chose to fight. With the assault and heavy nature of their Battlemech forces and with a similarly weighted armour brigade to back them up the 8th FedCom RCT put up a blistering defensive fight. Even with the similarly weighted 6th Fusiliers the 8th FedCom RCT were able to inflict tremendous damage and it was only when the battered loyalist forces were joined by the bulk of the 5th New Sytris Fusiliers RCT and the assault weighted 3rd NAIS Cadre from Lee that the 8th FedCom RCT succumbed and surrendered. By which point it had been reduced to a bare third of it's operational strength. The losses amongst the 2nd NAIS Cadre were particularly severe. Thankfully the shipyards and industrial works upon the planet were spared any damage by mutual consent on the part of the fighting officers.
Alcyone PDZ
The 8th Donegal Guard's RCT was considered probably the single most powerful pro-Katherine unit within the FedSun's Command and it's neutralisation was accordingly considered a matter of high priority. Three full units of the Davion Brigade of Guards were deployed to Monhegan to convince the 8th Donegal to stand down. The 2nd, 5th and Light Guards RCT all moved as a combined task force to bring order to the system. Of particular import was the heavy aerospace presence of the 2nd's over strength air wings which combined with the deployment of the the Avalon class cruiser the FCS Melissa Davion from Kittery further strengthened the show of force. Faced with such overwhelming force the Lyran unit stood down without a fight.
New Sytris PDZ
The only movement within this PDZ was to deploy a Combat Command from the 3rd Ceti Hussars RCT to reinforce the New Sytris CMM and mercenary Vanguard Legion defensive force of the March capital.
Sirdar PDZ
With only the 4th Donegal Guards RCT within the PDZ a large force drawn from elements of the 3rd Ceti Hussars RCT (1 Combat Command), 15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT, 2nd Ceti Hussars RCT (2 Combat Commands) and the 2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT moved to Velhas. Similarly to their sister unit on Monhegan the 4th Donegal Guard RCT when faced with the overwhelming nature of the loyalist force stood down.
Altair PDZ
With this PDZ solidly within the command of New Sytris no action was required except for the deployment of an conventional infantry brigade to deal with limited protests.
Warren PDZ
Similarly to the Altair PDZ this region was considered largely quite and of little risk. Indeed George Hasek briefly considered withdrawing the 8th New Sytris Fusiliers RCT back to New Sytris to further reinforce the capital, but eventually concluded this might give the Taurian's unwelcome ideas.
Crucis March
Archemar Combat Region
A number of conventional units were deployed to deal with riots and disturbances caused by pro-Katherine agitators within this region.
Kestrel Combat Region
Similarly to the Archemar Combat Region widespread disturbances broke out throughout this region but were swiftly dealt with by the local Kestrel CrMM and other garrison forces.
New Avalon Combat Region
A brief firefight occurred at the Avalon City Spaceport when elements of the 1st Royals RCT attempted to break out from their ships and "free" their Archon. This was however swiftly dealt with. Following which 2 Combat Commands drawn from the 1st Davion Guards and Davion Heavy Guards RCT's were dispatched to Salem to disarm the green 19th Arcturan Gurads. Although outnumbering the 2 battalions of battlemech's of the Davion Guard units Leftenant Genearl Bishop was under no illusions that her parade ground soldiers could stand against the elite of the Davion Guards. Even without the 2 regiments of armour and 4 regiments of infantry that the Davion Guard units had brought in support against her battlemech regiment. The fact that the local militia's of Salem were almost certain to side with their countrymen over her own unit was the final nail in the coffin of any thoughts she had to resist. She stood her unit down willingly and spared them what would have been a very one sided battle.
Nunivak Combat Region
The Remagen CrMM as the only unit within the Combat Region were tasked with ensuring that pro-Katherine demonstrations did not get out of hand, although initially hard pressed they soon took to using their night-fighting skills to infiltrate any group attempting to riot the night before said riot was to take place and disarm them quickly and effectively, or if that was impossible sabotage their transports. Following this a number of the infantry squads from this CrMM would be recruited into the Crucis March's special forces regiments and even reportedly MIIO's Rabid Foxes units.
Islamabad Combat Region
The local troops of the Islamabad CrMM were ordered to put down a number of pro-Katherine protests and did so with excellent and restrained tactics.
Malagrotta Combt Region
The local Malagrotta CrMM was far to concerned dealing with pirate raids to be bothered about potential coup's on New Avalon and the High Command wisely left them to it.
Point Barrow Combat Region
The Point Barrow Training Battalion was considered a potential source of pro-Katherine agitation, however the High Command felt that any move of a front line formation there would only inflame matters. They therefore sent word to the academy that it's training force had been chosen for field tests of the new Thanatos battlemech produced on nearby Crofton. They could expect the first production models to be sent within the next 3 months. Suitably distracted by this potential honour as well as new equipment the cadets of the academy barely noticed the Archon's arrest.
Tsamma Combat Region
Besides dealing with a number of pro-Katherine demonstrations the Tsamma CrMM was ordered to prepare to move towards Mayetta if it was felt to be necessary.
Anjin Muerto Combat Region
The local forces were considered entirely capable of dealing with any and all pro-Katherine protests which occurred within this combat region.
Broken Wheel Combat Region
None of the three training units within this region were considered any threat of a pro-Katherine mutiny and as such were simply ordered to continue training and pirate hunting. Some additional conventional forces were however deployed to deal with disturbances. In case the cadets and staff of the Filtvet Training Battalion felt put out by the gift of Thanatos battlemech's to their counterparts at Point Barrow a similar order was sent to them that they too would receive a company of Thanatos 'mechs for training and testing.
Lyran Alliance
The various former Federated Sun's units within the Lyran Alliance were all notified quietly by New Avalon of the arrest of the Archon and were informed to prepare to depart the LA if any move was taken against them. Units in and close to the Arc-Royal Defence Cordon were told to hold their positions their and attempt to secure the Jade Falcon border at almost any costs. Interestingly the Commanding Officers of both the 3rd and 4th Alliance Guard's were notified. Both Leftenant General Andor of the 3rd and Leftenant General Gregg of the 4th were considered to be pro-Victor and pro-FedCom/FedSuns and as such were notified in case of backlash. Both generals although not exactly pro-Victor were grateful for the warnings and it did have the effect of shifting their loyalties somewhat more in favour of New Avalon over Tharkad. Duke Morgan Kell was also notified as were a small number of pro-Davion mercenary commands such as the Blue Star Irregulars.
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more please
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Yes! Yes! Someone slaps down Mary Sue Kathy and reminds her that there are consequences for treason, and there is no other word to describe her actions against her family and her nation!
Bravo! Continue, please!
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:thumbsup: MORE PLEASE
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I like. More please.
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I like the start of this. looking forward to were you might take this.
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These people must be working out some kind of karmic Fahrenheit 451 debt. You better continue before somebody is forced into another reincarnation. j/k :) More, please.
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Two minor nitpicks: the Davion Heavy Guards would have been away with Victor and the New Avalon Cavaliers didn't exist as such since they were formed as a new incarnation of Team Banzai after the canonical end of the FCCW.
It's easy to bring the Cavaliers together early though and they're easily elite enough to do what the Heavy Guards do. Or the well-equipped New Avalon CrMM can step up.
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Two minor nitpicks: the Davion Heavy Guards would have been away with Victor and the New Avalon Cavaliers didn't exist as such since they were formed as a new incarnation of Team Banzai after the canonical end of the FCCW.
It's easy to bring the Cavaliers together early though and they're easily elite enough to do what the Heavy Guards do. Or the well-equipped New Avalon CrMM can step up.
The only reference to the Davion Heavy Guards was them fighting as part of Operation Bulldog after which they came back to New Avalon - which was a little bit ago. So they didn't go with Victor. As for the New Avalon Cavaliers, I've assumed that Team Banzai/Cavaliers was something of an "informal" organisation but that it can be activated as required. Which is also why I've had them activate to secure the academies - because that's where 90% of their members and mechs are based. Fair?
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3061 - First Quarter - Victor's Return
The year started with the FedCom in turmoil. Commands were moving to reinforce key sectors, small scale battles had broken out in a number of areas and civil disturbances were breaking out all over the FedCom's territories. Still with command and control secure from New Avalon, Robinson and New Sytris and with all of the various regional command centres firmly in the hands of the legitimate military authorities the situation was well in hand. The largest number of deployments were in fact not Battlemech equipped units but instead independent infantry brigades rushing from planet to planet to quell disturbances.
January 3061
January opened with fighting either breaking out or continuing in a number of areas, mostly within the Capellan March.
Within the Achernar PDZ fighting had broken out on Kansu and Algol. On Kansu 75% of the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers and the Vegan Ranger's Beta Regiment faced off against the 1st Republican regiment along with a number of local militia's who had sided with the pro-Tikonov command. Even with these reinforcements however the understrength 1st Republican soon found itself hard pressed to fight off the elite units arrayed against it. After holding out for 2 weeks of brutal fighting the unit broke and it's survivors joined the few remaining Kansu Militia units to attempt to flee into the wilderness. However the largely XL engines mech's of the Vegan Ranger's Beta Regiment soon ran down the vast majority of fleeing enemies. A handful survived to escape but these would be little threat and were hunted down over the next few weeks. Leaving a small force Marshal Stromp prepared to move on the 3rd Republican on Yangtze. On Algol the remainder of the Kestrel Grenadiers found themselves acting more as a support for the two veteran units of the Vegan Ranger's Alpha and Gamma Regiments. Under the command of General Stancel of the Alpha Regiment the combined AFFC-Mercenary force smashed into the 2nd Republican. Expecting to be facing an under strength unit with limited supplies General Stancel's forces were surprised to find themselves facing an almost intact regiment with ample supplies. However even this was unable to do more than prolong the inevitable. Using his own Alpha Regiment and the attached Grenadiers as a hammer and the Gamma Regiment as an anvil the general proceeded to smash the 2nd Republican over the course of January and into early February, finally accepting the surrender of the 2nd Republican's remaining battered forces on the 3rd of February.
Also within the Achernar PDZ the 1st FedCom RCT largely disarmed the Nanking SMM although left it's Command Officer Leftenant General Tull in command, although with a number of his officers facing court martial's. The 1st FedCom then moved on to Achernar itself, leaving a small combined arms regiment to ensure that the Nanking SMM remembered it's duties. During this time the Davion Assault Guards RCT also arrived upon Tikonov and took most of the staff and cadets of the Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group into custody pending investigations. At least half of the staff and nearly a third of the cadets would subsequently either be dismissed from service of face criminal charges. The remainder would be returned to their positions for the time being.
The other major area of fighting was on the industrial world of Kathil. Here the 8th FedCom loudly declared for the "Archon-Princess" and refused to stand down at what they felt was the usurpation of her rightful attempt to take the reigns from her weak sister. The 6th New Sytris Fusiliers attempted a quick and overwhelming strike on the 8th FedCom's base, but were rebuffed with heavy losses particularly in their armour support. Following this failed quick strike the war on Kathil turned into a series of sieges, feints and battles for position. Again and again the Fusiliers attempted to break through the 8th FedCom's lines with the 2nd NAIS Cadre in support. However as the 6th's losses mounted more and more cadets from the 2nd Cadre were drawn into the battle and suffered disproportionate losses. All through January the battle continued, with little change being made for the lives being lost.
On other worlds riots and minor disturbances would take place but these were easily contained.
Within the Lyran Alliance General of the Armies Nondi Steiner realised her nieces attempted takeover of the FedSuns Command had failed by the 1st of January. She had been expected regular updates from Katherine Steiner-Davion and when these totally failed to materialise after the 22nd of December she feared the worst. Hurried inquiries with various agents in place in "Davion" units within the Lyran Alliance and to operatives within the FedSuns Command itself confirmed to her on the 1st January that her niece had been taken into custody and that throughout the Lyran Alliance pro-Victor units were preparing to move. Whether to withdraw into the FedSuns or to attack her position at Tharkad she couldn't be sure. Not wishing to start a civil war she was reluctant to attack the pro-Victor units but at the same stage she had not achieved her rank solely because of her second name. She immediately began shifting supplies and troops to better positions on the event that a civil war did break out. Deliberately stripping the Jade Falcon border to the bare bones she put more pressure on Duke Morgan Kell's Arc Royal Defence Cordon and the various mercenary, Wolf-in-Exile, "traitor" Lyran and Davion units stationed within it to defend the border. This action however did have the unforeseen consequence of infuriating the commanding officer of the 14th Donegal Guards RCT, Leftenant-General Adam Steiner. Seeing the shifting forces as a blatant political manoeuvre which was stripping the world's of the border of protection he began to think long and hard on his support for the regime on Tharkad. Towards the end of the month he would begin to enter into talks not only with Duke Kell but also with other LAAF officers who had previously been either neutral or pro-Katherine to discuss his concerns.
In January within the St Ives Compacts brief skirmishes began between SLDF Peacekeepers and local St Ives units and even some FedCom units such as the 7th FedCom RCT.
February 3061
The fighting on Kansu and Algol was slowly dying down and Marshal Stromp authorised her own 1st Kestrel Grenadiers and elements of the Vegan Ranger's Alpha and Gamma Regiments to lift off and head for Yangtze. However by the time they had arrived over the world in late February the 3rd Republican was gone. The unit had fled and taken with it as many stores as it could loot, pillage and steal. As well as recruiting at least 2 regiments worth of local militia infantry to join its "Free Tikonov" cause. The 1st Kestrel Grenadiers along with attached conventional troops were then forced to begin rebuilding the military infrastructure of Yangtze that the 3rd had looted and wilfully destroyed.
On Achernar the Achernar SMM had been alerted to the impending arrival of the 1st FedCom RCT. Although the unit stood up in case they were attacked even the most fanatically pro-Tikonov members knew they had little chance of surviving an assault by the veteran RCT. Although the commanding officer Hauptmann General Flostet informed his officers he wished to defend the planet from the "Davion invaders" after Marshal Swanson made it clear that she was not here to crush the unit but to take it's commanding officers as well as a handful of separatists into custody the rest of the unit stood down after a few tense days. The arrests did have the effect of reducing the already under strength unit to 50% of it's paper strength.
The battles on Kathil only got worse as February continued and additional conventional units were dispatched by by New Sytris and New Avalon from neighbouring worlds to reinforce the loyalist New Sytris Fusiliers and NAIS Cadre. Although these added little offensive firepower to the 6th New Sytris Fusiliers RCT's forces they did allow Hauptmann General Silver to further blockade the 8th FedCom RCT's territories and limit their manoeuvrability considerably. While the 8th could easily smash a conventional armour regiment, the time it took to do so would allow the battlemech's of the 6th and their 2nd Cadre allies to rush to the area. Still with little progress being made at the end of February Duke Hasek ordered the 5th Sytris Fusiliers RCT and the 3rd NAIS Cadre to reinforce their sister units.
During February the already tense situation within the St Ives Compact escalated further and open battles began to take place between the SLDF Peacekeepers and the local and FedCom units. An open battle erupted between the 7th FedCom RCT and the 5th Lyran Regulars. The veteran battlemech force of the 5th Regulars easily held their own against the much larger but less experienced 7th FedCom, but both sides took considerable losses. These losses drew the attention of the High Command on New Avalon and they began to take steps to prepare to reinforce their allies within the St Ives. The situation was further inflamed when Denbar was annexed to the Capellan Confederation by House Hiritsu.
Within the Lyran Alliance Nondi Steiner began to hear rumours of officers discussing the apparent disappearance of the Archon and what this meant for her own position. At this stage the first whispers that perhaps Peter Steiner-Davion could be considered to take up at least a temporary regency, perhaps with her remaining as General of Armies to advise him, began to reach her ears. She briefly considered ordering the arrest of Adam Steiner who seemed to be the main focus of the unrest but rationalised this would only antagonise the officer corp of the LAAF further. She did continue to make plans and prepare for any attack on Tharkad.
March 3061
March started with active fighting dying down across the FedCom but with brief upsurges of unrest on a number of worlds. These were largely handled by the local March Militia's reinforced with conventional infantry units. The first reports from Mayetta began reaching the ears of Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion and they were less than reassuring. Given the situation he authorised a full brigade of infantry sent to the planet to secure the investigators from any reprisals and ordered the nearby Bremond DMM, Milligan DMM and Tsamma CrMM to prepare to move into the region to pacify it if fighting broke out. The 1st Crucis Lancers RCT was also ordered to being to prepare for a move to Mayetta if the local officers attempted to fight their way out of trouble. Backed up by elements of 3 March Militia's he was confident that the experienced and well equipped 1st Crucis Lancers RCT could put down any revolt.
The fighting did however continue on Kathil, with the 8th FedCom RCT now heavily dug in and abandoning any breakout attempts. Their only hope which was becoming more and more marginal by the day was that another pro-Katherine unit would arrive or that Archon-Princess Katherine would come to power on New Avalon. Both hopes were fading fast and were crushed when it was the loyalists who were reinforced. At this stage defections began in large numbers, but the hardcore of the unit continued to resist until a bloody assault that began on the 14th March and ended on the 18th March finally overran their positions. Including those who had already defected to the loyalists a bare third of the RCT was left after the fighting and all four loyalist units had been mauled. There were loud calls from the Sytris Fusiliers and NAIS Cadre to disband the 8th FedCom RCT and strike it's colours.
On the 15th March 3061 one of the greatest fears of the those loyal to Archon-Prince Victor Ian Steiner-Davion were banished when he and his troops arrived back within the Inner Sphere. Battered, bloodied but triumphant they had returned from the Great Refusal on Strana Mechty victorious. However the various units and leaders of the Victor's own task force and the battered survivors of Task Force Serpent would have no time to relax. With the situation critical both Victor and his good friend Kai Allard-Liao took command of their own realm's forces and immediately rushed back to their respective realms. Victor Steiner-Davion was perhaps hurried on this path when he was informed curtly by the Coordinator Theodore Kurita that his daughter had died in childbirth attempting to bring Victor's son into the world. Victor was told that both mother and son had died. The brutal and abrupt nature of the news was perhaps the first sign that the alliance between the two men was beginning to fracture. As was the fact that Theodore Kurita lied to Victor about the fate of his son. In fact although Omi Kurita had indeed died in childbirth she had given birth to a healthy son who had been whisked away on the Coordinator's own orders by ISF to be raised at a remote monastery maintained by that organisation. Not even Theodore's own son Hohiro was notified of the survival of his nephew and he was privately known to blame Victor for his sister and nephews death.
Despite his now cooling relationship with Victor Steiner-Davion, Theodore Kurita did make every effort to speed his travels back to the FedCom border and a chain of Jumpships transported the Archon-Prince and his accompanying units to the Draconis March border where a similar chain had been set up linking Robinson with New Avalon on the basis that he would return safely. A less intensive jump line had been created to return Kai Allard-Liao to the St Ives. Leaving the bulk of his forces within the Draconis March the Archon Prince rushed to New Avalon with only his personal guard drawn from the 1st Davion Guards (the bulk of which had remained on New Avalon) and the 10th Lyran Guards RCT. At a number of key locations Fox class corvettes had been deployed to safeguard the returning Prince. Even with these precautions and jumpship lines the Archon Prince would not arrive on New Avalon until early April, while Kai Allard-Liao would not arrive back in the St Ives until the beginning of May.
In the St Ives Compact the word of the return of Kai caused a massive upsurge in pro-St Ives feeling, particularly on those worlds with SLDF Peacekeepers. At this time and in preparation for the upcoming Whitting Conference the First Star Lord Sun-Tzu Liao began transferring the SLDF Peacekeepers out of the St Ives and replacing them with his own House troops. This did little to calm the situation and soon the fighting was breaking out all along the border worlds. The 7th FedCom RCT fresh from "driving off" the 5th Lyran Regulars soon proceeded to attack the replacement CCAF troops in open combat. The 3rd Canopian Fusiliers in particular found the 7th FedCom's brutal attacks devastating and were only saved from being driven of the world by the interventions of Warrior House Hiritsu who had rushed from their seizure of Denbar to rescue their embattled allies. The 7th FedCom RCT's assaults were only slowed due to the heavy losses it was sustaining in maintaining them, although amongst the infantry formations these losses were often replaced by fanatical St Ives natives joining the colours. Duchess Candace Allard-Liao personally sent the unit a lance of Victor battlemech's to replace losses and to honour their sacrifices on her realms behalf.
General of the Armies Nondi Steiner had finally decided that enough was enough and she sent a threatening demand to New Avalon to Victor Steiner-Davion, the so-called-Archon-Prince, to demand the release of the Archon of the Lyran Alliance and her immediate return to the LA. This message would be awaiting Victor upon his arrival on New Avalon.
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Honestly this part I am less happy about. Omi’s death seems to be just added in to break up the Steiner-Davion/Kurita understanding forged during the Clan war, and Theodore’s actions seem to be tailored to cause as much conflict as possible.
Recall that Omi got her father’s permission and approval to sleep with Victor. Theo liked and r3pected Victor enough to allow that, as well as loving his daughter. Now, with a freak accident (which is all I could call a death in childbirth in a Successor Lord family, unless it was really an assasination), he’s not only basically blamed Vic for the death, but outright lied to the guy about his child being alive?
This feels like cheap drama, honestly. I thought we were moving away from decisions chosen specifically to prevent ‘Peacetech’ and bring on the Fifth Succession War to drive up sourcebook sales ...
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Honestly this part I am less happy about. Omi’s death seems to be just added in to break up the Steiner-Davion/Kurita understanding forged during the Clan war, and Theodore’s actions seem to be tailored to cause as much conflict as possible.
Recall that Omi got her father’s permission and approval to sleep with Victor. Theo liked and r3pected Victor enough to allow that, as well as loving his daughter. Now, with a freak accident (which is all I could call a death in childbirth in a Successor Lord family, unless it was really an assasination), he’s not only basically blamed Vic for the death, but outright lied to the guy about his child being alive?
This feels like cheap drama, honestly. I thought we were moving away from decisions chosen specifically to prevent ‘Peacetech’ and bring on the Fifth Succession War to drive up sourcebook sales ...
The Omi death will be covered lately, but it wasn't a freak accident. As for Theodore lying - didn't he do that in canon as well. I mean NOBODY told victor he had a son with Omi. They certainly could have. But chose not too till the son himself told him decades later.
Also Theodore wouldn't be the first father in history to blame someone unjustly for the death of his daughter.
I have to admit I am trying to cause a break up of the Kurita-Steiner Davion alliance right now. For one thing it will cause huge problems for Victor internally within the FedSuns if his heir is a Kurita, for another if the Draconis Combine and FedSuns remain in detente then the actual sources of combat and plot development get pretty thin on the ground. I mean it's not much fun to do an entire timeline where the FedSuns main rival isn't their rival and they get along famously.
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3061 Interlude - Victor's Arrival and Rebirth
As soon as Archon-Prince Victor Steiner-Davion arrived on New Avalon he was hurriedly transported to the Fox's Den. There he met with the various leaders of the Federated Commonwealth. Both March Lord's had hurried from their respective capital worlds - Duke Sandoval on the very jumpline laid down for the returning prince, and they had joined the High Command members already there. Along with the various members of the AFFC a number of Dukes and other civilian leaders were soon sent for and joined in the deliberations. Excluding routine commands sent out to deal with the remaining problem spots across the Federated Sun's Command little further was heard from the Fox's Den and the leaders it contained for almost the remainder of April. Rarely for such a conference of high ranking officials there were no leaks and almost no staff members beyond the various leaders themselves were present for almost the entirety of the discussion.
However when Archon-Prince Victor emerged from the Fox's Den on the 2nd May 3061 to address the people of the Federated Commonwealth and the rest of the Inner Sphere it was clear that much had been decided upon. Alongside Victor stood the entirety of the High Command in Federated Sun's style uniforms, his sister Yvonne Steiner-Davion, the Privy Council, the representatives of the High Council and representatives from almost every one of the various Davion family lines - although most were represented by member's who were already there due to membership of the aforementioned organisations.
The first thing that the Victor Steiner-Davion announced was a number of changes. First he was declaring the Federated Commonwealth to be disbanded and reforming his realm into the Federated Suns. Second he was renouncing the title of Archon-Prince and taking up his father's mantle of First Prince. Along with this change in title he was for the remainder of his lifetime and for all of his future descendants renouncing the second name of Steiner and would henceforth be known purely as Victor Davion, although he stressed in this particular deceleration that this only applied to himself and not to any of his siblings who were more than free to make their own decisions regarding this matter. As his first act as First Prince of the Federated Sun's he was announcing a general pardon for any and all who might have been swayed to treachery by the machinations of his sister. So long as they stood down and made no further attempts to resist the legitimate authority of himself as First Prince. He then assured the people of the newly reborn FedSun's that he had returned from the Clan War's victorious but that he would now stay within the Federated Sun's and lead it in a new renaissance of glory. He promised to expand the economic power and opportunities within the realm not only through expansions of the military industrial complex but also the civilian one also, during this part of his speech he made a point to address the people of the Outback "the Federated Sun's long forgotten children", who he would now make every effort to integrate into the realm properly. No longer would their worlds be a source only of men and material for the Federated Suns and a target for pirates, but now the government upon New Avalon would invest in their economies and in their defence. As a single example of this he announced that within the next quarter he would put before the people of the Outback a plan to build a new aerospace megaplex within the Outback to produce dropships, jumpships and perhaps even warships in time. Such a new industrial concern would require protecting and he assured them that the defences of the Outback would be strengthened accordingly. Using this as a springboard he also announced that he intended to recall all "True son's and daughter's of the Federated Suns home" from their long term garrisons within the LA while returning those Lyran units which wished to go home, although acknowledged that this transfer would take some time so as not to weaken either realm's defensive borders.
After having mentioned the Lyran Alliance he then spoke directly to it's people. He first of all apologised. For his failure to properly lead them and for allowing his sister to seize power. He went on to explain his motivations behind the decisions which he now with hindsight realised were a mistake. Although now formally ceding his claim to the throne of Tharkad and his Steiner name he wished the Lyran people and realm nothing but the best and continued to consider them family. During a long and clearly difficult part of the speech he then explained that he had come into evidence that the true culprit behind his mother's murder was none other than an assassin hired by his sister Katherine Steiner-Davion. He admitted that many would find this impossible to believe but that he had prepared evidence and would submit it to the Star League's ruling body at the next Whitting Conference in November. He would then lead it up to them to decide his sister's guilt or innocence and if guilty her punishment. He beseeched the people of the Lyran Alliance and the members of the LAAF in the meantime to remain calm, to follow the legitimate orders of authority and not to fall into panic and civil war. He went so far as to instruct any who still valued his advice to follow the legitimate orders of General of the Armies Nondi Steiner. Although he did suggest to his aunt that she might wish to consider forming a government of national unity and include individuals such as Grand Duke Morgan Kell and General Adam Steiner within it, perhaps even including his brother Peter Steiner-Davion. He promised that no units under his command would attempt to attack any unit sworn to his sister or under the command of his aunt, but asked that this be reciprocated. That the Lyran and Davion people's had been brother's in arms for decades and that he did not wish this chapter to end in needless bloodshed.
He then moved on briefly direct himself to the people's and leaders of the other Successor States and realms. He promised that he wished nothing more than to live in peace and harmony with them within the framework, yet in a pointed indication towards the current fighting in the St Ives Compact, he reminded them that the Federated Sun's although newly reborn stood strong and firm in it's determination to resist tyranny and aggression on any and all fronts, and perhaps most tellingly that it would stand by it's allies and friends until victory was secured no matter the cost. No direct threat was made, no names were mentioned, yet only a fool would have missed that this was a message aimed directly at Sian.
First Prince Victor Davion finished by promising his people that he would continue to work to protect and better their lives and that they would see many more announcements on both economic and military matters in the coming months and even years. The Federated Sun's had been reborn and it's First Prince would lead it into the future!
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Sorry, you’ve lost me. I’m a FedCom Forever guy, and Victor was raised in the Lyran Commonwealth, and considered them as much his people as the Federation. He also sees the FedCom as his parents great work.
True, in canon, he accepted the split, but that was after years of destructive Civil War, combined with Kathy’s relentless propaganda and her still being entrenched in power. Here, she’s in prison, he’s released the truth of her matricide, and he’s ... splitting the FedCom in half because he really prefers the Federation, honestly ... which only proves much of Kathy’s propaganda right: he’s his father’s son, while she was the true Steiner!
It just feels like ‘let’s do canon, just skip the whole messy Civil War.’
Edit: ignore me, I’m just an eternal Fix Ficer ... I want to see the FedCom rise up stronger than ever. But that’s ckearly not the point of this fic, especially from, you know, the title. I’ll be quiet now. :)
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Victor was given the autopsy report on Omi by Theodore himself after her assassination. In the report it did say that she had given birth to a child. He never asked.
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My question would be why is he getting this news from Theodore rather than from his own intelligence agency? Are they incompetent that they would miss the absence & death of a well-known public figure? Are his advisers incompetent that they don't ask what happened to the child? Nondi continuing to fight with Katherine in custody & Victor throwing away his parents' legacy already stretches belief.
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Sorry, you’ve lost me. I’m a FedCom Forever guy, and Victor was raised in the Lyran Commonwealth, and considered them as much his people as the Federation. He also sees the FedCom as his parents great work.
True, in canon, he accepted the split, but that was after years of destructive Civil War, combined with Kathy’s relentless propaganda and her still being entrenched in power. Here, she’s in prison, he’s released the truth of her matricide, and he’s ... splitting the FedCom in half because he really prefers the Federation, honestly ... which only proves much of Kathy’s propaganda right: he’s his father’s son, while she was the true Steiner!
It just feels like ‘let’s do canon, just skip the whole messy Civil War.’
Edit: ignore me, I’m just an eternal Fix Ficer ... I want to see the FedCom rise up stronger than ever. But that’s ckearly not the point of this fic, especially from, you know, the title. I’ll be quiet now. :)
As you say - this isn't about rebuilding the FedCom. Personally I'd actually prefer that, but I'd say by this stage that is pretty much impossible. Maybe Victor could do it if he played the whole "conqueror of the Clans" thing to the hilt, but it would almost certainly mean a civil war in the LA, made all the more damaging as he'd have to use FedSuns units to support him. Better to part company in my view. I also do agree with you he was very Lyran in his outlook, but the Lyran half has told him to bugger off while the FedSuns half is pretty strongly behind him. He's taking what he can get basically.
Victor was given the autopsy report on Omi by Theodore himself after her assassination. In the report it did say that she had given birth to a child. He never asked.
In all honesty I'd forgot about that entirely.
My question would be why is he getting this news from Theodore rather than from his own intelligence agency? Are they incompetent that they would miss the absence & death of a well-known public figure? Are his advisers incompetent that they don't ask what happened to the child? Nondi continuing to fight with Katherine in custody & Victor throwing away his parents' legacy already stretches belief.
He has just returned from Huntress to find his sister in custody, riots going on throughout his realm and outright battles occurring - and the thought that Omi is dead is a pretty harsh one for him so he's throwing himself into other endeavours. Those same advisors are also pretty much concentrating on the emergency at hand. Nondi hasn't fought yet, she may or may not. As for throwing away his parents legacy the only way to preserve that intact right now is to fight a lengthly civil war and poison it forever.
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He has just returned from Huntress to find his sister in custody, riots going on throughout his realm and outright battles occurring - and the thought that Omi is dead is a pretty harsh one for him so he's throwing himself into other endeavours. Those same advisors are also pretty much concentrating on the emergency at hand. Nondi hasn't fought yet, she may or may not. As for throwing away his parents legacy the only way to preserve that intact right now is to fight a lengthly civil war and poison it forever.
I'd say it's a fight that needs to be fought. Abraham Lincoln fought a civil war to keep a nation intact, not pander to armed nobles with more ambition than sense. Besides, this is a PR war that Katherine started. Victor was raised on the Steiner throneworld & fought to remove invaders to his realm. How the heck Nondi thought of him as being less patriotic than Katherine, who never fought on the frontlines, I'll never understand. The woman must be senile & merely sees Katherine's resemblance to her grandmother.
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all he would need is to meet Nondi and show her and the Lyran intel guys the evidence, and she would turn
she is protective of Katherine, but she is still a Lyran loyalist, she would
get over it eventually, once her people have shown her where K had lied and manipulated her and the press,
Kell and Adam Steiner would help soothe things over in the PR department,
and the FedCom wouldn't necessarily have to be split, they would really need to spread the wealth and help industrialize areas like the Outback and Skye so the the avergae citizens see the value of the merger instead of letting populist ****** take advantage of thier ignorance
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3061 - Second Quarter - The FedSuns reborn
During this quarter the ramifications of the rebirth of the FedSuns from the old FedSuns Command of the Federated Commonwealth continued throughout the realm, while the other nations of the Inner Sphere took stock of this development and began to plan accordingly. Riots on a number of worlds in support of Katherine Steiner-Davion began to die down as order was restored and active fighting ceased.
April 3061
Much of April was spent in anticipation of what was going to be declared by the returning Archon-Prince after he had met with the various authorities upon New Avalon. Various commanders and civilian leaders almost held their breath and did as little as possible to bring themselves to their superior's attentions, attempting to find out which way the wind was blowing before declaring for one side or another. Rumours abounded, everything from Victor abdicating in favour of Katherine to leading a massive crusade into the Lyran Alliance to reconquer that realm for the Federated Commonwealth. Talk show hosts and their expert guests had a field day discussing all of the various options. One particular recurring rumour particularly within the Capellan March was that Archon-Prince Victor would declare himself First Star Lord and invade the Capellan Confederation and destroy it utterly.
Within the Achernar and Valexa PDZ the hunt continued for the missing Tikonov Republican Guards. A major MIIO presence also began to grow within the Achernar PDZ in particular as it soon became apparent that a number of militia officers and even staff officers within the various command posts had been complicit in warning the 3rd Republican. Arrests began, but in many cases the culprits had already themselves disappeared. Towards the end of the month the Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group was returned to active service, although at a severely reduced strength. Barely 45% of the unit had passed muster on the background checks and interviews on loyalty and so were returned to duty. The Tikonov Martial Academy itself suffered similar losses in cadets and the Training Group and Academy's officers were even worse hit as many were arrested for treason and formally charged. Officers were drafted in initially from the Davion Assault Guards to take up teaching posts but were soon replaced by dedicated officers from the Department of Military Education. Although the fate of the Academy and it's training cadre hung in the balance the nervous cadets and remaining staff began to have some hope that their institute would not be disbanded. At the same time the remnants of the 1st and 2nd Republican units were brought to Tikonov and began the process of interviews to ascertain which of them had merely been following orders, or had not known of their leaders treachery and which were active traitors to the FedCom. More than half of them would fail these tests.
On Kathil the surrendering 8th FedCom RCT was treated with more respect and remained as a formed up unit, albeit one under heavy guard and assigned very little in the way of ammunition, spare parts or facilities to repair their damaged equipment. They were reassigned to an out of the way base and were under constant observation by the garrisoning loyalist units. When the remaining officers of the 8th requested access to the battlefields to salvage their damaged equipment and the return of equipment captured by the Sytris Fusiliers and NAIS Cadres this was denied although they did have a number of captured personnel returned to them. All in all the former RCT hovered around a single combat command built around roughly a reinforced battalion of 'mechs, although most of those were heavily damaged. With replacement equipment the 8th FedCom could have formed another 2 companies of battlemechs and fielded another regiment of tanks.
May 3061
The announcement of the rebirth of the Federated Sun's electrified not only the various military commands and planetary government's of the newly reborn nation but also it's populace. On the whole the remaining pro-Katherine protests died down almost overnight as people attempted to take in the changes. Although around the former Sarna March worlds of the Achernar PDZ this trend was reversed and many additional protests broke out, although these were a confusing mix of pro-Capellan, pro-FedCom, pro-Tikonov and even pro-FedSuns counter protests. The two SMM in the region found themselves hard pressed to contain the protests and for the first time were perhaps thankful of the large number of FedCom/FedSuns infantry brigades which had been deployed to the area. Units such as the Davion Assault Guards and 1st Kestrel Grenadiers attempted as best they could to limit their exposure to the protests to avoid further inflammation of an already volatile mix. Although the 1st FedCom RCT was publicly deployed, even as it's members privately questioned what their future might hold.
Within the Draconis and Crucis Marches the First Prince's speech drew a largely positive response, no doubt helped in the Draconis March by their beloved Duke James Sandoval standing so close and in obvious support for Victor Davion. Within the Crucis March the response was particularly favourable within the Outback, although this region spread into both of the other Marches and on the worlds of the Draconis and Capellan Outback the response was equally in favour of the First Prince's promises of investments and defence. While some more cynical commentators and in particular the cadets of various Outback military academies noted that many Davion's had made similar promises and then not delivered the general mood was one of optimistic hope. This shift was enough that the High Command shifted the loyalty ratings of the Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion and the Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion from questionable to reliable. The Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion remained with a questionable rating.
The Capellan March saw a similar upsurge in support for First Prince Victor although this was more guarded. With the loss of their beloved Duke Morgan Hasek-Davion the March was sliding back into older habits and looked more to his son George Hasek than to a New Avalon Prince. Still the rebirth of the FedSun's itself were popular and many of the Marches units were amongst the first to swiftly switch over to AFFS green uniforms - most drawn from old storage although the High Command had assured everyone that new uniforms would soon be being shipped out to all commands. The 8th FedCom and to a lesser extent the 3rd FedCom did make some protests as to the change and the disbandment of their "parent" realm.
Their sister RCT the 7th barely even noticed the change as it continued to fight heavily within the St Ives Compact against the Capellan Warrior House Hiritsu backed up by the still mauled 3rd Canopian Fusiliers and 6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry. The losses continued to mount but as May progressed the command staff of the 7th and the St Ives as a whole were assured that help was on it's way. On the 30th of May the first of these reinforcements arrived. The 15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT arrived in system at Denbar along with the 2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT. Fresh from facing down the 8th Donegal Guard's the 2nd, 5th and Davion Light Guards RCT's all arrived at St Ives with the warship the newly renamed FSS Melissa Davion and placed themselves entirely under the command of Duchess Candance Allard-Liao and assured her that not only was her son Kai on his way home as quickly as the FedSun's could arrange additional units were to be placed under his and her command including the 1st and 2nd Cunningham Commandos mercenary regiments and other AFFS units as well. First Prince Davion had not abandoned her or her people.
Within the Lyran Alliance First Prince Victor's announcement nearly caused a civil war. On many worlds huge numbers turned out to support their beloved Archon Katherine and to deny that she could be capable of the crimes that she was accused off, yet on many of these worlds they were met with counter protests and the situation soon turned bloody. Indeed the breakdown of law and order on almost a hundred worlds and with many more teetering on the brink may have ironically saved the LAAF from tearing itself apart. Every command post and military unit was soon frantically attempting to maintain civil government and prevent outright anarchy and civil war breaking out amongst the populace that they had little time to do anything else. Most most of May things hung in the balance.
On two worlds this however broke down.
On Coventry, when Duke Bradford publically came out and supported the First Princes accusations and lamented that the actions of his sister had irredeemably damaged the shining ideal of the Federated Commonwealth the garrisoning 1st Coventry Jaeger's had had enough. Their new commanding officer Colonel Jason Walker immediately ordered his regiment to take the Duke into custody and prepare him for transport to Tharkad to face charges of treason. When the Coventry CPM stood in his way he ordered a general attack. The fighting went hard for the still green and forming Coventry CPM and they were soon driven back to the Ducal Palace and were only barely able to hold the Jaeger's off long enough for the Duke to evacuate himself and his family. The CPM would have been entirely destroyed had the mercenary unit the Kristen's Krushers not began to mobilise. Given his previous disdain for the mercenaries Colonel Walker could not be sure they weren't coming to the aid of the Coventry CPM and retreated back to better positions in case the "mercenary scum" attacked him. In fact Colonel Marik had urgently requested guidance from her employers and sought instructions from Tharkad and had mobilised purely as a "bluff". Still it had the desired of effect of stopping the fighting if only for now and preserving the Coventry CPM as a viable force.
On Blue Hole the commanding officer of the 3rd Alliance Guards RCT summoned his officers to the Officers Mess and informed them that having listened to the First Princes speech he was minded to believe it. When pro-Katherine elements of his officers loudly spoke out against the White Lion he flew into a rage and ordered them to cease or he would have them arrested. Although the officers did stop arguing that evening, the next morning a small group of them led their companies in an attempted coup against the "traitor" Leftenant-General Andor. With 4 mixed companies of mechs and the 11th Alliance HA(R) armour regiment backed up by elements of the 21st and 22nd Alliance Infantry Regiments they mutineers launched an attack on the command post. They were only halted by the actions of Colonel Fasino's 11th FedCom Jump Infantry Regiment. Colonel Fasino had long been a proponent of Prince Victor and when he saw some of his most vocal critic's units forming up he immediately summoned his own regiment to arms and moved to defend the command post. Although taking tremendous casualties holding off the much larger and heavier enemy forces his jump infantry were able to inflict considerable damage and delay the mutineers long enough for the rest of the RCT to respond. Trapped deep within the base the mutineers had little chance to retreat and were soon overwhelmed by forces loyal to Leftenant-General Andor who led the counter attacks personally. At the 3 day's of fighting the 3rd Alliance Guard's base on Blue Hole was wrecked and the unit had suffered almost 50% casualties, particularly severe within the 11th FedCom Jump Infantry Regiment. However by dawn of the 4th day the last mutineers were dead or in custody and the 3rd Alliance Guard RCT exhausted and battered loyalists had began to take up their old name of the 11th FedCom RCT - although some had even went so far as to begin calling themselves the 11th FedSuns RCT, while others began to refer to themselves as the 3rd or 11th Skye Rangers. Feelings were split as to what to do next.
The 4th Alliance Guards RCT did not suffer from the internal civil war that their sister regiment did on Blue Hole, but the unit made the pointed move of beginning to look for and fabricate AFFS style uniforms.
During this time period Nondi Steiner herself did very little, going almost totally silent. However rumours abounded that her command post at Fort Asgard within Mount Wotan had received several packages and shortly afterwards she had summoned some of the best LAAF crypto-analysts and intelligence officers to attend upon her...
Around the rest of the sphere First Prince Victor's announcement was most profoundly felt on Sian. The pointed statements had been heard and understood, yet things were going well within the St Ives. The world of Denbar was close to falling, Milos had fallen as had Indicass, while Vestallas and Brighton were on the verge of falling to the Capellan's and their allies. Sun-Tzu had committed his people and his own personal prestige to the battle and vowed to go ahead with reclaiming the St Ives Commonality for the Capellan Confederation. He did however send word to the Death Commando's he had dispatched to rescue Emma Centrella and Jeffrey Calderon to speed up their rescue attempt. He needed his allies to send more troops and this wouldn't be forthcoming with their leadership held hostage.
June 3061
June brought orders for the 3rd FedCom RCT to move from it's placement on New Aragon and make best speed to retake Indicass and it's factories for the St Ives. While the 8th FedCom RCT was finally issued new equipment, spare parts and aided in it's repairs while being ordered to prepare to join it's sister RCT the 7th FedCom on Denbar. The officers and troops of the 8th were in two minds about this, feeling that they were being thrown into a meat grinder as expendable, however many felt this was an opportunity to redeem themselves and it was certainly better than being disbanded as many within the Sytris Fusiliers had demanded. Returning to just over half strength within the month they began heading for the front. The 5th FedCom RCT was also ordered to Nashuar to join the fighting there.
In early June Duke Kai Allard-Liao arrived back on St Ives and began conferring with his mother and the assembled officers of the St Ives and FedSuns on how best to secure the St Ives Compact against further aggression.
On the 9th of June the situation on Mayetta broke down entirely. With the investigators closing in on his corruption Leftenant General Kirk Yalos ordered his son Leftenant General Jason Yalos to place them under arrest. While Jason Yalos made ever effort to follow his father's instructions he failed miserably. Over 2/3rds of his own RCT made no effort to support him and even with 4 companies of mechs, 2 battalions of armour and 2 regiments of infantry his attempt to arrest the investigators was bloodily repulsed by the conventional brigade of infantry which had been deployed to protect them. His tactical failures resulted in his mech forces losing nearly a quarter of their number and his conventional forces suffered even worse losses. At which point even his so called loyalists within the unit saw the writing on the wall and stood down. Leftenant General Yalos Sr. Immediately issued a call in favour of the imprisoned Archon-Princess Katherine Steiner-Davion and called upon all true sons and daughters of the Federated Commonwealth to stand with him. He also sent out demands for assistance to nearby CrMM and DMM forces to help him stand against the "tyranny of New Avalon". Even as the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT jumped in system to support the conventional troops already there he recieved a response. The Tsamma CrMM, Bremond DMM and Milligan DMM moved elements of their RCT's across into the Mayetta PDZ - not however to reinforced the Mayetta DMM but to support the 1st Crucis Lancers. Combat commands from all three March Militia's moved into the worlds bordering their own and secured them, taking any members of the Mayetta DMM into custody. Both Yalos's would be seized by infantry elements of the 1st Crucis Lancers by the end of June and would stand trial for a wide variety of crimes. The Mayetta DMM would be temporarily struck from the rolls and efforts made to reconstitute it as best they could with the non-Yalos aligned members of the March Militia as a core.
On the 12th June First Prince Victor Davion met with Marshal Roger William Waters, commanding officer of the Avalon Hussars Brigade. The first matter of business at their meeting was the Prince informing the Marshal that the conventional brigade of troops which had reinforced the 41st Avalon Hussars on Bennet III was to remain and permanently attach itself to the 41st. The addition of the 2 armoured regiments and 3 infantry regiment's would give the 41st a solid foundation for their expansion to a RCT and the First Prince had already earmarked an additional wing of aerospace fighters, another 2 armoured battalions and 2 more infantry regiments to bring them up to full strength. This however was merely a preliminary matter as far as Prince Victor was concerned. In a frank and open exchange of ideas and plans the First Prince outlined his plan to expand the Avalon Hussars brigade still further. He pointed out that the 11th and 20th Avalon Hussars RCT's here in the FedSuns were currently reinforced regiments, while the Marshal's own former command in the Lyran Alliance the 42nd was one of the largest RCT's in the AFFS, with not only a reinforced regiment of battlemechs but also no fewer than 12 conventional regiments attached to it, compared to the normal 8. As such he proposed to detach a battalion of volunteers from each of the 11th and 20th Avalon Hussars RCT's here in the FedSuns to form the core of 2 new Avalon Hussars RCT's. He suggested that the 11th's battalion be used to reform that regiment's lost sister regiment the 12th Avalon Hussars, while the battalion from the 20th Avalon Hussars be used to create the core for a new 1st Avalon Hussars. At this point the Marshal asked the First Prince that when the 42nd returned from Lyran space did the First Prince intend to rebuild the 34th or the 36th Avalon Hussars who had been used to recreate the 42nd. The answer was simple and unexpected. Both. Unlike the 11th and 20th the First Prince didn't merely intend to use the reinforced battalion to form new units, but intended to break the 42nd into 3 separate commands. Half of the RCT would remain as the 42nd and rebuild, while the other two battalions and half of the supporting conventional regiments would be used to form the core of the new 34th and 36th Avalon Hussars RCT. The First Prince acknowledged that this would leave 3 existing RCT's somewhat short staffed for a time, but in short order would add 4 RCT's to the brigades numbers. Marshal Waters was on the whole in support of the plans, however did note that the men and women of the 11th, 20th and 42nd might feel their strength had been sacrificed to form new units. Victor acknowledged this and offered to give assurances that all three RCT's would be expanded up to their reinforced size, a point that Marshal Waters noted would leave the door open to use them in a similar fashion again to seed off new units from them. It was hard not to notice that the First Prince didn't contradict the Marshal on that statement. The meeting ended with the First Prince and Marshal Waters in total accord on the expansions of the Avalon Hussars Brigade. On a final note the First Prince ordered the Marshal to draw up provisional plans for the future 1st, 12th, 34th and 36th Avalon Hussars, as well as the returning 42nd to be based in the Outback. The worlds there would be ideal training grounds for the new units and would allow them to expand to full strength without fear of being destroyed in a suprise attack. He indicated that this would be the future method he would be using to form new units, sending them to pirate hunting and garrison duties within the Outback, both to give them time to train and expand and to bolster the defences of the region. He also informed the Marshal that his brigade would have priority for pick of the graduating cadets from the 2nd and 3rd NAIS Cadres who had been bloodied on Kathil to help bolster the existing and new commands.
Not content with the proposed expansions of the Avalon Hussars Brigade First Prince Victor Davion also sent word to Tikonov to Marshal Stephan Cooper of the Davion Assault Guards RCT that he was to take any members of the Republicans who passed the battery of MIIO tests and use them to begin to form a new independent command, the 1st Tikonov Cossack's. The new unit was to consist eventually of a battlemech regiment and aerospace wing, and was ideally to be formed from light and medium cavalry mechs. The members of the Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group who had not been found to have seditious leanings were also to be promised that upon graduation they would be used to bolster this unit up to full strength. Once the unit was formed Marshal Cooper was to use it as a forward scouting auxiliary for his own assault class battalions.
The First Prince also at the end of June kept his promise to the people of the Outback and declared that the site for the new aerospace megaplex would be at Filtvelt. The site was to be run by Federated-Boeing Interstellar initially, with Universal Air being a junior partner as jumpship production started. The initial yards were to begin construction in 3062 and were to begin construction of primarily mule class dropships for the civilian market and union class vessels for the military. Once the yards were up and running and producing dropships an expansion was planned to begin construction of Merchant class dropships which would be earmarked for civilian use within the Outback to increase trade. Although this new shipyard would keep his initial promise the First Prince also announced that his government had begun talks with the Clyde Shipyards of Firgrove. Up until now this company had provided merely repair and maintenance facilities for dropships, but in conjunction with George Hasek the First Prince would be providing funds to have them expand and upgrade their yards to begin actual construction of dropships. The First Prince made no reference to what ships would be produced at the expanding yards however. Having granted news to both the Capellan and Crucis March elements of the Outback the First Prince also announced that he had begun preliminary talks with Duke Sandoval about a new battlemech production centre to be located somewhere within the Draconis Marches's Outback region, but that these talks were still in early stages but that they were going extremely positively, for which he gave most of the credit to the Duke of Robinson and his son Tancred who was managing the discussions here on New Avalon on his behalf.
Although several economists did question how the First Prince intended to pay for these costly projects most within the FedSuns were delighted with the news and the stock markets throughout the realm saw several large rises in response to the First Princes's promised investments, particularly the share prices of Federated-Boeing Interstellar, Universal Air, Clyde Shipyards and Robinson Standard BattleWorks - which although hadn't been mentioned everyone assumed correctly was going to be the company expanding it's production. One company which also saw a slight increase in it's share price was Challenge Systems of Panpour. With the current expansions of investments in the Federated Sun's aerospace sector many shrewd investors felt that this was another possible area in which the First Prince might begin expansions of production and were prepared to gamble accordingly. They would prove to be right.
On the St Ives's front the embattled CCAF, St Ives Military Command and AFFS troops continued a bloody stalemate. Both sides were awaiting reinforcements yet neither side was prepared to give ground. The addition of the 15th Deneb Light Cavalry and 2nd Chisholm Raiders to the bloodied 7th FedCom swung the impetuous back in favour of the St Ives and AFFS troops. Joined by the newly formed 2nd Janissary Brigade the allied forces struck back hard against the Capellan Confederation troops and their allies. The 6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry, already damaged in previous fighting was forced to withdraw off planet and the two remaining Sian loyal formations were forced back onto the defensive. While before the world of Denbar had seemed sure to fall to the CCAF in short order now Sian was frantically trying to hold onto a foothold on the planet.
On the 11th June members of the Magistracy Armed Forces and the Death Commando's stormed the compound in which Protector Calderon and Magestrix Centrella were being held captive. In a bloody gunfight the rebel Colonial Marshal's were wiped out to a man but in the fighting the Protector was tragically killed and Magestrix Cenrella badly injured. With her incapacitated leadership fell to her daughter Naomi while the Magestrix was rushed to Canopus for treatment. Naomi immediately announced that she suspected this had been a plot to kill not only her mother and the protector but also the Chancellor of the Confederation Sun-Tzu - probably with the intent of replacing him on the throne with the Davion puppet Kai Allard-Liao...
Within the Lyran Alliance the brief upsurge in violence had at least died down (although civil disturbances continued) and the General of the Armies Nondi Steiner finally spoke out. In the short month that she had been buried within Mount Wotan she seemed to have aged a decade. She immediately began speaking with the various heads of government and military formations and admitted at least privately that the evidence that Victor's people had sent was "compelling". Although she still refuted it's basic content. She wasn't however so strong in her beliefs as to throw her nation into a civil war on the basis of them. On that basis she informed the various leaders of the LA and LAAF that she would continue to act as regent until the situation was clarified following the Whitting Conference. She reminded all military formations of their oaths of loyalty and insisted that legitimate orders be followed. She refused the suggestion of forming a government of national unity but did agree to summon General Adam Steiner to Tharkad and make him her deputy in order to appease the anti-Katherine body of opinion. She ordered the Coventry Jaegers to stand down immediately and sent a number of conventional troops and ordered that Adam Steiner lead his own 14th Donegal Guards to the world to secure order before he continued on to Tharkad. While she issues similar orders to the 3rd and 4th Alliance Guards RCT they almost entirely ignored the orders. As a final action at the end of June General of the Armies Nondi Steiner contacted her counterpart, Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion and began to propose a transfer of military commands from one state to the other, in a staged movement that would leave neither realm vulnerable. These talks although initially cordial soon became fraught with tension when Marshal Davion insisted that along with the returning AFFS troops must come former AFFS jumpships which had been illegally seized by the LA when it seceded from the Federated Commonwealth. When Nondi refused this, the Marshal pointed out that all of the various AFFS units within the LA were still under arms, at large and many had access to transport. He could simply order them to up-stake's and pull out. While her own LAAF units within the FedSuns were on the whole disarmed and in custody. He could return the personnel say to New Earth, but keep their equipment if he so chose. Faced with the grim prospect of losing multiple regiments of battlemechs and dozens of conventional regiments worth of equipment General Steiner grudgingly began to discuss the return of jumpships. It was probably a good thing that at this stage Marshal Davion did not tell his counterpart that the returning formations would not include the 10th Lyran Guards RCT, while he was intending to include at least large elements of the 3rd and 4th Alliance Guards within his own recall orders...
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Big blocks of text, and very textbookish ... it can get hard to read. My eyes kinda blurred over a lot of that.
Who’s going to end up as Archon? One of Victors sibs, or is he abdicating in the name of his entire branch of the Steiner family?
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I can try and do it differently if it will help.
And he has abdicated his steiner half ONLY for himself, so technically Peter, Yvonne and Adam are all still eligible for the Archonship.
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3061 - Third Quarter - Expansion
During the Third Quarter of 3061 New Avalon continued on it's policy of expanding industrial production particularly within the Outback and made further steps to fully integrate this area into the FedSuns. While also concentrating on defending their allies in St Ives and making other adjustments to the FedSuns and to the AFFS in particular.
July 3061
July 3061 started with the first transfers from the LA and FS of troops from one to the other. From the LA the 4th Davion Guards RCT, 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and the 2nd Robinson Rangers were the first units to begin their transfers back to the Federated Suns. While the 19th Arcturan Guards and 5th Lyran Guards RCT began to move back towards the Lyran Alliance.
At the same time the High Command issued a directive to the FedCom Corp that as off the 1st August 3061 they were to be renamed to the Federated Suns Dragoons. Some thought had been given to renaming the unit the Federated Suns Lancers, but with the existing Crucis Lancers Brigade and Argyle Lancers it was felt a different name would help to set the new unit apart.
On the whole this change was accepted without too much resistance. The 3rd and 8th FedCom RCT's which might have been expected to resist were far too busy facing combat in the St Ives Compact to worry about a name change, and on the whole along with the 7th would be amongst the last units to properly change over given that they were in active combat. The other unit which was expected to find the change objectionable, the 6th was diverted by orders being delivered to Addicks.
A number of units were transferred from garrison postings in order to strength the frontier, particularly with the Capellan Confederation in case the St Ives conflict spread. This also provided cover for Operation Phoenix which was being put into action with sealed orders to a number of units - particularly the 6th FedCom RCT, Vegan Rangers Alpha and Beta Regiments, 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT, 4th Davion Guards RCT, 2nd Robinson Rangers and 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT.
Yvonne Steiner-Davion also announced during this time in her role as her brother's spokesperson that the Bell Refit Yard was being purchased by the AFFS. The new facility was to be renamed the Hasek Refit Centre and to be expanded from it's existing facilities to provide a wide range of repair and refit capabilities to the units stationed within the Capellan March. The new Refit Centre would be upgraded to be able to almost totally rebuild almost any mech or tank used by the current AFFS and this was scheduled to take place by late 3062. The still rebuilding 6th Sytris Fusiliers RCT would take up garrison duties to bolster the existing Bell Training Battalion to guard this new facility.
During the same briefing Yvonne Steiner-Davion announced that using the funds from the purchase of the Bell Refit Centre, a new Andoran Industries Ltd facility was to be constructed upon the planet of Broken Wheel. This facility would be much more than a mere refit centre, but would begin construction of new Clint battlemechs by 3063. She also hinted that further designs may be considered for construction there within the light-medium range.
On the St Ives's front the battles continued unabated. With the additional FedSuns and St Ives troops arriving on Denbar and the withdrawal of the combat ineffective 6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry the remaining Capellan and Canopian troops found themselves driven back time and time again. Eventually the 3rd Canopian Fusiliers, faced with a full assault by 2 Combat Commands of the 2nd Janissary Brigade supported by the bulk of the 2nd Chisholm Raiders, was forced to withdraw to their dropships and retreat under heavy fire. This left Warrior House Hiritsu in an impossible position and they soon also had to retreat from the planet.
With the withdrawal of invading forces from Denbar the 7th FedSun's Dragoons awaited the arrival of the 8th FedSun's Dragoons while preparing for a move to retake Indicass alongside the 3rd. With the three units hitting the world at the same time the High Command was confident of victory.
At the end of the month the 1st and 2nd Cunningham's Commandos combat dropped onto Nashuar to bolster the defenders there, while Duke Kai Allard-Liao led a task force compromising of his own 1st St Ives Lancers, the remnants of the 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers as well as the Davion Light Guards off world from St Ives with the intent of beginning a series of deep strikes within the Capellan Confederation to cut the flow of supplies to the front. At the same time the 2nd Davion Guards RCT began preparing for it's own mission independent of this task force and it's over strength air wings began training extensively with the FSS Melissa Davion.
On Mayetta the Mayetta DMM was reformed and returned to the rolls on the last day of the month, albeit with most of it's officer corp replaced and at barely half strength. The court martial's and eventual executions for treason would stretch into 3062 of those officers purged from the unit. Leaving the world the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT moved up to take up garrison on Tancredi.
August 3061
All across the Sphere the leaders of the various states began to make plans for attending the Whitting Conference.
Officially all FedCom RCT became FedSun' Dragoons RCT's.
Yvonne Steiner-Davion left New Avalon and began a journey to Robinson, however on the way she made a detour to Layover. Arriving there she quickly met with the executives and board members of Salvatore Incorporated. The message was given as diplomatically as possible by the Princess, but the intent was clear. New Avalon's patience with the faltering company had been exhausted. The offers had become an ultimatum. New Avalon was giving the board one final opportunity to take their loans and restructuring and upgrading offer or the company would be taken into the ownership of House Davion and a new board appointed in a similar manner to what had happened to Challenge Systems. The board with no other option accepted. Funds would subsequently be released in order to return the company to it's full production capacity. Huge areas of derelict industrial sites would be refitted and returned to production. Vengeance production had almost ground to a halt was now to be prioritised. The AFFS was in dire need of these dropships. Discussions were even begun about a second production site - characteristically for the time an Outback location was preferred.
In August Operation Phoenix was finally revealed.
It began with the newly rechristened 6th FedSun's Dragoons RCT arriving in system on Small World. They were soon burning for the world and committing to a full combat drop against the small local garrison troops and handful of mercenary units. After making landfall the Dragoons began to mop up any and all resistance and by the start of September Small World was fully reintegrated into the FedSuns.
On Ingress the returning 2nd Robinson Rangers stopped on their way home. While the 2nd lacked the large number of conventional troops of the Dragoon RCT, the defenders of the 2nd world within the Duchy of Small were even weaker than those on Small World itself. In a lightning campaign the 2nd soon hunted down the few defenders stupid enough to resist and soon sent word for follow on troops drawn from the Addicks PDZ to support them in finishing the pacification of the world.
The 4th Davion Guards RCT similarly both returned to the Federated Suns and returned the world of Fletcher. The small city states that this world had degenerated into were no match for one of the AFFS's premier combat units and it was a simple matter for the 4th to slowly but surely absorb the city states back into the FedSuns.
Similarly the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT dropped down onto the world of Sheraton on the same day as their fellow unit landed on Fletcher. Here the Deneb Light Cavalry unit were able to find some support from the remaining members of the pro-Federated Suns Sheraton Knights, an armoured regiment. Although having only a fraction of their previous strength the Sheraton Knights had been able to hold the planetary capital and it's spaceport and so allowed the 4th Light Cavalry a secure base from which to operate. Soon columns of FedSuns mechs supported by armour and infantry and guided by surviving Knights were fanning out to overrun the petty fiefdoms that Sheraton had degenerated into. Colonel Terleki III recommended that the Sheraton Knights be reformed and expanded upon as a matter of urgency given their sterling and long missed service to the Federated Suns. He was informed his recommendations would be acted upon and in the same communication was promoted to Leftenant General.
The 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT landed on Acamar and immediately ran into trouble. The worn and battered equipment of the command was soon requiring almost constant repairs to maintain it at a barely functional level. Although many of the merchant's and mining concerns were in favour of rejoining the FedSuns various nobles were not. The Raiders were more than able to overpower the small private armies but were often hamstrung by the poor state of their equipment. The only saving grace was that most of the small petty armies equipment was in even worse repair. After finally conquering the world the 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT was assured that they would be the first unit deployed to the new Hasek Refit Centre on Bell and in the meantime their technical support and supply of spare parts was increased.
While the invasions of Small World, Ingress, Fletcher, Sheraton and Acamar had been mostly driven by planning from New Avalon, the reconquest of Arboris and Genoa was largely a a New Sytris planned affair. Not wishing to be left out, George Hasek ordered two of the mercenary Vegan Rangers units to move to retake these two worlds. The Vegan Rangers Alpha Regiment descended on Arboris and were happy to receive local aid and support from the remnants of the Arboris militia which had continued to fight on with a trickle of supplies from the neighbouring Achernar PDZ. Their sister unit the Gamma Regiment suffered no such good luck but both veteran mercenary commands were more than enough to quickly overcome the local resistance and return the two plants to the FedSuns. Follow on troops of conventional units were soon rooting out any suspected Capellan sympathisers. The Vegan Rangers were rewarded for their victory with a gift of 2 lances of Cataphract battlemechs from Tikonov. A less than popular mech with the AFFS forces it was still a welcome addition to the Rangers.
In the St Ives Compact the combined forces of the 3rd, 7th and 8th FedSun's Dragoons RCT's landed on Indicass. Or at least that was the illusion. It soon became apparant that what had landed were three separate invasion forces. Although officially outnumbered the 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry found itself able to fight each invading force individually and their position was only strengthened when they were rejoined on Indicass by the 5th Confederation Reserve Cavalry along with the severely under strength but now elite Warrior House Hiritsu. Again and again the larger FedSun's formations would be roughly handled by the more coordinated CCAF forces. A fact that rapidly came to the attention of the High Command.
However as welcome as the news from Indicass was, the same could not be said for the actions of Task Force St Ives. Under Duke Kai Allard-Liao the three elite units of mobile forces slashed a path through the Capella Commonality. Overton, Glasgow and Preston were hit by the Davion Light Guards, while the two combined St Ives units started off by hitting Ares and looting nearly a battalions worth of mechs to help refit the 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers before moving on to hit Randar, Geifer and Bandora. Each time forces ranging from a full regiment to a company would land, destroy any local forces which attempted to stop them, loot any military supplies they could take and destroy the rest. Spaceports, warehouses, airfields and military bases were levelled, while over a dozen jumpships which had been transporting supplies and troops towards the St Ives front were captured and sent back with prize crews to St Ives.
Within the Lyran Alliance the former 3rd Alliance Guards split into 3. A large chunk of the unit followed it's commanding officer Leftenant General Andor and left for the Federated Suns after renaming themselves officially the 11th FedSuns Dragoons RCT. Although only taking with him around 30% of his previous full strength command he did however take a large amount of salvage from the "Lyran Loyalist" elements who had attempted to seize him. Another group which consisted of those elements loyal to Skye also left and headed to the world of Skye to offer themselves up as the core of a new Skye Ranger unit, the 3rd Skye Rangers RCT, although they would be woefully under strength at barely a fifth a full strength unit. The remainder of the unit would consist of those who Lyran Loyalists who had been taken into custody following the coup as well as a handful of officers who had stood apart. Although numbering nearly as many as Leftenant-General Andor's partisans they had almost no equipment left and were soon broken up to fill out gaps in other formations, while the 3rd Alliance Guards were struck from the rolls.
The 4th Alliance Guards RCT similarly split, although this time only into two. Nearly two thirds of the unit marched onto their dropships and began the long journey back to the Federated Suns, while the remaining third continued to hold their posts as the 4th Alliance Guards RCT. Many of the 3rds Loyalists would be routed to the 4th to replace gaps in the ranks caused by FedSun's born personnel leaving. On route to the FedSun's the returning troops took pains to repaint their mechs and equipment as the 12th FedSun's Dragoons.
September 3061
September began with the official announcement of the expansion of the Avalon Hussars brigade. Detachment's began breaking off from the existing units and began to be transported into the Outback to take up positions there. Abbeyville and June soon were garrisoned by the 1st and 12th Avalon Hussars RCT's respectively, while cantonments were being set up on Broken Wheel and Lothair for the 34th and 36th and another on Crofton for the 42nd Avalon Hussars where it would rebuild itself.
This announcement added on to the previous expansions and the seizing of a half dozen worlds within the Chaos March caused the other Successor States to sit up and begin to take notice. Even those who had previously been friendly now began to look at First Prince Victor's FedSuns warily.
The DCMS was the first to react. They swiftly announced that two new Galedon Regular regiments would be formed, the 10th and 29th Galedon Regulars were the two units being considered for reactivation. The Coordinator also informed his Warlords that he would soon raise a new unit of Ryuken to bolster the realms defences and ordered them to consider further naval expansions.
The FWL's response was muted. With Parliament debating the issue and the threat of the AFFS somewhat muted by distance there was little appetite for further military spending. Still the Captain-General did manage to begin pushing a new naval bill to expedite the production of the Venturer Light Cruiser.
Sian's response was perhaps understandably more immediate. First Star Lord Sun-Tzu Liao within a week announced that in response to unwarranted Davion aggression he was left no other option but to increase military spending. He announced that in the coming months he would be re-founding that honoured Capellan formation, the Sian Dragoons. Where the Davion's would be building 4 regiments from pieces of other regiments, the Capellan Confederation would form and equip 4 entire regiments from scratch. Left unsaid was how difficult this would be for the CCAF to manage, particularly given its embattled state in St Ives.
On Indicass the various FedSun's Dragoons were still mired in a battle in which they couldn't seem to use their strength and were often stumbling over each others feet. This was only made worse when the 7th Dragoons suffered the loss of most of their command cadre in a headhunter mission while awaiting a rare face to face conference with the leadership of the 3rd Dragoons. Blaming the 3rd's lateness for their losses liaisons between the two regimental combat teams broke down almost entirely. The 8th Dragoons however was still seen as a pariah by both of the other units. This finally led to Marshal Venger himself leaving New Avalon to travel to Indicass to resolve the issue.
The Lyran Alliance's response was even more muted than the FWL's. With no central authority and General of the Armies Nondi Steiner's position tenuous at best there was little that could be done to push for expansions within the LAAF. With the desertions from the Alliance Guards the LAAF was growing weaker not stronger. Officially the Lyran High Command refused permission for the newly renamed 3rd Skye Rangers RCT, but both the other Ranger regiments and Duke Robert Kelswa-Steiner pointedly ignored the refusal and began supplying the regiment.
The St Ives-Capellan conflict continued, with St Ives forces now counter attacking on worlds that had fallen in the initial Capellan attacks. Except on Indicass the St Ives and Davion forces didn't land troops but they began raiding the Capellan garrisons on Milos, Vestallas and Brighton heavily as well as supporting local resistance. Task Force St Ives also continued to raid deeper into the Capellan Confederation, with Duke Kai leading his forces up into the former-Sarna March, while the Davion Light Guards swung down into the Sian Commonality. In response Sian ordered the various units of the McCarron's Armoured Cavalry to mobilise to hunt down the raiders.
However if the attacks of Task Force St Ives was a problem the strike by the 2nd Davion Guards was a disaster. Accompanied by the FSS Melissa Davion as well as the FSS Antrim and FSS Brest (the two Fox corvettes jumping in from Monhegan to join the Avalon cruiser), the 2nd Davion Guards RCT jumped into the Necromo system. The defending CCS Zhejiang found itself not only facing off against 3 enemy warships but also the 120 fighters of the 2nd Davion's fighter wings. The 2nd Capellan Defence Force was entirely lacking in aerospace assets and so was unable to help the CCS Zhejiang. With no other alternative the CCS Zhejiang withdrew to the outer system with what defensive dropships it could assemble, however even that wasn't sufficient to avoid damage as it suffered from almost constant fighter attacks. With it's own fighters and accompanying dropships being whittled away the destroyer took mounting damage from every wave of fighter attacks.
Even as his aerospace fighters engaged in long range strikes on the shadowing destroyer the 2nd Davion Guards landed on the world of Necromo and proceeded to brutalise the green 2nd Capellan Defence Force. Even with the bulk of his fighters engaged attacking the CCS Zhejiang, Admiral Kossacks was able to task a wing with ground support missions. With pin point accuracy they broke up the Defence Forces lines just as the veteran 2nd Davion struck. The 2nd Capellan Defence Force was soon in full retreat. While this battle was underway and the FSS Melissa Davion kept a close eye on the CCS Zhejiang the two Fox corvettes moved to escort marine elements who were soon engaged in seizing control of the orbiting shipyards.
Facing this disaster the Strategic Military Director of the CCAF Talon Zahn was in the unfortunate position of advising the Chancellor that they did not have sufficient naval assets to reclaim Necromo to hand. The other two Impavido class destroyers were deployed to Capella and Sian and those worlds could not be risked by stripped them of naval cover. Only the CCS Elias Jung was available to reinforce the CCS Zhejiang and even this cruisers addition might not be enough to turn the tide in the Confederation's favour. It was also known that the Davion's had at least 3 more Avalon cruisers which could be rushed to join the FSS Melissa Davion at Necromo. Escalating the situation could end in disaster. Even if they didn't, the Davion's could simply destroy the yards and the 2 Feng Huang cruisers building within them and retreat.
Chancellor Sun-Tzu was "rescued" from the horns of this dilemma by a personal communication from First Prince Victor Davion. The First Prince suggested that the two sides freeze in place until the Whitting Conference, at which time himself, Dutchess Allard-Liao and the Chancellor could meet to discuss the future of the St Ives Compact. The St Ives-Davion forces would refrain from attacking the CCAF forces upon the worlds they had occupied, while the CCAF would make no further aggressive moves.
Talon Zahn was forced to admit this was the best outcome they could expect. Duke Kai was running riot through the former Sarna March, supplies to the front were drying up due to the raids and the garrisons on the already seized worlds were struggling to maintain their positions. The loss of Necromo was a crippling loss and not even the seizure of the 3 St Ives worlds they currently held could make up for it. In addition their forces on Indicass and Nashuar although still viable were facing increasing enemy forces. A cease fire in place and a diplomatic outcome might be the best they could hope for.
The decision was hastened when word came that the 2nd Capellan Defence Force which had been in full retreat had been forced to surrender in full under constant attacks from the 2nd Davion's ground forces and air attacks. With no way off planet they had finally surrendered rather than face annihilation. An additional incentive was made when the Blackwind Lancers newly reformed 2nd Battalion joined with their 1st Battalion and landed on Brighton in a full on counter attack rather than a raid. With this final blow Sun-Tzu accepted Victor Davion's proposal. Although he did immediately begin moving up supplies and troops to worlds bordering the St Ives in case the cease fire broke down. He also did smuggle a quantity of equipment and even replacement personnel to his troops on Indicass in particular, in violation of at least the spirit of the accord.
Many within the AFFS and indeed the St Ives Military Command felt that the First Prince had traded away their advantages, yet he had the full support of Duchess Allard-Liao and her son. Both rulers felt that continued fighting had the risk of escalating into a full war between the Federated Suns and the Capellan Confederation at a very vulnerable time for the reborn Federated Suns. Better to attempt to pull back from the brink and win what concessions they could before matters got entirely out of hand.
Almost unnoticed during this time the 3rd Republican's resurfaced on the world of Elgin and seized the former capital world of the Tikonov Free Republic. Swiftly linking up with their former comrades from the 4th Republican on Hall they agreed to a united pact where the "Emperor" Baranov of Hall agreed to be the Supreme Lord of the newly reborn Tikonov Free Republic, which for now constituted his own world of Hall and Elgin.
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interesting so far let's see how this moves forward also please don't can St Ives
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i agree that Victor would not abandon the FC so easily, but i can see why this universe came about as well. :thumbsup:
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3061 - Fourth Quarter - a new First Lord
The last quarter of 3061 began with a ceasefire coming into effect on the St Ives-Capellan Front and most of the various leaders of the nations of the Second Star League preparing to head to the Whitting Conference. On Tharkad itself the time was spent preparing for the conference, which would be complicated by the fact that the Archon of the Lyran Alliance was in custody within another member state of the Second Star League! Who's leader was now coming to Tharkad. There were some who suggested seizing First Prince Victor Davion and ransoming back the Archon that way, but those voices were swiftly silenced. General of the Armies Nondi Steiner reasoned that such an act might have every other member state turn on the Lyran Alliance.
October 3061
With the ceasefire in effect the St Ives-Capellan front was largely quite, although Task Force St Ives did take this opportunity to fall back to St Ives to recuperate, rearm and resupply. As well as to drop of a not inconsiderable sum of loot in the form of CCAF mechs, tanks, fighters and equipment looted from dozens of supply depots and factories. The other troops were frozen in place, although a number of small scale flare up's occurred particularly on Brighton and Nashuar. The 2nd Davion Guards also continued to monitor the CCS Zhejiang and ran constant patrols and drills preparing to finish off the damaged destroyer if it was felt necessary or if it broke the truce.
The final act First Prince Victor made before leaving for Tharkad was to issue a direction to Fleet Admiral Buchwald, the head of the Navy. Challenge Systems in Panpour were to be given contracts and have state loans made available to massively expand their yard and increase production of Monolith class jumpships. That on the face of it was all that would be officially released. However the large contracts and loans were also to provide at least some cover for them to prepare to recommence after centuries the production of Congress-D class frigates for the Federated Suns. While keeping the project secret long term was considered impossible, every effort was to be made to keep it as secret as possible for as long as possible. Initially the Federated Suns would supply funding to build 2 slips for the construction of frigates.
On Indicass Marshal Venger finally arrived and began the process of "discussing" with his subordinate RCT commanding officers how displeased their recent actions had made him. The FedCom Corp had been under something of a cloud since 3057 and he had hoped to break free of that cloud with the new reorganisation as the FedSuns Dragoons, yet in their first real test the new brigade was failing. It was hardly an auspicious start. Although no further offensive actions could be taken, he began a series of training exercises and staff exercises intended to finally break down the mistrust and lack of cooperation between the 3rd, 7th and 8th FedSun's Dragoons RCT's. While the warriors of the 7th Dragoons did feel somewhat unfairly treated at being lumped in with the problematic 3rd and borderline treasonous 8th, they did at least have to admit they had not exactly covered themselves in glory with how badly they had coordinated with the others and settled down to train. Small scale redeployment's occurred between all 3 RCT's to aid this.
On Tharkad Precentor-Martial Focht caused some uproar when he insisted that the newly formed 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment would take up security arrangements for the Conference from the Lyran 1st Royal Guards RCT. He too had heard the rumours of seizing First Prince Victor.
Within the Draconis Combine the new Galedon Regulars regiments began to form up. Mostly drawn from various academies and other Galedon Regulars these two units were immediately deployed Groveld and Niles, although they remained woefully under strength with neither unit above 50%. This was in direct contrast to the AFFS which instead of assigning newly forming units to the borders of the other Successor States were sending them for a period of formation and training in the Outback.
The 1st and 2nd Sian Dragoons also were formed during this time, with a 3rd and 4th promised soon. More than a few commentators in other realms noticed that much of the equipment they were using was of non-Capellan origin. In fact most of it was drawn from Star League Defence Force supplies and contracts, which Sun-Tzu had used his position as First Lord to acquire. Most of the mechwarrior's would be drawn from early graduated cadets of the Sian Centre for Martial Discipline.
The newly renamed 3rd and 4th Free Tikonov Republican Guard having secured Elgin and Hall for Supreme Leader Baranov detached 2 battalions from the 3rd and another from the 4th, along with various conventional forces they had assembled and attacked Hsien, joining the confusing battle there. Even as poorly maintained as the Republican Guard's mechs were and as poorly disciplined as their ramshackle conventional forces were they were soon able to seize control of fractured Hsien, bringing the Free Tikonov State to 3 worlds. They also began to form a new 1st Free Republican Guard unit on Elgin. Supreme Leader William Baranov began to look at the Saiph Triumvirate and TerraCap Confederation hungrily. He also began to enter into secret negotiations with not only the FWL but also the Word of Blake on Terra for support for his regime. Although given the historical precedents the FWL did move the 13th Marik Militia to Menkhalinan just in case this Tikonov state also invaded the FWL during negotiations.
Passing through the Lyran Alliance First Prince Victor did cause something of a stir. Joining up with Kai Allard-Liao the two men were accompanied by elements of the 1st Davion Guards RCT, 1st St Ives Lancers and 1st Revenant Guard RCT. The 1st Revenant Guard RCT forces were a mere combined arms company, but they were also obviously the former 10th Lyran Guard's RCT. What caused even more uproar was the fact that they were further escorted by two Avalon class cruisers - the FSS Lucien Davion and the FSS Alexander Davion. Precentor-Martial Focht was not the only one who had heard rumours of kidnapping First Prince Victor.
November 3061
The Second Whitting Conference opened with a great deal of discord.
First Lord Sun-Tzu Liao's attempts to enter the Conference as the triumphant First Lord who had overseen the defeat of the Clans almost imedietly failed as the bulk of the praise was directed at First Prince Victor Davion. Sun-Tzu's attempts to portray himself as the conqueror of the clans, which had played so well in his own realm, failed miserably here and were further compounded when a number of accusations were made against him abusing his position from a variety of sources. Duke Kai of course took the lead with his loud condemnation of Sun Tzu's invasion of the St Ives Compact under the banner of "Star League Defence Forces Peacekeepers" but he was soon joined by Precentor-Martial Focht's report that the First Lord had used his position to acquire equipment for his own armed forces. Within minutes the "debate" had turned into a free for all. Strangely First Prince Victor did not join in but stood somewhat aloof from it all, many feeling that he was setting himself up for a run at being elected First Lord himself and was attempting to appear statesmanlike.
This was something that even some of Victor's own allies were set against. Coordinator Theodore Kurita's relationship with the First Prince had already began to cool and faced with the prospect of placing even more prestige in his sometime allies hands he was deeply uncomfortable. While Captain-General Thomas Marik was himself extremely reluctant to hand over such a prize to Victor-Davion.
Still this politicising had to initially be placed aside to resolve the issue of the Lyran Alliances representative. General of the Armies Nondi Steiner was there acting as Regent for the imprisoned Archon and demanded again the release of her niece. Although in a somewhat pro-forma manner. This demand was supported by Sun-Tzu Liao who was rather glad to have the attention focused away from himself for the time being. Even Thomas Marik pointed out that imprisoning head's of state was a bad precedent.
Victor Davion agreed with the Captain-General, but stated that his sister's crimes were too severe for her merely to walk away from. Instead he suggested a compromise to his aunt. Katherine Steiner-Davion would face trial. A neutral and as far as possible independent tribunal. The Second Star League would set up a panel of judges drawn from all their realms. Each realm would nominate a senior judge to sit upon the panel, who would then look at all of the evidence and pass judgement on Victor's sister. If she was innocent she could then be released to retake the reigns of the Lyran Alliance. If not then she would face a sentence agreed by the same panel of judges.
Nondi Steiner immediately had two demands. Firstly that in the event of a guilty vote that no death sentence would be returned and secondly that the trial take place upon Tharkad. While she won support for the first, the second was refused by unanimous agreement of the other Lords. At which point she loudly decried any potential trial that took place on New Avalon. A compromise was suggested jointly by Precentor Martial Focht and Elected Prince Regent Christian Mansdottir who both suggested that the trial take place on Tukayyid.
This was finally agreed by all of the representatives. At which point they began horse trading for who would be elected First Lord.
Sun-Tzu Liao, Nondi Steiner and Thomas Marik soon formed one block supporting Thomas Marik, with Victor Davion and Kai Allard-Liao within the other. Christian Mansdottir and Theodore Kurita were independent and Anastasius Focht neutral. Excluding himself and Kai, Victor could count on no other votes. Which he had come fully prepared for. Instead he suggested a compromise. Instead of himself, why not consider Kai Allard-Liao as First Lord, who his mother had appointed as Duke of the St Ives just before the conference, with herself as his Prime Minister. A proven warrior, a leader and a man known for his honour and courage. Yet without a large realm to threaten the others with. Instantly this created turmoil. Christian Mansdottir immediately threw his support behind Duke Kai, as did somewhat more reluctantly Theodore Kurita and even Nondi Steiner. Thomas Marik conceded the inevitable and gracefully supported the candidacy of Duke Kai Allard-Liao. The only one left furious was of course Sun-Tzu Liao.
With the election of a new First Lord the various leaders still however had a lot to talk about.
The most pressing issue was the matter of the St Ives-Capellan conflict. With Kai now First Lord it was obvious to all that the Capellan position was untenable. Still Sun-Tzu bargained hard to keep what he could of his gains. At first he attempted to argue that the worlds of Nashuar, Brighton, Vestallas, Milos, Denbar and Indicass should remain within his rule as the newly formed Xin Sheng Commonality. However this was clearly a ridiculous first position and he soon withdrew to merely demanding Brighton, Vestallas, Milos and Indicass. He was brought up short however when First Prince Victor suggested that he might gift Necromo to St Ives.
After several days of heated debate the best deal that Sun-Tzu was able to get was that he would withdraw his troops from the St Ives Compact and that the 2nd Davion Guards RCT would withdraw from Necromo without damaging the vital world's shipyards. He did however obtain a blanket "amnesty" for any misappropriated equipment that might have made it's way to the CCAF rather than the Star League Defence Forces in return for the concessions. Even with this concession it was an obvious defeat.
First Prince Victor was also able to meet with his aunt General Nondi Steiner on almost civil terms during this trip to Tharkad, often accompanied by Anastasius Focht as a referee for when the discussions became heated. While Nondi still refused to believe Katherine's guilt she was now prepared to discuss matters with Victor regarding the formal breaking of ties between the Lyran Alliance and FedSuns. She was furious however at the defection of the 10th Lyran Guards and elements of the 3rd and 4th Alliance Guards and this hardened her stance on returning the large number of former FedSuns Command jumpships.
Eventually a compromise was made. With his expansions of Monolith production at Panpour and planned Merchant jumpship production at Filtvelt, along with expanded spending on jumpships by the AFFC and AFFS since 3057 the loss of those jumpships was not considered so severe. He agreed to forgo large scale reparations or return of the ships and even of the large quantity of former AFFC supplies and equipment built up on the Clan Border of the then Lyran Command in return for a number of industrial and design concessions. Nondi Steiner agreed to transferring production rights to a number of mech's such as the Battle Hawk, Flashman and Battlemaster designs as well as the Excalibur class dropship. Victor had initially sought production rights to the Wolfhound mech in particular, but Nondi had stood firm on this although she had agreed to license Arc Royal Mechworks to sell mech's to the Federated Suns. Other designs which were currently produced under license in both realms from one or other would have their licenses secured.
General Steiner while unhappy about having to hand over so many licenses was content in that she had at least managed to avoid large scale reparations. She was also confident that Morgan Kell would be unable to meet the demand of the AFFS as well as his existing commitments and so was particularly pleased at that compromise. First Prince Victor while not receiving as many designs and concessions as he might have liked was content that he could return to New Avalon with a large number of military designs with which to reinforce his regiments. He immediately met with Morgan Kell who was in attendance of the Conference as an adviser and arranged for a large scale loan to expand the existing Arc Royal Mechworks, but both men also agreed to look into Arc Royal Mechworks setting up a subsidiary company within the FedSuns. General of the Armies Steiner had not specified exactly where the mech's that Arc Royal Mechworks sold had to be built.
The First Prince also, in conjunction with First Lord Kai and the Precentor-Martial also informed the assembled lords just prior to the conference breaking up that they had agreed jointly to a large scale expansion of the Defiance Combat Training centre into a full combined arms academy, the cadets of which would be split between the SLDF and the AFFS. The academy was to be known as the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy after the leader of Task Force Serpent which had trained there. Individual buildings and halls of residence would be named for the units which had made up the Task Force and for officers and men who had died to give the Inner Sphere freedom from the Clan menace. Instructors would be welcomed from any and all units which had taken part in the Task Force and from all member states of the Second Star League. As would a small number of exchange cadets.
Coordinator Theodore Kurita and First Prince Victor also meet just prior to leaving Tharkad to reassure each other that they remain allies even with Omi's death. Noticeably absent from this meeting is Hohiro Kurita. Although the mood is cool they both assure the other that they have no hostile intent towards each others border worlds. Not withstanding this meeting both rulers will continue to reinforce their respective armed forces and border defences.
December 3061
With the agreements made the various CCAF, Canopian and Taurian forces begin to withdraw from the St Ives Compact. On Indicass there is a brief flare up of violence when Warrior House Hiritsu attempts to loot the Ceres Metal Industries plant before leaving with some help from the heavily mauled 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry. The 7th FedSun's Dragoons instantly steps in to stop this and a firefight soon breaks out. Much to Marshal Venger's satisfaction nearby elements of both the 3rd and 8th Dragoons instantly move to support the 7th. The 8th's warriors in particular are instrumental in smashing the Warrior Houses's few mech's into pieces and reducing the Capellan warrior monks to a bare lance of mech's on planet along with a few infantry platoons. The 2nd Reserve Cavalry's 3rd battalion is also made combat ineffective in a brief but savage battle within the plant which suffers heavy damage.
Other minor flare up's occur throughout the St Ives but none are as severe. First Lord Kai Allard-Liao in an attempt to prevent further rancour has each of the incidents referred to the newly forming Star League Court on Tukayyid. In most but not all cases they will find the primary fault with the retreating invaders and give judgement of reparations to the St Ives.
On Necromo the 2nd Davion Guards RCT, the marine elements and the FSS Melissa Davion and her two Fox escorts wait until the St Ives has been fully evacuated of hostile forces before returning Necromo to it's previous owners. They make no attempt to sabotage the yards or ships within, but do take a mountain of technical data with them including not only the design for the Feng Huang cruiser but also the FWL's Thera class carrier that it was designed to counter. They also take all of the captured equipment of the 2nd Capellan Defence Force and indeed many of it's personnel who seek asylum in the Fedsun's. Most of the officers are convinced that if they were to remain on Necromo they would face severe reprisals for their perceived failure. Although few will be accepted into the AFFS a number will find their way into mercenary commands and even the St Ives Military Command to replace losses.
During this time the graduating cadets from the various training academies within the FedSun's are discharged from their Training Cadres and sent to their future placements, while new cadets take their place. Most of the bloodied cadets from the 2nd and 3rd NAIS Cadre on Kathil are sent into the Outback to make up numbers within the newly formed Avalon Hussars RCT's. Given that most of these "cadets" are now regular level of skill this results in the units not suffering a drop in their experience levels, although integration remains a problem for a time. A number of cadets from the 1st NAIS and 1st Albion were however held back for the time being and not assigned to any one particular unit.
In a prearranged meeting, First Prince Victor and his accompanying task force meet up with the troops of the returning 11th and 12th FedSun's Dragoon's RCT's near Terra. They are joined there by the Argyle Lancers and 39th Avalon Hussars RCT who are amongst the units travelling back to the FedSuns. With this powerful task force Victor Davion personally leads an attack upon the TerraCap Confederation. The few defenders of this small realm are a mix of noble's guards, planetary militia and mercenary forces. Faced with an attack led by the First Prince himself the mercenaries soon surrender on good terms, and their example is followed by all but the most fanatical of the defenders.
With these changes only the 2nd, 4th, 6th and 7th Crucis Lancers RCT and the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry remain within the Lyran Alliance. Only the 19th Arcturan Guards remain of the Lyran units within the FedSuns and all of those units are preparing to move. Also preparing to move are the Blue Star Irregulars, much to the displeasure of the General of Armies.
On Robinson Yvonne Steiner-Davion and Tancred Sandoval had been discussing the new expansion of the Robinson Standard Battleworks and the subsidiary plant on Woodbine. In return for support from New Avalon and funding to speed up development and production of Robinson's new design the Sagittaire, Tancred agreed on behalf of his father that the Sandoval family and Robinson Standard Battleworks would fund 2/3rds the cost of a new facility on Woodbine which would initially produce only Watchman class mechs but eventually would expand production into other designs. Some discussions were also made about expanding production not only at Woodbine but also Robinson to include aerospace fighters and vehicles.
Furious at the Davion invasion and annexation of the TerraCap Confederation Supreme Leader Baranov stepped up plans to invade the Saiph worlds. To do this he made a number of large and expensive purchases on credit via the Word of Blake from the FWL's nearby military suppliers to expand and reinforce his military forces rapidly. He was soon poised to launch his new 1st Republican and the veteran 3rd at the three worlds of the Triumvirate.
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i agree that Victor would not abandon the FC so easily, but i can see why this universe came about as well. :thumbsup:
While yeah... I get that Victor probably wouldn't abandon the FC... It's hard to have a reborn FedSuns with a ruler committed to the FC... So I've altered things a bit. Hope it's okay! :D
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State of the AFFS December 3061
AFFS
December 3061
Independent Commands
1st Aragon Borderers – Veteran – 70%
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 90%
1st Capellan Dragoons – Regular – 100%
1st FSAC – Elite – 100% (Re)
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re)
1st Kittery Borderers – Regular – 100%
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 30% - Formed from remnants of Republican Guards
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) – Formed from 10th Lyran Guards
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60%
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 75% (Re)
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 50%
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 75% (Re)
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100%
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 50%
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 50%
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 75% (Re)
New units listed as Regular due to having been drawn from Regular formations and from cadet veterans of the Battle of Kathil, however until fully integrated will fight at Green levels at anything beyond company level.
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Green – 90%
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 80% - deployed to St Ives
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100%
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 100%
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re)
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 60% - personnel – 100% mechs
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) – Deployed to St Ives
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re)
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 80% - deployed to St Ives
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 70%
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 100%
5th Davion Guards RCT – Regular – 100% - Deployed to St Ives
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100%
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100%
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100%
12th Deneb Light Cavalry – Regular – 100%
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 90% (Re) – deployed to St Ives
FedSun's Dragoons
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 90%
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 70% - deployed to St Ives
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100%
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 60% - deployed to St Ives
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 50% - deployed to St Ives
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 30% - returning from LA, with double equipment
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 60% - returning from the LA
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100%
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Regular – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 100%
2nd Robinson Rangers – Regular – 100%
Sytris Fusiliers
5th Sytris Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 80%
6th Sytris Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 60% (Re)
8th Sytris Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100%
Capellan March Militias
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
New Sytris CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 100%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Achernar SMM – Green – 50%
Nanking SMM – Green – 80%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 70%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 100%
Clovis DMM – Green – 100%
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - lacking armour and with overstrength infantry brigade
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 50% - returned to rolls provisionally, half the unit discharged or in prison
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Training Battalions
1st Bell Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Training Battalion - Green - 100%
1st Conroe Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion (5 companies) – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Kittery Training Battalion – Green – 100% - Kittery based
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 45% - suspended
Mercenary Forces
12th Vegan Rangers
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 70%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 60%
Arcadians – Veteran – 100%
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 80%
- 2nd Cunningham Commando’s – Regular – 70%
Federated Freemen – Veteran – 100%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 100%
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 100%
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – currently in the LA
Hansen’s Roughriders – Veteran – 80%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Regular – 100%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 90%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 90%
- 21st Ranger – Green – 80%
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Veteran – 100%
Lexington Combat Group
- 32nd Recon – Veteran – 100% (Re)
- 241st Battle – Regular – 100%
- 180th Dragoon – Regular – 100%
New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 100% (Re)
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 100% (Re)
Vanguard Legion – Veteran – 100%
Wild Geese - Elite - 100%
Blue Star Irregulars – although on loan to the Arc Royal Defence Cordon this unit is considered FedCom/FedSuns loyal
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 100%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 90%
- Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 75% operable
Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
FCS Fox
FCS Indomitable
FCS Intrepid
FCS Indefatigable
FCS Antrim
FCS Murmansk
FCS Brest
FCS New Sytris
Avalon Class Cruisers
FCS Melissa Davion – light damage
FCS Alexander Davion
FCS Lucien Davion – requiring a refit
FCS Simon Davion – requiring a refit
Covenant Class Cruisers
FCS Covenant
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Great Story! This is how the Civil War Should have gone, are you going to make this story into a PDF to Download??
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Great Story! This is how the Civil War Should have gone, are you going to make this story into a PDF to Download??
Sorry don't know how! ???
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LOL.
Ok, 1st get a free pdf printer like bullzip.
send you file to that printer, generating the pdf.
place said pdf in a place like google drive or dropbox
give that link to people that want said pdf or place the link in one page here.
Presto, one way to do that, if you use Windows OS
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what does (Re) mean I have seen it on a # of units
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re)
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9 out of 10 times is Retired or Reserve.
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(Re) stands for Reinforced Regiment.
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(Re) stands for Reinforced Regiment.
Thanks
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The big problem the FS had when the Lyran's split off was the loss of so many jumpships.
It crippled the economy.
Would Victor really leave all in the hands of the Lyran's.
Great write up. :thumbsup:
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The big problem the FS had when the Lyran's split off was the loss of so many jumpships.
It crippled the economy.
Would Victor really leave all in the hands of the Lyran's.
Great write up. :thumbsup:
There is mention in Shattered Sphere P26 that the AFFC's Jumpship fleet is almost back to normal. "The rebuilding of the AFFC's Jumpship fleet is near completion, though it has unfortunately absorbed a large portion of the military budget."
So while getting a bunch of jumpships back would be useful, getting industrial and design concessions was considered a better way to go. Plus it might look slightly suspicious if he's massively investing in Challenge Systems monolith production when he has spare jumpships already... ;)
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if they have almost replaced all of those jumpships? then they will soon increase the number of jumpships and any that come over will just be a bounce. even it if was only 10 that would be a big help. I would push for an increase in the number of merchant or invader class ships. the big boy is great but only good from major world to major world. to increase the whole economy you need to have more stops at the smaller worlds. place that can only use or fill one or maybe two dropships. coming up with enough cargo to fill 9 droppers even every six months is going to be hard to find.
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While yeah... I get that Victor probably wouldn't abandon the FC... It's hard to have a reborn FedSuns with a ruler committed to the FC... So I've altered things a bit. Hope it's okay! :D
Look at it like this, he could see what was coming and did not like it. There is a chance in later years to rebuild the federated commonwealth, once more people have approved of the idea.
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Sorry don't know how! ???
Simplest way is to put it all in Google documents, go to file, select "download as" and pick PDF.
Alternatively, if you use word, it should allow you to export as PDF.
Of course then you'd need to host it somewhere... google docs is also handy for that
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if they have almost replaced all of those jumpships? then they will soon increase the number of jumpships and any that come over will just be a bounce. even it if was only 10 that would be a big help. I would push for an increase in the number of merchant or invader class ships. the big boy is great but only good from major world to major world. to increase the whole economy you need to have more stops at the smaller worlds. place that can only use or fill one or maybe two dropships. coming up with enough cargo to fill 9 droppers even every six months is going to be hard to find.
Which is why he's planning a merchant class jumpship yard in the Outback. I noticed that the FedSuns jumpship production tends towards the big boys so figured I'd add a bit of "tramp freighter" to their mix. Right now they have Monoliths, Star Lords and Invaders (I think they have like 3 yards for the Invaders). Adding Merchants will let them have a smaller, cheaper option to wander around the Outback with trading dropships.
Look at it like this, he could see what was coming and did not like it. There is a chance in later years to rebuild the federated commonwealth, once more people have approved of the idea.
That's certainly one long term plan, which is another reason he's not screwing over the LA. Even if it got him short term gain it would hurt his allies - Coventry, Arc Royal, etc, and also make any future relationship with the FS/LA harder.
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Just to clarify things - the following changes and upgrades have been made:
Industrial/Infrastructure Changes
Capellan March
Bell - Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards, now being upgraded as a full on rebuild/repair centre capable of repairing and/or upgrading dozens of mechs and vehicles at the same time.
Firgrove - Clyde Shipyards being upgraded to be able to construct dropships not just repair them.
Crucis March
Broken Wheel - new battlemech facility owned by Andoran Industries Ltd set to begin construction of new Clint battlemechs.
Defiance - a new training facility planned to be named the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy to be jointly run by the AFFS and SLDF.
Filtvelt - A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works.
Layover - Salvatore Inc facility now being upgraded rather than allowed to continue limping on. Production of Vengeance class dropships to be massively increased. Some consideration being given to a new facility as well.
Panpour - Challenge Systems being funded to increase production of Monolith jumpships and begin construction of two Congress-D frigates.
Draconis March
Robinson - Robinson Standard BattleWorks expansions and investments made to increase production, particularly of the up coming Sagittairre battlemech.
Woodbine - a new battlemech facility owned by Robinson Standard BattleWorks to produce Watchman battlemechs.
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So what exactly did Victor get besides the designs you listed, if anything?
I think I would target the Spector, Talon and Archer in addition. Plus vehicles like the Packrat and Patton/Rommel.
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3062 First Quarter
3062 started with most of the successor states leadership returning to their worlds and evaluating the state of affairs of the Inner Sphere. A resurgent and reborn Federated Suns was clearly on most of their minds. As was the impending trial of Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion. Over the first quarter the various states chose a representative for the Star League Court and made preparations to send them to Tukayyid. ComStar and particularly the ComGuard's also rushed to begin building a facility to house the Court and inevitably a secure jail to guard any high ranking accused. It was agreed that the complex would be guarded by a mix of ComGuards and Clan Nova Cat warriors.
January 3062
First Prince Victor Davion started the new year on Terra Firma, but didn't stay long. As soon as the planet was reasonably secured he left the 39th Avalon Hussars RCT to continue the pacification and integration of the planet into the Federated Suns and moved on. He was eager to get back to New Avalon as quickly as he could, but had a number of stops to make upon the way.
Three of these were extremely close by to Terra Firma. He firstly jumped to the world of Sheraton where he addressed the survivors of the loyal Sheraton Knights as well as Leftenant General Terleki III. He firstly complimented them all upon their loyalty and dedication to the ideals of not only the Federated Suns but also the now disbanded Federated Commonwealth, suggesting to them that had more people including some within his own family showed their loyalty then the Federated Commonwealth would not have fallen. He then went on to inform them that such loyalty would be rewarded, that the Leftenant General had recommended that the Sheraton Knights should be rebuilt as the garrison for the planet. He agreed entirely, but didn't want to just limit them to a militia garrison. During the recent fighting with the Capellan Confederation a large amount of salvage had been taken, and he was going to use some of this to form a Sheraton Training Battalion upon the world as well as providing a number of scholarships to various academies to men and women of proven loyalty - particularly to the nearby Tikonov Martial Academy. It was his intent to form a new battlemech regiment upon the world on the pattern of the two Borderer regiments of New Aragon and Kittery, but going by the name of the 1st Sheraton Knights.
Fresh from the rousing response of his stated goal of creating a new regiment the First Prince had a quite word with Leftenant General Terleki III and sounded him out to a proposal to reform the 5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT. He proposed to draw a few of the survivors of the regiment from the other Deneb Light Cavalry regiments and combine them with cadets who had been held back from the lightweight 1st Albion and 1st NAIS Cadres. The First Prince wanted the Generals feel on the project and what he thought his father might think on it. Marshal Terleki Jr was the former commanding officer of the 5th Deneb Light Cavalry and also now commanded the entire brigade. After some discussions General Terleki informed the Prince that he thought that the brigade itself as well as his father would be strongly in favour of the rebirth of the 5th - as long as it was done with an eye to continuation the traditions of the Deneb Light Cavalry unit and not as a gimmick.
With this advice in mind the First Prince's next stop was Deneb Kaitos where he met with Marshal Andrew Terleki Jr on Deneb Kaitos where he kept his command post. He carefully discussed the resurrection of the Marshal's old command and offered to leave the matter entirely within the remit of Terleki as commander of the brigade. He would be allowed to pick from the assembled cadets and draw experienced officers and troops from the other Light Cavalry units as he saw fit. Similarly he would be given first pick of any and all battlemech's, fighters and tanks currently being produced and would be able to assemble the 5th Deneb Light Cavalry with only very limited oversight.
Marshal Andrew Terleki Jr agreed to the reformation of the 5th Deneb Kaitos and requested that the unit be formed up on Deneb Kaitos itself. A request the First Prince was happy to grant. The Marshal suggested that he might draw a battalion of the best cadets from the graduating class and perhaps another 2 companies worth of officers and troops from the existing regiments for seasoning, replacing those with other cadets. Given the reason for the loss of the original 5th the Marshal also requested that the full 6 fighter wings be assigned to the RCT. This was a more difficult proposition, but reflecting upon the success of the 2nd Davion Guards RCT over Necromo with a similar over strength fighter brigade the First Prince agreed. Having considered that he also promised to try and assign more aerospace units to the other Deneb Light Cavalry units to bring them all up to this standard, but had to admit this might not be possible in the short to medium term.
With the Marshal's agreement in hand the First Prince then headed for Tikonov, although he wouldn't reach that planet until February, given the lengthy nature of his meetings on Deneb Kaitos. He did however detach the FSS Alexander Davion to return to New Avalon to take up duties there.
On Robinson the First Princes's sister had finalised the agreement to create a new battlemech production facility upon Woodbine, but she remained on Robinson. Officially to spend time with her younger brother Arthur who was attending the Robinson Battle Academy, but many noticed that she was spending a great deal of time with Tancred Sandoval even after their negotiations were complete.
The withdrawal of Capellan forces from the St Ives continued and by the end of January most of the regular formations had withdrawn. They did in a number of cases leave behind irregular infantry and local partisans who would "continue the fight in the name of the Chancellor". While mostly pro-Capellan St Ives citizens it was noticed almost immedietly that many of the groups and bands had CCAF advisers and or training. Rooting them out was made more difficult for the St Ives Compact as now that the active fight was over the AFFS began a staged withdrawal from their worlds.
This had been agreed by Jackson Davion, Victor Davion, Candace Liao-Allard and Kai Allard-Liao even as the war had started. Neither side wished to give the impression that the St Ives Compact was a mere Davion puppet or protectorate. A small number of mercenary units would remain as would the 5th FedSun's Dragoons RCT (chosen as it was largely intact, compared to the other units). The remaining units would be withdrawn back into the FedSuns although of course would be available to return if Sian didn't keep the peace.
Within the Terran System the Titan shipyards are seized by the WOB. Driving Comstar totally from the home system.
February 3062
Having secured Fletcher for the Federated Suns and having now been relieved of garrison duties by follow on conventional brigades the 4th Davion Guards RCT opened February with a move to the world of Epsilon Indi. The limited defenders found themselves in a similar situation to those of the world of Fletcher, facing an elite and battle hardened RCT. Still they attempted to hold out with the hope that their neighbours on Epsilon Eridani would move to their aid. However the Eridani Guards, the former Epsilon Eridani SMM made no efforts to move to help them. Indeed the self proclaimed Duke Benton instead took the time to enter into a defensive pact with the Word of Blake on Terra. He was soon joined in this by the worlds of Keid, New Home and Bryant. The worlds of Liberty and Caph remained a battleground.
The nearby 4th Davion Guards RCT and 6th FedSun's Dragoons RCT would begin to support the pro-Davion forces on Caph with limited supplies and ammunition. A few older battlemechs were "lost" and would turn up on Caph in the hands of the supporters of the Davion loyal Duke.
From Deneb Kaitos the First Prince headed to Tikonov, where he landed amidst tight security. The Davion Assault Guards RCT took personal responsibility for their First Princes's safety, backing up his existing command force. It was no surprise that the new 1st Tikonov Cossacks were not included in the security arrangements. The protests, both pro-Tikonov and pro-Capellan were handled as gently as possible but there were still some riots at the arrival of the First Prince. After a long meeting with the planetary duke and officers of the Davion Assault Guards the First Prince was unfortunately convinced of the necessity of a strong garrison remaining on planet for the long term future. He did take the opportunity to announce some investments and expansions for the planet, including looking into expanding the Earthwerk's Incorporated factories in Tikograd with new designs. Although he left it vague as to what those designs would be.
Leaving Tikonov the First Prince then raced back to New Avalon. He was eager to get back and reassure people that he was still at the helm of government. After all Katherine his sister was still locked up on New Avalon and it would only take a handful of fools to destroy all the progress made so far in stabilising the realm.
In the Outback the first work began on the new Andoran Industries Ltd plant on Broken Wheel, while engineers began arriving at Filtvelt i preparation for beginning work there as well. Panpour's Challenge Systems began to begin assembling materials for a major expansion, while teams from New Sytris arrived at nearby Firgrove to begin upgrading the yards.
Back on Sian Chancellor Sun-Tzu began to set his affairs in order. Officers who had failed him were investigated and a number of them disappeared, including the few remaining officers of the 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry. It was borderline whether the entire unit would be purged, but a shortage of trained soldiers saved the rank and file. Another casualty was the captain of the CCS Zhejiang which would now require extensive repairs. In preparation for this and to avoid a similar disaster as the FedSun's seizing Necromo again the yards above Capella itself were ordered expanded and upgraded to support not only warship refits and repairs but also potentially construction.
The Sian Dragoons regiments were also ordered to be reorganised into augmented regiments. Each battlemech lance was to be reinforced with two combat vehicles in support. The shattered Warrior House Hiritsu was ordered to reform on this basis as a test subject. The Chancellor also began to look into reforming other historical brigades to bolster his position. During this time his sister Kali moved to Highspire permanently. While he would now no longer have full control as to her whereabouts Sun-Tzu was at least relieved to no longer have her mad ramblings constantly in his councils.
Sun-Tzu Liao also ordered that the legal fiction of the independence of the Sarna worlds was to be ended. Both Sarna and Sakhalin's brief independence was to be brought to an end. Immediately. To make the point he sent a battalion of his own Death Commandos to back up the Dynasty Guard. The reorganisation of the Victoria Commonality and Liao Commonality was also sped up.
In the FWL the FWS Venturer was finally laid down. Expansions of the shipyards were already in the works to begin building more.
Coordinator Theodore Kurita also announced that his cousin Miyako Kurita was expecting a child any day. A week of festivities was called for the impending birth. He also began looking into expanding his naval production in response to hints from his agents that the Federated Suns were doing likewise. As well as this he authorised the creation of a 4th Night Stalker regiment, to be filled with retiring officers and troops. He also enters into a contract with Clan Diamond Shark to purchase a large number of Ha Otoko battlemechs for his regiments.
March 3062
With his arrival back on New Avalon First Prince Victor wasted no time. His first order of business was to begin organising the transfer of his sister to her trial venue. The FSS Alexander Davion with a picked crew of officers and men was chosen as the transport, along with a small guard drawn from the 1st Davion Guards RCT. As far as the Draconis Combine border the ship would also be escorted by a large flotilla of combat dropships and floating aerospace wings.
He then formally announces the restoration of the 5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT to the active rolls as per his agreement with Marshal Terleki Jr. During the same release he notifies the people of the Federated Suns that the Clyde Shipyards will be granted permission to begin construction of the Excalibar class dropship, while he will be tendering bids from the various battlemech producing firms within the Federated Suns for a new battlemech factory sited on June. The winner of the bid will be rewarded with a battlemech contract to produce either Battlemasters, Flashmen or Battle Hawks for the AFFS.
In meetings with Jackson Davion the First Prince also asks that the Marshal of Armies gather a group of officers together to expand upon and improve the military educational facilities and training establishment of the AFFS. Three officers that the First Prince asks be on it are Fleet Admiral Buchwald, Admiral William Kossacks and Marshal Jon Davion. He also does suggest that Marshal's Terlerki jr, Venger and Talles be included along with the heads of the various academies, but leaves those choices to Marshal of the Armies Davion. They are to consider not only expansions but also ways to better educate the future generations of soldiers, naval personnel and officers.
Victor Davion also begins to negotiate with his cousin George Hasek for a proposed upgrade to the New Sytris shipyards. While they were previously only upgraded to be able to repair warships, the two men enter into a somewhat tense and protracted discussion about potentially expanding warship production to include these yards. At the very least there is initial agreement that jumpship production could be accommodated in the yards. Two designs are mooted, the Star Lord and Invader classes, with agreement reached eventually that New Sytris will begin preparing to build Star Lord class jumpships in the near future. If this goes well then the issue of warship production will be revisited.
During this month the last AFFS unit within the Lyran Alliance, the 4th Crucis Lancers RCT begins the long trek home.
Any thought's the various AFFS units had of attacking the worlds of the newly formed WOB Protectorate within the Chaos March are rudely interrupted when the WoBS Deliverance and Hidden Meaning begin patrolling these worlds. Seeing the resurgent Federated Sun's moving closer to Terra the WOB also begins a crash program of refitting any and all warship hulks they have within the Terran System. They also begin construction of 3 Dante class Frigates at Titan as well as entering into discussions with the FWL to build a number of Zechetinu II class Corvettes. Unbeknown to the FWLN the WOB has also acquired the plans for the corvette themselves and has the Titan shipyards begin to prepare to build a number of Zecetinu II in secret. They also have managed to acquire from agents within Comstar the specifications for the Suffren class Destroyers and are considering whether to put them into production as well.
On St Ives, Kai Allard-Liao is adjusting to being the new First Lord and also to being guarded by the Royal Black Watch Regiment. He deploys a number of SLDF flagged units such as the Eridani Light Horse to the Chaos March's borders... And even goes so far as to warn his friend First Prince Davion that further aggression might result in destabilising the Second Star League. The two don't exactly have an argument, but they do disagree. The 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment is formally enrolled within the SLDF and takes up official garrison duties on Tukayyid. He also begins to look into seeing if it might be possible to form a new Star League Navy. The problem is that ever single major power is already building it's own warships as frantically as it can, making it unlikely they will release space for Star League ships to be built. This is a matter which will continue to prey upon the First Lord's mind.
The First Lord is not the only one with warship's preying upon his mind. The Acting Protector of the Realm of the Taurian Concordant, Grover Shraplen, had been reading the reports of the aborted St Ives-Capellan War. The impact that the FSS Melissa Davion and her escorts had had by seizing Necromo had not been lost upon him. He resolved to quietly begin looking into a Taurian warship program, perhaps with aid from their new Capellan friends. In the meantime he ordered Chippewa, Shilone, Slayer, Sabre, Seydlitz, Lightning and Thunderbird production increased across the Concordant. As well as corresponding investments in pilot training.
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So what exactly did Victor get besides the designs you listed, if anything?
I think I would target the Spector, Talon and Archer in addition. Plus vehicles like the Packrat and Patton/Rommel.
I've left it vague as to what else he got - but think I can see your point on those designs. The Archer I suspect could be built at the Earthwerks plant on Tikonov, as the company owns rights to that design so he could push that without Lyran concessions. The Talon is produced by Blackstone which has a FedSuns design licensed to them, so might get that one through that option. Spector is another good design so might add that later. The vehicles are a lesser priority, given how many excellent tanks the FedSuns factories are producing.
Anyone else think of any designs/concessions that Victor could attempt to have gotten or get in the future for support for Tharkad against the clans?
Okay want to ask peoples opinions.
Warship production. I'm thinking the following build times (with some time after completion for trials).
Corvettes - 24 months
Destroyers/light carriers - 36 months
Cruisers/Frigates - 48 months
Carriers/Battleships - 60 months
Does that sound fair or am I off?
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I think you time to build it a bit off. Before the Titan yards are repaired those times would be far. I would go with 8 to 12 months for a corvette in larger yards. they have been building warships for almost a decade by now. they would have worked out a lot of the bugs. I would cut a year off of each of the other classes.
it also looks like Victor is going to need to build a few more lines for fighters. with more carriers and RCT wanting more fighters per unit that is going to drive a grab for more of those craft. I would go with a mix of lights and heavies. light for intercept and heavies for anti shipping
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Now I am sure the Prince’s visit to Tikonov was more cordial than that... or else I need to have the Rabkin relook the people’s protest permits. Tikonov is a loyal planet after all and dissection among the military rank and file against the Prince is not now, nor will ever be, tolerated.
The Duke of Tikonov
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I think you time to build it a bit off. Before the Titan yards are repaired those times would be far. I would go with 8 to 12 months for a corvette in larger yards. they have been building warships for almost a decade by now. they would have worked out a lot of the bugs. I would cut a year off of each of the other classes.
it also looks like Victor is going to need to build a few more lines for fighters. with more carriers and RCT wanting more fighters per unit that is going to drive a grab for more of those craft. I would go with a mix of lights and heavies. light for intercept and heavies for anti shipping
Hmmmm so a year for corvettes, 2 for a destroyer, 3 for a cruiser and 4 for a battleship?
Yeah in the next update Victor's going to be addressing the fact that he's going to need to increase fighter production.
Now I am sure the Prince’s visit to Tikonov was more cordial than that... or else I need to have the Rabkin relook the people’s protest permits. Tikonov is a loyal planet after all and dissection among the military rank and file against the Prince is not now, nor will ever be, tolerated.
The Duke of Tikonov
I do miss my days of writing stuff as the Duke of Tikonov... >:D Duke Ryan-Bowman was such a magnificent swine! ;)
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3062 - Second Quarter - Aerospace expansions
With Victor Davion back on New Avalon and Katherine Steiner-Davion being prepared for transfer to face trial the Federated Sun's almost universally breathed a sigh of relief. Both March Lords were firmly behind the First Prince as were the High Command and Government, while industrial expansions were providing a major boom in the economy across the realm. Additionally several new formations of troops were forming to bolster the nations defences.
April 3062
The start of April caused something of a stir on the Capellan March border. An unexpected jumpship jumped into Federated Suns space from the Confederation. This caused the usual scrambling of fighters and readying of defences but it was soon apparent this was not the prelude to an invasion or even a raid. Instead of enemy troops thirsty for blood the jumpship appeared to be carrying a single passenger, namely Isis Marik. Having been thrown out of the Capellan Confederation by her now former fiancee she had been unable to face going home to Atreus and so had decided to instead take refuge on New Avalon. First Prince Victor immedietly ordered the nearby FSS Brest to escort the jumpship and it's valuable passenger to New Avalon.
While he awaited the arrival of Isis Marik on New Avalon the First Prince kept himself busy. After his discussions with Marshal Terleki jr, Marshal of the Armies Davion and having read intelligence reports from the Taurian Concordant and the after action reports from Necromo he set out a number of goals to increase aerospace fighter production.
His initial meeting was with the directors of the New Avalon based Lycomb-Davion Introtech. In these he had the significant bonus of not only being their primary customer but also one of their primary shareholders. As such it took almost no effort at all to arrange for a large scale expansion. Not only did the company agree to begin expansions of their plant on New Avalon but they also agreed to begin work on a new plant on the world of June. Initially this was to have 2 lines producing the ever popular Stuka class aerospace fighter but further expansions to add lines for the Hellcat and Lightning were also planned.
Wangker Aerospace was the next of the realm's aerospace companies on the First Princes's list. Their Corsair fighter was one of the premier fighters of the AFFS and Prince Victor was keep to increase it's availability. The existing plant upon Axton was too close to the Capellan border for comfort as had been proven by the destruction and then rebuilding of the plant in the early Succession Wars, yet the company was extremely keen to avoid the production disruption a move might entail. In a series of meetings between the First Prince, his advisers and the executives an arrangement was finally reached.
In the short term the First Prince would fund via loans, stock purchases and long term contracts a doubling of the production of the Axton plant. In return Wangker would agree to build a twin facility on the planet of Filtvelt, chosen by the company for the promise of how integrated it would become with the building dropship yards and future jumpship yards which would keep shipping costs down. This would have the effect that when both the expansion and then new facility was online of quadrupling Corsair production. Additional lines for the Eagle and Thunderbird were planned at the new facility on Filtvelt as well, although it was left open that these lines might be built on a third world to give added redundancy.
While these discussions were on going Marshal of the Armies Davion in consultation with the First Prince ordered a number of cadets drawn from the Point Barrow, Kilbourne and Filtvelt Academies and the realm's Training Battalions to be sent to the 11th and 12th FedSun's Dragoons RCT. The best of the cadets were concentrated in adding a company to the 12th Dragoons, while the remainder were sent to the 11th. The 11th was the most under strength of any of the front line RCT's of the Federated Suns and also had a surplus of equipment they had brought with them from the Lyran Alliance. This did result in the experience rating for the 11th FedSun's Dragoons dropping to green with the influx of cadets, but it doubled it's strength to 2 full battalions.
A smaller number of cadets, numbering two companies were divided up between the reforming Mayetta DMM and the under strength Islamabad CrMM. Every effort was taken to try and assemble these companies from natives to those regions, but in a few cases exceptions had to be made. Particularly in the case of the Islamabad CrMM this would leave the new recruits feeling isolated in a foreign environment. Over time these cadets, now seasoned from experience with the unit, would be transferred out to more appropriate commands and their place taken by Islamabad natives.
May 3062
Even as the jumpship carrying Isis Marik was approaching New Avalon First Prince Victor continued to hold meetings with various companies. He also announced a 3 month period to end on the 31st August 3062 for any and all bids for his previously declared bidding process for a new battlemech production facility.
His next meeting was with the executives from Jalastar Aerospace. Unlike the others their company was already in what was considered the Outback. This meant that they wouldn't be required to add a new facility. However given their proximity to the Taurian border as well as a long term problem with pirates the company had been struggling. In a meeting which ran for much longer than scheduled and indeed expanding into the period that the First Prince had allowed for welcoming his new guest to New Avalon the First Prince and the executives attempted to find a solution to the problem.
With the expansions of the shipyards at Panpour which were owned by Challenge Systems the system had acquired an urgency for a more permanent and robust garrison than the corporate security and militia's which currently defended it. In return for long term contracts and investments in lostech Jalastar Aerospace (and Challenge System's who were brought into the discussions towards the end) agreed to partially fund the creation of a new Avalon Hussar RCT. The officer corp of this unit was to be drawn from the retired AFFS and AFFC veteran's of the companies security arrangements and appointee's from New Avalon while the remainder would be fleshed out by the pick of Panpour's militia's and newly graduating cadets. This unit would be given a semi-permanent posting within the system and would be augmented with additional aerospace fighter wings, armour regiments and infantry regiments than would expand it from the norm, and these would if the unit was called away remain within the system to protect it. This unit would begin forming in the Fourth Quarter of the year. A Fox class Corvette was also to be home ported within the system and to conduct patrols based there.
In return for these defensive upgrades Jalastar Aerospace agreed to increase production of it's Sabre and particularly Sparrowhawk fighters, with contracts promised into the late 3070s for both fighters. The AFFS effectively promised to buy any and all Sparrowhawks that Jalastar could build up to an extremely high limit. The AFFS also agreed to increased purchases of the Centurions battlemech's produced at Jalastar by at least 50% as well as to a lesser extent the Javelins and Grasshopper mechs. A final agreement was made that Jalastar would reintroduce production of the Jabberwocky Industrial Mech at a new custom built plant which would be partially funded by the Federated Suns Government. Vague suggestions of a future Aerospace Academy were also discussed.
About half way through these discussions the First Prince was called away to greet Isis Marik. Perhaps as a pointed insult to Chancellor Sun-Tzu and indeed some even suggested her remote and distant father the Captain General he greeted her with a full reception. The 1st Davion Guards RCT and 1st Revenant Guards RCT paraded for her benefit while the New Avalon CrMM was drawn up in serried ranks along the route from the spaceport, through Avalon City and up to the Royal Palace at Mount Davion. Every effort was made to show of the grandeur and power of the AFFS for not only Isis Marik but also the watching holo-vid cameras which were transmitting throughout the Inner Sphere. Of particular note was the entire regiment of over 1000 Battle Armoured troopers drawn up along the driveway of the palace itself - although it wasn't mentioned that these were drawn from all 3 front line commands on New Avalon as well as a few of the cadet's of the local academies.
Quite what Isis Marik made of it all wasn't commented upon, although she was very publicly granted "asylum" here on New Avalon for as long as she wished under the personal protection of First Prince Davion, House Davion and the AFFS. The wording of the invitation to stay again raised eyebrows throughout the Sphere. In the FWL Parliament questions were raised as to why a daughter of House Marik might flee to the Davion's rather than return to her own father. Questions which went unanswered. Tensions on not only the Davion-Liao border but also the Marik-Liao border escalated.
Welcoming Isis Marik to the Federated Sun's would take up much of the First Princes's time for the remainder of the month and what little time was left over was taken up with finishing the discussions with Jalastar Aerospae and lately Challenge Systems.
In response to these escalating tensions Chancellor Liao ordered work on expanding the Capella system's shipyards intensified. Even the ruinous cost of accelerating these expansions were signed off without a second thought. Trapped between two foes who individually had a superior navy to the Capellan Confederation necessitated an increase its navy as quickly as possible.
Therefore when Protector Shraplen's envoys arrived on Sian to discuss naval cooperation they found a receptive audience. The only stipulation that Sun-Tzu insisted on was drawing the Canopian's into the deal.
Achernar Battlemech's and Robinson Standard BattleWorks also debuted the Argus battlemech and put it into production. Contracts were signed for the new battlemech that would ensure production until the end of the decade. The first of these mech's would find their way to the Robinson Ranger's brigade and to the expanding Avalon Hussars brigade.
By the end of May the new Avalon Hussars RCT's and the existing 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT had taken up their postings within the Outback and had began to make anti-pirate patrols from their bases. They were often aided in this by the local academies training units and local March Militias.
June 3062
As June began the First Prince returned to his stated goal of expanding Aerospace production within the Federated Suns. His efforts were largely concentrated on the Capellan March at the current time. George Hasek was given the go ahead to announce the impending construction of Star Lord jumpships at New Sytris and in continued discussions with his Prince was assured that warship contracts were almost a certainty as long as the production of the Star Lords went well. Although teething problems were to be expected and discounted.
The Warrior's Hall on New Syrtis was also announced receive upgrades to add a naval training (initially consisting of jumpship and dropship crews) facility and aerospace pilot facilities. In return at his own expense Duke Hasek would fund the equipping and formation of a reinforced Training Battalion for the academy to bring it in line with the other academies within the realm.
In addition to the training battalion the Duke was also to use his influence on the prominent Johnston family regarding Dagger-O production. The new Omnifighter was being debuted that year and the pre-production models and first runs had already been assigned and met universal acclaim fro the pilots who were flying them. Taking a gamble the First Prince wanted to not only look at expanded production at the two existing plants but also to add more plants. After bringing the Duke of Robinson into the discussions it was agreed that Duke George would put to the Johnston's that the Federated Sun's would help in expanding the existing plants on New Syrtis and Addicks and in return they would expand their component's factory on Benet III to full production and add a new plant on Novaya Zemlya. The plants on Benet III and Novaya Zemlya would be part funded by the dukes of the respective Marches as well as New Avalon.
From the current production of 2 lines on New Syrtis and 1 on Addicks the Dagger-O's production would increase to 3 lines on New Syrtis, 2 on Addicks, 1 on Benet III and another on 2 Novaya Zemlya. It was however noted that none of the production lines would be based within the Crucis March. This was something that First Prince Victor wished to see changed. He was content for now however.
Given these huge increases in aerospace production the First Prince met with Fleet Admiral Buchwald and Marshal Jon Davion and explained that including within their plans for expansions of the various academies he would require a large scale increase in the number of aerospace pilots and technicians graduating. His initial thoughts were for the current Armstrong Flight Academy to be expanded upon, but he wished two smaller new academies to be considered although these plans were less defined. His initial thoughts were to place the new facilities on either Filtvelt, Panpour or Novaya Zemlya. The last one seemed something of a strange option to the assembled officers, but they agreed to look into all three potential venues.
While they were there he discussed with them the proposed Morgan Hasek-Davion Martial Academy as well as an expansion of Filtvelt to producing an entire regiment of cadets rather than it's current 5 companies.
Diplomatically feelers were put out during this time period towards the Wolf's Dragoons on Outreach to see if they would consider rejoining the Federated Suns, but these were rebuffed quickly. Discussions did however continue regarding a mutual defensive pact should the WOB turn hostile.
While most of these discussions were done behind closed doors, the mere fact that the First Prince was spending so much time in discussions with various Aerospace firms was not possible to be hidden. In response to these the museum ship the DCS Togura was prepared for a move to Midway. The ancient warship was reinforced as best was possible by engineers in preparation for the move. Privately many of them thought the Coordinator mad if he thought the borderline wreck could be returned to active service.
Along with the work on the DCS Togura the Coordinator passed orders for the various Aerospace manufacturers within his realm to increase production. Wakazashi Enterprise in particular was instructed to massively increase it's output. Already dominating the market with nearly 70% of all aerospace production the company would soon see that figure climb to nearly 85% as more and more government funds poured into their expansions. Skilled workers were press ganged from nearby systems and moved in troop transports to Dover to help expand production again and then again.
Within the FWL Parliament agreed to the WOB's offer to purchase a full dozen Zechetinu II Corvettes. The profits from this sale would then be used to expand production of the Corvette for the FWL's own navy. The WOB immediately transferred large sums of cash and industrial goods from Terra to the FWL to fund the expansion Illium Shipyards over Ionus and also sent a large number of technical advisers to help. They also at this time made enquiries about further purchases of Venturer class Light Cruisers.
On Sian the Chancellor, faced with the reports pouring in of massive planned increases in fighter production within the Federated Sun's also ordered his own fighter production increase. To bolster this he also made generous offers to both the Taurian Concordant and the Magistracy of Canopus to buy aerospace fighters from them, offering in partial payment industrial upgrades with new technology. As a particular incentive to the Canopians to join he and the Taurian's proposed warship plans he offered to fully fund a new industrial facility to restart production of an updated Dragonfly aerospace fighter on Canopus. The Taurian's immedietly accepted his proposal and the Canopians were only a week behind them.
At the end of June the FSS Alexander Davion and it's escorts left the New Avalon System with it's prisoner safely aboard to begin the journey to the Star League Courts. Faced with the prospect of either having to travel through the Lyran Alliance or the Draconis Combine it had reluctantly been agreed to request passage through the realm of House Kurita. This request had after some discussions been granted.
Also near the end of June Tancred Sandoval contacted the First Prince to discuss the growing relationship between himself and Victor's sister Yvonne. The two old friends both found the conversation awkward.
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One consideration Victor should look at in negotiating with Nondi (or a new Archon assuming Katherine is removed), is licensing components for 'Mechs, tanks and fighters.
After decades of intermixing, the AFFS has a lot of Lyran-built equipment (and vice versa). Keeping those operating in the long term will be much easier if spare parts can be built locally, so reciprocal deals like this will be important to both states.
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Any chance we’ll be returning to narrative for a while? The endless textbook entries are a bit dragging ... having Isis and Victors first private meeting would be interesting ...
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One consideration Victor should look at in negotiating with Nondi (or a new Archon assuming Katherine is removed), is licensing components for 'Mechs, tanks and fighters.
After decades of intermixing, the AFFS has a lot of Lyran-built equipment (and vice versa). Keeping those operating in the long term will be much easier if spare parts can be built locally, so reciprocal deals like this will be important to both states.
Hmmmm good point. I'll see about covering that at a later post. Perhaps even have Jackson/Nondi discuss it.
I can certainly try and add a dialogue piece soon.
Any chance we’ll be returning to narrative for a while? The endless textbook entries are a bit dragging ... having Isis and Victors first private meeting would be interesting ...
I'll see what I can do... ;)
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July 3062 - A Friendly Dinner
3rd July 3062
Davion Palace
Grand Avalon Mountain Range
New Avalon
New Avalon Combat Region
Coreward Combat Theatre (Markessan Operation's Area)
Crucis March
Federated Sun's
The CEO of Achernar Battlemech's Paul LeBeau walked into the small private dining area within the palace and only years of the board room intrigues that had elevated him to the top of one of the FedSun's most prestigious firms kept the surprise from showing on his face. Instead decades of experience had him flash his customary warm smile at his host and the other guest, who he had not been made aware would be in attendance, as he bowed deeply. "Your Highness, First Prince Victor I was honoured by your invitation... And Duchess Marik it is an unexpected pleasure to see you here tonight."
As he rose from the bow Paul wasn't surprised to see amusement on Victor Davion's face, yet he was surprised at the intelligence and awareness of his shock glittering in the eyes of Isis Marik. None of the reports he had seen on the wayward scion of House Marik had suggested she was anything other than a pretty decoration which her father had handed out to Sun-Tzu Liao to cement their pact, and which had then been discarded by the Chancellor when she no longer suited his needs. Interesting. He would have to have words with the Vice President in charge of maintaining their dossiers of the various VIP's.
Victor chuckled ruefully and extended his hand for a handshake. "Mr LeBeau, perhaps you'd do me the small favour of at least for this evening of not referring to myself and Lady Isis by our full titles... Duke Victor and Lady Isis should do for now... It will make the conversation a great deal less stilted. As for Lady Isis's presence, it was her suggestion actually that I meet with you over dinner rather than in a more formal setting with aides, generals and other hangers on!"
The CEO bowed his head again in the direction of the smiling Marik. "In that case, please call me Paul in return and if you will permit me Your Highness... I mean Duke Victor, I would extend my thank's to Lady Isis for the suggestion. A dinner invitation to the Palace is a much sought after social coup. I will be the envy of every CEO and Noble on New Avalon due to her suggestion!"
Both nobles and the CEO chuckled at the truth in the jest. It was after all a fair comment. As they made small talk for a few minutes a liveried servant arrived to inform them that the dinner was now ready.
As the meal progressed Paul LeBeau found himself more and more talking with Isis Marik about the various products and aspects of his company while his own Prince seemed to be more entranced with his meal. At first Paul found himself almost irritated by this but he soon realised that the First Prince was not ignoring him nor indeed was he so taken with the admittedly fine food as to be ignoring his guests. No, the First Prince was allowing the Lady Marik to steer the conversation exactly where he wanted it to go. Strangely as the discussion progressed he found himself discussing less and less about the military products of Achernar Battlemech's and more the civilian side. Particularly industrial mech's. Interesting. It was however clear that although Isis was obviously working on a prearranged script, her interest in the various way's that Achernar's products could better the lives of the common people was genuine. Again, interesting.
Victor finally entered the conversation as the last of the desert plates were lifted, speaking as he nodded his thanks to the servant removing his plate. "I have to say I have found your conversation with Lady Isis incredibly interesting Paul. While I of course know the fine military products of your company I had no idea as to the extensive nature of the civilian products you provide!"
While LeBeau found it hard to believe the claim of ignorance from his Prince he smiled and nodded back. "Oh yes Duke Victor... In fact according to the latest report across my desk the military and defence related sales only account for roughly 24% of our revenue stream..."
"Fascinating... And you know it makes me think. As you are no doubt aware I've been looking into supporting expansions of the military-industrial complex within the Federated Suns... Investing in our Outback region... And I doubt you'll be surprised that Achernar Battlemech's has featured prominently within those plans." Victor flashed a professional smile at the CEO who returned it with one equally bland. "Now however I'm thinking of expanding the role I had in mind for Achernar..."
"Expanding in what way Duke Victor?" It hadn't escaped Paul's notice that as Victor had entered the battle as it were, his proxy had withdrawn to sit smiling and sipping her wine.
"Well initially I had thought a small battlemech manufacturing centre, perhaps on Filtvelt or a similar world, producing Enforcers and Dervishes... But now I have a much larger, grander idea. What would you say, merely provisionally on further discussions of course, to a proposal for a large scale industrial complex producing a large number of your AgroMech and Dig Lord industrial mech's? Perhaps even expanding to include licensed designs from the Lyran Alliance?" Victor held his empty glass up with a nod to the server who refilled it.
Paul sat back and pretended to consider the suggestion, although he had of course seen it coming nearly half an hour ago and had been running the numbers through his head even as he had duelled verbally with Lady Isis. "An interesting suggestion... A very interesting concept indeed. One that could bring not only large scale profits for my company, but also huge economic benefits to the Outback I would say... Provided it was done correctly and properly financed."
"Of course." Victor agreed.
"And your original proposal? For a new plant to expand Enforcer and Dervish production? Would that be cancelled or...?" The CEO probed.
"Oh most definitely not. Instead I would see the battlemech production facility as an annex to the industrial mech facility. Indeed it might even cut some costs and so lead to further expansions in not only numbers but products..." Victor met his subject's eyes and left unsaid was the mention of Achernar's newest subsidiary Albion Advanced Technologies and Products, which was providing the AFFS with a very large percentage of it's battle armour designs. Such things clearly couldn't be discussed in front of Lady Marik.
"My Lord Prince... I think, as you say on a provisional basis and subject to proper discussions by the relevant government and company officials, that I can promise you that the board of directors and indeed the stockholders would look upon such a proposed expansion... Most favourably." The CEO's smile was matched by that of the First Princes's, while Isis Marik smiled warmly at them both and joined in Victor's toast to the success of this new project.
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3062 - Third Quarter - An old solution to a new problem
With Isis Marik now granted asylum and Katherine Steiner-Davion heading to face her trial the situation on New Avalon had at least quieted down somewhat. Between military reviews, inspections of the various units on the planet and planning sessions with the High Command - on top of the usual business of government which being First Prince entailed, Victor also took some time out to show Isis around the capital. After some discussion she was even granted leave by the First Prince to attend the NAIS, although not on any of the more sensitive courses.
July 3062
Within the Addicks and Achernar PDZ a number of raids and counter raids began, mostly concentrated around the worlds of Caph and Epsilon Indi. The 1st FedSun's Dragoons would join with the 6th Dragoons and 4th Davion Guards to funnel supplies and equipment to the pro-Davion factions on the planet. In return the WOB's Divisions would begin to raid the still somewhat tenuously held world of Epsilon Indi and supply resistance groups on that world. This would eventually lead the 4th's Marshal Orsina to request a third aerospace wing be attached to her RCT to help in preventing these raids. This request would be granted in August, but the new wing wouldn't arrive until October. It would however have been upgraded with a full flight of Dagger-O from the nearby plant on Addicks.
Duke George Hasek on New Syrtis also during July began assembling mech's from all over the Capellan March to outfit the 4 companies of the Warrior Hall's Training Battalion. Only the finest battlemechs would be chosen and only mech's from within his own March. The unit would be built up not only as a training battalion but also as a showcase for the technological and industrial might of the Capellan March. Leading the way in this endeavour were a demi-company of Templar-O Omnimechs. He also began arranging the equipment for an attached armour battalion, infantry special forces battalion complete with battle armour contingent and fighter wing. The Warrior Hall's Training Battalion was to be formed up as a total combined arms regiment.
The Duke also began considering at this time whether or not to push for either an additional New Syrtis Fusiliers RCT to be formed or to attempt to reform either the 1st Kathil Uhlans or the Kathil CMM. Or indeed push for all three. It was during these considerations that he began to consider breaking off the 4th battalion of the New Syrtis CMM in order to form a core for any new unit, as Victor Davion had done with the Avalon Hussars, although he was reluctant to do the same with the 6th New Syrtis Fusiliers in case New Avalon then declared the unit to be reduced to a "mere" regiment. He did however take the opportunity to break off a company each of the finest warriors of the New Syrtis CMM to be sent to the 5th and 6th Fusiliers to help in their rebuilding while maintaining their experience levels. He replaced the warriors taken from the March Militia with graduating cadets.
The building of both the Broken Wheel the Andoran Industries Ltd plant began to pick up pace with enthusiastic support from the locals. The first of the Clint specific machinery began arriving from Bell and was soon being placed within the new factory units. The plant would only enter limited production by the second quarter of 3063 and not reach full production levels until 3064, but by the end of 3062 a number of spare parts were being produced.
On Filvelt the dropship assembly and construction yards were proceeding although were slowing down due to a lack of labour and available manpower. This would result in a large scale migration to the world and huge construction boom across the planet. Long dormant and abandoned cities would be brought back into civilisation, with almost every area of the local economy seeing a huge boom, even the agricultural sector which had been the mainstay of the planet for centuries. This shortage however was threatening to delay the construction until the Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion stepped in and began helping to build the facilities with their battlemechs.
The 1st Avalon Hussars RCT on Abbeyville countered a pirate raid on Kentwood during late July and into August. The under strength company sized raiding force of pirates clearly hadn't received word of the regions new defenders. The 1st Avalon's Hussars attached fighter wing began the proceedings by strafing the landed Union and Mule dropships, while in space battle armoured infantry from the 1st Avalon Hussars Armoured Battalion seized the pirate merchant class jumpship. Stranded on the planet the pirates attempted to fade into the wilderness, but the enraged locals knew the terrain much better than the pirates and led the Hussar's hunter groups to each would be hiding spot of the pirates. The 3 pirate battlemech's that were in any salvageable condition after the fighting were donated to the local planetary defence force to rebuild and use.
Within the Lyran Alliance word had leaked out about the transfer of the Archon to face trial and the LAAF was soon stretched to it's limit trying to suppress protests against this action. Indeed some of it's key units such as the 2nd Royal Guards were unprepared to suppress the riots and were in fact in danger of joining them. General of the Armies Nondi Steiner attempted as best she could to call for calm, but she was now forced to realise that on both sides her prestige was incredibly damaged and fading fast. A brief respite came when the huge LAS Yggdrasil was launched, but this lasted only a few days. Nondi Steiner was barely able to get funding approved through the Estates General to being construction of a second Mjolnir class vessel and her attempt to add a second slip to increase production was defeated roundly.
The launch of the LAS Yggdrasil with it's heavy armoured bulk began to cause some consternation within the FWLN during this time and they began to look into some more robustly armoured designs for a battleship. The plans for the Atreus class battleship were looked into and considered for modernisation, as all agreed that the design was a relic.
The Ionus yards began a massive expansion with 4 slips planned to augment the existing Zechetinu slips. The plan was for 4 ships to be laid down in each, 3 for the WOB and 1 for the FWLN paid for by the profits of the sale of the first 3. Along with the existing slips which were adding 2 Corvettes a year to the fleet, although the FWL Parliament had been asked to increase the FWL only slips to 3 or better yet 4 as well. The Parliament was reluctant to do this as they pointed out that after the WOB contract was fulfilled Ionus would have 6 corvette slips for the FWL. Adding 2 more to that seemed excessive to the bean counters, particularly as they were aware the FWLN was pushing for a battleship design as well.
The Capellan yards during July began to be physically upgraded and expanded with 2 large slips starting to be constructed. A large number of the men and women invovled in building these yards proved later to be of Taurian origin, in fact many turned out to be members of the Taurian Concordant's famed Special Asteriod Support Force. Extensively trained in zero-gravity and fanatically loyal they made the ideal work forces for this urgent project. In return for this support the Chancellor agreed to provide advisers and technical assistance to help build a warship production facility within the Concordant.
First Lord Kai Allard-Liao initiates a major program of refugee assistance across the Sphere. This of course helps his own realm, but large numbers of refugees from the Clan Invasion, Chaos March and other "minor" conflicts also benefit from this program. As Duke of St Ives's he also begins work on repairing the Indicass Ceres Metals Plant, while beginning to rebuild his shattered and damaged military commands. Expansion of the Janissary Brigade is put on hold although not ended.
August 3062
Within the Federated Suns the month of August is dominated by the various military-industrial complexes submitting their bids for the new factory to be placed on June. Almost every large scale company make at least a token bid, with most of them making genuine efforts to win the contract. Achernar Battlemech's, Jalastar Aerospace and Robinson Standard BattleWork's however only make token bids as they have already recieved or are discussions to obtain contracts. There are soon however a number of front runners.
Corean Enterprises is the first of these front running bids. They have entered a strong and well put together proposal for an initial factory consisting of a single line of Valkyrie battlemechs with future expansions adding the Centurion battlemech and potentially a number of vehicle designs along with additional lines of Centurions and Valkries.
The next bid is from GM who have a more ambitious initial plan begin production with the ever popular Marauder class battlemech along with a line for the Falconer battlemech and another one for their Wasp design. Alongside these three battlemech designs they propose to also construct at the same time a large plant for the construction of APC's of both standard and heavy design and expand this with lines to produce their Challenger MBT. A further annex is proposed to add Cavalier battle armour to the site.
Kallon Industries bid is one for a complex containing 3 lines of battlemech production. The first and most controversial of these is a line for Templar-O production. This line in itself is likely to cause a degree of resentment from Duke Hasek of New Syrtis, but it is the key component to their bid. The two additional lines will produce the ever popular Enforcer and Jagermech designs.
A rank outsider, but one which is noted for it's local nature, is that of Outback FarmMech's. They have proposed constructing (while admitting it would require large scale technical help from the FedSuns Government) a locally built, locally owned facility to produce either the Stinger, Wasp or Locust battlemech design. They do at least have the "inside track" of already owning a facility on Filtvelt.
Overshadowing these bids at least in the eyes of the High Command is the formal announcement from the Capellan Confederation, Magistracy of Canopus and Taurian Concordant of the Trinity Alliance. Immediately Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion begins preparing to reinforce the Taurian frontier, effectually treating it as an extension of the front line of the Capellan Confederation. Midale, Brockway and Hyalite have their garrisons bolstered by the 4th Crucis Lancers RCT, 2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT and 10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT's respectively. Even this leaves the border considerably lighter on forces than the Marshal would like. As such the 12th FedSun's Dragoons RCT begins the long trip from the Achernar PDZ to take up station on Montour. While the Blue Star Irregulars, still in transit from their posting on the Clan Border is rerouted to Firgrove to act as a mobile reserve. While their the mercenaries Fredessa Corvette can hopefully undergo a refit at the New Syrtis yards.
The First Princes's expansion of the AFFS which already had the vast majority of the High Command wildly enthused now has appeared almost prescient. The Federated Suns's border with their rivals has now became even more dangerously stretched and the Taurian Concordant's well trained and equipped regiments appear to be a dagger held at the belly of the Capellan March. Further expansions are immedietly looked into to bolster this dangerous flank.
During these discussions various members of the High Command and various brigades commanding officers put forward arguments for various expansions. Unsurprisingly the most favoured options include expanding the New Syrtis Fusiliers brigade by at least 1 RCT and adding more Avalon Hussars RCT's, although Marshal Talles of the Ceti Hussars brigade and the returned Marshal Venger of the FedSun's Dragoons brigade make strong arguments for their own brigades to be expanded. The First Prince and the Marshal of Armies listen to all of the various proposals, including even one from the Major General Fortuna of the Robinson Rangers standing in for Duke Sandoval for the formation of a new Robinson Rangers regiment to free up another unit to move to the Taurian border. Fleet Admiral Buchwald also makes a strong case for increased Fox Corvette production. In this the Admiral is joined by Marshal Nathaniel Hasek on behalf of his patron Duke Hasek.
While engaged with these meetings the First Prince also contacted Earthwerks Incorporated and requested that they expand their production facilities on Tikonov to include an Archer battlemech variant. As the company already produces this battlemech at other non-Federated Suns sites it is felt that this is the easiest way to add this battlemech to those produced within the Federated Suns without having to engage in lengthy legal wrangles or license agreements. With guaranteed contracts on offer Earthwerks agrees within a matter of weeks and as soon as the contracts are signed begins construction of the new facility drawing on the huge industrial potential of Tikonov. This also has the added benefit of increasing jobs on Tikonov and will be played as such to the people to help pro-Davion sentiment. The new line will be completed in late 3063, although spare parts for the existing AFFS Archers will be being produced well before then.
After a lengthy and torturous journey the FSS Alexander Davion arrives at Tukayyid and hands over it's prestigious prisoner to the ComGuards and SLDF garrison there. The warship then begins it's way home, although without the danger of attempts to free the Archon it now does so via the Lyran Alliance. On it's way home it makes a small detour to Arc Royal where it engages in war games with the WiE fleet.
Secretly the first of the WOB Zechetinu II are laid down at the Titan Yards during August. Alongside the 3 Dante Frigates, 4 slips begin constructing the Corvette. As well as numerous wrecks being refitted to active duty.
The DCS Togura finally leaves its long term orbit within the New Samarkand system and begins making it's way to Midway. The path had to be chosen to either take the most direct route and least jumps or to pass through occupied systems. Given the incredibly fragile nature of the jump drives the shortest route is taken, with escorting jumpships carrying spare parts, engineers and repair crews going along with every jump. It will still take the decrepit warship until the end of the year to reach Midway and by then it will almost be falling apart.
The FSS Robinson is officially commissioned and begins a long shakedown cruise. While the initial cruise will take it to Robinson and then along the Draconis March border and into the Addick's PDZ it is then intended that it head down through the Capellan March and jump to take up station at Panpour. So keeping the First Princes's agreement with the executives of Jalastar Aerospace and Challenge Systems.
September 3062
September begins with the First Prince announcing that he and his advisers will take into account all of the bids submitted for a new battlemech factory on June and will decide upon the winning bid by the end of October. He does however comment that almost every proposal has a great deal of merit and he will be looking at even the unsuccessful bids closely to see if further opportunities may be available.
With the full support of the Federated Sun's Government the expansion of the Robinson BattleWorks plant with a new line for the Sagitaire is proceeding at pace. While initially intended to begin full scale production in mid 3063 this date has been brought forward to January 3063.
The planned upgrades on the Clyde Shipyards at Firgrove have now progressed far enough that the first Excalibur dropship begins to be constructed with another 2 expected to be laid down in short succession. Teething problems will delay the construction of these first 3 ships to almost double the normal for the design. However as the yards become more used to building dropships from the ground up output will increase.
The first new Monolith yard at Panpour is also approaching completion, and will lay down it's first jumpship in December. The two Congress-D yards are further behind as they are being constructed in secret. Still the first is expected to be ready to lay down a warship by February 3063 and the second of the yards roughly 4 months later.
Also at Panpour the first trickles of arriving troops and officers began to arrive to help form the cadre for the new defensive unit. Provisionally listed as the 2nd Avalon Hussars RCT it will when fully formed consist of a reinforced battlemech regiment, 3 aerospace wings, 4 armour regiments and 8 infantry regiments in a similar fashion to the 42nd. When called away from Panpour it is expected that the 4th Battalion, 1 aerospace wing, 1 armour regiment and 3 infantry regiments will remain to garrison the world. Of course for now barely a tenth of that force has began to assemble. Still as a nod to the local support it is the 4th Battalion which will be formed first.
In a much smaller meeting than the full High Command First Prince Victor and his Marshal of Armies and Princes Champion discuss the options proposed by the High Command for expanding the AFFS on the evening of the 23rd September. All three men agree that although expanding the Avalon Hussars brigade further is the easiest option it should perhaps be postponed for the time being. Since his initial meeting with Marshal Waters on the 12th June 3061 the First Prince has reinforced the brigade by no fewer than 5 RCT (if you include the provisional 2nd) and expanded the 41st to a full RCT. Further expansions risk diluting the Avalon Hussars esprit de corp.
Which left the dilemma of what units should be added to the AFFS's roster. The three men agreed that the Capellan March's Duke Hasek would almost certainly demand a New Syrtis Fusiliers unit be raised as a priority and while Ardan Sortek in particular was historically somewhat nervous about this they could see the reasoning. All three agreed that in the coming year a New Syrtis Fusilier unit would be raised, they would leave the numbering up to George Hasek. And it was strongly hinted by Jackson Davion that the forceful duke could be pressured into contributing to it's formation from the industrial might of his March.
While the three men argue into the night on whether to form a 3rd Chisholm Raiders unit or a 2nd or 13th FedSun's Dragoons RCT or even a 4th Ceti Hussars formation they cannot seem to find an agreement of what is the best option. Until finally, after perhaps one too many brandies, the Prince's Champion Ardan Sortek mutters that perhaps the best option might be to just reconstitute the Dragonlords brigade. Which has the other two men stop in their argument and stare at him.
The next day the First Prince, Marshal of the Armies and Prince's Champion inform the High Command that they have came to a decision on reinforcing the Taurian border. When the current year's cadets graduate from the Training Cadres and Academies they will be used to continue expanding the forming Avalon Hussars units as well as to form two new additional units. The first of these will be an additional New Syrtis Fusiliers but the second will be a reformation of the 1st Dragonlords. The First Prince announces to the shocked officers that as per the first formation of this brigade it's officer corp will be drawn from the Davion Brigade of Guards.
During the same meeting and when the furore has calmed down, they inform the Fleet Admiral that 2 additional Fox Corvette slips will be constructed at Galax and that a new slip will be constructed at Kathil for Avalon cruiser construction. The First Prince after this meeting will speak with the Admiral Buchwald and Nathaniel Hasek and discuss with them how quickly a redesign of the Davion II Destroyer might be done to upgrade it to the modern era as the Davion III and it placed in production at New Syrtis as well as Galax or Delavan.
The ComGuards announced that the CVS Anastasius Focht, a Suffren class Destroyer, was completed and would be entering service as part of their First Independent Squadron. This announcement drew the attention of the First Lord and he requested a meeting with the Precentor Martial to discuss an SLDF warship program. This would be scheduled for early 3063.
On Sian the 3rd and 4th Sian Dragoons are listed as active. Although all 4 commands remain massively under strength.
At Necromo the Franco Martel's launching is delayed until early 3063 due to a break in production while occupied by the 2nd Davion Guards. This will delay the repairs to the CCS Zhejing.
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I think the next dialogue post will be the discussion over drinks between Victor, Jackson and Ardan btw.
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I do not care what style you write in. as long as you are happy and I get more to read.
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I do not care what style you write in. as long as you are happy and I get more to read.
Agreed. I find it an interesting read and am enjoying it
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I do not care what style you write in. as long as you are happy and I get more to read.
Agreed. I find it an interesting read and am enjoying it
oh yes, more please
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I do not care what style you write in. as long as you are happy and I get more to read.
Agreed. I find it an interesting read and am enjoying it
oh yes, more please
Why thank you. Do enjoy writing this - although I hadn't realised just how much WORK it was going to be. I've got almost every field manual, house book and tech manual I own scattered all over the living room! lol
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I am enjoying this: everything written is nicely done IMO :thumbsup:
Thank you very much ;)
But I have one nitpick: in several posts "Sytris" instead of correctly Syrtis is being used about 15-20 times. 8)
Best Regards,
Christian
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3062 - Fourth Quarter - The Dragon at bay
Throughout the entire Second Star League (and as it turned out beyond) the eyes of almost everyone were drawn to the world of Tukayyid for the second time in less than a decade. This time however it wasn't to watch any grand armies but instead a single trial which would begin on the 1st of November 3062. Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion was to be tried for a frankly huge number of crimes the list of which almost filled it's own ring binder, but the two which stood out above all the others were those of High Treason and the Murder of her mother the almost universally beloved Melissa Steiner-Davion. Even within those realms which had no direct relationship with Melissa Steiner-Davion the woman had become something of a mythic figure of a benevolent ruler. While many still maintained the belief that it had been her son Victor who had arranged her death the growing feeling was that perhaps it had been Katherine who had committed the foul act.
October 3062
Having had time for each of the major bids from the various companies to be examined by the relevant experts within the Government and Military over the last month First Prince Victor calls a press conference to discuss their findings on the 31st October. Share prices in all of the major companies rise and fall depending on which one looks like it will win the contract.
The first half of October's news feeds are filled with the various legal officers chosen by Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion (she had initially refused to take part in proceedings but had seen sense when it was explained that the trial would go ahead regardless) making various motions to adjourn the trial's date, change the trial's venue and contest the jurisdiction. While normally this would have led to long and complex delays, the judges of the new Star League Courts were minded to push forward as quickly as possible. The news reports from the Lyran Alliance were filled with riots and borderline mutinies. The state was literally tearing itself apart over this trial and hovered on the verge of civil war. They had to begin and finish as soon as was practicable.
First Lord Kai Allard-Liao in response to the difficulties of a member state offered the services of SLDF Peacekeepers, but this was refused by General of the Armies Nondi Steiner. However she did begin hiring a number of smaller mercenary units, most of non-Lyran origin to act as troubleshooters.
Also during the first few weeks of October Marshal Jon Davion of the Davion Heavy Guards, prompted by the announcement of the potential return of the Dragonlords to the active rolls of the AFFS Roster began to do some research and discuss matters with Marshal Halles of the Ceti Hussars. In early November he will take his idea's to the Marshal of Armies.
On the 18th October however the Draconis March came under attack. On Robinson a full battlemech battalion of fanatical Draconis Combine mechwarriors fell from the skies over the planetary capital of Beuller and the Robinson Battle Academy. A similar number attacked Markab while a single company dropped onto the more remote world of Doneval II.
On Robinson the Robinson Battlemech Academy Training Battalion alongside the 1st Robinson Rangers and Robinson DMM rushed into action. Duke Arthur Steiner-Davion, a cadet of the academy personally helped rally the defensive troops with the aid of Baron Tancred Sandoval who had been accompanying Arthur's sister who had been visiting him at the Academy. Arthur and Tancred lead the battle from their personal battlemechs, pre-production models of the new Sagitairre which isn't scheduled to enter full production until January 3063. The heavy armour and incredible firepower and impressive manoeuvrability of this mech saves both men on a number of occasions as they help hunt down the invaders.
The battle on Robinson is short and brutal with extensive damage being done to the Robinson Battle Academy and the city of Beuller. The First Prince's sister Yvonne Steiner-Davion is also severely injured while being evacuated to a bunker underneath the academy. A fact that enrages both her brother and Baron Tancred who don't rest until every member of the invading force is killed. A medical VTOL is immedietly prepared on the instruction of the Duke of Robinson to take the Duchess to the finest hospital on Robinson, the Sandoval Ducal Hospital where her left leg which had received massive injuries could be treated, while a Dove class dropship is summoned to the nearby spaceport in case she requires specialist treatment on New Avalon.
On Markab the fighting is equally savage, with the 8th Crucis Lancer's RCT which had deployed to the world following the evacuation of the 5th Lyran Guard. Although lacking in speed the assault and heavy weight Lancers RCT makes short work of the attacking forces who have made the mistake of attempting to attack key industrial, government and infrastructure. As soon as this is identified strong forces from the 8th move into position and bring the attackers down quickly as they attempt to reach their targets.
Doneval II is another story however. With only a company of attackers the local militia deployed to deal with them. This hunt took nearly 2 weeks to complete, but they finally managed to hunt down the last of them. Ironically despite these attackers lasting the longest they did the least damage as they spent most of their time in a deadly game of hunt and seek.
Public opinion across the Federated Sun's is inflamed by these strikes and no official denial of responsibility is immedietly forthcoming from Luthien (the HPG has developed an unanticipated fault and has been taken offline for a full week to be repaired). Although said denial does arrive 3 days later the delay has caused a large number on both sides of the border to come to the conclusion this strike was ordered or at least condoned by the DCMS or Coordinator.
Unknown to the Davion High Command at this time is that the Alshain Avengers regiments have went rogue and launched an attack on their former home of Alshain. The DCS Dragon's Tears and 3 of the 4 regiments had launched an attack upon the new capital of the Ghost Bear Dominion. Facing them were a number of elite clusters from the Ghost Bear's Alpha Galaxy and also the CGB Ursa Major. The Avengers and their accompanying destroyer would be hammered in orbit, losing a full third of their ground troops and the DCS Dragon's Tears before the remaining troops made landfall. Cut off and facing enraged Ghost Bear troops they were soon overwhelmed and destroyed.
In response to this unprovoked and dishonourable attack the entire Ghost Bear Touman went to a war footing and many individual cluster's and warships crossed the border into Draconis Combine territory and attacked whatever elements of the DCMS they could find. Alongside the DCMS the Ghost Bear units also targeted the abjured Nova Cat forces. Soon the entire border was in flames.
With such a direct threat to a number of major systems the Coordinator was forced to recall the reinforcement's he had built up along the Federated Sun's border worlds and rush them to the Ghost Bear border. The few remaining units were ordered to split their regiments to cover more worlds and give the illusion of strength.
While First Prince Victor didn't want to launch a war with the Draconis Combine, the invasion of his realm, damage to one of it's March Capitals and the injury of his sister meant that he knew he had to formulate a response. A strongly worded protest wasn't going to cover this in the eyes of his citizens, particularly those within the Draconis March. Any inclination he had to a pacifistic response was muted by the rage he felt towards his sister being injured. It had been made obvious in the response that she had been deliberately targeted by a DCMS Jenner.
In consultation with Jackson Davion, Ardan Sortek and James Sandoval plans were made. Various other officers were brought in as they were required. Duke Sandoval's initial plans called for a full scale assault across the border, however this was soon dismissed. Such an attack would no doubt lead to an all out war that could escalate into a 5th Succession Wars and wreck the Second Star League. Instead a more focused and targeted response was planned. Orders went out for units to begin preparing for the attack.
Almost entirely overlooked during this month was that General of the Armies Nondi Steiner was the subject to a serious assassination attempt by a member of her own staff on the 26th October. While she survived she was left badly injured and her deputy General Adam Steiner took up her role until such time as she was recovered. He immedietly moved to secure key areas of Tharkad with elements of his own 14th Donegal Guard and a handful of other units he was certain were loyal to the Lyran Alliance. This nearly caused a civil war in the 1st and 2nd Royal Guards but in the end the 1st came out in guarded favour of Adam Steiner while the 2nd agreed to stand down.
On the 30th of October Adam Steiner sent word to Arc Royal requesting that Grand Duke Kell come to Tharkad with his 1st Kell Hounds and his son Khan Phelan Kell and his Golden Keshik and 4th Wolf Guards. He was also requested to send word to Peter Steiner-Davion, wherever he might be, to come to Tharkad. Morgan Kell would send his 2nd Kell Hounds to Zaniah III to bring Peter to Tharkad.
Perhaps unsurprisingly no announcement of the winning contract was made on the 31st October. A relatively junior member of the Government released that the announcement had been postponed briefly.
November 3062
As November started various AFFS commands began moving into position to launch a reprisal attack upon the Draconis Combine. The Draconis Combine wasn't totally unaware of these movements and many DCMS officers could see that an attack was imminent. However there was little that could be done. They were stretched too thin and facing a major incursion from the Ghost Bear Dominion on their other border which had to take priority. Additional conventional forces were deployed to the border and what few units remained were placed on alert. It was the home of the various Warlords and the Coordinator that First Prince Victor would reign in his subjects anger and launch only a series of raids and spoiling attacks. While these would no doubt be painful they would be of much lesser severity to the attacks of the Ghost Bear Clan. Or so they hoped.
During this time Yvonne Steiner-Davion's condition was stabilised and she was prepared for a move to the specialist facilities on New Avalon in the hope that her injured left leg could be healed. The damage from the inferno gel of the Jenner's SRM was simply too great for the medical facilities to handle, particularly as they had a number of similar injuries. The Princess won the hearts of the people of Robinson when she insisted that the Dove class dropship transporting her also take with it as many of the other similarly injured victims of the attack as could be fitted into it's medical bays.
On the 7th November some normality returned to New Avalon, at least on the surface as First Prince Victor Davion spoke to the various news agencies regarding the industrial competition. It was noted however he attended in the full uniform of an AFFS Marshal and that he refused any and all questions about his sister, the attacks and any counter attack that was planned.
The First Prince announced that he had been overwhelmingly impressed by the various bids and had even with the advice of his advisers found it hard to choose one from the other. However in relation to the specific bid for a new plant on June he had decided that the Corean Enterprises bid was the one best suited for the contract. As such he was awarding them a contract to begin building a battlemech factory on the world of June to initially build a Valkyrie line with a follow on line for the Centurion battlemech. In support of this he will be awarding them a contract to build a third line upon June for the building of the Battle Hawk. Although the mech had a bad reputation the First Prince had decided that the robust and tough design would be an ideal mech for not only training commands but also units assigned to the Outback. Each of these lines would be built with large scale government support.
Addressing the failed bids the First Prince made a number of public offers (although these had already been sent privately to the executives of the various firms that morning just before the press conference). He made sure to address that each offer was subject to discussion and even renegotiation and was open ended.
To the executives of GM he informed them that he would offer them a contract to build a new battlemech plant on Point Barrow, which would be tasked with producing their Marauder and Victor battlemechs. If they agreed to this he would provide them with the Flashman design to also build at this plant. The support offered for this plant was less than that of the successful bid, but the Flashman design was well regarded and was considerably more valuable.
Kallon Industries were informed that their bid of a new Templar-O line on June had been strongly considered but given it's complexities it was not perhaps the best suited for the Outback. However he would be prepared, and Duke George Hasek had agree he would share the costs, to support the construction of such a plant on the world of Novoya Zemyla. The additional lines of Enforcer III and Jagermech III would have similar support, as would a purpose built factory to produce the Cavalier battle armour design. If they agreed to this they too would share in the Flashman licensing agreement.
He then specifically addressed the outsider bid of Outback FarmMechs. While their bid had not won the contest for building a new factory on June it had caught his eye. He would agree to supporting adding an annex on their existing plant on Filtvelt itself to build the Stinger battlemech design. While perhaps not the flashiest of designs this was a rugged and simple mech which would their ideal starting point in military construction.
Left unspoken was the fact that the First Prince had not issued the Battlemaster license that he still held. A fact that discussed at length within the boardrooms of the various industrial companies and banking houses of the Federated Suns. It had been the star prize of the bidding process and had not yet been issued.
No further questions were taken despite the almost frenzied nature of the questions and the First Prince left the room. Unknown to most he also left New Avalon that night, joining with the 1st Revenant Guard and the bulk of the 1st Davion Guards who would accompany him to the Draconis March. Escorting them would be the FSS Melissa Davion.
After the First Prince had left Jon Davion met with his cousin Jackson Davion to discuss with him his idea for a new type of unit. One more designed for raiding and probing attacks or for defending less vital targets than the current garrison units. Built around a reinforced battalion of battlemechs with a single aerospace wing, a reinforced regiment of armour and a full regiment of 4 battle armour battalions with some supporting elements. He proposed a rebirth of the Tancredi Loyalist regiments who had long been especially noted for fighting best while in battalion strength rather than as full regiments. Jackson agreed that the idea had merit, however put off any decision until such time as the First Prince had returned and the situation appeared more stable.
On the 27th November 3062 the 8th Crucis Lancers RCT, 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT, 6th FedSuns Dragoons RCT, 1st Ceti Hussars RCT, 2nd Robinson Rangers, 1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs and Bryceland DMM left their bases and boarded their dropships. They were supported by the mercenaries of the now reunited Fighting Urukhai regiments and the Screaming Eagles regiment.
In the Lyran Alliance riots broke out on Tharkad throughout November in protest of the beginning trial of their beloved Archon. These got out of hand and attempted to storm the barracks of the 2nd Royal Guards RCT on the night of the 24th. This ironically had the effect of forcing the Guards unit of the fence and into support of the government.
The 5th Alliance Guards RCT on the 26th entered into open mutiny and declared that Adam Steiner had been behind the assassination attempt on Nondi Steiner who had been about to launch a full scale rescue attempt to free the true Archon Katherine Steiner. They were joined on the 28th by the 15th Lyran Guards RCT stationed on the vital world of Hesperus II. The entire Alliance Jaeger brigade, bar the Skye Jaeger's, joined the mutiny within the next week. Frantic regional commander attempted to avoid bloodshed and sent orders for calm to other commands and almost pleas to the mutinous commands.
Having spent almost the previous year preparing his troops the Supreme Leader launched a full scale attack Saiph Triumvirate. The veteran 3rd and the newly formed 1st and 2nd Republican Guards landed on the three worlds of Saiph, Tall Trees and New Canton respectively and proceeded to begin smashing any opposition to their takeover. It wasn't widely reported but the three regiments were equipped with a wide variety of cutting edge designs, many of them previously unseen and with advanced weapons. Alongside these battlemechs were tanks and infantry regiments that were similarly equipped. The defenders stood little if any chance.
December 3062
Within the Federated Suns the entire nation seemed to hold it's breath awaiting to see what the reprisals for the attacks on Robinson, Markab and Doneval II would be. While on the other side of the border the DCMS defenders also waited, albeit with more dread.
On the 7th December 3062 both sides found out. The AFFS had struck back in response for the cowardly attack upon their worlds and the deaths and injuries inflicted upon their people and princess.
On Marduk the 8th Crucis Lancers RCT and 2nd Robinson Rangers struck hard and fast. The defending 22nd Benjamin Regulars, concentrated around the planetary capital of New Pontiac found themselves facing a combat drop from the 8th Crucis Lancers. Almost as soon as they heavy and assault battlemechs of the Lancers hit the ground they were moving towards the positions of the 22nd even as their follow on waves landed their armour and infantry assets who moved up in support. The 22nd Benjamin's aerospace force consisting of a mere 12 old and outdated aerospace fighters took to the skies against the combined assets of the 3 full strength wings of the 8th's aerospace brigade. Outnumbered 5:1 they were swept from the skies and the fighters began hammering the 22nd's positions. Marshal Jeremiah Marshal of the 8th called upon the 22nd to surrender to avoid an urban engagement as he completed the encirclement of the city on the 8th of December and was rebuffed.
Meanwhile the 2nd Robinson's Rangers dropped directly on the Victory Industries factory. The 1st and 2nd Battalions along with the command company seized the spaceport while the 3rd Battalion dropped directly into the facility and began attacking the defending combined arms regiment. The main bulk of the Rangers quickly achieved their objectives and drove into the main complex to aid their 3rd Battalion which was being roughly handled by the Omnimechs of the Victory Industries Security Force. At the spaceport a combined arms brigade of conventional troops attached to the invading force by Duke Sandoval began arriving. It's single armour regiment broke into two forces, with a battalion of armour reinforced with an infantry regiment deployed in defence of the spaceport and the two other battalions of armour followed the Rangers into the battle along with 2 other regiments of infantry.
Over the next week the 8th Crucis Lancers would systematically reduce the 22nd Benjamin Regulars into wreckage although inflicting heavy damage on the city of New Pontiac in the meantime. On the 15th of December the last organised resistance crumbled and collapsed after a break out attempt by the remaining under strength battalion of the 22nd was smashed before it could even get underway. By the time the last Benjamin Regulars had been defeated the massive factory complex had already been secured. In a running battle that lasted 3 days the 2nd Robinson Rangers and the 23rd Independent Brigade had cleaned out the retired DCMS troops who had made up the Security Force and already called in the 23rds attached engineering battalion to begin putting the plant back into operation.
At the same time the 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT and the Fighting Urukhai's Bar Hound's regiment were landing on the world of Klathandu IV. A long standing pro-FedSuns world which the 7th Crucis Lancers and 1st New Ivaarsen Chassuers had been forced to abandon in the War of '39 due to orders from New Avalon, and General Neece of the 1st Chisholm Raiders wasn't expecting to face much trouble. She was right. The local militia's were mostly formed up to prevent the people of the world getting any ideas and were little match for even the ramshackle 1st Chisholm Raiders and the supporting mercenary regiment. The largest problem that the Raiders faced during the 2 week campaign was the ongoing problems between General Neece and Leftenant General Vega. This issue was finally brought to a head when Duke Sandoval on Robinson relieved Leftenant General Vega of his command and transferred him to command the conventional forces on his homeworld of Breed. By the time the newly promoted and sidelined officer had left Klathandu IV the world was flying the Federated Suns flag.
The 6th FedSun's Dragoons RCT found themselves facing the 2nd Battalion of the 9th Benjamin Regulars on Paris, supported by a large force of conventional troops and militia. Although historically a Federated Sun's world it had fallen to the Draconis Combine in the 2nd Succession War and had never been recovered. As such the natives were long accustomed to the Dragon rather than the Sword and Sunburst. Still with the overwhelming firepower of the 6th Dragoons combined with Marshal Rahn's experience soon had the defenders forced to fight a guerrilla war and hope for reinforcements. The light and medium mech's of the 6th were ideally suited to counter this strategy however and were soon engaged in hunter-killer patrols to root out the remaining DCMS forces. Although not fully pacified Paris was effectively under the control of the AFFS.
Tripoli likewise found itself under the attack of an overwhelming Federated Sun's force. The elite New Ivaarsen Chasseurs along with the 8th Striker Regiment of the Fighting Urukhai landed and swiftly overwhelmed the limited militia and conventional defenders. Landing on the 7th the two regiments defeated the defenders within a 3 day running battle. In fact their victory was so swift that the follow on garrison units had to be rushed forward urgently.
Far away from the Marduk front the newly formed 10th and 29th Galedon Regular's regiments, garrisoning Groveld and Niles respectively found themselves under attack. Both units had been formed the previous year and had been slowly expanding on this quite frontier between the FedSuns and Outworlds Alliance.
The 10th, at roughly 80% strength found itself the target of the much stronger 1st Ceti Hussars RCT. The green warriors of the 10th attempted as best they could to resist but were soon being forced back again and again from every defensive position, while desperate rear guards held off the Hussar's attacks from their retreating comrades. The arid plains of the world offered little hindrance to the sweeping manoeuvres of Combat Command Alpha of the Hussars who turned the flanks of the 10th Galedon while Combat Command Beta held them in place every time the Regulars attempted to make a stand. This gradual retreat was brought to an end when Combat Command Charlie cut off the 10th's retreat having leapfrogged ahead using their dropships on the 3rd day and forced them into a last stand. The 10th's warriors fought as well as they could, but tired, with ammo bins running near empty and damaged mech's they were soon destroyed as a fighting force.
On Niles the 29th Galedon Regulars did much better than their counterparts. Facing the Bryceland DMM and the Screaming Eagles mercenary regiment they concentrated on holding out for as long as they could. The Bryceland DMM which had long practised in defensive fighting on it's own worlds now found itself engaged offensively and while Leftenant General Begersun did his best his troops struggled with the transition. The attached Screaming Eagles proved much more suitable for the offensive actions required, but the AFFS General could not find it in himself to allow them their own command and instead insisted they support his own force as the "primary" invasion force. This led to the 29th Galedon Regulars digging into their main base on Niles and fighting hard to hold out until reinforcements arrived. Even as December ended the 29th was a functional command, although they were suffering heavy attrition in the slugging matches around Fort An Ting and were hovering around half strength.
When Victor Davion arrived on Robinson on the 21st December to meet with Duke Sandoval the Duke was able to report that the worlds of Marduk, Klathandu IV, Tripoli and Groveld had fallen to the Federated Suns and the worlds of Paris and Niles were secure although there remained holdout units of the DCMS who were still resisting.
After the quick update the First Prince informed the Duke that he would personally lead his 1st Davion Guards RCT along with the 1st Robinson Rangers and attached Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion and reclaim Galtor for the Federated Sun's while the 1st Revenant Guards would seize Deshler. The 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT would strike out from their garrison posting on Cassias and hit Wapakoneta while the 3rd Davion Guards RCT would attack Delacruz. In the meantime the 1st Ceti Hussars would detach their Combat Command Charlie to move to Niles to help bring that fight to an end. The 8th Crucis Lancers RCT was also tasked with moving from Marduk and hitting New Mendham.
When asked by the Duke what their next steps would be after seizing these worlds the First Prince gave a disappointing reply to James Sandoval. Having secured these worlds he would then petition Theodore Kurita for peace. With six worlds currently either fallen or falling to the FedSuns and another 5 targeted the First Prince believed that his point had been made. Any further steps would just lead to a more general war. The real prize had already been taken, the industrial world of Marduk. What they were doing now was merely securing this conquest by reforming the Galtor Thumb around it. The secondary gains on the Outworlds border were merely to help protect Tancredi's important laser production. Also so far most of the worlds seized had been Federated Sun's worlds as late ago as the 4th Succession War or the War of '39. Reintegrating them would be relatively pain free hopefully.
While the Duke of Robinson had clearly hoped for larger gains he had to admit that the First Prince had a point. He did however suggest that they might want to consider attacking the world of Quentin, which like Marduk was not only a major centre of industry but also a former Davion planet. Although Victor Davion admitted he was tempted he rationalised that while Theodore Kurita might be prepared to accept the loss off one such world he would probably be forced to fight to reverse the loss of two. The two men disagreed on this point and it came to heated words, but Baron Tancred intervened and calmed the situation between his father and friend. In private he suggested an alternate course than an outright break with the First Prince to his father on the issue, one which James eventually agreed to. He was at the end of the day a realist and loyal to Hanse Davion's son.
The First Prince celebrated Christmas and then New Year in the belly of a dropship with his troops. Not the first or last time he would do so. Although this time he also did so with his brother Arthur Steiner-Davion who a shuttle brought over from the accompanying Robinson Academy Training Battalion dropship. Meanwhile his sister arrived on New Avalon on the Dove dropship FSS Nightingale. She would soon begin receiving treatment.
Within the Lyran Alliance fighting broke out on Hesperus when the 15th Lyran Guards attempted to prevent the delivery of military equipment to the spaceport to be sent to commands which the 15th felt were in rebellion against the imprisoned Archon. The 36th Lyran Guards intervened and the two sister regiments were soon engaged in a bloody battle within the spaceport.
On Donegal the 24th Lyran Guards RCT declared their allegiance for Archon Katrina Steiner and joined the 1st Donegal Jaegers in rebellion. This brought the vital world of Donegal into full rebellion.
Fighting also broke out on Coventry when the 1st Coventry Jaegers launched a new assault on the Coventry CPM. This time however the CPM was waiting for them and Tharkad ordered the mercenary unit Kristen's Krusher's to aid the Coventry CPM. The still battered Jaegers were soon smashed while launching almost suicidal attacks on the Coventry CPM, although they did manage to reduce the CPM to threadbare shell that had to be withdrawn from active service. The Krushers didn't help matters by taking most of the Coventry Jaegers equipment as salvage according to the strict rules of their contract - despite it not being in a civil war style battle rather than proper offensive attack as their contract envisioned.
The 5th Alliance Guards lifted of Ft Louden against orders and disappeared from view. Adam Steiner ordered the LAS Katrina Steiner to hunt them down, while the LAS Yggdrasil held station over Tharkad.
On Luthien Coordinator Theodore Kurita found himself in a nightmare. Both of his major borders were under attack and being overrun. He dispatched the 19th Galedon to attempt to relieve the 29th Galedon Regulars and the 3rd Benjamin Regulars were dispatched to raid the worlds of the Kentares and Raman PDZ's. The 11th and 12th Ghost Regiments were ordered to attack Skat and Cylene respectively and if successful push on to Markab and Murchison. Other units were reassigned as he attempted to draw up defensive lines and prevent further losses. However he knew that his limited offences were going to do little to slow down the AFFS. Still if he could make them think he was stronger than he was, as he had in the War of '39 then he might be successful in holding off any further attacks.
The DCMS's Navy also began assembling a strong naval contingent at Luthien. Either for a defence of the capital against any Ghost Bear invasion or to lead a counter attack against the Federated Sun's. The centre of this force was built around 2 Kirishima class Cruisers, the DCS Siriwan and DCS Urizen II.
First Lord Kai Allard-Liao immedietly attempted to broker a peace deal between both sides. Or at least a ceasefire. Unfortunately for him both sides saw taking up such an offer right now as showing weakness. Although Theodore Kurita did respond that if he could get Victor Davion to withdraw then he would not launch any counter attacks.
Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao on the other hand immedietly offered his full and unconditional support to Coordinator Kurita and promised to support his every action against the Federated Sun's to the fullest of his ability while denouncing the cowardly Davion attack. Neither the Draconis Combine or Federated Sun's missed the fact that even as he made these speeches the CCAF regiments didn't move from their barracks.
On the 26th December Supreme Leader Baranov formally petitioned the Free Worlds League for entry as the province of Free Tikonov. Given that he now controlled 6 worlds and had 4 regiments of battlemech's his admittance was much sought after by those wishing to secure the border regions.
((Okay guys I'm starting to find the Quarterly updates... Unwieldy. They are taking literal hours of sitting with source books, maps, field manuals and sarnawiki windows open. So unless anyone has any REALLY strong objections I think i'll be moving over to a 1 month an update. Thoughts?)
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I am enjoying this: everything written is nicely done IMO :thumbsup:
Thank you very much ;)
But I have one nitpick: in several posts "Sytris" instead of correctly Syrtis is being used about 15-20 times. 8)
Best Regards,
Christian
yeah i caught that after about a half dozen posts. I promise i'll go back and edit it... lol
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just do your best at what your doing . i'll survive the longer breaks in the story . just don't stop like so many do .
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Very interesting so far, looking forward to see where this goes. As for suggestions for what other BattleMech designs to get from the Lyrans I would suggest the following:
Devastator, though the NAIS/FedSuns government may technically own it anyway and simply contracted it's production to Norse-Storm Technologies.
Emperor and Highlander at StarCorps Industries Crofton factory, perhaps as part of a joint deal in which production is shared between the AFFS, ComGuards and SLDF.
Spector and Night Hawk as these light Mechs are well suited for the Davion Light Guards.
Dragon Fire because how can you go wrong with a Mech based off the Marauder? Along with benefit of being able to create an RAC5 equipped equipped variant.
Atlas because what Inner Sphere military wouldn't want their own Atlas production line?
Lynx would be well suited for the Deneb Light Cavalry and Federated Suns Armored Cavalry.
Starslayer would be a solid, robust and relatively cheap Mech for the AFFS as a whole, particularly for the March Militia's as they are pretty far down the technology list.
Gunslinger for it's twin Gauss Rifles and jump capabilities.
Cyclops with a smaller engine to free up weight and increased armor as a dedicated RCT command Mech.
As for armor the first and foremost that comes to mind is without doubt is the Alacorn MK VI because there are few problems a trio Gauss Rifles can't fix.
Perhaps consider acquiring some Eisenstrum O OmniFighters for field testing.
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just do your best at what your doing . i'll survive the longer breaks in the story . just don't stop like so many do .
Don't intend to stop, and i'll try and keep posting regularly - real world commitments aside. Do think i'll shift over to 1 month at a time though. The 3months are taking hours to do.
Very interesting so far, looking forward to see where this goes. As for suggestions for what other BattleMech designs to get from the Lyrans I would suggest the following:
Devastator, though the NAIS/FedSuns government may technically own it anyway and simply contracted it's production to Norse-Storm Technologies.
Emperor and Highlander at StarCorps Industries Crofton factory, perhaps as part of a joint deal in which production is shared between the AFFS, ComGuards and SLDF.
Spector and Night Hawk as these light Mechs are well suited for the Davion Light Guards.
Dragon Fire because how can you go wrong with a Mech based off the Marauder? Along with benefit of being able to create an RAC5 equipped equipped variant.
Atlas because what Inner Sphere military wouldn't want their own Atlas production line?
Lynx would be well suited for the Deneb Light Cavalry and Federated Suns Armored Cavalry.
Starslayer would be a solid, robust and relatively cheap Mech for the AFFS as a whole, particularly for the March Militia's as they are pretty far down the technology list.
Gunslinger for it's twin Gauss Rifles and jump capabilities.
Cyclops with a smaller engine to free up weight and increased armor as a dedicated RCT command Mech.
As for armor the first and foremost that comes to mind is without doubt is the Alacorn MK VI because there are few problems a trio Gauss Rifles can't fix.
Perhaps consider acquiring some Eisenstrum O OmniFighters for field testing.
Hmmm I think that the Devasator is definetly owned by NAIS/FS so figure they can contract that out.
Emperor and Highlander at StarCorp is an easy sell.
Atlas at some point is built by Robinson Battleworks so could have them see the license - or have them decide to build it as the FS owns the specs from when it owned Quentin.
The Lynx and Starslayer could be aquired via GM due to them licensing a few designs to Blue Shot.
Gunslinger was a design put together by DC and FC techs, so I would guess FS would own rights to it.
Cyclops as a command mech is already taken by the battlemaster - which has the "link" to Hanse Davion.
I'd agree that the Alacorn would be a MAJOR coup to get. Let me think on that.
Eisenstrum i dont see the LA giving up easy even in small numbers. Unless the offer the Dager-O.
Spector and Nighthawk, Dragon Fire, think they'd need to license.
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Whatever keeps the story going. Really enjoying you writing.
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yeah the colonel gets the beamer
his intel guy rides the backseat on the cyclops feeding the colonel info
and a gunslinger and highlander to keep the riffraff away
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what ever you prefer. if small cuts makes it easier. go for that.
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Wasn't the Dragonfire (and Maelstron and Nightstar) all owned by General Motors on Kathil? I thought they actually licensed the designs out because they didn't have the room at Kathil?
Corean Enterprises on New Avalon was building the Devastator I thought at some point prior to the jihad.
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AFFS
31st December 3062
Independent Commands
1st Aragon Borderers – Veteran – 70%
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 90%
1st Capellan Dragoons – Regular – 100%
1st FSAC – Elite – 100% (Re)
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re)
1st Kittery Borderers – Regular – 100%
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 40% - Formed from remnants of Republican Guards
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) – In transit Deshlar
1st Dragonlords RCT – Green – 60% (Re) - New Avalon, officers drawn from Davion Brigades, rest drawn from Cadres
1st Sheraton Knights – Green – 10% Cadre although attached support forces (veteran) at 60%
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - Abbeyville
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 50% (Re) - Panpour
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 85% (Re)
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% - June
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 85% (Re)
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100%
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% - Broken Wheel
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% - Lothair
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 85% (Re) – Crofton
New units listed as Regular due to having been drawn from Regular formations and from cadet veterans of the Battle of Kathil, however until fully integrated will fight at Green levels at anything beyond company level.
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Regular – 80% - Klathandu IV – wear and tear heavily effecting them
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 80% - Brockway
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - Groveld/Niles
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100%
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 100%
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – In transit to Wakaponeta
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Midale
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 70% - personnel – 100% mechs
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) – Marduk
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) – Delevan
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) – in transit to Galtor
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 80% - Bell
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 70% - In transit to Delacruz
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 100%
5th Davion Guards RCT – Regular – 100%
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100%
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Green – 70% - Deneb Kaitos
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100%
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% - Hyalite
12th Deneb Light Cavalry – Regular – 100%
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
FedCom Corp
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 90%
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 70% - Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Paris
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 70% - Talon/Wernke
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 60% - Frazer
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Green – 70%
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Montour
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100% - Tripoli
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Regular – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 100% - in transit to Galtor
2nd Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 60% - heavily upgrading with Omnimechs – Marduk
Syrtis Fusiliers
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 30% - New Syrtis
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 90%
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 80% (Re)
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100%
Capellan March Militias
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
New Syrtis CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 100%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Achernar SMM – Green – 60%
Nanking SMM – Green – 80%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 80%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 70% - Niles
Clovis DMM – Green – 100%
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - lacking armour and with overstrength infantry brigade
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 70% - returned to roles provisionally, half the unit discharged or in prison
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Training Battalions
1st Bell Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Training Battalion - Green - 100%
1st Conroe Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion (5 companies) – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Kittery Training Battalion – Green – 100% - Kittery based
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion – Green – 60% - In transit to Galtor
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Sheraton Training Battalion – Green – 100% - also includes an armour regiment
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 70%
Warrior’s Hall Training Battalion (4 companies) – Green – 100%
Mercenary Forces
12th Vegan Rangers
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 70%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 70%
Arcadians – Veteran – 100%
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 90%
- 2nd Cunningham Commando’s – Regular – 70%
Federated Freemen – Veteran – 100%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 90% - Tripoli
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 100% - Diverted to Cylene
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – Veteran – 80% - Klathandu IV
Hansen’s Roughriders – Veteran – 80%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Regular – 100%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 100%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 90%
- 21st Ranger – Green – 80%
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Veteran – 100%
Lexington Combat Group
- 32nd Recon – Veteran – 100% (Re)
- 241st Battle – Regular – 100%
- 180th Dragoon – Regular – 100%
New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 100% (Re)
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Niles
Vanguard Legion – Veteran – 100%
Wild Geese - Elite - 100%
Blue Star Irregulars – Firgrove
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 100%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 90%
- Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 75% operable
Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
FSS Fox
FSS Indomitable
FSS Intrepid
FSS Indefatigable
FSS Antrim
FSS Murmansk
FSS Brest
FSS New Sytris
FSS Robinson
Avalon Class Cruisers
FSS Melissa Davion – light damage
FSS Alexander Davion
FSS Lucien Davion – requiring a refit
FSS Simon Davion – requiring a refit
Covenant Class Cruisers
FSS Covenant
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Industrial/Infrastructure Changes 31st December 3062
Capellan March
Axton
– Wangker plant to double production of Corsairs, first increases by April 3063, fully expanded by the end of 3063
Bell
- Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards, now being upgraded as a full on rebuild/repair centre capable of repairing and/or upgrading dozens of mechs and vehicles at the same time. Coming online November 3062
Firgrove - Clyde Shipyards being upgraded to be able to construct dropships not just repair them. Began construction of Excalibur but still upgrading
Kathil – expanding naval slips
Tikonov
– Expansion of the factories there to produce the Archer battlemech, scheduled to be completed by late 3063.
New Syrtis
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 2 to 3 – completed by April 3063
Novoya Zemyla
– Creation of a new Dagger-O plant with 2 lines, first line operational November 3063, second line January 3064
– Kallon Industries building a new plant to build Templar-O, Enforcer III and Jagermech III’s as well as Cavalier battle armour. Starting in July 3063, the Enforcer and Jagermech lines would come into production in January 3064, the Cavalier plant limited production in August 3064 (reaching full production by the end of the year) and the Templar-O wouldn’t come online till March 3065 and even then wouldn’t be fully operational until July.
Crucis March
Broken Wheel
- new battlemech facility owned by Andoran Industries Ltd set to begin construction of new Clint battlemechs. Going online for spare parts end of 3062, entering limited production by 2nd quarter 3063, full production in 3064.
Defiance
- a new training facility planned to be named the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy to be jointly run by the AFFS and SLDF. Scheduled to begin classes 3064
Filtvelt
- A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works. Dropship yard entering production in April 3063, jumpship yard August 3064
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in February 3064, fully online December 3064
- Achernar Battlemechs production facility building a huge industrial mech plant (coming online 1st January 3064, full scale production by late 3064), along with a battlemech annex coming online June 3064 producing dervish with enforcer production added by November)
– Outback FarmMechs new expansion to build Stinger battlemechs, starting work in November 3063 and finishing in January 3065. Major teething problems delaying the start of full scale production.
Galax – expanding naval slips
June
– Lycomb-Davion plant to build Stukas, to enter initial production December 3063 with full production by June 3064, further expansions of Hellcat and Lightning to be added
– Corean Enterprises plant to build an initial line of Valkyrie battlemechs (starting February 3063 and going fully online in December 3063) and a follow on line of Centurion battlemechs (Starting January 3064 and going online March 3065).
Layover
- Salvatore Inc facility now being upgraded rather than allowed to continue limping on. Production of Vengeance class dropships to be massively increased. Some consideration being given to a new facility as well. Work underway and increases started.
New Avalon
- Lycomb-Davion expansions of Stuka production
Panpour
- Challenge Systems being funded to increase production of Monolith jumpships and begin construction of two Congress-D frigates. First yard to be ready in February 3063 and the next 4 months later.
Jalastar Aerospace increasing production of sparrohawk and sabre fighters and Centurion, grasshopper and javelin battlemechs. Increases in sparrowhawk and centurion construction prioritised and starting from August 3063, further expansions going on into 3065
Point Barrow
- GM plant to be built, starting in June 3063, due to go online in December 3064, building Maruader and Victor battlemechs, with follow on flashman line coming online in August 3065.
Draconis March
Addicks
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 1 to 2, completed February 3063
Benet III
– Creation of a new Dagger-O line, completed October 3063
Marduk
- Rebirth of Norse Battlemech Works, back in FedSuns hands, building large numbers of Wolverines and Griffons as well as Firestarter, Black hawk and Avatar Omnimechs – Wolverine and Griffon plant already online, Omnimech plant being repaired, coming online March 3063
Robinson
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks expansions and investments made to increase production, particularly of the up coming Sagittairre battlemech. Scheduled to enter production in January 3063
Woodbine
- a new battlemech facility owned by Robinson Standard BattleWorks to produce Watchman battlemechs. Going online in July 3063
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nice update.
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January 3063
On the 1st of January 3063 the warriors of the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and 4th Davion Guards RCT lifted off from their garrison worlds and headed off world on a mission which had been relayed to them via a MIIO liason sent from New Avalon. Their mission was to look as though they were part of the attacks upon the Draconis Combine but in fact was a different one.
The 8th Crucis Lancers RCT also left Marduk upon receiving orders from Robinson on the 3rd. They headed for the planet of New Mendham having refitted as best they could and repaired the damage they had sustained. In some cases they merely left behind damaged battlemechs and took with them factory fresh machines. With the only regular battlemech regiment within the Iruzun Prefecture crushed on Marduk the planet of New Mendham was only defended by a handful of conventional regiments.
The Lancers arrived over New Mendham on the 19th January and proceeded to quickly land across the planet and begin to sweep up the overwhelmed defenders. Forming into 4 Combat Commands the 8th engaged in a rapid takeover of the planet. They then dug in and prepared either to defend the planet or to move on if given further offensive orders.
On Klathandu IV the Bar Hound's mercenary regiment would leave the planet's defences in the hands of the 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT and begin a series of raiding strikes on the worlds around Prosperina, although avoiding that well defended world. Even broken up into battalion sized forces the mercenary regiment was able to inflict crippling damage on the local militia's and conventional garrisons while taking valuable amounts of salvage and loot. In several cases the Bar Hound's could have seized the world with little effort but their orders were clear.
The 6th FedSun's Dragoons on Paris continued to sweep the planet for any remaining holdouts, helped in this with follow on waves of light armour and motorised infantry. the 6th's conventional brigades officers during this time also took the opportunity to poach any particularly successful infantry platoons and armour lances to replace their own limited losses.
The troops on Tripoli were soon reinforced by their follow on garrison troops and this freed up the mercenary unit of the 8th Striker Regiment to match their sister regiment's raids. They however struck first at Barlow's Folly and then began to work their way towards Irizun. The clear intent of both Urukhai regiments raids were to draw of defenders and potentially disorganised resistance if any further offensives were launched within the worlds near the new Galtor Thumb.
On Groveld the 1st Ceti Hussars RCT's Charlie command left the planet to reinforce the attack on Niles, while it's two sister commands continued to work to fortify Groveld against any counter attack and begin to set up a civilian government. This was helped by the planet having recently been a Federated Sun's world. Marshal Lamont was ordered to acompany his Combat Command Charlie and leave the bulk of his RCT under the command of Major General Intravaia. This had been mandated by Marshal of the Armies Davion wishing a ranking officer who could take command on Niles from Leftenant Begurnson.
The situation on Niles remained stalemated until the arrival of Marshal Lamont and his Ceti Hussars. Once he arrived and took command the Bryceland DMM moved back into a supporting role all along the perimeter of Fort An Ting. This had the advantage of drawing the 29th to having spread themselves along their defensive lines. When that had occurred the Screaming Eagles mercenary regiment attacked from the north while the Combat Command Charlie of the 1st Ceti Hussars attacked directly opposite them from the south, while the Bryceland DMM made feinting attacks all along the lines to keep the defenders guessing. In a three day battle the three Davion units first cut the 29th Galedon Regular's defensive works in half and then proceeded to crush the isolated pockets.
The 3rd Davion Guards RCT struck out and hit Delacruz on the 13th January and proceeded over the next two weeks to force the local forces into surrendering. The elite but under strength Guards RCT found it relatively easy to clear the planet and seize it in the name of the First Prince.
The 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT found the job of seizing Wapakoneta equally easy. Only a single armour regiment of the local defences put up a fight, the rest either fled on seized dropships or surrendered with only token resistance.
On Deshler the garrison proved a much tougher target for the 1st Revenant Guards RCT. After the Combine's seizure of the planet in the 4th Succession War many of the invading troops had been settled on the planet to give a strong basis for a militia force. The defending militia were now mostly consisting of these men's sons rather than the veterans themselves but they provided a robust defence along the narrow mountain valleys filled with thick jungles. However Marshal Steiner of the Revenant's realised early on that anytime he probed towards the damaged Aghama Mechworks the defenders would usually attempt to counter attack and draw him off. The industrial plant although unable to build new battlemechs did provide a source of spare parts and replacement weapons for the defenders and they were keen to hold it.
Using this information Marshal Steiner ordered his 4th Battalion, the 74th Revenant Jump Infantry Regiment and the 974th FedSuns Battle Armour Battalion onto their dropships. These units proceeded to combat drop into the Aghama valley and seized the plant. Instantly the defending conventional regiments began to move towards their former base in an attempt to seize it back. At which time the bulk of the 1st Revenant's used their detached forces as an anvil to hammer the militia units into surrender. It would take until mid February but the planet's remaining garrison units would one by one succumb to the overwhelming firepower of the Revenant Guard.
The main strike however of the entire offensive only hit on the 17th January. The 1st Davion Guards RCT, 1st Robinson Rangers and the Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion arrived in orbit over Galtor and immedietly began combat drops. Unlike Deshler the defenders consisted of a battlemech reinforced militia battalion backed up by regular conventional units who were themselves reinforced by a well trained, well equipped and fanatically loyal local militia. Galtor had always been troublesome for House Kurita and the forces assigned to keep it in line reflected this. Even after the War of '39 the planet had held out as a Davion Loyalist island, surrounded thought it was within Combine space until 3042. Even after it had finally been reconquered for the Dragon it had taken until 3057 for martial law to be lifted. A martial law which had been instantly reintroduced as soon as word came that the AFFS had crossed the border. Even with the martial law and it's impressive size the garrison was nervous about whether it could hold the planet down if a full on revolt broke out.
Said revolt broke out as soon as the broadcasts from the invading ("Liberating") dropships announced that no other figures than the First Prince of the Federated Suns had come to free it from the Dragon's yoke. Across every major landmass and in every city riots and attacks broke out against the defending forces. Isolated infantry units found themselves struggling to cope and in a number of cities the local militia barracks were overrun and the defenders massacred before even the first Davion mech had set foot upon the ground.
Fighting the people to their rear and faced with the elite Davion Guards and veteran Robinson Rangers supported by their training battalion to their front the defenders stood little chance. The armour regiments rushed to attack the invaders led by the militia battlemechs while their infantry counterparts largely turned around and began to attempt to pacify the rebelling populace. With fanatical zeal the Kurita counter attack attempted to overrun the landing zones of the invaders and get in amongst their dropships to destroy them before they could deploy. The tactic had the advantage of being unexpected and against a lesser foe might even have worked, but the 1st Davion Guards battlemech perimeter held long enough for the Rangers, cadets and their own armour and infantry units to move up in support, while the aerospace units attached to the units hammered the charging armoured columns and singled out any battlemech companies and lances mixed in with them.
By the time the last Kurita loyal battlemech fell on the third day of the counter attack the 1st Davion's and 1st Robinson Ranger had taken moderate losses but had broken the back of the attack. In one particular engagement First Prince Davion's Daishi had stood almost shoulder to shoulder with his brother's Sagitairre and poured fire into an attacking enemy lance that had threatened to break the line of the 1st Davion's 2nd Battalion. Only the reinforcements from the First Prince's command company and the Training Battalion had broken the attack. Once it was over however the counter attack was defeated. Hoarded and still fresh light mech's and fast mediums then led light armoured columns and mechanised infantry forces out to attack any remaining garrison units, most of which were enmeshed in heavy urban fighting against rebellious civilians.
It would take until nearly March before the last of the fighting would die down on Galtor and the death toll would be much higher than the three Federated Sun's leaders could comfortably accept, but by the end of January the organised resistance had been crushed on Galtor. This time the First Prince promised, they would not be forgotten or left defenceless and as a token of this commitment he announced that his brother Arthur Steiner-Davion would be made the Duke of Galtor. At the same time he promoted his brother from Cadet-Captain to Major within the rank's of the AFFS and gave him permission to recruit a new 3rd Robinson Rangers regiment to defend his new fief, built around the initial core of his comrades in the Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion. While accepting the honour Duke Arthur disavowed himself of the Steiner name and asked to now be known as Duke Arthur Davion of Galtor.
On Luthien the news of the fall of Galtor was a public humiliation, but the follow on news of who the new Duke of Galtor was made it even worse. This was an obvious line in the sand that Victor Davion had drawn. While any counter attack might take back some of the worlds lost, the First Princes public commitment to Galtor and the gift of it's title to his own brother made it impossible for him to abandon the world. Any attempt to retake Galtor could now only end in a full on war rather than the so far limited objectives of the AFFS.
This news came on top of even worse news for the Coordinator given the loss of Marduk already. The 4th Davion Guards RCT and 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT had made planet fall on Quentin just outside of the Steel Valley on the 19th of January. The large aerospace wings of the Deneb Light Cavalry's brigade had allowed the two Davion units to make landfall without heavy losses to face the defending Ryuken-ni regiment. Faced with twice his own numbers the veteran Tai-sa Kitakyusho dug in around the vitally important Independence Weaponry and prepared to hold out for as long as he could.
However the two units made little to no effort to force their way into the plant and instead began a deadly game of feinting and withdrawing against the defenders, seemingly attempting to draw them out into the open where the superior speed of the two invading units would have been allowed them to destroy the Ryuken-ni. Refusing to allow this the Tai-sa stood on the defensive and refused every effort to draw them out.
These constant feinting attacks and small scale long range duels did however managed to keep the Ryuken-ni's attention fully invested on the Davion invaders in front of their positions. Which allowed a small team of Rabid Fox operatives to infiltrate the facility and extract Independence Weaponry's CEO Judith Hotchkiss along with a number of technical designs she had secreted awaiting extraction.
As soon as the head of the Rabid Fox's team sent a coded transmission to Marshal Orsina she ordered the staged withdrawal of the forces under her command. At least on the face of it the two Davion RCT's had done little to no damage to the defenders that couldn't be replaced in a matter of weeks and hadn't seized any real appreciable amount of war material. Their own losses had been light but their expenditure of fuel, spare parts and ammunition had been tremendous for no obvious gain. That was until someone noticed that the CEO of Independence Weaponry was missing. An ISF investigation launched in the next few months would find a horrifying amount of technical specifications which had been copied illegally and huge amounts of confidential research data duplicated in secret and then stolen. Judith Hotchkiss had returned to the realm from which she had paternal ties and had not went empty handed.
Even as the Davion foothold in his realm expanded the Coordinator was faced with an immediate threat to his own throne world from the Ghost Bear Dominion. Intelligence reports filtering in were giving a bleak view that should the Ghost Bear Clan push their advantage they could potentially seize the entirety of the reclaimed Smoke Jaguar and Nova Cat Occupation Zone - and then be perfectly placed to attack Luthien itself. If there was one system in the entirety of the Combine that Theodore simply couldn't afford to lose it was the capital system and he acted accordingly. Units from deep within the realm continued to filter towards the Davion border but the vast majority of his available forces continued to be fed into the fighting along the Ghost Bear front. It was at this time that he ordered the Draconis Combine Admiralty to begin planning for a naval counter attack to at least slow the advancing Bears and tie up their fleets.
Having heard word of the destruction of the 29th Galedon Regulars the orders to the 19th Galedon Regulars were changed from rescue to garrison. They were ordered to deploy Valentina and begin to raid the newly fallen worlds in the hope of stirring up pro-Kurita rebellions and resupplying any remaining garrison troops. They were not authorised to risk more than a third of their strength in these raids as they were to remain a viable defensive force against any further Davion aggression. Additional conventional units were rushed to reinforce them.
The 3rd Benjamin's raiding within the Kentares and Raman PDZ's got off to a good start when they seized an Invader class jumpship with military supplies and sent it back with a prize crew into the Combine. They then hit the worlds of Mara and Mallory's World, although did little real damage as they couldn't stay long.
On Skat and Cylene the 11th and 12th Ghost Regiment had managed to land in the face of some opposition from a handful of local militias and make good progress as January progressed. However near the end of January Demestri's Sluggers arrived to attack the 12th Ghost on Cylene having entered the system quitely and without being noticed. The mercenary regiment combat dropped directly upon the 12th Ghost's own landing zone and proceeded after a brief fight to seize over 2/3rds of their dropships. The 12th Ghost's scattered contingents would rush back to reform and attempt to retake their dropships but this wouldn't be possible before February.
Meanwhile on Skat the last of the defending militia had been destroyed or scattered but their sacrifices had allowed time for the nearby 12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT to move from Tybalt to Skat. The 11th Ghost immedietly threw themselves at the relieving force and engaged in a series of hard fought firefights. Both units took heavy casualties during these battles.
Faced with mounting losses and with little immediate prospect of overturning them Theodore Kurita contacted the First Lord Allard-Liao and requested that he see what terms would be acceptable to First Prince Davion for a ceasefire at least. He needed time repel the Ghost Bears before he could face this new invasion.
Within the Lyran Alliance the situation on Hesperus II had continued to escalate. Both Lyran Guard's RCT's were now heavily engaged in a series of battles which left neither side able to claim victory but did leave both units bled out. On Donegal the two Katrina Steiner loyalist units called on all true Lyran's to rally to their cause for a drive on Tharkad to overthrow the traitors to the Archon.
This plea was met with a grim faced and obviously extremely injured Nondi Steiner who broadcast a message to the LAAF from her hospital bed. She didn't so much request calm and obedience to orders as demand it. The LAAF would not descend into a bickering and wasteful civil war that would leave them easy pickings for the numerous enemies on their borders while she was General of the Armies. She was loyal to the Alliance, House Steiner and to the Archon she informed those listening and she would not betray her oaths and ordered her subordinates to do likewise. In an uncharacteristic display of forgiveness she made it clear that IF the rebelling commands would stand down in place and agree to await the outcome of the trial on Tukayyid then she would ensure that no further action was taken against them. If however they continued in their rebellion then she would ensure that they were crushed utterly and their regiments stricken from the honour rolls. It was perhaps the last threat that drew the most attention. She reminded them all that at the end of the day the were ALL Lyran soldiers.
While the various rebellious commands considered their General's orders an additional message came from Tharkad. Almost exactly five minutes after completing the recording for transmission the General of the Armies had suffered a massive cardiac arrest which had been impossible to counter. She had been declared dead shortly after midnight on the 16th January 3063. Her temporary sucessor and former deputy Adam Steiner assured everyone that he would honour her memory and her last command. Indeed he offered every single battlemech regiment within the LAAF a chance to send a delegation to take part in the funeral of the late General of Armies.
Excluding the 15th Lyran Guards and the 5th Alliance all of the units within the LAAF which had hung precariously on the lip of civil war agreed to stand down, if only in honour of their fallen commanding officer. Even the rebelling garrison of the world of Donegal agreed to at least hold off on any further action until such time as the funeral was over. Although they did demand an independent autopsy to rule out foul play, a request that Adam Steiner felt it was best to agree too.
During this time various officers and rulers across the entire Inner Sphere and even beyond sent their condolences to Tharkad for the late General Steiner, led by that of Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion, First Prince Victor Davion, Captain General Thomas Marik and Coordinator Theodore Kurita.
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From Independence Weaponry on Quentin what exactly got made off?
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From Independence Weaponry on Quentin what exactly got made off?
and did she malware or erase the system as she left?
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From Independence Weaponry on Quentin what exactly got made off?
That shall become evident in future updates.
and did she malware or erase the system as she left?
No, but she did take specifications of weapons, mechs and also transferred funds.
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February 3063 - the guns blaze and then fall silent
With most all of his targets not only seized but for the most part secured against any counter attack the First Prince of the Federated Sun's found himself facing an unexpected problem as February progressed. It was obvious to almost every AFFS officer reading the reports that the Draconis Combine-FedSun's border was woefully under manned and dozen's of worlds were being covered by conventional troops with a handful of battlemech units as stiffening. Many of which had already been either wiped out or mauled so badly as to be combat ineffective. Facing his "Task Force Bryceland" on the periphery border only a single green unit of Galedon Regulars appeared to stand between the Davion forces on Niles, Groveld and Delacruz and Galedon itself. Even the limited forces on that front could potentially drive deep into the Galedon District before the DCMS could redeploy to stop them. Many officers and not only ones from the Draconis March had began to speak out in favour of a more general and widespread offensive to reclaim or claim dozens of worlds for the Federated Suns.
Such a war however would no doubt lead to a long and blood fight with the Dragon and while Victor was relatively confident that his own forces would emerge victorious and be able to make substantial gains it would leave them bled out. As well as drawing dozens of regiments from the Combine's clan frontier, potentially destabilising the entire region. Not only that but such a major war between the Combine and Suns not only risked destroying the still new Second Star League but also potentially could drag in the other Successor States and touch off a general Sphere wide war.
So far his attacks had been limited in scope and could be characterised (at least by a generous observer) as a limited campaign. He had taken several key systems and secured them against any counter attack. If the war ended now then the AFFS would emerge from it victorious, with obvious gains and also intact. While several units had taken damage none had been wiped out or were even on the verge of becoming combat ineffective and even the worst damaged could be rebuild relatively quickly. Given even a few years the gains he had made so far would be a massive net asset to the FedSuns and AFFS and not a grinding war of attrition.
As such he hurried back to Robinson, being sure to take Baron Tancred, and discussed his thoughts and plans again with Duke James Sandoval. The old man was still convinced that they could make additional gains (he particularly had his sights set on Prosperina and Al Na'ir), but when faced with his Prince and his own son and heir speaking of the risks he finally agreed. For all his hatred of the Draconis Combine and it's ruling house Duke Sandoval had always been a Federated Sun's patriot first and foremost.
Orders were sent out to all commands on the border, under both the Duke of Robinson and the First Princes's signature, to hold in place and prepare for any counter attack. Additional units were moved up into better defensive positions and supply dumps built up just in case the Kurita's didn't see reason. A number of lighter units and mercenary formations also continued to raid and smash up defensive formations along the border - no longer merely just around Prosperina and Galtor. This was to reduce the chances of the Combine being able to use these worlds as staging posts and also weaken their garrisons in the event of any further fighting.
Marshal of the Armies Jackson also began preparing orders and sending out preliminary orders to commands such as the Davion Assault Guards and Kestrel Grenadiers to prepare to seize the worlds of Quentin, Saffel, Fomalhault and Nirasaki in preparation for attacking Deiron in the event the war continued. These orders were deliberately sent out in such a way that ISF agents were likely to hear of the preparations and the potential targets. Not only would this force the DMCS to keep troops in the Deiron District rather than attempting to use them to counter attack, but it might make them aware that if the war continued the losses they faced could be staggering.
While this was ongoing the various AFFS forces continued to mop up any remaining resistance and fend of the few ill disciplined counter raids by isolated elements of the DCMS. The only major fighting continued on Skat and Cylene and with various raiding forces.
On Cylene the Fighting Urukhai's Sluggers regiment withstood the 12th Ghost's counter attack on the 8th February 3063. The battle lasted for 3 days, but on the 11th it was the Ghost regiment that was forced to withdraw. It was now operating at barely half strength and with most of it's supplies, spare parts and ammunition in the possession of Demestri's Sluggers had little chance of being able to repair and refit. Worse, the newly reformed 5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT had arrived in orbit and already it's aerospace wings were beginning to hit any target of opportunity. While the 5th was formed from mostly recent graduates with a handful of experienced officers it's 2 battalions and command company along with supporting forces effectively sealed the fate on any potential counter attack. The 12th Ghost melted back into Cylene's wilderness and hoped to hold out until reinforcements or an extraction force arrived.
On Skat the 11th Ghost was doing better than their long term rivals in that they were still in with a chance of victory rather than merely hoping for extraction, yet that was at a huge cost in men and machines. The 11th Ghost and the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry had stopped the brutal and costly direct attacks on each other but were now engaging in a series of skirmishes and raids while manoeuvring for position. Most of the fighting at this stage was limited to company vs company skirmishes, but the body count was rising. So far the 11th Ghost was holding it's own and if they could just find the right opportunity might be able to defeat the 12th but even their most optimistic of officers had to admit the chance of outright victory was slim.
The 3rd Benjamin Regulars had however made a dreadful and suicidal mistake on the 3rd February. They had made planet fall on Kentares and attempted to raid that almost sacred Davion world. The Clovis DMM on world although green had responded with absolute fury and thrown themselves headless of losses at the desecrating Combine troops. The 39th Avalon Hussars RCT on nearby Clovis an receiving word of the invaders had rushed to defend Kentares with the words of their commanding officer Marshal Bella Bragg ringing in their ears "Not again!". While the FSS Fox over Robinson began using its LF batteries to rush to the world to blockade it.
Suffering terrible damage the Clovis DMM point blank refused to stop smashing themselves into the 3rd Benjamin's landing zones and their fighter wing launched almost suicidal low bombing runs that crippled a number of Combine dropships. The 3rd's troops attempted as best they could to hold of the attacking March Militia while repairing the dropships having realised that they had made a terrible mistake but the delay allowed the 39th Avalon Hussars to arrive on the 25th February. The 39th combat dropped right onto the Benjamin Regular's by now battered landing zones and in a 4 hour battle wiped them out entirely. The few Regular's dropships who battled their way free found the FSS Fox in orbit and were swiftly destroyed.
Both the now renamed Kentares DMM and 39th Avalon Hussars were awarded the Dragon Slayers Ribbon and the entirety of the surviving DMM troops were awarded the Robinson Medal of Valour on the 28th February. The Kentares DMM had been reduced to a single battalion and a battered command company by the time they were relieved. Duke Sandoval promised they would be rebuilt with equipment drawn not only from his own Robinson BattleWorks plant but also the newly reborn Norse Battlemech Works.
Meanwhile CEO Judith Hotchkiss was rushed to New Avalon to meet with various members of the NAIS and Government and discuss the potential design's she had managed to acquire.
While this was all being done Victor Davion finally sent word to his friend the First Lord on the 24th of February that he was prepared to agree to a ceasefire and peace. As long as Theodore Kurita agreed to freeze the fighting at the current state of play. This was accepted on the 28th by a furious Theodore Kurita who had just been notified as to the extent of the treachery of the former CEO of Independence Weaponry and the total destruction of the 3rd Benjamin Regulars.
Both the Coordinator and the First Prince would send out halt and desist orders on the 28th February for all their commands to hold in place and make no more offensive actions. A few brief flare ups would continue into March.
In the Lyran Alliance the 26th Lyran Guards RCT was ordered to move from it's garrison at Port Moseby and reinforce it's sister regiment of the 36th Lyran Guards to put down the armed mutiny of the 15th Lyran Guards. The 26th would arrive mid way through February and begin supporting the 36th, but the rebellious 15th would fall back into Hesperus's mountains and attempt to hold out, expecting at any moment to be reinforced with additional loyal units to the Archon.
On Tukayyid the trial of Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion was entering it's 4th month and the evidence was both technical and complex. Experts from across the Sphere had been called in regards to the evidence of the Archon's potential guilt and had then faced cross examination by both sides. A growing feeling however was spreading that the evidence for all it's contested nature was holding up to the scrutiny of even the experts called by the Archon's legal team. This blew up when on the 27th February in a fit of rage Katherine Steiner-Davion sacked her entire league team and declared that she would defend herself against these scurrilous accusations! A recess was called until the 14th of March to allow her to prepare herself or hire a new team.
The Chancellor of the Capellan Confederation during February issued two decree's to his Warrior Houses. Warrior House Imarra and Warrior House Ma-Tsu Kai would both receive permission to form a second battalion. Hints came from the court that these two gifts to the two houses would be followed by a more general expansion of the loyal Warrior Houses. Funding was also released to aid in rebuilding the shattered but honoured House Hiritsu which had been reduced to a single command lance with some supporting infantry platoons. The House was given permission to recruit new members from across the entire Capellan Confederation who would meet their stringent criteria.
The CCS Franco Martel also came online, behind schedule due to the occupation of the Necromo system. It took up guard duties within that vital system while the heavily damaged CCS Zhejiang underwent repairs.
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Nice update looks like the Dracs faired poorly at Kentaras and the CEO made landfall safely and Kat is getting worried about the noose tightening around her neck by the looks of it which is good.
I wonder if it would be worth founding an independent regiment from the survivors of Kentaras would be a useful rallying cry though I imagine the unit would be hard to restrain against the dracs.
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Nice update looks like the Dracs faired poorly at Kentaras and the CEO made landfall safely and Kat is getting worried about the noose tightening around her neck by the looks of it which is good.
I wonder if it would be worth founding an independent regiment from the survivors of Kentaras would be a useful rallying cry though I imagine the unit would be hard to restrain against the dracs.
The Clovis/Kentares DMM is around 40% strength right now. But are now listed as Veteran and supply wise will be up at B equipment listing and Fanatical loyalty. Compared to 100% Green, F Reliable. So they probably would make a good new Robinson Ranger or Independent command... But stripping an entire PDZ of it's March Militia would be a dangerous game.
Also I've already created/recreated in Independent Commands: 1st Revenant Guards, 1st Tikonov Cossacks, 1st Dragonlords (expected to become basis of a brigade) and 1st Sheraton Knights. Victors probably founded more independent commands than any of his ancestors. ;D
Plus any Kentares based unit would probably be a nightmare - think Syrtis Avengers.
Anyone with map making skills able to do a map showing the additions in the Chaos March and Draconis Combine conquests? :D
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Plus any Kentares based unit would probably be a nightmare - think Syrtis Avengers.
Point the FedSuns don't need a unit like that though if another new independent command needed founding I'd think the another few Federated Suns Armoured Caverly would be useful.
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March 3063
March opened with a small number of flare up's along the ceasefire line. A detached demi-company of warriors from the Prosperina Hussars brigade heading back from leave on Prosperina to their parent regiments attempted to raid Galtor in the hope of causing enough damage to make the Davion invaders decide to withdraw. Their 2 Leopard dropships were intercepted in space by the FSS Simon Davion and destroyed out of hand.
Similarly on Cylene the 12th Ghost regiment attempted a surprise night time assault to reclaim at least a few of their dropships. It was broken up before it got anywhere near the dropships as fighters from the 5th Deneb Light Cavalry's aerospace brigade got practise at night time strafing runs. By this point many of the Ghost's mechs were running low on ammunition and struggled to put up a great deal of flak to drive the Deneb Light Cavalry's pilots off. They were forced to call of the attack and fade back into the hinterlands.
On Skat however the 11th Ghost actually didn't attempt to restart the fighting and instead drew back to their own makeshift bases and concentrated on repairing as much damage as they could. While the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry did the same. After the heaving fighting Marshal Andrew Terleki Jr on Deneb Kaitos sent a request that the 12th be rebuilt as a full RCT like all the other Light Cavalry units. This was agreed by Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion.
Victor Davion had by now left Galtor along with a strong contingent of the 1st Davion Guards RCT, although the bulk of the RCT would remain on Galtor for the time being, and headed back to New Avalon. The FSS Melissa Davion escorted him, after dropping him off at New Avalon the cruiser would head for New Syrtis to be refitted in the upgrading yards there.
In the meantime the HPG's flashed message after message between St Ives, Luthien and New Avalon attempting to firm up a ceasefire into a full on truce. It was finally agreed that representatives of the two warring states would meet on Northwind, the only really suitable location near both realms. For some reason the Draconis Combine wasn't prepared to send it's emissary across FedSun's controlled space to St Ives, nor were either side prepared to meet on a world owned or occupied by the other. The Elder's of Northwind agreed to this proposal and further agreed that security would be provided by the Northwind Highlanders.
Baron Tancred Sandoval was nominated to lead the FedSun's contingent while the Warlord of Deiron Isoroku Kurita would represent the Draconis Combine. Both men were chosen for their strong links to the ruling house, military experience but also diplomatic abilities. Baron Tancred's brief was to secure Combine acceptance of the change of ownership of the 11 worlds seized during the recent offensive. Warlord Isoroku's mission was to attempt to reclaim any of those worlds he could, although the Coordinator was realistic enough to know this would be an almost impossible task. He was also to press for the return of the traitor Judith Hotchkiss to Combine justice. The meeting would begin on the 2nd April 3063.
The four major mercenary commands which had taken part in the recent invasions, the 3 Fighting Urukhai and Screaming Eagles regiment, would all be gifted with a company of battlemechs paid for by House Sandoval and House Davion, a lance of each company would be omnimechs produced on Marduk. These battlemechs were to help them return to full strength and show the gratitude of the FedSuns for the mercenaries who had helped them defeat the Dragon. The commanders of both commands would be grateful for the gift in addition to the generous contractual terms which the FedSuns had further upgraded following the battles. Other mercenary commands both within the FedSuns and outside it would take note of the attitude of the AFFS and Government to mercenary commands who performed good service.
In secret within the Panpour system the first slip began work on a new Congress-D. The yard had finished construction of the first of the two secret slips and had began stockpiling material to produce the warship. It was estimated that the ship would be ready for launch within 3 years.
The repairs on FSS Antrim were also completed and the ship returned to active duty. The yard would then begin construction on a new Fox class corvette. As well as the returning FSS Antrim the FSS Kathil and FSS Bryceland were also approaching completion at Galax as was the FSS Robert Davion at Kathil.
On Addicks a 2nd Dagger-O fighter line came online. Already demand for this new aerospace fighter was far outstripping demand and further expansions were being considered. The expansion of the Dagger-O line's on New Syrtis at this stage were also stepped up and the third line would come online in late April instead of the projected June.
During the course of the month both sides would spend much of their time bringing up spare parts, ammunition and replacement personnel to the commands who had been fighting or expected to fight while building up large stockpiles of equipment in case the cease fire and truce talks failed. On the Davion side plans were put in place to attack core-ward from the Galtor Thumb and take the worlds of Barlow's Folly, Matar, Scheat, Homam, Sadalbari, Fellanin II and of course... Prosperina. While the Deiron District would be attacked at Quentin and Al Na'ir and the periphery front would see attacks launched against Huan, Capra, Weisau and Valentina. The Draconis Combine's plans were mostly defensive in nature, but plans were drawn up to launch a full scale assault into the occupied worlds of the so called "Galtor Thumb" and attempt to drive the Davion's back across the border.
Recognising that he once again faced a hostile enemy on two frontiers the Coordinator ordered a massive expansion of the Sun Zhang Mechwarrior Academy and other training establishments. He also again turned to the despised Yakuza and offered substantial rewards for loyalty to the Dragon. The underworld would begin providing recruits and at least some of the equipment for 4 new Ghost regiments. New Regular's regiments would also be formed. As soon as he could halt the Ghost Bear invasion that was...
Theodore Kurita also began authorising increased funds to attempt to rectify the problems with the DCS Yamato which had languished due to major issues with the project. Similar funds were made available for the technically cancelled DCS Mount Niitaka, as well as the ongoing work to refit and reproduce the DCS Togura. The Dragon's Teeth must be expanded and sharpened. Luthien Armour Works was also authorised to increase production and build a new site to replace the loss of Marduk's Victory Industries.
On Hesperus II the battle between the 3 Lyran Guard units finally drew to a close at the end of March when the last remnants of the 15th finally were overrun by their loyal sister regiments. All prisoners taken during the campaign would be shipped to Tharkad for trial and any officers found guilty (all of them) would be summarily shot. NCO's and serving troops would if found guilty be "merely" sentenced to 25 years in prison.
At the Star League Courts the Archon had began her own defence with what amounted to a 3 hour speech on the depravities and hatred in the heart of so called First Prince Victor Davion. A man responsible for killing his own mother and attempting to kill his own sister as well as having killed his best friend Galen Cox after the man had fallen in love with her and so became a potential liability. She spoke at length on a meeting she had had with Galen in which he had confessed that he believed his friend was mentally unbalanced and capable of anything... This had been shortly before Victor had him killed and only narrowly missed out on killing her.
This testimony was somewhat undermined when "Colonel" Jerrod Cranston, a minor but relatively well thought of aide to First Prince Victor, was officially unveiled as Leftenant General Galen Cox, returned from the dead. He testified via a ruinously expensive HPG link to the court that said conversation had never happened. In fact he had been saved from the assassins bomb by his friend Victor - while Katherine Steiner-Davion who had claimed to love him had been notified about the bombing but had made no effort to warn him.
Throughout the Sphere and particularly within the Isle of Skye region of the Lyran Alliance this testimony totally undermined any remaining credibility that the Archon had left. The feed from the court room of her gaping shocked face as Galen Cox returned from the dead to testify against her did little to help this situation. She did immedietly denounce him as a false puppet, but DNA evidence was submitted that proved he was who he said he was. At which point a visibly flustered Katherine demanded another recess to evaluate this new evidence. She asked for 3 months but was given until the 1st of April.
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Wish I could find the clapping GIF for this but Kat has throughly shot her case in the head into a deep dark hole and killed all credibility with her loyalists.
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Thank you good sir
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1st Dragonlords RCT: Avalon's Silver Claws
The reborn 1st Dragonlords in 3062, which took place under the orders of First Prince Victor Davion, differed slightly from it's previous incarnation. While the previous Dragonlords Brigade had consisted of reinforced regiments of Battlemech's with an attached aerospace wing, the new and hopefully improved version would be formed on a Regimental Combat Team basis. However the RCT in question would differ from other such units within the AFFS. The unit would consist of a reinforced regiment of battlemechs, with an attached aerospace brigade of 3 aerospace fighter wings but where the previous 1st Dragonlords hadn't had attached conventional units the newly formed unit would. Added to the 4 battalions of mech's would be two reinforced armour regiments and 2 full battle armour regiments each consisting of a full 4 battalions and additional supporting forces such as artillery and engineers. At full strength the unit would consist of 156 battlemechs, 60 aerospace fighters, 312 tanks and over 2000 battle armour troopers along with a battalion of artillery, a battalion of VTOL gunships and another of engineers loosely grouped into a "1st Dragonlords Combat Auxillary" and attached to the armour brigade.
The idea was that these new formations would combine the very cutting edge of modern military technology in such a way as to provide maximum firepower for their size. The 1st Dragonlord's would be the template around which the rest of the brigade would later be formed and was partnered with the Davion Assault Guards RCT just as the previous unit had been. No less than 3 of it's 4 battalions would consist of assault weight battlemechs with the 4th designated as a cavalry unit with fast heavies and medium battlemechs. The armour regiments were to be patterned on a similar basis, with tanks like the Challenger X and Alacorn VI heavy tank being common. Whether in defence or in attack the 1st Dragonlords RCT was to be able to lay down a staggering weight of firepower and stand toe to toe with any and all comers and destroy them utterly. Relentless in advance and implacable while holding the line was the goal of those High Command staff officers designing it's TOE.
When the unit was formed up Colonel Susie Stokes, aide to Marshal Stephan Cooper, was offered a full promotion to Major General entirely skipping the rank of Leftenant General and command of the reborn 1st Dragonlords. She was allowed to hand pick a small staff of veteran Davion Guard officers and draw upon the wider AFFS to flesh her command team out and her pick of the graduating classes from every Academy and Training unit within the FedSuns to form her unit. She deliberately concentrated on getting her first pick of officer candidates and assembling them and only then did she begin working her way through the various records of the cadets who she would use to form her new unit. Every single mechwarrior for instance wasn't just chosen by his own Captain or Major, but each choice was agreed at every single stage of the process by the entire command staff right up the line to Major General Stokes. While as expected the graduates of Albion and NAIS dominated the new formation, a surprising number of candidates were drawn from more peripheral academies such as Point Barrow or Kilbourne. Major General Stokes was offered enough candidates to fill out her entire roster, however when she and her officers had finished their evaluations she had merely assembled enough troops to put a little over 2 battalions into the field. They had deliberately chosen quality over quantity and additionally wanted time to train and form established units to then flesh out and expand upon with a second wave of cadets in the following year. Her chosen armour and infantry officers did the same with their own commands and largely formed up a unit that hovered around 60% of it's full intended strength across the board, although the battle armour regiments were slightly higher than this drawing heavily from NAIS. The intention is that when the class of '63 graduates from the various Training Cadres and Battalions for the unit to be brought up to full strength. Many also suspect that in the fullness of time additional Dragonlord units will be reactivated.
With the core of her unit now formed the Major General led them onto the training fields of New Avalon and was soon engaged in a series of war games against the defending Davion Heavy Guards, New Avalon CrMM and elements of the 1st New Avalon Cavaliers. Between mock battles the unit underwent a series of training exercises that were more in line with a Cadre unit than a full combat command, yet Major General Stokes was relentless. Her new command would drill and drill again until it reached her high standards. When the 1st Dragonlord's were finally called into action they would uphold the glorious history of their Brigade and bring nothing but added honour to their historic regiment. The first training exercises were of course almost total disasters. A new unit, with new officers often promoted from their previous positions and with new equipment, facing formed and experienced units was bound to take a series of hard knocks. Which was the entire point. After a number of almost humiliating performances against even the New Avalon CrMM the unit's new members threw themselves into the training regime with a passion, desperate to not suffer another humiliating defeat. Over the course of 3063 the Dragonlords steadily improved until they began to prove a tough and challenging opponent for not only the New Avalon CrMM but even the Davion Heavy Guards. Although still listed as a green unit the Silver Claws were able to hold their heads up as they made even the Davion Heavy Guard's work for their victories while managing to pull of a few surprising victories of their own against the New Avalon CrMM.
Officers
Major General Susie Stokes had been a longstanding Davion Assault Guards officer and yet had taken the lessons of Marshal Stephan Cooper to heart when he took command of The Crushers. Having been shown that many of the limitations of an assault weighted regiment were largely in the heads of it's officers she was now determined to bring that same fresh outlook to the 1st Dragonlords from the start. Again and again she was able to move her forces with speed and elan more befitting a cavalry unit. In this she was particularly helped by her use of the 2nd Battalion, 1st Dragonlords Combat Auxiliary who's Yellow Jacket and Hawk Moth gunships gave her a lightning fast and hard hitting response unit to tie down enemy formations and allow her to deploy her heavier battlemechs.
In this she was helped by Leftenant Genearl Lisa Nicole Schon, formerly Colonel of the 3rd Federation Armoured Regiment of the Davion Assault Guards Armoured Brigade, who now commanded the 1st Dragonlords Armoured Brigade. Leftenant General Schon was an expert in the sort of hard hitting armoured warfare that was considered a perfect fit for the new unit. Her formation of armour rapidly became the anvil upon which the battlemech's of the 1st Dragonlords would hammer their opponents.
1st Dragonlords
Reinforced Regiment/Green/Fanatical
CO: Major General Susie Stokes
Aide: Colonel Nate Zibler
Aerospace Brigade: Rear Admiral Joshua Cullen
The first three battalions are all weighted as assault class units, with the 4th battalion listed as a cavalry force consisting of fast heavies and medium battlemechs. Almost all of the battlemech's are produced in the Federated Suns but are drawn from all over the realm, Templar-O's produced in the Capellan March standing side by side with Draconis March produced Sagitairre and Crucis March produced Marauder II and Longbows. Despite being under strength the core of each battalion had been formed.
The 1st Dragonlord's Aerospace Brigade consists of the 1st Dragonflight, 1st Dragonwings and 1st Dragonclaws Fighter Wings. At least a squadron of Dagger-O's would be present in each wing.
1st Dragonlords Armoured Brigade
3 Regiments/Green/Fanatical
CO: Leftenant General Lisa Nicole Schon
Aide: Colonel Xander Davids
1st Dragonlords Armoured Regiment
2nd Dragonlords Armoured Regiment
1st Dragonlords Combat Auxiliary
The 1st and 2nd Dragonlords AR are both filled with heavy and assault class vehicles and are each built around an entire battalion of Challenger X Main Battle Tanks. The 1st Dragonlords Combat Auxiliary consists of a collection of individual battalions grouped together for administrative purposes.
1st Dragonlords Battle Armoured Brigade
2 Regiments/Green/Fanatical
CO: Leftenant General Georgina Schmidt
Aide: Lt Colonel Fraser Peterson
1st Dragonlords Armoured Infantry Regiment
2nd Dragonlords Armoured Infantry Regiment
Each Battle Armoured Infantry Regiment consisted of 4 battalions, each consisting of 256 battle armoured troopers, along with a separate command company. This would give each unit on paper at least 1088 officers and men. Cavalier and Infiltrator II battle armour designs were present in every battalion and it was hoped to soon add a heavier battle armoured design to the units.
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are the dragon lords going to have their own jumpships? if so how about a couple of assault droppers and a Battle taxis with battle armor to act as there escorts.
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are the dragon lords going to have their own jumpships? if so how about a couple of assault droppers and a Battle taxis with battle armor to act as there escorts.
I think just about every front line RCT in the FedSuns has it's own jumpships (and quite a few of the march militia's are mentioned as either having jumpships or not). I'm guessing the Dragonlords will be a primary unit assigned Conquistadors.
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So, I've been enjoying the story so far. I like the historical style for some sections interspersed with dialog sections. My suspension of disbelief is holding enough for me to ignore certain inconsistencies and changes in characters, their behavior, etc., which is good. However, one thing that you have mentioned a few times keeps coming back up and making me question "Why?"
Why is the reborn FedSuns building Congress-D frigates?
As a whole the Congress-D is rather lackluster by the standards of the SLDF fleet, when it was initially designed and built, and is outclassed by the warship forces seen post-Clan Invasion. The ships worked for the SLDF and House Davion back in the Star League era when fleets were larger and you had a larger number of vessels to have supporting maneuvers and tactics for fleet operations, but those are not the circumstances that the AFFS Navy faces in 3063.
The Congress, compared to the vessels that it would face in 3063, is under-gunned, under-armored, and slow. At 760,000tons you are probably using yard slips that would be better used to build the 770,000ton Avalon class. However, maybe the thought was, at 3.6billion C-bills the Congress is a bargain compared to the 20.2billion C-bill cost of the Avalon. That's fair, but there are other ships for similar cost that would be better. The one that House Davion would have plans for would be the Davion Block II destroyer. Roughly the same cost, 180,000tons lighter, with better firepower and armor.
Even then, we know from small canon blurbs that the AFFC was planning on building a third and fourth class of ship after development of the Fox and Avalon classes. You have the light cruiser design that the Lyran Alliance took and turned into the hulking Mjolnir class battlecruisers and the Durandal class destroyer. The Durandals never materialized due to the FedCom Civil War destroying a large part of the warship building capability of the FedSuns and Lyran Alliance, but that wouldn't be an issue in your reborn FedSuns. Now again, to be fair, the Durandals never got statted so we only have fan speculation as to what they would've been but I would put even money on them being based upon the old Davion Block II, most likely with upgrades like LF batteries, improved armament and armor, etc.
Given that the reborn FedSuns would have plans for the Davion Block II and the Durandal classes, I can't figure why they would build the Congress-D. For the cost and the threats that the realm is facing, the Congress class is not a good choice, especially when there are better alternatives.
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So, I've been enjoying the story so far. I like the historical style for some sections interspersed with dialog sections. My suspension of disbelief is holding enough for me to ignore certain inconsistencies and changes in characters, their behavior, etc., which is good. However, one thing that you have mentioned a few times keeps coming back up and making me question "Why?"
Why is the reborn FedSuns building Congress-D frigates?
As a whole the Congress-D is rather lackluster by the standards of the SLDF fleet, when it was initially designed and built, and is outclassed by the warship forces seen post-Clan Invasion. The ships worked for the SLDF and House Davion back in the Star League era when fleets were larger and you had a larger number of vessels to have supporting maneuvers and tactics for fleet operations, but those are not the circumstances that the AFFS Navy faces in 3063.
The Congress, compared to the vessels that it would face in 3063, is under-gunned, under-armored, and slow. At 760,000tons you are probably using yard slips that would be better used to build the 770,000ton Avalon class. However, maybe the thought was, at 3.6billion C-bills the Congress is a bargain compared to the 20.2billion C-bill cost of the Avalon. That's fair, but there are other ships for similar cost that would be better. The one that House Davion would have plans for would be the Davion Block II destroyer. Roughly the same cost, 180,000tons lighter, with better firepower and armor.
Even then, we know from small canon blurbs that the AFFC was planning on building a third and fourth class of ship after development of the Fox and Avalon classes. You have the light cruiser design that the Lyran Alliance took and turned into the hulking Mjolnir class battlecruisers and the Durandal class destroyer. The Durandals never materialized due to the FedCom Civil War destroying a large part of the warship building capability of the FedSuns and Lyran Alliance, but that wouldn't be an issue in your reborn FedSuns. Now again, to be fair, the Durandals never got statted so we only have fan speculation as to what they would've been but I would put even money on them being based upon the old Davion Block II, most likely with upgrades like LF batteries, improved armament and armor, etc.
Given that the reborn FedSuns would have plans for the Davion Block II and the Durandal classes, I can't figure why they would build the Congress-D. For the cost and the threats that the realm is facing, the Congress class is not a good choice, especially when there are better alternatives.
The Congress-D was simply because challenge owns the rights to produce them. And there are multiple references to "secret" yards there. You are right they are undergunned and underarmoured for the modern era, but I do foresee a use for them. Particularly due to their "cheap" cost.
As for the Davion II - expect to see a Davion III being built.
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The Congress-D was simply because challenge owns the rights to produce them. And there are multiple references to "secret" yards there. You are right they are undergunned and underarmoured for the modern era, but I do foresee a use for them. Particularly due to their "cheap" cost.
As for the Davion II - expect to see a Davion III being built.
what if they cut down some of the cargo space and added armor or counter fighter weapons?
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Congress-D's are only recon and convoy escort they could be up-gunned if needed though they would be a handy ship for the rear area and out back security as well as maybe victor launching his own survey missions.
Failing that add in so triple A and some extra armour by striping out some of the cargo.
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Following: excellent work!
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Congress D convert to aerospace carrier might be easiest conversion.
170k of cargo leaves a lot of room for aero, small craft marines, etc.....
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My idea for the Congress-D is for them to get a refit to add a LOT of anti-aircraft, some more fighters (probably in the 20-60 fighter range) and become a patrol craft for the Outback/Rear areas/convoy escort.
They'll never be put into mass production of dozens of ships, but a few being built for that mission works I think.
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My idea for the Congress-D is for them to get a refit to add a LOT of anti-aircraft, some more fighters (probably in the 20-60 fighter range) and become a patrol craft for the Outback/Rear areas/convoy escort.
They'll never be put into mass production of dozens of ships, but a few being built for that mission works I think.
Something that can steamroll anyone who doesn´t have their own warships (real or pocket), i.e. pretty much any self-styled pirate king out there? Sounds like a good idea.
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or refit older jumpships in a way like the cappellan quetzalwhatsits, old ships with a permanently attached dropships usually converted for Aero groups and small craft for marines
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April 3063 - Negotiations
The month of April opened with all eyes on the news from what was now merely being referred to as The Trial. Following Katherine Steiner-Davion's faux pas with claiming a dead man had warned her about her brothers murderous and wicked ways - who then proceeded to come back from the dead and state he said no such thing - her case was in tatters and she had not had long to regroup. Nor had she hired new legal council. Even her most fervent supporters were beginning to admit that the evidence was not looking good for her, although most were still maintaining that it was forged. A growing minority however were turning away from her. Particularly within the LAAF and Skye Regions.
When Katherine finally retook the stand she had clearly chosen a new tactic. Now all she would do is denounce the illegality of this trial, the lack of jurisdiction that the judges had over her as a ruling Archon, the forged nature of the evidence and demand her immediate release upon pain of horrific consequences. She would no longer answer questions nor would she cross examine witnesses. All she would do would be to repeat the same demands and denouncements. When the court proceeded despite this she became even more shrill in her loud cries to be freed, until at least it was put to her that if she did not at least stay silent during evidence she would be restrained and forced to leave the court. So she merely contented herself with sitting in martyred silence.
This lasted for 3 days... Until at the Nadir Jump Point a large and unexpected signature was detected. The defending warship's of the ComGuards Fleet rushed to battle stations as multiple enemy warships and jumpships arrived in a simultaneous jump.
Leading the armada came the WCS Nicholas Kerensky, along with WCS Stealthy Kill, WCS Blood Drinker, WCS Jerome Winson, WCS Victoria Ward and the WCS Dire Wolf. Accompanying the warships came the might of the entire Wolf Clan Alpha Galaxy led by no lesser personage than their Khan himself. It was also instantly noticeable that along with the Wolf Clan forces had come the 5th Alliance Guards RCT and the LAS Katrina Steiner which had supposed to be hunting them. Given their positioning within the prospective invasion force they were clearly part of it.
Hurried challenges rushed out to the newly arrived fleet, demanding to know what their intentions were. Khan Ward merely responded by announcing that he had come to launch a Trial of Refusal against the right of the Star League Courts to trial his ally the Archon of the Lyran Alliance. He bid his entire Alpha Galaxy and the 5th Alliance Guards against whichever curs would dare to face him. If they refused his trial... He would consider it a breach of honour and summon his entire Clan to fight against the forces shamefully holding his ally.
On Tukayyid it was wildly believed that the Khan was bluffing. He wouldn't risk the entire peace and his clan's future for a single woman. Even if she was his supposed ally. Yet there was the small issue that to call his bluff would mean risking all out war with the Clans. After hurried debate between the Precentor Martial, First Lord and most of the other Successor States rulers it was agreed that the forces of the SLDF would meet the trial. The 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment would face the 5th Alliance Guards RCT and the Invader Galaxy would fight the Alpha Galaxy. The Trial was scheduled to take place on t he 21st April 3063.
The next 18 days were almost lost across the entire sphere. Even on the FedSuns-Draconis Combine border the various units, leaders and peoples held their breath and watched the news not for word on any counter attacks or revived fighting but for the Trial. Only on the Draconis Combine's frontier with the Ghost Bears did the battles still rage. What did the Ghost Bears care for a Wolf Khan after all?
During those 18 days however Prince Victor is back on New Avalon and retaking the reigns of government. He also visits his sister and meets with CEO Judith Hotchkiss to discuss a new primarily assault based factory. Although he attempts to suggest an Outback world she points out the highly technical nature of the assault mechs she brought the specs for and suggests instead Kestrel. He reluctantly agrees with the provision that the fabulously wealthy Cunningham ducal family help with the funding.
The First Prince also takes time out to meet with his sister who is undergoing treatment, along with other wounded both civilian and military brought to NAIS for specialist treatment. The injuries inflicted upon his sister and the other civilians in particular deeply move him and he orders a large investment in hospitals to be made across the realm, setting up a number of "Princess Yvonne Hospitals" on worlds scattered throughout the FedSuns over the next few years. Eventually each PDZ and Combat Region will have at least one and preferably more of these hospitals, the personnel for them mostly trained to a high standard at Golden World Universities.
He also takes the opportunity to train with the forming 1st Dragonlords and even joins with the unit with his 1st Davion Guards contingent in a hard fought battle against the New Avalon CrMM where both sides fight the other to a bloody draw. The New Avalon CrMM's Marshal Payne of course attributes this to the leadership of the First Prince and the Davion Guards members, but has to admit that the Dragonlords are getting better.
Baron Sandoval and Warlord Kurita also arrive on Northwind and begin preliminary negotiations - mostly about how the talks will be conducted. Even at this early stage there are deep divisions and arguments. Even being able to agree who should speak first takes 5 days, with Warlord Kurita being given the honour in return for limiting his introduction to a half hour.
The 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT is withdrawn during this time period from the front lines and is sent for its much needed refit on Bell. Their place is taken by the elite 1st Argyle Lancers which has the Chisholm Raiders feeling honoured that they were considered the equal of that prestigious unit in defensive worth, even if they are a full RCT. That and the promised refit will do wonders for the morale of the unit.
On Axton the first new production line of Corsairs enters production. It will take until the end of the year for the full production increases to kick in. Dagger-O production on New Syrtis will also increase from 2 lines to 3 over April. While on Filtvelt the first Union and Mule dropships will be laid down. With the increased fighter production it is vital for more aerospace pilots and other naval training facilities to come online and by the end of the year a massive expansion of the Armstrong Flight Academy will be starting to take new cadets, although the increases will be in a rolling fashion with constant expansions planned for the time being to keep up with demand.
At 0900 on the 21st of April 3063 a second Trial will start on Tukayyid. Much smaller than the first it will however be fought with equal ferocity. The Alpha Galaxy smashes into the Invader Galaxy of the ComGuards while the 5th Alliance Guards attempts to do the same to the 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment. All through the Sphere and even in the Clan OZ's the battles are transmitted.
Just outside of the former Wolf target city of Skupo the Alpha Galaxy fought a brutal and aggressive battle against the Invader Galaxy. The 1st and 2nd Assault Clusters of the Invader Galaxy made up the main line with the 1st Recon Cluster acting as a screen and the 1st Battle Cluster in reserve. In a suprise move the Elemental Trinaries from all 4 Wolf Clusters dropped directly onto the 1st Recon Cluster and attacked them in an almost suicidal drop assault. Even as the Recon Cluster was struggling to free itself the main Wolf force disembarked and led by the Golden Keshik smashed into them. The 1st and 2nd Assault Clusters moved up to support the faltering 1st Recon Cluster and found themselves facing almost 2:1 odds. The 3rd Wolf Guards Battle Cluster, eager to prove their worth plunged forward and managed to split the ComGuards line in two, albeit with crippling losses, which allowed Khan Ward to use the 4th Striker Cluster to pin the 2nd Assault Cluster in place while he smashed the remainder of the 1st Recon and the 1st Assault Cluster with the 1st Wolf Assault Cluster and 5th Wolf Guards Battle Cluster and his own Keshik.
By the time the 2nd Assault Cluster and the 1st Battle Cluster could fight their way through to their beleaguered comrades barely a trinary of both the 1st Recon and 1st Assault were able to withdraw into their lines. With three mauled Clusters the Khan then moved forward and began battering at the damaged 2nd Assault and still fresh 1st Battle Cluster. The ComGuards units would hold out for the rest of the day but when a repaired Trinary of the 3rd Wolf Guards Battle Cluster reentered the fray they were forced to concede defeat. The ComGuards units had been reduced to just under a single cluster of functional machines all of them damaged, while the Wolf Alpha Galaxy could muster barely a cluster and a half of operable machines, and their Elemental Trinaries were particularly devastated. Still they had taken a win.
In front of Brzo the 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment engaged the 5th Alliance Guards. The elite battlemech regiment wasted no time and even as the 5th was deploying into their Landing Zone's that jump capable mechs and jump infantry had seized the 1st Royals were charging forward. With aimed fire that would have done credit to targeting computer assisted shots the survivors of Task Force Serpent inflicted terrible losses on the perimeter assigned battalion of the 5th Alliance and overran them to plunge into the disembarking troops. In a 3 hour battle the 5th Alliance was almost entirely wiped out, many of it's dropships reduced to burning wrecks with their occupants dead inside them. The 1st Royals were reduced a reinforced battalion but had taken the honours.
Faced with this draw Khan Ward suggested that he would form a composite Cluster to face the remainder of the 1st Royals if that was agreeable to the Precentor Martial. Despite General Redburn being in favour of this suggestion the Precentor Martial declined. Even the freshest of the 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment's soldiers were exhausted and many wounded. While they might win the fight he wasn't prepared to see them wiped out in the effort. He consulted briefly with the First Lord and with First Prince Victor and both reluctantly agreed with his decision.
As such at dawn of the 22nd April Katherine Steiner-Davion was handed over to the waiting Khan Vlad Ward. Along with her went the remainder of the 5th Alliance Guard, who were barely able to form a reinforced combined arms battalion. Transporting up to the Wolf flagship she ordered the LAS Katrina Steiner and the 5th Alliance Guards to follow her into exile...
Throughout the Sphere the ramifications of this "rescue" would take months to settle. In the FedSuns this was seen as a total vindication of their First Prince and his officers who had arrested the "traitor". Katherine Steiner-Davion had sided with the clans against her own people and this had damned her in the eyes of the vast majority of the FedSuns, even those who had been moderate towards her before. Within the Lyran Alliance the reaction was no less hostile. Possibly even worse amongst those who had sworn her allegiance and offered her their swords. The few Tamar worlds left and worlds of the Clan Border had anti-Katherine riots which burned for weeks. Officers who had considered or even conducted pro-Katrina Steiner mutinies were keen to distance themselves from the "traitor Katherine Steiner-Davion" suddenly. The CO of the Donegal Jaegers even offered to take his unit into the Wolf Clan Occupation Zone and hunt her down. A purge of naval officers who might owe their allegiance to the former Archon was also ordered given the LAS Katrina's switch in allegiances.
In all the excitement the 1st and 3rd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry lifted off their garrison worlds and disappeared unnoticed during the last week of April. Along with them went the 2nd Battalion Death Heads Commandos.
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one thing with those new factories. even if they are not in full production, the spare parts hitting the market would increase the number of unit in operations even with out new built machines. do you think that they will drop some of those dropship collars to cut the cost and make the Fox a "real" warship and not an medium gun, very expensive, dropship carrier.
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one thing with those new factories. even if they are not in full production, the spare parts hitting the market would increase the number of unit in operations even with out new built machines. do you think that they will drop some of those dropship collars to cut the cost and make the Fox a "real" warship and not an medium gun, very expensive, dropship carrier.
Exactly - hence why many of the factories even before they officially open start producing parts, a "soft" opening. That lets them a) build up a stockpile for when they enter production and b) sell those parts to the AFFS/Mercenaries who are needing them to keep their battlemechs at full operational level.
A fox refit is in my long term plans.
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Looks like the CCAF is on the move wonder where they are going to hit and if victor will take the gloves off and actually beat down sunny or have the Guards and fusiliers deliver a pointed message to him in person?
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3063 May - Fallout
As May began the recriminations began. Various Generals, Dukes and even Rulers began to heavily criticise not only the ComGuards but also the SLDF for it's handling of protecting the Star League Courts and the accused Katherine Steiner-Davion. Nobody had any idea what Khan Ward wanted with her, but few assumed it would be something good for the rest of the Sphere. Adam Steiner on Tharkad was particularly vocal in his criticisms of the Precentor Martial's handling of the security and strongly suggested that the ComGuards fleet should have merely attacked the Wolf ships and destroyed them. This was countered by points that it had been a Lyran unit and Lyran corvette supporting the Wolves.
On Northwind the peace talks were not going well. At least twice Warlord Kurita had threatened to storm out when Baron Sandoval had made it very clear that his demands for the return of the captured planet and the extradition of the CEO Judith Hotchkiss were not going to happen. Tancred had bluntly pointed out to him that he was not exactly in a position to make those demands. The AFFS had forces on those worlds and controlled them. Short of the DCMS invading to take them back there was little chance of any of those worlds being returned to Kurita control, and if that was the intent then the peace talks might as well end now and the fighting resume. A point Tancred made forcibly and pointed out that before his own dropship left Northwind a dozen RCT's could be in space heading for more ill defended Combine worlds if that was what the Warlord wished to report back to Luthien. Just how many more worlds did House Kurita wish to lose before it was prepared to make peace?
Faced with that unpalatable statement the Warlord of Deiron had little choice but to return to the talks. Under protest of course. It was soon abundantly clear that the Combine knew it had lost the worlds and had little chance of getting the renegade CEO back but was desperately seeking some sort of face saving concession. The Warlord even at one stage tried to claim that the AFFS should evacuate Skat and Cylene and allow them to return to Kurita control as they had been before the War of '39. However given the precarious positions the DCMS had on those worlds it wasn't like he could claim they were under effective Combine control.
By the end of May the Warlord Isoroku Kurita had managed to get a number of very minimal concessions from Baron Tacred Sandoval. Namely that the 11th and 12th Ghost regiments would be allowed to salvage their equipment before they withdrew into Combine space. That all prisoners taken in all of the fighting would be returned at the cost of the Davions. The Davions would also agree NOT to produce the Combine specific designs of the Shugenja, Ninja-To and Tai-Sho that they had acquired from CEO Hotchkiss. However he had been unable to get a similar agreement not to produce any of the other designs or to not put equipment such as the Improved C3 into production within the FedSuns. The jumpships of the 3rd Benjamin Regulars would also be returned to the Combine along with the bodies of the troops. The dropships and any salvageable equipment however would be retained by the AFFS.
Warlord Kurita had to admit in his message to the Coordinator that the concessions were on the face of it pro-forma and of little real value. Probably the most valuable of them were the return of the jumpships and the return of the various prisoners. However even these were frankly of limited value. But with the Ghost Bear's smashing regiment after regiment along the Clan Front they DCMS couldn't afford the dozens of regiments and major war it would require to retake their lost systems. Worse there was every likelihood that in the event of the combat resuming then the AFFS would be in a position to seize more worlds.
Forced to face this unpleasant truth the Coordinator agreed to the terms. However he would already begin to place the blame upon is cousin the Warlord of Deiron for the failure in the negotiations amongst many of the nobles. Warlords were after all expendable. Coordinators weren't.
The peace treaty would be signed on the 31st of May. Many within the Second Star League spoke of how the First Lord had managed to bring the two sides to the peace table, however many others would point out that this had been a conflict between two of the main powers within the Second Star League and that it didn't bode well for the future.
In mid May the 1st Chisholm Raiders would arrive on Bell. A full battalion of mechs and 2 battalions of tanks would begin refitting in the expanded Hasek Refit Centre. By the end of the year the entire RCT would have been refitted up to a modern standard with the worst of their equipment merely stripped for parts and replaced by new factory fresh machines. The next unit to be sent to be refitted would be the Valexa CMM.
During May, while keeping an eye on the daily reports from Northwind, First Prince Victor also met with Nathaniel Hasek who was now almost the Capellan March's official ambassador to the First Prince on New Avalon. During this time it was formally agreed that the 1st Syrtis Fusiliers would be formed up on New Syrtis with much of the equipment for the new unit coming from the Capellan March itself but many excellent designs being routed from the other areas of the FedSuns. At Duke Hasek's request the unit would be formed up as an assault-heavy weighted RCT. During this time First Prince Victor also promised to help support the formation of a light weighted 7th Syrtis Fusiliers unit in the future although was unable to commit to a time. He also promised that as soon as the 1st Dragonlords was at full strength it would be deployed to the Capellan-FedSuns-Taurian border.
He also met with Marshal Jon Davion and heard his suggestions for a lighter form of the famed Davion Regimental Combat Teams based around the old Tancredi Loyalist units. He proposed a fast moving unit consisting of 4 battlemech companies, an aerospace wing, 4 battalions of armour and 4 battalions of battle armour supported by an auxiliary unit including artillery, engineers, etc... These units would be ideal of pirate hunting, raiding and garrisoning less vital planets. The First Prince intrigued agreed that such a unit would add a potential flexible weapon to the AFFS's arsenal. He agreed that he would form a trial unit and if it was successful would fund a rebirth of the Tancredi Loyalists and Tancredi War College to give them a source of recruits. The Davion Heavy Guards would deploy to the region and the 3rd Davion Guards RCT would replace them here on New Avalon while they rebuilt up to full strength. Once on Tancredi Jon Davion's Heavy Guards would begin training the trial unit.
With the possible creation of this unit in mind the First Prince also communicated with the Duke of Sandoval to discuss adding a Sentry line on the newly building plant on Woodbine which was due to being producing Watchmen in July. In return for this support for the expansion and potential new unit he agreed to add the Battle Hawk and Phoenix Hawk designs to Robinson BattleWork's portfolio, at least one of them put into production at Woodbine. The Duke also pushed for additional aerospace production within his March and the Prince agreed to consider it and look at various options.
Within the NAIS's medical centres the Princess Yvonne Steiner-Davion was informed that much of the thigh muscle for her damaged leg would have to be rebuilt with myomer fibres. This was a crushing blow to her spirit and although she agreed she settled into a deep depression. Seeing this her brother immedietly cut orders for Baron Tancred to make his way to New Avalon at the greatest possible speed upon the signing of the peace treaty.
A small cadre of NAIS scientists from their aerospace division also left New Avalon and took the short jump to Galax. Rather unusually they were transported by a Fox class warship, the FSS Indomitable. The ship took them deep into the huge sprawling megaplex of shipyards and facilities to a small but highly specialised research centre. There they would begin on upgrading previous warship designs for the modern era. At least as far as most of those within the know were concerned they would be concentrating on the Congress-D. First Prince Victor and Fleet Admiral Buchwald however knew that those priorities were not entirely accurate.
During May, StarCorp's FedSuns subsidiary began lobbying the AFFS and Government for increased contracts. They had been somewhat frozen out of the massive support for increased production within the FedSuns and their Crofton plant while still extremely profitable was seeing none of the Davion supported expansions of other industrial facilities. They would begin by offering a range of new mechs to be produced at the Crofton plant such as the Emperor, Highlander and King Crab. They also informed the AFFS that they were working on a new heavy omnivehicle design that they thought might interest the Davion military. In support of this lobbying they began to grease the palms of a number of procurement officers.
On Galtor, realising that with the damage to the Robinson Battle Academy during the Kurita's attack it might be some time before a steady supply of graduates would be available to flesh out his new 3rd Robinson Rangers, Duke Arthur Davion began forming a number of conventional units from the pro-Davion communities on the planet. He ordered the construction of a large training facility for armour crews and infantry near New Derry. He did consider forming a training battalion of battlemechs but frankly didn't have the mech's to do so. He did send however to his friend and mentor Duke James Sandoval and request a number of Watchmen and Sentry class battlemechs to help support his militia and potentially form a temporary training battalion with as well as a supply of conventional vehicles. He also began to take steps to put the Galtor Naval Yards back into production and petitioned his brother for the design for the Rapier destroyer.
The 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry also slipped away from it's base on a routine patrol during May, however this was noticed by the Davion intelligence service. At which point flags started to be raised about where the hell the other units of that brigade were... It was eventually discovered that they had lost track of the 1st, 3rd and 5th!
During May Cassandra Allard-Liao officially resigned her commission and took up a posting with the Rubinsky's Light Horse mercenary regiment.
Within the Taurian Concordant the Protector Shraplen began considering forming new Taurian Lancer regiments to safeguard his border from the inevitable FedSuns invasion. He also began forming at this time a new unit the 1st MacLeod's Regiment based on his own home planet. A heavy weight defensive unit he hoped it would be able to protect the MacLeod's land from the ravages of the Davion's who would target it as his homeworld.
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how about instead of so many Training mechs you sub in Industrial mech. that could cover the first and maybe some of the second year classes and they could be used to built or rebuild public works.
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how about instead of so many Training mechs you sub in Industrial mech. that could cover the first and maybe some of the second year classes and they could be used to built or rebuild public works.
agreed, it would also help out on a number of fronts.
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3063 - June - New beginnings
On the 2nd of June Judith Hotchkiss announces to the Trans-Federation Stock and Commodities Exchange headquarter on Torrance that New Independence Weaponry will be forming up within the Federated Suns as of the 1st of July with an initial stock option of 40% of the company being sold to investors. The remaining 60% will be split into 20% for herself, 20% for House Davion and 20% for House Cunningham. As soon as the company is offered up for investments on the Exchange the ground will be cut on a new battlemech production facility on Kestrel. Three lines are initially planned, namely an Atlas, Gunslinger and Victor designs. Further expansions to add a Marauder II, Marauder and Jagermech III line will be considered after the initial construction is completed. The new facility will she admits specialise in producing high end, high quality assault machines for the AFFS and associated mercenary commands. She hints that a more lightweight production facility may be considered later on a different planet.
As expected in the patriotic fervor of the reborn Federated Sun's the announcement of an entirely new (or as some traditionalists claim reborn) Davion battlemech producing company is met with a great deal of favour. The number of notes of interest and unofficial pre-release options being bought on the companies stocks is a heavy indication of a positive result to the stock floating on the 1st of July. In fact the early signs are so good that Judith Hotchkiss in consultation with her two main partners agree to a further stock release on the 1st of August 3063 which if it is fully taken up will be used to fund at the very least the Jagermech line and potentially both of the other 2nd wave expansion plans. She also takes this opportunity to petition Victor Davion to release the Battlemaster design to New Independence Weaponry, although this wasn't granted.
On the 11th of June the First Prince invited Marquess Helen Trempeleau to New Avalon to discuss his ongoing work to integrate and revitalise the Outback's economy with the rest of the Federated Suns. An invitation she accepts, although she doesn't travel alone but instead gathers a large group of her activist friends and advisers to bring with her. The Marquess has been pleasantly surprised by the First Princes's investments within the Outback, but wishes to address the fact that they have largely been expansions of the military industrial complex rather than the civilian economy. She is particularly concerned to get further increases in education spending for the Outback.
With the peace treaty signed Baron Tancred rushes through the Draconis and Crucis March via jumship relays and arrives on New Avalon on the 25th of June. After briefly meeting with the First Prince he then spends most of his time at the NAIS medical centre that Yvonne Steiner-Davion is being treated in. This begins to break through the depression which had set into the young princess.
With the knowledge that 3 regiments of the famed McCarron's Armoured Cavalry are loose somewhere the First Prince, Marshal of Armies and Minister of the Capellan March begin ordering alerts and patrols stepped up. The last thing they need right now is a major attack. The Field Marshal in charge of the Department of Military Intelligence Stephanie Day also alerts the First Prince and the rest of the High Command that shipping has increased around Highspire and her officers believe large military shipments have taken place. Many wonder whether the 3 missing Capellan mercenary units have relocated there to use it as a base for raiding. Just in case the FSS Murmansk is ordered to the area.
The FSS Kathil and FSS Bryceland, both Fox corvettes finish construction at the Galax shipyards at this time. Assigned together they are ordered to begin a shakedown cruise in the Outback and ordered to support the newly formed Avalon Hussar RCT's in that region in their pirate hunting. The next two ships to begin construction will be named the FSS Marduk and FSS Filvelt. The FSS Galtor and FSS Kentares are already under construction. Initially there had been plans to name the later two ships after famous Davion Admirals, however it is felt that continuing to name them for worlds will best motivate the people behind the naval building program. A fifth corvette slip is being built and Fleet Admiral Buchwald pushes for funding for a sixth slip to begin construction.
The FSS Robert Davion, an Avalon class cruiser, also slips loose from the shipyard during this time. It will move down towards the Capellan-FedSuns-Taurian border and be home ported at New Syrtis. With the new ship being laid down in the newly vacated slip that birthed the FSS Robert Davion the FedSuns has 3 Avalon cruisers under construction and a fourth slip being built. While the FSS Melissa Davion during June arrives at New Syrtis to begin repairs to the light battle damage she has suffered. She will have finished this repair by January 3064 at which time her place will be taken be the FSS Lucien Davion which was rushed into commission and is requiring a refit. When it is finished the similarly afflicted FSS Simon Davion will be due a refit.
At Firgrove the first Excalibur class dropship is approaching completion. It and it's 2 sister ships have been suffering numerous delays and teething problems and the AFFS's Naval Transport Division is more than aware that the 3 ships will no doubt have a number of "bugs" when they do enter service. Given the new nature of construction at Firgrove they are prepared to work with the shipyard to fix these and in fact are relying on Clyde Shipyards to be extremely proficient at this due to their long history of refits and repairs for the AFFS.
Challenge System's second warship slip is just about completed and will begin construction of a Congress-D by the end of the month. The shipyard has already been informed to expect a few design changes and refits of the design, but given the very early stage of construction and the famed ease of maintenance of the design the shipyards see little problem with this but do note any changes may delay construction.
On 22nd of June First Prince Victor invites Precentor Martial Focht to New Avalon to "discuss the situation regarding the accused Traitor's escape". Many expect that the First Prince is effectively calling the Precentor Martial to New Avalon to properly express his extreme displeasure. While that is of course true, Victor has several other matters he wishes to discuss with the Precentor Martial in private.
On Broken Wheel the first new Clint walks of the production line and is immedietly assigned to the Filtvel Academy Training Battalion. While on Point Barrow the new GM plant begins construction.
First Prince Victor also meets with the CEO of Lycomb-Davion during June to discuss further expansions. While he is more than happy with the prospect of the influx of new Stuka aerospace fighters he asks them to consider whether or not the company would be prepared to restart production of their former battlemech products the Awesome and Guillotine. Neither design is currently constructed within the Federated Suns and the First Prince in particular is looking at the mobility of the Guillotine and the impressive firepower of the Aweseome to add to his regiments.
Within the Lyran Alliance the Kell Hounds arrive on Tharkad with Peter Steiner-Davion. Duke Morgan Kell, Acting General of the Armies Adam Steiner and Peter Steiner-Davion along with various members of the Estates General and some key Dukes are soon engaged in lengthy discussions as to how to move forward with the "escape" of the former Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion.
On Tamar the Khan of the Wolf Clan and the Archon-in-Exile Katrina Steiner have a long and by all accounts fractious discussion of her position moving forward. Officially she is made his bondswoman but in practise becomes a key adviser and ally for him. She also begins military training under his personal supervision. A new Galaxy is formed, the Tamar Galaxy, with two Clusters consisting entirely of Spheroid freebirths. The 1st and 5th Alliance Guard Clusters are built around survivors of the 5th Alliance Guards RCT and a number of bondsmen taking during raids and some even from back in the Clan Invasion along with a handful of Lyran officers and men "escaping" to the Wolf Occupation Zone. A very limited "trial of position" confirms their status as warriors and they begin to be outfitted with clan second line mechs and captured inner sphere equipment. Plans are put in place to add a 1st Tamar Marines Cluster and a 1st Steiner Battle Cluster as soon as enough warriors are sourced and pass their trials.
Within the Free World League Parliament the newest delegation from the Free Tikonov province petitions the Captain-General to approve funds to begin expanding Sitwell Corporation on Saiph to produce battlemechs - stressing that a local supplier would greatly support the continued maintenance of the 4 Free Tikonov Republican Guard units. Given their position on the border this is a hard sell but it doesn't escape Thomas Marik's notice that many of those MP's supporting them are those strongly aligned with the WOB. He agrees to look at the proposal but makes no strong commitment.
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you might want to start looking at a Battle armor carrier or maybe a WD mod Lion.
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Dedicated VTOL BA carrier? And maybe a good solid 40-50 ton tank like Regulator. How long would it take to loot production line?
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I get the feeling if Kat tries to claim the title of Archon or tries to make a triumphant return she will end up being violently resisted on almost all of the world in the LA.
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The only thing I would question is the allowance of Clan Wolf to form a Galaxy of troops based upon Lyran units. It seems a bit too close to the Wolves in Exile schism to believe. In the 3070s maybe (and yes I know it's an AU) because they dropped a Galaxy off to the Horses for Warden sentiments, they might replace it with rabid spheroids bent on conquering the Lyran Commonwealth. Also the very limited trial to confirm them as warriors: kinda a Diamond Shark thing to do.
IDK just two cents. Still want to see how that line finishes: also go Bears :)
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The only thing I would question is the allowance of Clan Wolf to form a Galaxy of troops based upon Lyran units. It seems a bit too close to the Wolves in Exile schism to believe. In the 3070s maybe (and yes I know it's an AU) because they dropped a Galaxy off to the Horses for Warden sentiments, they might replace it with rabid spheroids bent on conquering the Lyran Commonwealth. Also the very limited trial to confirm them as warriors: kinda a Diamond Shark thing to do.
IDK just two cents. Still want to see how that line finishes: also go Bears :)
I think it´s a win-win for Vlad.
If it works out, it´s a justification for him to tap the enormeous manpower of the occupation zone for warriors.
If it doesn´t work out, it confirms the supremacy of trueborn warriors and cements their position at the top of the food chain.
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Vlad basically sees them as potential canon fodder/garrison troops which will help keep the natives quite and compliant. Plus worse case scenario if they don't work out he can disband/crush them.
He's also seen the recent creation of the 1st Rasalhague Bears in the Ghost Bear Clan and figures that what works for them might work for him plus he has an even better leader than Ragnar. The former Archon who has a claim to a real bloodname!
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I would love to see the ammount of weaseling that would go into making Kat the Galaxy commander by Clan rules.
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3063 - July - Unexpected Visitors
July begins with the official stock options becoming available for New Independence Weaponry. As expected the demand is high and the price of the shares quickly goes up. By the time the last of the stocks have been snapped up there is more than enough funds to begin construction of the new battlemech facility on Kestrel and by the end of the month the ground which the Duke of Kestrel had identified as suitable has seen the first work start. All three of the main stockholders and the wide range of smaller stockholders are eager to begin work and start to see battlemechs being built and profits returned on their investment. Priority is given to getting the Atlas line up and running first, but the other two lines are not far behind.
With the Robinson Battle Academy heavily damaged both the First Prince and the Duke of Robinson agree that as it is rebuilt it will also be enlarged. By the end of the year the Academy is expected to be ready to take in more students, the existing students will continue to be trained on a nearby military base for the time being. When the expansions are included the cadet numbers will triple. When the graduating class of 3064 graduate in 3066 the Robinson Battle Academy Training Cadre will be renamed the Training Regiment. Of course given the political sensitivities the Warrior's Hall on New Syrtis will also see a similar expansion in consultation with the Duke of New Syrtis. After all the AFFS can always use more mechwarriors.
A similar expansion is underway at Filtvelt, but without the loud declarations of the two March capital academies. Indeed the expansion at Filtvelt is larger as it is two fold. The existing Filtvelt Academy is to be doubled in size so that it is of comparable size to the Robinson Battle Academy and Warrior's Hall with a full regiment as it's cadet force. However side by side with the expanded Filtvelt will be the Filtvelt Flight School. It will be a smaller specialised school that will be affiliated with the Academy but will concentrate on producing fighter pilots drawn from the Outback. With an initial intake of a full wing of 20 cadets it will be expanded until it is graduating around 60 cadets a year with a training time of 3 years. Expansions to include training for air crews and other support staff for the fighter wings have also been included in the plans. Long term plans include adding jumpship and dropship crew courses.
All three of the mainstream academies will also be encouraged to add courses for tank officers, infantry officers and special forces and battle armour troopers. While Robinson Battle Academy and the Warrior's Halls will also add aerospace fighter training courses and to include these cadets within their training cadres in a similar manner to the existing NAIS Cadres. Filtvelt's fighter pilots for the training unit will be drawn from those cadets at the Flight School who will be joining fighter wings attached to battlemech regiments.
If these expansions go ahead and are successful then further plans are being put in place to expand Point Barrow, Kilbourne and even Tikonov's academies. There was some debate about Tikonov being expanded but given the huge worth of the world the First Prince himself insisted that every effort be made to integrate Tikonov into the FedSuns in any way possible. A large number of intelligence assets will be deployed to the world and particularly it's factories and the academy in order to being pushing a pro-Davion message to the population in preparation for the investments.
On the 17th of July First Prince Victor arranges to meet with Marquess Trempeleau and her "advisers". He himself comes alone except for his elemental bodyguard Tiaret Nevversan, not even bringing any of his ministers or Prince's Champion. This initially throws what amounts to the delegation from the Broken Wheel and surrounded Combat Regions. However they soon recover and begin to list their extensive grievances with the central government of the Federated Suns and House Davion. At least a few of the "advisers" are spouting almost anti-Davion and separatist views.
After some heated initial exchanges in which it is obvious that the First Prince is controlling his temper with a great deal of will power the meeting finally calms down with the Prince and Marquess agreeing that for the initial discussions perhaps the others could merely advise her rather than give the Prince speeches which are tantamount to rants. Marquess Helen agrees that the increased defences, anti-piracy patrols and industrial development and investments are welcome in the Outback they aren't going far enough and doing enough to help the areas anaemic infrastructure and education shortfalls.
The First Prince while pointing out that the large dropship and jumpship manufacturing complex being built at Filtvelt for civilian designs are likely to help the areas infrastructure in the long term does concede the point. He asks what would help the most, although makes the point that the central government doesn't have unlimited funds and resources - a point that causes a stir of irritation amongst Marquess Trempeleau's supporters.
The Marquess answers with a simple word: Education. If the population can have greater educational opportunities then further investments will flow into the area as firms see the opportunities of a well educated, well motivated community with expansive resource rich worlds. As more and more companies invest in the region then others will follow suit and the funds will become available to expand the infrastructure - where the corporations haven't already done so. Which will draw in more and more jumpships and merchants.
After some further discussions the First Prince agrees to revitalise the Vagabond School Program as well as expand the Regional Finishing School Initiative. The Regional Finishing Schools currently stand at 19 establishments, but he will attempt to ensure that numbers doubles over the next 3 years and consider an expansion of the project further with a number of Advanced Finishing Schools/Universities to be built at key locations. While a number of the military academies in the region will see civilian counterparts either created or expanded upon. A number of scholarships will also be created, although that number of left vague. These discussions go on for almost 2 weeks and various ministers are brought into the debate.
Before the agreement can be formally reached however there is a system wide alert on the as an unknown and potentially hostile jumpship has entered the New Avalon System at a small and almost never used jump point. The FSS Lucien Davion in orbit over New Avalon rushes to battle stations, while the FSS Indomitable at the Nadir Jump Point and the FSS Intrepid at the Zenith also prepare to inter-system jump if required. Large numbers of fighter wings and dropship squadrons are also rushed to readiness. A single jumpship is unlikely to be able to carry a large invasion force, but even a small number of missile armed dropships could do untold devastation using nuclear tipped warheads.
This alert is heightened when it becomes obvious that the ship in question is an Odyssey class vessel. A Clan jumpship here in the New Avalon system. Immediately the FSS Indomitable and FSS Intrepid are ordered to inter-system jump to closer to New Avalon and to then use maximum thrust to reach the planet to aid in it's defence, while an initial probing attack is launched by a full aerospace regiment of 60 fighters.
As all of this is done the jumpship detaches two dropships which make a slow burn at 1G for New Avalon. Scans from the extensive and hideously expensive system wide detection grid indicate that one of them is a Union-C and the other is a Sassanid class vessel. The confusion within Mount Davion grows, as combined those two dropships could carry 15 Omnimechs and 75 Elemental's. Hardly an invasion force and an insanely small raiding one for a target like New Avalon.
As the by now obviously overwhelming aerospace fighter brigade approaches the dropships the ships immedietly begin sending out hails that they wish to speak with the "Conqueror of the Ilkhan Victor Steiner-Davion, Vanquisher of Clan Smoke Jaguar"... The commanding officer of the aero regiment also messages back that the dropships are obviously showing signs of war damage, poor repair and have Clan Smoke Jaguar markings. The two dropships are ordered to land at a small military dropship spaceport and aerospace base in the New Hebrides archipelagos and are escorted there by a full aerospace regiment at all times, while the FSS Intrepid diverts to stand watch over their jumpship.
The two Clan dropships will land on New Avalon on the 4th August 3063.
Given the huge demand for Dagger-O fighters throughout the AFFS Admiral Buchwald and Marshal of the Armies Jackson begin discussing further expansions of the design and attempts to have a facility built within the Crucis March for added security. While they are confident that expansions will be well regarded they are not so sure that George Hasek will wish to see the fighter produced in the central Crucis March. Particularly as they know he has been resisting the building of the Templar-O within the Crucis March as well.
On Novaya Zemyla the huge new industrial plant for Kallon Industries begins construction. While nearby the Dagger-O plant is rapidly approaching finishing and is even now starting to manufacture a few spare parts.
Robinson BattleWork's new plant on Woodbine enters full production of the Watchman class battlemech during July. The first production run will be used to form a corporate security battalion for the plant along with some donations or cost priced machines to the local planetary defence forces and to the local Milligan DMM. Once this has been done and with future expansions already under construction the sales of these war machines to the AFFS will be primarily directed to rebuilding the Mayetta DMM and Bryceland DMM and then other units in the area, particularly the 1st Conroe Training Battalion and the Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion. At least a full company of mixed Watchman and Sentry are being planned for each of the newly liberated worlds of Niles, Groveld and Delacruz to form the core of their planetary defence forces.
On Robinson itself Duke James Sandoval receives the request from his new vassal and protege Duke Arthur Davion of Galtor. The Duke of Robinson has a huge number of demands on his resources but he can see the vital strategic worth of Galtor and also in keeping such a well connected new Duke on "his side". Therefore he orders the diversion of a number of battlemechs from his factories to help reinforce and expand the newly formed 3rd Robinson Rangers. Attaching a "Galtor Training Battalion" to the 3rd Robinson Rangers as a 2nd battalion. Although not an official training battalion in the way the more permanent ones are, they will provide a welcome boost in numbers and firepower to the defence of Galtor and include the newly liberated world's population in their defence. Most of the new machines are Watchmen and Sentries but a handful of more advanced battlemechs are included.
While this is all going on a military operation begins planning within Mount Davion under the personal order of Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion. Operation Tripoli begins planning and a number of commands are ordered to increase training and receive extra ammunition and spare parts to build up a reserve. Two warships are also ordered to prepare and update their naval maps for the target systems.
Within the Draconis Combine the Coordinator is not standing still. Furious at the outcome of the aborted war with the Davion's he continues to throw more and more troops into the battles along his border with the Ghost Bear Clan. Indeed he forms a large task force based around 1st, 5th, 7th and 8th Sword of Light regiments and both Genyosha regiments and orders them to hit the Ghost Bears hard in a series of bloody and hard fought engagements. With 6 of his finest regiments hitting the front between Turtle Bay and Luzerne he intends to show the Bears that the Dragon still has fangs! Leading this task force is no lesser personage than his son. Their victories will be broadcast nationwide to raise morale and support for the war.
He also orders that an 8th Amphigean Assault Group, 7th Arkab Legion, 4th Night Stalkers (consisting of mostly elderly warriors and medically discharged warriors), 10th Prosperina Hussars and 45th Galedon Regulars formed along the Davion border. All of these units will be massively under strength, but he wants them formed and training at least as cadres and to give a show of strength. This is in addition to the 4 new Ghost regiments he has mustered. The scientists and technicians working on the DCS Togura are also sent pointed messages that their work is "vital to the security of the Dragon" and must be "pursued with all vigour!".
On Sian the 5th Sian Dragoons are announced with a parade of their command company. Various intelligence point out privately that this is because that is all the 5th Currently consists of and is likely to remain on that level while 3 of the 4 Sian Dragoons previously mustered are still under strength. Some discussions are also going on about expanding the Warrior Houses to 2 battalions each and adding a third battalion to the Ambermarle's Highlanders, Mashigama's Legionnaires and St Cyr's Armoured Hussars. Just as soon as they can find the battlemechs and mechwarriors.
The Estates General of the Lyran Alliance are formally requested to allow Acting General of the Armies and Grand Duke Morgan Kell to address them on the 1st of August and agree. Most assume correctly that it is about nominating Peter Steiner-Davion for the post of Archon left vacant by the "rescue" of the former Archon by the Wolf Clan. While a few dissenters would prefer a more "pure" Steiner for the throne, given his support from Adam Steiner, the Duke of Arc Royal and a large chunk of the LAAF who are prepared to follow these two men it is felt that acclaiming him is the only way to avoid civil war.
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Wonder if they are surviving Smoke Jaguars or Dark Cast Members?
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3063 August - Important Meetings
On Panpour Jalastar Aerospace announce on the 1st of August the opening of a new Sparrowhawk fighter line and a Centurion battlemech line will be coming online this month. An additional line for each design as well as a line each for Javelin and Grasshopper battlemechs and sabre fighters are also under construction. The first of the new battlemechs and fighters will be routed to the garrison force for the planet the 2nd Avalon Hussars and then to the Islamabad CrMM which New Avalon is hoping to get up to full strength.
This announcement coincides with the second stock option release for New Independence Weaponry. While the response is not quite so overwhelming as the first release it is still more than healthy and results in a large influx of funds for the companies construction projects. These funds are used to speed up construction and to add a Jagermech III line to the facility as well as an extensive ammunition and MRM production plant.
On the 4th of August 3063 the two clan dropships land at the isolated Lockhart Spaceport within the New Hebrides archipelago. A full Combat Command of the 3rd Davion Guard's RCT consisting of a battlemech battalion, 2 armour regiments and a full infantry regiment awaited them deployed in defensive positions around the drop-port. Backing them up was two battalions of the 1st Dragonlords deployed further out as a perimeter, although between them they only numbered around 5 companies of assault mechs. While overhead the FSS Lucien Davion takes up a low orbit while an entire Aerospace regiment maintains a CAP.
While this might seem excessive for a single trinary of battlemechs and another of elemental's it is perhaps understandable given that the First Prince has insisted on attending the spaceport himself in person. Although he does concede to attending in the cockpit of his Daishi Prometheus along with his command company from the 1st Davion Guards at the insistence of the Princes Champion and Marshal of the Armies. Two other rare Daishi omnimechs have also been deployed with their own command companies from the 3rd Davion but in 1st Davion colours. Just to confuse the Clan warriors if they are planning treachery.
However when the ramp's of the heavily damaged and battered dropships come down the Smoke Jaguar warriors march out peacefully. Or as peacefully as they can given that they are striding out in a mix of heavily armed war machines or battle armour. However as soon as they march out and form ranks the mechwarriors open the hatches of their omnimechs which although obviously repaired are in excellent condition and newly repainted, while the elemental's crack their battle armour and step out. In total 15 mechwarriors and 50 elemental's walk forward without armour or weapons and bow deeply to the waiting Davion First Prince.
After a brief and frankly heated discussion First Prince Victor climbs down from his omnimech and walks forward to the waiting Smoke Jaguars. Although he is accompanied by 2 squads of 1st Davion Cavalier battle armour led by the single Clan Elemental armoured Captain Tiaret Nevversan. In a brief conversation with the Star Colonel Showers who is leading the Smoke Jaguars he learns that they have came to swear themselves to his service and ask his permission to seek refuge not only for themselves but for all remaining Smoke Jaguars within the Federated Suns. Their once great clan is shattered and fractured reduced to bandit caste and refugees and they wish to save what they can.
Victor Davion's first instinct is to refuse this request. He after all had been the one to lead the attack to destroy the Smoke Jaguar clan, but he decides not to make any rash decisions and instead informs them that he will listen to their petition and consult with his advisers. He pointed glances at the silent armoured form of his bodyguard Tiaret behind him before telling them that they can stay on their dropship or in the nearby barracks while he consults with his commanders and perhaps discusses the matter further with them. They accept his term and as a sign of good faith agree to stay in the barracks and to leave their mechs and battle armour at the dropships.
Star Colonel Showers meets with not only Victor Davion and various military officers such as Arden Sortek over the course of August but also spends hours sitting discussing his plans and motivations with Tiaret Nevversan who relays her impressions back to her commanding officer. She informs the Star Colonel she will do this at the start of their discussions and he agrees that is the honourable thing to do.
One of the two of the main hold ups for Victor and his advisers are that firstly the entire Great Refusal was based on the Annihilation of Clan Smoke Jaguar. To now allow it to be reborn might jeopardise that peace. The second major problem is the Clan's horrendous record of how they treat civilian castes and that it is unlikely that any Federated Sun's world would accept a clan enclave.
Tiaret Nevversan suggests a solution to the first and indirectly the second. She suggests initially that a new Clan be founded from the remnants of the Smoke Jaguars. She proposes the name the Sun Jaguars to declare their new loyalties and also as a tribute to the warrior spirit of the original Smoke Jaguars. Whether the current remnants of the Smoke Jaguars would agree to this name change she suggests might be a barometer of their true preparedness to change. As for the second option she suggests consulting with Marquess Trempeleau who she has watched discuss matters with Victor the preceding month.
The Marquess is flown to the spaceport as a matter of urgency and the is informed of the situation. While her initial thoughts are that the First Prince should deny the refugee Smoke Jaguars request the more she thinks about it the more she see's the benefits not only for the Federated Sun's but also for her own Outback constituency. She suggests after considering the matter for a number of days that the "Sun Jaguars" could be settled on abandoned worlds along the periphery border. Of the cuff she suggests Fugeres, Frankson or Valois within the Broken Wheel Combat Region. All three worlds were abandoned due to population losses, losses in technology and pirate raids during the Succession Wars. Settling the "Sun Jaguars" on these planets wouldn't offend any of the existing worlds populations and with suitable support these worlds could be reclaimed for the Federated Suns and the "Sun Jaguars" could provide a valuable anti-piracy force in the region. If they were suitably aligned.
First Prince Victor Davion and Prince's Champion Arden Sortek both like this suggestion and the Prince starts to bring in more civilian members of his Government. Almost all recoil in horror initially but it isn't long before most of them can see the benefits. However the main stumbling block is that the Smoke Jaguars treatment of their civilian castes is simply unacceptable. If they are to settle within the Federated Suns then this must change.
On the 29th August the First Prince calls Star Colonel Showers and his warriors together in the mess hall of the military base. On his left sits Captain Tiaret Nevversan and on his right sits Marquess Helen Trempeleau. The fact he is sitting with a warrior and an obvious civilian is not lost upon the Clan warriors as they file in and take the seats arranged for them. Victor Davion doesn't waste any time or effort attempting to sugar coat his decision. He lays out his terms and conditions without any frills or political phrasing, speaking to the Clan warriors in their own language as it were.
He informs them that he will consider their petition to join the Federated Suns as his vassals. With certain conditions. The Smoke Jaguar Clan is not to be reformed or rebuilt, instead a new Clan Sun Jaguar will be formed from it's remnants. This clan will be granted the rights to 3 abandoned worlds upon the Periphery border of the Crucis March's Broken Wheel Combat Region to settle and colonise. The Federated Sun's will help the Sun Jaguars in settling these worlds with their civilians and remnant military forces and in setting up industrial and agricultural facilities. In return the Sun Jaguars military will join the AFFS as an separate brigade under Jaguar officers but will take direction from the Davion High Command. They will be granted a higher level of autonomy than most units and worlds within the Federated Suns but will not be an independent power in the same way as the Nova Cat and Wolf-in-Exile Clans. They will be subordinate to the FedSuns and to the First Prince. Their treatment of their civilian castes (who will be full Federated Sun's citizens) will also be subject to oversight. Any violations of the Federated Sun's laws will be dealt with harshly. The Clan's leadership will be for them to nominate themselves but said nomination will have to be approved by the First Prince. A whole host of other minor conditions are also listed but these are the main ones - many of them relating to any military industrial production they are able to create on their fiefs. These terms however are not open to negotiation. The Smoke Jaguar remnants have to either accept them in full or refuse them. If they refuse them then the First Prince will order his troops to fire on them on sight.
The Star Colonel honestly informs the First Prince that he is not sure if the other Smoke Jaguars will accept these terms, but that he will put them to them. The First Prince agrees to this and offers to send Captain Nevversan as his personal emissary to the other Smoke Jaguar remnants. He will give them until the end of 3063 to get back to him on his terms. He does offer one final concession to the warriors. He promises that if they do take his offer up he will do everything within his power to bring together the remaining civilians and warriors of the Clan and help them to settle within the Federated Suns, using his influence within the Star League to have any remaining Smoke Jaguar POW and populations released to his care.
The two Smoke Jaguar dropships leave on the 30th August 3063 to link up with their jumpship and with permission to travel openly within the Federated Suns and to use the realms recharge stations to reach their rendezvous with other splinter factions of their Clan to discuss the terms offered. They are also authorised to use the HPG network to send messages to some small groups of their Clan who have been known to arrive on Solaris and other mercenary/gaming worlds.
While all of this is ongoing Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion continues to run the AFFS largely without supervision. While the martially inclined First Prince has a direct hand in the planning for the AFFS he knows enough to listen to and defer to the expert and experienced officers such as Jackson Davion. Operation Tripoli's planning is stepped up with a provisional date set in the first quarter of 3064. The units which are flagged to take part are prioritised to be brought up to strength as quickly as possible.
Some discussions also take place within the High Command for the potential within the New Yer for forming of additional units. The 1st Dragonlords is prioritised for expanding to it's full strength and provisional plans are put in place to form a 2nd Dragonlords to return those units to brigade strength. Other discussions relate to what other units might be formed. At the current time the general consensus is that a new Avalon Hussars unit should be formed and one additional unknown unit be formed. Suggestions for this third regiment range from a Broken Wheel CrMM to a new Ceti Hussars unit and everything in between. With a new Dragonlords unit almost certainly listed for the future additional orders for battle armour are placed with every plant that makes the suits.
Near the end of August Precentor Martial Focht arrives on New Avalon. First Prince Victor makes a point of leaving the negotiations with the Smoke Jaguars and meeting him personally before apologising and explaining the emergency that has called him away before returning to New Hebrides. As soon as the Smoke Jaguars leave the First Prince rushes back to Mount Davion to begin meeting with the Precentor Martial although it wont be until early September that the two men can really sit down and discuss things.
Within the NAIS Tancred Sandoval continues to help care for Yvonne Steiner-Davion and the two privately are engaged. At the current time only the First Prince and the Duke of Robinson are informed of this much speculated upon engagement taking place. Yvonne is undergoing a series of surgeries and recovery treatments alongside a large number of other patients who she has soon won over by her bravery and charm alongside the handsome baron who obviously dotes on her. The holo-news on Robinson although not aware of the engagement is soon filled with speculative stories and warming pieces on the relationship between the heir of the Draconis March and the Princess.
Within the Lyran Alliance the Estates General are addressed by Peter Steiner-Davion with Adam Steiner and Morgan Kell at his side. The Prince announces that he wishes to claim the position of Archon due to it being abandoned by his sister and abdicated by his brother. He announces however that he will only claim the throne if the Estates General vote to endorse his claims as the rightful Archon in the circumstances and as is their right by law. He makes a number of pledges to help steer the realm through these difficult times and promises to work alongside not only the military high command but also the Estates General and the planetary Dukes and governments to better protect the Lyran Alliance. The vote takes place on the 7th of August and by a 55%-45% majority votes to confirm the new Archon. The rest of the month is spent with the new Archon Peter Steiner taking stock of the realms position and meeting with various officers and ministers, particularly Adam Steiner who he officially appoints as General of the Armies.
On the Ghost Bear front Task Force Hohiro begins to reverse the Ghost Bears early gains although the cost is high. The 1st Amphigean Light Assault Group, 4th Arkab Legion and 2nd Night Stalkers are summoned to the front to be added to the fighting to attempt to push through and retake several border worlds that have fallen to the Ghost Bears. The three light units are deployed in battalion sized forces and dropped behind enemy lines in a staggeringly audacious operation while escorted by the DCS Draconis Rift, DCS Deiron Star and DCS Galedon Explorer. All three Kyushu frigates take damage during this operation but manage to drop off the troops and pull back to Midway for repairs. With light battalions dropped behind the lines causing havoc and a large scale task force grinding their assault to a halt and now threatening to reserve it many within Clan Ghost Bear consider suing for peace, however many instead suggest an overwhelming drive on Luthien to end the war with a stunning victory and dictate terms in the Imperial Palace.
Coordinator Theodore Kurita orders LAW to form a new military industrial complex upon Pesht, specifically designed to produce omnimechs and battle armour. The facility is to be a huge and state of the art factory to replace the lost industrial complex on Marduk. In the meantime he also wishes the repair plant on Benjamin to be expanded to produce Jenner and Panther battlemechs.
The three missing regiments of the MAC at this time move into position for their target and send in a handful of recon flights which are missed by the Davion patrols. They will launch their "raid in force" in September.
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Thank you for the update! That is a nice idea on what to do with the remaining Jaguars, since they did approach the First Prince Victor. I wonder who will be the MAC target? Keep it up!!
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3063 - September - MAC Attack
The month of September starts with the First Prince finally having time to finalise his agreement with Marquess Helen Trempeleau. As a thank you for her help with the Smoke Jaguar issue he not only "promotes" her title to that of Duchess and names her his "Ministerial Adviser for the Outback" but he also promises that the first Advanced Finishing School will be the Filtvelt Technical College which will be expanded upon in the future into a full on University. The first Union class dropships built in the orbiting dropship yard will also be sent to the Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion.
As soon as he has formally signed the newly revitalised education program into law and arranged for the funds to be allocated he then proceeds to meet with Precentor Martial Focht. While the two men are friends and have enormous respect for each other professionally the meeting descends into an argument almost immedietly. First Prince Victor is furious that while in the custody of the ComGuards and Star League Defence forces his sister has escaped and is once again a threat to his realm. He makes the point with a great deal of anger and Focht responds in kind, feeling that Victor offloaded his problem onto the Star League Courts and to him and this has backfired badly. Focht is also furious at the recent invasion of the Draconis Combine which he feels has damaged the credibility of the Second Star League. The two men finally calm down and both accept the other had a point but tempers remain hot.
As a small concession to the losses incurred by the 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment Victor offers to replace their lost equipment from his expanded industrial base and promises they will be omnimechs. Anastasius has the good grace not to comment that the equipment will almost certainly be drawn from Marduk. Both men also agree to continue jointly funding the new Hasek-Davion Martial Academy and to provide it's instructors and staff. The academy will open it's doors in 3064 and graduate it's first class at the end of 3066. A combined arms Academy it is expected to graduate the equivalent of a mini-RCT when it's fully up and running. Victor also promises in the meantime to support and help fund not only the rebuilding of the 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment but also the expansion of the SLDF to include a 2nd Royals. While he wont donate the equipment he will make battlemechs available for sale for at least a battalion of troops in 3064. He also makes the offer to the Precentor Martial that if Comstar wishes they can move their Faslane class yardships deep within the FedSuns for safety and that he would even be open to them building fixed yards for the Star League and ComGuards ships over Defiance - probably to build Dante Frigates and Suffren Destroyers. He even offers to sell the ComGuards and SLDF a number of the highly sought after Dagger-O at a very reasonable price on long term contracts.
Anastasius Focht is too old a warhorse to not know that Victor wants something in return and asks what that is. The First Prince explains that he wishes a number of designs to be made available for sale to the AFFS and that he would prefer for those designs to be built within the Federated Suns for security. In return for Comstar helping provide these designs he guarantees them a supply of battlemechs and vehicles for sale equal to half of whatever is produced. The other half will be open for sale to the AFFS.
Focht immedietly wants to know what designs are that Victor wants. Firstly Victor explains he wants Comstar to use it's influence over the New Earth Trading Company to build a new facility within the Federated Suns. If they were to agree to build Engineering vehicles, Alacorn Mk IV tanks and Karnov UR Transports he will offer long term contracts, tax breaks and Government help in setting the plants up. Any plant's production could be split 50/50 between the Comguards/SLDF and AFFS. He would also want the ComGuards to help the new facility to produce the Von Luckner Heavy Tank to the old SLDF's Royal specifications. With a similar agreement as to purchasing ratios.
First Prince Victor also wishes to discuss contacting Bergan Industries to begin construction of an updated Wayland Mobile Base under an exclusive contract for the AFFS and ComGuards/SLDF. But he wishes the initial discussion to be undertaken by the Precentor Martial to avoid issues with Bergan notifying the Kurita's or Liao's.
As a final request he wishes to lease a Faslane class yardship from the ComGuards Navy. He is willing to pay a rather substantial price for this concession.
The older man is shocked by the sheer scale of the First Prince's suggestions. He had of course known that the First Prince was investing massively in upgrading his realms infrastructure and military industrial capacities but any one of these requests would be a major trade/industrial deal let alone all of them! He has to be honest that he isn't sure that he is able to deliver upon these sorts of deals without checking with the Primus Sharilar Mori and First Lord Kai Allard-Liao. Although Victor has heard reports that Mori might be loyal to the Combine he agrees to this but insists that the deals must be done quietly and without being announced until they are signed.
These discussions went on for a number of weeks but were finished by the 21st. At which time Focht took his leave of New Avalon and began heading back to Tukayyid to discuss the matter with the Primus. Once he has got her views he will contact the First Lord.
Near the end of September a huge initial order for the Manteuffel omnivehicle is signed. Not only is a massive initial order signed for but the FedSuns Government also agrees to a huge investment in expanding the lines producing the vehicle to keep up with demand. StarCorp is also able to license construction of the vehicle at their Lyran Loburg plant. Along with these purchases and expansions StarCorp is also approved to create a line for Emperor, Highlander and King Crab battlemechs at Crofton with an increase in Warhammer and Longbow production as well. In a linked series of deals StarCorp has the largest single boost to it's contracts within the FedSuns in it's history. However these deals are done via a high level of corruption which even as the deal is being signed is under investigation.
Arc Royal MechWorks also enters into formal discussions with the Federated Sun's Government to being construction of a satellite facility within FedSuns space to produce at least initially the Wolfhound class battlemech for the AFFS. When this comes out voices within the Estates General and LAAF respond in fury, but both the Kell's and the Davion's will point to the agreement between Victor Davion and the former General of Armies Nondi Steiner as to the AFFS being allowed to purchase Wolfhounds from Arc Royal MechWorks, but without specifications of where they will be built. This will be investigated by both the LAAF and Estates General's legal representatives but eventually the new Archon will declare that he will approve the deal, however it does cause a strain in Peter Steiner's relationship with not only his brother but also Morgan Kell. These legal investigations will delay the actual signing of the agreement to build a new facility to January 3064, but both Morgan Kell and Victor Davion begin preparing for the construction and assembling materials and construction teams in late 3063 and identify the world of Killarney. Victor does discuss potentially a license for the Arctic Fox omnimech and is told under no uncertain terms "no" by his brother the Archon.
During September Victor Davion and his Marshal of Armies and Princes Champion along with Field Marshal Angela Kouranth of the Department of Military Education discuss breaking of the Academy Training Battalions and Cadres from the non-academy Training Battalions. With the large scale expansions of the various academies it is no longer felt that the non-academy units are best served under the same formation, although of course they will remain within the remit of the Department of Military Education. They will be brigaded as a separate force as of the end of the year. Field Marshal Kouranth also suggests that the 4 existing battalions be expanded to reinforced battalions of 4 companies each and combined with training units of armour and infantry, namely a regiment of armour and 2 regiments of infantry. These forces will all be formed from new graduates of the various training facilities for conventional forces and will graduate and move onto line regiments over time. Given the huge demand for not only mechwarriors but more seasoned armour and infantry forces which have experience working with battlemech forces the First Prince and the other two officers agree to these changes provisionally and suggest trying them out on the 1st Sheraton Training Battalion as it already has an attached armour regiment. Field Marshal Kouranth is also instructed to look towards establishing 2 more Training Battalions in the coming year.
On the 21st of September the 1st, 3rd and 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry jump into the Wernke/Talon system and begin a combat burn for the planet. Accompanying them is a large force of assault dropships and fighter wings from the CCN, along with enough cargo dropships to contain supplies for a prolonged siege. Totally ignoring the heavily populated world of Wernke they head straight for the vital industrial moon of Talon and on the 28th September stage a combat drop directly on the spaceport while their attached fighters and dropships attempt to suppress the defenders.
The Capellan fighter and dropships are only partially successful. Despite being able to obtain local air superiority over the spaceport from the defending aerospace wings of the local defence forces and the 7th FedSun's Dragoons they are unable to fully beat down the murderous anti-aircraft fire from the defensive emplacements studded around the spaceport. As such the initial wave of the of the 3rd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry take heavy losses as they attempt to land and see at least 2 dropships shot down. Still they do manage to carve out a landing zone for their following sister regiments.
The local militia and industrial security forces back up the 7th FedSun's Dragoons in the defensive battles around the spaceport but the 7th is hamstrung by having to hold back a substantial forces within the Kulmen, Horgrave and Restbech Mountains to block access to the vital Kallon plant particularly in the vital O'Herron Valley. As such after a brutal fight that lasts until the 1st of October the 3 regiments of McCarron's Armoured Cavalry manage to seize control of the spaceport.
The 7th FedSun's Dragoons already under strength from the St Ives War has been reduced to 5 companies of battlemechs and a similar proportion of their supporting conventional forces, while the security battalion from Kallon Industries has suffered nearly a third losses and the 2 militia armoured regiments and 4 infantry supporting it are running at around 50%. The MAC units have suffered heavier losses, particularly the 3rd, but still retain an overwhelming superiority in mech forces, outnumbering the defenders nearly 3:1. The 7th and the other defending units although mauled are still intact and prepare to fight off any drive on the plant while awaiting relief which is already on it's way...
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well now the DC can rent a Yardship. this would help both DC and ComStar. that would be a lot of income from the "Rent" that can be used in other areas and the DC can repair ships or maybe support facilities.
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And the Big Mac does it again
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Keep in mind that a battalion of Death Commandos are also with them, they might do a sneaky thing to breach the defenses or even destroy the factory Blackwind Lancers style.
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3063 - October - Raid and Reprisal
Even as the 7th FedSun's Dragoons fought a bloody retreat from the spaceport and took up defensive positions within the O'Herron Valley their First Prince and his High Command were reacting. The 8th New Syrtis Fusiliers were already on their way towards Talon along with the 22nd Avalon Hussars and the mercenary Vanguard Legion. All three commands were to rendezvous at Hobbs with the FSS Robert Davion and proceed to the Wernke/Talon system under orders to smash the attacking McCarron's Armoured Cavalry with extreme prejudice. Any MAC forces which attempted to surrender were to be taken into custody but any who attempted to resist or fight there way free from Talon were to be crushed.
However this wasn't enough to calm the First Princes's fury or the demands from his officers that Sun-Tzu Liao had to be taught a message. For that something more drastic was required. First Prince Victor was heard to comment that the Chancellor of the Capellan Confederation had to be taught a lesson that he would never forget. Within a few days orders were going out from New Avalon, coordinating with New Syrtis. Duke George Hasek had the fact that this was the time for unity stressed to him.
The Davion Assault Guards RCT was ordered from Tikonov along with their 1st Tikonov Cossack's reinforced battalion sized auxiliary force to make their way to the world of Styk and ordered to hit the Tao Mechworks plant there. While the 1st FSAC and 1st Capellan Dragoon's lifted from their garrison posts within the Sirdar PDZ and headed for Victoria with orders to hit the numerous industrial facilities on this planet, they were joined in this attack by the entirety of the Lexington Combat Group. The 2nd Ceti Hussars RCT supported by the entire Illician Lancers 4 regiment strong brigade however provided the main reprisal force as they headed for Menke to teach not only Sun-Tzu but also McCarron's Armoured Cavalry their lesson. Alongside the strike on Menke the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT was ordered to hit Mitchel, the 3rd Ceti Hussars RCT to hit Jacson, while the slightly under strength 11th Avalon Hussars RCT struck Yuri and the 5th Davion Guards RCT reinforced with both the Arcadian and Federated Freemen mercenary regiments was to strike at Ares. The Valexa CMM and 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT were also detailed to strike the worlds of the former Sarna March in particular Menkar and Jonathan. The Davion counter to the raid on Talon was to hit the Capellan Confederation across it's entire border and to destroy and loot military bases and smash regiments seemingly at random. No fewer than 4 major industrial worlds were to be hit and the forces hitting Menke and Mitchel in particular were ordered to pursue the destruction of any McCarron Armoured Cavalry forces with the utmost vigour. Sang-Shao Marcus Baxter and his brigade were also being sent a message.
Even as these orders went out the 2nd Battalion of the Death Commando's were doing their work. Every single person in the spaceport who had to do directly with the shipping of the products of the factories off world was being hunted down and killed. From the loaders to the clerks in the offices, the Commando's were thorough. Teams infiltrated out from the bridgehead of the spaceport through the FedSun's lines and hunted down those workers who had fled. Of particular interest to the Capellan death squads were those involved in the actual shipping orders and record keeping. Even as men and women were dying all over Talon under the knife and blade and bomb of their counterparts a small number of Commandos were working within the computers of the spaceport, deleting every shipping record they could find.
As they were doing this the spaceport itself was being looted by the technicians and troops brought along on the cargo dropships. Dozens of battlemechs and thousands of tons of supplies were loaded aboard and as soon as a dropship was loaded it would blast off under fighter escort and make for a waiting jumpship. Given the sabotage being done to the records and the staff of the spaceport and even the factories themselves whenever the Death Commando's got a chance, assembling a list of what had been looted would be a nigh impossible task moving forward. Even for the CCAF. Which was the entire idea. Over a battalion of top end battlemechs, including a full lance of Templar-O, would be "lost" by both sides due to the actions of the Death Commandos during this time period.
The warriors of McCarron's Armoured Cavalry on the planet weren't sitting still however. They began to push up the O'Herron Valley in the face of stiff resistance from the defenders. Despite mounting losses they continued this for over a week, with the 5th regiment Kyp's Kommando, leading the way. Still after a week and with no real prospect of success they began to fall back in preparation for retreating off world with the spoils they had already looted from the spaceport. Again the 5th Cavalry would form the bulwark of their rear guard.
Even as the 1st and 3rd regiments were blasting off world the relief force arrived. The FSS Robert Davion broke away and with heavy fighter support and a large force of accompanying assault dropships attempted to cut off the 2 regiments that were already in space, while the 8th Fusilier, 22nd Hussars and Vanguard Legion headed for the planet and a combat drop right on top of the now trapped 5th McCarron Armoured Cavalry. Colonel Chad Dean's Vanguard Legion would lead the attack with a full regimental drop right on top of the enemy force while the 2 AFFS RCT's would follow them in. In a brave effort to reduce the casualties the Vanguard Legion would take in such an assault the 7th Fedsun's Dragoons launched a simultaneous assault down the valley to force the Capellans to split their fire.
Reduced to just 2 battalions of battle worthy mechs and with most of their support forces in a similar state Kyp's Kommandos were smashed between the two hammers of the Vanguard Legion and 7th Dragoons. Even before the 8th Sytris Fusiliers and 22nd Avalon Hussars had landed they had been reduced to a single battalion and been forced into isolated pockets no larger than company sized. However until Sang-Shao Kyp Marloe finally was killed by a head shot from a Vanguard Legion Devastator's gauss rifle the unit continued to fight. After he was confirmed as dead the remnants of the regiment surrendered.
While the 5th MAC was making it's last stand the 1st and 3rd MAC were fleeing for their lives under heavy fighter attack. At maximum thrust they were keeping out of range of the FSS Robert Davion but the dropship screen was inching closer and was likely to overtake them as they had to slow to dock with their waiting jumpships. Faced with this prospect a number of dropships and all of the fighters turned back to buy time for the others to flee. Most of these dropships were the escorting assault ships but a handful of damaged troopships also turned back to help cover their fellows. Their sacrifice bought the remaining dropships just enough time to reach their transports and jump out. However they would be forced to scatter and make their own way back to the Capellan Confederation over the next two months via dead systems and under constant fear of being caught by now stepped up AFFS patrols. Of the two regiments which had managed to escape barely 7 companies of mechwarriors would manage to make their way back to the Confederation. Another 2 companies of the 5th and another company of random survivors from the sacrificial rear guard would be interned.
The reprisal forces were timed to hit on different days and in a totally random pattern to sew confusion on Sian. They would hear of the attack on Ares for instance on the 20th October, the first raid, but the 2nd strike would be against Yuris on the 21st, then the strike of Styk on the 23rd, then Mitchel and Jonathan would be hit on the 24th. No single region was struck at the same time. This left the Chancellors military staff trying to ascertain where the next raid or reprisal attack might come.
On Styk the attacking Davion Assault Guards and 1st Tikonov Cossacks found themselves facing the fanatically anti-Davion Kamakura's Hussars. A more seasoned and frankly rational defending force would have likely withdrawn or attempted to fight a mobile campaign against the overwhelming firepower of the Davion Assault Guards, but the rabidly anti-Davion Hussars threw themselves almost full tilt against the Assault Guards in a brutal and tactically limited fashion. Unlike some opponents who had been taken unaware and forced to adapt on the fly to these mad rush tactics the Assault Guards took them in their stride. Holding their ground at their landing site they poured a withering hail of fire into the onrushing Hussars, while the 1st Tikonov Cossack's deployed along the flanks and began to outflank the Capellan's. In the air the 1st Federation Attack and the 1st Federation Interceptor wings swept the Kamakura's 2 flights strong Mig's Mustangs from the air in a one sided dog fight while the 1201st New Avalon Bomber wing swept down to attack the enemy's ground forces.
The Hussar's green 3rd Battalion was the first unit to break when the regimental command lance was destroyed in the fighting while attached to their battalion and soon the Davion Assault Guards were advancing into the torn gaps in the Kamakura's Hussars lines while the 1st Cossack's swept in and pinned much of the surviving Hussars in place. Within 3 hours of landing the Davion Assault Guards had shattered the defending unit as a coherent military entity and could leave the mopping up and running down of the survivors to their Tikonov Cossack comrades. They then proceeded to move onto the Tao Mechworks where the defending security battalion stood down rather than face annihilation. Once in command of the key battlemech factory they called in the engineers who had accompanied them and began to systematically strip the plant of finished products, spare parts, equipment and anything that wasn't nailed down. In a number of cases where large pieces of equipment were in fact nailed down battlemech's equipped with hands proceeded to rip it free.
On Victoria the 1st FSAC, the 1st Capellan Dragoons and the attached Lexington Combat Group would face a tougher fight as the defenders included not only the Prefectorate Guard but also Lockhardt's Ironsides regiment. Unlike the impulsive Kamakura's Hussars the two defending units would dig in and prepare to resist the attackers rather than facing them in an open field engagement. In the subterranean environment and storm driven surface the two defending units were able to limit the fighting to their own terms and the 1st Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry in particular sound found it's skills unfertilised and reverted to raiding from the surface while the assault and heavy mechs of the 1st Capellan Dragoons and 180th Dragoons of the Lexington Combat Group ground their way forward towards the main prize of Shengli Arms against the Prefectorate Guard. In the meantime the 32nd Recon and 241st Battle regiments of the Lexington Combat Group kept Lockhardt's Ironsides pinned down defending the Earthwerks plant and other key sites on the planet. On the 29th of October the troopers of the 87th Federated Suns Battle Armour Battalion attached to the 1st FSAC finally found the breakthrough that their parent formations raids had been looking for. A lightly guarded entrance into the Shengli plant from the surface was rushed and seized by the troopers in the middle of a horrendous storm and by the morning of the 30th the Prefectorate Guard found Federated Sun's battlemechs seizing the plant behind them as they faced attacks across their perimeter.
To the credit of the Hussar formation they managed to detach a full battalion from their lines even while under attack and drive deep into the plant to contest the seizure of the plant from the 1st FSAC. They managed to keep the 1st FSAC from totally seizing control of the plant and delayed them long enough that when the recall order came to the Federated Sun's task force at the start of November they had not yet managed to totally seize control of the plant. The Davion's did however manage to seize large quantities of completed mechs, spare parts, weapons and the specifications for the Sling battlemech upon which the Duan Gung was based upon from a secondary R&D facility within the complex. The Capellan defenders remained intact and technically victorious but the Prefectorate Guard had suffered tremendous casualties in particular and Shengli Arms had been trashed. Lockhardt's Ironsides had lost less troops but even they had been reduced to 60% of their pre-attack strength.
On Menke the McCarron's Armoured Cavalry Command Battalion and the defending 2nd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry's 1st and 3rd Battalions realised that they were the primary targets of this strike almost immedietly. If they chose to fight the attackers from fixed positions they would almost certainly be over run and destroyed. Their only chance was to retreat into the world's rich tropical jungles and use the terrain to their advantage to hold out and hope for relief. The downside of this strategy meant that they were unable to contest the ownership of the various industrial facilities upon the planet. Stripping as much as they could from the plants they rushed into the jungles and dispersed to fight a guerrilla war.
Upon landing on Menke Marshal Oscar Carlson released the 59th Striker regiment along with the 9th Rangers to hunt down McCarron's Armoured Cavalry. The 21st Illician Rangers long famed for their combat drops remained in orbit to move down to strike at the Capellans as and when they were found. In the meantime his own 2nd Ceti Hussars and the heavy weighted 4th Illician Rangers landed at the Menke Armour and Armament plant and StarCorp's facility on the planet respectively
At the Menke Armour and Armaments plant the 2nd Ceti Hussars held nothing back. Everything of any value whatsoever was torn up and shipped off world while anything that was simply to large or cumbersome to be taken was destroyed. Using the ammunition built in the complex huge charges were built in and around the plant even as it was stripped down to the wiring by the Hussar's infantry and engineers. When nothing more could be obtained in the time frame of the raid the charges were detonated. The main facility of McCarron's Trading Company was reduced to a series of craters, not even the walls were left standing.
The StarCorp plant's treatment was somewhat better. Although it was still looted of all finished products and anything that might be considered the property of the Capellan Confederation or related to McCarron's Trading Company was taken. The 9th Rangers used a very liberal definition of what might be considered Capellan or McCarron's property during this looting.
In the meantime the light and medium cavalry units of the 59th Striker and 9th Rangers of the Illician Lancers proceeded to head into the jungle to hunt the 2nd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry. The Federated Sun's mercenaries would have numbers and air superiority on their sided while the 2nd would have local knowledge of their homeworld. In a series of patrols and short ranged firefights however the MAC forces discovered that any attempt to fight would inevitably end with elements of the 21st Rangers descending in combat drops to attack them. Again and again the MAC forces were driven further and further into the jungle and suffering losses to simple attrition. On the 27th of October the 3rd Battalion of the 2nd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry found it's main base identified by a company sized patrol from the 9th Rangers and although they quickly wiped it out the action brought them to the attention of the orbiting 21st. Over the course of 6 hours company and battalion sized forces from the 21st Rangers descended by combat drop while other elements of the 59th Striker and 9th Ranger converged on their position. Less than a lance of the 3rd Battalion was able to escape the attack and the encroaching net around them. Although there were no other large scale actions like this a series of running fights and smaller skirmishes took their toll.
By the time the recall order came on the 30th the two remaining battalions of Capellan battlemech's had been reduced to just over half their remaining strength. While the world had been looted of almost anything that the Davion forces could take with them, including much of the private wealth of Sang-Shao Baxter when his private estate was targeted by the 29th Mechanised Cavalry of the 9th Illician Rangers. Even the McCarron's Military Museum was looted and then demolished.
The 4th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry's garrison posting of Ares was also hit. In fact it was the first world to be struck by the reprisal forces. Led by the 5th Davion Guards RCT the two mercenary regiments of the Arcadian's and the 1st Federated Freemen landed on Ares and swiftly took to the field to hunt down the 4th MAC. Lord Richard Carson managed to use his well rounded and versatile regiment and supporting forces to keep ahead of the enemy formations. Privately he hoped that the Davion forces would be diverted into raiding the industrial wealth of the planet and allow his unit to break contact but the AFFS RCT and it's accompanying mercenaries battlemech forces seemed determined to hunt down his unit rather than loot any specific factory complex. Again and again he managed to slip out of ambushes, but each time he would be forced to leave small sacrificial rear guards behind while under constant air attack.
Pursued by 3 times his numbers there was little that the harried Lord Carson could do when the Arcadian's 2nd Battalion and their attached 8843rd Armoured Regiment broke off and headed for Bergan Industries plant. He had in fact hoped for a larger force to detach and perhaps allow him more options. Still the actions of the Arcadian's force was somewhat strange in that it did not proceed to formally loot the plant as other Davion units were doing all along the frontier, but instead merely took any finished battlemechs and spare parts that were available and presented an invitation to the CEO Nestor Bergan from the First Prince to listen to a proposal that might be coming from Precentor Martial Focht. An invitation that Lt Colonel Willard Estevez hand delivered and strongly recommended that he keep secret and take the First Prince up on. Lest the Arcadian's return to Ares soon in a less forgiving mood.
Of all the worlds struck the world of Ares suffered the least casualties both militarily and industrially. While the Bergan plant was looted for almost a full battalion of Locusts and Stinger battlemechs and 2 overlord class dropships were seized to transport them, the actual factories themselves didn't take any significant damage. The 4th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry suffered almost 30% losses which would normally have been considered severe, but when compared to the losses of the other formations within the brigade were light.
The Arcadian's and Federated Freemen on the other hand left the planet stronger than they arrived as the First Prince donated a company of Locusts to each command as a thank you for their services. They were also granted the opportunity to recruit pilots from the various academies of the Federated Suns. The 5th Davion Guards would be rewarded later.
On Mitchel the final element of the Big Mac, the 2nd Battalion of the 2nd Cavalry found itself facing the full might of the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT. Even with the support of the local miltia's the isolated battalion found itself simply overwhelmed. Fortifying their base they attempted to at least buy time for reinforcements to arrive from Menke or other units nearby but the 1st Crucis Lancers weren't prepared to wait. In a mass assault they stormed the base and over ran the 2nd Battalion in a 3 day battle and wiped them out. The modern heavy mech's of the Crucis Lancers took a great deal of damage and the unit would temporarily be reduced to 60% strength but as repaired machines were returned to service and salvaged machines rebuilt the 1st Crucis Lancers would return to almost 90% strength. As this was done flying columns of infantry and armoured units would move out and proceed to seize strategic positions and destroy or disarm local militia. Unlike on Menke there was no formal looting. It was almost as though the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT was setting up to stay instead of merely raiding.
This profile was repeated by the 3rd Ceti Hussars RCT and the 11th Avalon Hussars RCT on Jacson and Yuris respectively. On Jacson the 3rd Ceti Hussars found themselves facing off against a handful of planetary defence forces which they were quickly able to either destroy or otherwise neutralise. At which point additional infantry forces began to land and take up garrison roles by the end of October.
On Yuris the 11th Avalon Hussars found themselves facing off against the Kingston's Rangers. Both units found themselves under strength, however the 11th Avalon Hussars were not only closer to their full strength but were in fact a reinforced regiment to begin with and while the bulk of their equipment was light and medium designs their 4th battalion was an assault formation. This placed the Kingston's Rangers on the back foot from the start as did the fact that half of their strength and almost the entirety of their supporting forces were green troops. The deciding engagement in the campaign came on the 30th October when the 11th Avalon Hussars Infantry Brigade surprised the Kingston's Rangers supporting forces with a night march over what had been considered almost impossible terrain and proceeded to attack their camp in the early hours of the morning. With much of their supporting forces either destroyed, captured or routed and with their 2nd battalion suffering heavy losses Sang-Shao Green made the difficult decision to withdraw. He was surprised when Marshal Leabo of the 11th made the offer to allow him to withdraw unmolested as a mark of respect for the warriors of Kingston's Rangers who had died fighting under Task Force Serpent. He even returned the captured personal from the Ranger's supporting forces.
In the former Sarna March the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers supported by the Valexa CMM proceeded to run amok, splitting into no fewer than 6 different task forces (4 based around the Grenadiers and 2 around the Valexa CMM) and hit multiple worlds in quick succession. Rarely engaging in stand up fights they would hit any targets of opportunity and then fall back. The only two major engagements were on the world of Hunan where 2 of the Kestrel Grenadiers task forces would converge and maul House Fujita's single battalion of battlemechs and reduce the already battered house to barely a company and a half of battlemechs and Jonathan where a task force consisting of the 3rd Battalion of the Valexa CMM and supporting forces would be run to ground and smashed into a retreat by the veteran Harloc Raiders.
In response to this Marshal Stromp would be gathering her scattered forces and the remaining elements of the Valexa CMM together to hit Jonathan and inflict some payback when the recall orders arrived. Heading back to FedSun's space both the Kestrel Grenadiers and Valexa CMM would carry a grudge against the Raiders.
By the end of October the Chancellor was furiously counting the cost of his raid against Talon. The entirety of the McCarron's Armoured Cavalry brigade had been smashed. Even the single remaining regiment that was combat effective, the 4th, had suffered in excess of a full battalion of losses. The 5th had effectively been wiped out with the survivors interned, the 1st and 3rd were currently attempting to make their way back to the Confederation but it was presumed had suffered heavy losses. While the 2nd and the brigades command battalion had been between them reduced to a mere reinforced battalion. The Kamakura's Hussars had been effectively wiped out while the Prefectorate Guard and Kingston's Rangers had been reduced to a single battalion each. Lockhardt's Ironsides and the Harloc Raiders had both got of lightly in the battles but even these units had suffered casualties.
It wasn't only the losses in troops and battlemechs. Two key industrial worlds had been systematically looted and then one of them had seen it's factories almost all destroyed, another had suffered heavy damage in the fighting and a fourth while largely intact had seen the loss of nearly a full battalion of battlemechs and 2 expensive overlord class dropships. Not only that but by all accounts the hated Davion's were not withdrawing from Mitchel, Jacson and Yuris.
While he had obtained the prize he had send the 3 regiments of Armoured Cavalry to obtain along with his own Death Commandos the prize had been an order of magnitude higher than he had anticipated in his worst estimates. He had thought that Victor might raid a few border systems or even maybe a major industrial world. Yet he had raided 4 major industrial centres, raided a half dozen worlds in the Liao Commonality and seized 3 in the Victoria and Sian Commonalities!
In a fury he sent word to the other Successor Lords that he demanded that a special conference be called to address the issue of the "mad fox" of House Davion who had attacked and seized worlds from both his neighbours in the last year. He was confident that the Coordinator would support him and thought that given Isis Marik's humiliation of her father by fleeing to New Avalon the Captain General might support him in his attempts to put a muzzle on the First Prince and gain back his lost worlds. Even his cousin Kai Allard-Liao the First Lord was according, to his spies, furious at his friends warmongering attacks. If he could mobilise the men that Victor Davion had offended with his actions perhaps events might still resolve to his benefit.
While the First Princes's actions might have offended a number of Successor Lords and some of his neighbours within his own realm the response was overwhelmingly positive. Across all three Marches approval for the First Prince and indeed Dukes of Robinson and New Syrtis skyrocketed. Enlistment numbers were up across the board in October as young men and women all through the FedSuns rushed to sign up and join the AFFS in defending the Federated Sun's from it's enemies aggression. With the military industrial boom underway in the FedSuns confidence in the Prince and in the nation were approaching the levels that had been last seen before the Clan Invasion!
Even on Tikonov pro-Davion sentiment rose as reports came back from Styk about the role their own Cossack unit had had in the counter attack. Helping this the first Archer battlemech walked of the production line on the planet and was immedietly dispatched to the Achernar CMM.
Even in the Lyran Alliance the mood was broadly supportive of the former Archon-Prince and by association the new Archon obtained some reflected benefit. A few however were heard to comment that perhaps they had the wrong brother on the throne!
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Okay that one took a while... For obvious reasons!!! :D
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November 3063 - Raised Voices
November began with the AFFS and affiliated mercenary units falling back from their targets and with the CCAF taking stock of their losses. The AFFS however didn't fall back on Mitchel, Jacson and Yuris but instead continued to fortify and make efforts to integrate these three worlds into the Federated Suns. Usually such efforts would have been hampered by raids by nearby CCAF forces attempting to set up resistance cells and supply cut off hold outs but in this case these efforts were almost entirely missing. Leftenant General Russel Ito of the Sirdar CMM was loudly heard to remark that the "Cap's have learned better than to test us!" when asked why such counter strikes had not occurred. A few of the units involved in the actual attacks felt that the glory seeking commander of the Sirdar CMM which hadn't actually taken part in the strikes was perhaps out of line to make the comments, but few actually disagreed with them.
The various items of loot and salvage taken by the returning forces were quickly checked by teams of NAIS scientists and AFFS technicians. Small samples of stealth armour taken from the Tao Mechworks in Styk were immedietly sent to the NAIS for study. Clearly the factory had not been set up to mass produce the armour but apparently had been working up to producing it for some new designs. Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion made reverse engineering the armour a major priority.
The rest of the loot was also quickly divided. All units that took part in the strikes whether AFFS or mercenary were issued large amounts of salvaged and seized equipment, ammunition and spare parts. The First Prince had already granted the Arcadian's and 1st Federated Freemen a company each of light battlemechs and similar gifts were made to each mercenary regiment that had seen sighting. This was on top of the generous salvage and payment terms already offered by the AFFS for these offensive strikes. The Vanguard Legion while not having been deployed offensively was also included in this gift, with a pair of Templar-O's being granted to the unit. Many amongst the mercenary units employed within the Federated Sun's began at this time to refer to the First Prince as the "Mercenaries Prince", noting how he would often deploy their regiments alongside his own troops but wouldn't leave them hung out to dry or without support and always rewarded good service. Within the officers messes of the Arcadian's, Federated Freemen and Screaming Eagles regiments it became a major social faux pas not to toast the First Prince at least once while at dinner.
The First Prince didn't only reward the mercenary troops who'd fought for him. All of the units which had taken place were promised their losses would be replaced and with the finest graduates and equipment available. The 5th Davion Guards were particularly singled out with notification that they would not only be rebuilt to full strength but would be expanded into a reinforced regiment during this rebuilding. Similarly the 1st Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry were informed that as they were rebuilt to full strength they would see their Auxiliary expanded into a full armoured regiment and their 87th FS BAB expanded to a full regiment. As usual with the 1st FSAC soldiers from other elite regiments were drawn almost instantly to bring the unit immedietly back up to strength. These would largely be drawn from the 3rd and 7th Crucis Lancers and the 1st Argyle Lancers. Other units would receive upgraded equipment. The 7th FedSun's Dragoons RCT was for a brief period of time considered for deactivation due to its heavy losses with it's now elite warriors to be used to bring more combat effective units back up to strength, but both the Marshal of Armies and First Prince publicly quashed this idea and stated that the 7th would be allowed to rebuild at it's own pace in order to retain it's current rating and skill. This would cause a friendly rivalry with the 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT which was merely rated as veteran. The 1st FSAC and 1st Kestrel Grenadier RCT were also promised an increase in their fighter strength to a full aero regiment each.
As the dust settled the 1st Davion Guards was withdrawn from the Galtor Thumb and returned to take it's usual place on New Avalon. Replacing it would be the 4th Davion Guards RCT, who were happy to be back in their accustomed garrison position along the Draconis Combine border.
While the Davion Assault Guards and 1st Tikonov Cossack's returned to garrison Tikonov. Along with them went over half the salvage they had taken from Tao Mechworks where it would be reassembled to build a new plant which was granted/sold to New Independence Weaponry. This new Tikonov factory would start producing Victor's from their first line by March 3064 while Battlemaster's would begin walking off the production lines in July 3064. Those parts and facilities which had been taken relating to the production of Crusader battlemechs would be sent to Kallon Industries plant on Kirklin to provide the basis for a battlemech line there, although initially some considered Nanking as a better and closer option. Kirklin's added security being so far from the various borders however was the deciding factor even though it meant additional delays.
The loot taken from the almost strip mining of Menke's industrial complexes would be sent to Novoya Zemyla. Much of it would be used to create a huge new manufacturing plant for various missile systems and ammunition as well as armour plating to be used at the new Kallon Industries and Johnston Industries plants. Enough would be left over however when combined with the equipment "acquired" from the StarCorp facility to bring forward the Cavalier battle armour's factory opening from August 3064 to April 3064 and the Templar-O's line from March 3065 to January of that year. However CEO Amanda Sanchez of the Crofton based Federated Sun's branch of StarCorp Industries would head for New Avalon to formally protest the theft of StarCorp property to the First Prince. A trip she would come to singularly regret making.
During November the First Prince in consultation with his High Command finalise the next years graduates destinations. Of course many units are requiring cadets to be helped rebuild but it is felt it is better to slowly rebuild them to allow the new graduates to adapt rather than lower the skill level of battle hardened units. As such no regiment will receive more than a company of graduates or 10% of it's full strength at a single intake. This will give the officers of every unit time to integrate up to a company at a time rather than be flooded with whole battalions of academy graduates. In emergencies or when units have been particularly hammered this rule will be relaxed.
In the meantime the First Prince confirms to the High Command that a new Avalon Hussar RCT is to be formed along with a new Dragonlords command which will be used to reform the brigade rather than merely have the Dragonlords within the Independent Command roster. The final formal addition in the coming months is to be a rebuilt Broken Wheel CrMM. Although it is considered a lesser priority to many than say a new front line command for the Draconis or Capellan Marches the First Prince has decided that it is to be a symbol for the Outback that they have not been forgotten. Particularly given the possibility of the Sun Jaguar's being settled in that region.
However he also announces that the salvage drawn from the McCarron's Armoured Cavalry regiments that have been smashed will be grouped together and used to raise a 1st Mitchel Borderer's on the same model as the Kittery and New Aragon units. Retiring AFFS officers and a handful of carefully screened locals will be used to form the basis for the unit. Although some respectfully suggest that Jacson is at the "tip" of the bulge they've just taken into Capellan territory the First Prince and Jackson Davion point out that given that Mitchel is, or was, a possession of the Big MAC it is likely any counter attack will prioritise this planet. A Training Battalion will also be formed on the planet, while New Aragon will get another Training Battalion. The ad-hoc Training Battalion on Galtor will also be formally reformed as a full time Training Battalion. The 1st Sheraton Training Battalion will be reformed to the new combined arms standard agreed with Field Marshal Kouranth, as will all three of the new units. The Bell, Conroe and Kittery Training Battalions will be brought up to this standard at the end of 3064.
The Armstrong Flight Academy, Filtvelt Academy, Robinson Battle Academy and Warrior's Hall will all see their class sizes increase in the 3064 intake, with the first increased class sizes graduating at the end of 3066. All three of the ground based academies would see their graduating class increase to a full regiment of cadets.
Given these expansions the First Prince also informs the High Command that he will be making efforts to expand production of jumpship and dropships across the realm. Delavan's Universal Air and Galax's Federated-Boeing would be the main recipients of this, but Monolith production at Panpour would also be expanded once again. A large new order for the latest combined arms transport the Conquistador would also be issued to Galax. The initial dropships would be sent to the Davion Guards brigade of course but also the Ceti Hussars brigade which was felt to be a good fit for the new design.
One final area that the Marshal of Armies pointed out to the assembled High Command was the huge advantage in their recent operations that air superiority had played. As such he requested (as previously arranged) the First Prince to look into further expansions in aerospace production both of carriers and fighters. An assurance the First Prince was more than happy to give. Acting upon this request the First Prince spoke with the representatives of the Ministers of the Capellan and Draconis Marches and informed them that a further increase in Dagger-O production was going to be required, but that it would be subject to at least one of the expansions taking place within the Crucis March.
On the 7th of November the news broke that the Chancellor of the Capellan Confederation had requested a special session of the Star League Council to address the issue of First Prince Davion's invasion of his realm. On the 19th the actual wording of his request was leaked to a Lyran based holo-news company and immedietly went viral. The response within the Federated Sun's is either derision that "Little Sunny" thinks he can stand up to their First Prince, to fury at his insulting terminology. George Hasek, firmly in the derision camp goes on record to say that if the First Prince says the word he'll bring "Mad Max's Mad Grandson to heel in 3 months". Colonel Khorsakhov of the mercenary regiment Khoraskhov's Cossack's very publicly requests permission to teach the Chancellor some manners.
The First Prince responds in an attempt to calm things by pointing out that he himself would welcome a special session to bring to it's attention the unwarranted aggression that his realm has suffered from it's neighbours in the last year. While it quietens calls for another set of reprisal raids it's becoming evident that the Second Star League is beginning to lose popularity across the FedSuns, although the First Prince remains committed to it. One of the few things propping up the Star Leagues popularity in fact.
On the 23rd the First Lord agrees and calls all of the various member realms leaders to attend on St Ives by the 28th February 3064. Kai Allard-Liao a long term friend and ally of Victor Davion attempts to strike a moderating tone in his agreement to the session but even that irritates the hardliners on both sides.
One area of support that nobody had anticipated for the First Prince comes from the unlikely source of the Duchy of Andurien. With long histories of wars with the Liao family and perhaps feeling squeezed between the growing alliance of the Capellan Confederation and the Magistracy of Canopus the region spoke out in favour of "The Davion Princeling smacking down the Chancellor!", which was given more formal voice when Duchess Dalma Humphrey's commented that perhaps Isis Marik had shown more sense than her father in befriending Victor Davion. Of course practically the redhead duchess uses the discussions to suggest that the FWLM also reinforce the Capellan border... Perhaps with a new Andurien unit. Which cause uproar in parliament.
Within the Capellan Confederation the fall out continues. The mauled 1st and 3rd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry limp into Confederation space. The 1st has been reduced to an elite battalion and command company while the 3rd is filled with shaken veterans who can barely muster a single battalion. When added to the other shattered MAC units the 4 regiments and their command company can't muster 2 full regiments between them. While the remnants of the 5th remain in AFFS interment camps.
The Prefectorate Guard is however almost instantly brought up to 75% of it's strength with the transfer of a battalion from the Red Lancers and another from the Holdfast Guard. It is felt that keeping the Capellan Hussar's brigade's regiments at combat operational strength is vital particularly with the recent disasters.
Work begins on Styk, Victoria and Menke to begin rebuilding. Although particularly on Menke the "rebuilding" takes the place of almost entirely new construction. Lord Baxter insisted that the plants be rebuilt instead of relocated deeper within the Capellan Confederation and pointed out in support of this that the factory workers at least are still present on Menke. Unspoken was the likely response of the bitter McCarron's Armoured Cavalry units if their world was slighted by moving the remaining factories. Another demand that the commanding officer of the Armoured Cavalry makes is that the Capellan Confederation makes every effort to ransom back his troops taken prisoner on Talon. Again this demand is agreed given the likely alternative is to have the Big Mac at best return to mercenary service and at worse go into open mutiny.
Victoria is further reinforced with increased numbers of Fa Shih battle armour ordered from Ceres Metals and Hellespoint Industrial's to be dispatched to the underground tunnels of that world. Their mine laying ability is considered a welcome addition to the defences there.
Kali Liao leaves Highspire at this time and begins making her way to Sian to meet with her brother. She wishes to introduce him to her new friend who she thinks can help her brother rebuild the Capellan Confederation and humble the Davions.
On the Draconis-Ghost Bear front the battles are starting to die down. Not through any wish for peace but from simple mutual exhaustion. Hohiro Kurita during November agrees to a trial to take place on Courcheval to decide the outcome of the war. The trial is to take place on the 1st of January 3064. The Ghost Bears agree to this as on the 17th they are attacked by the Hell's Horses.
On Antallos the various assembled Smoke Jaguar bands hear the terms of the First Prince from his representative Captain Tiaret Nevversan. Some respond with fury, but most listen in silence. Most of the assembled warriors are the shattered survivors of the First Princes operations in the Occupation Zone but others are refugees from Clan Space. They've watched Victor Davion smash their Clan when it was at the height of it's power. Their conqueror is now offering them honourable if difficult terms and furthermore making it clear these terms will only be granted once. If they refuse them his forces will shoot on sight. Captain Nevversan leaves them in no doubt about that. Where many would take this threat as an insult to the warriors of the Smoke Jaguars this is a display of strength in a leader they can respect.
Finally it is put to the vote. Over 2/3rds of the assembled warriors agree to the First Princes's terms. The remaining dissenters splinter. Around half of them immedietly storm out while the others attempt to point a Trial of Refusal. A Trial that Star Colonel Showers insists they face with only the proportion of troops which have stayed. Which leads a number to defect from the dissenting group and agree to follow the majorities decision. By the time the "Trial" takes place there are only a handful of dissenters remaining to contest the result and they are swiftly destroyed.
The remaining Jaguars who are now attempting to refer to themselves as Sun Jaguars then decide to elect a new leadership to serve under the First Prince. It is no surprise to anyone when Star Colonel Fredrick Showers is elected as the Khan of the Sun Jaguars but when he nominates "Star" Captain Nevversan for his saKhan there is a great deal more shocked faces, no more so than hers. Still the nomination is agreed almost unanimously. At which point the still protesting saKhan is ordered by her Khan to go back to the First Prince and pledge him the loyalty of the Sun Jaguar Clan. The Khan will reform the remaining warriors into provisional units and organise the transport of as many of their civilians castes as he can and move towards the Federated Sun's Outback. He will attempt to bring their Clan to the world of Defiance by March 3064. He will also send out word to more far flung groups of the formation of the Sun Jaguars and invite them to make their way to the FedSuns to join the new Clan. Although he can't promise that he will arrive on time even with the more local forces. The rendezvous point is chosen after saKhan Nevversan explains that is the jumping off point for Task Force Serpent. Where the end of the Smoke Jaguars began the new Sun Jaguars will be reborn.
The new saKhan of the Sun Jaguars begins to head back to New Avalon with a small "Keshik" of a combined arms star of 3 omnimechs and 10 Elemental's. She should arrive sometime in January 3064.
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Hmm.... A very nice update! I'm looking forward to the SL high council meeting about the reprisal raids that the AFFS has done against its arrogant neighbors. I wonder if the SL high council will hear about the First Prince Victor SD's own new Clan Sun Jaguar?
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BillyBoy,
That was Awsome,
That was a Lance of Awsome-ness
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seems like the Fed suns could use some Union CVs. they would fit between Leopards and Veg's.
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how many clusters are left of the jaguars? any warships? jumpships? dropships?
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Hmm I imagine Victor is most likely going to hold up the massacred civilian employees at the Spaceport as a very good justification for his response.
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Considering Death Commandos went to great length to obfuscate what they looted on Talon I reckon they intend to use mechs for false flag operation and considering Kali intends to get CC in bed with St. Jamais it will make for some really interesting times. However MIIO and DMI should figure out that certain profile of Talon workers was specifically targeted and come to some conclusion. The production records should still exist though and comparing them with recieving records should enable them to figure out what was taken.
Btw I found the footage from latest Immortal Warrior holovid featuring combined operation of Davion Guards and Sun Jaguars (https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/7fc8980d-6eb5-495c-8e88-296f20ac2b73/dc37uvk-5a8aa3b4-7816-4f1d-b72d-122519fe7f67.gif?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzdmYzg5ODBkLTZlYjUtNDk1Yy04ZTg4LTI5NmYyMGFjMmI3M1wvZGMzN3V2ay01YThhYTNiNC03ODE2LTRmMWQtYjcyZC0xMjI1MTlmZTdmNjcuZ2lmIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.LNZbsfQpP7JHx87mtDkr33awF7aVlRGTI0wWbpjgUx4).
Warning, big image.
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how many clusters are left of the jaguars? any warships? jumpships? dropships?
I´m pretty sure all the warships would be accounted for at this point - the ones that survived Bulldog went back to the homeworlds and were destroyed over Huntress, and all warships in the Kerensky Cluster would have been sent to Huntress and destroyed there even earlier.
The Jaguars that showed up over New Avalon may well have been the most powerful remaining splinter.
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Hmm.... A very nice update! I'm looking forward to the SL high council meeting about the reprisal raids that the AFFS has done against its arrogant neighbors. I wonder if the SL high council will hear about the First Prince Victor SD's own new Clan Sun Jaguar?
Victor probably WOULD have told them... If it wasn't a session specifically for them to bitch at him... ;)
BillyBoy,
That was Awsome,
That was a Lance of Awsome-ness
Thank you very much! I do try hard to get as many relevant details in as I can.
seems like the Fed suns could use some Union CVs. they would fit between Leopards and Veg's.
I do have some dropships that I'd want them to design/build soon.
how many clusters are left of the jaguars? any warships? jumpships? dropships?
I'm figuring around 2 and a bit clusters of odds and ends (no single force larger than a trinary of troops). Dropships and jumpships able to carry those plus some reserve to carry the (mostly tech and labourer caste) civilians they managed to extract.
Does that seem excessive to anyone?
Hmm I imagine Victor is most likely going to hold up the massacred civilian employees at the Spaceport as a very good justification for his response.
Considering Death Commandos went to great length to obfuscate what they looted on Talon I reckon they intend to use mechs for false flag operation and considering Kali intends to get CC in bed with St. Jamais it will make for some really interesting times. However MIIO and DMI should figure out that certain profile of Talon workers was specifically targeted and come to some conclusion. The production records should still exist though and comparing them with recieving records should enable them to figure out what was taken.
The massacred civilians will play a large part in Victors defence of his actions - not only against the CC but also the DC.
I´m pretty sure all the warships would be accounted for at this point - the ones that survived Bulldog went back to the homeworlds and were destroyed over Huntress, and all warships in the Kerensky Cluster would have been sent to Huntress and destroyed there even earlier.
The Jaguars that showed up over New Avalon may well have been the most powerful remaining splinter.
The few remaining warships (I think a black lion and maybe a potemkin) are all in the Clan Worlds and unlikely to join the Sun Jaguars. The group that showed up was actually formed from the two largest splinters combining. Most "groups" are a star or handful of individuals rather than any formed units.
Basically they are the flotsam of the Smoke Jaguar clan, odds and ends that survived and have drifted together.
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So are the Sun Jaguars technically wardens now? Kind of an odd thought when you think about it maybe send clan POWs in the FedSuns to them?
The massacred civilians will play a large part in Victors defence of his actions - not only against the CC but also the DC.
An effective one to given the all have the ingrained cultural memory of the Succession Wars and other bloody conflicts in the Inner Sphere's past.
Basically they are the flotsam of the Smoke Jaguar clan, odds and ends that survived and have drifted together.
Could other members of the Dark Caste drift into the group as well as the old Smoke Jaguar Clan Warriors and Civilians? Clan society isn't exactly a good one and it treats people like crap so I imagine some people would proably jump on a ride to the IS.
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So are the Sun Jaguars technically wardens now? Kind of an odd thought when you think about it maybe send clan POWs in the FedSuns to them?
An effective one to given the all have the ingrained cultural memory of the Succession Wars and other bloody conflicts in the Inner Sphere's past.
Could other members of the Dark Caste drift into the group as well as the old Smoke Jaguar Clan Warriors and Civilians? Clan society isn't exactly a good one and it treats people like crap so I imagine some people would proably jump on a ride to the IS.
The Sun Jaguars aren't wardens or crusaders (the existing leadership know that such labels will divide their clan and may offend their new ruler). Instead they are taking the view that they have moved beyond such things and are now FedSuns Loyalists.
Others could, although they'd need at least some links/worth to the new clan to be accepted.
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The Sun Jaguars aren't wardens or crusaders (the existing leadership know that such labels will divide their clan and may offend their new ruler). Instead they are taking the view that they have moved beyond such things and are now FedSuns Loyalists.
Others could, although they'd need at least some links/worth to the new clan to be accepted.
IIRC one of the points of forming the Second Star League and conducting operations Bulldog and Serpent was to prove to the Clans that their purpose "unite" the Inner Sphere and reform the Star League was obsolete.
Considering that the Second Star League won, one might very well argue that the Warden and Crusader philosophies - both approaches to fulfilling that obsolete purpose - have both become obsolete as well.
From that point of view, what the Sun Jaguars are doing, just like what the Nova Cats did, is an attempt to find a new purpose for the Clans.
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3063 - December - All quite
With both of the Federated Sun's traditional enemies licking their wounds a quite descended upon the AFFS and FedSuns. The various military units along both frontiers continued to patrol in case the fighting resumed and within the various cadet Training Battalions, Cadres and such the graduating classes began receiving their postings and leaving even a the next classes from the academies made their way to take their place.
It was interesting to note for many that a large number of the Filtvelt Academy, Kilbourne Academy and Point Barrow Academy's Training Battalion graduates were being combined to form the new 33rd Avalon Hussars RCT. Listed from the start as a reinforced regiment the various graduating cadets were dispatched to Woodbine where they would meet their officers and supporting forces and begin training at the Combat Training Centre there.
The Dragonlords Brigade was officially formed on the 4th of December, with a command staff and offices reactivated within Mount Davion. Although still only nominally the 1st Dragonlords the orders had already been cut for a large number of graduates to be formed up on New Avalon to reactivate the 2nd Dragonlords. In the meantime the 1st Dragonlords were dispatched to Novaya Zemlya to continue their training there. This pattern for new Dragonlords regiments would be followed in the future, with the fully formed unit being dispatched to Novaya Zemlya to complete their training while the new unit would form on New Avalon. Each of the Dragonlords RCT's would follow the pattern laid out by the 1st, with a reinforced battlemech regiment, an aero regiment, 2 armoured regiments plus an auxiliary regiment and 2 regiments of battle armour. Although the weight classifications of the units would vary. Each Dragonlords unit would be twinned with a Davion Guards RCT which led many to believe that the First Prince intended to form 8 Dragonlords commands in time.
Following the announcement of the new units to be formed the First Prince meets with Marshal Waters of the Avalon Hussars again. The Marshal is of course happy to hear that a new 33rd Avalon Hussars will be formed up and is overall delighted with the expansions of his brigade. From a low point following the Clan Invasion of a mere 6 RCT's he now commands the single largest brigade in the AFFS with 13 commands. Although many of them are still expanding to full size. During this meeting there is some further discussion about seeding off existing battalions to form the core of further commands as the First Prince did to form the 1st, 12th, 34th and 36th Avalon Hussars initially. Both the 20th and 42nd Avalon Hussars have returned to almost full strength of 4 battlemech battalions and could again break off a battalion to form the core of a new unit. While the 17th and 41st are both at 100% but are only regular sized battlemech formations.
Prince Victor agrees with the Marshal that such options are available, although he states a wish to allow the troopers of the rebuilt 20th and 42nd at least some more time to integrate before they are used in such a manner again. He doesn't want to dilute the Avalon Hussars traditions by breaking off battalions which are still effectively learning the ropes. He suggests waiting at least another year before considering this and the Marshal agrees. The First Prince is also against reducing the fighting strength of the 17th and 41st at the current time and again Marshal Waters agrees with this decision. Although the Marshal leaves without further units he had hoped for he at least is aware of the value that the First Prince places upon the Avalon Hussars brigade and it's traditions and with a commitment to potentially 2 new regiments in the next year.
On Axton the Wangker Aerospace expansion to double Corsair production is finally finished. Just in time for contracts which would require the plant to be increased by another 50% of it's new size, or effectively tripling it's original plant. This would actually enlarge the plant to beyond even it's Star League era size. Not only that but New Avalon wishes Wangker to not only continue with the new factory it is building on Filtvelt but to add a similar sized factory on Sun Prairie in the Draconis March. From an initial 2 lines of Corsair fighters on Axton, Wankger is being asked to increase production to 6 lines on Axton and another 4 on Filtvelt and 4 more on Sun Prairie. While the Board are initially horrified at this further expansion and the costs the contracts being offered by the AFFS will more than offset these and promise huge profits for the company once the new facilities come online. As such on the 19th December the new contracts are signed.
Fighter production is helped when the Lycomb-Davion plant on June formally enters production of Stuka's although production wont reach full scale until June in 3064. However the expansions to Lycomb-Davion's established plant are also about to enter production. The expanded facility on New Avalon and new facility on June will triple production of the venerable but still incredibly powerful Stuka fighter. Hellcat and Lightning lines are scheduled to be added to the June plant, while the New Avalon facility is being expanded to add battlemech production again.
Also on June the Corean Enterprises Valkyrie line begins producing battlemechs. Unlike with many new lines the plant has already formally been run in with building spare parts and so the machines coming off the lines will be of an extremely high quality. A Centurion line will now begin construction alongside it. With the expected increased in profits and with the massive expansions of the AFFS Corean Enterprises brings forward plans to build a new tank, the Musketeer. The CEO wants prototypes ready to be shown to the AFFS by March with the possibility of a new facility to be ready to enter full production by August if the trials go well. Showing confidence in the new design work begins on the new plant.
On Filtvelt the new industrial mech facility begins stockpiling raw materials in preparation for the plant coming formally online on the 1st of January 3064. By the time it comes fully online in June the plant will be churning out a tremendous number of industrial mechs.
On Kestrel the Atlas line for New Independence Weaponry enters production. A number of minor faults require to be fixed in the completing assault mechs due to the line having been rushed into production, but the AFFS is more than happy to have a source of new Atlas battlemechs. The glitches in production are soon resolved. New Independence Weaponry has went from not existing prior to what is being referred to as the Galtor War to a company that has a facility coming into production on Kestrel and another new facility approaching production on Tikonov, with further expansions planned.
Work on upgrading the New Syrtis yards to be fully capable of warship production is approaching completion. Provisionally two slips are being set aside for Fox corvette production with further expansions being discussed.
On Tukayyid the Precentor Martial sits down with the Primus and discusses the First Princes proposal. A Combine born and sympathising individual Primus Mori nevertheless is forced to confront reality. With the recent fighting and defeats that the Combine has faced, the upheaval within the Lyran Alliance, the FWL's pro-WOB stance and the Capellan's recent reversals... The FedSuns is one of the only real stable suppliers for advanced weaponry and equipment available to Comstar. Particularly given the recent investments in increasing military production.
It hasn't escaped the notice of the two leading lights of Comstar that the new facilities that Victor is looking to have built are for vehicles not battlemechs, which the ComGuards also requires a source off. Although the offer to sell them Dagger-O's even in limited numbers is one that both agree is a welcome one.
After a series of meetings in which other leading members of Comstar are brought in the Primus informs the Precentor Martial that at the special session on St Ives in February-March 3064 he is to make the First Prince a counter offer. Comstar will agree to use it's influence on the New Earth Trading Company to have the vehicles that the First Prince wish constructed at a new plant within the Federated Suns, namely the Alacorn, Engineering Tank, Karnov and the Royal Von Luckners. They will also make his offer to Bergan Industries for a new plant to build Wayland Mobile Bases. A faslane will also be made available to rent to the First Prince, although at an extremely high cost. In return he will support the production of a new battlemech factory.
This new facility will be built on Defiance and will see it's production split between the ComGuards and AFFS at a 70/30 level, although the Primus accepts Focht's position that he may have to reduce this. It is to initially begin construction of the Nexus, Mercury and Hussar Battlemechs, with additional lines to be built for the Crab, Sentinel, Flashman and Thug. All of which will be built to Royal SLDF specifications. The ComGuards also wish battle armour to be produced on the site and will request that the AFFS consider building their Cavalier suits there for sale to the ComGuards.
The agreement to support Victor's vehicle factory ambitions is to be dependent upon him agreeing to the battlemech facility as well. He cannot have one without the other.
The ComGuards Faslanes may be considered for a move into FedSun's space, however no permanent yards will be built at the current time. Mori doesn't trust the Davion's not to seize such vital and hard to replicate infrastructure.
Within the Capellan Confederation the 1st, 2nd and 3rd MAC congregate on Menke. The 4th remains on station on Ares but requests a transfer to Menke at the earliest possible opportunity. Even with three regiments on paper now defending their homeworld the battered remnants of the McCarron's Armoured Cavalry make up barely a single full regiment.
As a sign of his support the Chancellor dispatches the 2nd Sian Dragoons to bolster the defences of Menke. The derision the battle hardened veterans of the Cavalry show for the green warriors of the 2nd Dragoons doesn't exactly do much to help integrate the Sian Dragoons into the planets defences.
Within the FWL Parliament a bill to support the construction of a new battlemech factory on Elgin is narrowly defeated. However when it is brought back a second time at the end of December with a promise of WOB funding and them pressuring Mitchell Vehicles to provide two designs for the new plant the bill is narrowly successful. It is only successful with a rider attached from the Sirian Concordance that a similar facility be built on the original Mitchell Vehicles site on Graham. Parliament had been asked for one battlemech factory, refused, and subsequently ended up funding two.
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The calm before a storm
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AFFS
31st December 3063
Independent Commands
1st Aragon Borderers – Veteran – 70%
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 100% - Klathandu IV
1st Capellan Dragoons – Veteran – 70% -
1st FSAC – Elite – 100% (Re) – Verlo – includes an armoured and BA regiment.
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 80% (Re)
1st Kittery Borderers – Regular – 100%
1st Mitchel Borderers – Green – 60%
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) – Deshlar
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 50% - Tikonov
1st Sheraton Knights – Green – 30% Cadre although attached support forces (veteran) at 100%
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - Abbeyville
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 80% (Re) - Panpour
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) – Yuris
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - June
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 95% (Re)
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% - Talon
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – Woodbine Combat Training Centre
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - Broken Wheel
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - Lothair
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% - Kentares
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 95% (Re) – Crofton
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Regular – 90% - Bell – refitting
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 80% - Brockway
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% - Groveld/Niles
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% - Menke
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 90%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 90% - Mitchel
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) – Wakaponeta
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Midale
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 70% - personnel – 100% mechs
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re)
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) – New Mendham
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) – Tikonov
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tancredi
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) – New Avalon
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 90% - Bell
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 80% - New Avalon
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 90%
5th Davion Guards RCT – Regular – 70% (Re)
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 90%
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Green – 80% - Deneb Kaitos
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100%
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% - Hyalite
12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 70% - Skat
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
Dragonlords Brigade - officers drawn from Davion Brigades, rest drawn from Cadres
1st Dragonlords RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – New Avalon Combat Training Centre
FedSun's Dragoons Brigade
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 90%
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 70% - Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Paris
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Elite – 40% - Talon/Wernke
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 70% - Frazer
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Green – 70%
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Montour
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100% - Tripoli
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Regular – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers – Elite – 80% - Galtor
2nd Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 70% - heavily upgrading with Omnimechs – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers – Green – 70% - Galtor – formed from Robinson Training Battalion and officers from 2 other Ranger commands + 3 companies of trainees from the local population in mostly Watchman and Sentry mechs.
Syrtis Fusiliers
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 40% - New Syrtis
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re)
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100% - Talon
Capellan March Militias
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
New Syrtis CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 70%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Achernar CMM – Green – 60%
Nanking CMM – Green – 80%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Broken Wheel CrMM – Green – 100% - Defiance Combat Training Centre
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 80%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 60% - Niles
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - lacking armour and with overstrength infantry brigade
Kentares DMM – Veteran – 40%
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 70%
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Academy Training Forces
Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion (5 companies) – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 70%
Warrior’s Hall Training Battalion (4 companies) – Green – 100%
Training Battalions
1st Bell Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Training Battalion - Green - 100%
1st Conroe Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Galtor Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Kittery Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Mitchel Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Sheraton Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
Mercenary Forces
12th Vegan Rangers
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 80%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 70%
Arcadians – Veteran – 110%
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 90%
- 2nd Cunningham Commando’s – Regular – 80%
Federated Freemen – Veteran – 110%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 100% - Galtor
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 90% - Cylene
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – Veteran – 90% - Paris
Hansen’s Roughriders – Veteran – 80%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Veteran – 90%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 90%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 80%
- 21st Ranger – Regular – 80%
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Veteran – 100%
Lexington Combat Group
- 32nd Recon – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Victoria
- 241st Battle – Regular – 90% - Victoria
- 180th Dragoon – Veteran– 80% - Victoria
New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 100% (Re)
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Niles
13th Stalking Horse – Veteran – 100% - Alta Vista
Vanguard Legion – Veteran – 70% - Talon
Wild Geese – Elite – 100%
Blue Star Irregulars – Firgrove
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 100%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 100%
- Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 75% operable
Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
FSS Fox
FSS Indomitable
FSS Intrepid
FSS Indefatigable
FSS Antrim
FSS Murmansk – Near Highspire
FSS Brest
FSS New Sytris – Kathil
FSS Robinson
FSS Antrim
FSS Kathil – Outback
FSS Bryceland – Outback
Avalon Class Cruisers
FSS Melissa Davion – light damage – being repaired, finished by December 3063
FSS Alexander Davion
FSS Lucien Davion – requiring a refit – refitting aftr Melissa Davion
FSS Simon Davion – requiring a refit – refitting after Lucien Davion
FSS Robert Davion – home ported New Syrtis
Covenant Class Cruisers
FSS Covenant
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Industrial/Infrastructure Changes - 31st December 3063
Capellan March
Axton
– Wangker plant to double production of Corsairs, from 2 to 4 lines completed, a further 2 lines being added, completion due in February 3065
Bell
- Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards, now being upgraded as a full on rebuild/repair centre capable of repairing and/or upgrading dozens of mechs and vehicles at the same time. Online November 3062
Firgrove - Clyde Shipyards being upgraded to be able to construct dropships not just repair them. Began construction of Excalibur but still upgrading and repairing already produced dropships
Kathil – expanding naval slips
Tikonov
– Expansion of the factories there to produce the Archer battlemech, completed in October 3063
- New factory for New Independence Weapony, building Victors (March 3064) and Battlemasters (July 3064). Entirely built from salvage from Tao Mechworks.
New Syrtis
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 2 to 3 – completed April 3063
Novoya Zemyla
– Creation of a new Dagger-O plant with 2 lines, first line operational November 3063, second line January 3064
– Kallon Industries building a new plant to build Templar-O, Enforcer III and Jagermech III’s as well as Cavalier battle armour. Starting in July 3063, the Enforcer and Jagermech lines would come into production in January 3064, the Cavalier plant limited production in April 3064 (reaching full production by July) and the Templar-O wouldn’t come online till January 3065 and even then wouldn’t be fully operational until July.
Crucis March
Broken Wheel
- new battlemech facility owned by Andoran Industries Ltd set to begin construction of new Clint battlemechs. Going online for spare parts end of 3062, entering limited production by 2nd quarter 3063, full production in 3064.
Delavan
- Expanded jumpship production, particular star lords.
Filtvelt
- A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works. Dropship yard entering production in April 3063, jumpship yard August 3064 – to produce Mules, Unions and Merchant jumpships.
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in February 3064, fully online December 3064 – 4 lines
- Achernar Battlemechs production facility building a huge industrial mech plant (coming online 1st January 3064, full scale production by June 3064), along with a battlemech annex coming online June 3064 producing dervish with enforcer production added by November)
– Outback FarmMechs new expansion to build Stinger battlemechs, starting work in November 3063 and finishing in January 3065. Major teething problems delaying the start of full scale production.
Galax – expanding naval slips and civilian jumpships
June
– Lycomb-Davion plant to build Stukas, to enter initial production December 3063 with full production by June 3064, further expansions of Hellcat and Lightning to be added coming into production October and November 3064
– Corean Enterprises plant to build an initial line of Valkyrie battlemechs (starting February 3063 and going fully online in December 3063) and a follow on line of Centurion battlemechs (Starting January 3064 and going online March 3065).
Kestrel – New Independence Weaponry plant being built, Atlas, Gunslinger and Victor lines being built, going online in December 3063 (atlas), February 3064 (victor) and June 3064 (Gunslinger). Secondary expansions planned to build a Jagermech III line by the end of 3064 plus potentially Marauder II and Marauder lines.
Killarney – Arc Royal MechWorks new plant to begin construction in January 3064, first Wolfhound line coming online in June 3064 and 2 more being added by March 3065
Kirklin – Kallon Industries, building a Crusader line to their existing plant, finished October 3064
Layover
- Salvatore Inc facility now being upgraded rather than allowed to continue limping on. Production of Vengeance class dropships to be massively increased. Some consideration being given to a new facility as well. Work underway and increases started.
New Avalon
- Lycomb-Davion expansions of Stuka production and to begin construction of Guillotine and Awesome battlemechs – Stuka production increased by start of 3064, Guillotine entering production in November 3064, Awesome in January 3065
- Corean Enterprise beginning construction of the Musketeer plant due to enter production in August if approved in March.
Panpour
- Challenge Systems being funded to increase production of Monolith jumpships and begin construction of two Congress-D frigates. First yard to be ready in February 3063 and the next 4 months later. A further increase in Monolith production to take place in 3064
Jalastar Aerospace increasing production of sparrohawk and sabre fighters and Centurion, grasshopper and javelin battlemechs. Increases in sparrowhawk and centurion construction prioritised and starting from August 3063, further expansions going on into 3065
Point Barrow
- GM plant to be built, starting in June 3063, due to go online in December 3064, building Maruader and Victor battlemechs, with follow on flashman line coming online in August 3065.
Draconis March
Addicks
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 1 to 2, completed February 3063
Benet III
– Creation of a new Dagger-O line, completed October 3063
Marduk
- Rebirth of Norse Battlemech Works, back in FedSuns hands, building large numbers of Wolverines and Griffons as well as Firestarter, Black hawk and Avatar Omnimechs – Wolverine and Griffon plant already online, Omnimech plant being repaired, coming online March 3063
Robinson
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks expansions and investments made to increase production, particularly of the up coming Sagittairre battlemech. Watchman line expanded to two and Sagittaire in production as of January 3063. A phoenix hawk line to be added by February 3064
Sun Prairie
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in December 3064, fully online April 3065 – 4 lines
Woodbine
- a new battlemech facility owned by Robinson Standard BattleWorks to produce Watchman battlemechs. Going online in July 3063 – Sentry and Battle Hawk line to be added by August 3064 and September 3064 respectively
Educational expansions
New Armstrong Flight Academy – expanded as of 3063 class, first expanded class graduating end of 3066
Filvelt Academy – expanded to a full regiment as of 3063 class. First expanded class graduating end of 3066
Filvelt Flight School – started construction 3063, first (small) class 3064. First class graduating end of 3066
Robinson Battle Academy – rebuilding/expanding to a full regiment, by end of 3063. First class graduating end of 3066
Warrior Hall – expanding to a full regiment by end of 3063. First class graduating end of 3066
Tancredi War College – being rebuilt and start a small class in 3064 full class in 3065, graduating first class in 3066 with full class in 3067.
Defiance - a new training facility planned to be named the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy to be jointly run by the AFFS and SLDF. Scheduled to begin classes 3064. First class graduating end of 3066.
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Damn that's a lot of build up this year. I imagine the civilian sector on those worlds will see an uptick as wl as even more jobs become available and more income comes to those worlds.
Also with those Congress Ds being built it will provided some decent rear area security against pirates as has been said as well as that it will give the yards warship construction experience which will serve the work crews well. Also who knows we may see some more jumpships yards or refit slips going up in the future.
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Okay Kelgar4 had given me an idea...
The Chisholm Raiders are an underutilised brigade currently - what if they were to be broken up into 4-5 LCT's instead of 2 RCT?
It would suit their raider image, their mobile warfare/unconventional tactics and give the AFFS a boost in such units.
Of course it would also break up 2 full RCT's which isn't exactly a minor loss.
I don't have any strong dislike of the LCT concept, but always thought that turning the Avalon Hussars and Ceti Hussras (two centuries old brigades who were backbone units of the AFFS) from RCT into LCT's was a mistake. The Raiders aren't exactly such a storied brigade nor are they seen as a fundamental core unit.
Thoughts everyone?
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Okay Kelgar4 had given me an idea...
The Chisholm Raiders are an underutilised brigade currently - what if they were to be broken up into 4-5 LCT's instead of 2 RCT?
It would suit their raider image, their mobile warfare/unconventional tactics and give the AFFS a boost in such units.
Of course it would also break up 2 full RCT's which isn't exactly a minor loss.
I don't have any strong dislike of the LCT concept, but always thought that turning the Avalon Hussars and Ceti Hussras (two centuries old brigades who were backbone units of the AFFS) from RCT into LCT's was a mistake. The Raiders aren't exactly such a storied brigade nor are they seen as a fundamental core unit.
Thoughts everyone?
I can see it also any other unit which is suited for defense would also work well as a LCT
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The LCT has its uses. But I would not create/reform them independently but as component units of the RCT. I can see the RCTs being made up of several LCTs.
Sort of like the modular brigade combat teams the US Army uses today. The brigades are capable of independent operations, aka doing the actual fighting, while the division controls several BCTs. In theory any Division can control and coordinate any BCT in the Army. This way additional brigades can be added to a division as the mission requires.
Ingame we already see this with the Combat Commands of theCeti Hussars.
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Honestly, for LCTs it would make more sense to expand the Ceti Hussars or at least use them as a model.
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Chisholm Raiders being split into 4-6 LCT would be good since their primary mission is raiding and rapid response, maybe do the same with FSAC.
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Combat commands like the Ceti Hussars are a better fit for the Chisholm Raiders.
It would be a perfect fit for their raiding style, they can separate or combine as the situation required.
LCT's are a better fit in the outback where they mainly have to worry about pirates.
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It depends on the unit's you want to turn into an LCT.
For example, I wouldn't turn the Avalon Hussars, Crucis Lancers, FedSun Dragoons, Rangers or Fusiliers into LCTs since they are mainline units and I'd want to keep them as RCTs because they are the line regiments that have to take and hold worlds as well as perform heavy combat duities.
While I would turn units like the Chislom Raiders and the 8th, 10th,12th and 15th Deneb light cavalry into LCT (mainly so they can be a rapid reaction force like their Parent unit the 13th Royal French Demi Brigade with Two RCTs to act as heavy units when needed.) You are also making some LCT Style units in the form of the Loyalist as well.
Failing that you could create LCTs and attach them to already existing commands.
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I can see it also any other unit which is suited for defense would also work well as a LCT
I don't know - for instance I always found the idea of turning the March Militia's into LCT's a bad idea as they already have a LOT of ground to cover!
The LCT has its uses. But I would not create/reform them independently but as component units of the RCT. I can see the RCTs being made up of several LCTs.
Sort of like the modular brigade combat teams the US Army uses today. The brigades are capable of independent operations, aka doing the actual fighting, while the division controls several BCTs. In theory any Division can control and coordinate any BCT in the Army. This way additional brigades can be added to a division as the mission requires.
Ingame we already see this with the Combat Commands of theCeti Hussars.
I think the model your describing is brilliant for the Ceti Hussars, but I'm thinking might not work so well with a larger force of LCT forces. Although having some who work together (and this was done with 2 of the Tancredi Loyalist units historically) would be a good half way ground for it.
Combat commands like the Ceti Hussars are a better fit for the Chisholm Raiders.
It would be a perfect fit for their raiding style, they can separate or combine as the situation required.
LCT's are a better fit in the outback where they mainly have to worry about pirates.
I have to disagree with that - in fact I think in the Field Manual 3145 they even say that transferring over to the LCT model hasn't worked for the Ceti Hussars.
I would agree that the LCT's would be an ideal force to deploy to the Outback. With say major worlds being defended by newly forming Avalon Hussars (and other RCT) with the less strategic worlds and anti-pirate sweeps being done by LCT's.
It depends on the unit's you want to turn into an LCT.
For example, I wouldn't turn the Avalon Hussars, Crucis Lancers, FedSun Dragoons, Rangers or Fusiliers into LCTs since they are mainline units and I'd want to keep them as RCTs because they are the line regiments that have to take and hold worlds as well as perform heavy combat duities.
While I would turn units like the Chislom Raiders and the 8th, 10th,12th and 15th Deneb light cavalry into LCT (mainly so they can be a rapid reaction force like their Parent unit the 13th Royal French Demi Brigade with Two RCTs to act as heavy units when needed.) You are also making some LCT Style units in the form of the Loyalist as well.
Failing that you could create LCTs and attach them to already existing commands.
I'd say that most if not all of the mainline formations will remain RCT - and some might even be upgraded from battlemech regiment to RCT, the Robinson Rangers for instance. The Deneb Light Cavalry are built on the old SLDF formations of their parent regiment and I can't see them being happy to break off and reform as LCT's. Particularly as Victor has already agreed to work on getting all of their fighter wings up to 60-120 fighters per regiment.
I like the idea of 1 or 2 formations in the LCT model - the Tancredi Loyalists being the parent of the model, with perhaps the Chisholm Raiders (or another new formation) being deployed as such. Very much as a specialist formation not something to replace the RCT. Basically have them operating as defensive and raiding forces behind and in front of the powerhouses of the RCT's or having a light weight LCT attached to a unit like the Assault or Heavy Guards to give them a screen.
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3064 - January - Preparing for the Special Session
The New Year started with the formal addition of the 2nd Dragonlords RCT, 33rd Avalon Hussars RCT and Broken Wheel CrMM to the rolls of active AFFS regiments. With the 2nd Dragonlords forming on New Avalon with factory fresh equipment the 1st Dragonlords headed to take up station on Novoya Zemyla to continue their training regime their against the 5th Davion Guards RCT. This would follow the pattern of the Dragonlords Brigade being paired with the Davion Guards Brigade. In fact the 1st Dragonlords were almost officially "twinned" with the Davion Assault Guards, while the 2nd were slated to have a similar arrangement with the Davion Heavy Guards. Commentators who were aware of this twinning process have begun to speculate openly that this meant that the High Command was intending to form 8 Dragonlord regiments instead of the original 5.
Within the Outback the citizens had two huge causes for celebration. Not only was the Broken Wheel CrMM being returned to active service but also on the 1st of January the huge brand new factory complex on Filtvelt for industrial mechs went online. No doubt with many of it's new employees slightly hungover from the New Year celebrations the sprawling industrial site roared into full scale production and began churning out over half a dozen industrial mech designs. Almost all of these are destined for small and medium sized firms throughout the Outback. Soon construction mechs produced on Filtvelt by Achernar will be helping to build homes, offices and factories all over the Outback while mining production will increase as more and more purpose built brand new mining mech's become available for use. This plant alone will over the next 10 years do more to increase productivity and resources in the Outback of the Federated Suns than any other single project. Due to it's vital nature the Broken Wheel CrMM will decide in mid-3064 to station a full Combat Command to guard it.
Also in January actual warship construction begins to take place at the newly upgraded shipyards at New Syrtis. Two of the repair slips have been upgraded to support the construction of Fox corvettes. Both Fleet Admiral Buchwald and First Prince Victor are aware that while they have used warships to their advantage they lack the numbers of capital ships to be able to exert more than a local superiority on one front. Increasing Fox production is a way to expand the options available to make sure that this superiority can be used again as well as for defensive deployments and make sure that the more valuable warships such as the Avalon cruiser are available for key engagements.
On Novoya Zemlya the second Dagger-O line began full scale production of entire fighters. This now means that the FedSun's have 8 fully functional Dagger-O lines on 4 seperate worlds. However given that all of them are in the two frontier Marches this isn't satisfying New Avalon. Using the announcement that the new line is coming into service to raise the issue again. In return for supporting the expansion of the New Syrtis by another line George Hasek did agree to support the building of a Dagger-O plant in the Crucis March, while James Sandoval's support was ensured by the promise of a dropship shipyard over the Draconis March system of Verde. Given that planets garrison was mostly former Vegan Rangers it was felt to be a secure location. To ensure the total safety of the new Dagger-O plant it is to be located on Torrence deep within the heart of the Federated Sun's. Using a Golden Five world would speed up construction due to the high levels of technology and automation on such an advanced world the factory would be built quickly with both lines coming online in November 3064. This quick and relatively painless expansion would make the High Command in particular favour expansions of this facility over others.
In the Outback the 1st, 12th, 34th, 36th and 42nd Avalon Hussar's RCT's begin preparing for Operation Tripoli. They are joined in this by both Blue Star Irregular regiments and the Wild Geese. Along with these battlemech formations and RCT's the AFFS also assigned a surprising number of conventional army brigades to the Operation. Strangely for an official army operation New Avalon nominates the overall commander as Brigadier General Alisande Faulkner. Although a mercenary she is a decorated former AFFS officer who served with the 1st FSAC and is considered out of the various officers being sent to be the best fit for the job. Colonel Alexander Duff-Gordon of the Blue Star Irregulars and Leftenant-General Edwin May of the 42nd Avalon Hussars are nominated as her deputies. While usually appointing a mercenary officer above regular officers would cause a major incident in this case the High Command (and in particular Marshal Water's himself) has sent an explanation to all of the officers concerned. Brigadier General Faulkner is acting upon strict orders from the First Prince himself and with her heavily decorated AFFS career is the best candidate. The next in line, Leftenant-General May who is famed within the AFFS for his diplomatic skills is not chosen randomly either. He quickly moves to quite any suggestion that he should be in charge and publicly goes on record welcoming such an experienced commander and privately suggests to the newly promoted commanding officers of the 1st, 12th, 34th and 36th Hussars that they take every opportunity to learn from the experienced Brigadier General.
Attached to this Operation are no less than 3 warships. The FSS Kathil and FSS Bryceland are joined by the Kerensky's Blues. The 3 corvettes are felt to be more than sufficient naval firepower for the Operation but just in case a number of free aerospace wings and dropship squadrons are attached. More firepower is rarely wasted after all.
The combined forces are ordered to leave their bases and gather at Malarn. They will be assembled by early February and launch the Operation. Small holding garrisons are left at the home bases of the 1st, 12th, 34th, 36th and 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT's, roughly forming a combined arms battalion holding force.
Even as Operation Tripoli begins to gather the First Prince begins preparing to head to St Ives for the special session. Along with him he takes the entire 1st Davion Guards RCT and arranges to meet the FSS Robert Davion before jumping into St Ives. Subtly is not called for in this case.
As well as preparing for this Victor also announces that after the council meeting he will be making a tour of the Capellan March and a number of Draconis March PDZ. He will take this opportunity to visit New Syrtis and the newly upgraded yards there for example. He will be visiting various military bases, industrial plants, military commands and training facilities. The timescale and schedule for these visits are not formally announced but a number of units are contacted to be told they are included in the tour. The inclusion of the 1st Arcadian's, 1st Federated Freemen, Illician Lancers and Vanguard Legion amongst others. Combined with his nomination of Brigadier General Faulkner as commanding officer of Operation Tripoli the First Princes's standing with the various mercenary formations which was already high rises even further.
As the New Year starts a number of officers and troops from various commands are detached and are sent towards Tancredi. These men and women who are largely drawn from the population of Tancredi will form the core of the new formation Marshal Jon Davion has in mind. The recruits from the new War College on the planet will be used to fully form and expand this formation to include new units as they graduate. For now this provisional unit remains off the official rolls and instead is merely listed as a combat auxiliary attached to the Davion Heavy Guards. This unit is to consist of 4 companies of battlemechs, 2 heavy battalions of armour, 2 cavalry battalions of armour, an artillery battalion, VTOL battalion and a battle armour regiment with an attached aerospace wing. For now the formation is operating at around half strength. A small trickle of troops will continue to bolster the unit - including a full lance of Tancredi born mechwarriors graduating from the 1st Conroe Training Battalion - over the course of the year.
Some discussions begin in expanding Precision Weaponry at this time to include battlemech or vehicle production and not just high end lasers during this month. As a preliminary suggestion the famed laser producers are provided with the specifications for ER lasers and invited to begin production of them and not just the pulse lasers they are famed for. Further support was provided to restart their industrial and medical laser production with a rising technological level in the whole Federated Sun's to support them. Opening an entirely new battlemech or vehicle production facility will take further planning however and the High Command would be looking to have an established firm come in with the new facility in partnership with Precision.
After the last 3 years of limited combat trials of the new PAB-27 personal body armour system the High Command are fully on board with ordering full scale production. In fact with the recent combat reports being glowing endorsements of the body armour production is ordered to be ramped up with the full support of the First Prince. He set a target for every front line command to be fully equipped with the new unit within 5 years and every conventional brigade and March Militia within 10. This would require massive numbers of the suits to be produced and shipped and the logistical requirements were huge. Still given the massive advantages the suit gave in combat almost every officer (outwith those who worked in the accountancy divisions) was fully behind the goal.
At the First Princes's orders the AFFS releases Mick's Blue Skye Ranger Company from their contracts on the condition they take up a new contract with Peter Steiner's new government in the Lyran Alliance. An agreement that the pro-Steiner unit is happy to accept.
Within the Lyran Alliance things are settling down. Although there are a number of resignations from the military in protest at the new Archon. Just in case those who do resign are watched in case they head for the Wolf Clan Occupation Zone. A number of agents also "defect" and head for Tamar to swear allegiance to the "True" Archon.
Archon Peter Steiner however is deeply unhappy at having to head for St Ives. His government is still new and riven with divisions. He really can't afford the time to travel to St Ives but at the same time can't afford to look weak by not going. As such he arranges the ruinous expense of a command chain of jumpships to take him to St Ives and back again. Due to having to travel longer he leaves in late January.
The Coordinator Theodore Kurita also has a long way to go and it's made worse that given the recent hostilities he had to detour to avoid entering the Federated Suns. He travels down via the Deiron District before crossing over into the Free World League and then into the Capellan March.
At least he no longer has to deal with the Ghost Bears as he leaves Luthien. The combat on Courcheval is a brutal affair. At the end of it only 3 mech's are left standing but they are Ghost Bear mechs. As such they claim the world of Courcheval and the Essex class destroyer the DCS Sabre Cat (which was being refitted to join the DCN) as isorla. Had the DCMS won the battle they would have received back all of the worlds taken. The Ghost Bears had insisted on the Sabre Cat being added to the pot given their own need for lighter warships and frankly the fact they were in possession of multiple Combine worlds.
Sun-Tzu Liao also prepares to go to St Ives with a battalion of his elite Guards, the Red Lancers who are augmented by a company of Death Commandos who are listed as Red Lancers. He also brings with him a series of petitions and letters from citizens of the worlds struck and even a handful from the 3 worlds under "Davion occupation". to present to the session in support of his views. Along with him comes representatives from Canopus and from the Concordant.
Captain-General Thomas Marik before he heads for St Ives puts before parliament an additional naval bill calling in particular for a battleship to be built based upon the old Atreus class battleships. He is initially asking for 4 of these ships to be built.
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Considering everyone is building Warships, will we still see the development of the Pocket Warship concept?
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Depends on who came up with the idea, really.
To make the pocket Warship work properly, you still need to make soem jumpships, and good amount of shipyards. But you need someone in power who is not blinded by Warships, or as in the case of the USA in WW2, has a catastrophic loss to their Warships to do it.
I'd like to see the Draconis Combine go that route as it would help them negate the Clan/FS pincer they are in. They need to really use their industry and resources wisely. While Teddy is kind of a visionary, we know that DC is bound to off him soon.
A strange one, but would work is the Outworlds Allaince. Especially if they went with combo of Dropship Carrier/Pocket Warship to work with the Snow Ravens (and Diamond Sharks).
If it was me, Cap'N/General Thomas of Marik should do this, as with his economy, and so far minimal losses compared to the other powers, would Zerg Spam the rest. Of course in the OTL, he didnt.
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Considering everyone is building Warships, will we still see the development of the Pocket Warship concept?
I think the A-3 Overlord (since 3058) is already in production and the Excalibur pocket warships are already being produced or about to enter production and I know the DCN have a few building.
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I think the A-3 Overlord (since 3058) is already in production and the Excalibur pocket warships are already being produced or about to enter production and I know the DCN have a few building.
You missed out the Vengeance they are in production and used by the Fedsun Navy http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Vengeance
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You missed out the Vengeance they are in production and used by the Fedsun Navy http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Vengeance
The vengeance pocket warship varient is canopian I think.
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The vengeance pocket warship varient is canopian I think.
Thing is well armed enough in its base that it could be considered a proto pocket warship.
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3064 - February - Tripoli Overshadowed
In any other month the launching of an operation involving 5 RCT, 3 Mercenary regiments and 3 warships would have been the headline issue throughout the entire Federated Suns. However for almost the entirety of February Operation Tripoli was barely mentioned as instead everyone concentrated upon the up coming Special Session of the Star League Council.
Although somewhat overlooked Operation Tripoli launched on schedule and began a series of jumps out from the Broken Wheel Combat Region. At an unnamed system that had been used for such purposes before the task force broke up into it's constituent parts and jumped to their targets.
The 1st Avalon Hussars RCT, supported by an additional convention brigade, jumped into the system of Morgan's Holdfast and began a combat burn for the planet. Although slightly under strength with only 8 companies of battlemechs it was felt that the additional conventional brigade would give them more than enough firepower to deal with any small pirate bands on the planet.
The lightweight 12th Avalon Hussars RCT were reinforced with the Blackhorse Squadron of the Wild Geese and headed for New Port Royal. What limited intelligence the AFFS had on the Tortuga Dominions indicated that there were no pirate bands larger than a single battalion of mixed troops on the planet.
The 34th Avalon Hussars RCT, with a full independent armoured brigade and 2 infantry brigades headed for Fletcher's Feast. Word had reached the AFFS that a full battalion of the Tortuga Fusiliers were based on this world and they were prioritised for destruction. Accompanying this attack would be the FSS Kathil.
The 34th's sister regiment the 36th Avalon Hussars were tasked with seizing control of the New Haiti. Resistance was expected to be light and ineffectual, but an additional demi-brigade of infantry were attached to them along with a VTOL battalion just in case.
The 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT was considered by most to be the premier AFFS unit taking part in the invasion. As such it was allocated the target of the world of Tortuga Prime itself. Alongside and backing it up were the Ironhorse Squadron of the Wild Geese alongside a conventional brigade of armour and another of infantry. In orbit the FSS Bryceland will be there in support along with 2 full independent aerospace wings.
The 21st Rim Worlds regiment of the Blue Star Irregulars would be tasked with taking on the last world of the Tortuga Dominion, New Gascony. Backing them up would be a brigade of infantry and an additional aerospace wing.
Held in reserve would be the Blue Star Irregular corvette the Kerensky's Blues, the 1894th Light Horse regiment and the remaining squadron of the Wild Geese the Darkhorse Squadron and Headquarter Troop. Along with them two mixed conventional brigades consisting of an armour regiment and 2 infantry regiments and a full independent aero regiment.
The Tortuga Fusiliers themselves had some idea that they might be the target for a reprisal raid or for anti-piracy operation. They had heard rumours from sources about Operation Tripoli of course, but had no idea quite the level of force about to be used to hammer them. As all through the Dominions jumpships and even warships began jumping into the systems panic spread like wildfire. Pirate jumpships immedietly hot jumped out of whatever system they were in that were under attack - but often jumped into nearby Dominion systems and found themselves jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. More than 60% of the pirate fleet's jumpships were snapped up either at the original jump points or where they fled to. These flights and captures effectively gutted any attempt by the pirates to flee off world.
The massed formations of dropships, escorted by assault dropships and heavy fighter cover bored down upon each world simultaneously. The Tortuga Fusilier's had built up an entire fighter wing of 19 aerospace fighters of their own, but with a third of it taken out in space at the jump points when their leopard CV was destroyed by a broadside from the FSS Bryceland, the remaining 13 fighters were all on Tortuga Prime and facing 2 full fighter wings from the 42nd and a similar number from independent wings as well as the FSS Bryceland's escorting fighters and dropships. Swept from the sky the Tortuga Corsairs were effectively wiped out.
All across the Tortuga Dominion's the AFFS and their affiliated mercenary troops touched down and almost immedietly went on the offensive. With total air superiority the battlemech formations marched out to hunt down the scattered pirate forces. Alongside the Tortuga Fusiliers the many smaller bands found themselves targeted. While that was happening armour and infantry formations secured the landing zones before joining their battlemech comrades in sweeping the worlds clear of pirates. Slaves were freed, settlements and towns secured and war bands of pirates eradicated.
Only on Tortuga did a real fight occur. The Tortuga Fusiliers main strength was dug in around Raider's Roost. A full battalion of battlemechs and the bulk of an infantry regiment were augmented by almost 2 more companies of smaller bands along with almost a full regiment of pirate infantry from the cities population. These wouldn't be well coordinated or integrated into the main defence forces but they would fight with the fanaticism of cornered rats. However against a full front line RCT backed up with 6 elite companies of mercenary battlemechs and 8 more conventional regiments they stood little chance. The 42nd arrived on the outskirts of Raiders Roost on the 17th February and by the 24th the last bastion of the Fusiliers had been stormed. A few isolated neighbourhoods would remain battle grounds for several more weeks but infantry formations would be able to take care of these low level insurrections.
On the rest of the Tortuga Dominion's worlds the isolated pirate bands found themselves outnumbered 3 or even 4 to 1 and hunted down. Bombed and strafed from the air and attacked on the ground the pirates were unable to flee as the Federated Sun's forces had almost full orbital control. The best offer they had was that they would not face execution but instead lifetime imprisonment if they surrendered. If they did not surrender then if captured they faced summary execution as pirates. Most chose to fight to the last but a number did decide that a lifetime in jail was better than death.
Having used hugely overwhelming firepower and numbers the troops of Operation Tripoli were able to seize all 6 worlds of the Tortuga Dominions by the end of February with light casualties. The reserve forces were not required to be called in. Unlike previously when the 9th FedCom RCT attacked the Dominions the AFFS forces did not begin withdrawing after having crushed the pirates. While the bulk of the units involved began heading back to their garrisons within the Outback, the 34th Avalon Hussars RCT deployed to hold Tortuga Prime while other conventional brigades were deployed to each world to hold them for the Federated Sun's. Specialist Federated Sun's troops would then move in to begin rebuilding and restructuring the society of these worlds in the long term. For the time being the 34th Avalon Hussar's would be backed up by the full Blue Star Irregular's brigade although in the long term they were slated to return to Firgrove.
Questions did begin to be asked given the setting up of garrison posts and the sending of the specialist troops on whether the Federated Sun's were intending to annex the Tortuga worlds or were merely nation building for a new non-pirate Tortuga based political entity in the Periphery. Arguments were made for both options throughout the Federated Suns particularly within the Outback. The basic requirement however was that whatever option was chosen that there be no return to pirate raids based there.
On Novoya Zemyla the Kallon's plants first full production run of Enforcer III and Jagermech III from January are dispatched to help form the 1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion and the 1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion. Some of these mech's are a little temperamental as the first production models for a new factory but this is actually seen as a good thing for these formations as it will help train the pilots and their astech's in maintenance and repairs.
While on Filtvelt the new Wangker plant begins producing Corsair aerospace fighters. These will be sent to replace the few losses from Operation Tripoli and a full flight dispatched to the new Broken Wheel CrMM's fighter wing.
The New Independence Weaponry plant on Kestrel's second line becomes operation this month and the first Victor class battlemechs are walking off the production line by the end of February. The first full lance are dispatched to the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT.
Robinson BattleWork's plant on Robinson itself also see's a new line for Phoenix Hawk battlemechs coming into production. The laser weapons for this design will be imported from Tancredi and will very quickly prove to be of superior production. Combined with similar reports from the lasers on the Sagittaire class battlemechs produced at the same plant the Duke of Robinson will throw his full weight behind increasing production at Precision Weaponry plant. He orders large quantities of these superior lasers for use in all of the battlemech's produced in his plants on Robinson and Woodbine.
Just before First Prince Victor was to leave New Avalon to head for St Ives his bodyguard and her own new Keshik formation returned to New Avalon. The former captain and now saKhan Tiaret Nevversan returned to accept the First Princes's offer on behalf of her new Clan Sun Jaguar. In private she also made sure to assure Victor that she retained her previous personal loyalty to him not merely as a vassal saKhan. Both publicly to the High Command and to the saKhan privately Victor expressed his delight at the elevation of the captain to the role and pointed out she would be the ideal bridge between the Federated Sun's and it's new members.
Given the time constraints of the First Prince having to be at St Ives she accompanies him as he leaves New Avalon, falling into her own role as his personal bodyguard as well. During this time she explains that Khan Showers intends for the time being to form one massively under strength front line Alpha Galaxy with two Keshik Trinaries and 2 front line clusters. Backing this up will be a second line Omega Galaxy formation with a single cluster of second line troops. At the current time Clan Sun Jaguar has no active warships or any real prospect of them. These formations and their accompanying civilians will arrive at Defiance and wait there as more Jaguars trickle in to flesh out their numbers before heading for the 3 worlds that the First Prince had allocated for them. All of this is subject to the First Princes's consent of course. Which he gives, informing her that he has also ordered the 20th Avalon Hussars RCT, the Sandbaggers, to the three former FedSun's worlds which are to be the site of the Sun Jaguar enclaves with orders to begin constructing the basics of infrastructure. These facilities won't be luxurious but they will provide homes and clean water for the soon to be arriving Clan colonists. Once the basics are set up the First Prince has ordered the 20th to move onto the Tortuga world's to use their skills there.
Arriving on St Ives the First Prince is met by First Lord Kai Allard-Liao at the spaceport. The two old friends are obviously under some strain but happy to see each other and have a frank discussion in preparation for the coming council.
When the session is formally opened on the 28th of February things almost instantly go horribly wrong. Almost before the First Lord is finished his introduction the Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao makes a formal motion to censure the First Prince of the Federated Sun's for his unwarranted aggression against the peaceful peoples of the Capellan Confederation and calls upon the SLDF to help evict AFFS occupying units from sacred Capellan soil, and in a secondary addition also the occupied worlds of the noble peoples of the Draconis Combine. First Prince Victor is unable to hide the incredulity from his face as he rises to answer the charges. He points out that both of his operations have been in response to heavy raids conducted by foreign troops upon his realm which were deliberately calculated to inflict not only military damage and casualties but civilian also. As such he had no other option but to respond and he had done so. In perhaps a less than diplomatic statement he also announces that anyone is welcome to try and remove his troops from these now Federated Sun's planets, but if they do they better bring their own body bags.
February ends with the great and good of the Inner Sphere roaring and shouting at each other...
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Well that could have gone better, but there's only so many diplomatic ways you can tell the Cappie Chancellor to go hug a claymore (sword or mine, your choice) that does not include 4 letter explititives.
I've read this on AH and found it here too, read the whole thing and its superb :)
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Well that could have gone better, but there's only so many diplomatic ways you can tell the Cappie Chancellor to go hug a claymore (sword or mine, your choice) that does not include 4 letter explititives.
I've read this on AH and found it here too, read the whole thing and its superb :)
Well yes your options are somewhat limited in how you tell the Chancellor to go take a long walk of a short pier in response to his claims of your aggression against his realm after he hit a major world with 3 full regiments and massacred 1000s...
Glad you like it!
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now the Fedsuns have the two production sites for Vengeance Incorporated. that would be two or three lines for the 25ton Brigand (3065) one for hunter, demolisher and Vedette class tanks. I would not be surprised if they also did not have some dropship repair capability.
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yeah
but after 15+ years of dealing with Sunny,
he could have simply said, you are only alive because we didnt find Kali,
and we wouldn't kill you and leave the Capellan people to her insanity
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I would have simply asked him why does he always try to hide behind other people when consequences of his acts of agression come calling. Unresolved mommy issues perhaps? I would also point out that every other House Lord would answer most forcefully to a neighbour throwing three regiments and death squad at his world, just to get material for false flag operation.
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Honestly i'm surprised that everyone does not treat the threats and claims of innocense and that we had NOTHING to do what so ever about the terrorists screaming "Long live the Chancellor" as they recorded that terrible incident... by basically calling them out on it. You can only play the victim card for so long.
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Personally, I'm of the opinion that Hanse should have finished the job of the complete and udder destruction of the CC in the 3020's. Then let Candace have the throne, withdrawal all forces(minus a few choice worlds), conduct a peace treaty to ensure a couple of decades of peace and quiet on the border with CC.
But that is just me, and yes I know yo continue the war would have hurt the FS economy, but a little recession versus 2 or 3 decades of peace on one of my borders might have been a good thing.
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3064 - March - Special Session
The screaming matches between the various Successor State lords didn't end with February. It was all that Kai Allard-Liao was able to do to keep many of the various lords from storming out and threatening war. Sun-Tzu Liao in particular threatened to leave on several occasions, going so far as to attempt to storm out. However this "phase" of the negotiations was finally halted when Victor Davion commented to Sun-Tzu that if he wanted to leave, then he should just leave. Nobody was stopping him. However if he did so then the Federated Sun's would consider that him a renegade and he might be forced to resume combat operations, perhaps with FWLM support. It had escaped nobodies notice that Thomas Marik and Sun-Tzu Liao's alliance had now been dissolved. After that things slowly began to calm down.
When Sun-Tzu Liao (more rationally and less theatrically) points out to the heavy loss of life and infrastructure to his realm there is a great deal of condemnation from the other lords... That is until Victor Davion counters with the reports from Talon of massacred space port workers and their families, even bringing along pictures of some of the war crime scenes. He also points out that this went far beyond a mere raid. A full task force consisting of 3 of the Capellan Confederation's premier combat units descended on a vital industrial world. The only thing preventing him from executing the captured members of the MAC as war criminals is the fact that they were obviously not involved in the blood thirsty slaughter behind the lines.
These pictures and reports undermine the Chancellor Liao's attempts to demand his 3 worlds back. Prince Davion and Coordinator Kurita avoid such a public discussion of the raids, but it is made obvious to the Coordinator that any similar attempts to the Chancellor to demand his worlds back will result in pictures of the atrocities on Robinson conducted by warriors in DCMS mechs and colours. Victor makes it very clear to Theodore he is having these discussions in private so as to spare the Combine any public climb down, as a mark of the personal respect he has for him. While unhappy about this situation Theodore Kurita agrees not to support the Chancellor's demands for a return to previous borders. He does however demand a further concession that Victor support him for First Lord at the next election, although his initial demand for the CEO of New Independence Weaponry to be returned to the Combine to face trial is refused point blank.
However on the issue of the Federated Suns's counter attacks into the Draconis Combine and the Capellan Confederation there does appear to be a solid body of support for censure. Both the Chancellor and the Coordinator are furious at the attacks and require some way to save face. In this they are supported by the Captain General of the Free World's League who see's it as an easy way to score a return mark on the First Prince for taking in his wayward daughter. Elected Prince Regent Christian Mansdottir also supported this as he felt that the Federated Sun's had went too far in their reprisals, not withstanding the provocation.
First Prince Victor Davion was defended in this matter by his brother the new Archon Peter Steiner who pointed out openly and with derision the blatant hypocrisy of the Chancellor and Coordinator either ordering or allowing attacks to take place on civilian targets and then crying out when they were attacked in turn. Victor was admittedly somewhat surprised by his brother's strong defence but was grateful. First Lord Kai Allard-Liao while not as strong in defending his old friend and admitting that perhaps the response had been heavy handed did point out that the Federated Sun's were in both cases the injured party and as such it was hardly appropriate to censure them!
With Comstar as usual abstaining from the vote, the tally was 4 votes in favour of censure and 3 against. As such the First Lord, despite voting against it, was forced to issue the Federated Sun's a formal censure from the Second Star League. The First Prince took this in relatively good grace and made a noncommittal response to it publicly. However within the Federated Sun's, the Lyran Alliance and even within the St Ives Compact and certain Free World's League provinces this was seen as political manoeuvring against a warrior prince protecting his people. Particularly within the Federated Sun's polling for support for the Second Star League begins to fall off drastically. Many particularly within the AFFS feel they have bled for the Star League and now they are being asked to stand by as their worlds are attacked. To a lesser extent this sentiment begins to grow in the Lyran Alliance as well. In some cases holo-news broadcasters begin suggesting that had it been up to Victor Davion it would have been the Jade Falcons and Steel Vipers Occupation Zone that was retaken for the Lyran Alliance!
Having been censured at Sun Tzu-Liao's request Victor is in no mood to be pleasant. As soon as the vote has passed he informs the Chancellor that he has captured 3 companies of mixed McCarron Armoured Cavalry mechwarriors as well as some support troops. He is setting a ransom for them of 2 full companies of battlemechs - not Capellan designs but instead FWL or LA designs bought and paid for by the Chancellor but delivered to the AFFS. If not they will stand trial as pirates, renegades and complicit in war crimes. Particularly the officers. He will also make public to their parent formations that he had offered to ransom them back to the Chancellor who refused. Given these terms Sun-Tzu has little option but to agree or face the total mutiny of the entire Big MAC. Victor informs the furious Chancellor that as soon as he receives the ransom (and not a minute before) he will release the captured mechwarriors. With the begrudging agreement in place Victor gives orders for these designs to be shipped to Mitchel to be added to the 1st Mitchel Borderers, adding insult to injury.
As the Special Session ends Victor Davion and Anastasius Focht sit down to discuss Comstar's counter offer. While Victor is happy to increase production of battlemech's within his realm he isn't impressed with the huge investment that would be required to build a plant producing all of these designs for Comstar and worse the production share that he will receive. He makes a few suggested alterations to the offer himself.
The first of these is that the production share be changed from 70/30 in favour of Comstar to 60/40 for the battlemech's and to 50/50 for the vehicles. In return for this he is prepared to have a variant Cavalier battle armour designed to be named the Lorica after the ancient Roman's armour. It will be functionally identical to the Cavalier but will have different armour mouldings. A small plant will be built on Defiance to meet the ComGuard's needs for battle armour.
The new vehicle plant will be constructed on Markesan. While he would prefer the plant to be in the Outback, he understands that the New Earth Trading Company prefer to keep their facilities as close to New Earth as possible. Notwithstanding this he is unwilling to place it directly on the border. Markesan seems a good compromise because of this and is a key logistical and command hub for the AFFS. Initially the plant will be constructed with 2 lines of Alacorn Mk IV tanks, 2 lines of Von Luckner tanks, a single line for Karnov transports and another for engineering vehicles. Although additional lines, particularly for the Alacorn and Karnov are discussed.
As for the battlemechs he suggests that if Comstar was to provide funds he would support the expansion of production on Tikonov to include the Thug design. While he would also support adding the Mercury and Hussar designs to Andoran Industries Ltd's plant on Broken Wheel. He also offers to set up a totally new facility on Defiance as requested to build the Nexus, Sentinel, Crab and Flashman designs. Jointly owned by House Davion and Comstar. He points out that such a division will safeguard the plants from being taken out by a single strike, making the obvious point that this is what happened to Comstar when they lost Terra. To sweeten the deal he offers to allow limited sales of Clint and Guillotine (when it enter production) battlemech's from Andoran and Lycomb-Davion as well and to allow Comstar exclusive access to the Nexus battlemech.
In return for this sweetener however he wants a reduction in the cost of renting a Faslane yardship. The price that Comstar is requesting is astronomical and far beyond what the First Prince is prepared to pay. He is offering a steady supply of 4 vehicles, a front line omni-fighter, a suit of battle armour and 7 battlemech's and potentially limited numbers of 2 more to Comstar. All produced at secure locations deep within his realm. In return he expects some reduction in the cost of the Faslane.
The Precentor Martial does point out that the Federated Sun's will see a major boost in sales income, revenue from sales taxes, increased jobs and have access to a number of designs they currently don't have. The First Prince does point out that he currently has a wide variety of battlemech's under production and while these designs would be a welcome addition they aren't necessary. While Comstar's production facilities are limited and are struggling to meet the ComGuard's needs. The two men part with the Precentor Martial promising to put the revised terms to the Primus and admitting he will recommend they be accepted to a man he once considered a potential successor. He also promises to stop on Ares and put the suggestion to Bergan Industries to build a Waylander production facility within the Federated Suns.
First Prince Victor had brought along as an adviser Isis Marik who had taken the opportunity to meet with her father the Captain General. She insisted that she would not be returning to the Free World's League anytime soon and intended to make a place for herself within the Federated Suns. When ordered by Thomas Marik to return she refused and pointed out that she had brought a friend along to make sure he didn't try and force her. The huge hulking elemental figure of "Captain" Nevversan didn't so much as smile as she stood grimly watching from the door. At this stage Thomas threatened to put before parliament a motion to remove her from the succession, which the now much more confident Isis told him to do if he so wished. The two did not part on good terms.
By the 21st of March the special session has broken up and all of the various Successor Lords are heading home. As per his stated intent the First Prince immedietly headed for New Syrtis, only stopping in those systems which were garrisoned by AFFS or mercenary forces to inspect the troops. He starts at Kittery where he informs Leftenant General Deedee Faulkner and Major Raul Bethune of the 1st Kittery Borderer's and the 1st Kittery Training Battalion that their quite service had not been forgotten. He informs General Faulkner that he intends for all three Borderer regiments to have additional support troops assigned. They will all have a full regiment of armour and a regiment of infantry along with 2 fighter wings assigned to provide additional support. Her own unit already has a regiment of armour and 2 fighter wings, but one of them is composed of conventional fighters. As such her command will be receiving 20 new fighters and the upgrading of a Kittery based militia infantry regiment to a regular army formation and assignment to her unit. While the Kittery Training Battalion will at the end of the year be upgraded to a 4 company reinforced formation.
After a few inspections and promotions (including the promotion of Leftenant General Faulkner to Major General Faulkner), Victor leaves Kittery on the 26th. With further stops along the way he will reach New Syrtis by the end of April.
By the end of March the Clyde shipyards at Firgrove are now entering full production of the Excalibar class dropship. Unlike the early models these are now fully worked up and ready for use and don't require refits before they can be deployed. A number of high profile units such as the New Syrtis Fusiliers and Avalon Hussars begin receiving these new dropships to replace older model Unions for instance. The Ceti Hussars are also to receive at least 3 of them each over the next year.
On Tikonov the first line of the New Independence Weaponry plant comes online and begins producing Victor's. Entirely built from salvage from Tao Mechworks the first production run goes to the Assault Guards.
Meanwhile on New Avalon the new hover tank offering from Corean Enterprises is shown to the various supply officers and members of the High Command. The 4 pre-production models are put through their paces by tank crews from the 3rd Davion Guard's 22nd St Robert's Armoured Regiment. After glowing reports from all concerned a report is sent to the First Prince recommending full production be pushed forward as rapidly as possible. It reaches him while he is still on Kittery and he gives the recommendation his agreement.
At the same time on New Avalon the CEO of StarCorp's Federated Sun's branch arrives to meet with the First Prince. She is informed that she will have to await his return. Although treated with every courtesy Amanda Sanchez becomes worried when many of the officers she has met with (and bribed) are not available to meet with her.
The FSS Marduk and FSS Filtvelt slip free of their shipyards at Galax on the 11th and 18th of March respectively. Both ships are ordered to take up station within the Outback and begin patrols, while the FSS Bryceland and FSS Kathil are recalled. The newly empty slips immediately begin construction of the FSS Addicks and FSS Chesterton, while a new slip begins work on the FSS Tikonov. Many within the intelligence community consider the later two names to be chosen to deliberately upset the Capellan's.
Within Capellan space the CCS Zhejiang returns to service while the CCS Elias Jung begins a much needed refit. The CCS Aleisha Kris also has entered service bringing the strength of the Capellan Navy to 3 destroyers and 2 active and 1 refitting cruiers. Work on the new shipyards at Capella continues to progress but much slower than had been planned due to the huge disruptions of the recent fighting.
Laurel's Legion within the Capellan Confederation is autherised to begin raising a 2nd battalion, although slowly to maintain their experience level. At the same time a 3rd Confederation Defence Force is raised although only 4 companies are allocated to it. This raises questions about the still disgraced 2nd Confederation Defence Force and whether it will be disbanded.
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Meanwhile on New Avalon the new hover tank offering from Corean Enterprises is shown to the various supply officers and members of the High Command.
Canon Musketeer or something else?
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Canon- there hasn't been enough time to change the design due to the butterfly effect.
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3064 - April - Offers Made
Over the course of much of April the First Prince and his escorting warship and RCT slowly make their way towards New Syrtis. He makes sure to stop at almost every major garrison post and most worlds along his path and even when he cannot divert to visit a unit will often request that representatives of the unit (both officers and men) be shifted to meet with him at those worlds he is stopping at. Despite returning from St Ives with a formal censure from the Star League Council Victor's trip to New Syrtis is more in the way of a victory triumph. On ever world military formations greet him with parades and the crowds flock to cheer their troops and First Prince. A fact that is not lost upon the other Successor Lords returning to their home worlds. Any hope they might have had that the censure would reduce the popularity of the First Prince was obvious misplaced! Duke Hasek publicly comments when asked about the response of his people to the First Prince that he's sure he can hear Sunny's teeth grinding from New Syrtis! The usually grim faced Duke's wide grin as he responds to the question at the press conference leaves nobody in any doubt that despite any differences the two men might have the cousins are entirely as one against the Chancellor.
The First Prince also takes the opportunity to meet with various mercenary commands senior officers, both on his route and on New Syrtis when he arrives. He makes a point of including his cousin George Hasek in the meetings that take place on his world. In each meeting he makes it very clear to the officers and men of the mercenary commands how proud he is to have them serving his realm and how much value he places on their services. Medals are handed out to various recipients just as they would be to regular army formations. For instance the Arcadians, Federated Freemen, Vanguard Legion and entire Illician Lancers and Lexington Combat Group brigades are granted the Limp Sword Flag for their work at striking back against the Capellan Confederation at a special ceremony on New Syrtis on the 29th April, alongside the delegations from regular AFFS also receiving the award.
He also makes a number of under the table offers to each of the above regiments, while acknowledging other similarly loyal mercenary units will be granted broadly similar offers. He makes it very clear to each delegation that these offers are in no way mandatory and he will not put any pressure on them to accept. They are also open ended and he swears that for the rest of his reign the various commands may take him up on them at any time. He even promises to recommend the offers be extended or renewed by his heirs.
He makes the offer to each of the delegations on New Syrtis of full conversion to regular AFFS formations with commensurate promotions and status within the AFFS - although in the case of the Illician Lancers this offer is not for regular AFFS status but instead granting them a secure base similar to their long lost island of Illicia on Terra. Landholds for officers and men in keeping with their financial stake in the regiments are also promised. Each delegation will be offered a bespoke and custom deal.
The 1st Arcadian's are offered the opportunity to rejoin the AFFS as a full regular army formation. The regiment is granted the right to choose whether to be absorbed into the Independent Commands, the Avalon Hussars or the Dragonlords brigade. Regardless of any choice they are promised they will be upgraded to a full RCT.
The Federated Freemen are offered a similar offer as the Arcadians. Colonel Pelt is offered promotion to Leftenant General and his choice of forming a new Dragonlords RCT or of having his unit designated as the 2nd Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry, a singular honour given the elite nature of the 1st FSAC.
The Lexington Combat Group are offered a landhold on the appropriately named world of Lexington and the opportunity to either join an existing brigade (with the Ceti Hussars being suggested) or form their own new brigade the Lexington Guard. The First Prince makes every effort to reassure the delegation from the LCG that their long term contracts and debt to the Federated Sun's will not be used against them to push them into this step. It is entirely a voluntary choice and he will be happy to have them serve under him whether they take this offer or not.
The Illician Lancers are not offered full status as AFFS regulars given their storied history and the respect that the First Prince has for this, although he makes sure to tell them that if they did choose to join the AFFS they would be more than welcome. Instead they are immedietly offered a landhold on an island on the world of Lackland, chosen for it's similarity to their lost Illicia. If they do not wish to take that landhold they can instead pick any island on any world in the Federated Sun's and the First Prince will personally from his own funds buy it for them and gift them it free and clear. That includes Sword Island on New Avalon the famed tropical retreat of House Davion he assures them... Although he'd be grateful if they didn't pick that one! After a round of laughter and a few good natured jokes from the assembled delegation they assure the prince that his holiday home is safe.
The Vanguard Legion is offered status either as an Independent Command or if they so wish absorption into the Syrtis Fusiliers. During this meeting with no lesser person than Colonel Chad Dean himself the Duke of New Syrtis joins the prince. Both men assure the Colonel that his talents are well recognised and their value rated highly. If he so wishes his command can be used to create a new 2nd Syrtis Fusiliers or become the 1st Vanguard Legion as an independent command. Either way his unit would continue to be considered one of the premier combat commands of the Capellan March and he would be promoted to Leftenant General. He and his officers are offered landholds on the world of Bell on the continent of Umbria.
Although not engaged in active fighting during the recent battles with the Confederation other units listed for similar officers include the Cunningham Commando's, New Avalon Cavaliers and Vegan Rangers. The Wild Geese, Screaming Eagles, Blue Star Irregulars and Fighting Urukhai will also be made similar offers but aren't expected to take the AFFS up on these. Hanson's Roughriders, Harlock's Warriors, Korsakov's Cossacks, The Medusan's and the 13th Stalking Horse are considered even more unlikely candidates and in many cases unsuitable. As such they will be informed that out of respect for their traditions the First Prince did not think they would be open to the offer and did not wish to put pressure on them but as a token of his respect they will all be sent a lance (or in the case of the Medusan's 2 flights of fighters) of battlemechs.
In a final attempt to ensure that no command feels he is putting them under undue pressure the First Prince makes it clear to all of the delegations that should they take him up on his offer but a minority don't wish to go along with it he will take no offence and will offer any such group instant employment either as a new mercenary command or under their existing name if they so wish. At the exact same pay levels and grades as their existing formation.
At the same time these offers were being made AFFS Department of Mercenary Relations officers were approaching the Dismal Disinherited, Hampton's Hessens who were reforming/expanding on New Hessen, The Regulators and Wilson's Hussars with offers of contracts. The First Prince was eager to bolster his realm against any future attacks.
As this was going on the fighting on Caph was stepped up when a regiment of the Wolf's Dragoons command arrived at a pirate point. The Dragoon's Delta Regiment was soon inbound escorted by the powerful WDWS Darius and proclaiming they were here to help the world of Caph decide it's own destiny. While officially neutral it was hard not to notice when the Delta's conducted a full combat drop and assaulted the pro-WOB forces on the planet. Suspecting that this would result in a WOB counter attack and with little clue as to what the Wolf's Dragoons commands motives were against them much of the pro-FedSuns contingents on the planet began withdrawing. They could always return if and when the Dragoons won and if the world so decided. Included amongst this exodus was the two heirs to the title of Duke of Caph, Duke Kalvin Gustafson's son Hanse and daughter Melissa. The Duke himself would stay with a small group of his Grenadiers. The remainder would join his son and merge into the 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT and 4th Davion Guards RCT in anticipation of returning to Caph. These rather unorthodox reinforcements for the two premier commands were accepted by both New Avalon and Robinson given the Gustafson's long term loyalty to the Davions and the troops battle hardened experience. Hanse Gustafson would be commissioned as a captain in the 1st FedSun's Dragoons upon his arrival on Nanking. Melissa Gustafson would likewise be made a captain in the 4th Davion Guards on Galtor.
Buried within the by now almost usual budget increases for infrastructural expansions are for 3 new warship slips to begin construction with high priority - 2 at Galax and 1 at New Syrtis. These are to be complete by January 3065. Given that these two shipyards are already expanding Fox production it is hoped these additional expansions will be taken for further work to expand the AFFS's Fox corvette numbers. However they will in fact be slated for producing a new Davion III destroyer, based on a mix of the old Davion II and the aborted Durandel design. The High Command and Fleet Admiral Buchwald is taking a risk ordering no less than 3 of these ships instead of a single one for trials, but the needs of the fleet for a heavy destroyer are forcing their hands.
Within the Draconis Combine a number of DEST and ISF operatives are sent into the worlds of the Galtor Thumb and the lost worlds on the Outworlds border in order to attempt to stir up unrest and pro-Kurita sentiment. While the DCMS might not be in a position to return these worlds to the Dragon at the current time they are not prepared to just give up on them. To strengthen their hand for when the inevitable reclamation takes place the DCMS begins forming the 23rd Benjamin Regulars and 46th Deiron Regulars while pushing hard to bring the new 43rd and 44th Galedon Regulars up to full strength. The other newly formed units such as the 4th Night Stalkers and various Ghost regiments are also expanded upon although to a lesser extent. Work also continues in returning Samarkand II carriers to production.
At the same time Narhal's Raiders announce to the DCMS that they will not be renewing their contract. While still respecting the Coordinator a great deal, his voting for the censure of the First Prince has reduced his standing in the eyes of the Raiders and they have decided it is time to "return home" to the Federated Suns. Such sentiments while not openly expressed are well known to the ISF operatives tasked with keeping an eye on them and the Raiders begin to see a downward spiral in their treatment not only by the DCMS but also Combine civilians. Which of course only reinforces their desire to leave the service of the Dragon.
Once returned to Sian the Chancellor signs the contracts purchasing 2 companies of battlemechs to ransom the prisoners on Talon as specified by Victor Davion. Even the FWL produced mech's are delivered with surprising alacrity to the Federated Suns, giving the Chancellor a clear message of his popularity within the League and Alliance. Still it does result in the early return of his warriors - who are dropped off on Menke itself in late May, despite him asking they be returned to Grand Base...
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While i enjoy immensely this story i point two problems - FS don't have the money nor the trained personnel to do this - by a very large margin.
FS and in minor manner the other states - is writenn like they have almost unlimited funds and trained personnel. That is not possible.
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While i enjoy immensely this story i point two problems - FS don't have the money nor the trained personnel to do this - by a very large margin.
FS and in minor manner the other states - is writenn like they have almost unlimited funds and trained personnel. That is not possible.
In fairness the Capellan Confederation has absorbed a single 5 regiment mercenary brigade into their ranks and numerous other smaller formations - 15th Dracon, 4th Tau Ceti Rangers, etc... They are a much weaker realm than the fedsuns - economically, industrially and demographically. Yet they asborbed these mercenary formations, fought a major war against the St Ives, engaged in long term combat operations in the former chaos marches while also investing heavily in new warships and investments in their new periphary allies while also building new academies and factories on for instance Victoria while also designing a whole host of battlemechs and technological breakthroughs.
While the Lyran Alliance (with high levels of capital flight due to the clan invasion) was able to finance and fund substantial numbers of new battlemech factories and expansions - it always struck me as odd how many new facilities cropped up in the LA while none seemed to appear in the FS.
As for trained personal - most of the mercenary regiments I've mentioned already have large scale Federated Sun's citizens in their ranks and provide most of their support already or have it provided by the FedSuns.
It's always been mentioned how the biggest problem the AFFS has is that it doesn't produce enough equipment and spare parts for its regiments - Victor is finally addressing this issue.
Even in the Jihad with the economy disjointed, wrecked by the civil war and then the jihad itself a number of individual worlds managed to build up industrial facilities to produce at least primative mechs - Tancredi, New Hessen and the advanced warlord design on El Dorado.
Hell the DCMS managed (despite historically not having a great deal of infrastructure) to build a corvette, destroyer, frigate and cruiser design and build multiple examples of these while also starting work on a fleet carrier and battleship - at the same time the FedSuns with 3 of the largest shipyards in known space built a corvette (in large numbers admittedly) and a cruiser and planned a light cruiser and destroyer that never got even started building.
I don't think this level of investment is too outlandish given all of the above (in my own humble opinion that is). I've also included that at least some of the "reimbursement" to the various mercenaries is in landholds not in cash. Which the FedSuns has a LOT off.
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Please also note - not every mercenary formation is going to accept these offers and even some of those that do will have elements turn them down.
Speaking of which, does anyone have any strong feelings/arguments as to which units would take the offers or refuse them?
I've already decided that the Vegan Rangers will say No. Very politely. But they were formed for the specific purpose of not being absorbed into the AFFS.
Similarly the Blue Star Irregulars will also say no unless someone can give me a massively compelling case for it. I just like them too much as loyal mercenaries to make them an AFFS unit.
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Let a set of dice rolls decide?
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Let a set of dice rolls decide?
I'd rather not leave it to chance but have realistic reasons for a unit saying yes or no... :p
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Well we can go one of two ways.
The 'normal world and normal economics' - with 100+ systems FS can do this and much more - heck just before the reunification wars TC alone have more forces and way more warships than FS today. So, by the lore is perfectly possible and even much more.
Or we can go 'modern FASAnomics way' - a few warships can break the budget of a major state and repairing even a single shipyard is a major cost.
Me, i like more the first case - i used that logic in one of my stories, btw. So, if you go that way, fine by me - just let everybody else do the same. Because FLW and LA are in theory better economically and industrial than FS - before the reforms your Victor do.
Please continue, is very well written and i like it very much.
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Well we can go one of two ways.
The 'normal world and normal economics' - with 100+ systems FS can do this and much more - heck just before the reunification wars TC alone have more forces and way more warships than FS today. So, by the lore is perfectly possible and even much more.
Or we can go 'modern FASAnomics way' - a few warships can break the budget of a major state and repairing even a single shipyard is a major cost.
Me, i like more the first case - i used that logic in one of my stories, btw. So, if you go that way, fine by me - just let everybody else do the same. Because FLW and LA are in theory better economically and industrial than FS - before the reforms your Victor do.
Please continue, is very well written and i like it very much.
The Lyran Alliance has mostly been hamstrung by it's divided/non-existant leadership of late, but should come out of that soon.
While the FWL is suffering (as it did in canon) from the parliament not being prepared to pour it's industrial might into the military. Thomas Marik has managed to get new regiments and shipyards but is having to do it on a case by case basis. Also a large chunk of the "spare" cash is still being drained off to the WOB. I'll try and do an update that shows the LAAF and FWLM advances soon.
By the lore basically it's always been "we need to give x faction a boost" so they get a boost. Or "this faction is too strong, give them idiot pills".
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I've already decided that the Vegan Rangers will say No. Very politely. But they were formed for the specific purpose of not being absorbed into the AFFS.
Always liked the Vegan Rangers. Their history was that they were created as mercs by the Duke of Verde to reclaim his birthright. I also seem to recall the duke used them as mercs so that the unit would not be absorbed into the AFFS.
Maybe they could do something like the New Ivaarsen Chasseurs? (one regiment on planet, other is deployed). Keep part of the unit assigned to Verde and protect the planet, while another part can remain merc (provided they take no contract against the FedSuns). The unit can rotate regiments in an out to provide time for actual experience and refit.
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I ran the 12th Vegan Rangers eons ago in the Fan Grand Council and resisted repeated attempts to “nationalize” the brigade. I got the rights to rebuild Delta Regiment, even was able to purchase a Fox which I named VRS (Vegan Ranger Ship) Verde. I was also able to keep a regiment on Verde to garrison.
That being said the Rangers made no attempt to leave the FedSuns but remained mercenaries.
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The Lexington Combat Group did eventually join the AFFS in canon so it seems plausible they would accept the offer now.
The Illician Lancers seem less likely - despite Victor's improved reputation, the debacle of Northwind would likely still resonate for units with a strong Hegemony heritage.
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The Lexington Combat Group did eventually join the AFFS in canon so it seems plausible they would accept the offer now.
The Illician Lancers seem less likely - despite Victor's improved reputation, the debacle of Northwind would likely still resonate for units with a strong Hegemony heritage.
I agree with you about the Combat group since even though they took heavy casualties in OTL they were practically a house unit by that point.
As for the Lancers I think they will say yes because it give them some income from the land hold also it is a major boon to them.
Incidentally I wonder what the plan is for Northwind?
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I ran the 12th Vegan Rangers eons ago in the Fan Grand Council and resisted repeated attempts to “nationalize” the brigade. I got the rights to rebuild Delta Regiment, even was able to purchase a Fox which I named VRS (Vegan Ranger Ship) Verde. I was also able to keep a regiment on Verde to garrison.
That being said the Rangers made no attempt to leave the FedSuns but remained mercenaries.
Always liked the Vegan Rangers. Their history was that they were created as mercs by the Duke of Verde to reclaim his birthright. I also seem to recall the duke used them as mercs so that the unit would not be absorbed into the AFFS.
Maybe they could do something like the New Ivaarsen Chasseurs? (one regiment on planet, other is deployed). Keep part of the unit assigned to Verde and protect the planet, while another part can remain merc (provided they take no contract against the FedSuns). The unit can rotate regiments in an out to provide time for actual experience and refit.
I think the Vegan Rangers will stay a FedSuns affiliated mercenary unit. I just don't see them shifting over to regular house service.
The Lexington Combat Group did eventually join the AFFS in canon so it seems plausible they would accept the offer now.
The Illician Lancers seem less likely - despite Victor's improved reputation, the debacle of Northwind would likely still resonate for units with a strong Hegemony heritage.
I agree with you about the Combat group since even though they took heavy casualties in OTL they were practically a house unit by that point.
As for the Lancers I think they will say yes because it give them some income from the land hold also it is a major boon to them.
Incidentally I wonder what the plan is for Northwind?
So far I'm leaning towards the Lexington Combat Group (already mentioned in canon as almost a house unit) taking up the option. Probably as the Lexington Combat Guard - a new 3 regiment brigade.
I'm leaning on the bulk of the Federated Freemen, Arcadians and Vanguard Legion take up the offer. Probably 2 battalions plus taking the offer in each case.
The Cunningham Commando's will split, those who want to take up the offer will be grouped into the 2nd Commandos and join the AFFS while the 1st Commandos continues as a mercenary command.
The Illician Lancers will take up the landhold.
The New Avalon Cavaliers are pretty much AFFS anyway so I can see them becoming a full on house unit.
The Vegan Rangers, Wild Geese, Screaming Eagles, Blue Star, half the Commandos and the Fighting Urukhai will all turn the offers down.
So 8 regiments will mostly take up the offer and 12 will turn it down.
And of the 8 taking up the offer 6 (LCG, Arcadians, Cavaliers and Freemen) are basically AFFS trained and effectively house regiments anyway. Even the Cunningham Commandos are almost that level as well, while Vanguard Legion is more deciding on the basis of Chad Deans ego!
The 12 turning down the offer include at least 8 units which are basically AFFS affiliated units but want to keep to their mercenary roots.
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3064 - May - The Tour continues
As May began the First Prince took a tour of the New Syrtis yards and made a point to visit the construction site for the latest slip being built for the new Davion III destroyers. Alongside him are officers of the Medusan's mercenary group and Duke Hasek himself. While viewing the still barely started slip the First Prince assures his cousin that if the Davion III design works out that he will expand production here in New Syrtis as quickly as funds allow, making the yards here the primary supplier of destroyers for the Federated Sun's Navy. Although given that he has authorised construction of 2 destroyer slips at Galax it is clear that New Syrtis will not be the exclusive supplier for the design.
After leaving the March capital he heads "upwards" through the Capellan March, making stops at Talon, Kathil, Novoya Zemyla (where he tours the just completed Cavalier battle armour plant) and Axton amongst others. Various units and soldiers receive decorations directly from the hands of their prince during this tour as he heads into the Achernar PDZ. He also meets with the officers and troops of the 1st and 2nd Cunningham Commando's and 12th Vegan Rangers and extends to them his offer personally. After only a brief meeting with the various staffs and a HPG message to and from the command's patron the Duke of Verde, General Tom Stancel of the Alpha Regiment very politely declines the offer. He expresses his pride that the First Prince thought so highly of his command and assures him that the Rangers remain committed to their long term contracts with the Federated Sun's but explains that they wish to remain in mercenary service. The First Prince assures the General this is not a problem and that whatever the terms of their service are he and his realm are grateful for the dedicated and valiant service of the famed 12th Vegan Rangers.
Within the Cunningham Commando's brigade however the offer polarises opinions. Many of the members of the command had long considered themselves almost a line regiment of the AFFS anyway, complete with prestigious postings such as to the Combat Training Centre at Novoya Zemyla and high profile assignments and were keen to take the First Prince up on his offer. A few traditionalists within the units however wished to retain their mercenary roots and were opposed to "losing" their heritage. Finally however a compromise was reached. Those wishing to retain their status as Davion affiliated mercenaries would be transferred into the 1st Commando's while those wishing to take the First Prince up on his offer would be transferred into the 2nd Commandos. The 2nd would then be "sold" to the AFFS and directly integrated into the regular army. The funds from this sale would be then used to massively upgrade the existing 1st Commando's beyond their already impressive level. After further debate those who would be taking the First Princes's offer agreed to petition to be folded into the FedSun's Dragoons Brigade as the 2nd FedSun's Dragoons RCT "The Commandos". On the 30th of May this request would be granted by New Avalon, with the reorganisation and transition taking place during June and July. The 2nd FedSuns Dragoons would keep strong ties to their former parent regiment the 1st Cunningham Commandos and this would even be encouraged by the AFFS.
Even as the First Prince is continuing his tour the Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion approaches the 1st New Avalon Cavaliers command staff. Given that many of these men and women are actually reserve AFFS officers or staff at the NAIS who he has known from most of his life the meeting is a friendly one. He basically explains the First Princes's recent offers to various mercenary commands and makes his own pitch to the Dr John Parker the CO of the regiment and his officers. He doesn't want to break what isn't broken, in that the 1st New Avalon Cavaliers is ideally suited for a defensive formation for New Avalon itself given it's members heavy involvement with the R&D community on New Avalon and the training establishments here. However he points out to the officers that had for instance Archon Katherine been successful in her coup they would have found themselves unable to fully form up and been forced underground. He suggests that the Cavaliers formally join the AFFS but with a permanent garrison posting on New Avalon that would allow it's members to perform their current duties as well.
He also points out that the former Team Banzai, the previous incarceration of their unit had fallen of the active rolls due to having not seen any real action for a number of years. This can be rectified if the New Avalon Cavaliers join the AFFS with an idea he has had. The over strength unit will be split into 2 commands. The 1st will be officially and permanently garrisoned on New Avalon, while the 2nd will be deployed as and where it is needed to try new designs, technology, etc in battlefield conditions while gaining combat experience for it's members. Who will be transferred back to the 1st on a rotation schedule that will allow all of the Cavaliers to get modern combat experience while also providing their vital services and protection for New Avalon itself.
All of the various officers present agree that the idea has merit, but many point out that they cannot simply just leave the planet on a whim to be deployed elsewhere. They have duties. Jackson Davion agrees wholeheartedly but points out that many of their officers and troops are reservists who could be used to make up the bulk of the 2nd unit and only such officers as were able to be freed up could be rotated. While also given vital field testing for the R&D departments. In time other suitably skilled troops and officers could be identified and used to expand the force to allow more feasible rotations. During peacetime the 2nd unit could even be garrisoned on New Avalon or another world nearby where it's members could continue their vital work. Galax, Torrence and El Dorado are all mentioned as possibilities for this. He does explain that in his idea any officers and scientists can apply to be permanently posted to the 1st regiment if they require this for their work. Subject to the approval of the commanding officers of the Cavaliers of course.
The 1st New Avalon Cavaliers officers are intrigued by the Marshal's idea and agree to talk it over amongst themselves. This process of debates and discussions will go on into July before the unit makes up it's mind.
Of the units which the First Prince had spoken to directly the Arcadians, Federated Freemen and Lexington Combat Group are still debating the offer. However the Illician Lancers and Vanguard Legion have made their decisions.
The Illician Lancers brigade take up the First Princes's offer of an island landhold on the world of Lackland. They ask to send a small delegation from all of their regiments to identify the island that would be ideal and begin construction of their new base. They intended to make it a replica of their long lost halls upon Terra.
The Vanguard Legion decides to take the First Prince and Duke Hasek up on the offer of joining the Syrtis Fusiliers. Many of those less kindly inclined to Chad Dean are heard to mutter that the chance of promotion to Leftenant General and a landhold and minor title are what has swung the Colonel in favour of the proposal. Still whatever his motives Colonel Dean is able to carry with him the vast majority of his regiment. He even makes the suggestion that his unit be used to reform the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers which during the 2nd Succession War absorbed the mercenary force the Bloody Sons as their 3rd battalion "Ross's Fusiliers". As such it would be a unit with a "mercenary pedigree" as it were. When this was accepted by Duke Hasek on the 23rd May he spoke out in favour of the fact that Leftenant General Chad Dean, who was standing beside him in the uniform of the AFFS, had clearly researched his new brigades history and tradition and was seeking to respect them. In keeping with this following of traditions of the Syrtis Fusiliers Brigade he too will do so and he announces the formation of the 3rd Syrtis Fusiliers at the same time. The two units of the 3rd and 4th Fusiliers had been initially formed together and had always been twin units often training and deploying together and never deployed more than 4 jumps from each other.
This joint announcement is extremely popular within the Capellan March. However on New Avalon most of the High Command cynically feel that it is unlikely that Chad Dean came up with the history of the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers all on his own. Instead many think that Duke Hasek guided him to this request so that he could then announce the formation of 2 units instead of 1 and blackmail New Avalon into supporting the formation as a matter of "tradition" and risk offending the entire Fusiliers Brigade while also undermining the First Princes's offers. Given the way it has already been publicly announced however there is little the High Command can do but grit their teeth and smile.
The two mercenary commands the Regulators and the Wilson's Hussars both accept the AFFS contracts at this time. The Wilson's Hussars just before they enter the contract (and with letting slip that it is pending) manage to bring their strength up to a full battalion of battlemechs by absorbing a number of down on their luck smaller commands. Having hired the unit the AFFS finds itself the proud employer of a battalion of battlemechs which are in many cases in desperate need for repairs and some entire rebuilds. As such they make the one time offer of sending the Hussars to the refit centre on Bell in lieu of some of their wages. An offer that is accepted.
The Dismal Disinherited refuse the offer of employment, despite having no current employer. The Hampton's Hessens explain they are considering the offer and make a number of suggested increases in the terms to persuade them to sign the contracts...
The High Command also begin discussing removing the 3 Borderer regiments from the Independent Commands and setting up a specific Borderer Brigade with it's own command staff. While practically it would have little difference for the units in question as they are almost exclusively tied to their own world, it would make the administration of the units easier. It might even offer opportunities for officer exchanges to improve the newer Mitchel Borderer's experience levels and efficiency. The various officers in charge of the Borderer's are contacted to obtain their thoughts on the matter.
On Robinson the news of the expansion of the Syrtis Fusiliers Brigade to no less than 6 RCT's causes Duke Sandoval to call for increased funding for his own March's defences. He requests that the Duke of Galtor attend Robinson when the First Prince arrives in order to better make the case for more Ranger units to defend the Draconis March from any future Combine aggression's. He also sends out unofficial feelers to the Narhal's Raiders in the Combine about a long term contract when their time serving the Dragon is over. Assuring them that he and his people will welcome them back with open arms.
Within the former Tortuga Dominions the work of rebuilding a functional society continues. A number of lynchings and frenzied assaults take place as old scores are settled, but the 34th and the attached conventional brigades manage to keep things mostly under control. There is even some efforts made to form a self sustaining planetary militia on Tortuga Prime and Morgan's Holdfast. In a surprising move there is even a start to some basic industrial production - for instance the long abandoned project of the HM-49 Uranium mine on Tortuga Prime is revisited and Achernar Heavy Industries and Basantapur Metals agree to jointly oversee the opening of the long defunct and partially completed mine. Cerulean Waters also announce a large scale investment in water purifiers to help the water poor worlds, heavily subsidised by the government. There is also already small scale migration to the worlds from the Federated Suns, most of them engineers and civil servants and their families. Most by now are firmly of the view that the Tortuga worlds will be annexed to the Federated Suns in due course.
Within the Free World's League the Captain-General begins sitting down with various leaders to attempt to get more funding to expand on the military. In particular he is keen to increase the number of federal regiments within the FWLM. In a suprise move he involves Dame Humphreys of Andurian in these discussions.
Within the Galtor Thumb the ISF operatives make contact with a number of Kurita loyalists (particularly in the transported populations of Galtor itself). As soon as they do they begin to train them in guerrilla warfare techniques, with a small number of DEST as cadre.
On Caph the Wolf's Dragoons Delta Regiment begins hammering the pro-Capellan and pro-WOB forces, although they leave the Duke and his remaining Grenadiers alone for the time being as well as the Combine loyal forces. Things go well for the Delta's and they push the WOB forces back with heavy losses. At the end of May in a surprising move the Dragoons are joined by the 2nd Kearny Highlanders who make common cause with them against the WOB forces.
The returning warriors of the McCarron's Armoured Cavalry are dropped off on Menke at the end of the month. Ignoring the orders from Sian that they should travel for debriefing to Grand Base they are used to reform the 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry regiment at roughly battalion strength. A handful of machines from the StarCorp plant trickle in allowing a 5th company to be added to the 1st regiment. This brings the total forces of the brigade on Menke to a regiment and a half, with another 7 companies still on Ares.
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I wonder what kind of misfortune will strike the Wilson's Hussars during their employment in Federated Suns.
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The Wilson Hussars will be ravaged and beaten down by the AFFS enemy in battle. Hopefully, they acquitted themselves well.
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3064 - June - Trouble looms
Near the start of June the Precentor Martial put the revised offer from the First Prince before the Primus and the First Circuit. To say that the offer wasn't greeted warmly would be an understatement. Many wished to roundly reject the upstart prince who was making further demands. However the Focht himself argues strongly that the Primus accept the deal as it is offered. Simply put, they will not get a better one from anyone else. The Lyran Alliance is chaos, the Free World's League is in bed with the WOB, the Capellan's industrial production is in tatters after the Davion reprisals and in any event doesn't have the depth they need, the Draconis Combine is likewise struggling to rebuild the DCMS without Marduk's production and the other member states are too small and don't have the industrial capacity to meet the ComGuard's needs. Frankly if they are to get the variety of designs they require then they must deal with the Federated Suns. With the Precentor Martial recommending the deal the Primus (herself a sceptic) passes the agreement with the reluctant agreement of the First Circuit. However when it is formally announced it will cause denouncements from the Capellan Confederation, Draconis Combine and Free World's League as well as many members of Comstar. A number of disaffected members who feel that the Primus and Precentor Martial are selling Comstar to the Davion's will over the rest of 3064 defect to the WOB. However Precentor New Avalon will sign the trade agreement on the Primus's behalf after travelling to Robinson to meet with the First Prince.
On Tortuga a break out from the prisoner camps/jails that holds the majority of the captured pirates fails miserably. Helping in putting down the break out is a militia unit drawn from former slaves and peon's of the pirates. While most feel that the militia's unit response was "over zealous" they are given a formal commendation for their swift response officially.
During June the Arcadian and Federated Freemen come to the conclusion that they will take up the First Prince's offer. However elements of the two units will, while insisting they remain loyal to their employer, wish to retain their mercenary status. This is resolved by having both units mercenary elements combine into a new mercenary formation - the 1st Federated Arcadian's. This force will be roughly 5 companies in strength but will be promised support in expanding to regimental strength from the AFFS.
In the meantime the bulk of the Federated Freemen accept joining the AFFS as the 2nd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry. The first step for the AFFS to bring the new regiment up to strength will be to begin upgrading it to include the battle armour and 2 aerospace wings that are now standard for a FSAC unit. The Federated Freemen's existing 1st Federated Auxiliary's 2 battalions of armour will be upgraded to a full regiment in line with this upgrade, and will be allowed to keep it's existing name. Colonel Xavier Pelt will immedietly be promoted to Leftenant General and promised that as soon as his regiment reaches full strength (it is hovering around 8 companies after 3 companies joined the 1st Federated Arcadian's) it will be in line to be upgraded to a reinforced regiment. This process will however take time as the High Command is keen to retain the 2nd FSAC's veteran status.
The Arcadian's although tempted to join the ranks of the Dragonlord's Brigade eventually opt for requesting to be made an Independent Command. Brigadier (soon to be Leftenant General) Michael Penn is informed this request is entirely satisfactory. His unit will henceforth be the 1st Arcadian's and will if he so wishes be upgraded to a full RCT. This will be built up around their existing supporting forces, with only the infantry brigade being a new formation as at the present time the units infantry assets are included within the 8843rd Armoured Regiment. He is also promised that like the Kestrel Grenadiers his unit will be listed as a reinforced regiment. At the current time his command is hovering at 90% of a full regiment or 75% of a reinforced regiment. A handful of transfers would bring this up to 80% of his full strength.
The Lexington Combat Group's debates continue although a general consensus seems to be growing to take up the First Princes's offer. As the proponents of this plan argue they are already almost a house regiment anyway and this will allow them merely to acknowledge this while gaining the full support of the AFFS and Federated Sun's. There is a definite feeling that they should request to form a new combat brigade, with one minor addition to Prince Victor's suggestion, instead of the Lexington Guards they should ask to be known as the Lexington Combat Guard in order to retain their initials as a matter of heritage. A more major request being banded about by the LCG's members is for a small academy to built on their provisional landhold on Lexington - a new Lexington Military Academy. This isn't considered a deal breaker by the pro-AFFS element, but for many who's minds are still undecided it could be a major factor in deciding which way they wish to go by showing that their traditions will be respected. The high command of the brigade send these requests to New Avalon and the First Prince on the 21st while explaining they are merely seeking clarification before a formal vote on what terms they can put to the brigades members. By the 23rd they have both the First Princes's, Marshal of Armies and Prince's Champion's assurances. The name change is entirely agreeable and the Federated Sun's will agree to begin construction of a new academy on Lexington in 3065 with the bulk of the instructors being drawn from the LCG. They do suggest that perhaps it's graduates might be split between the Lexington Combat Guard and perhaps the Ceti Hussars, but only if this is acceptable to the warriors and officer of the brigade - which most of the officers feel is a fair request. With this agreement a final vote on joining the AFFS or not is scheduled for the 1st July.
The Wild Geese and Screaming Eagles commands both reject the offers during June. Both assure the AFFS liaison officers attached to their units and New Avalon that this is not out of any desire to leave the service of the First Prince or the Federated Sun's, but instead that they are currently happy with their status. Likewise at the end of the month the Blue Star Irregular's inform the First Prince directly that they wish to continue to serve him, but as an independent mercenary command. The First Prince makes a point of sending them a response assuring them that this is more than enough for him.
Within the Fighting Urukhai however divisions are arising about whether or not to take up this offer. Tempers are high on the matter and loud heated debates are being held in the officer messes. These divisions are addressed when the First Prince himself makes a stop over on the garrison worlds of the mercenary unit on his route to Robinson. He promises them that he does not wish to cause distress or division within the command. Any who wish to take him up on his offer will be warmly welcomed, as would the entire brigade if they so choose but if they choose to remain mercenaries then he will be more than happy with that result as long as they wish to continue serving under his command. After his visit the commanding officers of the unit down to company level meet together on their garrisons and then a delegation assembles on Paris which is garrisoned by the Bar Hound regiments. They will thrash out a way to avoid more division within the unit during the rest of June and into July.
This month the FSS Kenatres and FSS Galtor slip free from the yards at New Avalon and enter service. They are scheduled for a long shakedown cruise within the Outback, but as a nod to their symbolic laden names they are dispatched into the Draconis March's sectors of the Outback. They are also given the duty of escorting a convoy of jumpships from Galax to help in the construction of the new shipyard at Verde. Many of the technician's aboard the convoy will also assist in running down the ever present gremlins in new warships during the journey.
During June the various Borderer's regiment's commanding officers would give their feedback on the proposed brigading of their forces together. Unsurprisingly the Mitchel Borderer's were in full support of the suggested brigading, while the Aragon Borderer's were reluctant. The 1st Kittery Borderer's were somewhere between the two. However Jackson Davion himself via an expensive HPG real time link to Leftenant General Jimmie Kirston explained that this would be purely an administrative brigading and would hopefully lead to an increase in supplies for the units. Any officer in charge of the brigade would be mandated to have served within the units. He was also able to give assurances that the 1st Aragon Borderer's would not be stripped of men and material to bolster the other units and would be assured status as the senior unit in the brigade. In a similar link to Leftenant General Deedee Faulkner he was able to win over the veteran officer by pointing out that she was being tapped to lead the brigade in the first place as the senior officer. All three commands were assured that while the brigades HQ would officially be on New Avalon it was envisioned that the future CO would keep a secondary office within their "home" unit. Although no formal agreement was made during this time the Marshal of Armies was winning the hearts and minds campaign in support of the proposal. All three CO's of the units were now coming around to it.
In the final days of June the First Prince arrives to a hero's welcome on Robinson. Met at the spaceport by James Sandoval and his brother Arthur Davion the three men take part in a parade in their respective battlemech's through the streets to the Ducal Palace. Commentators point out after this that the First Princes's approval ratings in the polling's taken within the Draconis March are now approaching the level of his father. On some worlds they are even higher - particularly those which are now protected from Combine raids by the newly acquired border worlds or that Hanse Davion lost to the Draconis Combine during the 4th Succession War and which his son has now reclaimed. Even as the crowds cheer outside the First Prince, Duke of Robinson and Duke of Galtor sit down to discuss the strengthening of not only the Draconis March but the wider Federated Sun's. These discussions will go on into July but are extremely cordial. All 3 men know that they can get more done together than separately. This atmosphere is helped by the First Princes's immediate acceptance that the Robinson Ranger's Brigade must be strengthened in line with the Syrtis Fusiliers recent expansions. Any thought's of the Duke of Robinson of using the First Prince's brother as a means to an end are dispelled when within the first hours of discussion the First Prince informs both men that as a first step in this process of strengthening the Robinson Rangers the 3rd Rangers will be expanded to a full RCT entirely at the expense of New Avalon. The other 2 units will see similar upgrades the First Prince assures Duke Sandoval.
On Filtvelt the Achernar Battlemech's production facility will come online with production of the Dervish battlemech with the Enforcer line scheduled to enter production in December. Also in June the industrial mech facility will enter full production for the first time since it came online.
The Lycomb-Davion plant on June will reach full production of Stuka aerospace fighters in June, reaching half of the larger plant on New Avalon's output. In time it is planned to increase this.
The first Gunslinger battlemech walks off the New Independence Weaponry's production lines on Kestrel on the 7th of June. This will now bring the initial wave of construction to a finish, with Victor, Gunslinger and Atlas production now in full swing. A secondary wave is underway to add Jagermech III production by December and further expansions are planned.
The Arc Royal Mechworks facility on Killarney has it's first line of Wolfhound battlemechs start production in June. Although only starting construction in January the plant has been made a high priority not only for the Kell's but also the New Avalon Government. The plans are for 2 more lines to be added by March 3065.
Within the Draconis March the new expansions of Precision Weaponry on Tancredi begins to produce the first extended range variants of it's famed lasers. A few teething problems will develop over June and July but by August the extended range lasers and particle projection cannons will be up to the companies usual high standards.
On Galtor the ISF and DEST operatives continue training the pro-Kurita communities in resistance techniques. A few small scale attacks are made on isolated garrison posts, however these are more in line with training missions than intended to do real damage. They do however alert the MIIO and DMI officers who have been watching for them that the resistance is stepping up.
Narhal's Raiders situation continues to deteriorate within the Draconis Combine. To make matters worse, with only 3 months left on their contract they are informed their garrisoning posting is to be moved to Idlewind on the Periphery/Ghost Bear border. The unit see's this as nothing more than a deliberate attempt to distance them from the Federated Sun's and drags it's heels in preparing for any such move. To make matters worse their proposed replacement on Fellanin II the 7th Ghost regiment arrives early.
On Caph the WOB forces are pushed back almost into the irradiated wastelands that make up much of that world, but dig in and hold their ground in a frantic defence. The Delta Regiment and 2nd Kearny's Highlanders are now working entirely in concert and preparing for a final push to overrun the trapped defenders. Just in case the WDWS Darius begins moving into an orbital position from which it can provide orbital bombardment if the attack is resisted strongly.
In the nearby Sol system the WOB forces gather to mount a relief. To lead the way a number of Zechetinu II corvettes are prepared for combat...
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the blue Stars might want to buy some BA. then ask for a scouting mission in the outback. if they can capture even an empty merchant class that would net them 380m C-Bills. Just that would go a long way in getting the Corvette some time in the drydock. If they can get a tramp that is over half a billion. a few mission like that and they might be able to get a Fox class.... at leas maybe one that only has one or two drop collars and does not cost 16b per unit. I am also surprised that the WD have not brought something like that up.
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While most feel that the militia's unit response was "over zealous" they are given a formal commendation for their swift response officially.
When informing the troops of what the emergency was, the commanding officer was surprised to see them smile for the first time.
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3064 - July - Arrivals
The month of July started for the Federated Sun's with the various officers, troopers and even supporting elements of the Lexington Combat Group voting on whether or not to accept the First Princes's offer of a permanent place within the AFFS. By company and platoon the various elements of the unit marched into the hall's set aside for the purpose and allowed to cast secret ballots marked with the simple question "Should we join the AFFS? Yes/No". By the early hours of the 2nd of July the vote tally had been counted and the results handed to Major General Malcolm Feinman. With representatives of all three of the ruling councils of the brigade standing beside him he announced the result to the brigade - the vote has been 80% in favour of joining the AFFS as the Lexington Combat Guard to 20% in favour of rejecting the offer. Initial polls taken by the various officers had suggested that the split was 55%-25% with the remaining 20% undecided, but the acceptance of the provisional name change and the promise of an accademy had clearly not only swung the vast majority of the undecided in favour of the offer but also some of those who had been opposed to it.
At 9am on the 2nd of July (after a few hours of sleep) Major General Feinman formally requests that his unit be admitted to the AFFS as the Lexington Combat Guards Brigade and be authorised to take up their regular army duties. By 1030am Field Marshal Feinman is authorised to have his units drawn regular army uniforms - albeit with a shoulder patch that they are authorised to design themselves to show their heritage as the Lexington Combat Group. He is also informed to pick a handful of officers and NCO's to be transported to Lexington to begin setting up a home base for the new brigade as well as begin preparing for the construction of the Lexington Military Academy.
Given the huge majority in favour of the change even those who were initially reluctant to join the AFFS feel they should honour the vote. Very few members of the Lexington Combat Group will reject becoming the Lexington Combat Guard. Those few slots that are opened due to resignations will be more than filled with eager AFFS transfers.
A final note of welcome comes from the government of Lexington itself. The world itself can see the huge benefits of having a major combat brigade headquartered on it and make the offer of turning over the slightly crumbling Fort Ballycastle the former HQ of the SLDF XXXIIIth Corp to the Lexington Combat Guards as well as wide areas around it either as a military base or as the site of their new academy - or indeed both.
Even as the Lexington Combat Group begins it's transfer into the Lexington Combat Guards on Defiance a number of jumpships are arriving and disgorging dropships which head for the surface. On each of the ships is newly painted a never before seen emblem, a jaguar silhouetted against a sunburst. The Sun Jaguars have begun to arrive.
The AFFS garrison consisting of the Broken Wheel CrMM and 11th FedSun's Dragoons RCT has already began preparing. At a base that hasn't been used since Task Force Serpent left the world a huge number of barracks and accommodations have been assembled and prepared for the incoming Clan Sun Jaguars. Dropships begin landing and disgorging a large number of dirty, hungry people almost all of whom are from the technician and labourer castes. Only a handful of military dropships are present in the landings and most of these are also stuffed with more refugees than warriors. The soldiers of the 2 AFFS regular units on planet had been preparing to greet their former hated foes with mixed feelings but seeing the dishevelled refugees pouring from the dropships breaks down the barriers that the Davion troopers had put up within minutes. Soon formal stilted welcomes are put aside and the two units forces throw themselves into the job of getting the half starved crowds organised, washed and fed. Many of them have been on the run since Operation Bulldog smashed through the Smoke Jaguar Occupation Zone in 3059, living hand to mouth with what little supplies their accompanying warriors could find for them. Almost all of them were Home Worlds born Smoke Jaguar civilian castes who had been brought forward to support their warrior masters within the Occupation Zone and had been hurriedly evacuated ahead of the SLDF attacks. Left behind by Galaxy Commander Hang Mehta with few protectors they had began the slow and long journey home only to receive word that their home's had already been seized by the SLDF. Since then they had merely drifted with a handful of mostly wounded warriors and damaged mech's to protect them.
Those few omnimechs, battlemechs and elemental battle suits which the force contained were all in extremely poor state of repairs. Still the first official unit of the Sun Jaguar's, the 1st Sun Jaguar Guards, formed up as their charges were cared for and formally requested to join the garrison to defend the world of Defiance against any enemies of the First Prince. They were hovering a little over half a cluster (if everything is working which it isn't) and assured the commanders of the two AFFS RCT that their Khan was following. He had unfortunately been drawn away by rumours of a number of Clan Smoke Jaguar prisoners held on the Draconis Combine world of Matamoros and had taken his Keshik and the 2nd Sun Jaguar Guards to liberate them. The 1st Sun Jaguar Militia were escorting a second wave of odds and ends who had still been assembling when the 1st Sun Jaguar Guard's had left Antallos. Simply put they had not had enough food and water supplies on planet to keep the groups together so had divided their forces.
Faced with almost a humanitarian crisis word is sent out to nearby worlds for medical supplies and food to be sent as soon as possible and to New Avalon and Minette for medical troops and engineers. Supplies are soon diverted and several major supply dumps on Defiance are opened to provide the Clanner's with MRE's. While unappetising they are at least nutritional.
On Robinson the First Prince hears of the plight of the refugee Sun Jaguars and orders that further steps be taken to help the civilian castes in particular. He also sends a letter to his friend the First Lord and to his brother the Archon requesting that any Smoke Jaguar prisoners (civilian or warrior) of either the Star League, Lyran Alliance or indeed St Ives Compact be released into his custody. He offers his own personal assurances as to their good behaviour and treatment.
While awaiting an answer the First Prince continues his discussions with Duke Sandoval and Duke Davion. Along with his promise to expand the 3rd Robinson Rangers to a full RCT he promises the Duke of Robinson that an additional 4th Robinson Rangers will also be formed as a matter of priority. Expansions of the current formations to RCT status will also be prioritised. While this goes a long way to appeasing Duke Sandoval he does point out that even with these promised additions he will have 4 RCT's to match the Syrtis Fusiliers 6 RCT's. The First Prince acknowledges this but points out that the Duke also has the Deneb Light Cavalry brigade which is not only headquartered in his March but also has the bulk of it's units based there. Along with the well regarded New Ivaarsen Chasseur's. Victor Davion promises to support what reinforcement's he can for the Draconis March but can't generate units from thin air. He does promise that the next Avalon Hussar's RCT will be stationed within the Draconis Combine's Outback region as an additional measure. He also offers to consider forming 2 additional Training Battalion's at Fairfax and Clovis to provide additional recruits for expanding the various Draconis March forces in the coming year. As long as the Duke is prepared to help with the production of his factories on Robinson and Woodbine to provide Watchmen, Sentries and Battle Hawks when that design comes into production.
As these discussions go on word comes from the Fighting Urukhai regiments that the units have decided to remain mercenaries, however a large minority of the regiments would like the opportunity to join the AFFS. From the 8th Striker 2 companies had opted to join the AFFS, from the Sluggers another 2 companies and from the Bar Hounds 3 companies had decided to request to join the AFFS. Seizing on this opportunity the First Prince offered to form these combined 7 companies into a 4th Robinson Rangers regiment - but still hold himself to the forming of an additional unit as a priority. Seeing the opportunity to gain a veteran command to his brigade Duke Sandoval agrees. The various contingents of former Urukhai are invited to Sandoval to join the Robinson Rangers Brigade as it's 4th regiment.
At Kathil a new Avalon slip enters production at the start of July, with stockpiled parts which had been readied so it could get a good head start on a new Avalon cruiser. This brings the total slips producing Avalon's to 5 at Kathil. A 6th slip is scheduled to begin construction.
Within Tikonov's New Independence Weaponry plant the Battlemaster line enters production. It is built not only to produce finished battlemechs but also to produce a surplus of spare parts for this mech design due to the high number of valuable Battlemaster's within the AFFS which have been suffering from a lack of spare parts.
With the meetings finished the First Prince takes a jump line to New Avalon and arrives back on the planet in time for the end of July. He immedietly orders that the CEO of StarCorp's Federated Sun's branch be brought to see him on the 1st of August 3064. Amanda Sanchez, already somewhat nervous at having been kept on New Avalon for the First Princes's return, the general tone of those officers agreeing to speak to her and the lack of her well known "friends" within the officer corp, begins to get extremely nervous. Nervous enough to attempt to send a HPG request to her company headquarters on Menke. Her concern is turned to alarm when she is refused permission to leave Mount Davion and told she is not allowed to send HPG messages nor receive any further guests. Guards appear outside her doors at this time.
On Taurus the Protector Grover Shraplen gives a speech to the Privy Council about the unfettered aggression's of House Davion. He point to their recent aggressive annexations of worlds in the Chaos March, attacks on the Draconis Combine and blatant invasion of the Capellan Confederation. He does agree that in several cases they have been somewhat provoked by petty raids (if indeed these raids were not merely staged) but that their reprisals have been out of all proportions. He shows horrendous holo-vid footage provided of Davion atrocities provided to him by the Capellan Chancellor and asks the Privy Council if they wish to see the rabid Davion troops on Taurian worlds before they act? He requests an immediate massive increase in funding for the Taurian Defence Force. Included deep within his spending bill is a provision to rebuild the Concordant Navy - with no specific price tag attached to this small footnote. His motion is approved.
This increase in funding provides a huge boost to the current Protector's popularity within the Defence Force and leads to Marshal Cham Kithrong despairing of any call to return rule to the Jeffrey Calderon's son... Still he prepares to announce the child's existence in August and hopes for the best.
On Fellanin II the 7th Ghost's Tai-sa Tosakiri Kaifu order the Narhal's Raiders into their dropships. Now. Both sides are soon formed up facing off against each other. When Colonel Pedro Antonio Giraudoux attempts to explain they still have a great deal of equipment to prepare the 7th Ghost immedietly opens fire, destroying the Colonel's command lance where they stand and killing all 4 mechwarriors. Tai-sa Kaifu then immedietly orders Lt. Colonel Luigi Froeze to take command and order his troops to stand down. However even as he is giving this new order the 7th Ghost is charging forward firing their weapons and launching a general attack. Shocked by the murder of their commanding officer the Raiders react with fury and a general and brutal fight erupts across the base.
Using their assault weighted support formations the 7th Ghost manages to seize most of the base, but the mercenaries at least manage to hold them off long enough to evacuate their dependants aboard their dropships and hold the small military spaceport long enough to evacuate what is left of their command. Even as they are fleeing for their lives Lt. Colonel sends a desperate cry for help via the command dropship's radio to the HPG station on the planet to send word of their plight to the Federated Sun's. Under the cover of their fighter wing, the Narhal's Flock, the Raider's flee for the zenith jump point with Draconis Combine fighters and 2 assault dropships in pursuit.
With every civilian jumpship fleeing the system at the approach of the running space battle there is little chance of the Narhal's Raiders escaping the system, but with almost split second timing the FSS Brest jumps into the system with a small number of empty jumpships. The FSS Brest announces to the pursuing Combine forces that it is here on a "humanitarian mission" to pick up "wounded and refugees" and that it is here on a "mission of mercy". It will not fire unless fired upon. Just in case however it is launching it's own fighters and a full 4 wings of fighters from the 2 Vengeance class dropships it is carrying as well as 3 A-3 pocket warships. Faced with the prospect of not only starting a war, but also starting it with a hopeless defeat Sho-sa Thadeus Shotoko of the 7th Ghost Aerospace orders his fighters to retreat and allow the evacuation of the Narhal's Raiders. He does send the FSS Brest's captain a pointed threat that his violation of Combine space will be reported not only to Luthien but to the Star League. Captain Jack Aubrey's retort on an open channel off "What will they do? Censure me?" perhaps sums up the general feeling of the AFFS towards the Star League after the censuring of their First Prince. With that parting remark the FSS Brest oversees the orderly evacuation of the remaining Raiders and jumps back across the border on the 30th July. Already a storm of messages are flying between Luthien, Robinson, New Avalon and St Ives...
On Caph the tide turns rapidly when a massive naval flotilla jumps into the system with WOB IFF transponders. Leading the way is the WoBS Deliverance and WoBS Guarded Knowledge, an Essex and Lola III class destroyer respectively along with no fewer than 4 Zechetinu II corvettes. Advancing towards the planet in a screen the corvettes rush forward to engage the WDWS Darius while the 2 destroyers attempt to take up orbital bombardment positions and screen the incoming dropships carrying 3 WOB Divisions.
The WDWS Darius and a heavy aerospace fighter screen attempt to punch through the corvettes in order to engage the transports and prevent the incoming destroyers from being able to target the ground troops. In a brief but savage engagement the Darius is crippled and then destroyed by missile strikes from the corvettes.The Wolf's Dragoon's warship does manage to destroy one of the corvettes and damage another before the last missile snaps her spine in two and causes her core to explode.
Even as the WDWS Darius is dying, the WoBS Deliverance and WoBS Guarded Knowledge begins a pin point accurate orbital bombardment using naval lasers of the now retreating Delta Regiment and the 2nd Kearny Highlanders. The retreat quickly turns into a rout and the WOB troops on planet joined by their fellows sweep forward even as the 2 destroyers move to cut of any attempt to flee the planet in dropships.
A handful of Dragoon and Highlander dropships do manage to burst free before this cordon is complete, but none of them were able to await the fleeing troops. Those ships which did attempt to wait for the Delta's and Highlanders to reach them were burned down as they attempted to reach orbit having waited too long. Even in the ships which managed to get away in time only half would survive, as the surviving corvettes chased them, to reach their jumpships and flee the system carrying word of the attack. The few remnants of the Delta regiment and 2nd Kearny Highlanders would break into small groups and several would be found by the Duke of Caph's remaining retainers who would help them to escape into the irradiated wastelands. Those that weren't reached in time would almost all be hunted down. Within 2 days of the brief battle the world of Caph formally requests annexation to the WoB Protectorate.
Within the Free World's League the Captain-General begins to prepare to put before Parliament a bill to increase the number of Marik Militia and Free World Legionnaires commands. As riders to this bill he is preparing a number of additions which will also increase funding for the Silver Hawk, Protectorate Guard and Regulan Hussars. Knowing he will need to buy votes.
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When informing the troops of what the emergency was, the commanding officer was surprised to see them smile for the first time.
Oh I like that... ;)
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the WD just lost a warship!!! gloves off now.
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They will probably launch a rescue mission with all of their avaible warships, but WoB can just throw more into fray, so it will probably escalate into all out assault on Outreach much sooner and if Kali pokes the FS with help of St. Jamais, it would get really interesting.
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Well, if Theodore was holding out any hope of Victor's vote in November, he's just seen it evaporate. And very probably a lot of mercenaries in DCMS employ are remembering the days of "Death to Mercenaries" and considering how quickly they can leave the Combine when their contracts expire - if not before.
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Well, Combine's gonna be ******. And for little gain too.
Seriously, this isn't the Succession Wars any more where regiment sized merc units were big.
Were they trying to cripple a regiment that might soon take up Davion employ? A single regiment is just a drop in the bucket that is the AFFS.
Now they have competent merc units with a grudge, and something tells me the Narhals are only going to be the first.
Because when made to look stupid by their own stupid decisions, the Dracs' first reaction is always to commit atrocities.
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the WD just lost a warship!!! gloves off now.
They will probably launch a rescue mission with all of their avaible warships, but WoB can just throw more into fray, so it will probably escalate into all out assault on Outreach much sooner and if Kali pokes the FS with help of St. Jamais, it would get really interesting.
The Wolf's Dragoons will be tempted to go for revenge/rescue, but they can't strip too much from Outreach or face an invasion there.
Right now things are just getting a bit tense all through the former Chaos March. The WOB isn't ready for a showdown but they are hoping to take out some of their minor enemies.
Well, if Theodore was holding out any hope of Victor's vote in November, he's just seen it evaporate. And very probably a lot of mercenaries in DCMS employ are remembering the days of "Death to Mercenaries" and considering how quickly they can leave the Combine when their contracts expire - if not before.
Yeah in fairness this hasn't exactly ended well for the DCMS - bare in mind that the 7th didn't escape without damage either. So a veteran heavy/assault regiments been mauled and a relatively reliable mercenary force with respect for the Coordinator has been turned rabidly anti-Dragon. Good job.
Well, Combine's gonna be ******. And for little gain too.
Seriously, this isn't the Succession Wars any more where regiment sized merc units were big.
Were they trying to cripple a regiment that might soon take up Davion employ? A single regiment is just a drop in the bucket that is the AFFS.
Now they have competent merc units with a grudge, and something tells me the Narhals are only going to be the first.
Because when made to look stupid by their own stupid decisions, the Dracs' first reaction is always to commit atrocities.
The Narhal Raiders are going to be rabidly anti-Kurita now. I mean watching your CO slaughtered and then have them try and wipe out your entire regiment (with dependants probably) isn't going to make you think highly of the DC.
Small spoiler - the Raiders are going to be offered a position within the Robinson's Rangers as the 5th Rangers regiment, a position I'm thinking they'll take as a way to get back at the Kurita's!
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How much of the Chaos March been reclaimed by the Federated Sun's?
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The Narhal Raiders are going to be rabidly anti-Kurita now. I mean watching your CO slaughtered and then have them try and wipe out your entire regiment (with dependants probably) isn't going to make you think highly of the DC.
Small spoiler - the Raiders are going to be offered a position within the Robinson's Rangers as the 5th Rangers regiment, a position I'm thinking they'll take as a way to get back at the Kurita's!
Yeah, my first thought after that part was "Now the Raiders are going to offer to pay Victor to be allowed to fight the DCMS for him, instead of the other ways around."
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3064 - August - Escalations
Even as the official communications heated up between Luthien, New Avalon and St Ives the First Prince took time out from his busy schedule to meet with the CEO of StarCorp Industries's FedSun's CEO Amanda Sanchez. Also present for this meeting was the Princes's Champion and Duchess Isis Marik. Given that she was marched into the First Princes's office with armed guards the CEO was under no illusions that this was to be a friendly meeting. The proceedings were started by Ardan Sortek reading out a long list of criminal charges, ranging from sedition, espionage for a foreign power, treason all the way down to corruption, theft and interfering in the duties of an officer of the AFFS. Each charge had a lengthy explanation of exactly how it had came to be added to the list. By the end of the list Ms Sanchez was deathly pale and almost shaking. If even a tenth of them were proven she would be facing the rest of her life behind bars and some of the charges carried a potential death sentence.
Isis Marik intervened at the end of Sortek's breakdown and pointed out that many of these charges lay against the company or other members of it's board and not specifically against Amanda Sanchez herself, an intervention that although obviously staged Sanchez was almost pathetically grateful for. Victor Davion did acknowledge the merciful point, but did also point out that the personal charges against Ms Sanchez remained considerable and would likely result in multiple life sentences at best. Unless...
It was that unless that was then discussed. At length. Ardan Sortek made few more contributions to the discussions instead merely standing there like a military spectre watching the CEO with hungry eyes filled with contempt. Anytime she baulked or seemed hesitant he would merely open his mouth to recommend a swift pursuit of justice and she found her resolve shattering. After a nearly 3 hour exhausting interrogation a deal was made. Amanda Sanchez herself would turn state's evidence against StarCorp Industries and comply fully with every and all investigations. She would provide the various investigative teams full and unprecedented access into how StarCorp had continued to manipulate the Federated Sun's legal system to avoid taxes and to funnel money and technology to their other plants within the other Successor States. She would not only point fingers and name names but she would also be expected to lead the investigators to every single skeleton in the closet of the company that she knew about or even suspected about. Anything less than full compliance with these terms would result in her amnesty being immedietly revoked and her facing a terrifying number of charges.
She would return to Crofton with a full team drawn from the Department of Military Justice, MI2, MI3, MI5 and MI7 as well as the civilian MIIO and Department of the Judiciary. They will arrive on Crofton on the 5th September and immedietly be joined by a large contingent from the garrisoning 42nd Avalon Hussars who would then move into the plant.
Once that issue is dealt with the First Prince returns to dealing with the fallout from aiding of the fleeing Narhal's Raiders. While initially attempting to be diplomatic in the face of the Coordinator's fury and explain that this was an isolated incident caused by a naval officer responding to a call from aid and making a humanitarian decision while offering his own personal apology for the breach of the border, he begins to lose his temper with the constant demands that Narhal's Raiders be returned to the Draconis Combine for execution as criminals along with Captain Jack Aubrey of the FSS Brest. He finally informs Coordinator Theodore Kurita and the First Lord in no uncertain terms that he will not hand them over and that if this is an issue the Star League is more than welcome to censure him. Again.
Having cut off further "negotiations" with the Coordinator the First Prince makes a personal appeal to his friend the First Lord to avoid any further public disasters for the Star League within the Federated Sun's. Already the polling is showing an all time low for support for the Star League within his realm and any further attempt to use the Star League to weaken the Sun's will only make this worse. The First Lord agrees that this has the potential to damage the prestige of the Second Star League perhaps irreversibly within the Federated Suns and that he'll attempt to pacify the Draconis Combine.
The matter is further inflamed when the Narhal's Raiders surviving members, consisting of roughly 4 companies of elite warriors, publicly petitions Robinson and New Avalon for admittance to the Robinson Ranger's Brigade to repay the Federated Sun's for their kindness and the Draconis Combine for their crimes... The Duke of Robinson immedietly declares himself in favour of this request leaving the First Prince on the horns of a dilemma. Approving this request will only infuriate the Draconis Combine and it's ruler further but to refuse it will be a slap in the face to the Narhal's Raiders, the Rangers, the Duke of Robinson and the entire Draconis March. Faced with that choice he has no other option but to immedietly order that the Narhal's Raiders be issued AFFS uniforms with patches indicating their new status as the 5th Robinson Rangers. The massively under strength unit is ordered to Robinson to rebuild and rearm. Their equipment is also ordered upgraded with the products of Robinson's and Marduk's factories.
On Defiance the majority of the Sun Jaguars are now adequately housed and clothed while receiving medical attention. The dropships they arrived in are almost uninhabitable and many of the crews assigned to refit and repair them insist on wearing hazmat suits for the job. Many of the dropships will require almost an entire rebuild particularly of their life support systems and a deep clean sterilisation from top to bottom.
Even as this begins a small trickle of single jumpships and dropships begins to arrive at Defiance. Not the 2nd wave of refugees but ships which had became detached from the main groups or had decided to head directly to the world without going to the rendezvous point. Again few of thee new arrivals are warriors but a single star of damaged omnimechs and a mixed star of Elemental's and fighters are attached to the 1st Sun Jaguar Guards. This will bring the unit up to 3 Trinaries - 2 of omnimechs and battlemechs and 1 that is a mixed bag of aerospace fighters and Elemental troops.
The saKhan of the Sun Jaguars takes leave of her duties as the First Princes's bodyguard and heads for Defiance to take command of her assembling Clan. Already she is planning to send the healthiest and strongest of the refugees with warrior protection to their new home worlds to assist in preparing them for the rest of them.
Throughout the rest of the Inner Sphere various Smoke Jaguar POW and refugee camps overseen by the Star League in one way or another begin transportation to the Federated Suns. The First Lord and Precentor Martial who are overseeing this are now aware of the reason for this and are placing a great deal of trust in the First Prince not to have this explode in all their faces. The various individuals responsible with overseeing the transfers (mostly Comstar) are not aware of the real reasons for this, but most are glad to be getting rid of the troublesome Jaguars.
With rumours beginning to spread of the arrival of the Sun Jaguars the First Prince makes his first public announcement of the new Clan's arrival within the Federated Suns. He makes no bones about the fact that this is his decision that he has taken in order to give the former Smoke Jaguars a chance at redemption and a new home. He informs his people that the Federated Sun's is a diverse and varied realm which can find a place for almost anyone who is willing to embrace it's laws and traditions within it. He asks them to trust in his judgement and to give these Sun Jaguars a chance to prove that they too can be loyal citizens of the Suns. He also makes a point of announcing that the Jaguars will not be settled on any current Federated Suns world and will not be allowed to annex any existing planet. He has the personal assurances and vows of fealty from their Khans that they will serve and protect the Federated Suns alongside it's other military formations.
This is the first real announcement of Victor since his return from Strana Mechty that causes open criticism of his rule. Many within the Federated Sun's see the Smoke Jaguars as the bogey man of the Clan Invasion and a number of AFFS units have been bloodied against them in Operations Bird Dog, Bull Dog and Serpent. Accepting them into the Federated Sun's is a hard sell for those who have grown to hate them. However voices are raised pointing out the warrior code of the Clans and how effectively the First Prince will be seen as having "Absorbed" them into the FedSuns and so they will be loyal to him and the Suns. Others point out that both the Lyran Alliance and Draconis Combine have "pet" Clans and it is only fit and proper for the Federated Sun's to have the same. The most vocal opposition to the First Prince comes from the former Lyran refugee's who had fled ahead of the Clan Invasion into the Federated Suns, however many of them are silenced when it is pointed out that the Sun's took them in when they needed it! Perhaps had the former Archon Katherine still been at liberty she might have used this opportunity to raise trouble for her brother, but the voices raised against the First Princes's plan while vocal are scattered and without leadership.
The First Prince is helped in this matter by the fact that the vast majority of the leadership of the Federated Suns is behind him. Both March Lords speak out in favour of adding the Clan's warriors to their forces and their technology to the AFFS's arsenals, while the Marshal of Armies points out that only a fool would turn down potential allies of these warriors calibres, the Princes's Champion goes on record that Victor's father took in former enemies and used their help to strengthen his realm, Duchess Trempeleau speaks out on behalf of the Outback in favour of the huge benefits trade with these potential enclaves might bring while the First Princes's sister announces that as soon as she is well enough she intends to to lead an aid mission to welcome the new additions to her brother's realm...
There is an upsurge in the membership of the Citizen's for Davion Purity but without a figure head to rally around the protests flicker and fade in isolation and are easily managed by the First Princes's government. However most of his advisers point out that nothing better go wrong of he will see a much larger backlash.
During August the Lexington Combat Guards Brigade and the Borderer's Brigades are officially formed along with the Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry Brigade and New Avalon Cavaliers Brigade. Alongside the reformed Dragonlords Brigade the First Prince has now formed or reformed no fewer than 5 regular army brigades.
Given the trouble arising in the former Chaos March the First Prince also makes two further announcement's in August directly relating to this. The first is that the Woodstock Reserve Militia, famed for having not only protected their own world during Operation Guerrero but also in relieving the garrison of Nanking which had been under heavy pressure, would be invited to join the regular army AFFS formations as the 1st Woodstock Borderer's. In addition to this the existing Achernar PDZ would be split into the Achernar and Nanking PDZ's. The Achernar PDZ would consist of the worlds of Achernar, Tigress, Tybalt, Ronel, Tikonov, Alresha, New Hessen, Kansu, Buchlau, Algol, Azha, Slocum, Bharat, Hamal and Yangtze - the historical worlds of it's PDZ . The Nanking PDZ would consist of the worlds of Nanking, Genoa, Arboris, Zurich, Acamar, Woodstock, Capolla, Terra Firma, Epsilon Indi, Sheraton and Fletcher. The Addicks PDZ to compensate for the removal of the historical Achernar PDZ worlds of Tigress, Achernar, Tybalt and Ronel would get the worlds of Ingress and Small World.
On Tancredi the Davion Heavy Guards continue to train with the 1st Tancredi Provisional LCT. The new formation has slowly continued to expand and now is at roughly 75% of it's planned strength. Almost 2/3rd's of the unit are Tancredi born.
In orbit over Filtvelt the first Merchant class jumpship's keel is laid. By now the yards are producing a steady stream of Mule and Union dropships as well. Some thought is being given to expanding production to include Invader jumpships and Vengeance dropships. On the planet below the huge industrial mech facility already has a full order book and expansions are being looked into.
On New Avalon the AFFS placed orders for 5 full regiments of Musketeer hover tanks. 600 of the machines are to be produced and sent to cavalry formations in company and battalion strength. However even this huge initial order is merely the start with discussions starting to double this. Faced with such a huge demand for the new tank Corean Enterprises immedietly pushes ahead to fully automate the plant on New Avalon producing the tank while planning 2 more semi-automated plants at other sites. The existing new plant on June is listed for expansion to include one of these while the other is to be placed on Augusta.
The Robinson Standard BattleWorks plant on Woodbine begins producing Sentry battlemechs. Given the demand for this mech with the expanding Training Battalions this addition is a welcome one. Work is almost complete on the Battle Hawk production line and the various managers of the Woodbine plant and the local government and nobles are pushing for support for further expansions - particularly the highly regarded Sagittaire.
Within the former Tortuga Dominions all of the worlds now have at least a single militia regiment of infantry, drawn almost entirely from the former slaves. A small number of armour companies are also being formed with cast off AFFS equipment.
The Northwind Highlanders are notified of the destruction of the 2nd Kearny Highlanders by the fleeing jumpships of it's transport elements. However before they can do anything but react in horror 2 Zechetinu II corvettes and the WoBS Guarded Knowledge jumps in system and begins disgorging small craft carrying marines to seize the jumpships while the 2 corvettes head in system headed for Northwind orbit. The Highlanders and Clan Elders immedietly send out a recall order for all Highlander units. The garrisoning Stirling's Fusiliers prepare to defend the planet and mostly withdraw into The Fort in Tara. As soon as the WoBS reach orbit they begin a series of pinpoint naval laser strikes, taking out the Comstar Compound, Camp Jaffray and every isolated military base on the planet. The Fort itself at the current time is mostly spared this bombardment, although it receives a number of light hits which do little more than smash any exposed sensor or communications array. With around 80% of her command safe within The Fort Colonel Andrea "Cat" Stirling readies her troops to resist a siege... That doesn't happen. The Word of Blake ships in orbit declare a blockade and demand the surrender of the world, but don't land any troops.
On Outreach word comes firstly of the destruction of the Delta's and then the attack on Northwind. The entire Wolf's Dragoons force is summoned to Outreach to prepare for either a counter strike or defence of their base world.
Throughout the entire Inner Sphere the various powers and armed forces respond to this attack on Northwind with alarm and begin planning contingencies. Every major power and even most minor ones receive word from Terra that delegations are on their way to their capitals from the Word of Blake with the pointed reminder that both Caph and Northwind are independent worlds and owed none of the Successor States allegiance.
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How much of the Chaos March been reclaimed by the Federated Sun's?
The Chaos March worlds which have been claimed by the FedSuns are included in the explanation of the reformation of the separate Nanking/Achernar PDZ's and the Addicks PDZ's changes.
Yeah, my first thought after that part was "Now the Raiders are going to offer to pay Victor to be allowed to fight the DCMS for him, instead of the other ways around."
Do you blame them?
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Just a tad confusing word wise but the paragraph where you turn Victors attention to the Narhals Raiders issue: it seems the first couple sentences are about Victor then someone else's anger. Just confused on whose actually angry there.
Also just a personally nitpick: the Fed Suns are growing quite fast it seems and unstoppable. Since it seems you are kicking off the Jihad early (thumbs up for that) you might want to annihilate a lot of that growth during it. As you've put it 'five new brigades of troops'.
Just my personal two cents: love it and please continue!
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Just a tad confusing word wise but the paragraph where you turn Victors attention to the Narhals Raiders issue: it seems the first couple sentences are about Victor then someone else's anger. Just confused on whose actually angry there.
Also just a personally nitpick: the Fed Suns are growing quite fast it seems and unstoppable. Since it seems you are kicking off the Jihad early (thumbs up for that) you might want to annihilate a lot of that growth during it. As you've put it 'five new brigades of troops'.
Just my personal two cents: love it and please continue!
I've edited to hopefully make it clearer.
The FedSuns are growing pretty fast - although the others are growing too, I'm just focussed on the FedSuns as the title suggests. The Draconis Combine has more warships and forming new regiments from in Canon. Similar with the FWL and the Capellan Confederation is rapidly trying to strengthen itself - see the formation of the Sian Dragoons.
Although the brigades are "new", most of the units are either existing canon AFFS troops or former mercenary AFFS loyalists. Of those 5 new brigades only 4 of their assigned units are entirely new - the Mitchel and Woodstock Borderers and the 2 Dragonlords. The other units assigned to these brigades are former mercs or existing units from canon. Although there ARE other new units in other brigades and I'm not pretending otherwise. :p
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3064 August Interlude - Steele's Hard Truths!
"This is David Steele and welcome to Steele's Hard Truths, New Avalon's premier Military and Foreign Affairs talk show! As ever I am your host and tonight I have with me retired Leftenant General Abraham Zibler, late of the Avalon Hussars and author of the new best selling book "Warrior Prince" and Professor Linda Cartwright of the School of the Written Arts at Gogh-Bukowski and author of the latest release from that famed universities press "Archon Katherine, Sold into Slavery"... Good evening to both of you, I'm glad to have you both back on the show..." The handsome and charismatic host of the show named for him flashed his two guests a warm and by all appearances genuine welcoming smile. Steele was officially 52 but could easily pass for a decade younger than that and many thought he might be a good decade older than his so called birthday and clad in the height of fashion on New Avalon and had a voice that could command a room. Or a holo-vid audience. Having welcomed his guests to the show he turned towards the cameras and the live audience and flashed them another trade mark smile. "Tonight we will be discussing the renewed might of the AFFS and not only the reasons for this but also the implications this might have..."
"I'll tell you what the implications are David, the current warmongering regime installed within Mount Davion is placing the safety of all the peoples of the Federated Sun's at risk!" The 43 year old tenured professor at the famed liberal Gogh-Bukowski University had always considered her own voice to be "strident" but there was a hint of shrillness to it as she snapped out. "The First Prince and his pet generals and admirals are pouring a seemingly never ending stream of our hard earned D-Bills into the military industrial complex so that they can play at war! I have said it before and I will say it again, our present First Prince has a Napoleon Complex and is trying to make himself feel important and taller by playing with his toy soldiers!"
A harsh barking laugh burst from the retired Zibler. Clad in a formal suit that was last in fashion in the day's of First Prince Hanse Davion and with a cropped head of white-grey hair that looked like it had been done by a military barber he looked every inch the stern old warhorse as he leaned forward as though guiding a mech into battle. "You honestly think a man that stood down the IlKhan of the Clans, a former Smoke Jaguar Elemental I might add, and killed him in hand to hand combat with a blade has to worry about people thinking less of him because of his height? What are you lot smoking over there are Gogh-Bukowski?"
"Now now General, as you know yourself all our guests are screened for alcohol and other stimulants after the never to be forgotten events of the '59 Christmas Special!" Steele interjected before Cartwright could lose her temper and go off on one of her famous rants. 2 minutes into the show was a little early for that. As the crowd chuckled as they recalled the still famous drunken guests from the '59 show he turned the full force of his magnetic personality on the retired General. "Still Linda does make a good point... A lot of money IS going to the military industrial complex... Do you have a position on that?"
"Of course i do. And what I have to say is: About bloody time!" Zibler nodded firmly. "I have nothing but respect for Hanse Davion, hell I charged into enough hell holes under his commands so I know what I'm saying, but it's about bloody time that we had a First Prince who prioritised our own industrial productions. Our reliance on foreign arms companies for the last few centuries has been a national disgrace! The Old Fox relied on the Lyran's too much in my opinion... Understandable I suppose, he was married to one, but still... We all saw what a clusterfu... disaster... it was when the Lyran's bugged out and left us in the lurch during Operation Guerrero... How many good boys and girls didn't make it home when their mech or tank suddenly broke down when the supply of spare parts dried up because the factory was now in the Lyran Alliance? One would be too many!"
"The General makes a good point Linda!" Steele swivelled his chair to face the professor before Zibler got into full on lecture. "Surely the jobs and increased supply independence are worth a little spending?"
"A little! Now who's smoking something! The First Prince is pouring out BILLIONS to play his little war games! Do you know we have no fewer than 13 warships building! Those are multi-billion D-Bill items EACH!" Professor Cartwright snapped as Steele and Zibler exchanged a glance. They both know the number was actually 15, but the rabidly anti-military Cartwright just didn't have the sources to know about the slips in Panpour even though by now it was an almost open secret. "Plus I have it from a reliable source that these military expansions are actually weakening our military!"
"That seems a little strange Linda, can you explain that... And perhaps give us your source?" Steele leaned forward in his chair scenting blood in the water. This was the money shot he could tell, this would be what tonight's show would be remembered for... The next 5 minutes...
The veteran of a hundred academic battles smirked slightly at the question. She might not have any of those little tin stars that the soldiers so dearly loved but that didn't make her a fool! She made a point of smiling to the camera and audience with her best warm smile before flashing a wink at the host. "Now David, you know I can't reveal my sources... However I can assure you he is a highly ranked military officer who is horrified to see so many new formations joining the AFFS, diluting our fine troops with unreliable mercenary scum and conscripted canon fodder who are little use on the modern day battlefield... Our experienced troops and officers are being stretched far to thin with this rapid and frankly overpriced expansion!"
"Well there is the risk of overextending ourselves General Zibler, after all that was what happened to the AFFS in the run up to the 1st Succession War... Do you have a rebuttal?" Steele knew to give the final word to the former AFFS general... After all this was the FedSun's and the military was almost a religion here...
"You bet I do... But before I address her so called expert I'm going to take deep exception to her description of the fine men and women who have joined or in many cases rejoined the AFFS from the various mercenary commands that Prince Victor has invited to serve... Those men and women are almost all of them FedSun's born, bred and trained. Many of them have served in prestigious military commands before turning to mercenary service and even those that haven't have served on the front lines to protect and serve the people of the Federated Suns with honour and dedication! I'd have been honoured to fight alongside any of them! Hell I probably HAVE!" Zibler's tone was genuinely angry before beginning to drip with derision as he continued. "As for her so called expert, who I either think is a cashiered officer or an incompetent passed over for promotion due to his obvious mental ******... He's just simply wrong. For one thing we don't have any conscripts in the ranks. For another when First Prince Davion returned from Strana Mechty the AFFS had roughly 86 regiments and 2 battalions worth of battlemech forces. Of those formations exactly 9 were listed as Elite and 17 Veteran. As of the current expansions the AFFS has 115 regiments and reinforced regiments and 15 battalions... Of those current formations, many of them admittedly under strength, 19 are listed as Elite and 30 Veterans according to my own sources! Now I'm no mathematician, I left that sort of stuff to my staff, but even I can figure out that our forces have expanded by almost 50% but our Elite units have doubled and the Veterans nearly the same! It's hard to say that's a sign our troops are turning into a paper tiger David... First Prince Victor hasn't just expanded the AFFS he's increased not only the quality of equipment but also the quality of the troops! A real Warrior Prince!"
"And with that rather shameless plug of your new book General I think we're out of time... I've been David Steele and you've been watching Steele's Hard Truths! We'll be back next week with a hard hitting review of the recent St Ives conflict! From myself and my guests, good night!" Steele smiled warmly as the lights faded... As soon as the camera's stopped rolling his two guests started to shout and insult each other off camera... To the delight of the still watching live audience... As he tried to keep them from throttling each other he chuckled to himself and made a note to make sure they were both invited on at the same time in the future... They were holo-vid gold together!
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then Sun Jags are going to be short mechs that are operational. now how do you keep the mech jock sharp. How about work mechs.... Dark age style workmechs. the mech jocks keep there piloting and find skills in shape and they can help rebuild. they can have a few guns so that if they are attacked they have "some" value. rotate you mech jocks in your operational units but have a the duty rotate every few weeks so that every warrior helps in the rebuilding.
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also a bit of humbling,
yes the workers are currently more important than the warriors
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Nice update!
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Excellent stuff as always! :) Darn well written :)
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So WoB conducted orbital bombardment of Comstar HPG on Northwind, this is something their fleet just has to reply to, which means additional escalation of fighting in Chaos March, depending on how many ships they can spare from the Clan border.
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Glad everyone's enjoying this! I am working hard at this (alongside my full time job) so it's nice to be appreciated...
I was wondering if anyone here had skill at map making and would be able to do a map showing the changes? Basically the various annexations in the chaos march to the WOB protectorate, FS and FWL's new province, as well as the annexation of Tortuga and conquest of the new Galtor thumb and 3 worlds on the CC border?
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3064 - September - Movements towards Terra
On Crofton the investigation of StarCorp continues, with almost constant attempts by the upper and middle management to derail the enquiries. However the fact that the investigatory team has the former CEO helping them and the presence of a entire combat command from the 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT to back them up prevents any real large scale protests. Even as the investigation continues production continues.
Meanwhile on Defiance the second wave of Sun Jaguar dropships arrive. If anything these are in even worse state than those that made up the first wave. In fact one of the civilian dropships barely manages a "controlled landing" that is about 30 seconds away from a full on crash and ends up damaging the dropship landing pad it "lands" on and causing 100s of injuries to the packed civilians within it. By now however the AFFS troops on the ground have hit their stride for helping the refugee Clanner's from the dropships and getting them cleaned, fed and in receipt of medical attention. Another large segment of the base on Defiance's barracks are opened up for the refugees while large stockpiles of MRE's and water are prepared. The 1st Sun Jaguar Militia arrive escorting this group. Officially a 2nd line cluster of troops they are in fact a single combined arms reinforced trinary of ageing warriors in barely functional equipment. They do however make up the entirety of Clan Sun Jaguar's Omega Galaxy.
Even as the refugees begin filtering into their new homes their saKhan arrives. Tiaret Nevversan immedietly throws herself into organising the refugees and warriors of her new Clan. One of her first steps is to comb the refugee civilian population for failed warriors which are immedietly offered provisional 2nd line warrior status and used to bolster the 1st Sun Jaguar Militia's ranks. In this way she is able to bring the Miltia cluster up to roughly 3 trinaries, although their equipment levels remain shockingly bad. The failed warriors she recruits are promised that if they serve with honour they will be given a 2nd Trial of Position after a year against 2nd line opponents to see if they will retain their status. Although at this time the saKhan doesn't inform her Clan that the First Prince has been discussing with her his reluctance to continue live combat trials of future warrior sibco's. She is waiting to discuss this with the Khan when he returns.
On the WOB front Marshal of the Armies dispatches the 1st FedSun's Dragoons to Epsilon Indi and the 2nd Crucis Lancers to Errai while the 4th and 5th Deneb Light Cavalry are to prepare to leave their garrison posting on Deneb Kaitos in the event that the First Prince wishes to intervene on the developing situation on Caph and Northwind. The FSS Antrim, FSS Brest and the FSS Murmansk. The High Command was hoping to free up an Avalon cruiser but given that there are only 4 active and 1 refitting and they are required to protect key worlds. However this situation is expected to be improved when the FSS Andrew Davion and FSS Hanse Davion come into commission in 3065 while another 2 cruisers are scheduled for commissioning in 3066.
Also in line with strengthening this border the Achernar CMM and Nanking SMM are listed for bringing up to full strength as soon as possible. Preferably drawing recruits from the Tikonov Martial Academy and the various Training Battalions within the two PDZ's.
Despite still undergoing therapy for her injuries Yvonne Steiner-Davion leaves New Avalon alongside her still secret fiancee Tancred Sandoval and heads towards Defiance. Going with them are elements of the 2nd Robinson Rangers and the FSS Fox to ensure their safety. Privately the First Prince has asked them to visit the Tortuga worlds after they finish at Defiance. Although he has not explained the purpose of this request, he's already sent word to the troops on the Tortuga worlds to prepare for the visit.
On Lexington the training elements and dependent's begin to arrive having been given priority through the Federated Sun's. When they arrive they are met with not only a delegation from the local government and people but also a full battalion of combat engineers who have already started to renovate Fort Ballycastle and build up a small city or large town around it. It had already been decided in honour of the long service of the Lexington Combat Group/Guard that the streets be named for historical officers and hero's of the unit. Local construction companies have also pledged their time and support in the construction of the new homes for the LCG.
While training together on Novaya Zemlya the 1st Dragonlords RCT and 5th Davion Guards RCT have managed to have their status upgraded to Regular and Veteran respectively. The 1st Dragonlords will soon be ordered to take up a permanent posting on the Taurian/Capellan border and their place taken by the 2nd Dragonlords when the next unit - the 3rd - is founded on New Avalon. This cycle of Dragonlords units is expected to continue until the brigade reaches full strength. Whatever that strength may be. The 5th Davion Guards RCT had previously been scheduled to head for the Capellan Border but is now ordered up into the Addick's PDZ. The new 2nd FedSun's Dragoons RCT are scheduled to replace the 5th Guards as a way to help them fully integrate into the AFFS and their own conventional forces.
On June the new Corean Enterprises semi-automated plant to produce Musketeer's begins construction. Many acknowledge that even a few years ago the world would not have been able to support the construction of such an advanced industrial facility. However with the experience of building the original Corean plant as well as the Lycomb-Davion's fighter production facility the world is able to now manage this project. This is helped by the fact that it is now much more strongly tied into the basic trade networks and logistical chains of the FedSuns rather than being a periphery border world with little to offer skilled workers and companies. The planet is undergoing an economic boom as are many other worlds with new factories being built upon them and to a lesser extent the worlds around them who are their long standing trade partners. In many cases these "islands" of growing prosperity and expanding and beginning to overlap. For instance almost all the worlds around Filtvelt and Broken Wheel are showing major signs of economic improvement.
Also during September the First Prince and Marshal of Armies contact Achernar Battlemech's and Robinson Standard Battlework's that their Argus design which had originally been an omnimech before the Department of the Quartermaster rejected it and made them resubmit it as a battlemech should now be returned to it's omnimech origins. Although this will cause a brief pause in production as the plants retool it is felt that adding a new omnimech to the AFFS's Table of Equipment is more than worth that delay. Victor and Jackson Davion both have a number of other thoughts on increasing omnimech production with the FedSuns, seeing these as the way forward.
Victor Davion also sends word for one of his "cousins" to come and visit him on New Avalon. He requests that Duke Roger Sanromea-Davion come to New Avalon at his earliest convenience so that the two men can have a discussion. The invitation is deliberately left vague but every courtesy is extended to the head of the fabulously wealthy branch of the Davion family tree.
On Caph the resistance is being hounded from hiding hole to hiding hole. Any isolated group of pro-Davion or Delta Regiment or Highlanders found is swiftly eradicated. A single WOB Division is on planet, but in orbit a damaged Zechetinu II and the WOB Deliverance provide almost unlimited fire support as required.
The situation on Northwind is little better with constant "light" orbital bombardment's being conducted on The Fort. The orbiting WOB warships seem to be keen to avoid large scale damage to the surrounding city of Tara but continue to effectively harass the defenders with pinpoint naval laser strikes while fighter's dispatched from orbit hammer any Highlander mech or troop formation that they can find. Ominously a large number of troopships arrive with a further Zechetinu II corvette as escort at the end of September.
On Outreach the Wolf's Dragoons are joined by the 1st Kearny Highlanders, who promise that MacLeod's Regiment and the Northwind Hussars are also on their way. However Jaime Wolf doesn't think they have time to wait. Adding the 1st Kearny Highlanders as well as the 1st and 2nd Dismal Disinherited to his own Alpha, Beta and Epsilon regiments as well as the Wolf Spider's and Zeta Battalions along with Lindon's Battalion. Jaime Wolf personally leads the force off world. The WDWS Beowulf, WDWS Nelson and WDWS Athena go with them to provide protection. This large force jumps from Outreach on the 30th September taking with it a large number of transport dropships carrying enough ammunition and spare parts to fight a small war. The Wolf's Dragoon's Gamma Regiment and 3rd Dismal Disinherited along with a number of smaller allied commands and the warships the WDWS Alexander and WDWS Mars remain at Outreach to protect the world.
The sudden gathering of this impressive force and it's departure from Outreach was impossible to hide and the WOB Precentor Martial was made aware of it immedietly, not only from his own operatives but also from the Capellan Confederation. Even as the information came in he was on Sian engaged in discussions with Sun-Tzu Liao about a potential secret alliance against the Federated Suns. Taking a brief break from these talks he sent word for his forces to muster at Terra in case the Dragoons struck there.
The FWL Navy also dispatched a heavy warship presence to the Sirian Holds and Free Tikonov Province just in case. No fewer than 2 Thera battle groups were the backbone of this force.
Within the Free Rassalague Republic the ComGuard's fleet split with a large force heading towards the former Chaos March/Terra...
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Well this is about to get very interesting.
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Very intersting indeed! And superb updates as always! :)
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Guy's I've been trying to do a map using paint but basically it's causing huge headaches. It would seem that if I use old fashioned paint it WILL NOT change the colours "around" the worlds/names/borders, where if I use the new paint 3d it wipes out half the worlds/names when I fill in the appropriate colours. When I tried to do it one pixel at a time (genuinely did try that for you guys) at the magnification I need I can't actually read the words and know where a word stops and the colours start due to the useless shading.
So unless someone has a better idea or can do the paint using a different system there won't be any maps. Sorry.
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Guy's I've been trying to do a map using paint but basically it's causing huge headaches. It would seem that if I use old fashioned paint it WILL NOT change the colours "around" the worlds/names/borders, where if I use the new paint 3d it wipes out half the worlds/names when I fill in the appropriate colours. When I tried to do it one pixel at a time (genuinely did try that for you guys) at the magnification I need I can't actually read the words and know where a word stops and the colours start due to the useless shading.
So unless someone has a better idea or can do the paint using a different system there won't be any maps. Sorry.
The interstellar map of MekHQ is editable from within the campaign, planet by planet; you could make the changes required then take screenshots of the map.
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The interstellar map of MekHQ is editable from within the campaign, planet by planet; you could make the changes required then take screenshots of the map.
I'll see what I can do!
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Alternatively, black and white maps can avoid the colours issue and are pretty clear. Most BT sourcebooks don't use coloured maps.
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3064 - October - Hidden Warships Revealed
With the Third Whitting Conference fast approaching many of the various Successor Lords were loath to leave their capital worlds and head for the agreed venue on St Ives given the state of affairs in the former Chaos March. Still none wished to be the first to say they weren't coming and look weak. In the spirit of co-operation Victor Davion invited Theodore Kurita and Christian Mansdottir as well as his brother Peter Steiner to travel via the Federated Suns and so avoid the chance of running into warships or WOB troops near Terra. Of course the Coordinator, given the recent bad blood between himself and the First Prince, was unhappy to take that offer up. Given the alternate was to head into the systems near Terra and jump into the Free Worlds League and then through the Capellan Confederation into the St Ives Compact and pass through a number of hostile borders he did however agree extremely reluctantly. For the Elected Prince Regent and the Archon the choice to accept was much easier. Thomas Marik arranged to head through the Capellan Confederation with his former son-in-law.
Duchess Yvonne Steiner-Davion and Baron Tancred Sandoval arrive on Defiance and begin by touring the various temporary accommodations for the Sun Jaguar civilian castes and the barracks of the warrior caste. They are shown around by no lesser person than saKhan Tiaret Nevversan herself. During this tour Tancred Sandoval suggests that some construction mech's be requisitioned or bought from the huge plant on Filtvelt to help with building the Clan's new colonies on the periphery border. He points out that there is a large number of extremely capable mechwarriors who are without mechs and who could keep at least their piloting skills sharp (or even perhaps improve them) while helping build homes and infrastructure for their new clan. Although almost every warrior is initially horrified at the suggestion, the saKhan herself points out that it does make sense and that it would be a good way to show that the Sun Jaguars are not the Smoke Jaguars of old. That the warriors must be the protectors and providers for the civilian castes and not simply their overlords. A handful of more proud warriors go so far as to launching Trial's of Grievance against the saKhan against her accepting this suggestion but after she breaks the legs of one and smashes most of the rib cage of the next the rest get the message.
The first of the Sun Jaguar civilians begin to be sent towards their new colonies on the former FedSun's worlds of Fugeres, Frankson and Valois. Although initially the plan had been for only a single world to be settled this has been changed to set up a small colony of Sun Jaguars on each planet. Hopefully each colony will thrive and the increases resources of 3 worlds will be useful in building up the Clan.
On the WOB Protectorate border every single combat command is at maximum readiness in preparations for any attack or indeed orders to assault into the Protectorate. The 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT, 2nd Crucis Lancers RCT and 4th and 5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT are all particularly prepared to launch an assault. The 6th and 7th Crucis Lancers are listed as a follow on force if it is required. Any initial wave is to be supported by no less than 3 Fox class warships with the High Command also sending the FSS Simon Davion although given that it needs a refit they are hoping that it will not be required to go into any heavy combat. If they can hold off until December the FSS Simon Davion will be replaced by the freshly refitted FSS Lucien Davion.
On June the Hellcat fighter line comes online and begins producing this design alongside the 2 Stuka lines. A fourth line to build Lightning aerospace fighters is due to begin production in November. After that additional Stuka lines are being considered.
The GM plant on Kirklin has it's new Crusader battlemech line go operational on the 15th of October. However an initial "false start" which causes damage to the line will mean that the plant only produces a handful of spare parts until the end of October when it will be fully operational.
The Challenge System shipyards at Panpour receive additional orders for Monolith jumpships that will require another major expansion of the yards. Hidden within these orders is instructions and funding for a 3rd warship slip. However this is to be bigger than the existing Congress-D II frigate's shipyards.
At the same time both FedBoeing at Galax and Kathil Shipworks receive more open orders for slips to build additional warships. A slip is to be added at each location, ostensibly to build more Fox and Avalon class warships, however the new slips are to be much larger than the existing ones.
The First Prince has his distant cousin Duke Roger Sanromea-Davion attend him at the palace. The initial discussions are extremely informal and conducted over dinner at which not only the Duke's wife but also Duchess Isis Marik are present as is the Princes's Champion Ardan Sortek and freshly promoted Marshal Galen Fox. Further meetings are conducted in a more formal setting but continue in the same friendly vein. The First Prince is suggesting to the famously wealthy Duke of El Dorado that his world would be a superb site for a number of new industrial concerns. For one thing the First Prince is keen to see a rebuilding of the long destroyed El Dorado shipyards. It is suggested that a facility capable of building Merchant and Invader class jumpships and even Star Lords would be warmly supported by the Federated Sun's government. Duke Roger is honestly shocked at the scale of the project and counters that he himself had long hoped to see a military factory on his world, perhaps in conjunction with General Motors or even the New Independence Weaponry company. Galen Cox is the one to suggest that the two are not mutually exclusive. Indeed the construction of a large scale shipyard complex would make the world even more attractive to the military industrial complex. Just look at Kathil and New Syrtis. Over the course of the month the various Dukes and Generals involved within the discussions begin planning out a large scale shipyard and industrial complex on El Dorado with the full support of it's Duke. Company officers from GM are brought in and offered the specifications for the Battlemaster battlemech as well as support for building a Templar-O production line there.
Meanwhile on Crofton a series of arrests are being made with over 100 company employees being charged. A handful are offered the opportunity to turn state's evidence in return for either amnesty or lesser sentences in return for aiding in the investigations. Which will triple the number of corporate officers who are facing charges. By the end of October it is obvious that StarCorp Federated Suns has been attempting to circumvent the FedSun's laws not only on military procurement but also industrial espionage. A full scale case will now be opened against StarCorp Industries within the Federated Suns. StarCorp Industries loudly denounces this investigation and say they are being made scapegoats for a handful of bad apples.
Within the Draconis Combine the forces under the Khan of the Sun Jaguars arrive at the world of Matamoros via a pirate jump point near the planet and combat drop onto the huge sprawling mine complex they have discovered Smoke Jaguars are being held at. Swiftly seizing the complex they break open the prisoner's barracks and free them, finding not only the Smoke Jaguars they had been told about but 1,000's of political prisoners. Not having time to sort between the groups the 2nd Sun Jaguar Guard's merely load them into the cargo dropships they have seized and leave the planet before the handful of militia units can respond. They are on planet for less than 5 days and leave with over a dozen stolen dropships loaded with liberated prisoners and no small quantity of valuable ores.
At Caph's Zenith Jumpoint the mercenary task force led by Colonel Jaime Wolf himself jumps into the system on the 5th of October. With the WDWS Beowulf, WDWS Nelson and WDWS Athena leading the way the task force heads for Caph and the relief of the scattered remnants Delta Regiment and 2nd Kearny Highlanders. Immediately the WoBS Deliverance and the damaged Zechetinu II the WoBS League's Prize move to intercept them. Both Word of Blake warships are soon destroyed but not before inflicting moderate damage on the WDWS Beowulf and heavy damage on the WDWS Athena. The 7th WOB Militia Division breaks off from it's hunting the refugees and itself attempts to break up into small bands to survive in the wilds. As the various military forces begin to land the hunter becomes the hunted. Although this time the remnants of the Dragoon and Highlander regiment and the handful of loyalists of the Duke of Caph are able to help the arriving forces to hunt their tormentors.
Before the 7th WOB Militia can however be totally wiped out the WOB itself responds with a clear escalation. The WoBS Immortal Spirit and it's until now hidden 2 sister ships the WoBS Herald of Wisdom and WoBS Herald of Justice jump into the Caph system on the 18th October. With them come 2 formerly secret Essex class destroyers, the WoBS Dawning Horizon and WoBS Enlightened Spark and 2 Vincent corvettes, the WoBS Blake's Redemption and the formerly secret WoBS Blade of Divinity. These warships also have no fewer than 4 WOB Militia Divisions with them, the 2nd, 5th, 9th and 12th.
Despite their damage the Wolf Dragoon's warships attempted to prevent the landings or at least delay them, however they are outmatched. The WDS Nelson is soon engaged with both Vincent class corvettes and after destroying the WoBS Blade of Divinity is driven off badly damaged when the WoBS Dawning Horizon joins the WoBS Blake's Redemption. Meanwhile the WDWS Athena already heavily damaged is swiftly torn apart by the gun's of 2 Aegis cruisers - the WoBS Immortal Spirit and WoBS Herald of Justice causing only light damage to it's two attackers. The WDWS Beowulf engages in a long ranged running duel and inflicts crippling damage on the shorter gunned Aegis cruiser the WoBS Herald of Wisdom, but with the Athena destroyed and the Nelson heavily damaged and driven into the outer system it is forced to withdraw when the remaining WOB vessels concentrate on it. Both the WDWS Beowulf and WDWS Nelson are suffering heavy damage and jump out of the system to head back to Outreach and presumably repair what they can and reenter the fray perhaps reinforced by the other Wolf Dragoon's warships.
On planet, faced with having lost the orbitals the rescuing force break off their attempts to hunt down the 7th WOB Militia and head into the radiation scarred wastelands of Caph. This however is a major mistake as the orbiting WOB warships feel no compunction in launching nuclear tipped missiles at the fleeing mercenary commands. After all the ground they are firing on is already irradiated and so they are not doing any additional damage. The Beta Regiment of Wolf'd Dragoons along with the 1st and 2nd Dismal Disinherited are particularly badly hit by this bombardment and effectively cease to exist as fighting formations. Their few survivors, alongside the handful of Delta's and 2nd Kearny veterans are folded into still functional commands - most of which have also suffered moderate to heavy damage from the bombardment. The Duke of Caph, Duke Calvin Gustafson and most of his surviving Grenadiers are caught in this bombardment attempting to lead element's of the Dismal Disinherited to safety and are all killed, although this will not be made known for some time.
The WOB Militia formations begin landing on Caph and are soon engaged in heavy fighting with the surviving members of Colonel Wolf's task force. To make matters worse, anytime the mercenary formations begin to show signs of winning or turning the tide against their pursuers they are inevitably hit by orbital fire, although the WOB do not use any more nuclear missiles at this time.
This however isn't the only reprisal to be launched against the mercenary commands who are seeking to thwart Blake's Vision within the former Chaos March. The 4th and 8th WOB Divisions arrive over Northwind and immedietly begin a combat drop into the outskirts of Tara. They are soon pressing on The Fort and levelling the districts of the historical city that are in the way of their attacks. Stirling's Fusiliers despite having the huge advantage of The Fort's emplacements and guns are hamstrung by their desire to avoid causing further damage to their own capital city, as well the fact that at any time a flash of Naval Lasers might strike down onto their positions and cause additional damage. All they can do is hold out and hope that reinforcements arrive.
Hearing the word via a handful of Highlander jumpships who have been sneaking into Northwind to get Intel, Colonel William MacLeod of MacLeod's Regiment decides he cannot await the arrival of his friend Colonel Loren Jaffray and his Northwind Hussars. Instead he resolves to run the WOB blockade of Northwind and attempt to relieve Stirling's Fusiliers at the beginning of November.
Gathering at Ross 248 the ComGuard's 1st Fleet and 2nd Independent Squadron begin to prepare for active combat actions when they jump to Caph. The CSV Dover and CSV Portsmouth both detach from the 1st Fleet and remain at Ross 248, ready to jump in to provide repairs as required. They will jump into the system on the 1st of November when their preparations are ready. Accompanying them will be almost a dozen Divisions who have rushed to the rendezvous point. On board every ship the crews are ready to do their duties...
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so the Sun Jag captured a dozen dropships? they might need a few extra jumpships to get them out of systems. those Civilian jumpships might be useful at there new home. it would be funny if the Sun Jag started making inner Sphere Standard or Clan Battle Armor (Rabids) that would be a nice bit of income to support larger products. or they might start making air and water purifiers to help nearby worlds.
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so the Sun Jag captured a dozen dropships? they might need a few extra jumpships to get them out of systems. those Civilian jumpships might be useful at there new home. it would be funny if the Sun Jag started making inner Sphere Standard or Clan Battle Armor (Rabids) that would be a nice bit of income to support larger products. or they might start making air and water purifiers to help nearby worlds.
Well they knew they were going to rescue potentially large numbers of prisoners so presumably would have brought spare jumpships.
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The captured civilian jumpships and dropships will probably be returned by FS once they unload the passangers.
The WoB enthusiasm for orbital bombardment will have quite an echo amongst combat doctrines of all states. If they activate their sleeper cells within Comastar navy during this engagement they might make them realise just how much of a joke theri ROM and that Parrdeu is an utter loony.
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3064 - November - The Battle of Caph
Not withstanding the gathering forces around Terra and the pending Whitting Conference on St Ives, First Prince Victor Davion has a realm and military to run. The first order of the day was to meet with the High Command and discuss what to do with the upcoming class of graduates from the various training cadres, regiments and battalions in the coming months. As usual many of the cadets who would be graduating would end up going to replace retiring soldiers and filling out holes in existing regiments, but there remained as ever a surplus that could be deployed as the various Marshals and Generals thought best although the final decision remained the First Prince and his Marshal of Armies.
Having been informed that there were roughly enough graduates (after replacement's and rebuilding damaged units) to form 3 full regiments the First Prince and his officers decided to continue their previous practise of the last few years and form a new Avalon Hussars RCT and a new Dragonlords RCT. The 4th Avalon Hussars RCT would be formed on New Valencia while the 3rd Dragonlords RCT would be formed on New Avalon. There were then lengthy discussions as to where the other graduates should be sent. A strong case was made for a further Avalon Hussars unit or for a 4th Ceti Hussars RCT to be formed. However the First Prince pointed out his promise to the Duke of Robinson and insisted that a 6th Robinson Rangers RCT should be formed. Noting that the Duke Hasek would be unhappy at being excluded from this built up a full battalion of graduates on top of the cadets being assigned from the Warrior's Halls were assigned to the 1st and 3rd Syrtis Fusiliers to bring their numbers up while the 1st Dragonlords would be released for deployment within the Capellan March as the 2nd Dragonlords shifted to Novaya Zemlya to continue their training regime.
Just before leaving New Avalon for the summit on St Ives the First Prince Victor Davion has a meeting with Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion and Marshal Roger William Waters of the Avalon Hussars. Despite his initial position at the end of 3063 that it was too soon to break off additional battalions of existing Hussar units to form new RCT's the escalating situation in the former Chaos March has the First Prince worried. Having additional commands who can be used even as cadres or to patrol less active borders while they build up to strength now seems like an extremely attractive option. As such he proposes to use a number of reinforced regiments from the brigade to form new units. The 11th Avalon Hussars is to found a new lightweight 14th Avalon Hussars RCT in a similar manner to how they founded the 12th. While the 20th Avalon Hussars busy in the Sun Jaguar worlds and former Tortuga worlds will help to form a new 23rd Avalon Hussars RCT and hopefully passing on their engineering skills to the new unit which will immedietly move to Tortuga to help build infrastructure there. Meanwhile the heavy and assault weighted units of the 42nd Avalon Hussars would be broken off to form a new 28th Avalon Hussars RCT, both the existing 42nd's heavy and assault elements and the new 28th Avalon Hussars would have priority for drawing on the production of the Crofton plant with the 42nd remaining on that world and the 28th moving to nearby Shawnee as well as receiving a number of locally sourced shipments of Marauder and Victor class battlemech's from the new GM plant on Point Barrow in addition to other assault and heavy designs from further afield. One final command was authorised by the detachment of a battalion from each of the 17th and 41st Avalon Hussars RCT's to form the core of a new 26th Avalon Hussars RCT. Both the 17th and 41st were regular rated units organised on a medium cavalry style of regiment and both serving within the Draconis March near each other. As such it was felt that forming a new unit drawn from both regiments was likely to cause little difficulties in integrating the new 26th.
Along with the newly formed 4th Avalon Hussars RCT on New Valencia this would bring the total number of Avalon Hussar's active commands to 18. The highest number of active formations since the end of the Second Succession War and approaching the strength the Brigade fielded at the start of that war. Although a number of these commands are woefully under strength they can be used to secure secondary worlds or patrol less active borders - after all while a single battlemech battalion, aerospace wing, armour regiment and 1 or 2 infantry regiments might not be enough to take and hold a Capellan or Draconis world it is more than enough to deal with almost any pirate band or small raiding force! The thoughts behind this are also what is fuelling the formation of the 1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT to see if this is a viable anti-piracy/raiding/defensive formation moving forward.
As well as these planned new units for the beginning of 3065 the 4th Davion Guards RCT and the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT are scheduled to be upgraded to reinforced regiments over the next 2-3 years. This will leave only the 2nd and 3rd Davion Guard's RCT's as simple regiments and many expect that as soon as they reach full strength they too will be slated for upgrading to reinforced status. There are even some suggesting that with the addition of the 1st Crucis Lancers to reinforced status meaning that 5 of the 8 RCT's are now at that strength the High Command and First Prince might be planning on slowly upgrading the entire Crucis Lancers Brigade as well as the Davion Brigade of Guards to a full brigade of reinforced regiments.
The Tancredi Provisional LCT at this stage is fully activated from it's role as a training command and becomes the 1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT. Some thought was given to numbering it the 7th but it was decided to start the Brigade with the 1st, although any future units will prioritise the reformation of the 7th, 10th, 11th and 13th regiments.
Once the arrangements have been made for the AFFS to begin forming the new units and shuffling men and materials to the required worlds the First Prince leaves for St Ives. Given the turmoil breaking out around Terra he is in constant contact with his trusted Marshal of Armies on New Avalon.
Princess Yvonne Steiner-Davion and Baron Tancred Sandoval leave Defiance having spent 3 weeks there and begin heading for the Tortuga worlds. As per their journey to Defiance they are escorted by a full 2 companies of the 2nd Robinson Rangers and by the FSS Fox. Added to their security detail is a point of Elemental bodyguards at the saKhan's own orders.
Robinson Standard BattleWorks announces in November that it will be adding a Black Knight line to both it's flagship production facility on Robinson itself and also to it's secondary plant on Woodbine. The plant on Robinson will also see a further expansion of a second Sagittairre line. Demand for the hugely popular Sagittairre has far outstripped production and James Sandoval is even beginning to consider a purpose built new plant to produce only this design on either Alta Vista, Clovis or Milligan. He has also entered into discussions with some of the other major military industrial firms to add factories and plants within his March. While increasing production from his own Robinson Standard BattleWork's plants is his preferred way to expand his March's production his resources are not unlimited and drawing in outside investment would help tremendously. GM, Achernar and Kallon Industries have all been approached.
On June the Lightning class aerospace fighter line goes into production. Prior to Victor Davion's industrial reforms the planet had had no real military industrial output but now it has 2 Stuka lines, a Hellcat line and a Lightning line of aerospace production at the Lycomb-Davion plant and a line of Valkyrie battlemechs with a Centurion line building and a semi-automated factory for Musketeers hover tanks also building at the Corean facility.
Lycomb-Davion isn't only expanding their production on the Outback world of June either. On New Avalon itself their first battlemech line in centuries comes online and the Guillotine enters production within the Federated Suns. As per the First Princes's deal with the Precentor Martial a number of Guillotines are offered for sale to the ComGuards. These will be the first major sales to the ComGuards from a Federated Suns firm.
StarCorp Industries formally protest to the courts against the unwarranted harassment and arrest of their corporate officers. Given the seriousness of the charges the matter is referred to the Court of the Old Bailey on New Avalon itself and is scheduled to start in January 3065.
Even as new regiments are ordered into being and billets filled while factories continue to produce war material and expand the fighting continues within the worlds of the former Chaos March...
On the 2nd of November, slightly delayed due to some unforeseen malfunctions in a number of ships jump engines, the ComGuard's 1st Fleet jumps to Caph. Only swift cancellations of the jump on the 1st prevented half the fleet from jumping and the other half not jumping and wrecking their jump drives. Led by the CSV Invisible Truth the combined 1st Fleet and 2nd Independent Squadron head inwards to face the still battered ships of the WOB task force which routed the Wolf's Dragoon's warships.
Forming up around the WoBS Immortal Spirit the other 2 Aegis class cruisers, 2 Essex destroyers and the WoBS Blake's Redemption the single surviving Vincent corvette in system. Against these 6 WOB warships are arrayed 14 ComGuard's ships. On the face of it the fresh ComGuard's ships are clearly the superior force, yet the WOB ships continue forward at the best speed their damaged ships can manage.
Just as the two forces are approaching combat ranges an HPG on the WoBS Immortal Spirit sends out a message and behind the ComGuard's fleet a new force of WOB warships jumps in. Leading the way is the WoBS Blake's Sword, a huge McKenna class battleship. Following her are the 2 Black Lion battlecruisers the WoBS Blake Ascendant and WoBS Ray's of Enlightenment with an additional Aegis cruiser alongside them the WoBS Herald of Retribution. Along with them came 2 Lola III destroyers and 5 Zechetinu II corvettes. This turns the balance of force from 6 WOB ships to 14 ComGuards ships to 17 WOB warships vs 14 ComGuards vessels. Worse the WOB fleet has a large number of heavier cruisers and even a battleship in their numbers.
Realising that his ships were in a trap Precentor Naval Alain Beresick sent out orders for his ships to change course. They would be unable to totally avoid action but they could limit it to a single pass of the Caph orientated force and keep out of the reach of all but the corvettes from the new arrivals. However even as the orders went out malfunctions began to appear. On the CSV Bordeaux the engines suddenly failed and left the ship coasting along on the original heading. The CSV Divine Wisdom began to spin out of control as it's manoeuvring thrusters went haywire, while the CSV Vision of Truth lost all power entirely. The two worse cases of what was obvious sabotage however were the CSV Avenging Sword that without any warning opened fire with a full broadside and utterly destroyed it's squadron's flagship the CSV Hollings York and the CSV Alacrity which swerved and at least on the face of it attempted to ram the flagship. With no other option Beresick ordered the massive battlecruiser to destroy the corvette as it drove towards his ship.
Even as he was attempting to coordinate his suddenly shattered command the WOB warships heading towards him from Caph arrived and began pouring their fire into the individual ships they found themselves facing rather than coordinated squadrons. In what was obviously pre-planned a host of shuttles burst from the WOB ships and zeroed in on the CSV Bordeaux and the CSV Vision of Truth obviously carrying marines. Meanwhile the now obviously WoBS Avenging Sword continued to fire from within his own formations, crippling the CSV Deathblow before the CSV Fire Fang managed to combine it's fire with the single remaining ship of the 2nd Independent Squadron the CSV Brandenburg Crusader and cripple the Avenging Sword. However even as they were turning on the traitor the WoBS Immortal Spirit and the WoBS Herald of Justice managed to close the range and pour point blank naval auto-cannon fire into their soon shattered hulls.
By the time the Precentor Naval had managed to extricate his fleet from the trap he had less of a fleet and more a collection of fleeing ships with various degrees of damage. His own CSV Invisble Truth was still mostly functional but it's armour had taken a beating. His remaining ships consisted of the CSV Montpelier which by a miracle was almost totally undamaged, the CSV Anastasius Focht which was crippled but still had functional engines and a jump drive and the 2 Lola III's the CVS Holy Martyrdom and the CVS Strength Through Adversity both of which were damaged heavily. Behind them the now WoBS Avenging Sword would no doubt be joined by the CSV Bordeaux and CSV Vision of Truth as reports came of heavy fighting as WOB marines flooded into the crippled ships. Worse was the fact that the Vision of Truth had been carrying a large number of the attached ground forces. Many of them had managed to manually disengage but had mostly been destroyed by the heavy guns of the WOB warships. Those that remained were still far too many for his warships to take into their damaged docking collars and the remnants of over 10 ComGuards Divisions were forced to head to the planet and hope to join up with any remaining mercenary forces there or face annihilation.
Even with the initial battle finished the horror wasn't over for the ships of the 1st ComGuard's fleet. Released from the pursuing task force the 5 Zechetinu II corvettes raced forward in a tail chase. Although they couldn't close with even the most damaged fleeing ComGuards warships they were able to get into long range for their missile batteries and began firing as the ComGuard ships slowed for jumping at the small pirate point they were fleeing too. As the missiles streamed in the sensors went berserk, indicating that each missile was clearly nuclear tipped. Only a single volley arrived before the ComGuard's ships could jump, but they were all targeted on a single vessel. The CSV Anastasius Focht. The already battered destroyer never stood a chance and died in a barrage of nuclear fire. The WOB was clearly making a point as the CSV Invisible Truth or CSV Montpelier would have been more valuable targets.
One thing that is noted at least within the FWLN at this time is that the WOB have now displayed owning at least 8 Zechetinu II corvettes. While the League has only sold them 4 so far...
Even as the trap was springing shut on the 1st Fleet at Caph other hidden WOB operatives sprung into action. On Tukayyid a minor officer in the command staff of the 12th Army "spilled" his morning beverage and released a lethal nerve agent right in the centre of the ComGuard's command centre on the planet. Almost the entirety of the higher ranking officers within the 12th Army were killed instantly. While in orbit the CSV Blake's Vision simply blew up. Judging by the sensor recordings of nearby ships the blast started in the ammunition bunkers of the vessel. A host of suicide attacks and assassinations on ComGuards officers and Comstar officials swept the Inner Sphere, with the Precentor Martial himself narrowly avoiding an assassins explosive vest and was severely injured while on his way to St Ives, over the coming weeks. The final major casualty of this wave of assassinations was when Precentor ROM Victoria Parrdeau who was facing harsh questions as to the infiltration of the ComGuards by the WOB drew a hidden hold out pistol and shot the Primus during a heated exchange. She was herself then killed by the Primus's bodyguards. With the Precentor Martial injured, the Primus dead and much of the First Circuit in shock Precentor Gavin Dow is appointed to fill Sharilar Mori's position, initially on an interim basis.
Even as the 1st ComGuard's Fleet is fighting over Caph Colonel William MacLeod launches his bold attempt to break through to Northwind and help relieve the pressure on Colonel Stirling's Fusiliers regiment. His dropships are soon heading for the planet at an insanely fast maximum burn, splintering into smaller groups to try and confuse the blockading warships. This is helped by the fact that the 2 corvettes in system have taken up positions at the 2 main jump points leaving the inner system only covered by the WoBS Guarded Knowledge. However even this single Lola III destroyer is more than enough to lunge forward and begin picking off Highlander dropships as they attempt to break past it. When his own command dropship the Fortress class Edinburgh Castle is dealt a glancing blow that leaves it crippled the Colonel orders his unit to continue to make for Northwind while he buys them some time. Ordering the Edinburgh Castle and what's left of the MacLeod Aero Wing into a suicidal attack upon the WoBS Guarded Knowledge he is nearly successful in ramming the warship. A last minute and desperate volley of naval lasers destroys the dropship, but even destroyed large chunks of it smash into the destroyer going at considerable speed and cause heavy damage to it's entire starboard side. This allows the remaining dropships to reach Northwind. Roughly 6 companies of assorted troops have made planet fall and are soon taken in hand by Lt Colonel Aria Jacobs of the Regimental Old Guard. Ordering the unit to disperse into lance and demi-company sized formations the MacLeod's begin preparing to launch a guerrilla campaign against the WOB Militia besieging Stirling's Fusiliers within The Fort.
On St Ives the various Successor Lords meet and are faced with the prospect of no Comstar representative. However the interim-Primus Dow sends word that Precentor St Ives will represent the order. The Whitting Conference is then called to session with First Lord Kai Allard-Liao standing down. A new vote is then called on who should be the next First Lord. Thomas Marik and Sun-Tzu Liao throw their weight behind Theodore Kurita while in a surprise move Victor Davion votes for Christian Mansdottir. Almost immedietly he is joined by his brother and Kai Allard-Liao in this nomination. Seeing which way the wind is blowing Theodore Kurita shifts his own vote to supporting the Elected Prince Regent. With the Elected Prince Regent then agreeing with his own nomination the vote is cast and passed unanimously in the end.
Even before the situation between the WOB and Comstar can be discussed Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao immedietly announces that he is demanding that the Star League return the worlds of Mitchel, Jackson and Yuris to the Confederation. Almost embarrassed the new First Lord explains that that matter is dealt with and outwith the jurisdiction of the Star League at this time. Sun-Tzu however promises to bring it up at every future Whitting Conference until he obtains satisfaction. Picking up on his word choice Kai Allard-Liao offers to change the laws on duelling on St Ives so that he can obtain "satisfaction" from the Davion First Prince if he so wishes... An offer that is met with a hate filled glares from Sun-Tzu and his advisers and chuckles from the St Ives, Steiner and Davion contingents.
The recent fighting at Caph and Northwind are finally however addressed. Captain-General Thomas Marik offers to mediate between the two "Comstar/Blakist" factions but is turned down as nobody trusts his impartiality. The unprecedented naval bombardments, naval fighting and use of nuclear weapons however does demand some action be taken. As such the First Lord requests that the First Prince Davion take up his former command as Commanding General and form an international force to bring peace to the region. However the First Prince respectfully declined. He had taken that role once before and neglected his realm in doing so, he couldn't make the same mistake twice. He did however recommend none other than Hohiro Kurita for the post as a finer warrior he had never met. Coordinator Kurita informed the Conference that his son who was currently on Luthien would no doubt be honoured to take up the charge, however he would require a great deal of time to assemble a suitable force unless large scale contributions were made by the various member states. That point was one that none of the attendee's wished to make any firm promises on. The best that anyone would promise is that they would once home discuss the matter with their various military staffs and see what forces and funds they could release for SLDF service. Victor did point out that the Nova Cats should be contacted by the new Commanding General as they were pledged to the SLDF and had a large naval fleet in particular.
On the final day nominations are opened for prospective new members of the Second Star League. Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao surprises everyone when he doesn't nominate the Magistracy but instead nominates the Taurian Concordant for entry into the League. In other circumstances the fact that the Captain General does not nominate the WOB for entry would be a surprise but with the recent incidents and battles nobody is surprised by his silence.
A final point that is raised by Captain-General Thomas Marik is the growing military might of the Federated Suns. He points out that the First Prince is risking escalating the situation into an arms race with his neighbours if he continues to expand the AFFS in the manner he is doing. First Prince Victor Davion swiftly points out that it wasn't his realm that has invaded his neighbours, but points out that within the last 10 years the FWLM, DCMS and CCAF have all crossed his borders and attacked his worlds. His actions are as a result of these attacks.
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has the FS offered to sell mechs to the LC? with the fighting near Terra maybe having range of high end and low end mechs and fighter might be a good idea to support the Mec market.
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Mostly the FS has been concentrating on it's own internal markets ( as well as for long term FS affiliated merc units), although Victor probably has plans for exports in the long term.
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Mostly the FS has been concentrating on it's own internal markets ( as well as for long term FS affiliated merc units), although Victor probably has plans for exports in the long term.
The LC had a lot of battle damage. maybe the FS could trade for some out of the box thinking. the same can be said of ComStar. any sales might have the profit funneled into other projects... like warships?
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Interesting on the Taurian Conconderat being nominated rather than the MoC.
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I am just wondering why Victor does not send aid to Northwind.
Having so many FS worlds close by, this is too close to home.
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Oh boy! Larger warship slips?! Do I sense the Defender Class and/or the New Syrtis Class coming on line?
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So Comstar had a rough awakening, they lost as much ground forces as during assault on Terra, but not as many ships and they have better prospects of replacing lost troops and material.
Having been informed that there were roughly enough graduates (after replacement's and rebuilding damaged units) to form 3 full regiments
Even though there was no major fighting I think this might be pushing it a bit.
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Damn Colonel MacLeod is dead I really liked his character. Well he did raise a death flag looks like the highlanders are on the ropes.
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The LC had a lot of battle damage. maybe the FS could trade for some out of the box thinking. the same can be said of ComStar. any sales might have the profit funneled into other projects... like warships?
Well the LAAF has had damage but I think the source books point out how much the Lyrans hate having to "buy foreign". The Comstar sales will be helping fund the AFFS - and after Caph they will need a LOT more mechs/tanks/fighters/etc...
Interesting on the Taurian Conconderat being nominated rather than the MoC.
Well that's who Sun-Tzu nominated in canon and the reasons remain the same.
I am just wondering why Victor does not send aid to Northwind.
Having so many FS worlds close by, this is too close to home.
Well there's still a heavy blockading force of warships - and judging by how the current escalations are going if you fight the WOB in space they summon more warships, and nobody knows how many they have at this stage.
Oh boy! Larger warship slips?! Do I sense the Defender Class and/or the New Syrtis Class coming on line?
I'm thinking New Syrtis... ;)
So Comstar had a rough awakening, they lost as much ground forces as during assault on Terra, but not as many ships and they have better prospects of replacing lost troops and material.
Even though there was no major fighting I think this might be pushing it a bit.
Comstar's had a bloody nose, but in fact are actually better of than in canon Case White. Which lets them rebuild with a decent warships fleet still remaining.
As for the AFFS expansions - I set 3 deliberately. Even before the expansions Victor was able in canon to reform 3 traditional Davion units in a single move following Operation Guerrero - the 41st Avalon Hussars, 2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs and the 3rd Davion Guards. Since then he's formed several new Training Battalions - while also expanding their sizes to a reinforced battalion, and also started expanding his academy classes and even building new academies. I'm also keeping track of what units have been smashed/damaged in the fighting and they aren't expanding back up to strength magically. For instance, the Tikonov Cossacks are now at 60% strength having been formed up with 30% strength in '61, the Mayetta DMM is still around 70% even 2 years after it was reduced to have strength due to criminal charges and almost being disbanded, the Bryceland DMM is still at 60% after it's fighting on the Draconis front, the 1st Aragon Borderer's which were roughly at 70% in '61 are still only now rebuilding back up to 80% of full strength... etc... I am trying to keep it as non-magical instant regiments as I can.
Damn Colonel MacLeod is dead I really liked his character. Well he did raise a death flag looks like the highlanders are on the ropes.
So did I but at least he died saving what was left of his regiment and letting them reach Northwind.
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No idea what happened there!
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3064 - December - Blockades and Bombardments
Having left St Ives the First Prince doesn't return to New Avalon immedietly. Having heard of the death of Colonel MacLeod and his attempted landing on Northwind along with growing reports of urban warfare within the historical city of Tara, instead he heads initially for the world of Tikonov escorted by the FSS Melissa Davion and picking up the FSS Antrim along the way. Accompanying him are elements of the 1st Davion Guards although when he arrives on Tikonov the remainder of the unit has rushed from New Avalon to join him. Also assembled there is a large force of warships and regiments. The FSS Simon Davion, FSS Murmansk, FSS Brest and FSS Kathil are all assembled along with the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT, 1st Revenant Guards RCT, 7th Crucis Lancers RCT, 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and all 3 regiments of the Vegan Rangers mercenary brigade alongside the regular garrison of the world the Davion Assault Guards RCT and the 1st Tikonov Cossacks. To back up this huge concentration of military might no fewer than 4 full independent aerospace regiments have also been assembled adding 240 fighters to the already large number of attached aerospace wings.
From Tikonov what is now being referred to as Task Force Victor heads for Small World where it is met by the 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT, the 4th and 5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and the 2nd Crucis Lancers RCT. They leave behind the 1st Tikonov Cossacks on Tikonov to continue garrisoning that vital world, this will be the first time the defence of the world is entrusted to the Cossacks on their own.
With 2 Avalon cruisers, 4 Fox corvettes, 9 RCT's and 3 mercenary regiments the First Prince jumps to Northwind in 2 waves. The first wave consisting of both Avalon cruisers and 3 Fox corvettes is also escorted by 3 of the independent aerospace regiments and jumps to Northwind's Zenith jump point. There they order the Zechetinu II corvette on patrol to stand down or be destroyed. Instead of standing down the WoBS League's Alliance makes a micro-jump to a pirate point near Northwind and rendezvous with the still crippled WoBS Guarded Knowledge. The other corvette at the Nadir jump point also micro-jumps to Northwind's orbit.
Once the jump point is secured the second wave jumps in consisting of the large formation of RCT's and mercenaries. The Task Force then begins a slow and steady burn into the system, giving the WOB plenty of time to see what has been gathered and not committing themselves in case further WOB ships or troops arrive in system. Unknown to the First Prince and his officers is that many of the WOB's ships at nearby Caph have already been committed to another theatre.
The First Princes's forces are unexpectedly reinforced when the Northwind Hussars arrive in system and make a quick burn to join up with the Davion forces. Colonel Loren Jaffray dispelling any doubts about his commitment to the Highlanders in that he is even prepared to join forces with the Davion's to help relieve his comrades on Northwind despite his Death Commando's heritage.
As the now expanded Task Force Victor approaches Northwind the First Prince sends a message to the WOB troops and ships. In a deliberately vague reference to Northwind being under his personal protection (avoiding any declaration of ownership that might cause the Highlanders to break with him given the history there) he informs them that their presence is not welcome and they should withdraw or he would be forced to consider them a hostile force to not only him but his realm.
Faced with the unappealing prospect of personally dragging the resurgent Federated Sun's into their now hot war with the Wolf's Dragoons and Comstar the WOB Precentor in charge blinks. He immediately begins pulling back his ground forces to their dropships and sends a hurried message to the incoming formation that he is withdrawing his troops as quickly as he can and as soon as they are loaded he will withdraw.
Given the reports arriving from the ravaged state of the city of Tara and it's surroundings the First Prince is disinclined to give the WOB more time to commit further acts of destruction. He informs the WOB that any ground troops on planet when he arrives will be seized as pirates and treated accordingly. Given the slow and cautious pace of the formation this gives the WOB just enough time to get their troops of planet, although they have to leave a huge amount of ammunition, spare parts and stockpiled equipment behind. However in a fit of spite at their forced withdrawal the ground commander orders that the stockpiles which can't be loaded onto their dropships be blown up in place, causing heavy damage to Tara's primary spaceport and it's surrounding warehouse districts.
With only 30 minutes to spare the WoBS Guarded Knowledge and it's two escorting corvettes break orbit and begin shepherding the various troop dropships towards the Nadir jump point. The FSS Simon Davion and 2 Fox corvettes continue to shadow them at a safe distance with a heavy aerospace force.
When Task Force Victor arrives in orbit the Northwind Hussars immedietly detach and head for the devastated space port at Tara. Along with them comes a large force of infantry formations from the various Davion RCT's to help fight the out of control fires around the spaceport. Victor Davion awaits in orbit, not wishing to set foot on planet until he is invited to do so, although the bulk of his force does land at the destroyed Camp Jaffray. It's felt that the remote base is the best option to land the troops who cannot remain in orbit long term. As an additional sign of good will the various RCT's begin work on rebuilding the shattered base.
With the siege lifted Colonel's Andrea Stirling, Loren Joffrey and Lt Colonel Aria Jacobs gather in The Fort which despite it's now heavy damage is still standing. Given the unknown status of Colonel's Edward Senn and James D. Cochrane these 3 officers are the known leaders of the Northwind Highlanders. Along with them the surviving Clan Elders of Northwind are also assembled. After some heated debate and pointed accusations from both the military and civilian leadership an invitation for First Prince Victor Davion to descend to the planet and address them is made.
The First Prince descends from obit and lands outside the city in an abandoned car park with a small escort made up of the 1st Davion Guards heads for The Fort. Even as he walks his now famous Dire Wolf Prometheus along the streets of Tara a firestorm is still being battled at the spaceport. Elements of all three Northwind Highlander regiments on Northwind greet him at the gates and he is soon descending from his mech and he is led into the main hall of the battered fortress to address the assembled leaders.
The first thing that Victor promises the people of Northwind is that he is not here with his forces as an army of occupation. He and his troops will leave as soon as is practical and are here merely to help the people of Northwind and not conquer them. They are here to help. He also promises massive economic aid to help rebuild Tara and it's shattered infrastructure. These are all without strings or conditions. If Northwind requests that he remove his troops from the planet and his ships from orbit immedietly he will do so. He isn't so crass as to point out that this would include the infantry formations battling the fires only a few miles away from the very room that he is in, although only a fool wouldn't be aware of this.
He does make an open offer to the Clan Elders and Highlanders. He invites Northwind to return to the Federated Suns. He is open in the fact that mistakes have been made, he even acknowledges that most of these have been on the side of the former Federated Commonwealth. However he had never forgotten those mistakes and has learned from them. He points out the vulnerability of an independent world in such a precarious position within the Sphere and points to the recent events as evidence of this. Returned to the Federated Sun's the planet would be under the protection of the AFFS as well as the Northwind Highlanders. He would offer a large number of cast iron guarantees to not only the world but to the Highlanders themselves to avoid any further repeats. He gives a number of these to the assembled leaders although assures them that further guarantees are on the table. He promises there will be no regular or even adhoc garrison of AFFS troops unless said force is invited to join in the defence of the world by the Highlanders. The worlds traditions and heritage would be respected. For the Highlanders themselves they would be offered the most favourable contract terms that the AFFS offered to mercenary commands and would be given securities to avoid any possible "company store" approach while also only being deployed off world from Northwind in the event they agreed to be. A final promise that the Highlanders would be permitted to take other contracts from other realms so long as they did not fight against the Federated Suns was made.
As a final point he insists that the acceptance of this offer is in no way going to impact on the help in rebuilding Tara that he is offering or for his troops support in the current crisis. These offers are separate and merely a sign of his genuine good will towards Northwind. He even promises to do everything he can to extract any survivors of the 1st and 2nd Kearny Highlanders on Caph. He proposes however that any acceptance of his offer to join the Federated Suns be put to the people of Northwind rather than to any small group of individuals, although this will be for the government of Northwind and the Highlanders to decide.
The First Prince then leaves the assembled leaders to discuss the matter and with his guard heads towards the burning spaceport to help with the efforts of his troops there. In his wake he leaves absolute chaos as the assembled Clan Elders and Highlander Colonels break into furious arguments. He will remain on Northwind for the rest of December, even celebrating Christmas with dinner as a guest of the Highlanders at The Fort. Of huge interest to the gossip holo-news stations is that he is joined on Northwind by Isis Marik who arrives from New Avalon on the 22nd of December. By now their growing romantic involvement is common knowledge.
The bulk of the regiments assembled will leave the planet by the time Isis Marik arrives, although the 1st Davion Guards, 1st Revenants and 1st Kestrel Grenadiers. The other units head back to their various garrison postings. The Davion Assault Guards in particular return to Tikonov and make a point of thanking the 1st Tikonov Cossacks for covering for them, further strengthening ties between the two units. The full number of warships however remain in orbit to protect their First Prince from any headhunter strike by the WOB Navy.
Even as the First Prince is liberating Northwind from the WOB blockade the task of governing the realm goes on. This is made slightly more difficult by the fact that Northwind's Comstar HPG compound is a smoking ruin. Still the First Prince has appointed competent subordinates and they manage ably.
During December the various graduating cadets from the training units are dispatched to their new formations, while their place is taken by cadets fresh from the academies. Using the new graduates and breaking off battalions from the existing formations the 4th, 14th, 23rd, 26th and 28th Avalon Hussars are reactivated while the 3rd Dragonlords RCT and 6th Robinson Rangers are also formed. The new Avalon Hussars formations are all (with the exception of the 4th) massively under strength, most at merely cadre strength. The 4th Davion Guards and the 1st Crucis Lancers are both officially upgraded to reinforced regiment status, with each receiving a company of new soldiers to begin their 4th battalions. This staged expansion allows them to retain their experience level.
Princess Yvonne and Baron Tancred arrive at the Tortuga worlds and begin touring each of the new worlds in turn. At the current time almost everyone has accepted that these worlds will be annexed to the Federated Suns but no formal deceleration has been made. Investments continue to pour in to these worlds.
On the 31st December Duke Roger Sanromea-Davion signs a deal to build a new battlemech factory on his world of El Dorado with GM as the primary partner with Kallon also involved in providing the designs for their Templar-O on license. The new complex will be a three way partnership with the Duke putting up the funds and the Battlemaster design provided by his cousin the Prince, GM putting up the industrial backing and their brand new omni-tank the Ajax while Kallon providing the Templar-O design and some specialist technological help. The three lines will go online in mid-late 3065.
New Independence Weaponry had been considered for taking part in the new plant on El Dorado but had in the end decided to concentrate on a new factory within the Draconis March in conjunction with Duke James Sandoval. Provisionally they are planning to build a small complex on Alta Vista to build to begin with Atlas battlemechs with a further line to produce Victors also planned. At New Independence's Kestrel based plant the Jagermech III line enters production. Further plans to add a Marauder line are began in earnest.
At New Syrtis, New Avalon and Kathil's shipyards a number of slips are finishing construction. Each shipyard has a new slip that is somewhere between the size of the slips constructing Fox corvettes and those building Avalon cruisers. Stocks are being built up and work will begin on an updated Davion III destroyer at each yard in January 3065.
Over Defiance Khan Showers arrives with his convoy of liberated Draconis Combine prisoners. Numbering nearly 10,000 prisoners most of them are political dissidents, with around 3,000 of them being Smoke Jaguars of some kind or other with the vast majority of them being former Labourer and Technician castes. He has been able to identify roughly 2 trinaries worth of warriors who have been allocated to the 2nd Jaguar Guards - or will be as soon as equipment for them is sourced. The political prisoners would be interviewed by MIIO and DMI operatives before being given the choice of either joining the Jaguars or a placement within the Federated Suns. A surprising number would choose to to join the civilians of the Sun Jaguars. The Draconis Combine formally protested the raid and demanded the return of the prisoners, the dropships and the ore. After checking with the First Prince the dropships were returned. Unwashed and unloaded.
Khan Showers and saKhan Nevversan even as the interviews were commencing met to discuss their respective progress in setting up the Sun Jaguars. However before they could get into any real details an unexpected arrival at a pirate jump point interrupted them. A Clan Nova Cat Merchant class jumpship with a single Broadsword class dropship arrived on the 27th December and detached the dropship which broadcast calls that it came in friendship as it headed for the planet. Both Khans of the Sun Jaguars will meet with the Nova Cat delegation in early January.
On Tikonov the Earthwerk's plant's new Thug line goes into production and immedietly causes a legal case between Earthwerks, Comstar, the FedSuns and Maltex Corporation. Maltex raises a legal action within the Federated Sun's court system against both Earthwerks and Comstar for usurping their designs license. Given the horrendous losses facing the ComGuards at Caph the production of the mech does continue even as the legal case goes to court in early 3065.
The expansion of the Dagger-O facility on New Syrtis finally finishes and all 4 lines are now operational in December, although given the demand for the versatile fighter this is barely sufficient to keep up. With the new facility on Torrence having entered production in November this now brings the Dagger-O's production to 11 lines scattered across 4 planets. Not withstanding this further expansions are being considered. Duke Hasek is pushing for further expansions on New Syrtis but New Avalon is insisting that at least some of the expansions be built on Torrence. This dispute is deadlocking further progress currently.
Another expansion of aerospace production is reached when the Filtvelt based Wangker Aerospace plant finally hits full production. This brings the total Corsair lines in full production to 8 with another 6 building and due to enter production in 3065, although the 4 lines on Sun Prairie will begin limited production this month. Given the expansion of the Navy, attached fighter wings and independent fighter wings this is considered barely sufficient.
In line with this attempts to increase aerospace production Jalastar Aerospace is contacted and invited to send a high end corporate delegation to New Avalon in the near year to meet with the First Prince to discuss increasing Sabre and Sparrowhawk production. Although this invite is entirely genuine it is also a cover for a more private meeting that the High Command wish to have with Jalastar Aerospace.
On New Avalon itself the Corean Enterprises semi-automated plant for Musketeer hover tanks is now fully upgraded into a state of the art automated plant. The construction and upgrade of this plant (aided by NAIS) has given the company a number of insights into their automated Valkyrie plant which has allowed them to begin fixing the faults which have been developing.
The GM plant on Point Barrow enters production exactly on schedule and just in time to begin supplying the newly formed 28th Avalon Hussars and rebuilding 42nd Avalon Hussars heavy and assault battalions with Victor and Marauder battlemechs. The first production runs are dispatched so soon that they are only in primer paint without any additional insignia.
Even as the First Prince is gathering his forces and heading for Northwind the WOB naval forces at Caph split in 3. The damaged and captured ships head back to Terra to receive repairs and begin refitting for future use. A strong force built around the Aegis class WoBS Herald of Retribuition remains in orbit over the planet and aids in hunting down the combined mercenary and ComGuards troops scattered into the wastes. Meanwhile the McKenna class WoBS Blake's Sword leads the 2 Black Lion battlecruisers the WoBS Blake's Ascendant and WoBS Ray of Enlightenment along with 2 escorting destroyers and 4 Zechetinu II corvettes to the Nadir jump point and jumps out system as soon as their ammunition lockers have been replenished.
On Christmas day their destination is revealed when they jump into the Outreach system at a pirate point. The 9 WOB warships immedietly head straight for Outreach while launching assault dropships and fighers. In orbit over the world the damaged WDWS Nelson and WDWS Beowulf are undergoing emergency repairs while the other Wolf's Dragoon's warships, the WDWS Alexander and WDWS Mars stand guard. On planet the Dragoon's Gamma Regiment and the 3rd Dismal Disinherited rush to their posts ready for any follow on invasion while calling out the Home Guard and any allied mercenary forces on planet.
Even the two damaged Dragoon warships immedietly fell in with the WDWS Alexander as it and the WDWS Mars rushed to meet the incoming WOB warships. In what was obviously a suicide run the 4 mercenary warships charged the larger force in what appeared to the WOB Admiral on the WoBS Blake's Sword a futile gesture. The two forces would pass by each other at knife fighting range and while he didn't doubt that his ships would take damage and might even suffer some losses it was unlikely that any of the mercenary warships would survive even that single pass.
This fact hadn't escaped the captains of the Wolf's Dragoons warship fleet and yet all 4 went to maximum power on their engines as they closed the distance. At the last possible second they swerved and instead of a fly through their attack turned into a ramming attempt. Frantic fire from the panicking WOB warships tore the damaged WDWS Nelson and WDWS Beowulf apart before they could reach their target and the WDWS Mars was too lightly built to survive the broadside of it's target the WoBS Blake's Ascendant, but the heavy cruiser WDWS Alexander with it's guns blazing managed to impact a glancing hit on the fore-starboard quarter of the WoBS Blake's Sword and tear a huge gouge almost the length of the ship before exploding alongside the gutted McKenna class battleship. If the huge tear along 2/3rds of it's length hadn't destroyed the vessel the explosion of the WDWS Alexander at such close proximity removed any doubt as the battleship itself blew up.
The WOB fleet that had only a few minutes before numbered 9 ships came through the debris of the destroyed Dragoon warships without their flagship and missing one of their destroyer escorts which had been savaged by the guns of the WDWS Alexander and WDWS Beowulf as they closed to ram. Both Black Lion battlecruisers were also damaged from debris and 2 of the Zechetinu II corvettes were clearly crippled.
Taking command of the shattered formation the captain of the WoBS Blake's Ascendant was instantly beset by a heavy fighter attack from the planet which had followed the warships in. Concentrating on the 2 damaged corvettes the fighters closed to point blank range before releasing their ordinance and straffing along the ships damaged sides. By the time his own fighters and anti-fighter defences had driven off the attack his fleet had shrank by 2 corvettes as the already crippled vessels were effectively destroyed.
Leading his shattered command into orbit the enraged captain gave the orders for a general bombardment of the planet, concentrating on Harlech. Although he didn't release nuclear missiles to be launched the heavy guns of 2 Black Lion cruisers along with a destroyer and 2 corvettes were unleashed in the type of barrage that had rarely been seen since the early days of the 2nd Succession War. Not bothering with pinpoint accuracy the WOB ships fire full broadsides into the capital of the Wolf's Dragoons homeworld.
Even as all of this was ongoing the new Commanding General of the SLDF Hohiro Kurita was attempting to gather together a force to move on Caph and attempt to bring peace to the region. However with even his own father unwilling to commit a large scale force of warships and regiments his efforts were thwarted at almost every turn. The ComGuards promised to commit troops and warships, at least as soon as they could figure out if they were reliable or not, while the Nova Cats seemed to hesitate. After their recent mauling in the Ghost Bear-Combine war they were less than keen to divert large scale troop or warship formations away from their own worlds of the Irece Prefecture. The Lyran Alliance was prepared to send 2 regiments of battlemechs but with few warships and Clan Jade Falcon on their flank still belligerent they were unwilling to commit more. The FWL's Captain General was making vague promises but couldn't be trusted with his links to the WOB and the fact he was saying he would need to obtain parliamentary approval. While the FRR had few troops and no warships to send. The FedSuns when asked however pointed out that they had already committed 6 warships and 12 battlemech regiments along with their own First Prince to liberate Northwind... What more exactly did the Commanding General want from them? Worse when he demanded to speak with Victor he was told that the First Prince was on Northwind and out of communciation...
Humiliated Hohiro came to the conclusion that this was Victor's doing. That he had deliberately suggested his nomination and then upstaged him by leading a purely AFFS force to Northwind in order to humiliate him! It wasn't enough that the man had killed his sister but now he was seeking to undermine Hohiro's well earned reputation for martial competence! Victor had always planned to go to Northwind to play the hero and make Hohiro look like a fool standing on the sidelines! With this logic in mind he went to began organising a purely DCMS Task Force at Deiron even without his fathers permission.
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AFFS
31st December 3064
Independent Commands
1st Arcadians – Veteran – 90% (Re)
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 100% - Klathandu IV
1st Capellan Dragoons – Veteran – 80% -
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) – Northwind
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) – Northwind
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100% - Tancredi
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 60% - Tikonov
1st Sheraton Knights – Green – 40% Cadre although attached support forces (veteran) at 100%
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 90% - Abbeyville
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 90% (Re) – Panpour
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% – New Valencia – new formation
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% (Re) – Yuris
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - June
14th Avalon Hussars – Green – 30% - formed from 11th Avalon Hussars
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - Cassias
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Sun Jaguar Enclaves
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% - Talon
23rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 30% – formed from 20th Avalon Hussars
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% – formed from 17th and 41st – fights as green until 3066
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 30% - formed from 42nd ‘s assault and heavy elements
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 80% (Re) – Woodbine Combat Training Centre
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - Tortuga Dominions
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - Lothair
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% - Kentares
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - Benet III
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) – Crofton
Borderer Brigade - with armoured regiment, infantry regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st Aragon Borderers – Veteran – 80%
1st Kittery Borderers – Regular – 100%
1st Mitchel Borderers – Green – 90%
1st Woodstock Borderers – Green – 70%
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Regular – 90% - Bell
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 80% - Brockway
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% - Groveld/Niles
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 90%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) - Mitchel
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% - Errai
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Wakaponeta
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Midale
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 80% - personnel – 100% mechs
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) –
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) – New Mendham
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tikonov
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tancredi
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) – New Avalon
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) – Northwind
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 80% - Bell
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 90% - New Avalon
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) - Galtor
5th Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) – Addicks
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 90% - Deneb Kaitos
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Green – 90% - Deneb Kaitos
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% - Tikonov
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% - Hyalite
12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 80% - Skat
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
Dragonlords Brigade - officers drawn from Davion Brigades, rest drawn from Cadres
1st Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) –
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – New Avalon Combat Training Centre
Federated Sun’s Armoured Cavalry – includes an armoured and BA regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st FSAC – Elite – 100% (Re) – Verlo
2nd FSAC – Veteran – 90%
FedSun’s Dragoons Brigade
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 100% - Epsilon Indi
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Paris
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Elite – 50% - Talon/Wernke
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 70% - Frazer
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Green – 70% - Defiance
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Montour
Lexington Combat Guards
1st Lexington Combat Guards – 32nd Recon – Veteran – 90% (Re)
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – 241st Battle – Regular – 90%
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – 180th Dragoon – Veteran– 80%
New Avalon Cavaliers
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 80% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 40% (Re) – New Avalon/El Dorado
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100% - Tripoli
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Veteran – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers – Elite – 90% - Robinson
2nd Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 80% - heavily upgraded with Omnimechs – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 80% - Galtor – expanding to RCT completed by mid 3065
4th Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 70% - former Fighting Urukhai, individually veteran, but coming together as a unit until 3065-66
5th Robinson Rangers – Elite – 50% - former Narhal’s Raiders, fanatically anti-Kurita.
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 100% - Robinson
Syrtis Fusiliers
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 70% - New Syrtis
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 40%
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 70% - Talon – RCT forming
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100% - Talon
Capellan March Militias
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
New Syrtis CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 70%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Achernar CMM – Green – 70%
Nanking CMM – Green – 90%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Broken Wheel CrMM – Green – 100% - Defiance Combat Training Centre
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 80%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 60% - Niles
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - lacking armour and with overstrength infantry brigade
Kentares DMM – Veteran – 40%
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 70%
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Academy Training Forces
Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion (5 companies) – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 100%
Warrior’s Hall Training Battalion (4 companies) – Green – 100%
Training Battalions
1st Bell Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Training Reinforced Battalion - Green - 100%
1st Conroe Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Galtor Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Kittery Training ReinforcedBattalion – Green – 100%
1st Mitchel Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Sheraton Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
Clan Sun Jaguar Touman
Alpha Galaxy
Gold Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 60%
Silver Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 30%
1st Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 60%
2nd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 80%
Omega Galaxy
1st Sun Jaguar Militia – Regular – 30%
Mercenary Forces
Blue Star Irregulars – Firgrove
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 100%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 100%
Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 70% operable
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 90%
1st Federated Arcadians – Veteran – 60%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 80% - Galtor
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 80% - Cylene
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – Veteran – 60% - Paris
Hansen’s Roughriders – Veteran – 80%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Veteran – 100%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 90%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 80%
- 21st Ranger – Regular – 80%
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Veteran – 100%
Medusan’s – Veteran – 100% - New Syrtis/Firgrove
Regulators – Regular – 80% - Kansu
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Niles
13th Stalking Horse – Veteran – 100% - Alta Vista
12th Vegan Rangers – Addicks and Nanking PDZ
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 80%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 80%
Wild Geese – Elite – 100%
Wilson’s Hussars (battalion) Veteran – 100% – Bell
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Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
FSS Fox – with Duchess Yvonne going to Defiance and then onto Tortuga
FSS Indomitable – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Intrepid – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Indefatigable – New Avalon Squadron – Galax
FSS Antrim – Task Force Victor
FSS Murmansk – Task Force Victor
FSS Brest – Task Force Victor
FSS New Sytris – Capellan Squadron – Kathil
FSS Robinson – Draconis Squadron
FSS Kathil – Task Force Victor
FSS Bryceland – Capellan Squadron
FSS Marduk – Outback Squadron
FSS Filtvelt – Outback Squadron
FSS Kenatres – Outback Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Galtor – Outback Squadron – Draconis March
Avalon Class Cruisers
FSS Melissa Davion – Task Force Victor
FSS Alexander Davion – Draconis Squadron Flagship
FSS Lucien Davion – requiring a refit – refitting finished by December 3064
FSS Simon Davion – requiring a refit – Task Force Victor
FSS Robert Davion – Capellan Squadron Flagship – home ported New Syrtis
Covenant Class Cruisers
FSS Covenant – Capellan Squadron – Patrol
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Industrial and Infrastructure Changes - 31st December 3064
Industrial/Infrastructure Changes
Capellan March
Augusta
- Corean Enterprise beginning construction of the Musketeer plant – being expanded to fully automated by February 3065
Axton
– Wangker plant to double production of Corsairs, from 2 to 4 lines completed, a further 2 lines being added, completion due in February 3065
Bell
- Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards, now being upgraded as a full on rebuild/repair centre capable of repairing and/or upgrading dozens of mechs and vehicles at the same time. Coming online November 3062
Firgrove
- Clyde Shipyards being upgraded to be able to construct dropships not just repair them. Began construction of Excalibur but still upgrading
Kathil – expanding naval slips
Tikonov
– Expansion of the factories there to produce the Archer battlemech, completed in October 3063. Expansion to include a Thug line, coming online in December 3064, 60/40 split Comguards/AFFS
- New factory for New Independence Weapony, building Victors (March 3064) and Battlemasters (July 3064). Entirely built from salvage from Tao Mechworks.
New Syrtis
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 2 to 3 – completed April 3063, a further expansion to 4 lines to be completed by December 3064
- Expanding naval slips and upgrading them
Novoya Zemyla
– Creation of a new Dagger-O plant with 2 lines, first line operational November 3063, second line January 3064
– Kallon Industries building a new plant to build Templar-O, Enforcer III and Jagermech III’s as well as Cavalier battle armour. Starting in July 3063, the Enforcer and Jagermech lines would come into production in January 3064, the Cavalier plant limited production in April 3064 (reaching full production by July) and the Templar-O wouldn’t come online till January 3065 and even then wouldn’t be fully operational until July.
Crucis March
Broken Wheel
- new battlemech facility owned by Andoran Industries Ltd set to begin construction of new Clint battlemechs. Going online for spare parts end of 3062, entering limited production by 2nd quarter 3063, full production in 3064. Mercury and Hussar production to be started – coming online in April 3065, 60/40 split between Comguards and AFFS.
Crofton
- StarCorp Industries planned expansion
Defiance
- A battlemech facility building Nexus, Sentinel, Crab and Flashman battlemechs. Coming online in October 3065. 60/40 split between Comguards and AFFS except the Nexus which is exclusively for the ComGuards.
- A small battle armour facility building “Lorica” variant Cavalier BA, coming online in January 3065.
Delavan
- Expanded jumpship production, particular star lords.
El Dorado
- Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative plant building Battlemasters and Templar-O battlemechs and Ajax omnitanks. Battlemaster line going online in July 3065, Templar-O November 3065 and Ajax line in September 3065.
Filtvelt
- A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works. Dropship yard entering production in April 3063, jumpship yard August 3064 – to produce Mules, Unions and Merchant jumpships.
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in February 3064, fully online December 3064 – 4 lines
- Achernar Battlemechs production facility building a huge industrial mech plant (coming online 1st January 3064, full scale production by June 3064), along with a battlemech annex coming online June 3064 producing dervish with enforcer production added by November)
– Outback FarmMechs new expansion to build Stinger battlemechs, starting work in November 3063 and finishing in January 3065. Major teething problems delaying the start of full scale production.
Galax – expanding naval slips and civilian jumpships
June
– Lycomb-Davion plant to build Stukas (2 lines), to enter initial production December 3063 with full production by June 3064, further expansions of Hellcat and Lightning to be added coming into production October and November 3064
– Corean Enterprises plant to build an initial line of Valkyrie battlemechs (starting February 3063 and going fully online in December 3063) and a follow on line of Centurion battlemechs (Starting January 3064 and going online March 3065). A semi-automated plant to produce Musketeers, starting in september and going into production in April 3065
Kestrel
– New Independence Weaponry plant being built, Atlas, Gunslinger and Victor lines being built, going online in December 3063 (atlas), February 3064 (victor) and June 3064 (Gunslinger). Secondary expansions planned to build a Jagermech III line by the end of 3064 plus potentially Marauder II and Marauder lines. Marauder line to enter production in November 3065
Killarney
– Arc Royal MechWorks new plant to begin construction in January 3064, first Wolfhound line coming online in June 3064 and 2 more being added by March 3065
Kirklin
– Kallon Industries, building a Crusader line to their existing plant, finished October 3064
Layover
- Salvatore Inc facility now being upgraded rather than allowed to continue limping on. Production of Vengeance class dropships to be massively increased. Some consideration being given to a new facility as well. Work underway and increases started.
Markesan
- New Earth Trading Company facility to build 2 lines of Alacorns, 2 lines of Von Luckners and a line of Karnov Transports and a line for Engineering vehicles. Coming online in June 3065 – although limited production of Alacorns and Karnovs will start in January 3065. Production to be split 50/50.
New Avalon
- Lycomb-Davion expansions of Stuka production (4 lines) and to begin construction of Guillotine and Awesome battlemechs – Stuka production increased by start of 3064, Guillotine entering production in November 3064, Awesome in January 3065
- Corean Enterprise beginning construction of the Musketeer plant – being expanded to fully automated by December 3064
Panpour
- Challenge Systems being funded to increase production of Monolith jumpships and begin construction of two Congress-D frigates. First yard to be ready in February 3063 and the next 4 months later. A further increase in Monolith production to take place in 3064
- Jalastar Aerospace increasing production of sparrohawk and sabre fighters and Centurion, grasshopper and javelin battlemechs. Increases in sparrowhawk and centurion construction prioritised and starting from August 3063, further expansions going on into 3065
Point Barrow
- GM plant to be built, starting in June 3063, due to go online in December 3064, building Maruader and Victor battlemechs, with follow on flashman line coming online in August 3065.
Torrence
- 2 Dagger-O lines coming online in November 3064
Draconis March
Addicks
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 1 to 2, completed February 3063
Alta Vista
- New Independence Weaponry plant being constructed to build Atlas and Victor battlemechs – January 3066 and March 3066 respectively
Benet III
– Creation of a new Dagger-O line, completed October 3063
Marduk
- Rebirth of Norse Battlemech Works, back in FedSuns hands, building large numbers of Wolverines and Griffons as well as Firestarter, Black hawk and Avatar Omnimechs – Wolverine and Griffon plant already online, Omnimech plant being repaired, coming online March 3063
Robinson
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks expansions and investments made to increase production, particularly of the up coming Sagittairre battlemech. Watchman line expanded to two and Sagittaire in production as of January 3063. A phoenix hawk line added by February 3064 – Sagittairre expanding to 2 lines by October 3065 and a black knight line to be built by June 3065
Sun Prairie
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in December 3064, fully online April 3065 – 4 lines
Tancredi
- Expanding of Laser production to include ER variants and industrial and medical lasers. New models entering production by June 3064. Consideration for battlemech/vehicle production as well.
Verde
- A small dropship shipyard to be built, producing Union and Overlord dropships, the Union yard coming online in March 3065, the Overlord coming online in December 3065
Woodbine
- a new battlemech facility owned by Robinson Standard BattleWorks to produce Watchman battlemechs. Going online in July 3063 – Sentry and Battle Hawk line to be added by August 3064 and September 3064 respectively – a new sagittairre line added by December 3065 and a black knight line to be added by September 3065
Educational expansions
New Armstrong Flight Academy – expanded as of 3063 class, first expanded class graduating 3066
Filvelt Academy – expanded to a full regiment as of 3063 class. First expanded class graduating 3066
Filvelt Flight School – started construction 3063, first (small) class 3064. First class graduating 3067
Robinson Battle Academy – rebuilding/expanding to a full regiment, by end of 3063
Warrior Hall – expanding to a full regiment by end of 3063
Tancredi War College – being rebuilt and start a small class in 3064 full class in 3065, graduating first class in 3067
Defiance - a new training facility planned to be named the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy to be jointly run by the AFFS and SLDF. Scheduled to begin classes 3064
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3064 Former Chaos March Map
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Damn the Fed Suns have reclaimed quite a bit of the old Chaos March and stuck it to the Cappellens rather smartly.
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Okay this map was based on an older one and I haven't redone all the non-FedSuns boundaries I just noticed... But it's got the current borders of the FedSuns.
I haven't loaded this one up at Alternate History as it's saying it's too big.
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with the FS in nice with Northwind they might open the door to T-bolts, Vulcan (maybe an anti BA instead of the PBI killer), Schiltron crab, Black Knight and the Tyson Varney limited plant (workmechs?) Still sucks that they are not going to help the WD.
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with the FS in nice with Northwind they might open the door to T-bolts, Vulcan (maybe an anti BA instead of the PBI killer), Schiltron crab, Black Knight and the Tyson Varney limited plant (workmechs?) Still sucks that they are not going to help the WD.
I can understand the Schiltron and Crab, since they are produced by Cosara Weaponries on Northwind, but I don't see where you are getting Thunderbolts, Vulcans, and Black Knights from in referencing Northwind as none of those are produced there. The other mechs being produced there by Cosara, at least at this period of time, are the Black Watch and the King Crab. The Vulcan was once produced there by MatherTechno, but that factory was completely destroyed early in the 1st Succession War and there has never been any indication that it was rebuilt or such an attempt was made.
However, if the FedSuns wanted the Black Knight and the Thunderbolt they already have them in production elsewhere. The Black Knight is being produced by Robinson Standard Battleworks both on Robinson and possibly another site that is part of this AU. The Thunderbolt has been produced previously by Earthwerks Inc. so they might still have the line there and be willing to sell production to the FedSuns.
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I can understand the Schiltron and Crab, since they are produced by Cosara Weaponries on Northwind, but I don't see where you are getting Thunderbolts, Vulcans, and Black Knights from in referencing Northwind as none of those are produced there. The other mechs being produced there by Cosara, at least at this period of time, are the Black Watch and the King Crab. The Vulcan was once produced there by MatherTechno, but that factory was completely destroyed early in the 1st Succession War and there has never been any indication that it was rebuilt or such an attempt was made.
However, if the FedSuns wanted the Black Knight and the Thunderbolt they already have them in production elsewhere. The Black Knight is being produced by Robinson Standard Battleworks both on Robinson and possibly another site that is part of this AU. The Thunderbolt has been produced previously by Earthwerks Inc. so they might still have the line there and be willing to sell production to the FedSuns.
miss typed black knight with black watch. when looked up Mather Techno I came up with T-Bold Royal under Operation Klondike: The Ultimate Supplementaled Have no idea if it correct or not. Now MatherTechno has the design for the Vulcan on Northwind. they could put it back into production, or modify it, or sell the design for cash. The clan leaders are going to need to do some rebuilding with about 144mechs in RGT.
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There were many small mercenary commands on Outreach, did any get out, or were they caught up in WoB ortillery temper tantrum?
And Hohiro just might jump to Caph or Outreach furious enough to start a fight...
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There were many small mercenary commands on Outreach, did any get out, or were they caught up in WoB ortillery temper tantrum?
And Hohiro just might jump to Caph or Outreach furious enough to start a fight...
Then he will get his ass handed to him leading an operation in a rage is a good way to lose a huge chunk of your forces.
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There were many small mercenary commands on Outreach, did any get out, or were they caught up in WoB ortillery temper tantrum?
And Hohiro just might jump to Caph or Outreach furious enough to start a fight...
Any that are in Harlech are probably debris. A few WILL survive - including some Wolves and even Dismal Disinherited, but to call the survivors shattered is an understatement.
Hohiro is thinking a similar show of force at Caph can "redeem" his honour. Of course he's doing it with less backing domestically than the First Prince did. Basically he's using his positions as "heir" over his position as Commanding General at this stage in the proceedings. How that plays out for him is anyone's guess but unlikely to be pretty. He's definitely NOT mad in the same way some of his ancestors were - he's too intelligent/grounded for that in canon, but he is distraught at his sisters death and feeling very overshadowed by her "killer" Victor Davion - who although he was friends with for a time basically is still a "Davion" deep down. Hohiro is running on damaged pride right now. With all that entails to his good judgement.
Then he will get his ass handed to him leading an operation in a rage is a good way to lose a huge chunk of your forces.
The thing is - if he staged something like the First Prince with a serious chunk of the the DCMS behind him, ample warships support, its very likely that the WOB might blink. At the very least he'd stand a good chance of pulling it off. But not only does he not have the resources Victor has he's wanting to actually "achieve" more. Merely replicating Victor's achievement isn't going to be enough. Hohiro has to prove he's not just the Davion's equal but his better... Combined with his emotional volatility right now it's not a good place to be when planning a major military operation.
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Hohiro better bring nukes, nukes and more nukes.
Open negotiations with stellar range, shot across the bow nuke detonation of 20 nukes near 5 WOB ships, and say your call.
Because the WOB blinked once from their perspective can the afford to do it again?
Can they afford not to blink whenHohiro is willing to open negotiations with 4 nukes per warship?
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Well Hohiro probably does know nukes have been used, so may use the Wobbies playbook on this one. >:D
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However the WoB playbook is still in preview stage, there is still some material to be added for full version. There is also a question if Successor States have nuclear warheads for capital missiles ready, so DCMS will probably have only Alamos avaible on such short notice.
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3065 - January - Plots
The first reports of the orbital bombardment of Harlech began to leak out beyond the Outreach system during the early days of the New Year. Almost immedietly the First Prince took his leave from Northwind although he made the offer that the 1st Kestrel Guards RCT and 2 Fox class corvettes would remain to aid in the defence of Northwind for the time being. He made sure to convey that this was not in any way an occupational garrison, not only to the Highlanders but also to the officers of the Kestrel Guards and captains of both warships. If they were requested to leave they were to do so immedietly. In the meantime he and the 1st Davion Guards RCT and the 1st Revenant Guards RCT along with the FSS Melissa Davion along with the FSS Brest and FSS Kathil head for Capolla. The FSS Simon Davion heads for it's long awaited refit while the FSS Lucien Davion fresh from it's refit at New Syrtis rushes to join the First Prince. Along with the FSS Lucien Davion the FSS Marduk and FSS Filtvelt leave the Outback and head to join the Task Force Victor. All 3 warships will rush along the jump lines built up the the AFFS to link key worlds - the 2 corvettes using the former line that used to run from New Avalon to Tharkad through the Sarna March for much of their journey. The First Prince does say goodbye to Duchess Marik who heads back to New Avalon with a heavy fighter escort.
The FSS Marduk and FSS Filtvelt's places in the Outback will be taken by the FSS Broken Wheel and FSS Markesan fresh from the new Fox slip's at New Syrtis. Both new ships will go on the now traditional training cruise within the Outback, working up in the relative safety of that region where they will assist in counter piracy operations.
Not wishing to drag a large number of RCT's from garrisoning postings that they have just returned too after helping him break the Northwind blockade the First Prince instead decides to summon a large number of conventional brigades to augment his 2 RCT's and also to request the 1st Dragonlords who are enroute to their new garrison posting on the Taurian/Capellan border be rerouted to join him at Capolla while also requesting his cousin Duke Hasek dispatch the 8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT to join Task Force Victor. The Duke not only agrees to this but also immedietly sends word that he is also sending the 1st Capellan Dragoons to back the First Prince up along with the Medusan mercenary command. The High Command also orders the 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT to reinforce the First Prince.
General Tom Stancel of the Vegan Rangers mercenary command having been tipped of that Prince Davion was reassembling Task Force Victor in response to the Outreach bombardment immedietly requested permission for his 3 commands to rejoin the force. He pointed out that his mercenary regiments had barely began to unpack at their garrison postings and could be at Capolla much faster than the regular units being shifted from further afield. When this request is forwarded to the First Prince he sends a personal thank you and invites the general to bring his troops to Capolla at his earliest convenience. The general's own Alpha regiment arrives a mere 3 days later and the other 2 regiments only 36 and 48 hours behind them - having obviously left to join the First Prince even while the request was being sent in the first place.
With 2 RCT, 3 mercenary mech regiments, 1 Avalon cruiser and 2 Fox cruisers Task Force Victor is nowhere near the strength it was just a month previously when it broke the Northwind blockade and a few within the AFFS criticise the First Prince for having broken it up far too prematurely on the grounds of diplomacy, however 3 more RCT and a mech regiment as well as another cruiser and 2 corvettes are already heading at their best speed to join the First Prince. He also had retained the 4 aerospace regiments which had been assembled previously and added 5 brigades of conventional troops of varying types to his force. A 5th independent aerospace regiment is also dispatched from Addicks, complete with a full wing of Dagger-O fighters.
One final addition does arrive on Capolla, unasked and unexpectedly. The Roughneck's Battalion of MacLeod's Regiment arrives under the command of Major Chastity Mulvaney and requests to join the Task Force. The always pro-Davion Major had survived the attempt to run the WOB blockade and after having heard the First Princes's offer to Northwind and it's people had had her faith in the Federated Suns reaffirmed. As such she had gathered a group of like minded officers to bring her battalion up to strength (it's third company had not survived running the blockade and the other 2 companies had lost warriors in the brief fighting against the WOB ground troops) and left Northwind to follow the First Prince. Her request is granted.
Even after Victor Davion has left his visit to Northwind continues to cause turmoil on the world. While Major Mulvaney's departure did remove the most vocally pro-Davion of the Northwind Highlanders officers it did not remove all of those speaking out in favour of the First Princes's offer. Even if every pro-Davion Highlander had left it would have still left a very solid number of Clan Elders who are in favour of the First Princes's suggestion that Northwind rejoin the Federated Suns. While not a majority they do make up the single largest block of Elders in regards to what Northwind should do moving forward. The anti-Davion side of the argument has not unexpectedly coalesced around Colonel Jaffray of the Northwind Hussars. While grateful for the help in liberating Northwind and preventing it's annexation to the WOB Protectorate the Colonel doesn't feel that it is in the best interests of the Highlanders or Northwind to rejoin the Federated Suns. However even within his own regiment Jaffray doesn't have full support as many of the veterans of Operation Bulldog hold a great deal of respect for Victor Davion. The colonel is also not overly popular with the Clan Elders. Colonel Stirling manages to walk a fine line between both factions and many feel whichever side wins her support will be the victor.
From Capolla the First Prince took time out from assembling his troops and ships to send a public message to his government, the former Tortuga Dominions and his sister Princess Yvonne Steiner-Davion. He informs all three that he is formally annexing the 6 world's of the Tortuga Dominions into the Federated Suns as the Tortuga Combat Region and orders the High Command and his Government to act appropriately - setting up a command infrastructure structure, etc... As well as arranging for government investments to help secure the worlds integration into the realm. He also informs his sister that she should prepare herself for her role as Duchess of Tortuga and Baroness New Port Royal. In a private message he assures her that he can think of no better person to shepherd the new additions to the FedSuns into their realm, while joking it is an early wedding present.
Marshal Deedee Faulkner of the Borderer Brigade asks to speak with Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion at this time and in her first face to face meeting with her commanding officer broaches the future of the new Borderer Brigade. She explains that the Training Battalions are slowly bringing all of her 4 regiments up to full strength but she was a little concerned to see that the recent graduates from the 1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion were diverted to the 3rd FedSun's Dragoons rather than to her own former unit the Kittery Borderer's. Jackson Davion explains that the Kittery Borderer's are at full strength currently while the 3rd FedSun's are still rebuilding from the St Ives conflict and hence the reason for the diversion of the recruits. After all the Training Battalions are AFFS formations and not solely to provide recruits for a single regiment - although he is happy to prioritise their home worlds regiments of course when they are under strength. The Marshal however feels that many of these recruits join the Training Battalions in order to protect their own worlds and pushes for the recruits to remain within her units. Marshal Todd Revon's who is the commanding officer of the Regular Army and has also been in attendance during the meeting then speaks up to suggest a compromise. He suggests that as the Marshal of Armies suggests the Training Battalion's graduates go to their respective home world's Borderer regiment but that any excess recruits be siphoned off to form a fresh unit within the brigade which can act as a more national version of the Borderer's while being a unit in it's own right. He suggests reforming the 1st Avalon Borderer's which was destroyed during the Second Succession War for this purpose. It would also act as a way to not only integrate the Borderer's regiments into the nation but also as a reserve in the event that any of the Borderer regiments receives heavy casualties - it could be rebuilt quickly with the personnel drawn from the Avalon Borderer's. The 1st Avalon Borderer's if reformed could then move between the various home world's of it's parent formation and train with them and allow cross pollination of tactics and experience. While this isn't the outcome Marshal Faulkner was looking for she can see it's likely to be the best she is going to get from the High Command and she agrees that this would satisfy her and her officers, while Marshal of Armies Davion can see the strong benefits this would bring not only to the Borderer Brigade but also to the AFFS as a whole. Jackson Davion agrees to this proposal - albeit he insists that the recruits who have joined the 3rd FedSun's Dragoons will remain at their posting there. As will the next class of troops graduating from the 1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion at the end of 3065 as he is not prepared to form a new unit with a single company of raw recruits. He will require at least 2 of the Borderer regiments to be at full strength before any troops can be siphoned off to add the 1st Avalon Borderer's to the rolls. Deedee Faulkner is almost certain that this condition is to remind her who is in command, but she can see the logic of it and agrees. Given this she doesn't bring up her desire to see the Sheraton Knights transferred to her brigade as she suspects she's used up most of her good will at the present moment, although she can revisit the matter later.
Fresh from launching the FSS Broken Wheel and FSS Markesan the New Syrtis shipyards begin work on the FSS Ridgebrook and FSS Woodstock. At the same time the newly building slip to construct Davion III class destroyers is now ready to begin construction - as are the 2 slips at Galax. All 3 slips will begin working on the FSS Davion, FSS Defiant and FSS Defender destroyers.
On Defiance the Sun Jaguars continue to integrate what they can from the various groups that even now are still drifting in as well as the liberated prisoners from the Draconis Combine mine complex. Alongside these are a number of transfers from SLDF and Comstar controlled camps which had surviving members of the Smoke Jaguars within them, as well as a handful from the Lyran Alliance and St Ives Compact. No transfers have occurred from the Draconis Combine, Free Worlds League or Capellan Confederation. While the latter two have almost no prisoners the total lack of transfers from the Combine is telling and both the Khan and saKhan send a message to the First Prince asking for his assistance.
The transfers they do get are mostly technician caste and warriors. Given this they are almost all instantly used to help build the Sun Jaguar's Touman. A handful of the best are used to bring both Khan's Keshik's to full strength and enough are left over to help form a 3rd Sun Jaguar Guards and 2nd Sun Jaguar Militia cluster.
The other major issue is the Nova Cats. They are led by a Star Captain Inanna who reveals a huge secret to the two Khan's of the Sun Jaguars. They are not the only faction of Smoke Jaguars to be alive and rebuilding. Instantly the Khan orders saKhan Nevversan to take her reformed Silver Keshik and head for Wayside V with the Star Captain and enter into discussions with this other remaining faction of Jaguars in order that they might add their strength to the Sun Jaguars if it is at all possible. He also sends the 1st Sun Jaguar Guards along with her, filling it with the most functional omnimechs and equipment left to the Clan. Star Captain Inanna offers to have her dropship's spare parts transferred over to help refit the 1st Sun Jaguars Guards during the journey. The saKhan leaves immedietly as soon as her Keshik and the 1st Guards can be loaded into their dropships.
On Novoya Zemyla the long awaited Templar-O line finally goes online at the Kallon Industries plant. However even after long months of delays there are still problems in the production line and it wont be until July that the line is running at full capacity. Indeed for most of January all that the plant produces are spare parts for existing Templar's, the first fully functional Templar-O from Novoya Zemyla's plant will only walk of the lines in February.
On Filtvelt the Outback FarmMech's plant finally goes into production. Built almost entirely from government grants and with help from the NAIS the plant is despite it's limited size and new nature of the company a cutting edge facility. There will be teething problems with this cutting edge facility of course but within a week the first Stinger will march from the production lines and head for service with the Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion. More so than even the opening of the larger corporation's huge plants throughout the Outback this facility see's a huge upsurge in support for the policies of the First Prince. Duchess Helen Trempeleau herself comes to the opening of the plant.
The "Lorica" variant of the Cavalier battle armour goes into production on Defiance and suffers no such problems. Basically the existing Cavalier but with different armour mouldings the small plant begins to churn out dozens of suits of battle armour for the ComGuards even within it's first month. However given the horrendous losses at Caph these suits will nowhere near meet the demand. As such the acting Primus Dow sends the still recovering Focht to meet with the First Prince. Given the nature of the situation he is forced to send the Precentor Martial with a warship escort. The CSV Narbonne slips from the Tuyakkid system and heads via dead systems towards the Federated Suns.
On New Avalon the Awesome line for Lycomb-Davion starts. Given the experience of the firm it is unsurprising that this goes without any problems and soon Awesome class battlemechs are walking off the production line and into the 299th Division of the ComGuards and the 3rd Davion Guards and 1st New Avalon Cavaliers.
Another plant that is tasked with helping rebuild the ComGuards is the new facility on Markesan. Although still months from entering full production, given the devastating circumstances of the ComGuards and the escalating threats on the borders, the plant manages to enter limited production in January to produce Alacorn Mk VI and Karnov transports.
In orbit over Outreach the attacking WOB forces find themselves looking down upon the smoking ruins of Harlech. With no ground forces the WOB task force fires a few remaining shots into the planet, taking out a number of supporting facilities around the city of Harlech and then destroys every single scrap of orbiting infrastructure before withdrawing. As soon as they leave a handful of survivors of Wolf's Dragoons manage to begin sending distress calls out. The planets HPG was destroyed along with Harlech City but the Dragoons had always kept a SLDF vintage small mobile HPG transmitter in reserve. As soon as the WOB have jumped out system the shattered survivors unearth the transmitter and begin sending for help.
The call is immedietly answered. First Prince Victor himself orders his still assembling Task Force to jump to Outreach and orders the follow on units to head for Outreach rather than Capolla.
As soon as they arrive the various units being landing around the devastated capital and rush to engage in rescue operations. The large force of conventional forces are a massive boon in this regard and soon entire infantry brigades are working through the rubble and putting out fires as they try and rescue any remaining trapped survivors. At this stage the death toll is unknown but first reports are staggering. Millions are presumed dead in the destroyed city and almost the entirety of the Wolf Dragoon's supporting elements and Gamma Regiment are wiped out. The Dragoon's Housing Centre is nothing more than a crater. The WOB hasn't spared the industrial facilities that provided the backbone to the Wolf's Dragoons and several barrages have fallen within the Blackwell Heavy Industries. Along with this the Wolf's Dragoon's supposedly hidden clan tech manufacturing centres on Remus had also received a brutal bombardment.
Along with working to save people and salvage what could be the various engineering units attached to the commands also began rebuilding the shattered spaceport. Or at least enough of it to support the landing of large numbers of cargo dropships bringing relief supplies and further aid as well repairing enough run ways to support a substantial force of aerospace fighters. If the WOB returned to Outreach the AFFS wanted to be ready.
At the end of January the Commanding General of the SLDF leads a task force from Deiron to Caph. The ground elements is built around the still rebuilding 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment, the 21st Striker Regiment and 19th Heavy Cavalry Regiment of the Eridani Light Horse, 91st Division of the ComGuards, the 1st Genyosha, 2nd and 46th Deiron Regulars and 4th Arkab Legion of the DCMS. Escorting them are the the DCS The Lair of Mighty Wyrms, DCS Night of Agony and DCS Winds of Heaven. As soon as the task force jump into the system General Kurita orders the WOB to stand down and surrender to face trial for war crimes. He also informs them that his ships will use maximum force to retake this system for the Star League.
In orbit over Caph the WoBS Herald of Retribution, WoBS End of Wisdom, WoBS Faith's End, WoBS Blake's Redemption and 3 Zechetinu II corvettes break orbit and take up a blocking position in front of Caph. They reply to the heir to the Draconis's Combine's demands that they surrender by informing him that he is trespassing within the WOB Protectorate and if he does not immedietly leave they will be forced to open fire. Both forces end up in a stalemate, facing of against each other just out of range as January ends. The Star Leagues task forces's naval officers know that with only a single Tatsumkai destroyer and 2 corvettes they stand little to no chance of winning a naval engagement against an Aegis cruiser, 2 Lola III destroyers and 4 corvettes. While the WOB officers don't want to start a war with the Draconis Combine by killing the heir to that realm. At least not now.
Within the Free Worlds League the Captain-General has a visit from an emissary from the WOB. He is informed that unless he supports them at the current time they will release the real details of Thomas Marik and that he is an impostor to the entire Inner Sphere. They demand that he jump a major naval group into the system of Caph in order to deescalate the situation there and allow them to retain ownership. The Captain-General points out that he will require to have some concessions in order to justify this to his fellow Star League members, suggesting that the WOB allow him to evacuate the survivors of the various anti-WOB forces on planet. The emissary makes the pointed reminder that the False Thomas has no authority or leverage to bargain with in this matter... However his suggestion is sensible and will help the WOB consolidate control of Caph. He provisionally agrees and will put the suggestion to not only his own master... But the Fake Thomas's as well. In return no fewer than 2 Thera's and escorting warships are to be dispatched as soon as possible. He suggests that the 3rd Free World's Guards go with them to help arrange the evacuation... Leaving the Captain-General wondering why that unit had been chosen...
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The 3rd Guards are coming this is going to be bad.
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nice update but man I am wondering where this is going. Northwind and the WD have been hammered. I do see a way that the FWL might be able to turn the tables on WoB. >:D
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nice update but man I am wondering where this is going. Northwind and the WD have been hammered. I do see a way that the FWL might be able to turn the tables on WoB. >:D
How?
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I reckon the WoB is trying to deescalate the situation with Successor States right now, so 3rd FWL Guards are possibly meant as a safeguard, but with WoB factions being what they are, while some mean to deescalate, others perhaps intend to backstab the False Thomas for short term gain... In any case this should be the moment the False Thomas decides to curtail the control WoB has over FWL, if he doesn't get thrown out of the airlock by pro-WoB Thera captain. Hohiro will take this poorly though, first Victor steals his moment on Northwind and now Thomas on Caph.
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3065 - February - WOB Diplomacy
Even as the various FedSun's and mercenary forces continue to dig through the rubble in order to save those they can more troops and warships continue to arrive at Outreach. The various members of Task Force Victor continue to assemble and add their efforts to the rebuilding work. Although the few survivors of the Wolf's Dragoons make efforts to reform, with the shattered morale of their members and the threadbare state of their ranks and damaged equipment nobody considers them a viable combat unit at the current time. However First Prince Victor meets with the highest ranking officer who survived in the medical dropship she's confined to, Major Cassie Nostra of Gamma Regiment's Baker Battalion and assures her that the Federated Sun's will not abandon them or their world. He also promises her that he will do everything he can to retrieve any surviving Wolf's Dragoons forces on Caph.
In this spirit the First Prince sends word to Terra, demanding that the WOB hand over the Naval Precentor who committed this Ares Convention violation and also allow him to evacuate the surviving mercenaries and pro-FS forces on Caph. Recording the message at a mobile command post on the outskirts of what was once Harlech the fury in his eyes and voice is obvious. He doesn't state what his response will be if his demands are not met, but leaves it up to the WOB leadership to decide if they want to test his resolve on this issue.
Throughout the Federated Sun's military commands go on alert when the word from Outreach arrives, the Davion High Command preparing for full on war with the WOB if that is felt necessary. Commands ready themselves for action and to defend their worlds from any attack. For instance at New Avalon the FSS Indomitable and FSS Intrepid step up patrols and prepare to defend the world against any naval attack. They also step up training with the various defensive fighter regiments and attached aerospace assets of the garrison. Unknown to all but a handful of their crew they also receive receipt of nuclear tipped missiles. If the WOB come to New Avalon the Federated Sun's Navy will be waiting and ready for them. At nearby Galax the FSS Indefatigable also prepares to either jump to New Avalon to protect the capital or to defend the vital yards at Galax. Like her sister ships she also receives nuclear tipped warheads for her missiles.
On Northwind the debate continues on whether or not to accept the First Princes's offer. While within the Highlander regiments the balance hangs on a knife edge in polls being taken of the actual population of Northwind support is growing for rejoining the Federated Suns. The planet had been a member of the FedSun's since it was conquered in 2841 and over 2 centuries of integration and trading with the nearby FedSun's planets had largely removed the resentment of the conquest while many of the merchants and companies on the planet had longstanding business relations with those same nearby worlds. On top of all of this recent attack from the WOB had made many question whether or not Northwind could "go it alone" and that it might be better to rejoin a relatively benevolent state rather than face the predation's of all of them. The people's faith that the Highlanders alone could defend them had been badly shaken. Eventually it was decided to hold a world wide referendum on the matter on the 28th March 3065. A suggestion by the Highlander regiments that the vote should give their own votes greater say was angrily slapped down by the Clan Elders. One citizen of Northwind, one vote. Regardless of whether he was a Highlander or civilian.
With the harsh worlds of the Clan Elders still ringing in his ears Colonel Loren Jaffray of the Northwind Hussars began reorganising his regiment. Those most loyal to him had always made up the greater part of his 1st Battalion - Jaffray's Own, but now he made a number of transfers to ensure this. He had no interest whatsoever in serving the Federated Suns or House Davion. To aid him in this he also contacted a number of officers and troops he knew from his time fighting alongside MacLeod's Regiment and Stirling's Fusiliers who he knew were anti-Davion in their outlook.
At the end of the month the FSS Markesan jumps into the long abandoned system of Cooperland. It finds a small pirate band, refugees from the former Tortuga Dominions, making their base within the abandoned spaceport on the planet and looting what little remained of the long abandoned cities of the world. Capturing the pirates Scout class jumpship the captain of the FSS Markesan sends the ship with a prize crew back to June to request the 12th Avalon Hussars send a ground force to root the pirates out. In the meantime he blockades the single habitable world and allows his fighters to take the occasional strafing run at the pirates as they go to ground.
The advent of a new battle armour design on New Avalon is also announced at this time. In a public display the new Grenadier class battle armour is unveiled at the NAIS with representatives of Achernar Battlemech's and General Motors also present. The assembled press are informed that the Grenadier is now ready to enter production at GM's Talcott and Point Barrow plants (although Point Barrow's lines won't come online until June) and Achernar's New Avalon plants with a further expansion to produce Cavaliers, Grenadiers and Infiltrator II battle armour at the Achernar plant on Filtvelt due to come online in November. Unmentioned at this time is a new Achernar factory planned to build BA within the Draconis March at Mayetta. This is due to come online by December of this year and ramp up to full production by March 3066. GM's Talcott plant is also to see a huge increase in production numbers to become the single largest supplier of battle armour within the Federated Suns. This increase will be in effect by the end of the year.
At Niles elements of the 1st Ceti Hussars crush a "pirate" raid in mostly older Panther and Jenner battlemechs. While the battlemech's were all older models they were in surprisingly good condition for "pirates".
The Corean plant on Augusta to produce Musketeers hover tanks went into production in February. This facility was a state of the art factory that was almost fully automated and would be vital to Corean's keeping up with demand for their new tank.
The Wangker facility on Axton finally finished it's upgrade from 2 lines to 4 of Corsair fighters. Although exposed with it's proximity to the Capellan Border it was now well defended with the 2nd Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry based there.
The Jalastar Aerospace executives who have arrived on New Avalon are informed that due to the recent troubles in the former Chaos/Sarna March region the First Prince has been unavoidably detained. As such they are met with the Prince's Champion and Duchess Marik as the First Princes's personal representatives. While initially a little put out at not meeting with the First Prince they are soon charmed by the Duchess who is the perfect foil for the "gruff old warhorse" persona that the experienced diplomat Ardan Sortek has taken to putting on. They are informed of two issues/opportunities that the First Prince wishes to put to them. The first is that he wishes a further expansion of Sparrowhawk and Sabre fighter production. However he doesn't wish to create a single point of failure, particularly with the vital and highly regarded Sparrowhawk fighters. He is therefore asking that they consider (strongly) setting up at least 2 new plants to produce fighters. Sortek suggests perhaps Islamabad and a world further away, for instance Batavia in the Achemar Combat Region. While it is not explicitly stated that they have to agree to this condition to receive further contracts the implication is there.
While they are still mulling over this "suggestion", Duchess Isis Marik explains to them that during her time on Northwind with the First Prince they had discussed the growing industrial and technological might of the Federated Suns and the First Prince had suggested that perhaps it was time to showcase this in a number of new omnimech designs. After some thought he had suggested the by now iconic Javelin battlemech for conversion into a light omnimech, basing many of the configurations on the various Javelin variants to save on R&D costs. When she left him to return to New Avalon she had brought with him his formal instructions for NAIS to work together with Jalastar to make this happen... As long as Jalastar agreed of course. After all it was New Avalon that had gifted the Panpour based firm with the contracts and licenses to produce Javelins.
Faced with an incredibly lucrative contract for a home grown omnimech with at least some of the funds/research costs being put up by the NAIS the various executives assured both of the First Princes's representatives that they were sure that Jalastar Aerospace was the right company to undertake this work and they could almost guarantee the board's approval for the First Princes's request! At which point Sortek smiled and pointed out that no doubt the board would accept both of the First Princes's requests, while Marik smiled sweetly beside him. Faced with the unspoken threat of this contract going elsewhere the executives assure the Princes's Champion and his "friend" that they will strongly recommend that to the full board.
At Caph the stalemate continued, with neither side eager to make the first mistake. However on the 19th the ceasefire was effectively broken when the FWLS Santorini and FWLS Sardis jump into the system with the FWLS Menelaus, 4 Eagle class frigates and 3 Zechetinu II corvettes. Accompanying this task force is the 3rd Free World's Guards, 2nd Knights and newly formed 5th Free Worlds Guards. Given WOB's specific request for the 3rd the Captain-General had decided to hedge his bets and dispatch additional units who's loyalty he could count on.
The new players within the system informed both sides that they were here on Captain-General Thomas Marik's orders to bring peace to the system. They intended to do this by making sure that no further fighting took place within the system and by withdrawing the anti-WOB ground forces.
To say Hohiro was furious at this additional insult to his positions as Commanding General was an understatement. He immedietly ordered the FWL forces to place themselves under his own command and aid him in destroying the WOB raiders, and when this was refused he swore to bring the matter up to the First Lord. In a furious rage he was however forced to withdraw as the various DCN officers in charge of his escorts now saw a suitably face saving way to withdraw from the brink of annihilation. Faced with the loss of his warship support he had no other option but to withdraw alongside them. The SLDF task force he had assembled on Deiron to liberate Caph returned to Deiron without ever having landed a single infantry trooper on Caph.
The WOB commander on scene (well briefed) agreed to allow the Free Worlds task force to enter orbit and begin withdrawing the "rebels and pirates" who had attacked the "legitimate WOB government". This evacuation began on the 25th of February and would continue into March. A few questions would be raised about groups which some said had surrendered to the 3rd Free Worlds Guard and had somehow went missing, but so far these were muted. After all not even the remants of the mercenary formations command structures could be sure what troops of theirs actually survived at the current time.
In the Taurian Concordant the WOB ambassador approached the Lord Protector with a singular offer. The WOB had found themselves in possession of 4 Pinto corvettes that they were willing to sell to the Taurian people at a very reasonable price... In order to prevent the ruthless Federated Sun's from annexing them as they had done to the 3 Capellan Worlds and a number of independent worlds within the Chaos March. Indeed the ambassador pointed out that the Federated Sun's navy had arrived in Outreach and it was looking very likely that world would be annexed to the FS in due course... All while no doubt blaming the WOB itself for their own brutal bombardment of the planet...
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I reckon the WoB is trying to deescalate the situation with Successor States right now, so 3rd FWL Guards are possibly meant as a safeguard, but with WoB factions being what they are, while some mean to deescalate, others perhaps intend to backstab the False Thomas for short term gain... In any case this should be the moment the False Thomas decides to curtail the control WoB has over FWL, if he doesn't get thrown out of the airlock by pro-WoB Thera captain. Hohiro will take this poorly though, first Victor steals his moment on Northwind and now Thomas on Caph.
The WOB is FRANTICALLY trying to deescalate the situation (at least most of them are). Frankly they didn't expect to suffer such heavy losses - particularly over Outreach. They were supposed to seize Caph, dig in and build up. Instead it's drawn them into a possible war with the FS, DC, SLDF and open war with Comstar.
Thomas now knows the WOB is going to have him on a short leash moving forward. Time to slip his collar. If he can.
Hohiro... Is starting to feel VERY put upon.
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I wonder what will happen when Hohiro becomes the new coordinator.
He does not seem very happy with a lot of people.
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Maybe he will find a common ground with Black Dragons? :(
In strategic sense this was a mayor failiure for WoB. Sure they eliminated AMC as a viable factor, but they showed their warship numbers and unveiled the extent of their infiltration of Comstar, for a paltry gain of few ships. No one will underestimate them next time they strike. And I reckon that other WoB factions will now focus their factional struggles against Toyamas who cooked up the mess, too little too late, but Thomas might benefit from it.
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I wonder what will happen when Hohiro becomes the new coordinator.
He does not seem very happy with a lot of people.
Hohiro is a much angrier man than in canon. His beloved sister died (because of that damn Davion), his realm was invaded on the orders of the same Davion and one of his grandfathers major gains (Galtor Thumb) was retaken by the Davions and now his tenure as Commanding General of the SLDF has been a less then resounding success particularly when you compare it to the actions of Victor Davion during the same time period.
In fairness to him he's still a first rate general and able administrator. He still has all the skills he had in canon and will be a great coordinator - but also an angrier one which opens him up to problems.
Maybe he will find a common ground with Black Dragons? :(
In strategic sense this was a mayor failiure for WoB. Sure they eliminated AMC as a viable factor, but they showed their warship numbers and unveiled the extent of their infiltration of Comstar, for a paltry gain of few ships. No one will underestimate them next time they strike. And I reckon that other WoB factions will now focus their factional struggles against Toyamas who cooked up the mess, too little too late, but Thomas might benefit from it.
While I don't see Hohiro going full Black Dragon it's fair to say he might have more sympathy with their goals.
Oh it's not been a success. Eliminating the AMC (and particularly the flagship force of the Dragoons) is a huge gain, as is effectively wiping out the 1st ComGuards fleet. But in territory they've managed to annex Caph. Just Caph. Outreach is likely to go to the FS in it's shattered state, and Northwind's heading that way as well. And as you say they've shown their warships - numbers and that they have hidden forces. So next time everyone will be expecting to see more ships and numbers than thought. The various intelligence services will now be crawling over the WOB Protectorate to try and find out details. While also looking for where all these ships and troops came from...
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And Pardeuo won't get to backstabb Stryker. Combined with greater Comstar focus on WoB it might mean next WoB/Capellan/Thugge/Taurian surprises won't be as surprising as they expect them to be.
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And Pardeuo won't get to backstabb Stryker. Combined with greater Comstar focus on WoB it might mean next WoB/Capellan/Thugge/Taurian surprises won't be as surprising as they expect them to be.
No she won't. Stryker might however resign from Comstar still in total disgust - i mean the fact that the head of ROM shot the Primus is a pretty bad sign of how bad the WOB have infiltrated. And he doesn't like Focht and I doubt he thinks too highly of Dow either. Might have him go freelance or he might even work for Victor as he did in canon for a bit at least.
The Taurians are the wild cards really. Frankly I've always had the impression they have a lot of heavy industry but have mostly wasted it so far. If that heavy industry suddenly is put at the disposal of Sun-Tzu or the WOB it could be a major bonus for them.
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3065 - March - Caph evacuated
As March began the head's of the various intelligence agencies of the Federated Sun's sent some rather worrying reports across the desk's of the High Command. The Capellan Confederation was rebuilding at a much quicker rate than had been expected. Shattered commands were being rebuild and even new ones formed. For instance the Sian Dragoons which had been a token force of almost raw recruits was now a brigade of 7 regiments with the first 4 of these either at full strength or nearly so, while also training hard and coming together as a force. Factories that had been devastated by the Federated Sun's counter attack were already starting limited production again and there were even some indications that expansions were in the pipeline, while the new yards at Capella had laid down their first Feng Huang cruiser while the Necromo yards have just finished the CSS Sundermann Rhys. With the refit of the CSS Elias Jung this gives the Confederation Navy 4 of the large cruisers. The funds for this construction program seem to be coming from an outside source as it's a far larger budget that the economy of the Confederation can support. First indications are that Sun-Tzu is leaning heavily on his new allies but some other sources are hinting that some of the money and resources are coming from Terra. To call this a worrying development is an understatement and surveillance is stepped up. When First Prince Victor gets the news he orders 3 invasion plans to be drawn up in secret for the Federated Sun's to preemptively strike at the Confederation if it is required. These plans are to include variants which presume St Ives support or refusal to help the invasion.
Leaving Outreach behind the First Prince again proceeded to disband his personal task force as he headed back to New Avalon with the 1st Davion Guards. On Outreach he left behind the 1st Revenant Guards RCT along with most of the conventional brigades he had brought to the world as well as 2 full independent fighter regiments to support the FSS Marduk and FSS Filtvelt. The Roughneck battalion of MacLeod's Regiment head back to Northwind with the First Princes's thanks as well as a lance of Templar-O omnimechs fresh from Novoya Zemyla and 2 mixed lances of Thugs, Battlemasters and Victors from Tikonov. When the battalion arrives home Major Mulvaney will immedietly hand over these assault machines to the rebuilding units of the Northwind Highlanders. She will however be allowed to keep 2 Templar-O for her command lance.
While Colonel Jaffray will denounce this gift as an obvious bribe, his argument is somewhat weakened when it is pointed out that when he arrived on Northwind he himself brought a battlemech gift from the Chancellor - namely a Huron warrior. Major Chastity Mulvaney causes no small amount of laughter (and almost equal amounts of fury from the other side) when she asks him in a heated council session whether he is upset at the gift or that the First Prince is clearly able to afford a much larger gift than the Colonel's own Chancellor.
Colonel Jaffray's position is further weakened when the warriors of MacLeod's regiment formally meet and elect Major Mulvaney to colonel of their regiment. While Lt Colonel Jacobs was senior she was also older and frankly admitted she was intending to retire within the next 3-5 years. As such a younger more energetic officer was felt to be required for the self appointed "bad boys" of the Northwind Highlanders. Ironically Chastity Mulvaney's former rebellion against Colonel MacLeod's wishes in 3057 was seen in a positive light by the warriors electing her. Who better fit the image of rebel and free spirit than an officer who had rebelled against a rebel! She is formally appointed Colonel of the newly renamed Mulvaney's Regiment 2 days before the vote on whether Northwind should rejoin the Federated Suns. The Clan Elders who might have worked against her election are now more and more coming around to the pro-FedSun's side of the argument and as such most of them give her some backing although knowing the contrary nature of the regiment they make sure to make this support very circumspect.
Few are surprised when the vote takes place on the 28th that the world of Northwind votes to rejoin the Federated Suns rather than maintain it's current vulnerable independence. The vote is roughly 62% in favour of rejoining the Suns with 38% against. Although the vote within the Highlanders themselves is much closer with barely 51% voting in favour of the proposal and within the Northwind Hussars there is a large majority for refusing the First Princes's offer.
What is a surprise is when in the early afternoon of the 29th, a mere 3 hours after the results are declared, large elements of the Northwind Hussars take to their dropships and blast off. Roughly a reinforced battalion, built around Jaffray's Own, leave the world with Colonel Jaffray resigning his commission and informing the people of Northwind that they have betrayed their heritage and he and his troops will continue the true independent spirit of the Northwind Highlanders free of the shackles of House Davion!
Some on Northwind and particularly within the other regiments immediately suggest chasing the departing force, but Colonel's Mulvaney and Stirling speak up and refuse this suggestion. Highlanders should not kill Highlanders and if he wishes to go then that is his right. Although they will formally protest the theft of the Highlander dropships and all non-family owned equipment that the fleeing force has taken. Ironically given Colonel Aria Jacob's refusal of consideration of command of the Northwind Hussar's she is immedietly appointed to command the devastated and leaderless Northwind Hussars.
Northwind's acceptance of the First Princes's offer is relayed to Small World via jumpship as Northwind's HPG is still a crater. A waiting jumpship immedietly jumps back and the people of Northwind are broadcast the First Princes's delight at their decision and welcoming them back home. It is made known to the Clan Elders and news outlets that the First Prince recorded two broadcasts and left them with a jumpship with orders to pass whichever was the correct one as soon as the result was declared. It will become something of a local legend/holy grail for news networks on Northwind to get their hands on the alternate message but they will all be unsuccessful as the First Prince ordered all alternate recordings except his own personal one deleted as soon as the result was made known. Over the years however the interest in seeing what was on the other recording grows and the First Prince eventually promises to release it - upon his death in his will.
At Cooperland the 12th Avalon Hussars arrive and immedietly begin a sweep of the ruined cities to flush out the pirates. In a 2 month campaign they will hunt them down and eradicate them. During this time the Hussars will note that there is a remnant population on the planet which wasn't evident from orbit. The planets society has degenerated into barely subsistence farming on an early 19th century level of technology - having had no market for the production of the few mines on the planet as they fell of the star charts. Spread across the world in small farming villages are estimated to be a few million people although getting a proper count is nigh on impossible without a much larger scale census. These farmers have been feeding the pirates and suffering their attacks since the band arrived on the planet a year ago. Given the suffering of the villages nearest the pirates bases the 12th Avalon Hussars set up a field medical facility and begin helping the locals. Word of this discovery is relayed back
to New Avalon and the 12th's detached combat command is ordered to remain in place. Further follow on support is organised. Although the FSS Markesan which is beginning to have issues with it's 4th dropship collar is ordered back to FedSun space to undergo some maintenance.
In response to the raid on Niles an "unknown" force of "pirates" hit the 44th Galedon Regular's on Capra and inflict heavy losses on their still forming 3rd battalion. The unknown force consists of roughly 2 companies of mostly Draconis Combine produced battlemechs, much of which seems to consist of salvaged machines. It is not missed that the 1st Ceti Hussars and nearby Davion units have a great deal of DCMS salvage to pick through from their seizure of Delacruz, Groveld and Niles and destruction of the 10th and 29th Galedon Regulars. The fact that the pirates made no real effort to hit anything other than military targets is an almost blatant sign that this raid has been committed by a regular AFFS force in response to the strike on Niles. Tai-Sa Jarvek Dolmassey, the Warlord of Galedon's deputy who runs the District while his superior is on Luthien gets the message loud and clear and cancels a further 3 raids into the Bryceland and Dahar PDZ's. The last thing his career needs is for his raiding to kick of an entirely new invasion of the Combine. Particularly given that the AFFS forces still have local superiority over his own regiments along most of the border. If war is declared he's likely to lose at least another half dozen worlds before he can stop the AFFS! Worse intelligence is suggesting that there are at least 2 Fox corvettes somewhere within the Edgeward Combat Theatre.
On Defiance more and more of the Sun Jaguars civilian castes reenter the new cleaned and refitted dropships in preparations for the move to their new homes. More than a few clearly wish they could stay on Defiance, but they are aware of the First Princes's promise to his people that no Clan force will be granted rights to an existing FedSun's planet. Given the history there even the slowest labourer caste member can understand this requirement. However the Khan does send a message suggesting that one of his units could rotate to Defiance and help train the AFFS troops there in anti-Clan combat.
At Galax the FSS Addicks, FSS Chesterton and FSS Tikonov finish construction and join the fleet. However unlike previously the AFFS doesn't assign them to a shakedown cruise within the Outback but instead orders the 3 new warships to take up station and patrol around New Avalon and Galax. Given the state of tensions between the various powers the FedSun's simply can't afford to have 7 warships within the Outback. Arrangements are made to have the 4 Fox's within the Outback to rotate with the new guard ships at New Avalon/Galax so that all the crews gain experience at long patrols. Work begins on the FSS Argyle, FSS Clovis, FSS Goshen and FSS Tortuga are immedietly laid down as a 4th slip has finished construction.
On June the Corean plant has it's new Centurion line enter full production. This now gives this plant a solid foundation of a Valkrie and Centurion line, with a Musketeer hover tank factory also being built. The executives at Corean Enterprises speak with the FedSun's government and request further tax breaks in order to expand the plant on June. Given the nearly constant demand for Centurion battlemechs in particular these tax breaks are granted in return for 2 new Centurion lines being added at June.
Arc Royal Mechworks facility on Killarney goes fully online in march with an additional 2 lines producing the famed Wolfhound battlemech. This will give the FedSuns a regular source of the much sought after light mech from no less than 3 production lines. Ample space has been set aside for new lines as well in the event this demand increases. Victor Davion is still hopeful to be able to convince his brother to allow Arctic Fox production at Killarney in the fullness of time.
During March the CEO's of Jalastar Aerospace formally accept the First Princes's offer and a joint press statement is prepared to be released in April to this effect. Again the First Prince despite arriving on New Avalon at the end of March has Duchess Isis flagged to make the announcement of the expanding production and new omnimech.
Within the courts the StarCorp attempt to sue the FedSun's government which has been going on since January collapses in total disaster on the 7th as the former CEO Amanda Sanchez takes the stand and unveils a list of corporate misdeeds and industrial espionage. While StarCorp attempts to merely withdraw their case the devastating nature of the evidence has the courts instead impose costs and huge fines on StarCorp, while the government also begins to move with the huge number of fines and corruption charges almost the next day. StarCorp's shares drop across the Inner Sphere as a result of this and their FedSun's corporate subsidiary goes into financial meltdown. The situation is so bad that the Federated Sun's government and House Davion - the very people pursuing the company - are forced to step in and safeguard the companies existence, doing so with a huge stock buying option. Many cynical observers are noted to point out that the case has resulted in the Davion's and FedSun's effectively owning StarCorp FedSuns... However even the most cynical have to admit this is only been possible due to the widespread corruption and industrial espionage the company engaged in. The parent StarCorp Industries threatens legal action within the FWL, Capellan, Lyran and Star League courts in response to this "blatant" seizure of their subsidiary. Given their struggling financial situation and now ongoing investigations in the Lyran Alliance and Free Worlds League however this is a paper tiger of a threat...
Duchess Yvonne Steiner-Davion of Tortuga leaves her new world and with her unofficial fiancee heads for Robinson. Once there and once Duke James Sandoval approves his son's engagement to his liege lord's sister their engagement will be formally announced. Said approval is a mere formality at this stage.
On the 25th of March terrorists attack the Deiron shipyards and manage to almost totally obliterate the Inazuma corvette production facility there. The Kyusha construction facility is also damaged in this attack and will be offline for almost 6 months. Opinions are split on whether this was a Davion or WOB sponsored attack.
Commanding General Hohiro Kurita one he arrives at Deiron is informed his father wishes to see him on Luthien. When he attempts to point out he is busy as Commanding General of the SLDF it is explained that his attendance is not optional. Or to be delayed. He leaves for Luthien at once.
The shattered remnants of the anti-WOB forces on Caph begin to slowly trickle in to the FWLM's safe zones for transportation off world. Almost all of them request to be transported to Outreach or Northwind. The various ComGuards troops also filter in and are offered transport to Deiron. One small area of concern that is noted by the commanding officers of the 2nd Knights and 5th Free Worlds Guards is the small number of anti-WOB forces being processed at the safe zones managed by the 3rd Guards. In fact almost no ComGuard's members seem to be arriving at the 3rd's areas. Or if they are they aren't turning up for transport off world.
Of the units on Caph roughly 2 battalions of Wolf's Dragoons are assembled from a mix of their shattered regiments. The survivors unfortunately do not include Colonel Jaime Wolf himself. Although they do include his "daughter" Colonel Maeve Wolf. She leads them off world and to Outreach as soon as possible taking with her her fathers corpse. Accompanying them are the few survivors of the Dismal Disinherited who number roughly 2 companies. Lindon's Battalion which are now a scratch company and the combined Kearny Highlanders reinforced battalion head for Northwind to find out what has happened there. Roughly 2 Divisions of ComGuards troops are also processed by the 5th Guards and 2nd Knights. The few remaining FS loyalists also evacuate at this time, taking their Duke's body with them. The roughly company sized formation of the Grenadiers will be folded into the nearby 5th Davion Guards on Addicks for now with the promise of transfers to serve under the two heirs of the Duke of Caph who are serving in the 1st FedSun's Dragoons and 4th Davion Guards RCT's as soon as possible.
The still recovering Precentor Martial Focht arrives within the Federated Suns and begins to move more rapidly towards New Avalon to meet with First Prince Victor. He even picks of an escort of the FSS Robinson for the remainder of his journey.
Within the Lyran Alliance the Archon Peter Steiner announces that he intends to triple naval spending in the coming year, including the expansion of Fox production from a single corvette a year to 3 slips building the versatile corvette. The flagship design of the LAN however isn't mentioned. While he would like to increase Mjolnir numbers the huge battle-cruiser takes so long to build and he needs warships now, yesterday, not in 5-6 years time.
The Archon is also considering taking a page from his brother's book and reforming some historical brigades of the old LCAF. Although he is still working on these plans.
Within the Free Worlds League Parliament some questions are being asked at the Naval Committee on how many Zechetinu II corvettes have been sold to the WOB... And asked to explain reports that the Blakists seem to have deployed more than the official numbers!
In the Taurian Concordant the Lord Protector signs a secret trade deal with the WOB. In return for WOB help in building up a new shipyard to construct Pinto corvettes and Concordat frigates he agrees to massive transfers of military production and raw materials as well as transferring a number of new ships to the WOB for use against the Davion's in the event of war. The Lord Protector see's this as a return to a golden age of Taurian glory where their fleet was considered the rivals of the Inner Sphere's Houses's navies! The WOB representative frankly doesn't think there's a chance in hell that the Concordant Navy will enter a new golden age with this deal. Best case the Taurian's will manage to construct a handful of white elephant warships that they will struggle to support. Worse case they'll barely be able to keep the 4 Pinto's functional. But either way they will provide a useful puppet against the Federated Suns.
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So unless someone has a better idea or can do the paint using a different system there won't be any maps. Sorry.
Found this that may help building maps:
https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/map-of-the-inner-sphere-3025-interactive-web-based.1075127/
(https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/map-of-the-inner-sphere-3025-interactive-web-based.1075127/)
Looking over the linked Github page there appear to be data files that can be edited to change ownership of the planets. Might be worth an email to see how difficult it'd be to make a version for your AU. Thanks for writing, we all enjoy it more than a bit.
MM
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3065 - April - ComGuards seek help
Having arrived back on New Avalon the First Prince resumes his duties within the government, taking the reigns back from the various advisors who have been dealing with things while he has been at the WOB Front. Meanwhile the 1st Davion Guards RCT resumes it's garrison duties on New Avalon. The addition of the 1st Davion's brings the garrison to 3 Davion Guard RCT's (Light, 1st and 3rd), the 1st New Avalon Cavaliers, 3rd Dragonlords RCT and New Avalon CrMM. While in orbit no fewer than 2 Avalon cruisers and 4 Fox corvettes protect the capital, with another 2 Fox's at nearby Galax. Excluding perhaps Tukayyid and Terra it's fair to say that New Avalon is currently probably the most heavily defended world within the Inner Sphere.
Meanwhile the Federated Sun's navy has been expanded with the addition of 2 further Avalon cruisers at Kathil. The FSS Andrew Davion and the FSS Hanse Davion both finished construction at the end of March but were not officially announced as having joined the fleet due to a clerical oversight. The FSS Andrew Davion takes up station within the Capellan March at an undisclosed location, although many suspect it will remain near Kathil to give the vital shipyards there added protection - while some will argue it is hiding in the Tikonov system to protect that key industrial world from any attack and others will argue it is deployed to the Kittery salient. The FSS Hanse Davion however heads for New Avalon. Like the FSS Melissa Davion it will be home ported there but will not officially join the New Avalon Squadron. Instead the FSS Hanse Davion will take up primary escort duties for the First Princes's flagship the FSS Melissa Davion. This is part of a growing trend for the Federated Sun's to begin deploying it's warships in pairs. A further Avalon cruiser slip is expected to be completed in June and begin constructing a further Avalon. When this happens and with the 2 ships expected to be laid down now that the FSS Hanse Davion and FSS Andrew Davion are complete it will mean that the Federated Sun's is building or will be building 6 Avalon cruisers at a time.
Precentor Martial Focht arrives on New Avalon and is welcomed warmly. A full parade is arranged with elements of all the garrison regiments taking part as well as a flyby from a full brigade of fighters assigned permanently to the garrison (including the 299th Division) and then a review of the entire assembled cadets of the NAIS and Albion Academy. Not only is this a pointed reminder of the friendly ties between the Precentor Martial and the First Prince but also a way to show of the assembled might of the Federated Suns to anyone watching and considering foul play.
Once the parade and review have finished the Precentor Martial is invited into Mount Davion and to a private meeting with the First Prince and his key adviser's present on planet - Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion, Princes's Champion Ardan Sortek, Marshal Galen Cox and Duchess Isis Marik. Also present at the meeting in his capacity as the First Princes's personal aide is Colonel Caradoc Trevena - a Lyran born officer who the First Prince took onto his staff following the Invasion of Coventry and who has now formally joined the AFFS. This group is entirely unofficial, but carries a disproportionate weight with the First Prince when it comes to giving advise. It is also for a Davion Prince a strange collection with 2 FedSun's born military officers, 2 Lyran born military officers and a member of a rival ruling house. Other prospective or current members of this "group" include Marshal Bishop Sortek of the Davion Brigade of Guards, Marshal Jon Davion of the Davion Heavy Guards, Fleet Admiral Buchwald, Duke Arthur Davion, Duchess Yvonne Steiner-Davion, Baron Tancred Sandoval and Duchess Helen Trempeleau of all people, when and if they were present on New Avalon.
The Precentor Martial, still obviously recovering from his wounds firstly gives a frank update of the status of Comstar and the ComGuards after the disasters at Caph and the betrayals that followed. Frankly the ComGuard's ability to take the fight to the WOB has been effectively gutted and will continue to be limited until a reformed ROM is able to purge the holdouts and infiltrators and ensure that no further incidents like what happened at Caph and Tukayyid can occur. At this stage the First Prince officers the services of his own intelligence organisations to help with this review and if need be purge. An offer that the Precentor Martial reluctantly puts off, explaining he will need the Interim-Primus's agreement for that.
Jackson Davion then asks what Focht is here for then if not for help in rooting out the infiltrators. While pointing out that that the AFFS is not in a position to launch a full scale assault on the WOB on it's own at the current time.
Focht explains that his primary mission is to obtain support. Particularly sources of military equipment. The attack on Caph involved the entire 1st Fleet and 2nd Independent Squadron as well as 10 full Divisions of troops. From those 4 warships returned, 3 of them heavily damaged, and 2 Divisions have been recovered due to the actions of the Captain-General of the FWL although most of these troops are without functional equipment and in need of medical treatment. The loss of half their warship fleet and nearly 20% of their ground forces in a single action had devastated the ComGuards and they will need a lot of work to rebuild if they are to take the fight to the WOB.
Marshal Galen Cox does point out that the Federated Suns is already building a number of industrial facilities to be used to jointly supply the ComGuards and AFFS. Production lines on Broken Wheel, Tikonov, New Avalon and 2 entirely new factories on Defiance and Markesan are being expanded or built to help supply the ComGuards. What more does the Precentor Martial want?
The Precentor Martial acknowledges the current level of support, but explains he is looking for more equipment and for additional production lines dedicated to helping supply the ComGuards. More he is desperately in need of more aerospace fighters and dropships. The 10 ComGuard Divisions at Caph had all taken their fighter wings and so far not a single fighter or pilot has been repatriated, while the warship's own fighter wings and the dropships assigned to the force were entirely devastated. If the ComGuards are going to continue the fight then these losses must be replaced.
The mood around the room is grim at this information. While everyone is keen to support the ComGuards fight against their treacherous brethren the AFFS is itself expanding rapidly and needs ever battlemech, tank and fighter it can get it's hands on. At this point Focht did point out that the one thing that Comstar was not short on was money. It was still a ridiculously rich corporation and could effectively afford to buy war material - it just didn't have access to the factories it needed.
Colonel Trevena then points out one possible short term solution followed by a longer term one. While Comstar funds an expansion in factories within the Federated Sun's to help meet their long term needs, they could effectively be offered the right to comb the bone yards of worlds like Novoya Zemyla and Bryceland for tanks and battlemechs that can be refurbished into active use once more. Machines mothballed and abandoned by the AFFS for centuries as obsolete, run down, worn out or just too damaged to be repairable could be bought, refitted and used to build new ComGuards units. The ComGuards get new(ish) equipment and the FedSuns get hard c-bills for equipment they no longer want.
While this hadn't been what the Precentor Martial had had in mind, he was forced to admit it would supply his needs in the short term - if the First Prince was prepared to allow him to fund the increase in factories for the longer term issue. Victor explained he was - but he wanted to renegotiate the terms of their agreement. He wasn't prepared to support the building of factories when the ComGuards would receive the larger share of the production. Focht agreed that the new plants should be a 50/50 split, but the First Prince explained that wasn't good enough. He wanted the entire deal to be reworked to give both parties a 50/50 split - although as a gesture of good will he was prepared to allow the ComGuards to keep the Nexus and Lorica lines for themselves as well as being able to buy Guillotine and Awesome battlemechs from the factories here on New Avalon. He even offered to allow the ComGuards access to the production from the StarCorp plant on Crofton - as long as they helped to pay for expanding it and supported the Federated Suns in any action that StarCorp brought against them.
Anastasius Focht found himself looking over the table at a man he had once considered a promising student and protege and realised that the First Prince had now grown up. Rather than the idealistic warrior prince he had known, the man sitting across from him was now his father's son and heir. Driving a hard bargain for the benefit of his own realm over any idealistic views he might have. Still the deal he was offering was the only one on the table. The Lyrans would be prepared to support him but were inward focussing for the time being, while the FWL and Capellan Confederation were both tied too closely to the WOB to be trusted as a source of equipment and the Draconis Combine was rebuilding itself after the recent conflicts and loss of Victory Industries and damage to the shipyards at Deiron. The Lyran Alliance was a viable secondary supplier but couldn't be relied upon for steady and uninterrupted supply lines, while the Federated Suns could.
Reluctantly he agreed to the terms, but did stress that this wouldn't solve the aerospace issue. The First Prince at the almost visible prompting of Duchess Marik agreed this was an issue and admitted that there would be few fighters in the bone yards. He would make the Hellcat, Lightning and Sabre designs available for sale to the ComGuards in the immediate term as well as look at other designs that they might wish to purchase over and above the existing deal on Dagger-O's. However beyond the limited numbers of Dagger-O, Hellcats, Lightnings and Sabres he could spare, any further purchases would have to come from expansions paid for by Comstar. Which Comstar was welcome to make of course.
He then suggested that the Precentor Martial meet with Duchess Marik to discuss what additional lines that Comstar would wish built and funded within the Federated Suns. She would be his liaison with the Precentor Martial in this regard, supported by Colonel Trevana.
Over the next few weeks Focht, Duchess Marik and the Colonel agreed to support the following expansions. Comstar would pay for Kallon to build an expansive new facility on Belladonna within the Crucis March to build Hornets, Shadow Hawks, Griffons, Wolverines and Exterminators for the ComGuards and AFFS. A vehicle annex to produce Partisan and Challenger tanks would also be built there. GM would be contracted to build a new facility on Victoria near their existing plants on Talcott, Kathil and Salem to build Wasp's, Blackjack-O and a facility for building Lorica battle armour. Achernar would be offered support to build a new facility at Chesterton to build Wasp, Phoenix Hawks and Dervishes for the ComGuard's as well as another small plant building Lorica. Corean Industries would also be offered funding to build a Devastator production line on Northfield.
With regards expansions, a number of companies would be contacted to offer them expansion contracts paid for by Comstar. Quickscell would be offered large scale subsidies to expand their Broken Wheel and Layover plants to build additional Pegasus, Hetzer and Vedette tanks and ACP's, with an agreement that most of these (and the resulting quality control headaches) would be sold to the ComGuards. Also at Layover Salvatore Incorporated would be supported to again expand their Vengeance dropship production with half the additional increase being sold to help rebuild the ComGuard's naval elements. The existing plants either built or being built at Broken Wheel, Defiance and Markesan to support the ComGuards would also see expansions. A second line of Mercury and Hussars would be added to Broken Wheel, while a Mongoose line would be added to Defiance alongside a second Sentinel line and a third Von Luckner and Alacorn line on Markesan. The limited production facility on Ozawa that was building obsolete Kintaro battlemechs would also be fully upgraded and expanded to 2 lines of state of the art royal variant Kintaro's.
Alongside the support for increased Vengeance production Colonel Trevena suggests that the ComGuards provide the AFFS with the specifications for the Colossus dropship class. This behemoth dropship can then be put into production at Galax, Layover, Firgrove and Verde for not only the AFFS but also the ComGuards. Such a massive transport would go a long way to improving both militaries transportation issues.
With Fleet Admiral Buchwald is brought in for a brief meeting where it is also agreed that Comstar will move it's Faslanes to the system of Novoya Zemyla which will be patrolled not only by ComGuard warships but also at least one Federated Sun's Fox corvette to safeguard the ships. In return for this the astronomical charges for the renting of a Faslane to the AFFS will be reduced to only breathtaking.
As for fighter production, the Precentor Martial is offering open licenses and contracts to produce the Huscarl omnifighter and the Ahab, Hammerhead, Spad and Zero aerospace fighter designs. As well as offering support to Wangker Aerospace to put the Tomahawk back into production. While also offering to buy any spare fighters that almost any firm can produce.
One final area of discussion resolves around Maltex's suing of Comstar for them providing Earthwerks plant on Tikonov their design of the Thug. Duchess Marik strongly suggests that Comstar deals with the matter out of court and makes a generous settlement to Maltex - large enough to support them rebuilding their plant on Errai which will give both the AFFS and ComGuards a second source of Thugs and potentially even Wyvern's. Focht after some consideration agrees with this and after a quick discussion with the Precentor New Avalon agrees formally.
On Outreach the surviving Wolf's Dragoons arrive from Caph and face the total devastation of their home world and death of most of hteir friends and families. Rolling both groups of survivors into 2 provisional commands - an under strength Alpha Regiment and Zeta Battalion Colonel Maeve Wolf promises to rebuild not only the Dragoons but also Harlech. How she intends to have the funds for this is something of a mystery given that the huge industrial facilities that were the source of so much of the Dragoon's finances are in ruins and her command is reduced from 5 full regiments and a number of battalion sized commands to less than a full regiment in both her active commands. She does still have the Blackwell shares in the joint venture with GM on New Valencia producing Marauder II's. As well as this production facility Colonel Maeve orders her remaining troops to salvage what they can of the destroyed clan tech and regular production lines on Outreach. While she knows that the plants have suffered catastrophic damage it is possible they can perhaps salvage enough to get at least some production facilities online. In the meantime given the shattered state of her regiments, infrastructure, industry and total destruction of her space facilities and warships she formally petitions the Federated Suns for membership for Outreach and offers her units for long term garrison contracts on the same deal as the Northwind Highlanders. The two companies worth of shattered Dismal Disinherited survivors fold into her Alpha Regiment to bring it to almost full strength as do a number of individual survivors of scattered commands.
The Northwind Highlanders sent out a call for any Highlanders serving in other units or militaries to return to Northwind to help rebuild their shattered commands. Specifically included in this invitation were the Black Thorns and Major Cullen Craig of Swann's Cavaliers. While the Black Watch are not specifically included a number of warriors resign from this prestigious command in order to return home to protect their families and world. Some argue that this is a particularly bad sign for the prestige of the Star League that even members of the Black Watch are prepared to put their own world ahead of the alliance. Lindon's Battalion is also offered the option of folding into the reforming 1st Kearny Highlanders, which they agree to. Stirling's Fusiliers and Mulvaney's Regiment sign long term garrison contracts with the AFFS at rates comparable to the Vegan Rangers, Illician Lancers and such, although the reforming 1st Kearny's Highlanders and Northwind Hussars remain at the current time un-contracted.
The first support troops arrive on Cooperland and begin augmenting the 12th Hussar's attempts to help the scattered communities of surviving colonists. A number of medical facilities are set up and one of the worlds smaller ruined spaceports is put back into operations. Meanwhile a handful of the engineers begin checking the long shut mines to see if they would be viable for the current time period or if they were shut because they ran out of ore. It's soon evident the mines shut due to a lack of technology to keep working them and a lack of trading ships to sell them too. Given the massive expansions of Federated Sun's industries in the nearby Outback there are plentiful markets for the worlds ores. If the mines are reopened.
On Broken Wheel the Mercury and Hussar production lines come fully online. Immediately they begin producing royal variants of these tried and tested designs to be split between the AFFS and ComGuards. With the new agreement between the Precentor Martial and First Prince coming into force at the end of April this will be the single production run that is split as per the 60/40 ComgGuards/AFFS agreement. All further production will be split equally.
The semi-automated plant on June to produce Musketeer hover tanks goes into full production in April as well. With 2 other facilities fully automated work begins on upgrading June to the same standard almost immedietly. Initially there had been some concerns that the Outback world would not be able to support such an advanced design, but given how well and quickly the semi-automated plant has went into operation it is now felt worth the risk of upgrading it.
Wangker Aerospace's Sun Prairie plant has all 4 lines in production as of the 12th of April, bringing this plant online and giving the Draconis March it's own facilities for producing the versatile and ever popular Corsair aerospace fighter. The entire first run of the plant will be sent to reinforce the aerospace wings attached to the various Robinson Ranger regiments.
Along with these fighters the first 2 Union's built at the Verde shipyard are also delivered to the 3rd Robinson Rangers during April having been completed in late March. A small but steady stream of Union dropships will be sent almost exclusively to Draconis March units to replace older and worn out dropships over the coming year.
Jalastar Aerospace's new production plans are formally announced by CEO and Duchess Marik on New Avalon on the 20th of April. The stock price for the company instantly rises given the profit margin on a new omnimech and new facilities. Ironically there is a small drop off in sales for their Javelin battlemech as many buyers now consider waiting for the new omnimech version. Reports of this lead to the First Prince offering the small surplus for sale to affiliated mercenary units and to the ComGuards, both of which soon snap up the small excess of Javelins.
In the Draconis Combine the Coordinator orders that not only will the corvette yards at Deiron be rebuilt they will also be backed up by a new corvette production facility at Chatham or Midway. Seeing the growing number of Fox corvettes on his border he realises he has to get a mass produced light warship into production as soon as possible and so orders the Inazuma corvette to reenter production at both the rebuilt yards and a new one as soon as possible. These new yards will take at least a year to get built and in the meantime he can only grind his teeth and watch as the Davion's commission corvette after corvette while his own fleet doesn't grow.
Worse from the Coordinators perspective the Lyran Alliance push forward with building 2 slips for Fox production at Alarion. While it will take them as long to build the slips they at least have a single slip already in production. Hemmed in on 2 sides by realms ran by 2 brothers he can't help but feel they will coordinate against him if war comes. Not to mention the massive super battleships of the Clan Ghost Bear he has to contend with. As well as reports of the famed aerospace forces of Clan Snow Raven prowling along his periphery border.
Archon Peter Steiner also announces that he will be reforming the 1st and 2nd Hesperus Guards in the coming year. Both formations will be traditional Lyran units but with a full RCT built up around them and will be specifically tasked and trained with defensive operations in mind. The first will be deployed permanently on Hesperus itself while the second will guard the satellite facilities on Furillo. Most commentators take from this that assault battlemechs will predominate. Which pleases most of the traditionalists if nothing else.
On Tharkad the local Comstar Precentor has a meeting with the Archon and General of Armies Adam Steiner about securing access to long term contracts of battlemechs, tanks and fighters as the request of Focht. While he still maintains that the Federated Suns are the best source of such material, gaining access to a secondary supplier is not only logistically a good idea but will prevent the Federated Sun's from raising their prices too high. Also it will make the deals much easier to get by Interim-Primus Dow who is not a fan of the Davion First Prince.
Within the Capellan Confederation Chancellor Sun-Tzu is informed that a cache of war materials secured on Wei have went missing. At the current time his intelligence operatives have little idea of who might have taken it, but whoever it was clearly had extremely accurate information as to where the material was stored and was able to fake very high level codes to get access. The Chancellor does not take this news well and immedietly orders a full investigation to ascertain the leak. As well as recover the material.
The Taurian Concordant begins stockpiling materials to rebuild their long lost naval shipyard capabilities while also awaiting the arrival of the 4 Pinto corvettes they have been promised. The workers who had helped to build the new Capellan yards over Capella are drafted in to help with this project.
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man I am enjoying this. now if Jalastar could be talked into sending a dozen Jabberwockys to Northwind and Outreach for free. that would be nice. Clan spare parts would be a high profit margin low mass export. if they can sell 2/3s of the Clan MPL on the open market? that would be a cash cow.
also if Davion can let slip to ComStar about the Sai 4X. it this slip is passed on? That might that might help DC/FS relations.
what is going on with Blue Stars? That warship is going to need some dock time soon.
Also the St. Ives compact might be of help to Comstar.
any update on FRR. they might be a way to get the Tessen in production or make more Beowulf's
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man I am enjoying this. now if Jalastar could be talked into sending a dozen Jabberwockys to Northwind and Outreach for free. that would be nice. Clan spare parts would be a high profit margin low mass export. if they can sell 2/3s of the Clan MPL on the open market? that would be a cash cow.
also if Davion can let slip to ComStar about the Sai 4X. it this slip is passed on? That might that might help DC/FS relations.
what is going on with Blue Stars? That warship is going to need some dock time soon.
Also the St. Ives compact might be of help to Comstar.
any update on FRR. they might be a way to get the Tessen in production or make more Beowulf's
Glad you are enjoying it!
Jabberwocky's are something I see being expanded upon in production levels soon.
Even just a single production line or as you say spare parts/weapons would give the Dragoons some cash injections and they can probably rebuild. But I doubt the FedSuns will be quite as hands off with them as before. Wolf's Dragoons were given Outreach to defend for the FedCom - and when the FWL and CC invaded the Dragoons did exactly nothing. Indeed they declared or acted indepenendent. I don't see the AFFS making that mistake again. At least the Highlanders had an "excuse" for breaking with the FS.
The Sai would be ideal for the ComGuards - but frankly the DC is incredibly short on fighter production, plus hoping to put a fleet carrier and light carrier design into production. It's very unlikely they will produce any excess for the ComGuards.
The Blue Stars are probably now back at Firgrove - where the Kerensky's Blues is getting SOME repairs. But its slowly becoming harder. For instance it's slipped from 75% operational to 70% operational. Not a huge drop but a drop.
The St Ives are a help but lack the depth to really massively help the ComGuards.
FRR is still the site of some ComGuards facilities but it's again just not got the depth and frankly is right on the clan border. A factory is a LOT safer in the Crucis March than the FRR.
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Bravo, Billy!
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Thugees have nerve gas again?
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Superb stuff, the Suns is turning into a real military powerhouse but with three extremely beligerent neighbours it needs to be.
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3065 - May - continued expansions
Having spent a number of months away from New Avalon engaged in active military campaigns the First Prince threw himself back into the role of ruler upon his return to the capital. Although he continued to train every day in his battlemech with the various garrison units at the New Avalon Combat Training Centre and the NAIS grounds. By now almost the entire AFFS was referring to the Daishi class omnimechs (the most prominent of which was the First Princes's own ride) by their clan name of Dire Wolf, perhaps as a token gesture to the new Clan Sun Jaguar.
One of the major new changes that the First Prince did push through in May was the inclusion formally of the Fleet Admiral's position within the High Command. With the growing military might of the naval forces of the Federated Suns and their vital importance in recent campaigns having the Navy have a voice at the highest echelons of the AFFS was seen to be a vitally important step. However the First Prince didn't take the step of breaking the Navy off into it's own separate service. The Federated Sun's Navy had always been an integral part of the AFFS and would continue to remain so.
With the return of the First Prince to New Avalon Marshal Deedee Faulkner approached the Marshal of Armies again and requested a formal meeting with him and the First Prince about further expansions of the Borderer Brigade. Slightly irritated Marshal Davion did agree. At the meeting Marshal Faulkner pushes again for additional units. Particularly the 1st Sheraton Knight's to be assigned to her brigade. The First Prince and Marshal of Armies however are in full agreement that this transfer will not occur. They explain that the Sheraton Knights were raised to their current position as an independent regiment of the AFFS after years of loyal and heroic service in the name of the First Prince. Until and unless the Knights themselves request a transfer this won't be forced upon them. However the First Prince does see some advantages in expanding the Borderers. He makes no promises but does give assurances to the Marshal that he will consider adding new regiments to the Borderer's in key strategic locations. As well as giving his formal approval of the formation of an Avalon Borderer's regiment once the other ones were approaching full strength.
One small expansion that the First Prince does authorise for the AFFS is the formation of a new Training Battalion for the Tortuga worlds. The training staff will be drawn from serving AFFS officers from Outback worlds similar to the Tortuga world, while the recruits will be drawn from all 6 Tortuga worlds. An armoured militia regiment and 2 regiments of local infantry militia will also be upgraded to Regular Army status and attached to the unit to help form the "LCT" element of the command. Field Marshal Angela Kouranth is instructed to attempt to choose officers with anti-piracy experience and push anti-piracy work as a speciality for the new training unit. To support this the unit is to be given integrated transportation assets and used to make local anti-piracy sweeps. The battlemechs and tanks chosen for the unit are to be picked for their low maintenance and supply needs - for instance freshly built Wolfhounds from Killarney.
With regards to the offered licenses for fighter production offered by Comstar, Lycomb-Davion makes a strong bid for the Huscarl-O and Hammerhead designs. In hastily arranged meetings with the Precentor New Avalon it is agreed that Lycomb-Davion will build 2 lines of Huscarl-O's and a line for Hammerhead fighters at their plant on New Avalon and an additional Hammerhead line at their plant on June. Initially the company had also wanted to bid for the Ahab design but Comstar had suggested that they concentrate on 2 designs and produce a decent number of them rather than spread themselves to thinly and only produce a small number of each fighter. One requirement that isn't popular with Comstar but which Lycomb-Davion insist on is that they are able to sell any production over these initial lines to the AFFS. When this contractual term was refused Lycomb-Davion threatened to pull out of the whole deal and informed Comstar that no other aerospace company would agree to only exclusively supply the ComGuards either. After some checking that this was indeed the case the Precentor agreed. Although insisted that the ComGuards retained the rights of first purchase on any excess the Davion's didn't want.
In addition to the new facilities to produce fighter designs for Comstar Lycomb-Davion also announces in May that they will be adding a second line of Guillotine battlemechs. Faced with increasing demand for the versatile and well guarded design they announced they would be begin construction of a second line in June and hoping to have it enter production by January 3066.
Wankger Aerospace accepted Comstars offer of support to add lines for the versatile Tomahawk aerospace fighter in May as well. They agreed to add a line at each of their Axton, Filtvelt and Sun Prairie plants for the fighter and to sell at least half of the production to the ComGuards. The remaining production would be available to the AFFS. Wangker also offered to build an entirely new plant if the ComGuards were prepared to fund the entire construction exclusively for the ComGuard's use. They offered to build not only Tomahawks at this plant but also Corsairs, Eagles and Thunderbirds. Such a major production plant would obviously be expensive but would provide a large boost to the ComGuards aerospace assets. Still such a major investment would require approval at the highest level and the New Avalon Precentor sent word of the offer to the Interim-Primus, albeit with his suggestion it be accepted.
One final company did take Comstar up on their proposed fighter production at this time. Jalastar Aerospace offered to put the Spad and Zero designs into production at their flagship plant on Panpour. As part of the deal they also offered to construct a second line for sabre fighters at both of their new plants if Comstar would fund the construction and offer the sale of the rugged light fighter in large numbers to the ComGuards. Both offers were immedietly accepted.
Remaining for the time being on New Avalon the Precentor Martial makes a heavily encrypted message to the Interim-Primus himself. In it he suggests that the ComGuards consider the construction or purchase of Fox class corvettes from the Federated Suns. While not the best warship out there the tried and tested nature of the design would allow the ComGuards to begin expanding their fleet at a much faster rate than relying on the limited production of their Faslanes. He suggests in his message that Comstar either fund the expansion of an existing naval yard or an entirely new yard to supply their needs - while being frank about the likely price that the FedSun's would demand from them for this arrangement. When the message is decoded and shared with Interim-Primus Dow the man goes absolutely berserk and comes within a hair's breadth of sacking the Precentor Martial there and then. However as he calms and and is forced to listen to Naval Precentor Alain Beresick's frank appraisal of the long term implications of the WOB having access to Titan's shipyards he is forced to seriously consider the suggestion.
On Errai with the first payments from Comstar coming in Maltex begins rebuilding their long destroyed plant. Despite initial expectations that they would concentrate on getting a Thug line up and running the company instead concentrates it's efforts on it's urban combat specialist design the Wyvern. This is explained when upon the first stone being laid in the new factory the company announces an exclusive contract to supply the AFFS with 5 full companies of a modern upgrade on the old Royal class designs. Given the fact that the plant is being built using Comstar funds this is seen as a slap in the face to Comstar by Maltex and payback for them handing over the Thug design to Tikonov. However the company does announce that the Thug line when built will sell to Comstar and the Federated Suns.
Seeing various other companies adding a variety of designs to their production output two companies within the Federated Sun's decide to branch out themselves and seek to expand on their market share. They do however take a drastically different approach.
On Tikonov Earthwerk's goes looking through their older designs that are no longer currently produced. They decide to revitalise their long forgotten Koschei class battlemech which stopped production in 2714. A design team is assembled to upgrade and bring the the design into the 31st century. As a stopgap measure and noting the poor sales of their Thrush and Transit fighter design they license the Sabre class fighter from Jalastar Aerospace for a hefty fee and begin retooling their Thrush lines to produce the more popular Sabre. Initially they had tried to purchase a license for the Sparrowhawk but this was immedietly refused. They also contact Comstar and offer to retool their Transit lines to produce the Ahab aerospace fighter design although admit this will take some time to manage. Still it will be quicker than building an entirely new plant.
Achernar Battlemech's decide however to take a different approach. Now producing the Argus omnimech at their plant on New Avalon the company decide to firstly add an Argus line at their new plant on Filtvelt, although given the high end nature of the omnimech design they realise this plant is unlikely to build quickly. In the meantime the company also starts to long term research projects. The first is to design a new omni-variant of their almost iconic Dervish battlemech. Even with upgrades and redesigns the Dervish has never particularly taken off with recent sales, but it is felt that a Dervish-O would be ideally placed to corner the market for a home grown medium weight omnimech. The second research project that the company undertakes is to design a low maintenance and easily constructed battlemech. This project will grow arms and legs and will eventually lead to Corean Industries being included in the project to gain access to their Centurion chassis.
Basantapur Fine Metals at the invitation of the Federated Sun's Government sends a team to Cooperland to inspect the long dormant mines. Their remit is to decide whether the mines can be put back into operation and turn a profit that would support the development and integration of the world into the Federated Suns. Including supporting a garrison of troops. Early reports from the engineers attached to the support troops as well as historical records suggest that as well as a large quantity of various common metals the world also had small but rich deposits of Germanium.
Outreach is formally accepted into the Federated Suns and premier mercenary garrison contracts signed between the Wolf's Dragoons and the AFFS at the same time. In the meantime the Dragoons have managed to begin salvaging the Blackwell plant. Given the damage it is unlikely that they will be able to put any of the larger battlemechs back into production but they do begin rebuilding a single clan tech Falcon battlemech line. Although given the extreme damage and lack of viable parts this will be a long term project that will stretch into 3066. In quite discussions it is explained to Colonel Maeve that it would be in Outreach's and the Wolf Dragoon's best interests if they did not hoard this technology for themselves but offered up at least a portion of any future production to the wider AFFS and FedSuns. Particularly given the Dragoon's desperate need for support in rebuilding. One thing that is suggested that if the Wolf's Dragoons are prepared to be flexible on this then the First Prince might ask his new allies the Sun Jaguars to send clan trained technicians to help with the rebuilding. Which will massively increase the chances of successfully rebuilding the line.
The Black Thorn mercenary company which consists of almost 4 lances of mechwarriors mostly equipped with clan tech omnimechs and battlemechs withdraw from their contracts with the Draconis Combine and leave Galedon heading for Northwind. With a friendly hint from their former Liaison Officer they swiftly seek passage across the border and into the Draconis March. As such they narrowly avoid the DCS Amber Lotus which had been ordered to seize their dropship and take them into custody.
Major Cullen Craig resigns his commission with Swann's Cavaliers and with nearly 2 companies of former Cavaliers he also heads for Northwind. His commanding officer Colonel Rapier is furious at this "desertion" but given the popularity of the well regarded Major has little option but to grit his teeth and ignore it.
Within the Lyran Alliance the 15th and 19th Arcturan Guards are scheduled for upgrading to RCT status. The Archon has promised that as soon as this upgrading is complete 2 units of the Donegal Guards will also begin upgrading. This is seen as a rolling upgrade process to have as many units as possible have full RCT support and status.
The Chancellor of the Capellan Confederation orders a small stockpile of assault and heavy battlemech's to be built up on Sian for a project of his. He envisions secretly returning the Capellan Chargers to the active regiments of the CCAF and using them in a similar manner to House Davion uses the Assault Guards. He also receives the former Death Commando Colonel Jaffray and his troops on Sian during May. Although the Colonel suggests and pushes for his unit being hired as a mercenary force the Chancellor does not agree and instead "offers" them a place within the Capellan Brigade as a 2 battalion command, listing them as Jaffray's Own.
At Caph in a clear show of strength to their FWL "allies" 3 new Dante class frigates enter the system and join the patrolling WOB ships. Whether this is a gesture of what a strong ally they are or a pointed reminder to the FWLN not to turn on them is a matter of open debate. The Captain-General when he reads the reports is clear on which he thinks it is and begins engaging SAFE in anti-WOB preparations... He is however unable to prevent the delivery of 3 additional Zechetinu II corvettes to the WOB in May.
In the Free Rasalhague Republic concerns begin to grow that the ComGuards are considering withdrawing from the Republic. Either to retake Terra itself or perhaps given the reports of investments within the Federated Suns to that realm. However they receive assurances that the ComGuards will remain to safeguard the Republic against any Clan threat. However these assurances do little to quieten concerns and some within the Republic begin to argue that perhaps an alliance of some sort with the Clan Ghost Bear would be in the people's best interests!
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the dragoons might consider a decent second line clan mech
for construction and sales to other units/houses
I was thinking something fast and nasty, but with limited high end expensive
components, unable to look anything up currently but for some reason the
Piranha pops up in my head
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I'd recommend a Black Hawk/Nova myself.
Only advanced tech is the 250XL, the Omnimech gyro and whatever weapons config they put together.
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3065 - June - An engagement announced
On the 1st of June the Duchess Yvonne Steiner-Davion and Baron Tancred Sandoval arrived back on Robinson. The Duchess had left the world in a medical evacuation dropship after being injured in the attack upon the March capital by rogue elements of the DCMS and had required extensive surgery and myomer reconstruction of her leg, yet her bravery in the face of her injuries and demands that others engaged in the same attack receive the same level of care as herself had won her the hearts of the people of Robinson. On top of this there was the now open secret that she and the heir to the Duke of Robinson were "secretly" engaged. As such she was greeted to an almost raptuous welcome upon the streets of Beuller as her and the baron's cavalcade passed. A full military parade consisting of her future father-in-laws personal regiment the 1st Robinson Rangers, her future husband's personal regiment the 2nd Robinson Rangers and element's of her brothers regiment the 3rd Robinson Rangers were also joined by a combined arms battalion of her families own personal regiment the 1st Davion Guards which had been rushed with the Princes's Champion to Robinson ahead of her arrival to join in the full parade offered by James Sandoval. As the element's of no less than 4 battlemech regiments which she had personal ties to marched with her the streets were lined with element's of the Robinson DMM to control the welcoming crowds.
At the steps of the Ducal Palace the happy couple was greeted by the three figures of Duke James Sandoval, Prince's Champion Ardan Sortek and newly promoted Lt Colonel Arthur Davion. Led into the palace to the cheering of the crowds they 5 leaders soon retired to a small private reception area after greeting a number of important well wishers and the James Sandoval formally gave his blessing to the match between his son and Yvonne Steiner-Davion. Adding his voice to this Ardan Sortek explained that he was here standing in for the First Prince who duties of state kept tied to New Avalon to give his own blessings and if he could be so bold he also felt he was standing in for Yvonne's father and mother his two oldest friends. Arthur Davion also was here not only in his own reight but representing their brother to give their joint blessings on the marriage.
With all the various parties in full and heartfelt agreement a formal announcement was released from the Ducal Palace that evening. By the next morning the news had been flashed across the HPG network. Along with notification and various invites to the wedding at the Grand Temple on Robinson which would take place on the 1st of December that year.
The First Prince meets with Marshal Roger William Waters to discuss further expansions of the Avalon Hussars in the upcoming year. However this time their discussions mostly involve expanding existing units rather than forming new ones. While the 1st, 2nd, 22nd and 39th Hussars are all approaching 100% strength and could be used to provide the seed for a new Hussar regiment it is decided that the only unit that will do this is to be the 2nd which is a reinforced regiment. Instead the 1st, 22nd and 39th will be upgraded to reinforced regiments themselves and will continue to build up to that strength in the coming years. Given the nature of the 2nd Avalon Hussars however it is agreed that any new unit that is formed from it's ranks should at least initially be deployed within the former worlds of the United Hindu Collective. Stopping short of increasing the active numbers of commands as previous expansions have done this does mean that the number of reinforced regiments within the Brigade will rise from 5 to 8.
The new Training Battalion begins to form on Tortuga. The support elements are easily assembled from local militia forces and begin to receive upgrades while candidates for the actual battalion are carefully selected. Most of them are either young former slaves or serfs of the pirates or their children, although 3 members turn out to be former pirates children. While this will cause some resentment with the ranks it is pointed out at almost every weekly briefing that they are all now Federated Sun's citizens regardless of parentage. No former pirates will themselves be allowed to join unit.
The Federated Sun's Navy see's 3 new Fox corvettes commissioned in June, the FSS El Dorado, FSS Warren and FSS Benet III all slip from the shipyards and enter commission. The FSS El Dorado is assigned to the Outback Squadron while the FSS Warren is dispatched to join the Draconis Squadron and the FSS Benet III is sent to join the Capellan Squadron. With a further slip finishing building the FSS Dahar, FSS Edwards, FSS Galax and FSS Kittery begin construction. Even as the new slip is finished work begins on expanding the shipyard again.
At Kathil a further Avalon slip finishes construction and immediately lays down another of the now iconic cruisers. This will bring the total of Avalon's under construction to 6, with a further 10 Fox's currently either starting or under construction along with 3 Davion III and 2 Congress-D II. Meanwhile work is continuing on a number of new slips to add naval capacity to the Federated Suns, particularly 3 larger slips clearly designed for a major combatant. The actual warships in commission now number 23 Fox class corvettes, 1 Covenant class cruiser and 7 Avalon class cruisers. Given the growing number of Fox corvettes in particular some discussion is given to providing a repair facility for at least corvettes in each of the 3 march's. Verde is the obvious choice within the Draconis March but there is a great deal of discussion as to which of the several shipyards should be picked for this role within the Crucis and Capellan March's given that the previous repair and refit facility was eventually upgraded to full production! Fleet Admiral Buchwald has a number of his naval staff begin reports for the First Prince on the various merits and demerits of each location.
On Northwind the first of the recalled Highlanders return. A handful arrive in ones and twos but the largest single formation is the Black Thorns. Captain Jeremiah Rose is surprised to immedietly be offered a commission within the Northwind Hussars as a full major. His Thorn's will become the core of his new battalion the Black Thorn Battalion which will replace the disgraced Jaffray's Own. Even more surprising is the fact that his father, Corneilus Rose is one of those strongly pushing for him to take the appointment. In a heart to heart meeting with his father and still crippled sister the three surviving Rose's meet at the family home and reconcile. Helping this reconciliation was the senior Rose's informing his children that he had arranged via the newly reformed ties between Northwind and the Federated Sun's for Rianna to attend the NAIS for treatment.
The day after this meeting Jeremiah Rose formally accepts the posting and merges his command into the Northwind Hussars as the units 1st Battalion, the Black Thorns. With various odds and ends that are diverted to the regiment the Northwind Hussars is now the strongest Highlander regiment and while un-contracted to the Federated Suns begins seeking contracts to bring in c-bills to help rebuild Northwind and keep their experience levels up.
Also on Northwind the AFFS places a large initial order for 8 companies of the King Crab "Clanbuster" 001 variant and a further order of 6 companies of the Crab 27b model. This order will have the Clan Elders considering ordering an expansion of both lines.
On El Dorado the new battlemech production facility goes online with it's first active production line. Battlemaster class battlemechs begin to walk from the production line and are almost instantly readied for shipment to the various units of the AFFS. Although the Duke of El Dorado does request that he be allowed to retain some of the production from the new plant to help equip a planetary defence force to an adequate level. The First Prince considers this request and makes enquiries with his distant cousin about what he considers an "adequate" level.
GM's new battle armour plant to produce the Grenadier design on Point Barrow goes active this month. A huge and sprawling annex to the existing battlemech factory it is to exclusively build Grenadier class suits and the company is clearly banking on massive initial orders and long term contracts. A faith that seems to be entirely well placed due to the fact that the plant is soon running at full capacity and the AFFS is snapping up every suit it can build! The expansions to the dedicated Talcott battle armour plant are immedietly increased and stepped up in light of this.
On Robinson the new Black Knight line enters production and units immedietly begin being sent to the various Robinson Rangers units in particular as command mechs. Comstar however contacts the Duke of Robinson and offers to buy the entire production run on a long term contract but the patriotic Duke refuses. He does however offer to build a 2nd line of the well regarded battlemech and sell that production line's output to the ComGuards... If Comstar funds the expansion 100%. He is actually surprised when Comstar almost immedietly accepts the offer and begins arranging the funds to be put in place.
Within the Capellan Confederation the newly minted Jaffray's Own regiment of the Capellan Brigade arrives at it's posting on Footfall. Despite assurances that an adequate new base and supplies would be waiting for them almost none of the equipment or facilities is evident upon arrival. Instead the unit is houses in a disused Home Guard base and finds it's supply situation little better than that same level of formation. Moving quickly to prevent dissent Colonel Jaffray begins planning a raid with his command to net them the supplies they require. Conveniently House Davion's new refit centre is just across the border!
On Caph that last of the various refugees lift of the planet and head for their respective destinations. A few days later the 2nd Knights and 5th Free World's Guards also leave the planet and head for rendezvous with the FWLN warships that escorted them here. Despite expectations that the 3rd Free World's Guards would also be lifting off the commanding officer informs the others officers that his unit requires some time to reload their dropships due to a mistake in the loading schedule and that they will follow. Despite this assurance the 3rd hasn't left Caph by the end of the month.
At the end of the month the saKhan of Clan Sun Jaguar arrives at Wayside V and begins to discuss the future of the survivors of the Smoke Jaguars with the leaders there. This meeting will be tense and on occasion will hover on the edge of violence and will head into July and August.
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WOW..... that is a fleet. 23 foxes +10 more building, 1 Covenant CA, 7 Avalon cruisers + 6 more, then you add 3 DD and 2 FF. I can not wait to see what you task group flagship is going to look at. it also makes you wonder when they are going to move to a new class of Corvettes.
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WOW..... that is a fleet. 23 foxes +10 more building, 1 Covenant CA, 7 Avalon cruisers + 6 more, then you add 3 DD and 2 FF. I can not wait to see what you task group flagship is going to look at. it also makes you wonder when they are going to move to a new class of Corvettes.
There is an element of "if it isn't broken - don't fix it." The Fox corvette isn't a maxed out design. It's frankly a warship prototype. But it's versatile and frankly a tough little ship. Also given that they have over 30 of them built or building they have worked out all of the kinks in producing the ship in numbers. So... They could redesign a Fox II or a Hound or whatever class of corvette - and then lose the current benefits. To maybe have a better ship later. Maybe. If nothing goes wrong with the design - say a modern day Cameron Battlecruiser debacle? The AFFS is sticking to the KISS principle heavily.
Sure the sturdy little Fox isn't going to run down a Zechetinu II or Inazuma corvette... But it's a LOT tougher than them and has comparable weapons - at least within the same league. He who runs away and lives to fight another day - gives up control of the orbitals to the Davions and lets them land troops... ;)
Then theres numbers.
Right now the FWL has roughly 4 Zechetinu I and 7 Zechetinu + 7 extra currently (as of canon 3067 and probably 3-6 extra from new shipyards build due to the FS's naval budget). So 21-24 Corvettes by December 31st 3067 by current building schedules.
The Draconis COmbine currently has 4 corvettes and by 3066 will have 2 slips built and so by 3067 will have 6 corvettes. Maybe 7.
At current rates the Davion's have 21, 10 more completing in 3066 and another 10-12 finishing in 3067. Minimal they will have 41 and maybe as many as 43 at current building rates - without any major expansions or deviations from their current buolding regime.
The CC isn't even building a corvette.
Neither the FWL, DC or CC are currently building destroyers. The FedSuns has 3 building and 3 more slips planned.
Basically in "light" warships the FedSuns have a numerical superiority with their "good enough" corvette and excellent (at least hopefully) destroyer. The one spanner in the works is the DCN's new Block III New Samarkands... But pack a Fox with vengeance dropships and you'll have a quick counter to that.
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that is going to still leave them hurting going against BB of WoB or FWL big hitter. I also wonder what would happened if the FS intel people get a hint about the Clementia.
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it just hit me. they have not been using "Black Box" the K-6 should have went into production around 3061
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3065 - July - Deals struck or suggested
The first staff begin assembling in July for the new Lexington Military Academy on the planet of Lexington. Most of the staff including the Kommandant of the academy will be drawn from the Lexington Combat Guard and their former formation the Lexington Combat Group, although a handful of officers will also be brought in from certain prestigious formations such as the Davion Brigade of Guards, Ceti Hussars and Deneb Light Cavalry. The first class will enter the still building academy in January 3066 and are expected to graduate at the end of December 3068. At which point they will be formed up as a full LCT consisting of 4 battlemech companies, 2 heavy battalions of armour, 2 light battalions of armour, an artillery battalion, VTOL battalion and a full regiment of battle armour infantry with an attached fighter wing. It's graduates are slated to mostly be directed towards the Lexington Combat Guard although the officers of the former mercenary unit are also happy to share any excess with units such as the Ceti Hussars.
First Prince Davion on the 3rd of July meets with Marshal Amelia Fitzwilliam's of the Chisholm Raiders Brigade and the Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion. During this meeting he discusses with the Marshal the idea of perhaps using the Chisholm Raiders as the basis for a larger formation of LCT's. Reports from Jon Davion of the Heavy Guards on Tancredi have spoken to the flexibility of the LCT model and how there might be a use for it both in raiding and attacking minor systems as well as defending the Federated Suns's long borders. Both Victor and Jackson Davion can see a use for a larger number of "light" commands which can be deployed to seize undefended systems or to raid behind enemy lines or patrol their own border worlds that might not merit the stationing of a full battlemech regiment on it. However forming a new brigade of these units would take too long and while they have already agreed to use the 1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT as the core of a reborn brigade this will still take too long and will result in a large number of green formations which might not be best placed to take advantage of the opportunities inherit in the new formation. The small demi-brigade of Raider's however are an ideal core for the new formation and given their long standing speciality in unorthodox tactics are considered a good fit for the new concept. If their commanding officers can be brought around to the idea that is.
Marshal Fizwilliam initially feels that this idea is basically the dismemberment of her brigade rather than expanding it. Still she does sit and discuss the matter with the First Prince and Marshal of Armies. If for no other reason than both men are considered experienced generals and their ideas are worth listening to. The fact they are also her bosses probably has a small part to play in her hearing them out. They explain that the current plan they have is to raise both units to reinforced regiments and then form 4 full commands from each RCT while also forming at least 2 and perhaps as many as 4 more new commands fresh from graduating cadets in the next few years. This would give the newly reformed Chisholm Raiders Brigade no less than 10-12 LCT's compared to the current 2 RCT's. While their individual commands would be smaller than say the Davion Brigade of Guards or Crucis Lancers Brigades they would have more actual commands and would be able to play a vital part in any future war. They also promise that the current Raider's traditions would be honoured and as a final nod to those traditions the two men suggest that a small academy could be set up on the Raiders "home world" of Colorado to provide a steady stream of recruits for the formations trained in their particular tactics and traditions.
The Marshal doesn't feel she can make such a momentous decision on the future of her unit on her own and seeks the permission of the First Prince to contact the two Marshal's currently in command of the 1st and 2nd Raiders as well as 3 retired general officers who have previously held command positions within the Brigade. That seems a sensible request and the First Prince agrees and authorises her to either visit her two commands or invite the retired officers to New Avalon depending on which seems the best option.
Within the Draconis March Duke James Sandoval begins putting plans in place to reform the Dahar DMM's Armoured Brigade. One thing that is causing him no small issue in this project is the lack of major armoured vehicle production within his March. He sends word to his representative on the High Command to raise this issue with the First Prince and other members of the High Command as a priority. In the short term orders are cut from New Avalon to divert armour production to the Dahar DMM and help them form 2 armoured regiments from the local militias. However in the long term this lack of vehicle production within the Draconis March will need to be addressed. Both Kallon and GM will be contacted about adding small plants to at least begin addressing this issue, while Johnston Industries are contacted about expanding their facilities on Addicks and Benet III to add vehicle lines.
On the 19th July Jaffray's Own jump the border, having obtained confirmation that the 2nd Davion Guards RCT has moved from Axton and is no longer stationed at Bell, and make a full thrust burn for Bell. They've got exactly 6 elite rated pilots who had defected from the Northwind Hussars with them and those pilots are soon earning their keep, dog fighting with at first 6 fighters from the 1st Capellan Dragoons. While the former Northwind pilots have a slight edge in skill at first they are soon massively outnumbered as Light Commodore Ceola Jackson leads the rest of the 1st Dragoon Wing to the aid of the hastily scrambled ready squadron. The Crone herself leads her veteran pilots into the fray and soon the skies over Bell are filled with spiralling fighters and explosions. With only a slight edge in skill and outnumbered 3:1 the fighters attached to Jaffray's Own are soon swept from the skies, but they do at least manage to buy time for the dropships carrying the 4 mech companies to land.
While the 1st Capellan Dragoons ground components reform and reorganise around the Hasek Refit Centre the 1st Bell Training Reinforced Battalion and it's supporting forces deploy to screen the facility and buy time for the heavier and more experience formation to get ready. Jaffray's Own smash into the Bell Training Battalion and soon scatter the green formation inflicting heavy damage on the battlemech companies in particular. However before they can reform from their charge the 1st Armoured Dragoons battalions, which consists of new machines and as such doesn't have any units down for refit charges to join the Bell Battalion's supporting armour and close in around the Capellan/Northwind troops.
Holding of the armoured forces probing and rushing in around them the elite Highlanders have no problem in holding their ground but any chance they had of rushing the Refit Centre while the Dragoons were still disorganised fades and dies as they are pinned down by the armour battalions. Seeing the 1st Capellan's Dragoons 1st and 2nd Battalions moving to join the fray Colonel Jaffray calls a reluctant retreat to his dropships. He does manage to drag away a number of the cadet's battlemech's which his command disabled, but barely enough to replace the losses and damage he sustains in the retreat to his dropships and flight off world. When the total destruction of his attached fighters is added into the equation the raid has been an obvious flop. Still the report sent to Sian stresses the damage inflicted upon the Capellan Dragoons and Bell Training Battalion.
Although the report sent to Sian lists the damage to the Capellan Dragoons as almost their entire armour battalion and a company of battlemechs as well as 2 companies of cadets from the Bell Training Battalion and at least the same again in armoured and infantry companies. The real damage is roughly a company of cadets and 2 mixed companies of armour from both commands. However most of these losses are material rather than personnel and are swiftly replaced. The few losses to the actual cadet corp itself are swiftly made up with an upsurge in anti-Capellan volunteers. The only major problem in these new recruits are that many of them expect to sign up on Monday and be launching attacks into the Confederation by Wednesday at the latest.
Refitting his damaged battlemechs and repairing what he can of the captured machines his unit actually see's a slight loss in operational ability. However his spirit in striking back at the hated Davion's does at least earn him some favour with some Capellan officers and a small number of replacement machines and even a handful of home guard mechwarrriors are diverted to his command along with enough spare parts to replace his losses. Although Jaffray's Own's fighters are not replaced at all.
Not withstanding the failed nature of the raid the Davion High Command on New Avalon and Duke Hasek on New Syrtis both agree that a message must be sent. Between them they begin preparing to send a clear and unequivocal message to Sian to reign in such adventurism in the future. Or face even greater reprisals and losses.
The news coming from the Federated Sun's to Sian was made worse when Bergan Industries officially announced that they would begin construction of a new Wayland Mobile Base factory on the Federated Sun's planet of Andalusia. Hints were made in the release that Locust production might also be considered for this new site. Hurried assurances were sent to Sian that no technical data will be shared with the new plant in the FedSuns!
The Northwind Highlanders are bolstered when Major Cullen Craig formerly of Swann's Cavaliers arrives home with 2 companies of his former battalion who have decided to follow him back to Northwind. Few of these men and women are Highlanders themselves but they are prepared to serve in any unit that has their Major in command. The 2 companies are folded into beginning reforming the 1st Kearny's 3rd battalion. Each battalion has now at least on paper been reformed, with each battalion roughly at tow thirds strength.
At Wayside V the talks between the Fidelis and the Sun Jaguars finally begin to see breakthroughs. The Home Worlds branch of the survivors are already aware that their current colony will soon be outstripped by their settlements and that they are still dangerously exposed on this isolated planet with no friends nearby. Or indeed friends at all. Joining themselves to the Sun Jaguars will give them an opportunity to expand across 3 formerly colonised worlds and perhaps expand further. More, this will allow them to official "rejoin" a Clan. The fact that this is a clan sworn to House Davion does cause many of them reservations, but at least it has a warrior First Prince who himself vanquished Clan Smoke Jaguar. By Clan traditions and laws who better to serve than he who had defeated them. This will in the eyes of the traditionalists turn the Annihilation into an Absorption. After some long and difficult discussions the Fidelis agree to join Clan Sun Jaguar.
It is only with this acceptance that the Fidelis reveal two of their secrets. The first is that they retain a full copy of the Smoke Jaguar Remembrance. The second is that they also have contacts with the remaining bandit caste Smoke Jaguars in the home worlds led by "The Jaguar" Russou Howell and might be able to request them to also join the Sun Jaguars - including the warship the Streaking Mist. The leader of the Fidelis Paul Moon offered to send word to The Jaguar and ask him to rendezvous perhaps at Antallos at a specified time. He was able to promise that at least the crew of the Streaking Mist would listen to his orders as they were his followers and only obeyed Russou Howell on his orders.
During the journey to the new Sun Jaguar home worlds of Fugeres, Frankson and Valois the Tiaret Nevversan and Paul Moon share their experiences on Huntress and the destruction of their former Clan. This draws them together and they soon become close. Tiaret receives insight into how hard it was for the former Smoke Jaguars on Huntress, while she also shares with Paul Moon a version of Victor Davion that he finds difficult to reconcile with his own and Trent/Baldur's memories of the man. However he values his new saKhan's insights and agrees to keep an open mind. Something that Tiaret points out will be vital if Khan Showers agrees to her proposal to let Paul Moon reform his Delta Galaxy for the Sun Jaguars!
Universal Air during July made 2 offers to other companies to attempt to expand their production capabilities. Firstly they made a generous offer to buy a licence to produce the LF battery equipped Tramp jumpship design for domestic sales within the Federated Suns, while secondly they invited Challenge Systems of Panpour to go into a joint venture with them to add Monolith production to their shipyards at Delavan. Knowing how possessive of the Monolith design the company was Universal Air didn't attempt to enter into a full on licensing agreement with Challenge but instead proposed a joint project to create a Monolith production facility. They would put up most of the funds and manpower to construct the facility and Challenge would put up the design and skilled and experienced technicians to help train the workforce. Not only would this generate additional profits it would also diversify Challenge from being limited to a single production facility. While the executives of the company were considering this offer they also received word that the Federated Sun's government would look favourably on them accepting this deal.
SelaSys Incorporated on the other hand would mull over this offer for some time and have to seek their own government's approval for the proposed license. Given the lack of any real interstellar market for the Tramp design and domestic sales being frankly poor they couldn't see any negative of accepting the offer. The FWLM on the other hand could - given that this would give the AFFS access to an LF equipped transport. However SelaSys was a rich and well connected company and would push back against opposition from the FWLM on this issue.
On Luthien Hohiro Kurita has a formal meeting with his father the Coordinator. The meeting begins with a great deal of tension, and Hohiro feels humiliated when his father points out how imprudent his recent actions have been and how they could have led to devastating losses not only of material but also prestige to House Kurita. Still his father does calm his son when he agrees that perhaps he was manipulated into the situation by Victor Davion and that he himself has perhaps failed in taking due regard of this dangerous foe. The two proud Kurita's then sit and discuss how they can reverse the current flow of power away from their own realm and to the Federated Suns long into the night. Hohiro redeems himself fully in his father's eyes when he makes an unorthodox and very "un-Kurita" suggestion which Theodore immedietly see's huge benefit in. Not only militarily but also politically. As such he dispatches Hohiro immedietly to personally go to Sian and seek an audience with the Chancellor. He advises his son to take a fine line between conciliation and strength with the Chancellor. After all the man is a head of state and must be given the respect this is due, but then again no-one but a full would consider the Confederation the equal to the Combine. He trusts his son will take the right stance. Leaving Luthien having stayed up the entire night discussing their plans Hohiro has spent less than 24 hours on Luthien. Unlike his reluctant and drawn out journey to Luthien Hohiro will rush to Deiron and then over into the FWL and down into the Capellan Confederation. He now has a mission which will not only redeem himself but show Victor Davion that he will not get all his own way!
Meanwhile, realising his realm's growing weakness in the aerospace field the Coordinator orders that a new plant be constructed on Luthien itself to being production of Sabre class fighters. Reintroducing this venerable fighter will he hope revitalise the aerospace industries in his realm. The sturdy and rugged fighter will be ideal to deploy to remote and 2nd line garrison formations which will free up more prestigious designs for front line use.
He also sends word to his other son Minoru of Clan Nova Cat that he wishes a meeting with a high ranking Clan official as well as representatives of the Clan's merchant, scientist and technician castes as soon as possible here on Luthien. While his wording is polite he makes it clear that the Clan should strongly consider his request. To their mutual advantage.
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The Dragon stirs... >:D
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The Dragon stirs... >:D
The Dragon is realising that the Davion's are Back.
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I don't know if pushing the Nova Cats around is going to work out that well. they might just jumpship (yes I used it as a pun) to work with the Sun Jags.
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Sorry if I am out of line here but I am requesting some love be given to Johnston Industries on New Syrtis! That is all. Keep up the freaking amazing work!
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I don't know if pushing the Nova Cats around is going to work out that well. they might just jumpship (yes I used it as a pun) to work with the Sun Jags.
It could go badly. But he needs some "help" from his "vassal". Traditionally not exactly an easy relationship for the Kurita's to manage. Theodore however is better than most at it.
Sorry if I am out of line here but I am requesting some love be given to Johnston Industries on New Syrtis! That is all. Keep up the freaking amazing work!
Johnston Industries now has 4 Dagger-O line's on New Syrtis, 2 more on Novoya Zemyla, 2 more on Torrence, 2 more on Addicks and another 1 on Benet... How much more love can I give them??? :p
Still thank you for the compliment! :D
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We sell more than just the best OmniFighter in the inner sphere you know?! Just kidding!
Caesars and Axmen for the front line troops! The Garm is an excellent march militia filler especially with the Tortuga Dominions needing defending now!
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We sell more than just the best OmniFighter in the inner sphere you know?! Just kidding!
Caesars and Axmen for the front line troops! The Garm is an excellent march militia filler especially with the Tortuga Dominions needing defending now!
Fulcrums and Goblins too
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3065 - August - Cave ins
The First Prince having been looking over the reports on Comstar's investments in new factories and infrastructure in the early hours of the 1st of August found his attention drawn to the world of Ozawa and remembering an almost forgotten footnote in his long ago history lessons as August began. Calling up on his screen the pertinent details of that world's history and then bringing up the world of Torrence which had also recently received an investment to create a new factory producing Dagger-O fighters his attention was drawn to the defunct Veridian Dynamics, once a premier supplier of armoured vehicles for not only the AFFS but even the Star League. A number of further computer queries at his terminal soon had him making notes for the following day's morning meeting with the Princes's Champion and Duchess Marik.
At breakfast on the 1st of August a visibly tired Victor spoke with Ardan and Isis and explained his research project of earlier that morning and explained that he wished them to look into what the exact legal state of the long defunct and shut down Veridian Dynamics was. Given it's military production history the Princes's Champion could lead said investigation while leaving much of the actual details to the by now well trusted Duchess Marik. At the current time the First Prince did not wish this matter to be raised formally in case it prompted questions he didn't wish answered or led to whoever did own the remnants of the company realising of the Princes's interest.
Within 2 weeks the Prince received an update from his two investigators over a similar breakfast meeting. It appeared that Veridian Dynamics had slowly faded into the background of the Succession Wars. It's two main products had been relegated to the annals of history for different reasons. The Vali artillery tank had relied upon the advanced Arrow IV missile launcher and when this technology had been lost the production lines had been shut down and mothballed, while the T-12 Tiger Medium Tank had had the opposite problem. Long considered obsolete by the very start of the Succession Wars it's limited production runs and small orders from planetary militias had finally made the production facility on Torrence no longer cost effective and the lines had been shut. The company still existed but as a very limited supplier of small mechanical parts and repair facilities for the local militia on Torrence.
The First Prince immedietly called for other key advisers and soon a plan was put in place to resurrect the company and keep it in private ownership. Rather than buy the company outright the First Prince instead arranged for it's remaining corporate officers to be contacted and offered government subsidies and investments to upgrade and rebuild their long dormant factory lines and put both of their production lines into operation again on long term exclusive deals with the AFFS. While the Vali's design had been an SLDF design and had withstood the test of time well the T-12 had not. As such a new and revitalised design was immedietly to be started at the NAIS's specialist facilities. More armour, ideally more range and a more modern weapon load out was the remit but at the suggestion of Ardan Sortek 5 ton's should be shaved of the design so that it could fit in a light vehicle bay on a dropship - although retaining the AC-10 would also allow it to use the speciality ammunition that NAIS had developed. While the Tiger would never be a front line combat tank again all of the military officers could see the benefit in a domestically produced cheap tank that could be used to bolster second line militia formations in the Outback or behind the front lines. A team is dispatched to the company headquarters on Torrence to broker this deal by the end of August.
Marshal Amelia Fitzwilliam's meets with Marshal Arisota Neece of the 1st Chisholm Raiders to discuss the proposed reformation of the Chisholm Raider's Brigade. The meeting does not go well. The temperamental Neece flies into a rage at the proposed break up of her RCT into LCT's. Very little that her superior can say seems to have any real effect on the enraged Marshal who storms around the office shouting until Fitzwilliam's loses her own temper and tells her to shut the hell up and sit down. She then explains that Neece is already on very thin ice with the High Command. Her command style has been raised on a number of occasions and the issues that she had had on Klathandu IV with her subordinate Leftenant General Vega had not gone unnoticed. Frankly her superior officer informed her that her temper tantrum was more befitting of a child than a flag ranked officer within the AFFS and it was now making her question whether or not she should be commanding a RCT at all let alone a LCT! Combined with the other issues that had already been of concern Marshal Fitzwilliam relieves Marshal Neece of command there and then, pending charges of conduct unbecoming of an officer as will her "hatchet-man" Captain Harold Kerr. If she wishes to avoid these charges she can of course resign gracefully but the same offer is not extended to the captain who is also placed under arrest. In the meantime the commanding officer of the Brigade sends for Leftenant General Ryan Davion-Cole, executive officer of the 2nd Chisholm Raiders to take command. While she is loathe to break up the winning command team of the 2nd she feels it may be the only way to actually salvage the 1st and restore it to it's former glory. Until Davion-Cole arrives she takes direct and personal command of the 1st.
On 14th of August at a pirate jump point close in to the world of Highspire a large force of Federated Sun's jumpships flicker into existance and begin disgorging a heavy task force of dropships. Leading the way is the 1st Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry who streak towards the planetary capital of Crescent, while a secondary force consisting of primarily cargo dropships and conventional troop carriers also land some distance away.
Even as the noble's forces in Crescent prepare to fight of the elite 1st Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry a large force of local militia bolstered by a number of battlemech companies with unknown markings come pouring out of the Chu-li mountains and head directly for the secondary force in a clear attempt to overrun this formation before their battlemech equipped companions can return to help them. Strangely the 1st FSAC makes no effort to rush to the aid of their compatriots and instead uses this expectation to slam through the disjointed and badly coordinated noble houses individual lances and companies. Breaking them up into their component elements the 1st FSAC make quick work of the mostly older model battlemechs piloted by lesser noble cousins and ageing retired veterans.
Meanwhile as the large force of infantry and 4 battlemech companies from the heavily populated Chu-li mountain's approach the landed dropships they run straight into a murderous crossfire from the 2nd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry. Having been snuck onto the world in the bellies of some of the cargo dropships the former warriors of the Federated Freemen have under cover of nightfall slipped from their transports and deployed along the route that the attacking militia were taking towards the dropships.
The veteran mechwarriors of the 2nd FSAC waste no time in concentrating their fire on the unknown mech formations leading the Capellan's counter attack and soon cut them to pieces, despite the surprising skill these unknown companies show, before turning their guns on the massed infantry formations which make up the bulk of the militia. Although inflicting horrendous causalities the 2nd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry has to call in air support from not only their own attached fighter wings but also the 1st's as the enemy infantry just keeps charging in human wave attacks more reminiscent of fanatical Kurita troops. These infantry formations as well as the 4 battlemech companies are later discovered to have been Thugee Cultists's sworn to Kali Liao herself.
With the last formations destroyed and broken up the 2 Davion units move into the city of Crescent and begin the systematic looting of the Liao palaces and properties there. Reclaimed and or rebuilt following Highspires return to Capellan control these luxurious buildings contain a treasure trove of antiques and treasure assembled to provide every possible comfort for the Duchess of Highspire, Kali Liao herself. All of these treasures are methodically stripped from the buildings before engineers demolish them. The same thing happens to the estates and palaces of every noble on the planet - with flying columns of FSAC battlemechs and vehicles escorting engineering troops to do the necessary work. Also looted are the casinos, hotels, banks and other establishments that cater to the nobility of the Capellan Confederation that visit the planet. Every single thing of value that can be seized is loaded into the dropships, including a phenomenal amount of the famed and much valued Highspire Tallwood. The officers and troops of the Federated Sun's Armoured Brigade are careful to limit their activities to the property of either Capellan national companies, the nobility of the Confederation or the Liao family themselves. The actual people are not subjected to any looting - however given the economic damage that is being inflicted it will have a knock on effect upon them.
As this looting is being conducted a series of fighter-bombing missions take place against a number of targets within the Chu-Li mountains. The officers of the 2 Davion regiment's aren't foolish enough to lead their troops into the narrow valleys and ambush spots of the mountains but they have their aerospace formations carpet bomb all Liao/Capellan/Thugee targets. Military bases, small spaceports and even the underground cavern complex that Kali Liao uses to host her Thugee Cult activities are subjected to a saturation level bombardment from heavily laden aerospace fighters who control the skies. Only when a site is totally destroyed to the fighters move on - for instance the fighters continue to hammer the mountainsides around the Thugee complex with special bunker-buster munitions until a seismic readings show a number of serious cave in's within the region.
On the 28th of August when the two military commands withdraw from Highspire with almost overloaded dropships they send a quick message to the shattered world's remaining defenders and governments. "Thank Jaffray's Own for this visit."
When word of this message reaches Sian the Chancellor has to temporarily imprison his sister to avoid her from travelling to Footfall and slaughtering the entire Jaffray's Own regiment with her own bare hands. He also has to limit his sister's contact with the outside world to ensure she doesn't pass on similar orders to her cultist friends and allies. In the meantime and just in case he orders Jaffray's Own to lift off from Footfall and head towards it's new garrison posting - New Roland on the Periphery-FWL border.
Both FSAC regiments have suffered only light losses that will be swiftly replaced as per the traditions of the Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry. The 2nd is still somewhat under strength but is building up to full strength as quickly as suitably qualified warriors can be transferred to the command without weakening other regiments excessively. It is also scheduled for conversion to a reinforced regiment in the coming year.
The looted materials will be forwarded to New Avalon where the First Prince will have some of the less gaudy items picked out to decorate a "Highspire" room at Mount Davion (which will also be panelled in Highspire Tallwood), with the rest being either auctioned off and the proceeds given to AFFS related charities or sent to museums across the FedSuns. It will become a House Davion tradition moving forward that when informally meeting with ambassadors from other Successor States moving forward that these meetings will take place within the Highspire Room - as a pointed reminder of what House Davion is capable off if they are disrespected.
During August a number of personnel transfers will begin to take place within the Federated Sun's warship fleet. The FSS Covenant will begin to have a number of established crew members leave the ship to join new commands and their replacements will usually be younger and often with few if any living relatives. A few doomsayers within the crew comment that the warship is being prepared for a suicidal mission, but these rumours are soon quashed by the officers. Although no official reason is given for the trend within the crew. However the trend will continue despite the assurances that the ship is not being prepared for a death ride.
Challenge Systems will during August agree to the deal offered to them from Universal Air. Both companies will push ahead with plans to add a Monolith production facility at Delavan as quickly as possible. They will be helped with this by full AFFS and Government support.
Challenge Systems will also during this time being constructing an additional warship slip at Panpour. With 2 slips already constructing Congress-D II and a 3rd large slip almost complete the 4th slip which is starting to be built is another medium sized slip suitable for cruisers or large frigates.
On Point Barrow the Flashman line at the GM plant came online. Immediately Comstar request access to that production line but they are told that this plant pre-dates any agreement with them for this battlemech design and will be exclusively for the AFFS. If any of the production exceeds the AFFS's needs then the excess will be offered to other parties - including Comstar who will be free to bid for them.
Comstar also offered the royal variant design for the Demon combat vehicle to both GM and Kallon. Refusing a single contract supplier they insisted on offering both companies equal rights to produce the Gauss rifle armed tank for the ComGuards. After some discussions the two companies agreed to not only produce the tank at their joint facility on El Dorado but also built them individually. GM would put the design into production at a new facility on Verde in the Draconis March (counting on subsidises being offered for new vehicle production by the Duke of Robinson to help fund the plant), while Kallon would add a Demon line to their already building plant on Belladonna. These lines would be split with the almost pro-forma 50% to the ComGuards and 50% to the AFFS.
Faced with the growing WOB threat and with little opportunity to strike back with his limited and now mistrusted warship forces the Interim Primus is forced to accept the logic of his Precentor Martial's advice regarding warship production. He sends word to New Avalon to this effect at the end of August. Along with a firm direction to the Precentor New Avalon to make sure that the deal obtained is the best one possible for Comstar and to oversee the Precentor Martial.
Within the Lyran Alliance a number of experienced mechwarriors, armour crews and infantry platoons and companies begin slowly being assembled on Tharkad. At the current time no suggestion is made of what the purpose of this gathering is, although many speculate that it is to reform the 10th Lyran Guard which had defected to the AFFS.
On Luthien the Coordinator awaits the Nova Cat emissaries he had requested and prepares guest rooms for them. As a show of strength and to honour them he prepares a reception committee of 3 Sword of Light Regiments plus his 2 Household Regiments and 2 cruisers in orbit.
The Captain-General of the Free Worlds League after a great deal of bartering and horse trading manages to get through an expansion of the Legionary Training Academy's facilities on Andurian to speed up the creation of new Free World Legionnaires commands. He also formally brings the 8th fully online and authorises the formation of the 9th as a training cadre - although he wishes to push for this command to be made active sooner than the others.
Thomas Marik is also facing strong questioning within the Parliament as to why the 3rd Free Worlds Guards remain on Caph. For now he is passing it off a a humanitarian mission or as peacekeeping forces. Although within the FWLM there are growing whispers that the command has "mutinied". Given the fate of the 4th Free Worlds Guard the other regiments of the Brigade are horrified at this potential betrayal and begin making plans accordingly.
After nearly 3 years of construction headaches and technical problems the Dragonfly aerospace fighter reenters production upon Canopus. No fewer than 3 lines have been constructed to produce this venerable design, suitably updated for the modern age. This opening is trumpeted as a triumph of Canopian-Capellan-Taurian cooperation and the design will be produced for all 3 realms. A small team within the FedSun's will take note of this new design and consider the implications.
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We sell more than just the best OmniFighter in the inner sphere you know?! Just kidding!
Caesars and Axmen for the front line troops! The Garm is an excellent march militia filler especially with the Tortuga Dominions needing defending now!
Those battlemechs are still in full production - although you are right perhaps an additional line for battlemechs could be added to one of the new satellite factories. Not so sure about using "Garm" and "excellent" in the same sentence though...
Fulcrums and Goblins too
True and they are also still being produced. :p
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Excellent story so far sir. Might I suggest that in addition to the elevation of the navies importance within the AFFS, there also be a revamp of the Naval ranks to correct what I have felt to be a flaw.
Namely, grossly inaccurate positioning of the rank of Fleet Admiral subordinate to the rank of Field Marshal. If I remember correctly, the AFFS ranks are generally derived from US and UK rank system i.e. the NATO rank system. Within which, a Field Marshal(British Army) is equal in rank to a Fleet Admiral(USN)though not necessarily equal in authority or seniority.
Another discrepancy is the lack of an equivalent rank to "Marshal of the Armies", soldiers generally take great pride in their service branch, so a naval officer having progressed to the highest echelons of command would probably feel insulted that his service branch has a sort of "glass ceiling" in regards to it's rank conventions and therefore is forced to use army rank conventions to reach the pinnacle of AFFS command. As a way to acknowledge the navies growing importance to AFFS and the realm as a whole, I suggest that akin to SLDF's Commanding Admiral, the AFFS create the rank of Admiral of the Navy to be assumed by a Naval officer promoted to the position of Marshal of the Armies.
In regards the ComGuards equipment needs, perhaps they could offer licenses the Raijin and Grim Reaper to Lyran companies that aren't heavily focused on assault mechs. Such as Mountain Wolf BattleMechs, Blackstone BattleMechs, Blue Shot Weapons, Defiance of Furillo or as in canon Coventry Metal Works which produces the Hussar.
The bulk of the production would be slated to ComStar and SLDF, while the company that gains the contract/contracts allowed sell any surplus to approved parties(basically FWLM, CCAF, DCMS, WoB and associated mercenaries or allies would be blacklisted).
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IIRC Admiral Kossacks of the 2nd Davion Guards had the title of Fleet Admiral after George Hasek gave him the Marshall's rank. So it's not entirely inconceivable that the rank could be 'adjusted' appropriately.
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nice to see t-12 Cloudmakerish weapon. also Veridian Dynamics made the RR-4. a recovery vehicle this could be useful in RCT and a few in the LCT's.
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Openly subverting the 3rd FWL Guards was really bonehead move by WoB, it will give a public impetous to combating their influence in FWL.
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3065 - September - Concord Reborn
On the 1st of September Marshal Arisota Neece formally resigns her commission and goes into retirement in order to avoid the shame of a formal court martial. She immedietly cashes in her financial assets, pensions and seeks backers to fund her own mercenary formation - Neece's Giants, a roughly company sized outfit of mostly refurbished medium weight battlemechs named partially for her form command's nickname the Green Giants. A small number of current and former Raiders join up with her although most of them aren't exactly considered great losses to the AFFS. The one officer who almost certainly would have joined her is Captain Harold Kerr who is now in a maximum security military prison facing a number of ever growing charges. It's no surprise to anyone not even the former Marshal when the AFFS does not offer her mercenary company a contract. Likewise the Lyran Alliance and Free Worlds League turn down her requests for contracts. However both the WOB and the Capellan Confederation extend offers, of which Neece accepts the Capellan Contract to help garrison Ningpo.
While the former command of the 1st Chisholm Raiders is seeking employment elsewhere the remaining flag officers of the unit both active and retired continue to be canvassed as their views upon the reformation of the Brigade from RCT's to LCT's. Most have misgivings but all of them can see why their own small demi-brigade was picked for the possible conversion. Their regiments are famous for their irregular tactics and innovative ways of waging war and this conversion might be a good fit for them. Although some concerns are raised by various officers it is finally agreed by the majority that Marshal Fitzwilliam's should accept the offer of the Chisholm Raiders Brigade being restructured from 2 RCT's to 8-10 LCT's. Although newly assigned Leftenant General Ryan Rand-Davion points out that the Raiders should push for upgrades to their battlemech and vehicles to maximise their firepower given the smaller nature of the future commands as well as access to the latest designs and omnimechs.
This acceptance is forwarded to the Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion who makes preparations for both Chisholm Raiders to be "raised" to reinforced status so as to allow the creation of more integrated LCT's in the fullness of time. The conversion will wait till both commands are at full strength as reinforced regiments and as such may take 3-4 years if this expansion is done slowly, although some consideration is being given to adding a small number of LCT's to the existing commands in the meantime or expanding the units faster at a risk that some of the new LCT's formed will not be as well integrated or experienced as might be wished.
Kallon Industries announces in September that it will be entering into a partnership with Prescision Weaponry to build a new battlemech facility on Tancredi. This plant will when fully operational be buried deep underground against any attacks and consist of a Penetrator 6T variant line and 2 lines producing the Rifleman 8D and 6X variants. If this plant is a success there is some thought of adding a Shadow Hawk line to the facility in the near future.
The newly reforming 28th Avalon Hussars is ordered to move from it's base alongside it's parent formation on Crofton and take up station guarding the auto-cannon construction plant on Gulkana. Although woefully under strength it is felt that such a posting will give the unit time to expand while also increasing security on that troubled world - which will hopefully lead to increased production and sales of their high quality guns.
The Precentor Martial requests a meeting with the First Prince and suggests in the request that Fleet Admiral Buchwald be included in the meeting on the 4th. He does not however include the Precentor New Avalon in the request despite orders to the contrary. When the meeting takes place 3 days later the two officers are almost shocked to hear the request from Comstar that they be allowed to build a shipyard capable of construction warships within Federated Sun's space. Victor is the first to ask a question, namely just how large a facility is Comstar talking. The Precentor Martial explains that initially they would be looking to build 2 slips capable of building a modern corvette design, but eventually adding destroyer and frigate slips at the very least. Admiral Buchwald does then point out that as far as he knows the ComGuard's navy have no modern day corvette design in production, unless it's a new design. Focht smiles at this and points out the Fleet Admiral is entirely correct but that they were hoping that the Federated Sun's would share with them the proven Fox corvette and help them get it into production as soon as possible as a counter to the warships no doubt under construction within the Terran system.
This final point, which has weighed heavily on both the Davion prince and his naval commander, carries a great deal of weight and the First Prince promises to consider this request but asks what the ComGuards are offering in return for not only permission to build shipyards but also such a major design. The Precentor Martial offers that in return for the rights to build shipyards the ComGuards will promise to fund the construction of a similar number and size of shipyards at any location the Davion's request. So if they build 2 slips for corvettes at their own shipyard they will fund the building of 2 slips within Davion shipyards to build corvettes. As for the design of the Fox they offer to undertake the mission that the First Prince has hired one of their Faslane yardships to complete for free and not only that but undertake the redesign and upgrade of the ship design in question free of charge and using their own impressive technological capabilities. They can start by December if the First Prince gives the go ahead.
First Prince Davion explains that for such a major decision he wishes to get the opinion of key advisers and also the High Command, which the Precentor-Martial agrees is reasonable. He does however point out that this is the best offer he can make in the circumstances and it is very unlikely to be improved upon.
After a number of heated sessions with his advisers and the High Command the First Prince soon responds to the ComGuards request with his approval. He suggests that they begin constructing a new warship shipyard over the world of Novoya Zemyla for themselves and that any Davion slips they will fund are to be constructed at the new shipyard of Filtvelt to expand the production facilities there. Knowing the desperate straights that the ComGuard's Navy finds itself in the Precentor Martial agrees before even checking the terms and locations with the Interim Primus. Although this approval is granted, this action and the failure to include the New Avalon Precentor in the negotiations is more than an irritation to Interim Primus Dow who formally rebukes Precentor Martial Focht and reminds him that he serves upon the whim of the Primus.
However before the matter between the two men can escalate further word comes that the WOB have attacked and destroyed the ComGuards fleet anchorage and repair facilities at Ross 248. The ComGuard's 1st Independent Squadron had manage to inflict heavy damage on the attacking force, destroying the WoBS Vendetta, a Quixote class frigate and badly damaging the WoBS White Devil and WoBS Red Angel both Riga class destroyers, but had not managed to save the facility. The CSV Hammerstrike, an Essex class destroyer had been destroyed in the fighting and the Sovetskii Soyuz class CSV Blake's Vengeance had taken heavy damage. Faced with these mounting losses the Interim Primus approves Focht's dealings but does not forget his insubordination.
New Independence Weaponry announces that it will begin construction of a new Atlas line at their plant of Tikonov, largely using machinery and parts made on Tikonov itself. This will be the first line added to their plant that doesn't come from looted salvage during what is now being described as the "Talon Incursion". Work is scheduled to begin in December and will finish hopefully in October 3066.
On Outreach a number of Sun Jaguar technicians and a small warrior escort arrive to aid not only in the rebuilding of the city but also the rebuilding of a military-industrial complex. They are soon working to fully upgrade a damaged but salvageable Falcon line to Clantech standards. In return for their aid the Wolf's Dragoons promise to help support the creation of an industrial complex within the Sun Jaguar enclaves on the Periphery border.
The new Kallon Industries facility on Belladonna has it's first line enter production when the Partisan anti-aircraft tank begins constructing fully operational tanks. The Challenger MBT facility isn't far behind and the various battlemech lines are also nearing completion - although the Exterminator line is proving to be particularly difficult.
On El Dorado the Ajax omni-vehicle enters production alongside the Battlemaster battlemech line that has been operating since June 3065. The Templar-O line however is taking further time and isn't scheduled to go online until November.
The Outback FarmMech's corporation successfully negotiate with Robinson Standard BattleWorks to license the Watchman battlemech for production for local sales to the Crucis March Militia and Training Battalions as well as the local planetary defence militias. Until now almost none of the worlds within the Outback could have afforded even a single lance of light battlemechs of antique vintage, but with the growing prosperity Outback FarmMech's sees a potential market that the Watchman would be ideally placed to fill. The company is also in discussions with Corean and Achernar to license a Locust line.
Johnston Industries announce during September that they intend to add a Caeser production line to their production facility at Torrence while also adding a Hatchetman line at their new plant on Novoya Zemyla and potentially an Axman line there as well in the future. They have seen their Dagger-O profits soaring over the last few years as the production of the signature omnifighter doubled and doubled again, but their battlemech sales had languished. This is a first step in attempting to catapult them back into the major leagues for not just fighter designs.
On Woodbine the Robinson Standard BattleWork's plant has a Black Knight line enter production, with a back order catalogue of over 6 months production to be sent to the various commands within the Draconis March's Edgeward Combat Theatre. A full company will be diverted to the 1st Ceti Hussars RCT stationed between Niles and Groveld, with further follow on orders to be used to rebuilding the Bryceland and Mayetta DMM's command companies and lances.
At Tharkad the troops being drawn from across the LAAF slowly increase towards the level of being a full combat command of a RCT. By now almost everyone is certain that the Archon intends to announce the formation of a premier RCT to help with the faltering morale within the LAAF, although a few are now wondering if the initial guesses of the 10th Lyran Guards is the correct one.
The Coordinator formally welcomes the Clan Nova Cat delegation to the Imperial Palace. After a short round of pleasantries and honours, including the gift of a fully rebuild former Clan Smoke Jaguar built Warhawk omnimech to the Clan delegation, he gets down to business. The Dragon is critically short on aerospace fighters and warships of all types while their Davion enemies are advancing in leaps and bounds in this area. He however is aware that previous Clan Smoke Jaguar had seen promise in the Combine built Sai aerospace fighter and had upgraded a factory to Clantech standards to produce the fighter for their own second line formations. His own technical staff have been unable to keep the facility operating to that standard and he now wishes the Nova Cat's to aid in the production in return for a 25% share in the output.
After some discussion the Clan delegations agrees but with one additional requirement. They wish that in return for their aid in returning the factory to Clantech levels of production and technology that all former Clan Smoke Jaguar warriors and lower castes currently held by the DCMS and various planetary governments be turned over to them. All of them it is stressed. The Coordinator, who had largely ignored the Star League call to send all captured Smoke Jaguars to the Federated Suns, agrees to this seemingly minor term considering that the Clan is probably hoping to replace the personnel it will have to send to Schuyler to help with production. He is unaware that the Clan is operating on the basis of a vision.
Within the Free World's League General Tamara Findlay of the Free Worlds Guards begins sending out covert orders to the 1st, 2nd and 5th Guards. All 3 commands are officially told to concentrate at Irian for a series of war games and equipment upgrades that she herself will oversee. She does not include the 3rd Guards within her orders having decided that whatever the official line is that the unit has mutinied and betrayed the League and the Guard. Even if the politicians don't intend to do anything about this, the Guard will she swears. Alongside her 3 regiments a small force of former Guard veterans also begin to assemble on Irian, drawn largely from retired Guardsmen and women who are members of the various regimental associations. Those lacking gear will be issued battlemechs directly from Irian's huge factories and formed into an "Old Guards" regiment.
On Sian Hohiro Kurita arrives and is greeted as a long lost brother by Sun-Tzu Liao. The two men of course have met each other before and have never been close, but judging by the reception given to the Kurita heir this isn't the case. Tellingly not only does Hohiro not baulk at the over friendly reception he seems to embrace it and play his own part within the parades, receptions and balls. Kali Liao is even wheeled out (heavily medicated although the doctors have been careful to choose medications that will not be evident) and dances with the Kurita heir at a ball in his honour under the glowing smile of her brother, before being quickly ushered back to her private "rooms". The next morning once the medication has worn off the mad Liao will kill 3 of her medical orderlies and guards with her bare hands and carbon enhanced nails. Regretfully Sun-Tzu will order that her nails be removed in response to this attack.
Even while his sister is undergoing the procedure to remove her nails Sun-Tzu Liao and Hohiro Kurita meet in private to discuss the realm purpose of the visit. The warm smiles and friendly back clapping are entirely absent and the two men make no effort to hide their own apathy towards each other. Hohiro Kurita informs the Chancellor that his father had dispatched him in order to present the Confederation with a gift, he then presents a series of data chips containing the production specifications for the Inazuma class corvette. In return, the Chancellor presents the heir to the Combine with the production data to allow the Kurita's to produce stealth armour for their battlemechs. He also invites the Kurita's into an intelligence sharing alliance where they will pool the intelligence that they both have on the AFFS and Federated Suns. Neither man thinks for a minute that the other side will pool all their intelligence assets and both assume that the other will withhold the occasional key piece of information, but they both agree on behalf of their respective houses. When Sun-Tzu makes a comment that the Concord of Kapteyn is reborn, Hohiro genuinely chuckles and points out that this time they won't make the mistake of inviting the Free Worlds League to the party...
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the WD still have connections with Blackwell. Blackwell has a factory on New Valencia... that is unless GM has bought it already but I don't think that happened to 3075 and blasted in 79
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And also Vicore industries.
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3065 - October - Incursion
With intelligence reports filtering in regarding Hohiro Kurita and Sun-Tzu Liao having met on Sian throughout October the mood in Mount Davion was naturally grim. Although the reports were sparse on the details the obvious signs of friendship even if staged were in no way good news for the Federated Suns that much was obvious. Despite the fact that it was unlikely that the two states were about to immediately launch an invasion of the Federated Suns all combat commands were put on a state of heightened alert. Just in case. If nothing happened the experience wouldn't exactly be wasted either. Victor and Jackson Davion both agreed that standing the AFFS up temporarily would also send the right message of strength to the Kurita's and Liaos, basically "we're ready". In the meantime the various command staffs began preparing more up to date war plans which took into account this new potential alliance and also looking at ways to strengthen the military of the FedSun's in preparation for what might be a two front war.
In these preparations Jackson Davion with the First Princes's full blessings prioritised immediate offensives in the event of impending war. If the Kurita's and Liao's pushed for a war with House Davion they would be fighting and bleeding on their own worlds was the strong feeling of the High Command and General Staff. They would hit first, hit hard and keep on hitting until the Snakes and Dragons cried enough! Although just in case funding to increase fortifications on certain key worlds - such as the Galtor Thumb and Mitchel and Nanking - was authorised.
Even as these orders went out the planning and preparations for Yvonne Steiner-Davion's marriage to Tancred Sandoval went ahead. Robinson's already heavy defences were increased. An elite conventional armour brigade and a similarly experienced full infantry brigade were dispatched to Robinson and ordered to attach themselves permanently to the 1st Robinson Rangers to immediately raise the unit to a full RCT. Although integration would take time this was considered the best way to form a RCT around the flagship unit of the Rangers Brigade. Similar plans are put in place to do the same for the 2nd, 4th and 5th in 3066-67. As an additional safeguard against any attempt to disrupt the ceremony the Davion Light Guards RCT is dispatched temporarily to Robinson to reinforce the garrison.
In orbit the defences also weren't neglected. No less than 4 full assault dropship squadrons were assigned to Robinson along with a full independent aerospace brigade and 3 Fox corvettes - the FSS Robinson itself along with her sister ships the FSS Brest and FSS Warren. It was also expected that when the First Prince arrived he would bring with him the FSS Melissa Davion at least and probably the FSS Hanse Davion.
One area of disappointment privately was that Archon Peter Steiner had sent a message that he could not attend his sister’s wedding given the sudden crisis within his realm. Given the circumstances on the Clan Jade Falcon border this wasn't a surprise. Indeed, Yvonne had suggested to Victor that perhaps he could send some warships or a handful of RCT's to aid their brother but the First Prince had quietly refused. The Lyran Alliance had made it's decision to secede from the Federated Commonwealth and it would have to stand on it's own 2 feet without leaning on their former comrades in the Federated Suns. Although he did authorise large scale sales of military equipment to the Lyran Alliance as a way to support his brother and former subjects. An offer that was immediately accepted. Unlike within the Free Worlds League the profits of these sales would be ploughed straight back into expanding the military industrial complex. For the first time in centuries the Federated Suns was now a large scale exporter of military equipment rather than an importer.
Along with the funds from the sales of such battlemech's as Victors, Battlemasters, Atlas's and Awesomes which the LAAF were favouring in their purchase the Federated Sun's was beginning to see the first profits from their sales to the ComGuards coming in. Not only from rising factory production but also the restoration of battlemechs and tanks from the boneyards. One additional source of income from this source was the AFFS offering the services of their Hasek Refit Centre for this purpose and soon ComGuards dropships were shuttling back and forth between the various boneyards such as Novoya Zemyla and Bell with holds full of barely functional or even totally non-functional war machines that would be taken in hand and refurbished to return to active service for the ComGuards. Again, the income from these sales were going directly into financial subsidies to increase military production.
One immediate beneficiary of this investment was the funding of a new Marauder II production line on Kestrel. Long term plans had called for this line to be built but given the sales to the LAAF and their desire for "proper" assault mechs these plans were hurriedly brought forward. Construction would begin in November and with the full support of the FedSuns's Government and the Duke of Kestrel the line would be rushed into production by June 3066. During October the Marauder line enters production even as the Marauder II line is authorised.
At Galax, Kathil and Panpour the large construction slips which had been assembling were finally completed. They would immediately lay down a New Syrtis class carrier each. These ships were a new variant of the old carrier design, upgraded for the modern era and were planned to be the flagships and centre pieces of the new Federated Sun’s Fleets moving forward.
On Belladonna the Kallon Industries plant begins producing a number of Challenger Main Battle Tanks although production numbers are limited. Production wont hit full swing until well into November. Still each tanks produced is snapped up by the AFFS and ComGuards. As well as prioritising getting the Challenger line into full production the company staff are pushing hard to get their first battlemech line online for the official date of the 21st November.
The ComGuards get a huge boost in their supply lines when the new plant on Defiance comes online and has all 4 battlemech lines enter production this month. An entire line of Nexus production is immediately snapped up by the ComGuards while the Sentinel, Crab and Flashman lines are split between the AFFS and ComGuards. A second Sentinel and a Mongoose line also under construction.
Even within the Federated Sun's the main source of news in October is the news coming from the Lyran Alliance's border with Clan Jade Falcon. On the 3rd of October the Jade Falcons soar across the border and hit the worlds of Kooken's Pleasure Pit, Pasig, Mkuranga, Babaeski, Morges, A Place, Dustball, Koniz and Ballymure. Excluding the last world these are all worlds of the former Arc-Royal Defence Cordon and many AFFS units were stationed there during the FedCom era. Hitting the worlds were elements of 2 front line galaxies, the Gamma Jade Falcon Galaxy and the Delta Gryfalcon Galaxy supported by the second line Epsilon Galaxy. In attacks reminiscent of the Clan Invasion the Jade Falcons struck without mercy and with incredible speed but found themselves lacking the shock factor of old. While several units such as the 25th Arcturan Guards on Mkuranga and the newly arrived 3rd Lyran Regulars on Dustball were swiftly overwhelmed and either crushed or drive off world, other units dug in and fought back hard. On Morges the 16th Wolf Guards Battle Cluster despite facing twice their number in the 8th Talon and 4th Falcon Dragoons Cluster's smashed the 4th Dragoons in a quick engagement before turning to face the 8th on a more equal footing while sending requests for support. On Pasig a joint force from the Wolves-In-Exile and LAAF were unable to drive the Jade Falcon Guards and 9th Talon Cluster from the world but were able to hold their own in the face of the invasion.
On Tharkad the Archon Peter Steiner began organising a counterattack on the same day as the news of the invasion hit. He announced that he would personally be leading the counterattack and made it clear that 2 RCT's from the Royal Guard would be accompanying him to Arc Royal to join the rest of the assembling force. However when he named the units there was shock, he would be taking the 2nd and the 4th Royal Guards with him. Given that officially the 4th didn't exist this did cause some confusion, but the newly assembled unit was already boarding it's dropships.
Even as the Guards marched to war General of the Armies was assembling forces to join the Archon on Arc Royal while also ordering units close to the front to launch spoiling raids or prepare for additional invasions. Losses were already mounting but Adam Steiner knew that the couldn't afford to show weakness, not to the Jade Falcons and most especially not to the critics of the new regime within the Lyran Alliance itself. He wasn't aware that Duchess Yvonne Steiner-Davion had petitioned her brother to send aid but had he been he would have curtly refused it. Calling for Victor Davion to save them would reek of weakness and would likely end Peter Steiner's rule before it could truly start. However he grateful did accept the offers of military supplies at the reasonable prices the Davions were offering. Unfortunately, the officer he sent to negotiate with the Federated Suns military liaison officer was from the "old school" and so most of the machines purchased were expensive assault mechs rather than more versatile (and cheaper) light, medium and heavy mechs.
Within the Draconis Combine the Falcon assault upon the Lyran Alliance was noted and then subsequently ignored. In direct contrast to the almost united front that the Successor States had presented during the initial Clan Invasion and Operation Bulldog the DCMS made no effort to aid the LAAF in this fight. None had come to their aid during the Ghost Bear war after all. In the meantime they continue to transfer former Smoke Jaguars to the Nova Cats.
The SLDF did however dispatch the 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment to Arc Royal to join the growing LAAF force. Further reinforcements were promised, but the only current free unit was the Eridani Light Horse regiments.
Within the Clan Wolf Occupation Zone Khan Vlad Ward also took note of the invasion. He immediately summoned his bondswoman Katrina "Steiner" Wolf and sought her advice in regards to this invasion. To keep his options open he ordered the Tamar Galaxy to mobilise to support his 2 front line Galaxies at Katrina's advice. While still under strength it was felt that their inclusion might win over some to the Wolves side.
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I do not want to push. But Marauder II production line on Kestrel? How did they get the plans for this 100 ton mech? is it the Light fusion engine, XL or normal engine version.
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I do not want to push. But Marauder II production line on Kestrel? How did they get the plans for this 100 ton mech? is it the Light fusion engine, XL or normal engine version.
Independence Weaponry had the design for the Marauder II and so New Independence have the design along with other designs like the Victor and Atlas. That was my reasoning for why they are able to put the Marauder II into production on Kestrel - plus the Marauder II wasn't in the first batch of desgisn produced, as I figured that there would be some "licensing issues" from Blackwell/Wolves Dragoons, but given the problems they have now on Outreach I figure those will be quickly resolved now.
Additionally the Dragoons sold the Marauder II to a lot of parties to upset the LA. So now that they can sell the design to a company that will be based in the FS but selling to the LA for what you presume is a steep mark up is an additional salt in the wounds approach the the LA.
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Independence Weaponry had the design for the Marauder II and so New Independence have the design along with other designs like the Victor and Atlas. That was my reasoning for why they are able to put the Marauder II into production on Kestrel - plus the Marauder II wasn't in the first batch of desgisn produced, as I figured that there would be some "licensing issues" from Blackwell/Wolves Dragoons, but given the problems they have now on Outreach I figure those will be quickly resolved now.
Additionally the Dragoons sold the Marauder II to a lot of parties to upset the LA. So now that they can sell the design to a company that will be based in the FS but selling to the LA for what you presume is a steep mark up is an additional salt in the wounds approach the the LA.
:D cool, and that make sense. i bet the WD would sell the design for some cash, a little help rebuilding mech line, and one out every 10 Marauders II delivered to them.
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:D cool, and that make sense. i bet the WD would sell the design for some cash, a little help rebuilding mech line, and one out every 10 Marauders II delivered to them.
I genuinely am trying to keep this mostly "realistic" if that makes sense... I mean I know that I'm pro-FS and frankly it IS a pro-FS timeline/story and I make no apology for that. But I am trying to avoid it being a total fanboy scene so anytime I am straying into that I'd love it if EVERYONE lets me know.
One issue I'm having right now is that the FS will be wanting a battleship soon. the DCN is building one and the FWLN have a revisited Atreus class in construction and the LAN has the Mjolnir class.
Now one thing I'm thinking on is them getting the specifications for the Texas class - from a clan is all I'm saying and refitting it to a more davion design and building a handful. Frankly I have 4 different ideas how they might get a hulk/captured ship/design specs.
So I'm wondering... Is this beyond the bounds of possibility?
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The design specs would be easy as all the clans would have them, if they don't have them they can easily obtain them.
The Sun Jaguars from the NC.
A hulk, there would be so many on the Taurian border, but I doubt any would be worth repairing.
The DC captured one during Operation Bulldog but scuttled it.
Maybe go recover it. ;)
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The design specs would be easy as all the clans would have them, if they don't have them they can easily obtain them.
The Sun Jaguars from the NC.
A hulk, there would be so many on the Taurian border, but I doubt any would be worth repairing.
The DC captured one during Operation Bulldog but scuttled it.
Maybe go recover it. ;)
That is one of the options - get a faslane and go get the hulk. The DCN thought it wasnt repairable, but that was without faslanes.
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and we do know that WoB had one. If they had one Bttleship? Then they might have two of them. I would try to find info on all know hulks from ComStar, the FedSun intel, and friendly clans. then go recover one from the old Star League days. strip it to the frame and then rebuild it.
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Is there any mention of other warship designs used by the Federated Suns prior to the Succession Wars beyond the Robinson, Davion, and New Syrtis classes? Could they be useful now?
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Defender class 960ktons. kitty hawk class carrier (from a novel), congress, Davion 1 and Davion 2, and Carson and Aegis. those are the ones off the top of my head. now some of them were just "sold" but I would think that they would need to make parts for them, at least.
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The thing with the Defender is that she's a fundamentally flawed design. She's very fast, but her structural integrity is powerful weak. Most of the hull bracing seems to be made of rice cakes and balsa wood. She'd also be at odds with the rest of the fleet, being exceptionally fast compared to the stately and sedate Fox and Avalon class ships.
Using the Defender as a baseline, it would be a good way to waste a lot of money and have a very fragile ship as the result, also a change from the very sturdy Fox's and Avalons. If the Suns was to build a new large battlecruiser esque ship, the only thing i'd use from the positively ancient Defender line is its name.
Also, superb updates! The Concord Lite at the moment seems to be a political move more than anything. The Cappies can't really do anything against the Sun's without getting smacked down very hard. It depends also what the Combine, and more importantly, what the WoB does. With the Suns providing shelter for the ComGuard and the Dragoons its very much signalling that these two are going to clash.
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Honestly I've never liked the Defender class and I can't see that deeply flawed design being brought back into production.
My gut feeling is for the Davions to work on getting access to the texas design to do their own variant of.
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Or see if the Lyrans have the plans for a Tharkad buried in their archives...
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Or see if the Lyrans have the plans for a Tharkad buried in their archives...
does not WOB have one or two just cripple and capture, this way you can build as many as you want...
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Didn't FSN also operate some Monsoons back in the days of yore?
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Didn't FSN also operate some Monsoons back in the days of yore?
Don’t think so looking on the list Sarna and the field report that was done for the SL period it doesn’t look like they did by the looks of it the main heavy ships they had was the New Styris, Defender, Robinson and Aegis.
The way that the author is building his fleet now though is actually kinda smart in a way since he is focusing on lighter designs like the Fox, Davion III and the Avalon Light Cruiser. This means his Yard dogs will be already fairly experienced in building both Warships and Jumpships and will be able to do the Job faster and better it also means that when it comes time to build heavyweight hulls he will have people use to working in the void and building ships.
Though it will take them time to get used to working on larger hulls an experienced work crew will adapt fairly quickly. Though one thing that could be done is to use any old IS standard BA that the FedSun is diverting to Militia or second line troops and maybe convert them into working rigs or make some from scratch for working in building large projects like warships.
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Another idea that occurs to me is that if the Federated Suns could apply the same approach in designing the Fox class warship to a larger design. It could get them a viable design design sooner, but there has to be limits.
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The Monsoon was sold to the different states so the FS probably had some.
The RWR had 7, so I don't think the FS would pass at the chance to get one.
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3065 - November - Preparations
Even as the officers of the High Command and their various staff's continued to plan for the eventuality of war between the Federated Sun's and the Capellan Confederation and Draconis Combine they continued to work on not only their day to day duties but also preparing for the marriage of the Yvonne Steiner-Davion and Tancred Sandoval. Scheduled to take place on the 1st of December a marriage might not seem like a large scale military operation but when it is the First Princes's sister and the Minister for the Draconis March's heir it suddenly becomes one. Not withstanding both of these two commitments the High Command in consultation with the First Prince also had to prepare for the graduation of the various Cadres's and Training Battalion's cadets and where these new soldiers would be allocated. As with previous years this also involved the decisions as to what if any new units would be formed from the graduating cadets.
With regards the threat from the Draconis Combine and Capellan Confederation the High Command was drawing up a number of war plans suitable for the modern day era, all of them deliberately designed to be easily updated with changing situations. As per the remit from the Marshal of Armies and First Prince these are largely planned around seizing the initiative with various levels of attacks into the Confederation and Combine. For instance War Plan 7 that is being put together involves a heavy strike from the Galtor Thumb to cut off and isolate Prosperina before rolling up the isolated units trapped there, while at the same time striking along the old Sarna March/Confederation border towards not only Sarna but also Capella, driving both the Kurita's and Liao's onto the defensive and keeping them there.
On the wedding front security procedures are checked and checked again. Specialist units are moved in to support the Regular Army and Navy forces already deployed to Robinson. Given the couple getting married the great and good of the entire Federated Suns and beyond will be there and the AFFS is determined that the ceremony and proceedings will pass without a hitch. They are preparing for not only large scale invasions but even single person infiltration's and assassination attempts. In late November the First Prince and many key figures within the Federated Sun's head for Robinson. Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion and Princes's Champion Ardan Sortek will remain on New Avalon.
On the topic of new units to be formed from the graduating cadets it has now almost become tradition that one of these will be a new Avalon Hussar's RCT while another will almost certainly be assigned to the Dragonlord's Brigade - at least until that Brigade reaches full strength, although there is some doubt as whether that means 5 RCT's or 8 at the current time. The graduating class of 3065 is no exception and the cavalry weighted 9th Avalon Hussars RCT is to be formed as a reinforced regiment while the 4th Dragonlords RCT is to be raised and twinned with the 1st Davion Guards RCT. As per usual the current Dragonlords units training at the New Avalon and Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre will be shifted, with the 2nd Dragonlords moving on to a permanent garrison posting - Lindsay on the Taurian Concordant border, the traditional posting for the Dragonlords units. The 3rd Dragonlords will take their place on Novaya Zemlya while the 4th forms on New Avalon.
The third unit of those to be raised is the one that usually causes the most speculation given the almost traditional elements listed above. Unlike in previous years it is one of the "outsider" brigades which is to be enlarged with a new unit. Just like the new 9th Avalon Hussars and 4th Dragonlords the new unit is to be created with the intent of being a reinforced regiment right from the start. This new unit is to be the 3rd Chisholm Raiders, founded and raised on the original home world of the Brigade - Colorado. At the same time it is to be raised the 1st and 2nd are both also to receive official orders authorising them to likewise be upgraded to reinforced regiments. At least for the time being.
The 1st Avalon Hussars RCT and the 3rd Davion Guards RCT are also slated for being upgraded to reinforced regiment status. This will leave only the 2nd Davion Guards RCT within the Davion Brigade of Guards as a standard regiment, but given it's massively over strength aerospace forces this isn't seen as a major problem. Although the 2nd is assured that as soon as they reach their current full strength they will be upgraded as well. This year none of the Crucis Lancers RCT's are to be upgraded to reinforced regiments but again they are assured that this is still in the plans for the future of the brigade.
There are 3 final units that are informed of expansions to their current field strength, namely the 22nd and 39th Avalon Hussars and the 2nd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry. All are expected to reach 100% of their existing strength with the current wave of graduations and are ordered to reform themselves from 100% regiments to 70% reinforced regiments and continue their expansions back up to their new new strength levels. Given the slow upgrading of the Avalon Hussars and the traditional strength of a FSAC unit these expansions are exactly surprising however.
With the current expansions and graduating planned out and set into motion to take place during December the High Command do go back to the issue of the military education facilities within the Federated Suns. With a large number of expanded classes set to graduate at the end of 3066 and record enlistments the AFFS has a plentiful supply of officers and troops to not only maintain their current strength but also to continue expanding. This is particularly aided by the fact that for the first time in centuries the Federated Suns has become a net exporter of battlemechs and other military material. Large scale orders from the ComGuards and even the LAAF have been placed for the various established and new factories of the realm. The profits from these sales, channelled back into the various companies are in part funding future expansions and upgrades which will only reinforce this trend.
However one area that is starting to show some strain is the supply of qualified naval officers and enlisted personnel for the growing warship fleet. While the Armstrong Flight Academy is providing increased numbers of courses and slots for retraining for dropship and jumpship crews this is barely keeping up with demand and the current expansions are only going to stretch this further. Meanwhile the huge increase in aerospace fighter wings is causing even more strain on the supply of qualified pilots. Rolling upgrades to the Galax based Armstrong Academy are constantly ongoing but it's became obvious this is becoming a major critical failure point for the entire Federated Suns. The creation and expansion of the Filtvelt Flight School is a major bonus for the AFFS further expansions are in order. As such the Davion High Command (those members of which aren't attending the wedding on Robinson) begin planning for a new naval academy and flight school. To be named the Aldrin Flight Academy it is planned to create the new school on the world of Novaya Zemlya - which many think is a strange choice but the High Command has it's reasons. The plan is for the new school to offer the full range of naval specialisations and pilot training on the same level of the larger Armstrong Flight Academy and to work up to effectively being the older academy's twin. Work is to begin in 3066 and the first small classes beginning in 3067.
The hard working staff at the new Kallon Industries plant on Belladonna miss their target date of bringing the first battlemech production line online on the 21st of November. By 3 days. On the 24th of November the Hornet class line enters production and begins assembling the venerable light mechs. Meanwhile the Griffon, Shadow Hawk and Wolverine lines are also nearing completion and will soon enter production over the next few months. All of the machines and vehicles produced in this plant are to be split between the AFFS and the ComGuards - with the AFFS selling a small portion of it's allowance to premier and trusted mercenary commands.
On the world of El Dorado the joint GM-Kallon-Davion cooperative plant also begins production of the prestigious Templar-O omnimech. This now brings the new plant's operating lines to 3, namely the new Templar-O and the Battlemaster and Ajax lines. A 4th line to produce the Demon Combat Tank for the AFFS and ComGuards is also in construction.
The New Independence Weaponry factory on Kestrel also see's its new Marauder line begin constructing full battlemechs in November. Although there will be some initial teething problems with the hip actuators - so far the plant has only built "humanoid" battlemechs and the change over to a more bird like chassis caused some delays in getting the assembly correct. Still these are relatively minor issues and easily solved by a quick readjustment.
The Layover based Quicksell plant's expansion that goes operational in November doesn't have the same luck with the issues in it's first products. The company is notorious across the entire Inner Sphere for it's horrendous attitude to quality control and the new lines prove to be a stand out case even within Quicksell. It is so bad that the AFFS reject every single vehicle offered to them from the new lines and insist that quality control is massively improved or they will be making no purchases from the plant. The entire first production run from the new Hetzer, Vedette, Heavy ACP and Pegasus line are instead sold to the ComGuards. Who have to almost totally rebuild the vehicles before they approach serviceable levels. Even the desperate ComGuards however demand a huge discount on the obviously faulty equipment and this production run is actually sold at a loss. Particularly with the fines, breach of contract law suits and sales taxes that the FedSun's slap on the company. A hurried improvement is rushed into place to hopefully resolve the issues.
Even the impending wedding ceremony between Duchess Yvonne and Baron Tancred is overshadowed within the Federated Sun's by news from the Clan Front as it is now being called. All along the frontier raids and counter raids are presenting a drain on both sides, while on the main Clan Jade Falcon thrust both sides are fighting with a ferocity that is causing horrendous damage to all participants. The Clan forces have managed to take the worlds of Pasig and Mkuranga and a follow on attack swiftly seizes the lightly defended world of Deia. However on the other worlds they have invaded the Jade Falcons find themselves tied down in bloody fighting.
Khan Marthe Pryde in an attempt to break the stalemate begins assembling a second wave of troops to throw into the Lyran Alliance. Built around her own Turkina Keshik and Iota Galaxy this second wave will have 4 front line clusters backed up by 2 second line clusters. Rho Galaxy is also ordered to prepare to form a third wave if it is required. However to hopefully ensure that this isn't needed the Khan also begins assembling a naval task force. The CJF Falcon's Nest, CJF Jade Aerie, CJF White Aerie, CJF Gauntlet, CJF Green Lantern, CJF Kerensky's Pride, CJF Emerald Tornado and CJF Lightning Strike assemble as a purely naval star. The numerous Aegis class cruisers remain assigned to the various front line clusters.
Meanwhile on and above Arc Royal the Archon is assembling his own task force. Both Mjolnir class battlecruisers the LAS Yggdrasil and LAS Fylgia are the central element of the naval component, along with the LAS Robert Marsden and LAS Robert Kelswa Fox corvettes. Joining them is the entire Wolf-in-Exile fleet, consisting of the Werewolf, Ulric Kerensky, Implacable, Valiant and Killing blow warships - although the Full Moon is also officially part of the task force assembling it isn't considered a combat vessel but instead has already been loaded with supplies and equipment to keep the entire task force operation for months.
As well as the large naval force that has been assembled the Archon, General of the Armies, Duke Kell and Khan Kell have assembled a large number of ground troops. The 2nd and 4th Royals make up the core of the Lyran contingent but they are joined by the Tamar Cavaliers, 3rd and 8th Donegal Guards and the 5th Lyran Regulars. On top of these the 1st and 2nd Kell Hounds and the Knights of St Cameron have also assembled on Arc Royal as has the entirety of the Clan Wolf-in-Exile's Alpha Galaxy. They are awaiting the following units joining them before they launch their counter attack - Barber's Marauder IIs, the Alarion and Skye Jaegers and the 5th Lyran Guards from the Lyran Alliance and the 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment from the SLDF. Once these last units have assembled the counter attack will commence.
After a lengthy stay on Sian Hohiro Kurita leaves and begins the journey home. Just before leaving he had politely turned down the pro-forma offer of a marriage alliance between House Kurita and House Liao with the offer of Kali Liao's hand in marriage. Publicly stating that he did not believe he was worthy of such a prize, privately he remarked to his hand chosen officers as they were leaving Sian on their dropship that he would rather take a poisonous viper to bed than that one! The madwoman's brother however had impressed Hohiro. He was no warrior born, nor was he a man that could be trusted but the Kurita could at least see that he was a useful ally against the traditional enemy of House Davion. Hohiro was under no illusion that there was any real bonds of friendship between himself and Sun-Tzu despite the public facade of one, but knew he could at least count on the Liao's hatred for all things Davion to make him useful. Not that he would ever trust him.
Sun-Tzu Liao's impression of Hohiro was similar in the regard that he could see a great number of uses for the Kurita's aid in his fight to retake what was rightfully his, but he also couldn't help but consider the younger Kurita as a useful idiot. To caught up in his internal code of honour to always be able to do the hard and necessary tasks. A good samurai no doubt, but in Sun-Tzu's mind Hohiro would only make an adequate ruler. Still a useful idiot was if anything better than a potential rival as far as House Liao was concerned. It was just a shame that Hohiro Kurita had been smart enough to turn down Kali's hand in marriage. Offloading that particular headache would have been worth offering a substantial dowry. However at least Hohiro had brought the substantial gift of the Inazuma class corvette design specifications. Sun-Tzu wasted no time in instructing yards to be constructed over Capella to being constructing the corvette as soon as was practicable.
On Luthien the Coordinator called a full council of his Warlords as well as the DCA in order to advise him on the growing threat from the Federated Suns. This meeting would take place on the same day that Yvonne Steiner-Davion and Tancred Sandoval married.
After discussing the matter with his "adviser" Katherine Steiner-Wolf Khan Ward of Clan Wolf decided that in the event that the Falcons made any more moves into the Lyran Alliance he would strike. The Falcons would find themselves dangerously overextended if they committed any more troops to the invasion and with half their border worlds suffering raids would be unable to properly respond to any strikes from his own Touman. He had initially planned to strike for the Falcon capital of Sudetan but after advice from Katherine he had revised his initial plans. Instead he would launch a strike against the worlds of Jabuka, Quarrell, Orkney and La Grave. If these went well follow on strikes would be considered for Benfled and Montmarault. If he was able to seize these 6 worlds he would cut the Jade Falcons off from any future drive on Terra and place his own Clan into proximity with the Lyran Alliance which would allow him to make larger gains against this weaker foe.
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3065 - December - Plan Fuso begins
The Coordinator knelt and looked over at his Warlords and the head of the Draconis Combine Admiralty and sighed. These officers were supposed to be the finest military minds of the entire Draconis Combine and yet they could give him no answers. In the traditional heavy robes of his office he flicked his eyes from officer to officer, mentally cataloging them. Warlord Isoroku Kurita warlord of Dieron, a traditionalist but by all accounts loyal. Warlord Boris Petroff warlord of Benjamin, an excellent tactician and politician and mentally flexible. Warlord Tomoe Sakade warlord of Pesht, his wife who he had considered sacrificing to honour in the recent Ghost Bear War but had kept on and ordered the execution of those culprits who had sought to undermine her, if he could trust anyone it was her. Warlord Li Dok To warlord of Galedon, a soldier's soldier and one of his traditional supporters. Fleet Admiral Hidaka Goro head of the DCA, not a great thinker but a methodical and organised man who's single greatest asset was that he was above all things efficient. Somewhat behind him and to the side Ninyu Kerai Indrahar sat in an unadorned robe representing the powerful ISF. These were the men and single woman for whom he had to rely upon the future of his realm and dysnasty.
Having allowed the silence to grow almost uncomfortably long he spoke softly as was his want in these types of meetings. "Tell me then. How can we counter the Davions?"
Nobody spoke. Clearly none wished to be the first to speak. Finally however Admiral Goro as the most junior man in the room felt the need to speak up, if only to win himself favour with the more powerful figures by breaking the silence. As he spoke he presented a series of folders from his case and bowed deeply and held the bow. "Speaking for the Admiralty I have prepared a list of recommendations. They have been organised into 3 parts Coordinator. The first is various options as to the increase of our naval strength depending on what sort of fleet we intend to field and what the enemy fleet is likely to look at. The second is how each of these fleets might be used for a number of war options, ranging from skirmishing on the frontier to a full on invasion of the Federated Suns. The third and final option is a series of plans of last resort on how to wage war against the Eternal Enemy if we find ourselves outmatched in numbers of conventional warships."
Looking at the bowed head of the Fleet Admiral the Coordinator opened the file and flicked through it, even as the Warlords did likewise. Presumably Indrahar had already had a copy well in advance of the meeting. He waved the Admiral up even as the others began to react angrily to the first part of the plan. He allowed the fury to build before raising a hand for silence. "Admiral these cost projections... Are severe. Which of the options are you recommending?"
"Yes my lord. Yet if we are to face the Davion fleet on equal terms I think they are in fact conservative. Particularly if we go for Plan Fuso." At the preferred plan the Warlords, even Tomoe reacted angrily. The cost of most of Plan Fuso was ruinous.
"Fuso?" The Coordinator asked with a raised eyebrow. "Why Fuso?"
"Battleships my lord. The one area that we currently have a lead on the Davions. They have no battleships nor any plans for them. We however have the DCS Yamato in construction already. If we can complete this mighty vessel and create at least a squadron of sister ships we will have a katana that will slice through the Davion fleet like a silk scarf. Even better if we can also complete the DCS Kaga as a source of fighter cover for our future battle line." The Admiral explained calmly.
Ignoring the glaring Warlords the Coordinator met the eyes of his Fleet Admiral for a long few minutes and then sighed. "We cannot afford the full numbers of Plan Fuso. Revise it. Maintain a core of battleships as the heart of the plan, but concentrate on Inazuma corvettes to give you more hulls to support them. The DCS Kaga may be completed but future carriers are to be Samarkand class. Liaise with the ISF. Provide me a revised plan within the month. You are dismissed."
As soon as the Admiral retired Warlord Sakade spoke up. Of course it would be her. "We cannot afford this lord."
All of the others nodded firmly in support of his wife's point. Good. They were supporting her at least. "I know. Yet we cannot afford not to have a counter for the growing Davion menace. No matter how valiant our samurai, how fine their equipment is... If they are caught in their dropships by a warship in space they will die futilely. We need enough warships to at least cover our samurai. However I believe that we might be able to achieve this with a "fleet in being" approach. If we can assemble a small force of battleships we can at least exert local dominance at key locations while forcing the Davion's to divert much of their fleet as a potential counter for them. Combine these battleships with Samarkand carriers and Inazuma corvettes and we might bleed the Davion's dry before unleashing our battleships for a last decisive battle. At a much reduced cost than the full cost of Fuso. Particularly if our new alliance with the Liao's bare fruit..."
He nodded to them and then began going over their own lists of recommendations and requests for supplies and men. Of course each Warlord was convinced that his (or even her) District required more of the Dragon's resources to protect it properly...
-
3065 - December - Attack and Counter Attack
December in the Federated Sun's began with a wedding. The First Princes's sister Duchess Yvonne Steiner-Davion resplendent in a bridal dress that had deliberately been designed to show echoes of her own mothers dress walked forward down the aisle of the Grand Temple on Robinson in front of thousands of well wishers and probably billions via the carefully placed tri-vid cameras. She was wed to Baron Tancred Sandoval in a simple affair that largely followed the Baron's Jewish faith but did include elements of the brides New Avalon Catholic faith as well. The people of the Federated Suns, followers of the Unfinished Book movement, had always been known to be inclusive of other faiths and open to compromising when it came to liturgy. Giving the bride away the First Prince was in the uniform of a Marshal in the AFFS, while the Baron himself wore a similar uniform having been raised to command the entire Robinson Rangers Brigade only the week before.
Having had some time to think on the matter the bride had decided in consultation with her brothers and with her future husband to take the name Yvonne Davion-Sandoval upon her marriage, but in agreement that any future children would merely go by Sandoval. When the press asked the reasons for this it was pointed out that the while many noble families would happily double barrel their name with Davion if offered the opportunity the Sandoval's were March Lords within their own right and had an equally illustrious and prestigious name. This naming decision in no way affected the standing of any of Yvonne's children within the lines of succession - to the thrones of Tharkad or New Avalon in fact.
As a wedding present to his bride and in conjunction with his new brother-in-law the First Prince the Baron donated a full battalion of Robinson Standard BattleWorks battlemechs to found the core of a new unit to protect his wife's holdings within the Outback on Tortuga. This battalion was matched by the First Prince and matched again by Duke George Hasek, the brides cousin. The Duke of Robinson in a fit of laughter at the reception informed the happy couple that since the others had been so generous the least he could do would be to add a company to his son's gift in order to outfit a full standard 3 battalion plus command company regiment! The bride thanked them all and informed them that her own present to her husband would be a new Melissa Steiner-Davion University Hospital hear on Robinson which would be directly linked to the NAIS and would provide state of the art treatments not only to the people of Robinson but to the entire Draconis March. The Duke of Robinson still smiling from his gift to his daughter-in-law then proceeded to inform them all that he would personally pay for an annex to the University to be built on Tortuga.
The mood of celebration within the Federated Sun's continued for all of December, with formal announcements of the formation of the 9th Avalon Hussars RCT, 3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT and 4th Dragonlord's RCT also being cause for celebration. Pride in the AFFS had swollen to an all new high and even the expanded military academies and training centres were struggling to keep up with the volunteers flooding in to serve. Not only that but across the realm unemployment continued to fall, new educational establishments were being set up and living standards were rising - particularly in the Outback. From being little more than a source of raw materials and recruits for the AFFS the region was now providing genuinely growing levels of taxation as well as a rapidly expanding industrial base which was only partially military based now. New jumpships were tying the Outback not only together but also into the wider Federated Suns, with the costs of shipping going down as more and more civilian jumpships plied the star routes. Vodka from Tikonov, electronics from El Dorado, wool clothing from Chesterton and more were now easily obtainable within the Outback and at a fraction of their previous costs.
The First Prince caused a further boost to the region when he announced that after negotiations with Comstar there would be 2 new shipyard developments in the coming year. As of the 1st of January work would begin on construction of a new warship production facility over the world of Novaya Zemlya to build Fox corvettes for the ComGuards. In return for being allowed to construct this facility Comstar would fund the creation of 2 Fox corvette slips at the Outback based shipyard at Filtvelt. This would raise up the Filtvelt shipyard from being a regional supplier of civilian jumpships and dropships along with a small number of military dropships to a major player within the Federated Suns aerospace industries.
Another area of aerospace expansion is taking place at the Firgrove, Galax, Layover and Verde shipyards. All 4 shipyards had began constructing Colossus class dropships for not only the AFFS but also the ComGuards which are desperate need of a large number of combined arms transports. Galax is the single largest producer and divides a full dozen of the mammoth troop transports between the AFFS and ComGuards, while Firgrove and Layover contribute 4 more each and Verde provides 2. The AFFS's 10 new dropships are immedietly assigned. Each Davion Guards RCT is given 1 of the huge vessels while the other 2 are assigned to the 1st Robinson's Rangers and the 6th Syrtis Fusiliers. Further ships are already under construction and it is hoped that every front line RCT will soon be assigned at least 1 of these superb dropships. The ComGuard's vessels are rushed to Dieron to be used to help outfit the 2 Divisions being reformed from the survivors of the attack on Caph.
On Batavia the first Jalastar Aerospace line is finished and begins produce royal variant sabres for the AFFS. Construction work continues on the Sparrowhawk line and the second Sabre line which is to be used to provide Comstar with examples of this versatile and rugged light fighter. This is matched by similar production statistics on Islamabad where a Sabre line also goes operational in December. At the same time the expansions of Sparrowhawk and Sabre lines on Panpour are finally complete with the plant now having 5 Sparrowhawk lines and 3 Sabre lines. There are 2 additional lines still under construction, 1 each of Spad and Zero's.
The Kallon plant on Belladonna begins construction of Wolverines and Shadow Hawks in December with the production split between the AFFS and ComGuards. Initial hopes to have the Griffon line also go into production this month are unfortunately not met, but the Griffon line is expected to enter production in early January of 3066. The final battlemech line under construction at the plant is suffering severe problems however and it is estimated that the Exterminator line will not be ready to produce a full battlemech before June 3066.
Quicksell has a second expansion begin producing new vehicles this month after the disaster at their Layover plant in November, this facility being their Broken Wheel factory. Unlike the Layover plant however the production from Broken Wheel is of acceptable quality and the AFFS buy up their allotment in full. That isn't to say that the vehicles are perfect and the standard maintenance and repair contracts are insisted upon with the trouble wracked firm. The output does actually end up being above average for the usual Quicksell products with almost 1 in 3 tanks not requiring any re-visionary work at all!
On Filtvelt the new battle armour facility that had been constructed by Achernar finally enters full production. It had initially been scheduled to go online in November but had suffered some routine delays in it's construction. However now that it is active it is one of the single largest producers of battle armour for the AFFS after New Avalon and Talcott. All 3 "Davion" designs will be built here - Grenadiers, Cavaliers and Infiltrator II's.
Achernar also see's it's new battle armour facility in the Draconis March go online in December on the world of Mayetta. This won't enter full production as per the plant on Filtvelt but will begin limited production of various small amounts of Cavaliers and Infiltrator II's as well as spare parts for not only those designs but also the Grenadier. Production numbers will continue to rise and Grenadier production start by the March 3066.
The Corean Industries factory on June has it's second Centurion line begin producing the ever popular battlemech. A third line is also almost entering production. Frankly as fast as the company can produce new Centurion battlemechs the AFFS is buying them. The design is proving so popular that Corean is beginning to consider whether or not to begin designing an omnimech variant. In the meantime the company begins constructing a new Centurion line on New Avalon to add production there. New Avalon is considered the best place for this new line as given it's massive industrial potential and high technological level the plant can be assembled much faster and so profits can begin flowing in quicker.
The new plant for GM on Victoria in the Capellan March also goes active this month with the Wasp line starting to construct full battlemechs. The Blackjack-O omnimech and Lorica battle armour facilities are still however under construction.
The Kintaro battlemech line of Ozawa which had until now been producing a handful of downgraded battlemechs finishes the upgrade which has largely been paid for by Comstar. Although production is to be split between the AFFS and ComGuards the "Kurita" nature of the design will result in the AFFS either selling most of their production on to mercenary regiments (who will be happy to receive the mech) or assigning them to low end March Militias and planetary defence forces. One area of exception to this will be a full company of the battlemechs bought by the Duke of Robinson for each of the Combat Training Centres within his March. These battlemechs will be used by instructors there and various OpForce units to simulate DCMS companies and battalions alongside a number of captured machines such as Jenners and Panthers. Unlike the lukewarm response from the AFFS the ComGuards will happily snap up every unit produced in their share. A second line is under construction and some thought is being given to offering the full output of this line to the ComGuards in return for some other concession.
On Woodbine the new Sagittaire assault battlemech line began production. This will now bring the number of lines producing this hugely popular assault mech to 3 - 2 on Robinson and 1 on Woodbine. Even with all 3 lines now working at full capacity demand is still outpacing supply. The Davion Guards alone have ordered no less than 3 companies of this battlemech to be divided between various units - with a full company of course going to the Davion Assault Guards, while the Duke of Robinson had hoped to outfit each of his Ranger regiments with at least a company of the flagship battlemech. The Sagittaire is in high demand to be paired with such other battlemechs as the Flashman and Black Knights to provide all energy based line breaker units who can advance and continue fighting without risk of running out of ammunition or for deployment behind enemy lines. Given this situation consideration is being given either to expanding Robinson or Woodbine's lines or an entirely new specialist facility. Along with these discussions Robinson Standard BattleWorks is in discussions with Comstar to put their "Clanbuster" Black Knight BLK-9-KNT into production either at Robinson or Woodbine.
On the Clan Front Khan Marthe Pryde launches her attempt to break the deadlock. She leads her new formations to Babaeski and Morges where she drives back the Lyran and Wolf-In-Exile forces which had been delaying her progress. The 16th Wolf Guards Battle Cluster in particular takes heavy losses before being driven back to Esteros where it proceeds to dig in and regroup alongside the 3rd Lyran Regular's remnants. Before they can make much headway in their defensive preparations the Khan follows them to Esteros on the 24th in an attempt to quickly overrun this world and push on towards Arc Royal where reports are coming in that a counter attack is mustering.
The 3rd Regulars still shattered from their losses on Dustball are swiftly routed and destroyed by the end of Christmas Day but the 2 remaining Trinaries of the 16th Wolf Guards Battle Cluster attempt to fight a mobile campaign and hope for reinforcements. Hunting them are elements of Clan Jade Falcon's Gamma Galaxy - the Jade Falcon Guards and 1st Falcon Hussars. The remainder of Gamma Galaxy along with the Turkina Keshik and 5 of Rho Galaxy's 6 Clusters are still in orbit along with the naval forces the Khan has assembled.
Which is where the counter attack finds them on the 29th. Led by Archon Peter Steiner as well as Grand Duke Morgan Kell and Khan Phelan Kell themselves the assembled forces had opted not to wait for the Alarion Jaegers and 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment when they heard of the desperate plight of the 16th. Instead they jumped to Esteros and ordered the 2 remaining units which were to assemble to hold in place on Arc Royal as a final reserve when they arrived.
Leading the way came the warships of the Wolf-in-Exile fleet and the Lyran Alliance Navy. With 1 battleship, 4 battlecruisers and 4 corvettes the fleet is top heavy and is lacking in medium weight vessels but is capable of incredible firepower. The Full Moon Potemkin class cruiser skirts along the edge of the battlefield and accompanies the transports of the ground forces as a last line escort. To face off against them Star Admiral Vishnu Folkner has a single battleship, 2 battlecruisers, 1 heavy cruiser, 2 frigates, 1 destroyer and 1 corvette. He swiftly convinces his Khan to release to him the 3 Aegis heavy cruisers which are assigned to the various high profile Clusters in her ground component and uses them to reinforce his fleet before going out to meet the enemy formation. He has 11 ships to the enemies 9 and has a major advantage in middle weight vessels but finds himself with little to match the incredible firepower of the Werewolf and 2 Mjolnir class battlecruisers in particular. The Alliance ships had another major advantage in that they were accompanied by a large force of assault dropships and pocket warships, mostly Claymores and A-3 Overlords.
The 2 naval forces immedietly crash together, but this has the effect of freeing the way for the various ground forces to make fast burns for Esteros. Given the chaotic nature of the deployments, with both sides rushing to land troops so as to avoid them being caught vulnerable by fighter or warships in orbit the battle lines are highly irregular.
The Khan manages to land a firm core of her Tukina Keshik and the bulk of Rho Galaxy around her own position, but the Gamma's are scattered across Sulivan continent with the Jade Falcon Guards and 1st Falcon Hussars cut off behind enemy lines due to their having been chasing the 16th Wolf Battle Cluster. The Clan Wolf-in-Exile forces have managed to land in a scattered formation around the isolated Jade Falcon Guards and Hussars and rescue their beleagured unit, but are nowhere near the main Jade Falcon Force. Meanwhile the Kell Hounds and Knights of St Cameron have landed along a line that matches up with the Gamma Galaxy and are soon pressing them hard, while the various LAAF formations and Barber's Marauder II's are soon attempting to assault the main force of Rho Galaxy and the Khan. The battle or "trial" for the world has been turned into no less than 3 seperate engagements scattered across an entire continent.
This is turned into 4 trials if you include the naval battle taking place in orbit. With the Jade Falcons ships closing a solid wall of assault dropships, pocket warships and fighters had attempted to screen the Alliance force, only weak in a single area which was directly facing the CJF Falcon's Nest which punched through with ease only to see the gap close behind it and the various Alliance lighter ships plunge forward to support the screen while the Werewolf and both Mjolnir battlecruisers closed in against it. While the 3 capital ships attempted to isolate and overrun the Texas class CJF Falcon's Nest the Ulric Kerensky and Implacable attempted to keep other Jade Falcon ships from rushing to the aid of their flagship. These 2 Wolf battlecruisers soon found themselves engaged by the CJF Jade Aerie and CJF White Aerie battlecruisers and 2 Aegis class heavy cruisers - the Gold and Red Talons. Even as the heavier Alliance vessels engaged their counterparts the 4 corvettes attempted to keep the other Jade Falcon ships busy with the support of the bulk of the dropships. Faced with 2 heavy cruisers, 2 frigates, a destroyer and a corvette they were singularly unsuccessful.
Even as the Werewolf savaged the Falcon's Nest with long range batteries of Naval PPC's and the Mjolnir's fired accurate volleys of Naval Gauss Rounds into the battleship their lighter escorts were being overrun and torn apart. The Aegis class CJF White Talon managed to catch the LAS Robert Marsden in a crippling broadside that left the smaller ship easy prey for the CJF Emerald Tornado. Meanwhile the 2 Wolf corvettes found themselves desperately trying to delay the CJF Kerensky's Pride and CJF Green Lantern from aiding their flagship. The Killing Blow paid for this mission with it's existence, exploding when it's magazines were hit, while it's sister ship the Valiant suffered a total power failure when it was attacked by the by both Congress class vessels at once. While not exploding like the Killing Blow the Valiant's back was broken and it's power plant totally destroyed in a series of volleys. The LAS Robert Kelswa with a heavy force of dropships supporting her manage to keep the CJF Lightning Strike out of the fight, driving the Vincent class corvette back again and again. The cruiser battle similarly saw heavy losses for the Wolf-in-Exile ships with the Ulric Kerensky and Implacable both suffering heavy damage before finally being driven back to avoid total destruction. They did however manage to destroy the CJF Gold Talon and cripple the CJF White Aerie. As well as buying just enough time for the 3 heaviest ships to do their job.
As the rest of their fleet died and bled to buy them the time needed the 3 largest Alliance capital ships managed to cripple and then disable the CJF Falcon's Nest, although not before the LAS Fylgia took heavy damage herself. Still when the CJF Jade Aerie and CJF Red Talon burst past the 2 retreating Wolf vessels they found themselves facing heavy coordinated long range fire from the Werwolf and LAS Yggdrasil. Before they could withdraw this combined fire managed to destroy the CJF Red Talon and worsen the damage that the CJF Jade Aerie had suffered. As the CJF Jade Aerie withdraws a number of Wolf Elemental's and LAAF marines begin boarding the crippled CJF Falcon's Nest.
After the initial flurry of naval conflict the Alliance forces had been reduced the lightly damaged Werewolf, LAS Yggdrasil and LAS Robert Kelswa and the heavily damaged LAS Fylgia and the Ulric Kerensky and Implacable. The large force of Alliance assault dropships and pocket warships however had been devastated in the first engagement and could provide little back up to the remaining warships. Facing them were the undamaged CJF Gauntlet and CJF Emerald Tornado, the lightly damaged CJF Green Lantern and CJF Lightning Strike and the moderately damaged CJF White Talon and CJF Kerensky's Pride. The CJF Red Aerie and CJF White Aerie while both officially combat capable were so severely damaged as to be considered non-combat effective except as a last resort. Neither side was confident of victory and resorted to long range sniper volleys and attempting to isolate individual ships, although the Jade Falcons also continually tried to retake the shattered hulk of the CJN Falcon's Nest.
As the year ends the various ground forces are engaged in heavy running battles with the Wolf forces attempting to destroy the 2 isolated Gamma Clusters while the remaining Gamma units attempt to punch through the Kell Hounds and Knights screen and relieve their trapped kindred. Rho Galaxy and the Khan are heavily engaged in a series of stand up drag down fights with the Lyran Alliance task force under the Archon Prince. Again and again Barber's Marauder's 2 battalions of assault weighted Marauder II battlemech's throw back Jade Falcon attacks, while the Lyran units continue to mount constant pressure on the Falcon lines.
Within the Draconis Combine the Coordinator meets with his Warlords and other key staff and begins planning for a counter to the current Davion strengthening of their own realm. As a first indication and gesture of strength he announces that each of the District Regular Brigades will in the new year form an entirely new combat command. The 24th Benjamin Regulars, 47th Dieron Regulars, 45th Galedon Regulars and 11th Pesht Regulars will all be formed in January as a mark of the Dragon's strength. Of course what isn't mentioned is that all 4 regiments will be under strength and equipped in large part with other regiments cast offs as the Combine is simply unable to produce the battlemechs required for this expansion in the time allotted.
On Sian the Chancellor announces that the Victoria Rangers 2 regiments will be renamed the 1st and 2nd Victoria Rangers instead of their current "Kingston" and "Sung" Rangers. In addition a 3rd Rangers is to be formed to ensure that the Davions are never able to take the Commonality capital. The 3rd will be formed as a strong assault weighted defensive unit and permanently assigned to Victoria. He will also continue reinforcing the under strength Sian Dragoon units he has raised.
Within the Free World's League Parliament the Captain General's new Military Budget is soundly defeated. He will be forced to bring it back in January and attempt to either convince some MP's to change their minds with concessions or withdraw elements of the Budget that the Parliament find objectionable.
-
AFFS
31st December 3065
Independent Commands
1st Arcadians – Veteran – 90% (Re)
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 100% - Klathandu IV
1st Capellan Dragoons – Veteran – 90% - Bell
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Northwind
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) – Outreach
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100% - Tancredi
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 70% - Tikonov
1st Sheraton Knights – Green – 50% - Sheraton - attached support forces (veteran) at 100%
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) - Abbeyville
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Panpour
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% – New Valencia
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – newly formed
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) – Yuris
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - June
14th Avalon Hussars – Green – 50% – Woodbine Combat Training Centre
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - Cassias
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) - Sun Jaguar Enclaves
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Talon
23rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 40% –
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% –
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 40% - Gulkana
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 90% (Re)
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - Tortuga Dominions
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - Lothair
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Kentares
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - Benet III
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) – Crofton
Borderer Brigade - with armoured regiment, infantry regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st Aragon Borderers – Veteran – 90%
1st Kittery Borderers – Regular – 100%
1st Mitchel Borderers – Green – 100%
1st Woodstock Borderers – Green – 80%
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Regular – 70% (Re)
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 60% (Re)- Brockway
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – Colorado
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% - Groveld/Niles
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 90%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) - Mitchel
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% - Errai
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Wakaponeta
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Midale
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 90% - personnel – 100% mechs
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) – New Mendham
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tikonov
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tancredi
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon – Temporarily Robinson
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 90% - Axton
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) - New Avalon
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) - Galtor
5th Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Addicks
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% - Deneb Kaitos
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Green – 90% - Deneb Kaitos
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% - Tikonov
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% - Hyalite
12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 80% - Skat
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
Dragonlords Brigade - officers drawn from Davion Brigades, rest drawn from Cadres
1st Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) – Bromhead
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) – Lindsay
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
4th Dragonlords RCT – Green – 80% (Re) – New Avalon Combat Training Centre
Federated Sun’s Armoured Cavalry – includes an armoured and BA regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st FSAC – Elite – 100% (Re) – Verlo
2nd FSAC – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Axton
FedSun’s Dragoons Brigade
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 100% - Epsilon Indi
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 90% - Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Paris
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Elite – 60% - Talon/Wernke
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 70% - Frazer
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Green – 70% - Defiance
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Montour
Lexington Combat Guards
1st Lexington Combat Guards – 32nd Recon – Veteran – 90% (Re)
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – 241st Battle – Regular – 90%
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – 180th Dragoon – Veteran– 80%
New Avalon Cavaliers
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 90% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 40% (Re) – New Avalon/El Dorado
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100% - Tripoli
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Veteran – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Elite – 100% - Robinson
2nd Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 90% - heavily upgraded with Omnimechs – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 90%
4th Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 70% - former Fighting Urukhai, individually veteran, but coming together as a unit until 3065-66
5th Robinson Rangers – Elite – 60% - former Narhal’s Raiders, fanatically anti-Kurita.
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 100% - Robinson
Syrtis Fusiliers
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 80% - New Syrtis
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 60%
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 80% - Talon
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100% -
Capellan March Militias
Achernar CMM – Green – 80%
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
Nanking CMM – Green – 100%
New Syrtis CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 80%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Broken Wheel CrMM – Green – 100% - Defiance Combat Training Centre
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 80%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 60% - Niles
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - armour brigade forming
Kentares DMM – Veteran – 50%
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 70%
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Academy Training Forces
Filtvelt Academy Training Battalion (5 companies) – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 100%
Warrior’s Hall Training Battalion (4 companies) – Green – 100%
Training Battalions – organised as LCT’s
1st Bell Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Training Reinforced Battalion - Green - 100%
1st Conroe Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Galtor Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Kittery Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Mitchel Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Sheraton Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Tortuga Training Reinforced Battalion – Green – 100%
Clan Sun Jaguar Touman
Alpha Galaxy
Gold Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
Silver Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
1st Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 60% - Valois
2nd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 80% - Valois
3rd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 40% - Valois
Delta Galaxy
3rd Fidelis Jaguar Cavaliers – Veteran – 60%
1st Fidelis Jaguar Mystics – Veteran – 30% - Star Captain Inamma formerly a Nova Cat
4th Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 50% - entirely freebirth and mostly armour formation
Omega Galaxy
1st Sun Jaguar Militia – Regular – 40% - Fugeres
2nd Sun Jaguar Militia – Green – 40% - Frankson
1st Fidelis Jaguar PGC – Green – 70% - Frankson – mostly infantry and some armour
Mercenary Forces
Blue Star Irregulars – Firgrove
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 100%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 100%
Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 70% operable
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 90%
1st Federated Arcadians – Veteran – 60%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 90% - Galtor
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 80% - Cylene
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – Veteran – 60% - Paris
Hansen’s Roughriders – Veteran – 90%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Veteran – 100%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 90%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 80%
- 21st Ranger – Regular – 90%
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Veteran – 100%
Medusan’s – Veteran – 100% - New Syrtis/Firgrove
Northwind Highlanders – All units garrisoning Northwind
- 1st Kearny Highlanders – Elite – 80% - not contracted
- Stirling’s Fusiliers – Elite – 60%
- Mulvaney’s Regiment – Elite – 60%
- Northwind Hussars – Elite – 70% - not contracted
Regulators – Regular – 80% - Kansu
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Niles
13th Stalking Horse – Veteran – 100% - Alta Vista
12th Vegan Rangers – Addicks and Nanking PDZ
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 90%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 80%
Wild Geese – Elite – 100%
Wilson’s Hussars (battalion) Veteran – 100% – Bell
Wolf’s Dragoons – garrisoning Outreach
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Zeta Battalion – Elite – 90%
Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
FSS Fox – with Duchess Yvonne going to Robinson
FSS Indomitable – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Intrepid – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Indefatigable – New Avalon Squadron – Galax
FSS Antrim – Northwind
FSS Murmansk – Northwind
FSS Brest – Draconis Squadron
FSS New Sytris – Capellan Squadron – Kathil
FSS Robinson – Draconis Squadron
FSS Kathil – Capellan Squadron
FSS Bryceland – Capellan Squadron
FSS Marduk – Outreach
FSS Filtvelt – Outreach
FSS Kenatres – Outback Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Galtor – Outback Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Broken Wheel – Outback Squadron
FSS Markesan – Outback Squadron
FSS Addicks – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Chesterton – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Tikonov – New Avalon Squadron – Galax
FSS El Dorado – Outback Squadron
FSS Warren – Draconis Squadron
FSS Benet III – Capellan Squadron
Avalon Class Cruisers
FSS Melissa Davion – First Princes’s Flagship
FSS Alexander Davion – Draconis Squadron Flagship
FSS Lucien Davion – New Avalon Squadron
FSS Simon Davion – refitting – finished January 3066
FSS Robert Davion – Capellan Squadron Flagship – home ported New Syrtis
FSS Andrew Davion – Capellan Squadron
FSS Hanse Davion – First Prince’s escort
Covenant Class Cruisers
FSS Covenant – Capellan Squadron – Patrol
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Industrial/Infrastructure Changes 31st December 3065
Capellan March
Augusta
- Corean Enterprise beginning construction of the Musketeer plant – being expanded to fully automated by February 3065
Axton
– Wangker plant to double production of Corsairs, from 2 to 4 lines completed, a further 2 lines being added, completion due in February 3065. Tomahawk line being added by January 3066
Bell
- Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards, now being upgraded as a full on rebuild/repair centre capable of repairing and/or upgrading dozens of mechs and vehicles at the same time. Coming online November 3062
Chesterton
- Achernar plant to build Wasps, Phoenix Hawks and Dervishes for AFFS/ComGuards 50/50 – going online in January 3066, February 3066 and August 3066. Lorica battle armour annex going online in April 3066.
Firgrove
- Clyde Shipyards being upgraded to be able to construct dropships not just repair them. Began construction of Excalibur but still upgrading. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065.
Kathil – expanding naval slips
Tikonov
– Expansion of the factories there to produce the Archer battlemech, completed in October 3063. Expansion to include a Thug line, coming online in December 3064, 50/50 split Comguards/AFFS
- New factory for New Independence Weapony, building Victors (March 3064) and Battlemasters (July 3064). Entirely built from salvage from Tao Mechworks. An Atlas line being added by October 3066.
New Syrtis
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 2 to 3 – completed April 3063, a further expansion to 4 lines to be completed by December 3064
- Expanding naval slips and upgrading them
Novoya Zemyla
– Johnston Industries - Creation of a new Dagger-O plant with 2 lines, first line operational November 3063, second line January 3064 – a new Hatchetman line being added by July 3066 – and an axman line by February 3067.
– Kallon Industries building a new plant to build Templar-O, Enforcer III and Jagermech III’s as well as Cavalier battle armour. Starting in July 3063, the Enforcer and Jagermech lines would come into production in January 3064, the Cavalier plant limited production in April 3064 (reaching full production by July) and the Templar-O wouldn’t come online till January 3065 and even then wouldn’t be fully operational until July.
Outreach
- Blackwell Industries salvaging a Falcon-C line – with help from Clan Sun Jaguar, line will be operational by March 3066.
Crucis March
Andalusia
- Bergan Industries plant to build waylander repair vehicles. Finishing in August 3066. Some thoughts given to adding a Locust line.
Batavia
- Sabre and Sparrowhakw production to start. Factory starting in May 3065, finishing the Sabre line in December 3065 and the Sparrowhawk line in March 3066. An additional Sabre line for Comstar being funded and built by May 3066.
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Belladonna
- Kallon Industries facilitity to build Hornets, Wolverines, Griffons, Shadow Hawks and Exterminators for the ComGuards/AFFS 5050. Hornet line to go online by November 3065, the 3 55 ton mechs all going online between December 3065 and January 3066 while the Exterminator line going online in June 3066 due to huge teething problems. A partisan and challenger tank line also being built – going online in September-November 3065. A demon tank line being built – going online March 3066
Broken Wheel
- new battlemech facility owned by Andoran Industries Ltd set to begin construction of new Clint battlemechs. Going online for spare parts end of 3062, entering limited production by 2nd quarter 3063, full production in 3064. Mercury and Hussar production to be started – coming online in April 3065, 50/50 split between Comguards and AFFS. A second Mercury and Hussar line being added – going online in June and July 3066
- Quickscell plant expanding to 2 pegasus lines, and adding a Hetzer, Vedette and ACP line – to be split between AFFS/ComGuards 50/50, lines going active by the end of December 3065
Crofton
- StarCorp Industries planned expansion
Defiance
- A battlemech facility building Nexus, Sentinel, Crab and Flashman battlemechs. Coming online in October 3065. 50/50 split between Comguards and AFFS except the Nexus which is exclusively for the ComGuards. A 2nd Sentinel line being added by November 3066 with a Mongoose line being added by December 3066.
- A small battle armour facility building “Lorica” variant Cavalier BA, coming online in January 3065.
Delavan
- Expanded jumpship production, particular star lords.
El Dorado
- Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative plant building Battlemasters and Templar-O battlemechs and Ajax omnitanks. Battlemaster line going online in June 3065 ahead of schedule, Templar-O November 3065 and Ajax line in September 3065. Demon combat tank line being built – going online in February 3066 – 50/50 comstar/AFFS
Filtvelt
- A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works. Dropship yard entering production in April 3063, jumpship yard August 3064 – to produce Mules, Unions and Merchant jumpships.
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in February 3064, fully online December 3064 – 4 lines. Tomahawk line being added by January 3066
- Achernar Battlemechs production facility building a huge industrial mech plant (coming online 1st January 3064, full scale production by June 3064), along with a battlemech annex coming online June 3064 producing dervish with enforcer production added by November). New battle armour plant coming online November 3065 – building Cavaliers, Grenadiers and Infiltrator II’s. Adding an Argus-O line by November 3066.
– Outback FarmMechs new expansion to build Stinger battlemechs, starting work in November 3063 and finishing in January 3065. Major teething problems delaying the start of full scale production. A licensed Watchman line to go into production by January 3067. Also looking into Locust license.
Galax – expanding naval slips and civilian jumpships. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065.
Islamabad
- Sabre and Sparrowhakw production to start. Factory starting in May 3065, finishing the Sabre line in December 3065 and the Sparrowhawk line in February 3066. An additional Sabre line for Comstar being funded and built by April 3066.
June
– Lycomb-Davion plant to build Stukas (2 lines), to enter initial production December 3063 with full production by June 3064, further expansions of Hellcat and Lightning to be added coming into production October and November 3064
– Corean Enterprises plant to build an initial line of Valkyrie battlemechs (starting February 3063 and going fully online in December 3063) and a follow on line of Centurion battlemechs (Starting January 3064 and going online March 3065). A semi-automated plant to produce Musketeers, starting in september and going into production in April 3065, 2 more centurion lines being built – finishing in December 3065 and February 3066
Kestrel
– New Independence Weaponry plant being built, Atlas, Gunslinger and Victor lines being built, going online in December 3063 (atlas), February 3064 (victor) and June 3064 (Gunslinger). Secondary expansions planned to build a Jagermech III line by the end of 3064 plus potentially Marauder II and Marauder lines. Marauder line to enter production in November 3065 – Maruader II line to go into production in June 3066.
Killarney
– Arc Royal MechWorks new plant to begin construction in January 3064, first Wolfhound line coming online in June 3064 and 2 more being added by March 3065
Kirklin
– Kallon Industries, building a Crusader line to their existing plant, finished October 3064
Layover
- Salvatore Inc facility now being upgraded rather than allowed to continue limping on. Production of Vengeance class dropships to be massively increased. Some consideration being given to a new facility as well. Work underway and increases started. A further increase scheduled to take place in 3065 with work finishing in February 3066 to increase Vengeance production – further increase to be split between AFFS and ComGuards. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065.
- Quickscell plant to expand to increase production to add a 2nd Hetzer and Vedette line as well as a 2nd APC and a new Pegasus line. Lines going active by November 3065
Markesan
- New Earth Trading Company facility to build 2 lines of Alacorns, 2 lines of Von Luckners and a line of Karnov Transports and a line for Engineering vehicles. Coming online in June 3065 – although limited production of Alacorns and Karnovs will start in January 3065. Production to be split 50/50. A 3rd line of Alacorns and Von Luckners to be added by August 3066.
New Avalon
- Lycomb-Davion expansions of Stuka production (4 lines) and to begin construction of Guillotine and Awesome battlemechs – Stuka production increased by start of 3064, Guillotine entering production in November 3064, Awesome in January 3065 – a 2nd line of Guillotines entering production in January 3066.
- Corean Enterprise beginning construction of the Musketeer plant – being expanded to fully automated by December 3064. Adding a new Centurion battlemech line – starting December 3065 and ending in May 3066.
Northfield
- Corean Industries building a Devastator production line for AFFS/ComGuards 50/50 split, going online in August 3066
Panpour
- Challenge Systems being funded to increase production of Monolith jumpships and begin construction of two Congress-D frigates. First yard to be ready in February 3063 and the next 4 months later. A further increase in Monolith production to take place in 3064
- Jalastar Aerospace increasing production of sparrohawk and sabre fighters and Centurion, grasshopper and javelin battlemechs. Increases in sparrowhawk and centurion construction prioritised and starting from August 3063, further expansions going on into 3065, This will result in by December 3065 5 Sparrowhawk lines and 3 sabre lines. Spad and Zero lines being built – going into production January and March 3066 respectively.
Point Barrow
- GM plant to be built, starting in June 3063, due to go online in December 3064, building Maruader and Victor battlemechs, with follow on flashman line coming online in August 3065. Grenadier plant coming operation in June 3065
Talcott
- Gm plant now producing Grenadiers and Cavaliers in record numbers. Expanding by end of 3065.
Torrence
- Johnston Industries - 2 Dagger-O lines coming online in November 3064. A Caeser line to enter production in April 3066
Victoria
- GM plant building Wasp and Blackjack-O lines being built for AFFS/Comguards 50/50. Wasp line going oline by December 3065, Blackjack O going online in July 3066. A BA annex to build Lorica class battle armour going online in February and entering full production by march 3066.
Draconis March
Addicks
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 1 to 2, completed February 3063
Alta Vista
- New Independence Weaponry plant being constructed to build Atlas and Victor battlemechs – January 3066 and March 3066 respectively
Benet III
– Creation of a new Dagger-O line, completed October 3063
Errai
- Maltex plant being rebuilt. Wyvern production being added by February 3066 and Thug production being added by July 3066. While funded by settlement from Comstar the company will only sell to Comguards excess production after meeting AFFS and mercenary contracts.
Marduk
- Rebirth of Norse Battlemech Works, back in FedSuns hands, building large numbers of Wolverines and Griffons as well as Firestarter, Black hawk and Avatar Omnimechs – Wolverine and Griffon plant already online, Omnimech plant being repaired, coming online March 3063
Mayetta
- Achernar battle armour plant to build Infiltrators, cavaliers and Grenadiers. To come online in December 3065 and full production by March 3066.
Northwind
- Corsara weapons – King Crab, Black Watch and Crab lines now being offered for sale to AFFS and Highlanders. Discussions in expanding production.
Ozawa
- General Dynamics plant being upgraded from limited production to 2 full lines producing the Kintaro battlemech – 50/50 sales between AFFS/Comguards, but not a popular design with AFFS who will sell most of the mechs on to mercenaries. Existing line upgraded by December 3065, new line added by August 3066.
Robinson
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks expansions and investments made to increase production, particularly of the up coming Sagittairre battlemech. Watchman line expanded to two and Sagittaire in production as of January 3063. A phoenix hawk line added by February 3064 – Sagittairre expanding to 2 lines by October 3065 and a black knight line finished June 3065 – a 2nd line being added by July 3066 for sale to Comstar
Sun Prairie
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in December 3064, fully online April 3065 – 4 lines. Tomahawk line being added by January 3066
Tancredi
- Expanding of Laser production to include ER variants and industrial and medical lasers. New models entering production by June 3064. Consideration for battlemech/vehicle production as well.
- Joint Kallon-Prescision plant to build 1 line of Penetrators and Riflemen (2 lines) – lines going operation in Novembers and December 3066 with a shadow hawk line being considered for future expansions.
Verde
- A small dropship shipyard to be built, producing Union and Overlord dropships, the Union yard coming online in March 3065, the Overlord coming online in December 3065. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065.
- GM factory A demon tank line being built – going online July 3066
Woodbine
- a new battlemech facility owned by Robinson Standard BattleWorks to produce Watchman battlemechs. Going online in July 3063 – Sentry and Battle Hawk line to be added by August 3064 and September 3064 respectively – a new sagittairre line added by December 3065 and a black knight line to be added by September 3065
Educational expansions
New Armstrong Flight Academy – expanded as of 3063 class, first expanded class graduating end of 3066
Filvelt Academy – expanded to a full regiment as of 3063 class. First expanded class graduating end of 3066
Filvelt Flight School – started construction 3063, first (small) class 3064. First class graduating end of 3066
Robinson Battle Academy – rebuilding/expanding to a full regiment, by end of 3063. First class graduating end of 3066
Warrior Hall – expanding to a full regiment by end of 3063. First class graduating end of 3066
Tancredi War College – being rebuilt and start a small class in 3064 full class in 3065, graduating first class in 3066 with full class in 3067.
Defiance - a new training facility planned to be named the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy to be jointly run by the AFFS and SLDF. Scheduled to begin classes 3064. First class graduating end of 3066.
Lexington Military Acamdey – being built on Lexington, staffed mostly with LCG Veterans with a few officers from the Davion guards, Ceti Hussars and DLC units. First class being started in January 3066, graduating first class in December 3068
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victor might want to drop a line to little brother about his people only picking up Big Dogs and nothing else.
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Wow what an update.
A Texas just became available if the price is right. :D
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Quickscell, Quickscell never changes.
And Sunny trying to offload Kali on Hohiro :D if by some series of mayor league miracles this happened, DC would have invaded FS just to carve a corridor to CC so they could get vengeance on Sunny.
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Blimey! That was a big standup naval slugging match. And now the Wolves (not the Exiles) are probably going to smell blood.
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Quickscell, Quickscell never changes.
Victor needs to show up at a meeting and remind them who is behind that investment group that has 55% of their stock :-)
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i’d love to see a Medium Davion Guards unit.
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i’d love to see a Medium Davion Guards unit.
You know I've always though the same thing but then I really think about it. The Assault and Light Guards have their place, and the Heavy Guards are a solid backbone and cavalry unit to any force. The Medium Guards would have to be a workhorse unit of solid trooper designs: not unbelievable but not really necessary IMO.
Now refitting the 'current' Second Guards into the Davion Air Guards....
Back on topic: which Brigade is headquartered to Arthur's (Steiner-Davion) March? Is it just some of the Robinson Rangers or does it not exist? I wasn't quite sure.
I don't know if this iteration of the Kurita-Liao alliance will turn out as well as the Canon 3150 era 'pseudo-alliance' but I think it will definetly weaken the current FS strength enough that the Jihad (?) will be just as devastating as the canon one.
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a medium unit/
wouldnt that be a cav unit?
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I always saw the 1st FedSuns Armored Cav as the “medium” guards.
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i’d love to see a Medium Davion Guards unit.
You know I've always though the same thing but then I really think about it. The Assault and Light Guards have their place, and the Heavy Guards are a solid backbone and cavalry unit to any force. The Medium Guards would have to be a workhorse unit of solid trooper designs: not unbelievable but not really necessary IMO.
Now refitting the 'current' Second Guards into the Davion Air Guards....
Back on topic: which Brigade is headquartered to Arthur's (Steiner-Davion) March? Is it just some of the Robinson Rangers or does it not exist? I wasn't quite sure.
I don't know if this iteration of the Kurita-Liao alliance will turn out as well as the Canon 3150 era 'pseudo-alliance' but I think it will definetly weaken the current FS strength enough that the Jihad (?) will be just as devastating as the canon one.
Air Guards is an interesting idea, perhaps all jumping 'Mechs and an additional LAM battalion?
I see the "medium" Guards being the numbered regiments but would happily either see the 2nd replaced with another if they turned into the Air Guards or simply the creation of a 6th Guards
A further option would be to have a prestige Outback unit added to the guards, drawn from across the swathe of Outback
All are possible and might even all happen!
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3066 - January - Losses that cannot be replaced
Having been at his sister's wedding on Robinson and engaged in high level talks with the various military leaders who had attended the wedding - including both March Lords - Victor had returned to New Avalon just in time for the New Year and began January catching up on all the routine paperwork and administrative tasks that were the bread and butter of a First Prince. Thankfully much of the routine work had been done in his absence by the Princes's Champion and Marshal of Armies.
One of the first things he did upon returning to New Avalon was have a meeting with his Ministerial Adviser for the Outback - Duchess Helen Trempeleau. After some discussions the First Prince makes 2 large scale policy decisions. The first is that the continuing expansion of the Vagabond School and Regional Finishing Schools programs as well as increasing the number of Advanced Finishing Schools from 5 to 9 over the next 2 years. The other large scale decision is to create a new Agency/Research Group based on the planet of Manassas, specifically tasked with researching terraforming and rediscovering the secrets of the Star League in this area as it's primary "goal". More than a few Davion worlds had been forced to be abandoned during the Succession Wars as the technology required to keep them habitable broke down and wasn't replaceable. Other worlds merely saw their habitability reduced to such an extend that the men and women living on them had seen their standards of living fall to barely subsistence level. Finding ways to reverse this downward trend was the new duty of the Federated Suns Terraforming Agency. For obvious reasons Duchess Trempeleau was strongly supportive of this new agency as the Outback more than any other region of the Federated Suns had seen the effects of this decline.
The First Prince also directed that on his sister's world of Tortuga a new Borderer regiment be formed to protect the new Federated Sun's worlds in the region and for anti-piracy sweeps. The material for the regiment would come from the wedding gifts of a battlemech regiment, while the cadre would come from AFFS personnel drawn from nearby worlds with future graduates of the Tortuga Training Reinforced Battalion and Filtvelt Military Academy. He had given some thought to forming a new CrMM unit for the worlds but feels that currently a more flexible Borderer regiment would be a better choice. Initially the force would hover around a battalion of battlemechs with supporting elements and be expanded over time.
Alongside the Marshal of Armies the First Prince also meets with the Albion Military Academy and the NAIS's College of Martial Science's Commandants Major General Frederick Hastings and General Ranier Wolfgram to discuss potential expansions of the two premier academies within the Federated Suns. Albion currently graduates 2 regiments worth of cadets annually while NAIS graduates 3 regiments worth. Both Victor and Jackson Davion feel that given the growth of the rest of the military educational sector the 2 largest academies are also in line for expansions. Both Commandants are somewhat hesitant about any possible expansion, taking the perfectly understandable view that "if it isn't broke don't fix it" with regard to their current output of cadets. They are concerned that any expansion might dilute the highly skilled cadets they are already producing from their academies. However both the Marshal and Prince speak at length that this is the last thing they would wish. They would make funds available to ensure that the standards of military education at both facilities would remain at their current level, but merely expanding the number of cadets who would be able to take advantage of this. After some discussions the Commandants agree to take the proposal's back to their faculties and discuss with them a potential expansion. The plan at the current time is for Albion to add a third regiment while the NAIS would expand from 3 to 5 regiments of cadets. With similar expansions in their non-mechwarrior training programs to match.
At New Syrtis the FSS Ridgebrook and FSS Woodstock are completed and enter trials. Both will engage in war games and patrols within the Pleiades Cluster as they work up to full readiness. They will be aided in this by the FSS Kathil and the FSS Covenant. Such a show of warship strength within the Cluster is clearly meant as a sign to the Taurian Concordant along with the now 2 Dragonlord RCT's stationed on the border: Behave. As soon as the 2 Fox corvettes are finished 2 more are started - the FSS Tancredi and FSS Sherwood begin construction.
The FFS Simon Davion returns from a refit and refurbishment and rejoins the ships on active service. This allows Fleet Admiral Buchwald to begin a reorganisation of the Fleet over the next year. Rather than merely assigning ships to the "Capellan", "Draconis" or "New Avalon" Squadrons or merely to Outback patrols he will now begin to form actual permanent squadrons. To begin with he limits this reorganisation to forming a 1st, 2nd and 3rd Cruiser Squadron. The 1st Squadron will consist of the FSS Melissa Davion and FSS Hanse Davion and will be permanently assigned to the First Prince. The 2nd Squadron will be home ported in the Draconis March and will consist of the FSS Alexander Davion, FSS Lucien Davion and FSS Simon Davion. The 3rd Squadron will be based within the Capellan March and will consist of the FSS Robert Davion, FSS Andrew Davion and FSS Covenant. At full strength the Admiral envisions each squadron consisting of 4 cruisers, divided into 2 divisions each of 2 ships that will be deployed in support of each other. However for the time being and for the foreseeable future the Squadrons will be running under strength although he ensures that they will all consist of at least a single division of 2 ships so that no cruiser is left isolated against an attack. A 4th Squadron is to be formed in June as 2 more Avalon cruisers become available and to be based as a reserve at New Avalon/Galax. As soon as this squadron is formed all future cruisers will be used to bring the Squadrons up to full strength. For the current time the Admiral doesn't reorganise the Fox corvettes but by now almost every deployment of the versatile workhorse corvette is now conducted in pairs for mutual support. When the first Congress-D II hulls are launched he intends for them to form the basis of a Patrol Squadron.
On Axton, Filtvelt and Sun Prairie the Tomahawk lines under construction by Wangker Aerospace all go online and begin producing this superb dog-fighter for the ComGuards and AFFS. Immediately the AFFS sends a number of these new fighters to units along the Draconis and Combine border, particularly to squadrons assigned to Fox corvettes to give them a boost in anti-fighter protection. The Comguards instead form them into full formations of Tomahawks and deploy them to Dieron to defend the ComGuards forces there from any attack.
At the new Achernar battlemech factory on Chesterton the first line goes online and begins producing the Wasp battlemech design. The Phoenix Hawk line is also nearing production although the Dervish isn't expected to be completed until August. There is some talk about adding an Enforcer III line or an Argus-O line.
On Belladonna the Griffon line finally goes online and joins the Hornet, Wolverine and Shadow Hawk lines in producing battlemechs for the AFFS and ComGuards. None of the battlemechs produced on Belladonna are exactly cutting edge but they are all up to date variants of venerable and battle tested designs which are popular across the entire Inner Sphere and beyond. Indeed the High Command has considered that in the future the Kallon Industries plant on Belladonna might specialise in export designs of common battlemechs.
At their plant on Kirklin Kallon Industries also begins construction of a new Penetrator line which they expect to come online by the end of the year. With encouragement from the Davion High Command most major industrial companies within the Federated Suns are being encouraged to diversify their production so that in the event that one factory is destroyed or captured the AFFS does not loose access to vital supplies and designs.
Lycomb-Davion's flagship facilities on New Avalon finish a second Guillotine line, the entire production of which is sold to the ComGuards. The funds from this will go into future expansions and design upgrades, while the sales taxes are a welcome source of funds to the Federated Suns Treasury. The success of this plant and the high quality battlemechs it is producing will result in the ComGuards contacting them to potentially build more designs for them. Preliminary discussions will take place in February.
The ComGuards and AFFS receive an additional source of fighters when the Spad line on Panpour enters production. Although at least initially production will be much less than the projected full output. This was caused by the factory concentrating on producing enough spare parts to allow the ComGuards extensive existing stock of Spads to be returned to full service as spare parts had been in short supply. The ComGuards will pay a premium for these spare parts.
On Alta Vista the New Independence Weaponry plant's first line goes operation. When First Prince Davion initially came back from Huntress the Federated Suns lacked even a single line for the iconic Atlas class battlemechs. It now has 2 lines in full operation and a third building. There had been some initial talks between New Independence and Robinson BattleWorks about a license for Atlas production for the Robinson based company but with an Atlas line entering production within the Draconis March this isn't the priority that it had once been. Instead Robinson is now more interested in a license for either the Battlemaster or Gunslinger designs.
The ComGuards receive a rather strange offer during January. They had initially offered various Star League era fighter designs to existing companies to produce for them, but had not managed to find a supplier for the Ahab assault weighted fighter. Now the Clyde Shipyards and a local manufacturer, Greenock Aero Manufacturing Ltd (a supplier of spare parts and refits for mercenary groups mostly) have entered into an agreement with the local private Greenock Flight Academy to attempt to begin aerospace fighter production. They would like the opportunity and support to build a new production facility to produce the Ahab fighter for Comstar and the Federated Suns. After some consideration Precentor Martial Focht agrees and authorises technical support and specifications to be released to the new "Firgrove Consortium".
More worryingly from the point of view of the rivals and enemies of the Federated Suns is the growing speed at which these expansions are taking place. With a well established workforce who are experienced at bringing new production lines and indeed entirely new factories online the pace at which the Federated Suns is able to expand their production is actually increasing. This is further helped by the growing number of technical educational classes being offered throughout the Outback and the growing economic output of that same region which is able to feed these new factories construction. To make matters even worse the increased jumpship and dropship production throughout the realm is making the costs of transportation of raw materials fall across the board. The more various companies in the FedSuns expand, the quicker and better able they are at those expansions. This hasn't been missed on Luthien or Sian.
The ComGuards Faslanes CSV Dover and CSV Portsmouth have been arrived at Novaya Zemlya and begun their work there to build up the infrastructure required for the new shipyards for the ComGuards. However unknown to almost everyone who isn't serving directly upon the CSV Dover that ship is not only building infrastructure but is also beginning work on rebuilding the long crippled and retired FSS Pleiades. This rebuild is expected to take at least 2 years.
On and above Esteros the battle between the various Allied forces and the Jade Falcons continue. The LAS Robert Kelswa takes crippling damage in a brief sortie when the Fox class corvette is caught by the CJF Emerald Tornado, however before the Jade Falcon destroyer can finish the kill she is struck by what is either a superbly lucky or incredibly well aimed volley of Naval Gauss fire from the LAS Yggdrasil at what can only be described as "extreme range". The destroyer is forced to limp away and leave the injured corvette to retreat back to the cover of it's larger brethren.
On the planet itself the Jade Falcon Guards manage a breakout and link up with the rest of Gamma Galaxy and begin falling back on the Khan's own forces. However the 1st Falcon Hussars are not so lucky and fail in their own breakout attempt and are totally overrun and destroyed by the vengeaful Wolves. The rest of Gamma's retreat however doesn't go smoothly and they are soon fighting running battles with the mercenary forces of Morgan Kell and then his son the Khan's Wolf-in-Exile forces who fresh from the destruction of the Hussars have a taste for Falcon. Again and again only the borderline suicidal rear guard actions of the Jade Falcon Guards enables the Gamma's to avoid being overrun.
Worse for the Khan, word has reached her via the orbiting warships, that the Wolves have cross the border. Khan Vlad Ward and his curs have swept into her Occupation Zone and are in the process off seizing Orkney, Quarrell, Jabuka and La Grave. Worse, probes and raids as well as reports from the Watch are that the Wolves are considering a 2nd Wave to strike upwards from these worlds towards Sudeten her capital. She needs to get off Esteros and lead her troops and ships back to dealing with the Wolves!
A hurried request for Hegira is denied with language which she is not used to hearing from freebirths. As well as instructions to commit an act that would be anatomically impossible for her. For a brief second she hovers on the cusp of giving orders for her forces to attack to seek revenge for this insult, but common sense prevails. Instead of ordering a full scale assault, she instead orders a full scale retreat.
To cover the retreat Gamma Galaxy's Amelia Icaza is forced to order a counter attack by the 1st Falcon Swoop Cluster and the Jade Falcon Solahma Cluster to give her time to break free of the circling Hounds and Wolves. While she gave some thought to ordering the Jade Falcon Guards to lead this attack instead of the 1st Swoop, she wanted to keep this storied unit alive to be rebuilt as well as realising that after the recent hard fighting it just didn't have the strength to actually hold the attention of the enemies long enough. Meanwhile the 12th Falcon Regulars launch a similar suicidal assault in order to give time for the rest of Rho Galaxy and the Khan to escape. All 3 clusters throw themselves in a death ride onto the enemy forces, buying time for the other commands to fall back to their dropships and head for orbit.
Overhead the various Jade Falcon warships push forward and provide a heavy escort for the ascending dropships and then head with them for the jump point. Of the 3 diversionary clusters not a single warrior escapes the planet, although 2 trinaries worth survive and are accepted as bondsmen and women into the Wolf-in-Exile Clan.
The Falcon retreat leaves the Lyran Alliance and Clan Wolf-in-Exile the clear victors in the fight, although at a heavy cost in men and materials. While some within the LAAF and Clan Touman push for an immediate counterattack into the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone the Archon and Khan at the advise of Grand Duke Morgan Kell and General of Armies Adam Steiner from Tharkad agree that such an attack while it might be successful would gut the LAAF and might result in an escalation which could draw other Clans in. Instead the Archon has his most intact units lift off to retake the border worlds the Jade Falcons have seized. However in an attempt to appease the hot heads the Archon also requests/orders that the SLDF 1st Royals and the 1st Alarion Jaegers counter attack/raid the worlds of Roadside and Black Earth in order to probe the Falcon's defences and tie down any further invasion forces. Both units happily head off on this mission and attack worlds that are ill defended as the Jade Falcons frantically divert troops to the Wolf border. Both worlds are seized by the "raids" and are formally reclaimed by the Lyran Alliance on the 30th January.
In naval terms this Falcon incursion has been a disaster for both sides. The LAN has seen the loss of a corvette but heavy damage to another corvette and similar damage to a battlecruiser and light damage to another battlecruiser. While that might not seem heavy losses for the small LAN it is crippling. Their active fleet has been reduced to a single Fox corvette - the LAS Angela Franks - unless they wish to deploy the lightly damaged LAS Yggdrasil. The losses to the Clan Wolf-in-Exile fleet have been similarly devastating. The loss of both of their corvettes and crippling damage to their 2 battlecruisers which are un-repairable without a major shipyard leaves them with only the Werewolf and Full Moon as active warships - and the Werewolf has light damage. The seizure of the CJF Falcon's Nest would be some conciliation if it wasn't a total wreck and neither of the Allies have facilities to repair it as frankly they can't even count upon repairing their own damaged ships. Likewise the Jade Falcon losses are severe and frankly irreplaceable. The loss of the Texs class CJF Falcon's Nest is their worst loss, but they have also lost 2 Aegis cruisers and seen heavy damage to 2 more battlecruisers and a destroyer. Even those ships which aren't crippled are all showing the signs of hard fighting and carrying light to moderate damage. Worse from the Falcon's perspective is that the Clan Wolf attack is being led by the CWS Nicholas Kerensky and 3 cruisers.
On Huntress in the SLDF Enclave technicians from the Eridani Light Horse discover that there has been a large number of serious break in's at the former Smoke Jaguar Genetic Repositories. The caretaker staff of former Jaguar Scientist and Technician castes when questioned as to whether they knew the break in's had taken place respond "of course" but then refuse to explain why they have not reported it to the SLDF command staff. An investigation is launched which finds out that not only has ever single "Chapel" within the Repository been breached and samples taken, but also a number of industrial facilities on the planet under SLDF control has seen unauthorised access of their computer systems and downloads taken. The local staffs and workers at the various facilities have almost all been totally complicit in not only the break in's but also in keeping them hidden from the SLDF. This will cause a major breakdown in trust between the garrison and locals which will only get worse when it is noticed that a number of former Smoke Jaguar warriors who had been working as technicians or labourers within the enclave are gone. As are a number of key scientists and technicians themselves. Worse it appears that the remaining scientists and technicians for instance have attempted to hide these missing personnel.
Sir Paul Masters will immedietly upon receipt of the full findings on the 29th of January contact the Goliath Scorpion forces on Abysmal and accuse them of the thefts. This will be roundly denied and instead the Goliath Scorpions will inform the SLDF Liason that it wasn't them that did this, but that they know who it was and will allow him to Trial for the information, in return they will seek a Trial for a lance of Star League era mech's of the Light Horse.
The Free World's League Parliament are expecting to have another version of the Captain-General's military budget placed before them in January, but it doesn't happen. There are whispers that the Captain-General knows he wont be able to get it through and is buying more time to "buy" votes with further concessions. Amongst the people he is apparently pushing to support him is the Duchess of Andurien.
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nice update. any chance we will see more Nighsky, axman, and hatchetman mechs? what is the nearest warship slip to LC space? who many falcon warships were not able to jump out after that battle... besides the Falcon Nest?
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nice update. any chance we will see more Nighsky, axman, and hatchetman mechs? what is the nearest warship slip to LC space? who many falcon warships were not able to jump out after that battle... besides the Falcon Nest?
I think there are more Axman and Hatchetman mechs being produced - Novaya Zemyla's Johnston Industries plant is adding a line of each.
The nearest warship slip is at Alarion.
Figure those ships which were damaged conducted emergency repairs for at least one jump. So only the Falcons Nest got left behind in any state to be repaired. The 2 aegis hulks are scrap metal.
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I think there are more Axman and Hatchetman mechs being produced - Novaya Zemyla's Johnston Industries plant is adding a line of each.
The nearest warship slip is at Alarion.
Figure those ships which were damaged conducted emergency repairs for at least one jump. So only the Falcons Nest got left behind in any state to be repaired. The 2 aegis hulks are scrap metal.
that would seem to be a nice place for a salvage ship to hangout for a while. would comstar want access to clan warships? if so would building repair slip with the Wolfs in exile or the Sun Jags be helpful.... long term?
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Long term - the LAN ships can jump to Alarion for repairs. Even if it takes a while.
But the W-i-E ships are screwed for that. They need at least a repair slip capable of helping them over somewhere like Arc Royal or access to a Faslane. Neither of which they have. Even if the Implacable and Ulric Kerensky can jump... Where do they jump too? The Lyran Alliance does not have the spare capacity to repair them - not even close to it. They have 2 capital slips, but both are going to be busy building more Mjolnirs and repairing the existing ones.
The Sun Jaguars will have the same problem - but will have at least the advantage of being able to go to the FS for some routine refits/repairs. Serious battle damage would be harder to do, but with a dedicated repair slip and info from the Jags probably possible.
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Looks like some negotiations between the LC and FS.
The FS has plenty of corvettes being built and plenty of repair slips.
I wonder what the FS would ask for.
Also has the FS thought about building Faslanes for themselves, I think they have enough leverage with comstar.
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3066 - February - tensions rise
In early February the First Prince gets word that a former comrade of his from the 10th Lyran Guard and Operation Bulldog, then Captain and now Lt. Colonel Archer Chrisifori who had been recalled from semi-retirement on his homeworld of Thorin to join the newly forming 4th Royal Guard, has suffered a horrendous injury during the fighting on Esteros during the attempts to overrun the retreating Jade Falcons. Given the nature of his injuries Victor Davion immedietly dispatches an invitation for the Lt. Colonel and any other critically injured officers to attend the NAIS for treatment, at his own expense. While the LAAF will not officially endorse this invitation and accept it on behalf of injured men and women (primarily as a matter of pride so as not to have to acknowledge that the Federated Suns has facilities they lack) they won't block any who wish to take up the First Princes's offer. On the 28th of February a Dove class dropship filled with critically injured Lyran and mercenary personnel lifts of from Esteros and heads for New Avalon. No Wolf warriors (and few Kell Hounds) will be on it as their own medical facilities are (although limited) actually superior to even NAIS. Another 2 Dove's will soon follow.
As well as this offer the First Prince dispatches no lesser person than Ardan Sortek, his Princes's Champion, to Tharkad (or Arc Royal or any other planet) to meet with his brother Archon Peter and Khan Kell to make them several offers. The terms of these offers are known only to Sortek and the First Prince and Marshal of Armies so as to avoid any potential leaks. They will not be sent over the HPG's as it's now obvious that at least some WOB sympathisers in Comstar are feeding intelligence to the cult from messages they are copying or deciphering. Comstar's aura of neutrality is now worn so thin as to be transparent. The same chain of jumpships which are assembling to transport the 3 Dove dropships and their injured cargo will be used to rush Sortek into the Lyran Alliance and back when his mission is completed.
The First Prince and his Marshal of Armies also spend most of February quietly having meetings with the various members of the staff's at Albion and NAIS as well as influential former alumni and staff. Both Davion's push strongly for the 2 large academies to accept the suggestion that they accept the First Princes's offer to expand to 3 and 5 regiments of cadets respectively. By the end of February the various faculties are coming around to the First Princes's side in larger and larger numbers. Many are swayed by the arguements, others out of loyalty to House Davion or FedSuns and a few are swayed by ambition, seeing opportunities in the expansions. Duchess Isis Marik helps the First Prince in several of these quiet meetings, charming more than a few old warhorses into supporting the Prince. By now it is an open secret that the First Prince and the Marik heiress are romantically linked. The gossip rags have avoided breaking the story as given the popularity ratings of the Prince it could result in their offices being the subject of riots. Still it is only a matter of time before the open secret comes out.
In preparation for this Isis Marik is readied for a tour of a number of worlds within the Federated Suns to raise her profile and improve her image. A trip through much of the Outback and to both Robinson and New Syrtis is planned with a large number of stops on a variety of worlds. Local nobles and officials are contacted and prepped to ensure that the tour is a success and the people see the Duchess in a positive light. Various military formations are also informed of the impending VIP visit and commanding officers begin preparing suitable welcomes and receptions. Duchess Yvonne Davion-Sandoval will accompany Duchess Isis Marik for at least part of the tour in order to further link the Duchess with House Davion in the minds of the people.
The First Prince also signs into law the formal annexation of the world of Cooperland as firstly a protectorate and then once the planet has been properly integrated a member world of the Federated Suns. The planet is somewhat vulnerable given it's isolated position within the Periphery, but it's raw material potential and usefulness as a base on the flank of the Concordant make it strategically valuable. In order to protect the world the entire 12th Avalon Hussars RCT are instructed to make the world their base and conduct further anti-piracy patrols from their new homeworld. The 12th is also ordered to look out for any viable colony worlds between Cooperland and the rest of the Federated Suns so as to potentially create a more secure link to the new world. Their former posting of June is then garrisoned by the 23rd Avalon Hussars RCT who can use the worlds factories to continue to build up their forces.
Within the Capellan March and particularly on the world of Kathil a growing movement is pressing for the reformation of the Kathil Uhlans. Organised around retired AFFS officers and troopers who had served in the unit it is gaining widespread popularity. The Duke of Kathil in particular is an outspoken proponent of the idea, pointing out in several speeches that many "lesser commands" have been formed or reformed and that the 1st Kathil Uhlans should also be honoured with reformation. The Lion's of Davion must be reformed is the gist of almost every press conference that the Duke gives. It's obvious to most within the High Command that Duke Petyr VanLee's isn't pushing for this on his own, but is almost certainly prompted and supported by Duke George Hasek's wish to reform his father's regiment. Unfortunately very little can be done to push back against this movement, particularly given that many members of the High Command are themselves in favour of the proposal.
On Chesterton the Phoenix Hawk line at the Achernar Industries factory enters production and soon the versatile battlemechs are being shipped to units - particularly those in the Achernar, Nanking and Valexa PDZ's. All three March Militia's in those PDZ's will be amongst the first recipients of new Phoenix Hawks, while others will be sent to the Sheraton Knights and Tikonov Cossacks.
At Tikograd on Tikonov the first prototype of the newly refurbished and redesigned Koschei battlemech begins testing. Initial problems soon begin to show in the Rotary Autocannon ammunition feed and the engineers are soon busy working on redesigning the ammunition supply. This will delay the production for some time as Earthwerks is keen on having the roll out to the AFFS going without any hitches that might taint the design.
Johnston Industries, a long term supplier of hatchet armed battlemechs for the FedSuns, contact DefHes in the Lyran Alliance and seek a license to produce the hatchet armed Nightsky battlemech. They request permission to produce the Nightsky 4T, 5T and 6S variants at their New Syrtis and Novaya Zemlya plants.
On El Dorado the Demon combat tank line comes online and begins shipping these much sought after tanks. A full company from the first production run is donated free of charge to the AFFS with the "request" that the tanks be placed within the Davion Guards armour formations. Meanwhile the ComGuards buy up the full numbers of their allotment and begin shipping them to shattered armour companies to replace losses.
The new Centurion line on June at the Corean factory goes operation. This means that the factory now has 3 Centurion lines operational alongside a Valkyrie line and a semi-automated annex building Musketeer hover tanks. A second Valkyrie line is now planned.
General Motors also begins plans to expand Blackjack-O production within the Federated Suns. The popular omnimech is in limited production at their New Valencia plant and has a new line under construction at Victoria but demand is outstripping production. They send out orders that their Blackjack refit facility on Talcott begin retooling to enter full production of the omnimech version of the venerable battlemech while also instructing their Kathil plants to add a Blackjack-O line.
A small diplomatic incident happens when the new Maltex factory on Errai opens with it's first line producing Wyvern's. The ComGuards immedietly request to place orders for at least half the production of the new battlemechs and are turned down flat. Instead Maltex offers the entire production run to the AFFS and long term contracts at a very attractive price for up to 6 full companies of the famed urban fighter battlemech. Comstar immedietly lodge a formal complaint, pointing out that they were the ones who provided the money to rebuild the plant. Maltex points out that this money was in compensation for stealing their Thug design and gifting it to Earthwerks and as such they have no obligation to provide the ComGuards with a single spare part let alone fully built battlemechs. The AFFS happily sign the contracts with Maltex for exclusive rights to the new Wyverns and assign the first company to no lesser formation than the New Avalon CrMM, although a number of liaison officers being attempting to negotiate a compromise that will reduce tensions between Comstar and the company.
Within the Lyran Alliance the various military units which had fought at Esteros and along the Falcon border begin the difficult task of starting to rebuild. Losses are particularly heavy in those formations which took place in the brutal fighting on Esteros. The 2 Royal Guard commands which took part for instance entered the system at full strength but between them can field barely 9 battlemech companies by the end of the fighting. Archon Peter Steiner himself has been injured with several cracked ribs and a broken collar bone when a headhunting mission of a star of Elementals swarmed his battlemech. Only intervention from his bodyguards saved the Archon from being either killed or taken prisoner.
In space the LAS Robert Kelswa and LAS Fylgia are ordered to Alarion. As soon as the LAS Katherine Steiner is commissioned in June the LAS Robert Kelswa will undergo repairs. However the single capital grade slip is full and likely to remain so until well into 3069. As such a new slips is ordered to begin construction. When it is finished in 3067 it will start with repairing the LAS Fylgia. Once the heavily damaged battlecruiser is repaired the more lightly damaged LAS Yggdrasil will be repaired - in the meantime the LAS Yggdrasil is moved to Tharkad where some basic repairs will be conducted. The Werewolf remains at Esteros to protect it's two damaged battlecruiser counterparts. While the Ulric Kerensky can potentially jump there are some doubts as to the safety of the jump engines, while the Implacable is in no way fit to jump out of the system. Repairs are started but without any repair facilities it is unlikely they will be successful at allowing the ships to leave the system. The Full Moon returns to take up station at Arc Royal.
At Caph within the WOB Protectorate an unexpected jump signature appears on the 2nd of February. Immediately a Zechetinu II corvette angles in to attack whoever has invaded but doesn't open fire when it sees that the dropships burning for the planet are displaying Free Worlds League IFF codes. Although there are no orders to expect them, the ship's captain naturally has a reluctance to open fire on the official allies of the WOB's ships. This lets the 1st, 2nd, 5th and Old Free World's Guards to slip past the outer system and head for the world of Caph. The whole way in the dropships send out messages that they are here to conduct wargames with the WOB Militia and 3rd Guards. Colonel Ricardo Catere-Jones for one isn't fooled and orders his 3rd Free Worlds Guards to take up defensive positions and orders weapons free if any "fellow" Guard formations approach their positions.
These precautions however prove to be totally ineffectual when instead of landing at the spaceport the 4 loyalist formations conduct a full combat drop right onto the heads of the 3rd Free Worlds Guards on the 16th. Leading the way the Old Guards smash straight down on top of the defensive positions of the 3rd. Right from the start the traitor Guards are forced into frantic FPF (Final Protective Fire) in a vain attempt to clear their positions and buy themselves time to reform. Attempts that the loyalists have no intention of allowing. Even as the Old Guard die to create LZ's for the follow on waves and to bleed the 3rd the other regiments are landing straight into the battle. In a 7 hour battle the loyalist elements of the Free Worlds Guard entirely overrun the 3rd's position and kill every traitor they can get their hands on. Any captured or surrendering 3rd Guards officers and men are summarily shot out of hand.
By the time the nearby WOB Militia can rush to the scene the battle is over. All that is left of the 3rd Free Worlds Guards are corpses and perhaps a handful of survivors hiding out in the nearby countryside. The loyalist Guard units have suffered horrendous causalities, but stand ready to resist any attempt to punish them for this strike. Colonel Dana Briggs, who has succeeded General Tamara Findlay after the General was killed in her Grand Titan destroying the last stand of the 3rd's command company, informs the WOB officers that they have no fight with them. That they came to deliver the rewards for treachery upon the 3rd and now that this has been done they will leave this damned world and never come back if they are promised safe conduct.
Within 24 hours of the initial landing no fewer than 3 WOB Militia Divisions are encircling the shattered and still burning base. The remaining Free World Guards are manning the now shattered defences and conducting what repairs they can but nobody is in any doubt that if the WOB attempt to take vengeance for the killing of the 3rd then the entire Free World Guards Brigade will die on Caph. But as General Findlay has said at the final planning session they will at least "die clean" without anyone saying they tolerated traitors within their ranks. The remaining loyalists number roughly 2 regiments of battered battlemechs with supporting formations having suffered almost 50% casualties in their rage fuelled attack.
Hurried HPG messages from Caph to Terra to Atreus ensue with both sides attempting to deescalate the situation that is on the brink of turning into a war between the WOB and FWL. After 3 days of heated and tense discussions at the highest level a compromise is reached. The remaining Guard will be allowed to leave Caph but will never return to the WOB Protectorate on pain of death. The members of the Guard who took place in the attack will also be placed under an interdict from entering any WOB facility and banned from using the HPG network or any other WOB service for the rest of their lifetimes. Meanwhile the FWLM will cease all investigations or complaints regarding the WOB producing the Zechetinu II corvette.
Privately the Captain-General is furious. The concessions he's been forced into have undermined his position with the WOB and he is no longer able to pursue the matter of them producing corvettes without license. But publicly he is forced to welcome back the returning Guard with commendations and honours for their "heroic" efforts to "ensure that treachery will never pay!" or face losing even more votes in parliament. He is able to salvage some good from the situation by using an attachment to his military budget to "rebuild the hero's of the Guard" to get his military budget through. The 1st, 2nd and 5th will be rebuild to full strength and a 6th and 7th are authorised. The new 6th will infuriatingly take as their motto General Findlay's famed "We Will Die Clean" utterance.
Within the Draconis Combine large numbers of former Smoke Jaguars begin marching onto cargo dropships that have been outfitted to carry passengers and are soon leaving the Irece Prefecture's worlds. The SLS Far Star, SLS Glory Road and SLS Nebula and a large convoy of jumpships are formed up are then escorted by the SLS Growler as they head via dead systems towards the Clan Sun Jaguar enclaves...
At Menke a large WOB Militia formation arrives at the end of February and burns for the planet. The ComGuards 467th Division stands too but is forced to deploy a full third of it's forces to counter any potential attack by the Capellan garrison of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry and the 2nd Sian Dragoons who also stand too and take up positions some distance from the Comstar compound. The 467th is in no doubt that the Capellan's aren't standing up their formations to help them in the coming fight...
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3066 - March - Relationships strengthened and strained
By the start of March the writing is on the wall that the vast majority of the faculties of both Albion and NAIS will support the First Princes's proposed expansions of the 2 New Avalon academies. As such both Commandants inform the Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion that they will agree to a formal announcement at any time and place of the First Princes's choosing. A press conference is immedietly scheduled for the 31st March on the jointly run Jasper Plains Training Field. In attendance will be the First Prince, Marshal of Armies, Field Marshal Angela Kouranth, Major General Fredrick Hastings and General Ranier Wolfgram along with officers from the various academies and units on New Avalon. Unknown to the 2 Commandants they will both be promoted to Marshal at the end of the announcement in anticipation of their newly expanded responsibilities. The First Prince will also immedietly announce the beginning of funding for the expansions and that work will commence immedietly. A handful of holdouts mostly agree to the expansions, although 3 officers from Albion and 2 from NAIS will resign of the issue. Of the 5, 4 will take work with either Goshen War College or Sakhara Academy and the remaining officer will take up a battalion command posting with the 1st Federated Arcadians.
The press conference duly takes place at the end of March to widespread support from the general public and within the AFFS. Less pleased of course are the treasury officials who will be tasked with paying for this new expansion, although their unhappiness is somewhat muted by the increased tax revenues pouring in from the growing economy of the Outback and sales of arms to the Lyrans. If the treasury officials are unhappy, those receiving the news on Luthien, Sian and Taurus are beyond livid. The continued expansion of the AFFS is now beyond a mere "cause for concern" for the Taurians, Kurita's and Liao's and this expansion of the 2 premier academies within the Federated Suns only threatens to widen the gap that is growing between their own militaries and the resurgent AFFS. Worse, with the new factories that seem to be growing like weeds within FedSun's space it is more than likely that the damned Davion's will be able to actually equip these new recruits. All 3 states begin preparing to expand their own military academies in line with this expansion. The Taurian Ecole Militaire will see a particular boost in it's funding - however this will result in a large scale tax increase given the military budget's existing strain with the ground force expansions and warship shipyard construction. This will result in a final split between elements of the Taurian Defence Force.
Shortly before the announcement of the new expansions to the military academies of the Federated Sun's Isis Marik leaves New Avalon and heads towards Robinson to meet up with Yvonne Davion-Sandoval to begin her tour in the Outback region of the Draconis March. Up until Robinson Duchess Marik will be escorted by the FSS Hanse Davion detached from it's normal duties, after meeting with Duchess Davion-Sandoval they will both be travelling with the FFS Fox and FSS Markesan. The plan is for the 2 Duchess's to travel throughout the Draconis March Outback and then down into the Crucis March Outback region and then on into the Capellan March.
The Federated Sun's navy see's a major boost in it's strength as the 4 Fox corvettes the FSS Argyle, FSS Clovis, FSS Goshen and FSS Tortuga are finished and enter trials as well as the FSS Congress, the first new Congress-D frigate built in hundreds of years albeit to an updated design. The 4 Fox corvettes will be deployed to patrol duties within the Crucis March while the FSS Congress will be sent on a long patrol running along the Outback and stopping at worlds like June, Cooperland, Filtvelt, Broken Wheel and Tortuga. By no small coincidence it will arrive at Tortuga around the same time as the 2 Duchesses will. After which it will join their escort.
Not only the number of warships are boosted during this month, but also the number of slips both building ships and under construction. At Galax an additional Fox slip is finished and 2 more Davion III destroyer slips begin work on new destroyers. Meanwhile another destroyer slip begins construction, but not another Fox corvette slip interestingly to some analysts. At Kathil a Davion III slip begins construction which will be another diversification for this yard along with the New Syrtis carrier slip that is already working on it's first carrier due in October 3069. Until relatively recently Kathil was entirely specialised in building Avalon class cruisers. At New Syrtis itself another Davion III slips begins construction, which when it is completed will bring the total number of destroyer slips at the March Capital to 3 alongside 2 Fox slips. No further slips are ordered at Panpour but work immedietly starts on a new Congress-D II. Meanwhile at Filtvelt the 2 Fox slips being paid for by Comstar are joined by a Davion funded third slip. There are also whispers that either Filtvelt or Panpour are likely to be chosen for a new Avalon production facility so as to ensure that if the Kathil shipyards are damaged the FedSun's wont lose access to their cruiser production entirely.
Along with the news of the expansions to the military academies the announcement that the Federated Suns has finished 5 new warships in a single month send the naval staffs in particular on Luthien and Sian into a frenzy. Worse due to spies and also some limited press releases they know that by the end of the year another 4 Fox's, 2 Avalons and another Congress will complete. 3067 isn't looking any better with an estimated 10-12 Fox's, 3 Davion III and another Avalon expected. Work on several new shipyards within the Combine and Confederation is pushed forward at an even more frantic pace, although this results in a number of additional industrial accidents that leave trained staff crippled or killed. However in the eyes of the various advisers to the Chancellor and Coordinator these are losses that must be borne.
On Outreach the cobbled together industrial plant for the Falcon IIC is finally completed, in no small part due to the aid received from NAIS and from various Clan Sun Jaguar technicians. However ramshackle and battered the industrial line is however it is functional and begins constructing the entirely Clantech battlemech immedietly as well as a deliberate surplus of spare parts and weapons. Although under no specific contractual obligation to do so - although to ignore the moral obligation would have been borderline suicidal - Colonel Maeve Wolf offers generous and perpetual contracts to the AFFS for supply of the Clantech production. These contracts are immedietly snapped up and the AFFS begins shipping the high end battlemechs to a number of extremely high profile units with a predisposition to light battlemechs, such as the Davion Light Guards, 4th Deneb Light Cavalry and 1st Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry. A number of the Falcons IIC will also be gifted to Clan Smoke Jaguar although their primary gift in thanks will be Wolf Dragoons technicians returning with them to help set up a production facility of their own with what they have learned. Most of the team of NAIS scientists and technicians who helped on Outreach will also immedietly head for Valois the chosen capital of the Sun Jaguars to begin the process again.
Khan Showers of the Sun Jaguars leaves Valois and heads for the rendezvous with The Jaguar on Anatallos as agreed. He has chosen to go himself to honour those warriors who have continued the fight to preserve the Smoke Jaguars and in the hope that his prestige as Khan will allow him to sway any doubters. Along with him he takes his Golden Keshik and the 1st Sun Jaguar Guards.
Within Freedom Theatre the Princes's Champion Ardan Sortek and the first of the Dove dropships pass each other over the world of Carnwath. He manages a brief stop and meets with various officers many of whom he knows who are travelling while injured, including Archer Christifori. Seeing the wounded from the various battles to hold back the Jade Falcons deeply effects the old warrior and he travels onward to meet with Peter Steiner and Phelan Kell with a heavy heart.
On Batavia the new Sparrowhawk line goes into operations, while on Jalastar's main plant on Panpour the Zero aerospace fighter enters production. Both designs are highly regarded and are immedietly much sought after. The AFFS retains full rights to the Sparrowhawk's being produced on Batavia although share production of Panpour's Zero's with the ComGuards.
The Belladonna Kallon plant see's it's Demon combat tank line enter full production. Along with the Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative line on El Dorada this gives both the ComGuards and AFFS a steady supply of this venerable but still deadly tank.
The ComGuards receive another much needed boost to their equipment rosters (and the FedSun's Treasury another source of income) when the GM's plant on Victoria's Lorica BA annex goes operational. Much larger than the existing small production facility on Defiance, after a few quality control issues to start with, the plant is soon churning out hundreds of suits of the battle armour to be dispatched to eager ComGuards infantry formations.
Within the Draconis March the New Independence Weaponry plant on Alta Vista adds it's second line. As well as producing Atlas assault battlemechs the plant will now produce a number of Victor class battlemechs. Again there are some initial quality control issues that will result in Alta Vista made Victor's having an unfair reputation for being off a lesser quality to their counterparts constructed elsewhere, but the man repercussion of this will be a large number of well made Victor's being assigned to Draconis March Militias who will be grateful to have them!
The Achernar Industries battle armour facility upon Mayetta now reaches full production capacity. Unlike GM's facility on Victoria the produce of Mayetta's factory will not be sent to the ComGuards but instead will be used to fill the ranks of battle armour formations within the AFFS with Cavaliers, Grenadiers and Infiltrator II's. Most of the initial production will be dispatched to the forming RCT's of the Robinson Rangers Brigade although a large number of particular Infiltrator II's will be sent to the Deneb Light Cavalry RCT's.
After some consideration DefHes agrees to supply Johnston Industries with full licenses for the Nightsky battlemech. One major contractual point however is that in return the Davion firm will supply them with any new upgrades for any of their existing axe wielding battlemechs. Which is agreed readily enough. Johnston Industries initially intends to begin construction of a new production line for the battlemech on New Syrtis but after some consideration they also decide to add a line to their Torrence factory as well.
On Menke the 3 WOB Militia Divisions - the 3rd, 6th and 8th - arrive and immedietly deploy around the fortified Comstar Compound. Soon long range sniper fire and artillery duels begin but after a week the 3rd and 6th close in and drive hard on the HPG compound. After a brutal 3 day battle they are joined by the fresh 8th who break through the exhausted 467th Division and secure the devastated compound. The remainder of the 467th break out through the thinned lines of the 6th Militia and break for the nearby spaceport. However their line of withdrawal is blocked by the majority of the 2nd Sian Dragoons and elements of the 1st and 3rd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry. With the 8th WOB Militia following them the roughly 2 surviving battalions worth of ComGuard troops feel they have no other option but to attempt to break through and reach the spaceport. The 2nd Sian Dragoons hold their ground in the face of the charging ComGuard expecting the 2 units of the Big Mac to close on the flanks and provide supporting fire. Which never comes. Without any support from the Armoured Cavalry the green 2nd bares the brunt of the attacking force and shatters. The only thing that saves them from almost total annihilation is the arrival of the 8th WOB Militia who plow into the back of the attacking ComGuard troops and crush the desperate soldiers between themselves and the still desperately fighting 2nd. After a 2 hour battle the last ComGuard troops are rounded up and marched onto waiting dropships - WOB dropships however, not their own ships. The 2nd Sian Dragoons has lost over half it's strength and places the blame for these losses squarely at the feet of the "cowardly mercenaries" of McCarron's Armoured Cavalry. A charge Marcus Baxter totally refutes, pointing out that the 2nd had taken up an isolated position and did not convey any joint plan to his own units. Few are fooled, assuming rightly that this is the Big Mac's way of paying back Sian for leaving their units to get torn to pieces on Talon. Were it not for the vital nature of McCarron's Brigade the authorities on Sian would almost certainly have ordered further units to Menke to take the Lord Baxter into custody, but with the present nature of the political and military climate are forced to accept the reasoning of Sang-Shao Baxter. Officially.
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Officially.
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Officially.
After lengthy and thorough investigation the Chancellor (Glory upon his Name) has came to the (unquestionable) conclusion that Lord Baxter was entirely blameless in the recent casaulties suffered during the (Glorious and Absolute) recent action upon Menke where the Resolute and Heroic defenders consisting of the 2nd Sian Dragoons and various Armoured Cavalry units routed and destroyed the invading Davion lapdogs! Does anyone have any questions? Good. That concludes the press conference. HAIL LIAO!
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After lengthy and thorough investigation the Chancellor (Glory upon his Name) has came to the (unquestionable) conclusion that Lord Baxter was entirely blameless in the recent casaulties suffered during the (Glorious and Absolute) recent action upon Menke where the Resolute and Heroic defenders consisting of the 2nd Sian Dragoons and various Armoured Cavalry units routed and destroyed the invading Davion lapdogs! Does anyone have any questions? Good. That concludes the press conference. HAIL LIAO!
;D ;D ;D
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I looked at the Wolf in Exile and Hounds vs ComStar vs LC. this is based on your latest update Feb 66
first what does ComStar need and what does it have.
It needs everything. Mechs, tanks, Fighters, dropships, warships, a way to vet their people, medical, and new weapons tech.
what do they have to trade? they have MONEY, the design rights to a crap ton of stuff, repair ships.
What do the WiE and Hound need and what do they have.
their fleet just got hit hard and they need to rebuild and recover. they need production to make more and replacement Mechs, tanks and ect.
In this timeline the LC is not doing so well or very stable. they are also week in warships. Kell and his son would know and see this. How would they counter this? In RTL they have the Lupus Majoris modular space station and WC Aerospace Annex on Arc-Royal. they also have a few production areas but they can not meet the needs of both units.
They have design specs for many clan dropships like the carrier. they might work with the NC who captured a Noruff.
What was thinking that they could trade newly made Titans or the plans for Titan Cs. IN RTL the Isegrim was build at the annex. what if they traded three or four Titans or Titan C or Carrier to ComStar that were build in the Annex or on the Lupus? ComStar could use a repair ship to get all of the warships and dropships hulks out of that one system or scrapped and back to a support base.
what would ComStar trade to get access to Lupus Majoris modular space station? could ComStar and wolf/Kell or LC copy it to support their fleets? Could the WD do the same?
the risks. Arc-Royal is on the front line, so there is a risk. What would ComStar risk to get say a 10% of the Timber Wolf or some other IIC machine. Would they help build a single "repair" slip fixed to the Lupus? What if they could put into production the Comitatus or Odyssey with that slip after the ships are repaired?
with the Smoke Jags gone and the Sun Jag, so small what happened to the Miraborg?
also on your update on production I could only find the Congress D slips. could you update the other slips?
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Will WoB repeat the process on other Comstar compounds in CC? Smart move by Dow would be to evacuate as much personell and equipment from CC as he can, befor WoB and CCAF round them all up.
Work on several new shipyards within the Combine and Confederation is pushed forward at an even more frantic pace, although this results in a number of additional industrial accidents that leave trained staff crippled or killed. However in the eyes of the various advisers to the Chancellor and Coordinator these are losses that must be borne.
I'm sure the ships are finished to highest standards of quality.
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Will WoB repeat the process on other Comstar compounds in CC? Smart move by Dow would be to evacuate as much personell and equipment from CC as he can, befor WoB and CCAF round them all up.
I'm sure the ships are finished to highest standards of quality.
The Tatsumaki was also a hot mess in the OTL, so that won't change.
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3066 - April - Battleships
April began with the Federated Sun's responding to no less than 2 concerning reports on foreign states warships. Clan Ghost Bear had announced to the other clans and Star League that the Leviathan had now completed it's upgrade from a huge transport into a state of the art massive battleship. Worse was the fact that MIIO and the DMI had confirmed reports that not only was the second Leviathan transport also under refit into a full battleship but that the Ghost Bears had began construction of a third such monstrous vessel. By 3069 the Ghost Bear Dominion would have not fewer than 3 huge super battleships each potentially capable of laying waste to entire flotillas and squadrons of lesser vessels. While the Ghost Bears didn't share a border with the Federated Suns the threat couldn't be ignored. However of more immediate concern was the news from the realm that divided the Dominion and FedSuns. On Luthien the Coordinator had announced that the long stalled battleship project the DCS Yamato had finally been completed. The press conference had been light on details, but from bits and pieces that the various agencies had managed to put together it was obvious that while the design had a number of faults and limitations the Kurita's had indeed managed to put a 1,400,000 ton battleship into space. Even a problematic ship like the DCS Yamato offered to give the DCN at least local superiority almost anywhere she went unless countered by mass numbers of lighter warships. Reports were also being confirmed that the Combine had also began a sister ship for the battleship and actually intended to add a second slip in the hopes of assembling a full squadron of 4 Yamato's. If such a formation was created and the Federated Sun's Navy didn't have a counter for it then the ramifications would be almost certainly disastrous. The Federated Sun's simply could not rely on the Kurita battleships being tied down on the Dominion front. The reports were hurriedly forwarded to the Prince's Champion.
These reports reached Ardan Sortek just before he meets with the Archon Peter Steiner who has just returned to Tharkad from the slowly quieting Jade Falcon front. When the Federated Sun's "ambassador" meets with the Archon the General of Armies Adam Steiner is also present and rather than having the meeting in the throne room under the guns of 2 huge griffin class battlemechs it is conducted in private in a small study. Ardan immedietly offers not only his own condolences to the losses that the LAAF but also those of the entire AFFS and First Prince all of whom remember better times when the men and women of the LAAF were their comrades in arms. He assures the two Lyran men that the AFFS is looking for ways to help and that for instance large stockpiles of medical supplies are being sent at no charge or cost to the Arc Royal region by the AFFS. On top of the First Princes's own support of having critically injured soldiers brought to New Avalon for treatment.
General of the Armies Steiner however points out that these condolances could have been sent via HPG and so he asks what exactly the Princes's Champion has came all this way for. In ansewer Ardan Sortek asks if Star Colonel Daryl Radick, the Wolf-in-Exile's ambassador/liason to Tharkad, can be sent for. Once the Clan warrior has arrived Sortek lays out his First Princes's proposals in full. The single largest proposal is that the Federated Suns's is offering to buy the captured CJF Falcon's Nest. Immedietly the 3 men who he is proposing this idea to react with varying degrees of anger to the suggestion. Their respective navies paid in blood and ships to capture the Texas class ship and now the Federated Sun's intends to simply buy it off them? Peter Steiner the most moderate of the 3 explains this is entirely unacceptable. He will not sell the hard won prize for mere C-bills.
Which is when Ardan Sortek asks if he would be prepared to trade it for warships. Sortek points out that both the LAN and W-i-E fleet's suffered heavily in the Battle of Esteros. The Lyran's fleet has been reduced to a single Fox corvette and a lightly damaged Mjolnir battlecruiser, while the Wolves now only have the lightly damaged Werewolf and the transport Full Moon. All of their other ships such as the Implacable and Fylgja are effectively little more than hulks. The Federated Sun's is prepared to pay no fewer than 4 fully operational Fox corvettes for the hulk of a ship that neither the Lyran's nor the Wolves have a hope of returning into operational service within a decade. The Lyran Alliance and the Clan Wolf-in-Exile need ships now, not a single ship in 10 years time.
This does make them all reconsider. However Star Colonel Radick in particular remains of the view that his Khan will not support this. Even if they were to be assigned 2 of the 4 corvettes it would still leave their fleet in a worse position than when they started the campaign and the loss of the Falcon's Nest would be a difficult one to justify to the Warrior Caste.
Sortek then offers that the First Prince might be prepared to make it 5 Fox corvettes and a refit for a single Wolf cruiser at the Federated Sun's shipyards. However he is also authorised to offer a refit of both battlecruisers, but only if the Clan Wolf-in-Exile is prepared to release the 6th Wolf Guards Cluster, the former 6th Jaguar Dragoons to join Clan Sun Jaguar. As well as the corvettes the First Prince is prepared to ensure that all of the ships bring with them full compliments of aerospace fighters and assault dropships - probably A3 Overlords although perhaps a small number of Vengeance carriers can also be released.
At the end of the meeting the Princes's Champion excuses himself to allow the Archon and his advisers to discuss the deal that he has proposed to them in private. He tells them that he will await their decision but does ask as a courtesy that unless they have reached a decision the deal not be made public which they all agree to. The Lyran's and Wolves will spend much of April discussing the Federated Sun's proposal and won't reach a final decision until well into May, by which time Morgan and Phelan Kell have both came to Tharkad to discuss the matter with the Archon personally.
At Antallos's main city of Port Krin Khan Showers of the Sun Jaguars meets with The Jaguar to discuss with him having the bandit caste remnants of the Smoke Jaguars joining the Sun Jaguars. Despite clear indications that many within the group which has travelled from the Home Worlds would wish to join there is a great deal of tension between the 2 groups. The remnants of the Smoke Jaguars clearly feel that they should be afforded a great deal more respect and The Jaguar himself suggests that he believes the Sun Jaguars should reform as the Smoke Jaguars under his own leadership. This matter nearly came to blows before a mutual enemy would appear and unite the 2 halves of the Jaguars in a desperate fight for survival.
In order to keep tensions to a minimum the 2 leaders had agreed to meet on the sixth day of talks with only themselves and a small escort, no more than a star each. This small escort however led to a local pirate group believing that they could overrun the small force and make of with valuable salvage and even Clan omnimechs and so a full 2 and a half companies of battlemechs and nearly a battalion of locally hired infantry "thugs" armed with satchel charges and light arms attack the meeting site without warning. The 2 formations of Jaguars are soon fighting back to back to fend of the attackers and buy time for the rest of the on world Jaguars to rush to their aid.
By the time the rest of the Jaguars manage to break through to their embattled leadership the battle is effectively over. The pirates have been routed and the vast majority of them killed, but amongst the dead Jaguars is Khan Showers. The Khan's Warhawk Prime is a twisted mess propped up only because it is leaning against the back of The Jaguar's own Warhawk. The Khan's omnimech has had it's entire left kneecap totally blasted away which had left it unable to move and was only able to remain upright with the aid of the other machine. However despite having remained upright the lack of mobility had allowed several squads of the pirate infantry to attach breaching charges to the cockpit of the omnimech and kill the pilot. Khan Showers had refused to punch out even as he heard the breaching charges being emplaced, continuing to pour murderously accurate ER PPC into the onrushing pirate Axman battlemech.
Descending from his own battered machine to watch as the Khan's torn body is carried down The Jaguar acknowledges that had the Khan not remained within his machine and destroyed the Axman seconds before he himself was killed it is very likely the hatchet wielding mech would have killed him. In honour of the Khan's sacrifice The Jaguar takes upon his old name of Russou Howell and promises to escort Shower's body back to Valois and present himself to now Khan Tiaret Nevversan and seek admission for himself and his followers to Clan Sun Jaguar. He informs the surviving members of the Golden Keshik and 1st Sun Jaguar Guard that as a giftake he brings with him samples of all of the bloodnamed warriors of Clan Smoke Jaguar as well as key technicians and scientists caste members on his circling warship who can recreate a genetics program. The various Jaguars return to their ships and are soon headed for the Sun Jaguar "capital" on Valois.
The first Dove class dropship arrives at New Avalon and is met by no lesser personage than the First Prince himself. Victor Davion personally salutes every single warrior being carried or helped from the Dropship and elements of his personal guard provide an escort for the wounded soldiers to NAIS. There they will begin treatment at the finest medical centre within the Inner Sphere. Each following Dove that arrives will be given similar honours.
The First Prince also lodges a formal protest at the "massacre" of the ComGuard troops on Menke and promises his full support to Comstar in bringing those responsible to justice. He also invites all ComGuards forces still remaining within the Confederation to withdraw to the Federated Suns where they will be treated with respect. This will also shorten the supply lines for these troops. Although a number will withdraw into the St Ives Compact, where Precentor St Ives has been making a number of military trade deals to obtain the products of the Compact for the ComGuards as a secondary source of weaponry.
On Chesterton the Lorica battle armour plant goes online and is soon shipping out suits to the various ComGuards units within reach. Many of these units were originally deployed in the Confederation and they begin to transition their infantry formations to battle armour formations with the basic armour consisting of Lorica class.
The Sabre line on Islamabad funded by Comstar goes online and soon the versatile fighters are also being shipped to various ComGuards units. Although a small number are also sent to ComGuards warships to add light combat patrol fighters to their aerospace wings.
The Johnston Industries facility on Torrence see's it's first battlemech line go operation with Caeser class battlemechs coming into production there. The heavy class battlemechs are soon appearing in growing numbers throughout the Crucis March and beyond.
With both sides full agreement the New Earth Trading Company plant on Markesan is scheduled for expansions and upgrades. Although new and already expanding once the demand for the products of the facility is far outstripping the supply. As such 5 additional vehicle lines are to be added to the existing build order, with 2 new Von Luckner lines and 2 Alacorn lines taking centre stage and a 2 Karnov lines being added. When the current expansions and this new one are finished the plant will have 5 lines producing each of the Von Luckner and Alacorn tanks as well as 3 Karnov lines and a single engineering vehicle line.
The Federated Sun's Government also begins legal work at reforming the local branch of Star Corp on Crofton. Since the recent legal cases and scandals StarCorp Federated Suns has been effectively operating as an entirely separate legal entity to the parent organisation and the FedSun's Government plans to formalise this in the next few months.
Within the Draconis Combine the news that the DCS Yamato has been launched takes full and centre stage, although the recommissioning of the DCS Togura also is noteworthy. Parades, celebrations and honours are heaped upon the builders and upon the Draconis Combine Admiralty. They are the first Inner Sphere power to commission a full battleship since the fall of the Star League and the nation swells with pride about the achievement.
Unknown to the cheering crowds there are a number of faults remaining within the battleship. Although formally listed as having a speed profile of 3/5 the captain and crew are all very aware that if they push the engines beyond 1.5 G's (3) then they will likely cause structural damage to the ship. Likewise if they jump while travelling at more than 1 G this can lead to catastrophic damage to the ship's spine. Although heavily armoured and with a wide variety of weaponry as well as being more than capable of carrying a full admirals staff if it is to operate as a flagship, the ship finds itself extremely short on cargo. The DCS Yamato will be a deadly vessel in any engagement, but will be forced to remain close either to bases with suitable supplies or rely on extended supply lines to keep it operational. Yet with all these limitations it is a massive achievement and one that is rightly celebrated throughout the entire Combine.
Work immediately begins on a sister ship as well as another yard to allow a third vessel to be ordered. Plan Fuso calls for no less than 8 of these battlewagons to be in commission to give the Combine and House Kurita complete naval superiority on the Federated Sun's front!
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AeroTech 2 Vessel Technical Readout
VALIDATED
Class/Model/Name: Yamoto (Battleship)
Tech: Inner Sphere / 3061
Vessel Type: WarShip
Rules: Level 2, Standard design
Rules Set: AeroTech2
Mass: 1,400,000 tons
K-F Drive System: (Unknown)
Length: 1,118 meters
Sail Diameter: 1,348 meters
Power Plant: Standard
Safe Thrust: 3
Maximum Thrust: 5
Armor Type: Lamellor Ferro-carbide
Armament:
8 Heavy N-Gauss
32 Medium NPPC
32 NL35
64 ER PPC
64 ER Large Laser
84 Large Pulse Laser
44 Medium Pulse Laser
112 AMS
24 NAC/30
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Class/Model/Name: Yamoto (Battleship)
Mass: 1,400,000 tons
Equipment: Mass
Power Plant, Drive & Control: 252,000.00
Thrust: Safe Thrust: 3
Maximum Thrust: 5
Kearny-Fuchida Hyperdrive: Compact (Integrity = 27) 633,500.00
Lithium Fusion Battery 14,000.00
Jump Sail: (Integrity = 6) 100.00
Structural Integrity: 123 172,200.00
Total Heat Sinks: 5,728 Double 4,974.00
Fuel & Fuel Pumps: 7,650.00
Bridge, Controls, Radar, Computer & Attitude Thrusters: 3,500.00
Fire Control Computers: 44,302.00
Food & Water: (153 days supply) 780.00
Armor Type: Lamellor Ferro-carbide (3,516 total armor pts) 3,444.00
Capital Scale Armor Pts
Location: L / R
Fore: 645
Fore-Left/Right: 586/586
Aft-Left/Right: 586/586
Aft: 527
Cargo:
Bay 1: Fighters (36) with 6 doors 5,400.00
Bay 2: Small Craft (12) with 2 doors 2,400.00
Bay 3: Cargo (1) with 4 doors 3,700.00
DropShip Capacity: 6 Docking Hardpoints 6,000.00
Grav Decks #1 - 2: (135-meter diameter) 200.00
Grav Deck #3: (110-meter diameter) 100.00
Life Boats: 85 (7 tons each) 595.00
Escape Pods: 85 (7 tons each) 595.00
Crew and Passengers:
90 Officers (86 minimum) 900.00
240 Crew (235 minimum) 1,680.00
160 Gunners (158 minimum) 1,120.00
45 1st Class Passengers 450.00
90 2nd Class Passengers 630.00
120 Steerage Passengers 600.00
60 Marines 300.00
80 Marine Battle Armor Troopers/Elementals 560.00
132 Bay Personnel .00
Weapons and Equipment Loc SRV MRV LRV ERV Heat Mass
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2 Heavy N-Gauss(200 rounds)Nose 60 60 60 60 36 14,100.00
4 Medium NPPC Nose 36 36 36 36 540 7,200.00
4 NL35 Nose 14 14 14 -- 208 2,800.00
8 ER PPC Nose 8(80) 8(80) 8(80) -- 120 56.00
8 ER Large Laser Nose 6(64) 6(64) 6(64) -- 96 40.00
10 Large Pulse Laser Nose 14(138) 9(90) -- -- 100 70.00
8 Medium Pulse Laser 32 16.00
14 AMS(900 rounds) Nose -- -- -- -- 14 82.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) FL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) FL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
4 Medium NPPC FL/R 36 36 36 36 1080 14,400.00
4 NL35 FL/R 14 14 14 -- 416 5,600.00
8 ER PPC FL/R 8(80) 8(80) 8(80) -- 240 112.00
8 ER Large Laser FL/R 6(64) 6(64) 6(64) -- 192 80.00
8 Large Pulse Laser FL/R 12(120) 7(72) -- -- 160 112.00
8 Medium Pulse Laser 64 32.00
14 AMS(900 rounds) FL/R -- -- -- -- 28 164.00
2 Heavy N-Gauss(100 rounds)L/RBS 60 60 60 60 72 28,100.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) L/RBS 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) L/RBS 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
4 Medium NPPC L/RBS 36 36 36 36 1080 14,400.00
4 NL35 L/RBS 14 14 14 -- 416 5,600.00
8 ER PPC L/RBS 8(80) 8(80) 8(80) -- 240 112.00
8 ER Large Laser L/RBS 6(64) 6(64) 6(64) -- 192 80.00
8 Large Pulse Laser L/RBS 11(108) 7(72) -- -- 160 112.00
6 Medium Pulse Laser 48 24.00
14 AMS(900 rounds) L/RBS -- -- -- -- 28 164.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) AL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) AL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
4 Medium NPPC AL/R 36 36 36 36 1080 14,400.00
4 NL35 AL/R 14 14 14 -- 416 5,600.00
8 ER PPC AL/R 8(80) 8(80) 8(80) -- 240 112.00
8 ER Large Laser AL/R 6(64) 6(64) 6(64) -- 192 80.00
8 Large Pulse Laser AL/R 14(144)14(144) -- -- 160 112.00
8 Large Pulse Laser 160 112.00
14 AMS(900 rounds) AL/R -- -- -- -- 28 164.00
2 Heavy N-Gauss(200 rounds)Aft 60 60 60 60 36 14,100.00
4 Medium NPPC Aft 36 36 36 36 540 7,200.00
4 NL35 Aft 14 14 14 -- 208 2,800.00
8 ER PPC Aft 8(80) 8(80) 8(80) -- 120 56.00
8 ER Large Laser Aft 6(64) 6(64) 6(64) -- 96 40.00
10 Large Pulse Laser Aft 14(138) 9(90) -- -- 100 70.00
8 Medium Pulse Laser 32 16.00
14 AMS(900 rounds) Aft -- -- -- -- 14 82.00
1 Lot Spare Parts (1.00%) 14,000.00
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTALS: Heat: 11,384 1,400,000.00
Tons Left: .00
Calculated Factors:
Total Cost: 22,194,962,000 C-Bills
Battle Value: 320,221
Cost per BV: 69,311.39
Weapon Value: 205,690 (Ratio = .64)
Damage Factors: SRV = 14,851; MRV = 13,992; LRV = 10,142; ERV = 3,839
Maintenance: Maintenance Point Value (MPV) = 958,057
(191,581 Structure, 366,200 Life Support, 400,276 Weapons)
Support Points (SP) = 578,450 (60% of MPV)
BattleForce2: Not applicable
((OOC This ship has been kindly designed for my by Kioras on Alternate History! Thank you very much for this good sir! :D)
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5 foxes and 25 dropships. and they might be Overlords A3? that is a lot of firepower. I do like the trade of repairing two BC for the Sun Jags to get a cluster
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8 Yamato's, that is a lot.
If I was the Peter Steiner or the Khan of the Wolves I would be asking for priority rights to purchase more Foxes from the FS shipyards.
I wonder how a Texas would go against a Yamato. :thumbsup:
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Where is the Overlord A3 built in FedSun space? I thought it was just built by Shipil which would be in the Lyran space. Galax builds the regular Overlord. The only assault dropship I can think of built in FedSun space is the Avenger. I know stuff has been added in this timeline but I don't recall the Overlord A3 being one of them.
When did the Exile Wolved start the Isegrim? Didn't they need the help of the Crusader Wolves? Maybe FedSun can help with that project.
Speaking of dropships, maybe the FedSun could bring back the CargoMaster & CargoKing classes at Galax?
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5 foxes and 25 dropships. and they might be Overlords A3? that is a lot of firepower. I do like the trade of repairing two BC for the Sun Jags to get a cluster
Frankly the Lyrans actually need more hulls than firepower. Single large vessels they either have, repairable or building. But small hulls that can patrol, be in multiple places - that they are coming up short in. 5 Foxes (even if 2 of them are Wolf and on the JF border) is a HUGE boost to them.
2 large battlecruisers for 1 very questionable cluster. Seems fair to me.
8 Yamato's, that is a lot.
If I was the Peter Steiner or the Khan of the Wolves I would be asking for priority rights to purchase more Foxes from the FS shipyards.
I wonder how a Texas would go against a Yamato. :thumbsup:
That is the ideal for Plan Fuso. Not to say they will GET to the ideal.
Yeah that might end up a very very lucrative deal for the FS in time! :p
Who said anything about the shattered hull of the Falcon's Nest being rebuilt as a Texas? ;)
Where is the Overlord A3 built in FedSun space? I thought it was just built by Shipil which would be in the Lyran space. Galax builds the regular Overlord. The only assault dropship I can think of built in FedSun space is the Avenger. I know stuff has been added in this timeline but I don't recall the Overlord A3 being one of them.
When did the Exile Wolved start the Isegrim? Didn't they need the help of the Crusader Wolves? Maybe FedSun can help with that project.
Speaking of dropships, maybe the FedSun could bring back the CargoMaster & CargoKing classes at Galax?
Overlords are listed as being built by FedBoeing and given that the FedCom/FedSuns are known to have had them I figured they were built at the Galax yards. Not seeing them listed though. Huh. Dammit.
The Isegram came about via the Jihad. So not even started yet.
I like the idea of Cargomasters and Cargokings... :D
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So an easy fix I think -
For the Texas-class warship, design specs for the Overlord A3 from Shipil and the 6th Jaguar Dragoons, the FedSuns will offer the following -
5 Fox-class warships
5 Vengeance-class dropships
Provide funding for 20 Overlord A3's to be built by Shipil
Provide funding for the purchase of aerospace fighters to fill the cubicles for all the above
Refit two WiE battlecruisers
This will help boost Lyran production and save the Lyran's some money they can use elsewhere. Actually I would probably boost the production of pocket warships if I were Peter Davion.
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8 Yamato's, that is a lot.
If I was the Peter Steiner or the Khan of the Wolves I would be asking for priority rights to purchase more Foxes from the FS shipyards.
I wonder how a Texas would go against a Yamato. :thumbsup:
Well a Clan or Star League Texas would be run over by a Yamato.
- The Yamato has 90% more armor then the Texas.
- The Texas is badly undergunned. The total broadside weaponry does 54/54/54/54 damage, the Nose arc does the most at 108/108/68/68.
- The Texas also relies on some AR-10 launchers that have shallow ammo reserves. Unless each one is nuclear tipped the few leakers would be laughed off by the Yamato's armor.
- The Yamato total broadside armament is 520/520/520/132. The Fore and Aft armament is rated at 130/130/130/96
- The moment that the Yamato turns it's broadsides at the Texas, depending on the rage it could shatter it in a few rounds.
- They both have about the same Dropship, small craft and Fighter compliment so it is a wash, except that the Yamato has significant close range normal scale weapons for engaging Aerospace Fighters and small craft.
It would be as if a pre-dreadnaught battleship fought a mid 1930's design.
As currently designed the only ship that could out slug it is the Leviathan class dreadnought in it's Warship configuration. Due to issues a 2x1 numbers advantage would probably be the way the Combine military planners want to field. It should win with corrected ships in a 3x2 advantage or 5x3 though.
A McKenna might be able to kite it with better crew handling however the moment they close the range the Yamato's much heavier armor and broadside armament will rip it apart.
Even the more 'modern' Clan Nightlord battleship would have the same issue.
A rebuilt from the ground up Texas would do well for the Suns, as the Yamato is likely to be a bit tougher (within 25%) tougher but the new Texas may have a better long range throw distance, allowing a superior crew to come out ahead. The margin would be very close.
Besides as the Yamato's are being built sequentially they are likely to fix problems with each iteration. I would expect that the last 4 would fix all the issues and be slightly tougher with more cargo for longer legs.
Actually I would probably boost the production of pocket warships if I were Peter Davion.
Pocket Warships are largely a trap and dead end design wise if the fleet has a good selection of Destroyers with armor and weapons to pop them without getting sub-capital weapons. NAC/30 are deadly to most Dropship designs, 1 shot 1 kill. They would do well in a screen with destroyers, or as a joint attack force however deploying them alone or without Destroyer or Cruiser support is begging to get them popped.
Missiles are good, however the more AMS you have the less effective they are and you will have to rely on nuclear munitions. No one yet in this time line has brought out nuclear weapons even in space so Pocket Warships are going to be a real waste.[/list]
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Perhaps use Pocket Warships to guard Periphery & similar low priority areas? They're good for anti-piracy & picket deployments after all. Keep the true warships on the frontlines, heartlands & industrial areas of a realm.
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Perhaps use Pocket Warships to guard Periphery & similar low priority areas? They're good for anti-piracy & picket deployments after all. Keep the true warships on the frontlines, heartlands & industrial areas of a realm.
Yeah, use them as Coast Guard cutters, patrol vessels and customs ships works fine. Using them in large dwet actions means risking the whole crew. They could possibly engage small warships like the Fox and other Corvetes well enough.
The real issue is that you need new ships built from the ground up to use in fleet actions, not these conversions. Ideally you would have over 400 standard scale armor a facing and that means newer ship designs.
It is still a poor trade using them in large fleet actions. You are better off using them either as carriers for more fighters or to expand the fleets support element.
With missiles they are a lot like the early Torpedo boats, before they switched to wooden fast boats which has a probelm in that the powers have cracked destroyers.
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Lets not forget that the basic 3057 designs for canon WarShips are pretty much terrible too. A fan design can easily improve upon them. But that aside, great writing and great update!
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So an easy fix I think -
For the Texas-class warship, design specs for the Overlord A3 from Shipil and the 6th Jaguar Dragoons, the FedSuns will offer the following -
5 Fox-class warships
5 Vengeance-class dropships
Provide funding for 20 Overlord A3's to be built by Shipil
Provide funding for the purchase of aerospace fighters to fill the cubicles for all the above
Refit two WiE battlecruisers
This will help boost Lyran production and save the Lyran's some money they can use elsewhere. Actually I would probably boost the production of pocket warships if I were Peter Davion.
Hmmm that is something I'll think about redoing. Although it's Peter Steiner. :D
Well a Clan or Star League Texas would be run over by a Yamato.
- The Yamato has 90% more armor then the Texas.
- The Texas is badly undergunned. The total broadside weaponry does 54/54/54/54 damage, the Nose arc does the most at 108/108/68/68.
- The Texas also relies on some AR-10 launchers that have shallow ammo reserves. Unless each one is nuclear tipped the few leakers would be laughed off by the Yamato's armor.
- The Yamato total broadside armament is 520/520/520/132. The Fore and Aft armament is rated at 130/130/130/96
- The moment that the Yamato turns it's broadsides at the Texas, depending on the rage it could shatter it in a few rounds.
- They both have about the same Dropship, small craft and Fighter compliment so it is a wash, except that the Yamato has significant close range normal scale weapons for engaging Aerospace Fighters and small craft.
It would be as if a pre-dreadnaught battleship fought a mid 1930's design.
As currently designed the only ship that could out slug it is the Leviathan class dreadnought in it's Warship configuration. Due to issues a 2x1 numbers advantage would probably be the way the Combine military planners want to field. It should win with corrected ships in a 3x2 advantage or 5x3 though.
A McKenna might be able to kite it with better crew handling however the moment they close the range the Yamato's much heavier armor and broadside armament will rip it apart.
Even the more 'modern' Clan Nightlord battleship would have the same issue.
A rebuilt from the ground up Texas would do well for the Suns, as the Yamato is likely to be a bit tougher (within 25%) tougher but the new Texas may have a better long range throw distance, allowing a superior crew to come out ahead. The margin would be very close.
Besides as the Yamato's are being built sequentially they are likely to fix problems with each iteration. I would expect that the last 4 would fix all the issues and be slightly tougher with more cargo for longer legs.
Pocket Warships are largely a trap and dead end design wise if the fleet has a good selection of Destroyers with armor and weapons to pop them without getting sub-capital weapons. NAC/30 are deadly to most Dropship designs, 1 shot 1 kill. They would do well in a screen with destroyers, or as a joint attack force however deploying them alone or without Destroyer or Cruiser support is begging to get them popped.
Missiles are good, however the more AMS you have the less effective they are and you will have to rely on nuclear munitions. No one yet in this time line has brought out nuclear weapons even in space so Pocket Warships are going to be a real waste.
The Yamato is a brutal beast for SLDF type battleships. Still the FS have a plan... ;)
Perhaps use Pocket Warships to guard Periphery & similar low priority areas? They're good for anti-piracy & picket deployments after all. Keep the true warships on the frontlines, heartlands & industrial areas of a realm.
Against anything other than a warship a pocket warship will crush them. So good against pirates, raiding dropships, etc... They can smash them. So you'll see them being sent to patrol lower priority areas as more warships come around or being used to "boost" existing warships.
Yeah, use them as Coast Guard cutters, patrol vessels and customs ships works fine. Using them in large dwet actions means risking the whole crew. They could possibly engage small warships like the Fox and other Corvetes well enough.
The real issue is that you need new ships built from the ground up to use in fleet actions, not these conversions. Ideally you would have over 400 standard scale armor a facing and that means newer ship designs.
It is still a poor trade using them in large fleet actions. You are better off using them either as carriers for more fighters or to expand the fleets support element.
With missiles they are a lot like the early Torpedo boats, before they switched to wooden fast boats which has a probelm in that the powers have cracked destroyers.
If pocket warships come up against a cruiser or battleship they are pretty much toast. But a Fox can carry 4 of them an a vengeance and that gives it a major boost. even more if there are 3-4 Fox's deploying together. That gives the large number of dropships as a major force multiplier who can inflict damage at long range with their missiles.
Their only chance in a major fleet action is to hope that the bigger ships are too busy fighting each other. If a single heavy ship starts hunting htem they are dead.
Lets not forget that the basic 3057 designs for canon WarShips are pretty much terrible too. A fan design can easily improve upon them. But that aside, great writing and great update!
True the canon designs are pretty rough, I think the only 2 ones I'm relatively happy with are the Luxor and Avalon!
Thank you for the compliments! :D
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I'm rather partial to the Farragut-class battleship myself. A revamped version would probably work very well. It's armor and maneuverability are on par with the McKenna already, beats both it and the Texas in the anti-fighter defense area while it's main armament is a solid blend of energy/ballistic weaponry.
Upgrade the heatsinks to doubles, reduce the excessive cargo capacity, add a LF Battery system, swap out the forty LL for a 20/20 split of ER PPCs and LPLs interspersed with a couple Gauss Rifles and a LB20X AC as well as multiple AMS units in each firing arc for a layered defense against Dropships, fighters and Capital missiles. Use of Capital missiles should be kept to a minimum, personally I find them to be of dubious value in the post FedCom Civil War/Jihad Era unless they're are nuclear tipped but even that's not a sure thing given the proliferation of anti-missle defense Naval doctrine in this time period. Freeing up most of that ridiculous cargo capacity should be allocated to perhaps a couple of extra dropship collars, and expanded fighter wing(36 is good but 54 would be better), an expanded marine contingent specifically BA Marines, lastly and most importantly supplement the HNGRs, NAC40s, and HNPPCs with some lighter versions of these same weapons that reach into the Long and Extreme range brackets NAC30s and MNPPCs would be a suitable option. Any remaining mass should be allocated to additional armor.
I picture this as a Davion variant with emphasis(given the FedSuns love of all things AC)on long range fire and fighter strikes to wear down an opposing capital ship's armor before moving in close to release devastating broadsides from it's Heavy NACs to finish off it's foe.
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Pft, who needs a Battleship?
Nukes + Aerospace = dead FAR cheaper in every aspect. Presuming you want to open that can of worms of course. Unless you buy into absolute game mechanics around AMS as holy writ - and even the Ghost Bear 'We are NOT compensating for something damnit!' still die if you hit it with even one or two relatively lightweight nukes.
In any event, the Federated Suns must not and cannot be pressured by the DCAs actions here. They are doing an exceptional job of building up a navy including the logistics, infrastructure, training and personnel depth AND the shipyards to support them. They had a lot more shipbuilding experience then anyone else in the Inner Sphere by now as well. The Combine are going into White Elephant territory here and making a critical strategic mistake building these things. Its so typical of the Combine. They for various reasons can't swallow their pride and take the longer path, no they must NOT loose face, we need big powerful ships NOW NOW NOW! Which means all the first wave of ships will probably be massive stones around their necks, nightmares that suck in money like black holes and even with the best will in the world, are not something you'd want to take into combat unless you had no other choice....
Anyway. If the Federated Suns DOES feel they need a counter, I'd honestly just have Ardan ask Peter if he's willing to swap licenses. The Lyrans get the right to build the Avalon class, the Davions get the right to build the Mjolnir class. Both cover a gap in their TO&E and a Mjolnir should be more than a match as a hard counter for even an operational Yamatto, rather than a joke. Offer Peter a couple of New Avalons off his production lines (the Lyrans pay, at cost of course) and I'm sure he'd be happy enough. And the Mjolnir is a battle proven design.
Simple! Honestly, I suspect the whole 'take a completely wrecked Texas and rebuild it' is a painfully thin face saving cover for Victor to be able to help the Lyrans who are in a bad strategic state, warship wise. For all his washing his hands of them, I'd be surprised if he doesn't honestly still feel, especially as they are facing the Clans on their own now, that the Suns should stand by them as they are shielding the Inner Sphere from the Clans (given his Clan centric focus and such). Plus, it makes plenty of strategic sense to, even if the FedCom is dead, work to keep the Lyrans as a strong or at least solid ally, that strategic logic hasn't changed since 3025 (if anything its even MORE strong now). God knows its probably going to be cheaper to simply build a new battleship from the ground up rather than drag a wreck down the Terran corridor to Galax to be rebuilt...
-Just read through all of this, have to say I'm enjoying it :)
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Warships for me - a big carrier - like the New Syrtis - with some decent escorts. If said escorts are Fox (each with 5 dropships) and half the dropships are assault the other half pocket warships and CV's to augment the big carrier ASF's, you get a terrifying force.
If you need something extra, just add an Avalon cruiser to the escort and you get force any battleship run away in fear.
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3066 - May - A deal reached
The discussions began in April between the Princes's Champion and the Archon and his various advisers continued into May. Khan Kell himself arrived on Tharkad along with his father the Grand Duke of Arc Royal and joined the negotiations. By the 6th of May Ardan Sortek was confident that the tide had turned and that the Lyran's and their Wolf allies were going to approve the transfer of the CJF Falcon's Nest to the Federated Sun's. What remained in doubt however was the cost. The Archon was clearly eager to get the largest return for the sale of the shattered battleship as possible, while Khan Kell was proving that perhaps that Wolf Clan had erred in making him a warrior - they perhaps should have placed him within the Merchant Caste! Either that or his initial upbringing as the son of a famed mercenary leader was showing through, although Sortek suspected that he might be getting clandestine support from his father at the very least. Some of the points he was making seemed a little to subtle for the famously blunt warrior.
However despite the difficulties and tempers flaring on occasion a deal was finally worked out on the 16th of May. The Lyran Alliance and Clan Wolf-in-Exile would transfer ownership of the CJF Falcon's Nest to the Federated Suns. In return the Federated Sun's would lay down 5 Fox corvettes in the coming year - 3 of them to be delivered to the Lyran Alliance and 2 too the Wolves. Each Fox would be outfitted with a full compliment of dropships and fighters as well as full ammunition lockers and spare parts. An additional Monolith jumpship would also be gifted to the Lyran Alliance carrying a full compliment of Mule class dropships with additional spare parts - to be divided between the Lyran's and Wolves at a 3:2 ratio. The Federated Sun's would also license to the Arc Royal MechWorks the Dagger-O omnifighter design to be produced on Arc Royal - no more than 2 lines could be constructed and the production could only be used by the Kell Hounds (which also included any Arc Royal based Home Defence Squadrons) and Wolves-in-Exile and not sold on to third parties, which was to include the Lyran Alliance. In return Arc Royal MechWork's would construct an annex to their Federated Sun's Killarney plant the Arctic Fox omnimech, with 2 lines being constructed and only to be sold to the AFFS. The Clan Wolf-in-Exile Implacable will also be repaired and refitted at Panpour in return for the CJF Falcon's Nest.
Ardan Sortek also had to agree to offer for sale to both the Lyran Alliance and Wolves-in-Exile at least 2 further Fox corvettes (each) within the next 3 years. The Princes's Champion agreed that the new yard building at Filtvelt which was due to be finished in the coming January would lay down 2 Fox corvettes that would be offered for sale to the Lyran Alliance and Clan Wolf-in-Exile. These however would not be gifts, but would have to be purchased at full market price. Privately Ardan Sortek had promised both Archon Steiner and Khan Kell that he would suggest to the First Prince that these yards continue to sell warships to them as away not only of strengthening allies but also a source of funds.
With regards the fate of the 6th Wolf Guard's Cluster the Khan is less than thrilled with the deal on offer. However he currently has a major shortage of warships and while he can potentially form new clusters of troops from either freebirth warriors or graduating trueborn and the production of his factories on Arc Royal he has no realistic prospect of new warships except from either the Lyrans or Davions. As such he agrees to allow the transfer of the former 6th Jaguar Dragoons to the new Clan Sun Jaguar in return for the refit of the Implacable and no less than a full cluster of military equipment from the Federated Suns. The 45 battlemechs and 30 fighters are all to be omni's and he intends to use them to form a new 2nd line cluster.
Ardan Sortek also takes this opportunity to return to the Lyran Alliance the colours and insignia of the 10th Lyran Guards RCT. The former 10th Lyran Guards, now the 1st Revenant Guards had asked him to carry with him their former colours in order to return them to their former parent realm in the hope of healing any lingering resentment for their decision to remain within the Federated Suns. These are gratefully accepted by the Archon who instructs his General of Armies to begin preparations to reform this storied unit.
Within the Federated Sun's the Department of Military Intelligence receives some disturbing and at the current time totally unsubstantiated reports from agents left behind on Highspire to keep an eye on Kali's lunatic cult. Near the site of the former underground temples which were destroyed in the 1st and 2nd FSAC's raid in 3065 the Thugee's are conducting major excavations. That was to be expected, however one report in particular is immedietly flagged up for concern. It would seem that a large number of the workers at one of the dig sites all mysteriously died within a few minutes in late April. Further work has been continued but the workers have been seen to be wearing hazmat suits and using specialist equipment. Confirmation is immedietly sought.
While sitting and reading the FWLM after action report from the Free World's Guards attack on their treacherous 3rd Guards First Prince Victor has an idea. The next day he invites his Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion to a "working lunch" within the newly completed Highspire Room at the palace. There he lays out his proposal to his most senior officer and asks what he thinks about it. Jackson Davion after some consideration agrees that the idea very well might work and asks permission to run it by a number of officers - such as Marshal Bishop Sortek, Marshal Stephen Cooper and Marshal Jon Davion. If they like the idea then it would almost certainly be a success. Victor agrees and having been reminded of the fact that the head of his Brigade of Guard's is still a "mere" Marshal informs the Marshal of Armies to rectify this in the next promotions list. While he knows the increased rank is unlikely to actually matter that much to Bishop, he is keen to honour the man who is the very embodiment of the Davion Guards.
The First Prince also instructs Fleet Admiral Buchwald on the matter of ranks within the Federated Sun's Navy. The current top heavy nature of the rank structure is to be redone, the First Prince finds it somewhat ridiculous that an individual Fox corvette has within it's command staff no fewer than 2 flag officers. Particularly with the growing size of the warship fleet this is unsustainable and he requests that the Fleet Admiral look into restructuring it into a more practical set up by the end of the year and have a proposal for him within the month.
The former StarCorp plant on Crofton is re-branded as the SunCorp Industries company. Some licenses fees are exchanged between the new company and it's former StarCorp associates but for all intents and purposes the new company is entirely independent of StarCorp. StarCorp is still sueing the FedSun's Government and the First Prince in the hopes of getting the plant returned to them, but given the huge weight of evidence of corporate malfeasance, corruption and aiding foreign powers this case is going nowhere fast. The factory currently has 2 Warhammer lines, a Thanatos line, a Longbow line and Emperor line as well as having 3 additional lines producing the Black Hawk-KU, Avatar and Sunder omnimechs under license. With the new formation of SunCorp there is an announcement that the Thanatos battlemech is to be upgraded to it's original omnimech specifications by December 3066. A second line for this new omnimech is to be constructed as well. The AFFS is also considering putting the Highlander and King Crab battlemech's into production here.
On Outreach Colonel Maeve Wolf instructs the teams who built the Falcon IIC line out of salvage to begin laying the groundwork for an expansion of the very limited production. She wishes them to look at the Gallowglas WD, Imp C and Marauder II C designs to see which would be the easiest for them to put into production. Although the technicians point out that a non-Clantech design would be much easier to restart production off the Colonel insists on quality above quantity. It will be years, perhaps decades before the Wolf's Dragoons can regrow their ranks to their former size, but when they do she wishes them to continue to be equipped with the best weapons available. Which means Clantech. Also given their new status within the FedSun's Clantech battlemechs are almost certainly going to be much in demand from the AFFS which will provide funds to continue rebuilding.
The ComGuards receive another boost to their aerospace numbers when the Sabre line on Batavia goes online. The light fighter is now being produced by 2 separate plants for Comstar and is being bought up as quickly as it can be produced. Although not a famous and historically significant fighter the well regarded fighter's speed and manoeuvrability make it a welcome addition to the ComGuards fighter wings.
On the capital world of New Avalon Corean Industries activated a new Centurion battlemech line. As ever with this incredibly popular "Davion" battlemech the line's full production capacity is bought out for several years in advance by the AFFS. So much so that Corean is considering further expansions.
New Independence Weaponry, knowing that the Duke of Robinson is interested in adding Gunslinger production within the Draconis March steal a march upon the Duke's own Robinson Standard BattleWorks and announces they will be adding a Gunslinger line to their plant on Alta Vista. While mildly irritated by this Duke James Sandoval decides to see this as an opportunity to simply matters. With Gunslinger battlemechs soon to be in production within his March at Alta Vista he petitions the First Prince to grant Robinson Standard BattleWorks a license to produce the Battlemaster battlemech design. This will be granted in June.
In the Free Worlds League the Supreme Leader of the Tikonov Province begins to plot and involves a number of WOB sympathising SAFE agents in his plans along with a handful of his own people. The 2nd and 3rd Tikonov Republican Guards begins preparations in case the plot comes to fruition.
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Pft, who needs a Battleship?
Nukes + Aerospace = dead FAR cheaper in every aspect. Presuming you want to open that can of worms of course. Unless you buy into absolute game mechanics around AMS as holy writ - and even the Ghost Bear 'We are NOT compensating for something damnit!' still die if you hit it with even one or two relatively lightweight nukes.
In any event, the Federated Suns must not and cannot be pressured by the DCAs actions here. They are doing an exceptional job of building up a navy including the logistics, infrastructure, training and personnel depth AND the shipyards to support them. They had a lot more shipbuilding experience then anyone else in the Inner Sphere by now as well. The Combine are going into White Elephant territory here and making a critical strategic mistake building these things. Its so typical of the Combine. They for various reasons can't swallow their pride and take the longer path, no they must NOT loose face, we need big powerful ships NOW NOW NOW! Which means all the first wave of ships will probably be massive stones around their necks, nightmares that suck in money like black holes and even with the best will in the world, are not something you'd want to take into combat unless you had no other choice....
Well the Fed Suns currently have quite a few designs currently being built, Davion Destroyers and Congress cruisers, both of them do well to round out the fleet along with the New Syrtis Carriers.
Fighters are amazingly fragile and there are several weapons that warships have to reduce their threat. Large missile batteries can rip into fighters on the way towards the capital craft while good normal scale weapons car target nuclear missiles also. That also means fighting through the CAP to launch the strikes along with probably having to waste nuclear attacks to help clear the way.
The other thing is that in story no one has used nuclear weapons and no one will do so until someone else such as the Word of Blake does so first. Without nuclear weapons warships have a near decisive advantage over Assault Dropships and Fighters, you need to bring rather large forces to break through especially against the better non Clan designs. A properly designed force is likely to bleed any attempts by the fighters to get close without overwhelming numbers.
You can use missiles however the larger ships will of coarse carry enough AMS to require either very dense salvo's or a lot of luck to get through and delivery damage. No one has yet to reintroduce Sub-Capital weapons either, I can see the Lyrans digging through the achieves to bring them back, they need space combat ability with both the Wolf and Falcon threats.
I personally feel that there is a need for new Dropship Carriers, the Vengeance is less than an Escort Carrier and more of a Fighter Bus with almost no cargo for repairs and rearmament. 64 tons of cargo total for 40 fighters. Not good for long term space operations. You have 1 engagement and then you will use all the cargo to repair if you are lucky. You then either need to cycle them through the Warship bays in the fleet or else land and bring your attached Mule carrying supplies.
The ship is also amazingly fragile and underarmed. A single flight or wing of craft has a good chance of forcing to to surrender and a few assault small craft can easily force their way in and take over the vessel.
A Titan carries almost 1050 tons of cargo for the 30 fighters it carries, is 60% tougher along with have decent weaponry so it is not completely helpless. The Sun Jaguar's may have the designs to the Miraborg carrier also as they did design it in Clan space. 30 Fighters, 900 tons of cargo and still 40% tougher then the Vengeance.
Battleships are straight out shock units. You choose a place that the enemy must defend and then force you way there, shattering the fleet. That might be a district capital, significant manufacturing or a fleet base.
The Combine will also likely take almost 2 decades to get plan Fuso completely finished and who knows what will change in that time.
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In my story i use Arrow IV AAM (3072) and AShM (3071) with the ASF's to do a lot of damage to the opposite force. And the SAM (3066) variant to help the warship / dropship defense. Not forgetting the ECM / ECCM / ESM (aka the EW side) to do a bit of 'modern take' in that front. Me - i put then in service a lot early, because i have an SI that is a 'bit' focused in the ASF pro and against capabilities.
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Well the Fed Suns currently have quite a few designs currently being built, Davion Destroyers and Congress cruisers, both of them do well to round out the fleet along with the New Syrtis Carriers.
I'm pretty sure the Congress Cruisers are being built more as independent patrol units for commerce protection (something badly needed but often ignored in Btech) in the rear areas. The improved Davions work quite well with the Fox + Avalon + New Sytris formations mind you, assuming you can have them in the right ratios, for a very nicely balanced, flexible and powerful fleet unit.
Fighters are amazingly fragile and there are several weapons that warships have to reduce their threat. Large missile batteries can rip into fighters on the way towards the capital craft while good normal scale weapons car target nuclear missiles also. That also means fighting through the CAP to launch the strikes along with probably having to waste nuclear attacks to help clear the way.
Honestly, when I've gamed it out, its been pretty much 100% impossible to stop a properly formatted strike package (as the Inner Sphere discovered when the Warships got obliterated during the first two Succession Wars for that matter exactly this way). Warships are far too much glass hammers; you only need ONE hit as a rule of thumb to kill them - even the Leviathan needs a lot of luck to be able to survive nuclear ordinance. Fighters not THAT fragile; they are flying tanks. You can't simply point an ERPPC at one and say 'die!' - by the time you reach the range of anti-fighter weapons, you're pretty much already in nuclear strike range. And even if the fighters hold off firing until point blank (to logically give the AMS belts zero reaction time to deal with it) you have to try and take down the flying tanks INCREDIBLY quickly, which just doesn't happen. Especially when the fighter strike can (and should) concentrate on a single threat axis, meaning most of the warships guns are unable to be brought to bear. Not to mention headaches defensibly if your opponent is also laying down their own covering fire with long range capital missile strikes either to open a gap (through kills or evasive maneuvering) in the enemy fighter screen, or, directly targeting nukes on the enemy warship too...
Capital missiles have their own problems being used in anti-fighter fights - partially around baiting fire and the difficulty of hitting until you get close and the sheer absurd number of missiles you have to put into the sky to really grind down a heavy strike - missile magazines are not unlimited after all. You might survive one strike only to not survive the next one in those situations.
I've played these scenarios out only a couple of times I'll admit, but every time we did even if it took 30-40 aerospace fighter losses, the fighters broke through the screening enemy dropships and fighters and last ditch defensive firepower to nuke the enemy warships. Granted you have to be a bit cold hearted to send pilots to die, but you can also do things to improve their chances (like small craft gunships with EW support + heavy AMS to escort the strike packages, developing improved EW gear systems like the Dragons Breath used to format your strikes and so on, but thats probably getting out of scope).
The other thing is that in story no one has used nuclear weapons and no one will do so until someone else such as the Word of Blake does so first.
Uh, they did. They nuked the crap out of several ComStar warships trying to escape from the Case-White like ambush. There is nothing magical about using nuclear weapons in space against enemy warships. If Peter had gone in hard that way, the Falcons warships would have been obliterated and his ground forces would have mopped up everything on the ground cleanly, sending a message best described as '****** off and die' to the rest of the Clans about how the Lyrans are going to treat this kind of 'yay, lets play a new round of attack the Lyrans!' going forward.
Without nuclear weapons warships have a near decisive advantage over Assault Dropships and Fighters, you need to bring rather large forces to break through especially against the better non Clan designs. A properly designed force is likely to bleed any attempts by the fighters to get close without overwhelming numbers.
Yes, but I'm clearly predicating my tactics on the assumption of having nukes. If the Combine is bringing its warships into play, gloves come off. Plus, you don't need to simply charge at the warships and disregard losses, if you bring along carriers then you'll have the reserves and numbers of aerospace units to clear the way through the escorting dropships. Plus supporting fire from your own light warships if you want to play things that way.
You can use missiles however the larger ships will of coarse carry enough AMS to require either very dense salvo's or a lot of luck to get through and delivery damage. No one has yet to reintroduce Sub-Capital weapons either, I can see the Lyrans digging through the achieves to bring them back, they need space combat ability with both the Wolf and Falcon threats.
Build better missiles is the blunt answer. No-one in Battletech ever seems to think of that though. But you'd only in my scenario use missiles to target screening craft and enemy aerospace fighter concentrations, not the enemy warships. Either destroy them outright, or force them to scatter and evade, opening the way for your strike package to sweep through. Subcapital weapons have their uses, but honestly, dealing with enemy heavies is NOT what they should be used for.
I personally feel that there is a need for new Dropship Carriers, the Vengeance is less than an Escort Carrier and more of a Fighter Bus with almost no cargo for repairs and rearmament. 64 tons of cargo total for 40 fighters. Not good for long term space operations. You have 1 engagement and then you will use all the cargo to repair if you are lucky. You then either need to cycle them through the Warship bays in the fleet or else land and bring your attached Mule carrying supplies.
Honestly I prefer carriers rather than dropship carriers, simply because the dropships are too soft a target. With that said, the Vengeance is definitely a fighter replacement carrier, or, at least needs to be docked to an SLDF warship with their massive cargo bays to support operations directly (as a parasite to historical SLDF ships that had limited or no fighter capacity it makes perfect sense; its a bolt-on launch bay that can directly resupply from the warships own cargo hold).
Carrier dropships for fleet actions IMO have to make too many compromises. The Titan has too few fighters, the Vengaance can't fight or support its fighters, Union and Leopard CVs are fine for the 3rd succession war, not for the clan war.
The best niche for a carrier dropship in the AFFS is probably an RCT fighter carrier. Capable of holding one wing of fighters, so two of these carriers are assigned to each RCT. Big enough to hold the fighters and support them through sustained operations, tough enough to take on assault ships directly and win. The Navy OTOH are better off spending their dropship slots on pocket warships and assault ships (and even then, looking to the next generation of them).
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Anyway, on the latest chapter, man Peter is sounding sulky for someone who is getting an absurd bargin. He is giving up a wrecked Battleship he cannot repair or put back into service ... for three fully loaded Corvettes with dropships and fighters, two more in the pipeline he has to pay for (and one thing the Lyrans are not short of is cash) plus options on buying as many more as he needs going forward. Clan Wolf are getting one of their warships fully repaired, two new Corvettes fully loaded, new omnifighter lines and all THEY are paying is a cluster of troops who can be replaced with Wolves soon enough. And just the troops; he's not even loosing equipment as Victor is replacing that!
Honestly Victor has given away so much I'd expect some level of blowback from the High Council over this. He's given 5 warships plus support ships and fighters away, tied up a yard to repair at their cost a Clan warship, tied up the next two Fox's for export as well from a yard, given the Smoke Jagaurs more troops (who lets face it, should be getting a LOT more scrutiny then they are seemingly getting from DMI and MIIO as they rebuild)...
All for one wrecked Battleship?!
Whatever everyone involved was smoking on Tharkad, it must have been GOOD.
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I think that Victor has not really given up all that much for a wrecked battleship.
At the stories current rate of expansion, the FS would have more warship slips coming online and producing warships in the near future. This will be especially be important to get the jump on the production sites for the new Texas battleship after it is reverse engineered, redesigned, and up-armed.
The fighters that he gave away are really a non-issue. 100+ fighters in the grand scheme of things is really just a drop in the bucket due to the FS production as of right now.
The FS get a decent medium Clan tech Medium Battlemech with 2 dedicated production lines (with one line each producing each variant I hope.)
As the for the SunJags, if you don't think that they are being watched like a hawk then you are mistaken. DMI, MIIO, the garrisoning FedSun troops, and even the Boy Scouts have people watching them with the guns off safe are ready to pull the trigger.
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I wonder what will happen when word gets out that the FS is selling warships to ComStar, LC, Wolfs in Exile and Hounds. I will bet Duke Kell will end up with one of those corvettes in all but name at least. that could make for an infesting interview
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On Outreach Colonel Maeve Wolf instructs the teams who built the Falcon IIC line out of salvage to begin laying the groundwork for an expansion of the very limited production. She wishes them to look at the Gallowglas WD, Imp C and Marauder II C designs to see which would be the easiest for them to put into production. Although the technicians point out that a non-Clantech design would be much easier to restart production off the Colonel insists on quality above quantity.
Probably hold off on the Mad II C. It would require an XL engine.
IMHO they should also look at producing a workhorse medium. Heavies are well and good but if you really want a sustainable mech unit, you need workhorse mediums.
I'd put Hoplites back into production if they want a signature Dragoon design upgraded with Clantech. Or Hellhounds/Conjurers.
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Probably hold off on the Mad II C. It would require an XL engine.
IMHO they should also look at producing a workhorse medium. Heavies are well and good but if you really want a sustainable mech unit, you need workhorse mediums.
I'd put Hoplites back into production if they want a signature Dragoon design upgraded with Clantech. Or Hellhounds/Conjurers.
I also think they "need" a medium to help the light. trying to jump to assault would take more time and money they do not have. it would be a show case but they could only have a few a month... at best. they got the falcon C because it would take the shortest amount of time and resources. Even then they needed Sun Jab and FS help. I would go with clan battle armor (-harjel) They can be turned out in larger number and the INF of the WD will need the protection. you can also sell on for more than the price of a locust(1.5) or wasp (1.6mil each). Elemental cost 3.3 million. I got the price from HeavyMetal Battle Armor software for the armor.
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I think Victor really wanted to help his brother in the first place, while also getting something in return, something Peter couldn't use in first place.
I'm glad Thanatos is getting ominmech reboot, I liked the design.
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3066 - June - Plans put in place
The most worrying information coming to light in June was the confirmation of May's reports of the Thugee Cult are using hazmat suits to dig into their former temple cave system, along with a long range picture taken by an agent showing at least one cult member thrashing and dying with a tear in the hazmat suit from a sharp rock that had ripped the glove. This is all the confirmation that the DMI needs that the Thugee Cult on Highspire had access to nerve agents and is trying to reacquire them. As soon as this confirmation was received the Davion High Command began planning for a follow on strike at Highspire to ensure that the lunatic death cult didn't get their hands onto the terrifying weapon. However even as these plans are being put together the First Prince contacts the First Lord Christian Mansdottir to inform him of this development. While Victor Davion is careful not to threaten to take action if the First Lord doesn't that is almost implicit and only a fool would imagine that the FedSuns will allow this threat to grow.
Just in case the Star League's response is too little too late the High Command are instructed to continue with their planning. This time the plans call for no mere raid but instead a descent in force to secure the world and any remaining stocks of nerve agent. However long this takes. The 2nd Davion Guards RCT and the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT are to be tasked with securing the planet while the FSS Andrew Davion and 3 Fox corvettes are to provide support. Both RCT's are told that if they are sent to Highspire to be prepared to stay there for as long as it takes to find and destroy all stocks of the nerve agent. Even in the face of Capellan counter attacks. To help them small specialist infantry units are assembled for dealing with the actual excavations and the extraction and neutralisation of any nerve agents.
Ardan Sortek takes his leave from Tharkad and begins the long journey home to the Federated Suns. While the deal he has negotiated isn't exactly cheap and he knows he will face at least some criticism from other members of the High Command for having given away so much his primary mission wasn't exactly to obtain a single Texas hull for rebuilding. Buried deep within the computers of said hull will be the design schematics for the ship that are required to perform even basic repairs. With these schematics and the design teams at Galax as well as the information the shipyards would obtain when they were tearing out the old Texas's internal workings to rebuild them the Federated Suns would be able to create a new battleship design based upon the Star League era Texas. One updated to the current era and able to go toe to toe with any enemy battleships. Unlike the Kurita's with their cobbled together ramshackle battleship and the Marik's updated small Atreus class battleships the Davion's would have a truly top of the line battleship due to this deal. With their existing superiority in lighter ships this design was to be the key in safeguarding the FedSun's for decades to come.
Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion has a meeting or at least HPG correspondence with all of the top officers within the Davion Brigade of Guards and puts before them the First Princes's new proposal. Although Marshal Alberta Orsina of the 4th has some reservations these are relatively minor and all of the rest of the various Marshals are in agreement with the First Princes's ideas. As such Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion begins to move ahead with them.
Fleet Admiral Buchwald also provides the First Prince with his proposed revised ranking system for the Federated Suns Navy. Based loosely on the old British and American rank system and SLDF Navy. This new system will be phased out over the next year and slowly replace the top heavy ranking system of the current navy.
At Valois Russou Howell arrives with the CSJ Streaking Mist and CSJ Osis' Pride. This immedietly causes some consternation in the small AFFS "embassy" on the planet and word is sent for the the Federated Sun's Navy to rush warships to the region just in case. The First Prince dispatches his own 1st Cruiser Squadron and orders the FSS Kentares and FSS Galtor to rendezvous with them at Filtvelt.
However they are not found to be necessary. The returning Gold Keshik and 1st Sun Jaguar Guards cluster accompany the other former Clan Smoke Jaguar dropships to the ground. There they inform the now Khan Tiaret Nevversan of Khan Showers death at the hands of the bandits. Russou Howell in honour of the fallen warrior submits himself to the authority of the Khan of the Clan Sun Jaguars and presents himself, his warriors and the civilians they liberated from SLDF rule on Huntress as well as the various genetic stocks and industrial designs they downloaded as assurances of his good will and recognition of the Clan Sun Jaguar as the continuation of the Jaguars. Khan Nevversan announces that she is accepting of the other former Smoke Jaguars as new Sun Jaguars and instructs Galaxy Commander Howell to form a Beta Galaxy around his roughly 2 clusters of warriors. The lower castes he brought are accepted into the Clan and bring the numbers of Sun Jaguars on the 3 worlds they occupy to around 120,000. The Khan immedietly sends word to New Avalon of the new arrivals and their warships - assuring the First Prince that these warships while claimed by Clan Sun Jaguar are his to call upon. Although they will need a major refit if they are to return to full service. As for the now vacant post of saKhan she declares that an election will be held for the office in August... During which all Sun Jaguars no matter their caste will be given an equal vote...
At Galax the FSS Dahar, FSS Edwards, FSS Galax and FSS Kittery all slip free from the shipyards. With the new yard finishing these now empty yards will begin construction 5 Fox corvettes for the LAN and Clan Wolf-in-Exile Fleet. They are due to be finished in June 3067. The 4 Fox corvettes that have just been finished however don't split off for their training cruises. Instead they are formed into a provisional 1st Corvette Flotilla, 1st Division. The current Fox corvettes which are still deployed however are not formed into flotillas. At least not for the time being.
Meanwhile at Kathil the FSS Carl Davion and FSS Jospeph Davion are commissioned. The FSS Carl Davion is immedietly assigned to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron in the Draconis March while the FSS Joseph Davion is assigned to the Capellan March based 3rd Cruiser Squadron.
The FSS Churchill finishes at Panpour and heads to join her sister ship the FSS Congress. Both ships will provisionally be assigned to the 1st Patrol Squadron and sent to help patrol the Outback, particularly around the Taurian border.
Even as ships are finishing in 3 of the FedSun's shipyards construction continues to expand the various shipyard complexes. In particular the High Command is pushing for as much redundancy as possible in the construction of warships. As such despite the shipyard still not having finished it's first Fox corvette the Filtvelt Shipyard begins construction of a new Davion III destroyer slip. New Syrtis see's a new Davion III slip ordered. Galax also begins adding an Avalon cruiser slip for the same reason, as the High Command is very aware that if Kathil was to be taken out they would have no source of new Avalons and likely would struggle to support the existing fleet. Galax also sees the start of a state of the art and frankly huge slip being constructed. This new addition could only be needed for a battleship and it is hard to hide it's existence. Or it's cost which is in fact deliberately inflated in every possible budget that could be seen. Which covers the fact that this slip has a twin being constructed in the semi-secret shipyard complex at Panpour.
At Galax the select group of scientists who have been responsible for upgrading the Congress-D and Davion II and redesigning the New Syrtis Carrier begin work on 2 new projects in utmost secrecy. The largest of these projects is a complete redesign and rebuild of the Texas class battleship that their First Prince's Champion has managed to acquire - going beyond any previous upgrade they might have done. While the second is a much more conservative and relatively easier project of designing an upgrade for the FedSun's growing fleet of Fox corvettes.
At Chesterton Achernar Industries commits to a new Argus-O line. While initially tempted with the ever popular Enforcer III the head office had eventually opted for the addition of an omnimech line at their new plant. This is in the the hope of further omnimech orders from the AFFS.
The various technicians report back to Colonel Maeve on Outreach that they think they can probably add an additional Clantech assault mech line to the still somewhat rough around the edges rebuilt Blackwell Industries plant. However they note that even with their best efforts they will probably require at least some help form outside sources such as either Clan Wolf-in-Exile, NAIS or Clan Sun Jaguars. Given the recent help received from the FedSuns Colonel Wolf contacts NAIS and the AFFS High Command and asks them if they can assist in this project and invite the Jaguars to help as well. In return for a share of the production both groups happily agree and work begins on an Imp-C line on Outreach although it will only really properly start in November and proceed at a slow pace.
On Broken Wheel the Andoran Industries plant has the new Mercury line come online, with the Hussar line not far behind and due to start producing battlemechs in July. This now raises the number of operational lines to 1 Clint, 2 Mercury and a Hussar line with a second Hussar line about to start. A far cry from the shattered company that was only capable of refits only a few short years ago. Andoran Industries Ltd announces that they will be adding a second line for their flagship battlemech the Clint in the near future.
At the New Independence Weaponry's primary factory on Kestrel the Marauder II enters production. This now means that the Atlas, Marauder II, Gunslinger, Victor, Marauder and Jagermech III are all currently being built there.
On Northwind Corsara Weapons with the full support of the Clan Elders offer to increase production of the Crab and King Crab battlemech's and to sell this increased production to the AFFS. The AFFS happily accept both designs for increased production and using what is now a well established practise offer the company and Northwind several incentives to help increase production such as tax breaks.
Michael Heavy Industries which until now has been somewhat overlooked during the expansions of various military industrial companies is now contacted by the First Princes's representatives. The company is invited to build 2 new plants - on June and on Sun Prairie to initially concentrate on building Yellow Jackets and Hawk Moths but with plans for the company to expand to include all their current designs.
First Lord Mansdottir sends word to Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao of the information that he has received regarding the nerve agent that the Chancellor's sister's followers are attempting to dig out on Highspire. He informs the Chancellor that he is proposing a joint mission by a hand selected CCAF regiment and the 151st Light Horse regiment to stop this threat. The Chancellor, horrified by this revelation still is unhappy about the inclusion of an SLDF unit in the plan, but the First Lord points out that it is very unlikely that the AFFS will accept a purely Capellan response and are no doubt drawing up plans to deal with the situation themselves. As such the Chancellor reluctantly agrees and orders his own Red Lancers to Highspire.
Across the Inner Sphere there is a spate of attacks upon ComGuard garrisons and Comstar compounds by raiding WOB Militia forces. Nothing larger than a company formation is seen - and mostly consist of infantry, but they cause widespread panic in the civilian populations of the Lyran Alliance, Federated Suns and Draconis Combine as well as casualties to the ComGuards. All 3 realms military step up patrols to find where these small raiding forces came from and how they managed to land without anyone having seen them.
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Naval Ranks
Old Rank-------------New Rank--------Old Usual Command--------New UsualCommand
Fleet Admiral--------Fleet Admiral-------Federated Suns Navy-----Federated Suns Navy
Admiral--------------Admiral-------------Flotilla/Squadron----------Fleet
Vice Admiral---------Vice Admiral-------Warship---------------------Task Force
Rear Admiral---------Rear Admiral------Warship XO-----------------Squadron
Commodore----------Commodore-------Dropship Squadron--------Dropship Squadron/Warship Division
Light Commodore----Captain------------Dropship-------------------Warship-----All ship's commanding officers known as "Captain" while aboard their vessel. Also if another "Captain" is assigned to a vessel they are temporarily and unofficially promoted or designated in a different way - For instance "Flag Captain" for a naval staff officer or "Major" for a ground force captain.
Major------------------Commander------None------------------------XO of Warship/CO Dropship
Captain----------------Lt. Commander--None------------------------XO of Dropship
Lieutenant-------------Lieutenant-------None------------------------None
Sub Alteran------------Lietenant JG----None------------------------None
Cadet------------------Cadet------------None------------------------None
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is there a reason that a larger slip can not make many smaller ships. say the BB slip is completed early or the design is delayed. it is rated for 2m tons (just threw that number out their) can it build 3 or maybe 2 smaller Davion III DDs at the same time? finding funds to have a lot of BB's will be an issues. the DC found this out, but if you can use the same slip to build many ships (of the same design) you can use "Economy of Scale" to make the ship a little cheaper.
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is there a reason that a larger slip can not make many smaller ships. say the BB slip is completed early or the design is delayed. it is rated for 2m tons (just threw that number out their) can it build 3 or maybe 2 smaller Davion III DDs at the same time? finding funds to have a lot of BB's will be an issues. the DC found this out, but if you can use the same slip to build many ships (of the same design) you can use "Economy of Scale" to make the ship a little cheaper.
Theoretically... Yes. Although it would be seen as a waste of the space to build 3-4 foxes say in a slip capable of taking a million tons. Better to build the larger ship, particularly as the larger ships take a LOT longer to build.
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Theoretically... Yes. Although it would be seen as a waste of the space to build 3-4 foxes say in a slip capable of taking a million tons. Better to build the larger ship, particularly as the larger ships take a LOT longer to build.
okay. :thumbsup:
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will ComStar want to a line of BL-9-KNT? I just like ax carrying mechs. I was thinking about all of those line being built, but what about a small shop like say the Diesel Brothers show DieselSellerz. they make 6 x 6 pickup trucks. I was thinking that might be a good way to bring back LAMS.
Wild West Construction Group are a group of EX DC that were captured a reprisal raid from the DC. The core group had 3 LAMs and who had families that worked in the Hun Ho and Irece for LexaTech. What had started as a garage project to make repair parts to get their LAMs back into operation turns into a business. Using parts on the open market and others they make they sell as spare parts for the rest of the owners of Stinger LAMs to keep in the battle. after many years they now can "make" four "new" Stinger LAMs a year, but they produce enough spares parts. the hard part has been buying or "copying" and hand building O/P LAMTRACK 50 TT&S. in late 3066 they were given a small "loan" to bring production up to double that number of finished LAMs per year. These special units would go to support special operation around the FS. this caused a legal issue with LexaTech, that the FS is dealing with as they protect the only supplier of LAM parts. IF this test case works out who knows.
Things that pop into your head when your in the...….shower. >:D
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At Valois Russou Howell arrives with the CSJ Stalking Mist and CSJ Osis' Pride.
I know the CSJ Streaking Mist - Black Lion-class what class is the CSJ Stalking Mist
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Word of Blake are really playing with fire here. I wonder what the hell they are thinking about, making attacks like this across multiple successor states?! Victor, Peter and Theodore would have every right to bring this to the Star League and start issuing pretty hefty threats towards Terra.
Of all the projects going on I'd probably expedite the Fox refit program (its actually surprising something like this wasn't already done, but I suppose those teams had been busy with the upgrades of the older designs) as a priority. Then look at chopping back the production program and reserving a third or perhaps even half your Corvette construction slips for a refit program, rotating the Fox's (starting with the oldest) though a deep maintenance and upgrade cycle.
In fact I'd suggest doing the same for the Avalons as soon as Galax has its slip completed. Not for new cruiser construction, but to start rotating the Avalon class ships through routine maintenance. It'll help keep availability at maximum - its not just about building the ships after all, but maintaining them.
Plus, you can then raid those ships crews to shove them onto the new construction carriers and destroyers and move the newbies onto the Fox IIs when they are ready for relaunch.
I'm also wondering what the Wolves will name their two new Corvettes. Puppy I and Puppy II would seem appropriate, but I don't think Khan Kell would accept that.
I also remain curious as to what is going on with the Covenant - a while back there was a chapter taking about how her crew was being mysteriously replaced, seemingly for a suicide run...
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I know the CSJ Streaking Mist - Black Lion-class what class is the CSJ Stalking Mist
It could be one of the following unnamed ships that in its fleet: 1 Sovetskii Soyuz, 1 Congress, 1 Whirlwind, 2 Vincent, or 2 Fredasa class ships
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Probably just a mistype.
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best way I can think of to deal with nerve agent is to use a naval laser,
no dispersion of particles its all just gone
and generally less collateral damage
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What are the chances that Thugees will launch some attacks on 151st?
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What are the chances that Thugees will launch some attacks on 151st?
There lunatics who’s leader or divine avatar (can’t remember which they prefer in canon) has been taken captive I expect they will attack both the 151st and the Red lancers.
They will also probably use and weapons they can lay hands on too. They are quite far from what could be considered sane.
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I know the CSJ Streaking Mist - Black Lion-class what class is the CSJ Stalking Mist
Yup it was a typo, sorry about that. Changed now to CSJ Streaking Mist. Thanks.
Word of Blake are really playing with fire here. I wonder what the hell they are thinking about, making attacks like this across multiple successor states?! Victor, Peter and Theodore would have every right to bring this to the Star League and start issuing pretty hefty threats towards Terra.
Of all the projects going on I'd probably expedite the Fox refit program (its actually surprising something like this wasn't already done, but I suppose those teams had been busy with the upgrades of the older designs) as a priority. Then look at chopping back the production program and reserving a third or perhaps even half your Corvette construction slips for a refit program, rotating the Fox's (starting with the oldest) though a deep maintenance and upgrade cycle.
In fact I'd suggest doing the same for the Avalons as soon as Galax has its slip completed. Not for new cruiser construction, but to start rotating the Avalon class ships through routine maintenance. It'll help keep availability at maximum - its not just about building the ships after all, but maintaining them.
Plus, you can then raid those ships crews to shove them onto the new construction carriers and destroyers and move the newbies onto the Fox IIs when they are ready for relaunch.
I'm also wondering what the Wolves will name their two new Corvettes. Puppy I and Puppy II would seem appropriate, but I don't think Khan Kell would accept that.
I also remain curious as to what is going on with the Covenant - a while back there was a chapter taking about how her crew was being mysteriously replaced, seemingly for a suicide run...
The WOB are fanatics and they feel they have to "keep up the momentum" against their heretical brothers. Is that wise? No. But remember they see a "window" right now. The comguards were mauled at Caph and the WOB don't want to give them time to repair the damage.
There's going to be a specific refit yard built pretty soon - in fact probably 2-3 of them, to refit ships up to new standards and repair damage as required. Still deciding on locations - Draconis March probably Verde as it's the only shipyard in the march. A new location for the Crucis March one - preferably close to both marches, so was thinking Markesan. As for the Capellan March one - could be anywhere, at Kathil/New Syrtis/Firgrove/etc...
best way I can think of to deal with nerve agent is to use a naval laser,
no dispersion of particles its all just gone
and generally less collateral damage
That would be the smart way - but I'd guess that certain people are thinking they'd quite like to have any remaining stock.
What are the chances that Thugees will launch some attacks on 151st?
If they get a chance: High.
There lunatics who’s leader or divine avatar (can’t remember which they prefer in canon) has been taken captive I expect they will attack both the 151st and the Red lancers.
They will also probably use and weapons they can lay hands on too. They are quite far from what could be considered sane.
They are a bit on the nutty side it's true. They did after all attempt to attack one of the most elite AFFS regiments with 4 companies of what was effectively cadets. Okay they didn't know they were going to run into a 2nd FSAC but even if they only thought it was the 1st they should have known that was going to end in a slaughter.
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The WOB are fanatics and they feel they have to "keep up the momentum" against their heretical brothers. Is that wise? No. But remember they see a "window" right now. The comguards were mauled at Caph and the WOB don't want to give them time to repair the damage.
I get that, but they were at least able to hold the crazy in check for a while in the OTL. Here? Sure the ComGuards were mauled at Caph, but so was their own force and warship fleet in that and some other engagements. And ComStar is rebuilding pretty quickly now thanks to the Federated Suns (God knows how many Battle Suits they are going to be running around with but I bet 'A LOT' is the answer). Its one thing to fight in the Chaos march and their so-called 'protectorate', politically, but launching terrorist attacks against the Federated Suns, Lyran Commonwealth and Draconis Combine, killing their civilians in the process for what amount to nuisance attacks against HPG stations?
Someone REALLY didn't bother to do a cost/benefit analysis here I think of the political damage opposed to the practical gains...
Of course, the lovely thing about the WOB is that you have enough crackpot factions and sub-factions that some idiot thought it would be a brilliant idea and decided to burn a whole heep of ROM assets to pull off these attacks, certain it was BLAKES HOLY WILL. And now the (increasingly few) grown ups in the WOB have to desperately find a way to spin this or calm things down before the DC, FS and LC are forced (like Victor was after Talon) to pointedly hit back at a pretty overt act of war by going into the Chaos march and blowing up a dozen WOB HPGs and slaughtering a couple of divisions or something...
There's going to be a specific refit yard built pretty soon - in fact probably 2-3 of them, to refit ships up to new standards and repair damage as required. Still deciding on locations - Draconis March probably Verde as it's the only shipyard in the march. A new location for the Crucis March one - preferably close to both marches, so was thinking Markesan. As for the Capellan March one - could be anywhere, at Kathil/New Syrtis/Firgrove/etc...
Ideally you'd want them at least 2 jumps back from the border, minimum - and away from your other shipyards. Defensive depth in your shipyards is something the Federated Suns lacks and the repair yards should be separated from the main shipyards so even in the worst case that the primary yards are lost to crazy bull riders in nuclear gunships, you don't loose your fleet repair capacity...
Ideally what you'd really want are three yardships instead of 3 repair slips ... but that's probably well out of scope. I doubt ComStar would be at all keen to help Victor build such ships given that Dow loathes him.
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3066 - July - A threat
July started with the formal creation of a 1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion to support the now upgraded Woodstock Militia which had been upgraded to the 1st Woodstock Borderer regiment within the Borderer Brigade in August 3064. By now it is felt that the an attached Reinforced Training Battalion is very much called for to support the unit. This does raise some questions as to whether or not other Reinforced Training Battalions will be used to support raising Borderer regiments - Bell, Brockton, Conroe, Galtor and Sheraton all have such units but no Borderer regiment on the planet. Although Sheraton at least has the 1st Sheraton Knights and Galtor has the locally raised 3rd Robinson Rangers RCT. Behind the scenes Marshal Deedee Faulkner continues to push for the Sheraton Knights to be assigned to her Brigade.
The First Princes's sister and Isis Marik continue on their tour of the Outback, stopping at Mayetta before moving onto Savonburg. The fact that the two duchess's stopped at Mayetta and were greeted by the reformed Mayetta DMM in a full military ceremony is a telling point to many within the DMM unit which had laboured for years to rebuild after the attempted rebellion by the former incarnation of the unit under General Yalos. Many within the Mayetta DMM feel that this is an official sign that the loyalist elements of the unit and the new recruits who have joined since have been forgiven by New Avalon and Robinson for the rebellion and will now be allowed to put this behind them. This is helped when 2 weeks after Yvonne and Isis leave a shipment of new Sentry, Watchmen and Battle Hawk mechs arrives from the new plant on Woodbine for the unit. Numbering a full 2 companies of battlemechs this will bring the unit to almost full strength. Rather than sit back and wait for recruits General Anders Holbien who had been the senior officer left after the purges immedietly forms 2 provisional companies and opens slots up to members of the local militia and even civilians who can try out to show if they have what it takes. These 2 companies effectively form an ad-hoc training command within the Mayetta DMM. The training these would be mechwarriors will receive will be rough and ready and will result in a lowering of standards within the regiment but is seen by the various officers as a way of proving to the First Prince and Duke Sandoval that they will do their bit to rebuild their command.
During July Khan Nevversan has to fight 2 Trial's of Refusal for her plans to allow the lower castes to vote for the next saKhan. She is helped in this by the fact that Galaxy Commander Paul Moon and new Galaxy Commander Russou Howell support her in these Trials and actually fight at her side in them. With the leadership of the Warrior caste behind her she is able to survive the Trials. She also announces that the Clan's 2 warships will be renamed the CSJ Rebirth (Streaking Mist) and CSJ Steve Showers (Osis's Pride). Although both ships are desperately in need of a refit and repairs.
The Clan Nova Cat convoy also arrives during July. Bringing with it nearly 30,000 further former Smoke Jaguars. Most of these are Technician and Labourer Caste. Rather than scatter them to all 3 worlds that the Clan maintains envoys on Khan Nevversan has them land on Valois and begin construction of a factory complex. While initially she was hoping to construct a production line to produce the iconic Dire Wolf or Warhawk omnimechs she is advised by the senior techs that this would place their existing capacity under a huge logistical and technological strain. As such it would be better to start with a standard battlemech design and use this factory as a means to expand infrastructure and skills for then building future omnimech factories. Considering the Clint IIC, Wyvern IIC, Guillotine IIC and Highlander IIC the Khan after taking advice from her Galaxy Commanders and Star Colonels decides to build a single line of Clint IIC and Guillotine IIC each for the time being. She also calls upon the First Prince to help her with this work and invites experienced technicians and engineers from Lycomb-Davion's rebuilding of their Guillotine line to help with the project and Andoran Industries technicians to help with the Clint line.
The Khan also signs a formal non-aggression pact with Clan Nova Cat, having made sure to seek the First Princes's approval for this before agreeing to it. The terms of this are that the Sun Jaguars and Nova Cat forces will not attack each others units deliberately and if they encounter each other on the battlefield without warning will fight according to the strict rules of Zellbrigen and will afford each other the option of Hegira. Two warrior peoples, they know that they currently serve different Successor States and war might be forced upon them but they agree to bury the old feud between the Smoke Jaguars and Nova Cats and form a new closer bond. Both Clans also include hidden provisions within the treaty to help each other in the even that their respective Successor State turns on them and to offer sanctuary. Even Khan Nevversan doesn't tell First Prince Victor Davion about this provision.
As well as approving of the 2 Clan's non aggression treaty the First Prince also formally recognised the Calderon Protectorate which announced it's secession from the Taurian Concordant this month. Dissent with the Lord Protecoter had been growing within VIth Corp and now Baron Kithrong had had enough with the formal opening of the new "Revenge Shipyards" above Taurus under the newly reformed Concordat Aerospace Limited. The 2 slips there immedietly began refitting the 4 Pinto class corvettes that had been supplied to the Concordat by the WOB. Given the name of the shipyards it was obvious what their purpose was and the First Prince swiftly granted full formal recognition to the Protectorate and invited them to take part in trade talks to help bolster their realm. No lesser person than Conrad Davion was dispatched aboard the FSS Broken Wheel to enter into talks.
On Novaya Zemyla the new Hatchetman line comes online and begins constructing the axe wielding medium battlemech for the AFFS. Work continues on the Axman class line which is not expected to be completed before 3067.
Maltex Corporation on Errai see's their flagship production line finish construction and for the first time in centuries new Thug class assault mechs roll of the production line. As with their Wyvern production line they offer the full proceeds of the line to the AFFS and thereafter certain AFFS affiliated mercenary commands. Only if there is any production spare after this do they offer any sales to the ComGuards. This is despite the FedSuns government trying to mediate between the company and Comstar. The AFFS however doesn't complain about a source of excellent assault mechs.
The ComGuards do however get a fresh source of battlemechs when the second Black Knight line enters production on Robinson and begins selling it's products exclusively to the ComGuards. These Black Knights are soon being used to rebuild command companies and lances throughout the ComGuards Divisions.
The ComGuards and AFFS also split the production of the new Demon combat tank factory that begins production on Verde in July. Given the wide variety of excellent combat vehicles available to the AFFS and the fact they already have access to the Demon from El Dorado and Belladonna the bulk of the new Demons produced are routed to the ComGuards. Which brings in even more sales revenues and taxes to the Federated Suns. With the increase in production across the entirety of the Military Industrial sector along with increasing export sales - "war is beginning to pay for itself" as one treasury spokesperson comments.
The first of the initial Monoliths laid down at Delevan enter service and are immedietly assigned to various front line RCT's. With the new production from Panpour and other jumpship designs such as the Merchant class ships being produced at Filtvelt in ever increasing numbers the Federated Sun's is beginning to be able to provide ample shipping for it's own needs. At the same time a license was finally allowed by the FWL for SelaSys to provide Universal Air production rights to the Tramp jumpship. A new facility is immedietly started to build the LF equipped jumpship.
Galax at this time also receives a huge new order for A-3 Overlord dropships. The versatile craft have mostly been produced in very limited refits by Galax and from purchases from Skye's Shipil Company. The High Command is keen to massively increase the numbers of these pocket warships in case of war for secondary fronts and grants a major order to FedBoeing.
Within the Capellan Confederation Colonel Loren Jaffray barely escapes with his life after a Thugee assassin manages to break into his bedroom during the night. Only his Death Commando training allows him to kill the intruder and then only after receiving crippling damage to his neck. He will now require to talk with a voice synthesise for the rest of his life unless he can receive cutting edge medical treatment - which is barely available within the Capellan Confederation at all, let along for a poorly thought of Colonel. The very fact he is still referred to as a Colonel is in itself something of an insult - as his proper rank within the CCAF would be Sang-shao.
Also within the Confederation the Red Lancers and 151st Light Horse regiment arrive at Highspire and begin dropping to secure the former Thugee cult cave network. They are met with fanatical resistance and the use of limited amounts of nerve agents by the defending "troops". Unfortunately for the Light Horse the Thugee's seem averse to engaging the Red Lancer and continually throw themselves at the SLDF regiment in fanatical attacks. Although the 2 elite units have no difficult in eventually securing the site and effectively wiping out the cultists the Light Horse suffers almost 40% casualties (almost all as a result of nerve agent attacks) compared to only a companies worth of fatalities to the Red Lancers. Many within the 151st are of the view that the Red Lancers held back and didn't rush to their aid letting them bleed for the victory and only moved in when the matter was almost over. To make matters worse when the professional teams attached to both units finally secure they site it is obvious that a large quantity of nerve agent is missing. Spirited away. When a surviving Thugee is interrogated about this he proudly announces that "Kali told them that they were coming and not to harm her brothers soldiers if possible... And to rush some of the agent to a hidden base.". He nor any of the other survivors know where this base is.
The 151st take the recovered nerve agent into custody and quickly leave the world of Highspire behind in disgust. Colonel Charles Antonescu sends his personal apologies for not having moved fast enough to seize the whole cache to not only the First Lord but also to Prince Victor. Both assure him that he did all he could and commend his soldiers for their bravery. Left unsaid is that someone on Sian told the Thugees that they were coming. The First Prince confirms also to the First Lord and the Colonel that he will fund the rebuilding of the 151st and supply all required material.
Privately Victor sends a communication to Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao. In it he explains that any use of nerve agents by any citizen of the Confederation or use of nerve agent supplied by a citizen of the Confederation to a third party against the Federated Suns will be considered an act of war by the Federated Suns. One that will result in the AFFS and it's allies rolling over the border en masse and not stopping until they reach Sian or both Sun-Tzu and his crazy sister is dead. He assures the Chancellor that no threat of censure or even outright expulsion from the Second Star League will stop him from finishing what his father Hanse Davion started if the Capellan's sink so low as to use nerve agent against his people...
It is privately fed back to the First Prince that his message caused the usually calm Chancellor to fly into a murderous rage more befitting of his mother than him. There are even unconfirmed reports that the Chancellor briefly orders his sister's execution before rescinding the order just in time at the position she has placed him in.
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I like the two IIC that sun jag are working on. it make senses. Both parent designs are in production. this will get the help in production but try to keep all of the Clan tech line on Clan worlds. I would not build tanks, they can get ones from the FS. same for dropships. BA now that one is harder. seems like a place for the WD to work together. But I think after the two mech lines are being built. how about adding a Fighter line. Clans do not use that many but any extra could be "traded" to other Clans for "stuff"
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The ‘Steve Showers’ ........
In the other hand the Clint IIC and Guillotine IIC are two solid second line mechs that pack quite a punch for their weight.
Also have you read the latest novel by Blaine Lee Pardoe Forever Faithful? You might also consider including its characters in the AU here: Is use the spoiler tag to describe what I had in mind but have limited time to post.
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I like the two IIC that sun jag are working on. it make senses. Both parent designs are in production. this will get the help in production but try to keep all of the Clan tech line on Clan worlds. I would not build tanks, they can get ones from the FS. same for dropships. BA now that one is harder. seems like a place for the WD to work together. But I think after the two mech lines are being built. how about adding a Fighter line. Clans do not use that many but any extra could be "traded" to other Clans for "stuff"
They will want to put their "flagship" omnimechs into production asap, but yeah right now that would be overly ambitious. So they will for now content themselves with some IIC designs that can refill their touman. I'd agree with tanks and they might build a small dropship manufacturing plant but it would be a handful of vessels a year or refit plant for turning ordinary unions and overlords into clan versions.
A fighter line is definitely something they will build. BA probably trading with the Sharks eventually. Or licensing (if clans do that) the nova cat BA design for production.
The ‘Steve Showers’ ........
In the other hand the Clint IIC and Guillotine IIC are two solid second line mechs that pack quite a punch for their weight.
Also have you read the latest novel by Blaine Lee Pardoe Forever Faithful? You might also consider including its characters in the AU here: Is use the spoiler tag to describe what I had in mind but have limited time to post.
Steve Showers was the founder of the Showers Bloodname. So they are honouring him.
True I chose designs that are "solid" rather than flashy. I think they will probably add at least 1 more IIC design, probably the Highlander and then start a light omnimech.
I have yes - well almost finished it. For some reason I found it tough going although enjoyed the book.
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Absolutely brilliant stuff. And tensions are building everwhere. I have a feeling that Victor saying that he does not care what the star league does if the Cappies should do something with nerve gas will be edited and used against him by the peace loving people of the Capellan Confederation.
Also you've removed a major trouble from the Wars of Reaving. The Jaguar (Howe) and his lot were a big chunk of the Societies forces. That's now gone and is many lightyears away.
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They will want to put their "flagship" omnimechs into production asap, but yeah right now that would be overly ambitious. So they will for now content themselves with some IIC designs that can refill their touman. I'd agree with tanks and they might build a small dropship manufacturing plant but it would be a handful of vessels a year or refit plant for turning ordinary unions and overlords into clan versions.
I'd go with Conjurer/Hellhound over Clint IIC myself. Heavier and tougher but cheaper to produce and with the same movement profile.
A fighter line is definitely something they will build. BA probably trading with the Sharks eventually. Or licensing (if clans do that) the nova cat BA design for production.
Clans do get the concept of a license, but the best way to get it is... surprise, surprise.. through a trial.
Steve Showers was the founder of the Showers Bloodname. So they are honouring him.
True I chose designs that are "solid" rather than flashy. I think they will probably add at least 1 more IIC design, probably the Highlander and then start a light omnimech.
Arctic Cheetah omni?
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My God, someone actually dared to tell Sun Tzu that there are consequences for actions?!?! What madness is next, him being held to account for the actions of his citizens when they casually unleash WMDs and execute terrorist attacks against the FedSuns population?!?!
:thumbsup:
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3066 - August - Looking back to look forward
At the start of August the Federated Sun's Government made a major announcement that having had discussions with Veridian Dynamics that they were funding the reactivation of the production lines on both Ozawa and Torrence to produce at both plants the Vali artillery tank and the Tiger Medium Tank. While in the past the Vali had only been produced on Ozawa and the Tiger on Torrence it was felt in the new policy of redundancy in military industrial production that the 2 plants should have at least 1 line of each vehicle operating so as to avoid any future problems. A large economic package was put in place to support the company in reactivating and expanding it's production lines. What wasn't announced was that the Tiger Medium Tank would undergo a redesign to make it a lighter more streamline vehicle with increased armour while being designated a Militia Tank. Let the FedSun's enemies find that particular fact out the yard way. The Vali on the other hand was to be rushed to artillery battalions with front line RCT's.
This announcement would lead to an interest in other defunct or almost so companies and their possible rebirth/renaissance in the current economic climate. The successor company to Jolassa Armoured Vehicles, Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons for instance who had been considering hiring Interstellar Expeditions to begin excavating at the former factory on Bristol decide that now is the right time to do this. As such they present I-E with a large scale contract to fully excavate the destroyed factory in the hope of perhaps finding the specifications for the Fury Command Tank. Work will begin in November.
Another company considering this are Universal Air who begin looking at their former Ares shuttle craft in order to update it and offer it up for sale to the Federated Suns Navy. They begin work on turning the 25th Century design into a modern combatant.
The Duke of Verde, patron of the Vegan Rangers mercenary brigade, announces that he will be reforming the Delta Regiment and also starting a small battlemech production facility on Verde to help supply his Rangers. Lacking the clout or influence to obtain a cutting edge design the Duke has instead licensed the Shadow Hawk battlemech design to produce. Once it is fully operational the factory will produce a steady supply of the versatile medium mech to his regiments while also providing an income from sales to other mercenary units and even the AFFS. The newly formed Delta Regiment is mostly a motley collection of odds and ends and former Verde Defenders Planetary Militia. For the time being the roughly battalion strength Delta Regiment is assigned to Alpha Regiment as an auxiliary fourth battalion. It's contract is immedietly picked up by the AFFS and at the same rate as the other Vegan Rangers regiments despite it's green status as a nod to the sacrifice of the original Delta's.
During August the AFFS begins to store battlemech's produced from various companies at Filtvelt, New Syrtis, Robinson, Tancredi and Defiance. This is in anticipation of the upgrading or forming of their training units. At the same time funds are release to expand the Broken Wheel and Kilbourne Academies, with support being put in place to expand their cadet cadres to a full regiment - with the first cadets entering the academies in January 3067 and graduating in December 3069.
The AFFS High Command begin looking at any further locations for future Training Battalions and or new Borderer regiments. Although there are a number of candidates the world of Bromhead stands out as a world on the border of no less than 2 hostile states.
On Firgrove the Firgrove Consortium which is already constructing a production line for the Ahab begins looking into other older designs that they can update and offer up for sale either to the ComGuards or to the AFFS. They start by looking through the older designs from the Age of War and Star League era.
Bergan Industries new plant on Andalusia within the Crucis March finally completes work on the line to produce Waylander Mobile Base repair vehicles. As soon as it enters production a huge contract is immediately ordered, with the AFFS wishing to have at least a lance and preferably a company attached to every battlemech regiment or RCT. As such Bergan shelves their idea to build a Locust line in favour of building a second Waylander line.
The Exterminator line being built by Kallon Industries which was due to go online in June finally enters production in August. The teething problems for this design have been beyond a nightmare for the company but they finally manage to get finished battlemechs walking off the production line. The AFFS and ComGuards both buy their allotment of the design and begin testing them to make sure that the advanced technology within them work fully.
On Markesan the New Earth Trading Company has a third line of Von Luckners and a third line of Alacorn Mk VI tanks start production. By now the massive plant on Markesan is providing the AFFS and ComGuards with a steady stream of high quality main battle tanks, with more lines being built.
Corean Industries new plant on Northfield goes online and begins producing Devastator assault battlemechs for both the AFFS and ComGuards. The AFFS in particular are very fond of this design and end up buying not only their own quota but also some of the ComGuards quota and assigning them to such units as the Davion Assault Guards RCT and 8th Crucis Lancers RCT.
On Ozawa the new Kintaro battlemech line goes online alongside the updated existing line. Again the new production is offered up to the AFFS and ComGuards, but most of the production ends up going to the ComGuards as the AFFS is still reluctant to use this "Japanese" design with it's Kurita links.
On June Lycomb-Davion begin work on a third Stuka aerospace fighter line. The heavy fighter is popular with the Federated Suns Navy particularly as an anti-warship attack craft and demand has been increasing with squadrons being assigned to almost every Fox corvette entering service.
Within the Capellan Confederation a purge begins of any officers who might have links to Kali Liao. Unfortunately for the purge many of them seem to have disappeared into the woodwork and MASK is ordered to hunt them down. Sun-Tzu does not want anymore loose cannons bringing down potential AFFS retribution upon his realm before he is ready. As a first step to preparing for this is his public reformation of the 1st Capellan Chargers on the 21st August 3066 in the form of a huge parade through the streets of Sian's Forbidden City and past the Celestial Palace. A full regiment of 120 assault and heavy battlemechs march past the saluting Chancellor. Of course the pilots of the battlemechs aren't actually the new Chargers, but instead are drawn from the Dynasty Guard. This march is far to important to trust to green pilots after all. Once the parade is finished the actual pilots of the 1st Chargers will be given their battlemechs back and begin training as a regiment.
Within the FWL the Captain General summons both Knights of the Inner Sphere to Atreus. With his growing concerns regarding the WOB he wan't 2 units who he knows he can trust implicitly to protect himself and his family as well as the capital of the League. He begins arranging additional supplies and vehicles to be routed to the units he trusts.
Lord Protector Shraplen of the Taurian Concordat loudly declares that Baron Kithrong and his followers are traitors and denounces their secession. In a rambling speech he makes numerous references to this treachery being funded by the Federated Suns as a way to weaken the Taurian Concordat! All along both sides of the border the various regiments going to a heightened state of alert.
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" Again the new production is offered up to the AFFS and ComGuards, but most of the production ends up going to the ComGuards as the AFFS is still reluctant to use this "Japanese" design with it's Kurita links. "
morons
if in a typical davion unit the kintaro is a great point guy, the griffons and trebuchet can use him as a spotter and if anyone actually closes with him, 3 SRM6s and a couple mediums will make them keep thier distance
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" Again the new production is offered up to the AFFS and ComGuards, but most of the production ends up going to the ComGuards as the AFFS is still reluctant to use this "Japanese" design with it's Kurita links. "
morons
if in a typical davion unit the kintaro is a great point guy, the griffons and trebuchet can use him as a spotter and if anyone actually closes with him, 3 SRM6s and a couple mediums will make them keep thier distance
Oh I agree... But while I am pro-Davion that doesn't mean they dont occasionally do something boneheaded and stupid!
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" Again the new production is offered up to the AFFS and ComGuards, but most of the production ends up going to the ComGuards as the AFFS is still reluctant to use this "Japanese" design with it's Kurita links. "
morons
if in a typical davion unit the kintaro is a great point guy, the griffons and trebuchet can use him as a spotter and if anyone actually closes with him, 3 SRM6s and a couple mediums will make them keep thier distance
Oh I agree... But while I am pro-Davion that doesn't mean they dont occasionally do something boneheaded and stupid!
Like with the Zeus battlemech, would have been a great mech for them to use
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Like with the Zeus battlemech, would have been a great mech for them to use
To be fair I've always had a soft spot for the Zeus and might try and work it so that the AFFS does get some... :D
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To be fair I've always had a soft spot for the Zeus and might try and work it so that the AFFS does get some... :D
I thought the Zeus was "copied" from another 80ton mech. can not remember which one. or the LC can always us spare parts. >:D
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3066 - August - Interlude: A message
Firebase Korvin
New Roland
Victoria Commonality
Capellan Confederation
Sitting at his desk Colonel Loren Jaffray tried to ignore the low level and constant pain in his neck as he stared at the slim data disk that had been delivered from the HPG by a robed WOB acolyte. Even several weeks after having been discharge he was barely able to focus through the grinding pain in his neck - although the doctors had offered him painkillers to help which he had refused. He know that to become an addict to opiates would doom any future military career he might have left. Instead he was attempting to overcome the pain with various low level painkillers, time and willpower while trying to talk as little as he had to in an effort to spare his ruined larynx as much as he could. With little success.
In an effort to concentrate on anything other than the pain he placed the data disk within the player on his desk and hit play with an almost savage punch of buttons. Immediately the face of Colonel Chastity Mulvaney appeared on his screen which caused him to almost recoil in shock. Of all the people who he had expected to see staring back at him from the screen she had to be one of the least likely. Before he could process this any further the recording began to speak with a neutral expression on her face. "Hello Loren. Long time no see. I heard about your injury and wanted to hope it wasn't as severe as the intel report's indicated. Still no doubt you're doing all that Death Commando crap about not feeling the pain or transcending the pain or whatever the hell they taught you in that regiment of lunatics..."
Chastity suddenly let out a sigh and when she continued her voice was growing thicker with the brogue of Northwind as well as genuine anger and disappointment. "You damn fool... You puir bloody damn fool... What the hell we're ye thinking? MacLeod would have battered yer ears for this nonsense and you ken it! What... We didnae vote the way ye wanted us tae so you ran off tae rejoin the Cap's? Worse ye led a parcel o' good lads and lassies with yerself! An' how's that workin' fer ye now Loren? Exiled tae the ass end o' nowhere wi' no way back! Yer own side tryin' tae strangle ye in yer sleep! Ye bloody damn fool!"
Visibly controlling her temper Mulvaney forced herself to calm down on the tape before continuing with her accent not quite so strong. "Ah'd forgive ye running of yer... yourself... But takin' the others away frae Northwind when ye ken we need every man and woman... That was low Jaffray. Low... Still... The other Colonels... They wanted me tae give you a message... You can still return hame. All of ye. Even you as much as it pain's me tae sae it. Northwind's your home still. We'll sort somethin' out wi' the Davion's tae smooth things over if ye's do. There Prince isnae a bad sort fer all he's no a Highlander... Just come hame."
As his former friend spoke Jaffray had felt his resolve weakening... Remembering Tara, The Fortress and the rest of Northwind's beauty. His feeling of coming home when he had returned. His pride in being accepted by the Highlanders there. And then Mulvaney had mentioned Him. That damned deceiver who had tricked the others into giving up Northwinds freedom. First Prince Victor Davion... Son of the Fox himself. Which reaffirmed his decision and hardened his heart to the plea to lead his troops home. No, it wasn't possible. Not now. Not to serve the Davion's.
As he stared at the message he suddenly realised it hadn't ended although Chastity Mulvaney hadn't spoken for several minutes, instead she just stared at the screen intently before finally as it was beginning to freak Loren out she spoke again. "Just so you know in case ya revert to your Capellan "need to ken" crap... Every single Highlander that left with yah has received the same message from someone he or she left behind or will have soon... Hate tae dae it tae ye... Goin' behind yer back like that... But hell man ye' did the same to us when yah ran off!"
As he snarled a roar and then convulsed with the pain in his neck at the strain he had placed on his still injured larynx Chastity's face broke into an almost imp like smile. "Come hame ye' damn fool!"
The message then cut out to the WOB Broadsword spinning slowly on the screen as it ended. Leaving a panting and cursing Colonel wondering just how many of "his" troops he could not trust not to desert... And knowing that MASK had certainly seen the message as well and would be wondering the same about not only the troops but him as well... Damn her!
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;D That was a nice update! I wonder if MIIO is around to help? Or the local WoB precentor to help him?
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oh man even if he stays... he is so screwed. I like it!!!! he might not wake up the next time he goes under the knife.
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The DC are never allowed to leave.
If Mask thought their was a chance of him going the next hit won't fail.
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The DC are never allowed to leave.
If Mask thought their was a chance of him going the next hit won't fail.
The message is probably going to force him to try and save himself and command but by this point they are at rock bottom and are probably at the bottom of the pile in terms of requisitions. His command may also be one step removed fro rebellion against him and the CC as well after they got their messages.
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Ah Jaffray.
Always a loon, now 20% more loony on top! As he seems to have now forgotten that he was actually trying to return Northwind and the Highlanders to the bosom of the Capellan Confederation, not seek independence for them. Let alone the fact that said Confederation is very firmly in bed with the people who went beserk with ortillary and troops against the Highlanders for daring to resist them. And all Davion did, as he saw up front, is step in to drive them off, then let the Highlanders decide their own fate...
But then Jaffray wasn't exactly the most stable guy.
Maximum kudos to Mulvaney for outright going behind his back like that :D
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3066 - September - Tensions build
On her tour of the Outback Duchess Iris Marik and her companion Duchess Yvonne Davion-Sandoval head out of the Draconis March and into the Crucis Marches's Outback region. Moving from world to world they see new towns, factories and even entirely new cities being built on many of the Outback worlds while also being shown parades of dozens of new militia units which have been formed to protect this growing prosperity. The militia's are almost entirely infantry but a handful are beginning to be equipped with small numbers of tanks and a handful have even a lance or so of battlemechs on some of the more well developed worlds - usually cast off's from March Militia's who have seen their equipment upgraded by new production but a handful of worlds with existing battlemech factories on them have a small number of newly produced battlemechs from the local factories. The plan is for the 2 duchess's to head to the former Tortuga Dominions, which are currently administered as part of the "Periphery Combat Region" by early October.
In a meeting with Marshal Todd Revon the head of the Regular Army and one of Jackson Davion's key deputies Marshal Deedee Faulkner discusses the potential to raise at least 2 new Borderer regiments, suggesting Bell and Conroe as the 2 worlds that are most in need of a Borderer regiment to help the local defences. She suggest that the next wave of graduates from the 1st Bell and 1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalions be allocated along with a handful of veterans preferably originating on those 2 worlds to form a cadre for expansion into full regiments. When it is pointed out that Conroe is currently "behind the lines" Marshal Faulkner makes the excellent point that both the Aragon and Kittery Borderer regiments have often been deployed to nearby worlds and in the case of the 1st Aragon Borderer's they were even deployed to Operation Bulldog in the Combine. Having a regiment based on Conroe that can either provide a rallying point in case the frontier is broken or a potential source of reinforcements for worlds like Niles, Groveld and Delacruz. While Bell is an obvious choice given the recent raids. Marshal Revon agrees to take the proposal to the Marshal of Armies. When Faulkner brings up the subject of the Sheraton Knights she is told to drop it. Todd Revon explains to the head of the Borderer's Brigade that her almost obsession with folding this unit into her brigade has been noticed and it is not reflecting to her credit. The First Prince himself founded the Sheraton Knights to honour the loyalists who had fought in his name for almost a decade with little to no help from the FedSun's and he wasn't about to sour that bond between Sheraton and House Davion just to appease what was by now appearing to be the ambitions of a staff officer. The Borderer Brigade was being expanded up and would likely continue to grow, but that growth could always take place under a different commanding officer if she continued to make waves and irritate the First Prince. Revon strongly suggest she drop it and not bring it up again for her own sake. Marshal Faulkner assure him that she was merely thinking of the AFFS and how the 1st Sheraton Knights could be better supported within her own brigade, but that what he is saying is the impression she is giving she will let the matter drop. Todd Revon unfortunately cannot help but "hear" the unspoken "for now" at the end of Deedee Faulkner's assurance.
The First Prince contacts the First Lord of the Star League on the 18th and discusses with him the upcoming graduating class from the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy on Defiance. Half of the graduating class will be SLDF graduates and the First Prince wishes to ask whether or not the SLDF wan't the graduates assigned straight to them or for them to do a tour in a Training Cadre. While Christian Mansdottir accepts that the cadets would do better of with some experience in a Cadre he thinks that might reflect that the SLDF is helping defend the Federated Suns and as such says it would politically be unwise. Victor Davion assures him that this causes him no offence and suggests that the first class be used to create a new 2nd Royal Battlemech Regiment which could act almost as an informal cadre, promising that his realm would provide the necessary battlemechs to the SLDF at cost. Indeed he would personally fund at least some of the purchase as a token of his esteem for the SLDF's recent actions on Highspire. Although knowing this would effectively give the already popular Prince Victor a massive boost in popularity within the SLDF the First Lord can see no rational reason to refuse the offer and accepts it graciously.
Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion sends world to the military liaison attached to Jalastar Aerospace that he would like the company to prepare a costings for them to build at least 2 updated Jabberwocky industrial mech lines either at Panpour at somewhere else. Although originally something of a flop in sales Jackson Davion can see a large market for the industrial mech within the AFFS's engineering companies and is sure that there would at least be some civilian sales to help keep the unit cost low.
The Federated Sun's also announce to Blackstone Battlemech's Limited that they will be raising legal action against them for breach of contract. The company had signed to large contracts to produce Talon and Enfield battlemech's for both the AFFS and LAAF but have been falling further and further behind with their deliveries - particularly to the AFFS. Although they have a large expansion of their plants currently ongoing this will only allow them to keep pace with the existing orders and not actually begin to reduce the backlog. Having evaluated this the Quartermaster office had passed this information along to the Government who have announced they will now be pursuing not only the Blackstone Battlemech's company but also the Blackstone family itself in the courts. This announcement sees a major drop in the share price of the company and an almost panic within the companies executives.
Into this panicked atmosphere comes an unofficial counter offer from the Federated Suns. If Blackstone commits to funding the construction of a new battlemech factory producing Enfields and Talons within the Federated Sun's on say the world of Vandalia then the FedSun's will halt it's impending law suit. On top of this the MIIO has recently discovered that Blackstone has obtained a license to produce the superb scout mech the Ostscout and they will expect a line for that battlemech to be built as well. When Graf Gregory Blackstone responds that this is blackmail he is informed that nobody is forcing him to commit to this alternate arrangement. If he doesn't want to diversify his production facilities that's his choice and the AFFS and FedSun's Government will see him in court. Through gritted teeth the Graf agree's to fund the new construction as a way to avoid a lengthy and perhaps ruinous court case. Which even if he won might damage his families brand name given the growing popularity of First Prince Victor Davion within many areas of the Lyran Alliance. Even if it didn't Peter Steiner owes his throne largely to his brother and who knows how he might react... Losing the AFFS contract on it's own would be devastating, losing both the LAAF and AFFS contracts would bankrupt his entire family. He assures the Federated Suns that he'll arrange groundbreaking for the new factory by January 3067. He sells this investment to the Lyran Alliance as allowing him to free up the existing lines for purely domestic sales as soon as he can get the new plant operational.
On Valois Clan Sun Jaguar begins work on constructing a line to produce Clint IIC and Guillotine IIC battlemechs. The Clan techs are hoping to get these 2 production lines operational as fast as possible due to a serious shortage in battlemechs for the Warrior Caste. Work proceeds at a feverish pace and speeds up when a number of FedSun's based companies on nearby worlds are contracted by the First Prince to help the project. Although not as technologically advanced as the Clanner's these firms are extremely experienced by now in throwing up new construction and bring with them a number of industrial mechs to help. These are at first seen as a perversion by the Sun Jaguars but after watching a Filtvelt produced Dig Lord carve out a large foundation hole for the new plant in a matter of hours rather than the weeks they had been looking at the Technician and Labourer Castes swiftly convert to the use of these machines. The fact that within these castes are a number of failed and former mechwarriors would give them experienced and skilled pilots. If they can convince their Khan to approve of the idea.
The vote for the new saKhan which had been delayed into September by a final Trial of Refusal by a star of Trueborn warriors from the 3rd Sun Jaguar Guards cluster finally takes place after the Khan, Galaxy Commander Paul Moon and another Elemental from the Khan's Gold Keshik others defeat the 5 mechwarriors in an un-augmented Trial. The results are quickly gathered and Galaxy Commander Paul Moon finds himself the new saKhan for Clan Sun Jaguar. This means that both Khans are now Elementals which is rare for any Clan.
General Motors completes their new Blackjack-O line on Kathil in September and immedietly begins constructing a second one. The Blackjack-O is an extremely popular omnimech within the AFFS and not only does the company begin work on a second line on Kathil but they start building a new line to add the omnimech to the designs built on Salem, which until now have been vehicles.
With support from the AFFS New Independence Weaponry contacts Grumium Creations to discuss licensing from them their updated Cyclops CP-11-G command battlemech. At the same time the company which specialises in assault battlemechs also contracts DefHes within the Lyran Alliance to discuss trading a license to produce Victor class battlemechs for being allowed to produce limited numbers of Zeus class battlemechs within the FedSuns. A number of commands such as the 1st Revenant Guards RCT and FedSun's Dragoons RCT's have a number of ageing Zeus's within their ranks which they hold onto as a sign of their former links with the defunct FedCom. If they can obtain a license to produce limited numbers of updated Zeus's CEO Judith Hotchkiss is sure she can obtain a long term contract for Zeus's to refit these regiments.
Conrad Davion arrives on Erod's Escape and meets with Baron Kithrong himself within hours. He immedietly offers that the Federated Suns will smuggle equipment and even battlemechs to the fledgling state via their secure base on Cooperland - which is a shock to the Baron as he had not heard any intelligence reports indicating that the FedSun's were on that long thought to be abandoned world! He points out he can't have obvious links to House Davion, and Conrad assures him that all equipment and designs will be as generic as possible - Wasps, Stingers, Locusts, Phoenix Hawks, Shadow Hawks, Griffins, Wolverines, Warhammers, etc... All easily obtainable non-FedSun's specific battlemechs and similarly for any tanks or fighters they supply.
Within the Free Worlds League the Captain-General receives a veiled threat from an anonymous. Either he must step up support for the WOB immedietly and stop all efforts to distance himself from them or his actual identity will be leaked to parliament. There is no time frame placed upon this threat, but the word immedietly gives him a very clear indication that he will have to make up his mind extremely quickly.
At the same time and almost as a way to test the Captain-General the WOB launch a series of small raids from locations within the Free Worlds against ComGuard targets within the Lyran Alliance. Striking no fewer than 5 HPG compounds or ComGuard's garrisons. Leading to furious calls from not only the Lyran Alliance but also many within his own realm to expel the WOB from the League...
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looks like the WoB are getting froggy. if you add a lance to a company to a training unit it could act like the Texan II for the USAF. it also give a trained pool when someone fails out of mech school. besides if a workmech falls down why someone is learning to run or jump you are not out that much money in repair cost.
has the FS started building new or repairing old recharge stations? that might be a good way to help jump point defense and they can help speed along some jumpships (the ones that can cover the cost of that service)
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i was looking at my notes and the FS seem to be a little light on Light mechs. Also the WD Blackwell made the War Dog back in 3052 will it be put back into production and will the Cossack be made in St Ives?
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3066 - August - Looking back to look forward
At the start of August the Federated Sun's Government made a major announcement that having had discussions with Veridian Dynamics that they were funding the reactivation of the production lines on both Ozawa and Torrence to produce at both plants the Vali artillery tank and the Tiger Medium Tank. While in the past the Vali had only been produced on Ozawa and the Tiger on Torrence it was felt in the new policy of redundancy in military industrial production that the 2 plants should have at least 1 line of each vehicle operating so as to avoid any future problems. A large economic package was put in place to support the company in reactivating and expanding it's production lines. What wasn't announced was that the Tiger Medium Tank would undergo a redesign to make it a lighter more streamline vehicle with increased armour while being designated a Militia Tank. Let the FedSun's enemies find that particular fact out the yard way. The Vali on the other hand was to be rushed to artillery battalions with front line RCT's.
Possible inspiration for a re-worked Tiger -
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=64038.0
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i was looking at my notes and the FS seem to be a little light on Light mechs. Also the WD Blackwell made the War Dog back in 3052 will it be put back into production and will the Cossack be made in St Ives?
FS should have in addition to bug mechs: Valkyrie, Osiris, Wolfhound, Javelin, Fireball,
Garm. And that's not even going into fast mediums.
War Dog I guess depends on whether the Dragoons need another heavy. They're already building the Gallowglass.
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3066 - October - A new omnimech
In October the 2 duchess's travelling through the Outback arrived at the former Tortuga worlds and began a quick tour of the worlds. Already signs of improvement in the quality of life was evident on all the worlds, with new infrastructure being built which was providing jobs and investment, with mines opening and new water purifiers being installed throughout the former Dominion to help solve the long standing problem of a shortage of drinkable water on the planets. Not surprisingly Duchess Yvonne Davion-Sandoval was extremely popular particularly on Tortuga but even Duchess Isis Marik got loud cheers from the former slaves and servants of the Tortuga pirates. Both Duchess's also inspected the newly formed 1st Tortuga Borderer's who were roughly a battalion of battlemechs with similarly proportioned supporting forces as well as the 1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion and it's attached training conventional forces. When they reached New Haiti they had a similar welcome and inspection of the 34th Avalon Hussars RCT which had been deployed to that world. During this visit Isis Marik made a point of "dropping" the news to the Marshal in charge of the 34th that his RCT was listed for upgrading to a reinforced regiment in the coming year by her "friend" the First Prince in the rolling upgrade of the Avalon Hussars Brigade as a mark of favour for their work here in the Tortuga worlds.
At the same time the 34th's commanding officer was being given the happy news of his command's expansion the First Prince and Marshal of Armies were again meeting with Marshal Roger Williams Waters of the Avalon Hussars Brigade to discuss the next step in the continued rebuilding of his storied brigade. The 2nd, 20th and 33rd were listed for having a battalion of battlemechs and some supporting forces broken off to form 3 new commands, while the 34th would be joined by the 4th and 41st Avalon Hussars in being upgraded to reinforced status. The Marshal also pushed for for a new command to be formed as well as had become the standard practise. Given the vital role the Hussars play as the backbone of the AFFS both Victor and Jackson Davion were happy to give an assurance that a new Avalon Hussar RCT was certainly in the plans for the coming year.
Other discussions would take between various Marshals and the First Prince and his Marshal of Armies about what other regiments might be formed. It was widely assumed that a 5th Dragonlords RCT would be amongst the units formed, but the question always remained as to what other regiment would be either formed or reformed. The Capellan March officers were largely pushing hard for the 1st Kathil Uhlans to be reformed, while other groups wished for a new Deneb Light Cavalry RCT within the Draconis March or a new FedSun's Dragoons RCT or even a 4th Ceti Hussars. There was even some talk about reforming either the Kathil CMM or the Point Barrow CrMM or a new Tortuga CrMM. What made the choice difficult was the fact that all of the above suggestions had merit and would in their own way strengthen the AFFS and FedSun's. The problem was that there was just not enough graduating soldiers to do everything as well as keeping up with the more routine replacement's which were required to keep the AFFS up to strength - replacing retiring troops or medically discharged troops. Even the large scale expansions of the academies that the First Prince had put in place wasn't going to see a huge increase in new units formed as many of the graduating classes would have to be diverted to just keeping the expanding AFFS up to strength.
Jalastar Aerospace also unveils in October to the Davion High Command and various technicians, quartermasters and logistics officers the new Javelin-O that they have been developing. Built around the basic frame and structure of the Javelin 11-D that was so recently debuted in 3062 and has been a huge hit with the officers of light lances throughout the AFFS and it's loyal mercenary forces the new omnimech is built upon a tried and tested battlemech. Indeed the Primary variant of the new omnimech is created around the popular 11-D design. Other variants will hark-on back to the SRM roots of the design, with at least one long range fire support variant swapping out the traditional SRM's within the chest for LRM's. A full lance of prototypes are ordered delivered to New Avalon for testing at NAIS. If these tests go well Jalastar is not only promised that they will receive orders to convert their existing Javelin lines to omnimech production but will receive funding to increase the lines producing this new omnimech.
This news from Jalastar irritates the various board members of Achernar Battlemechs greatly as they had been pushing to unveil their latest omnimech ahead of the Panpour based firm, but have been beaten to the posts. This does cause them some concern that the AFFS will not be that interested in a new omnimech so soon after the Javelin-O is unveiled, but a few carefully worded enquiries assures the executives that unlike in the "bad days" of '57-61 when new omnimechs were being rejected out of hand the AFFS is currently open to expanding it's stable of omnimechs. Provided they are sufficiently effective in combat.
New Independence Weaponry announce that they have traded a license for the Atlas battlemech to Grumium Creations in return for the rights to produce the Cyclops CP-11-G command battlemech. They will be beginning a new line at their Kestrel plant immedietly to begin constructing the well respected command mech and hope with proper funding and support to have the first war machines walking off the production line by late March of early April 3067. The AFFS confirms to New Independence that they are more than happy to sign a contract for a steady supply of this specialist battlemech for their various command companies, although stress that they don't see it as a mainstay of their assault companies in general. New Independence Weaponry had anticipated this and so are planning to limit their construction to a single line to keep up with demand. They are still in negotiations with DefHes for a license for the Zeus. The company also announces that their Atlas line on Tikonov will enter full production this month and the first lance of battlemech's will be donated at cost to the Davion Assault Guards RCT who are the primary garrison of Tikonov and it's vital factories.
Corean announce that having considered the matter they will be adding 2 more Centurion battlemech lines to their production facilities. The first will be built on New Avalon and is expected to come online in July 3067, while the second is to be built at their new factory on Northfield and is expected to enter production in September 3067. This follows the strongly recommended policy from Mount Davion that no single design should be built in only one place so as to increase redundancy. The Centurion is now being built on New Avalon, Panpour and June with the future plant on Northfield meaning it is produced or will be at 4 separate locations.
In an attempt to help the loyal Ozawa based General Dynamics the First Prince requests that Duke Sandoval of Robinson grants them a license for the Sentry or Watchman class battlemech. Either of those 2 designs are staple "Draconis Marcher" battlemechs and will likely result in more acceptance of the firms production due to the hostility that their Kintaro has received - at least from the bulk of the AFFS, the ComGuards are buying every single machine they can, including those that the AFFS are rejecting. In return New Avalon promises to fund the updating of a new Ostol battlemech design (and it's licensing from Kong Interstellar Corporation) and the production of this venerable heavy battlemech at both Robinson and Ozawa. The Duke agrees to these terms and orders that the General Dynamics be granted a license for the Sentry class battlemech. He can always use more Sentries for his March Militias and training units.
The Duke of Robinson also pushes for the dropship yard at Verde to be upgraded to not only provide transport dropships like the Union, Overlord and Collossus designs but also at least 1 assault or pocket warship design. Given the existing infrastructure for Overlords he suggests that Overlord A-3's be built at the yard. This is taken under consideration but no firm commitment given.
On Valois the various lower castes leadership approach the Khan and discuss their recent impressions of the industrial mech's that their Davion allies have used. They request permission to look into the Clan itself using them for construction work. While this is somewhat against Clan tradition the technician caste representative does point out that the Elemental armour the Khan herself uses is a derivative of a civilian caste Goliath Scorpion diving suit which is still used in the Home Worlds. She finally agrees they may look into the matter, but withholds giving consent for them to be used at the current time.
Within the Free Worlds League angry voices are raised at the Captain-General's total silence on the recent raids by the WOB using the League as it's base of operations. Demonstrations are mounted on a dozen worlds including Atreus demanding that Thomas Marik at least condemn the raids and the abuse of the hospitality of the League, although more than a few call for the expulsion of the WOB altogether. These demonstrations are given voice within Parliament by various MP's, many of them from the Regulan worlds. The only response is silence from the Captain-General's office. On far away Terra the WOB leadership smile at having put a muzzle on their rebellious puppet.
On Sian MASK is ordered to investigate the Jaffray's Own regiment for any disloyalty. If any is found the traitors are to be apprehended and executed. Any resistance either by Colonel Jaffray himself or any of his troops are to be taken as a sign that the entire unit is disloyal and should be crushed. Warrior House Lu Sann and the 3rd Sian Dragoons are dispatched to nearby Repulse to await word from the MASK investigators.
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Mobile Armored Strike Kommand? or the Maskirovka?
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Mobile Armored Strike Kommand? or the Maskirovka?
Maskirovka.
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M-m-m-mask! Dang it now I have that 'ol cartoon's theme song in my head.
Great update as always and I wonder how long 'Thomas' can hold onto power.
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I'd also suggest at this point that the rebuilding of new units should be scaled back a bit, insomuch as instead of using a lot of new gear to build new units around, I'd start much more focusing on shipping the brand new gear to existing line units that are probably going to start feeling left out (and frankly, in need of upgrades) and then taking their Mechs and vehicles into refit cycles to build the new units with in turn. Because you'd frankly get more bang out of your buck in making sure that your frontline veterans are up to scratch with the newest gear than building a green unit with them.
You'll need to probably take a year or two off from building brand new units to get such a cycle established, but you can also most probably send all the newbies out to fill holes across the AFFS TO&E in that timeframe anyway. Because it seems Victor is getting WAY too many people getting used to being showered with stuff and sulking when he doesn't hand out Omnimechs like candy.
I'm also getting increasingly worried about the Clans holding onto far too much of their culture. The 'Lower Casts' should not be anything of the sorts in the Federated Suns - the Five Freedoms are applicable to all in their borders, no exceptions. But despite being granted the right to vote for their Khan, they still very much seem to exist entirely to serve the Warrior Cast. Rather than, you know, building a society from scratch or something with the Warriors there to protect them, its still very much the Warriors in charge and insisting on building Clan Battlemechs before rather more pressing things. To the point that the Khan is actually still dictating to her techs and laborers HOW they work. Rather than said people telling the Khan 'We seriously need these Industrial Mechs because they'll cut our construction times by an order of magnitude; get them for us!' they are having to actually justify changing the way they do their job??!!
I thought that Tiaret had been exposed enough to the Inner Sphere to understand these things ... very very worrying. God only knows how long until the Jaguars fall back on their traditional response to 'lower casts' getting uppity ... still, I suppose we can HOPE they can adapt and learn.
Good to see the FWL starting to get increasingly ansty about the WOB abusing their hospitality. I'd honestly hope that SOMEONE finally follows the money and exposes the obscene diversion of GDP from the FWL into their own coffers, or how badly SAFE have been compromised with everyone from Paul on down in cahoots with the Word of Blake compromising their Federal forces and Black Water Navy. Honestly the fact that the Captain General actually accepted the terms dictated after the FWLM went after the 3rd Guards should have sent parliament into a rage. But I suppose the WOB have been doing their very best to control communications through the FWL and so things have taken time to come to a boil...
Going to be very interesting to see if the 'Captain General' tries to make his own play here. I get the feeling he is NOT going to go down without a fight...
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3066 - November - Periphery Developments
As with most years November was filled with preparations for the formation of new units, transfers of cadets from the various Training Cadres to the front line regiments and their replacements with cadets fresh from the academies. This year was particularly complex as a number of Training Battalions were being upgraded to Training Regiments. The Filtvelt Training Battalion, Robinson Battle Academy Training Battalion and Warrior's Hall Training Battalion were all being upgraded to full regiments. Between them these upgrades were requiring 18 full companies of battlemechs, with the newly forming Defiance based Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Training Regiment and the Tancredi War College Training Light Combat Team adding another 12 companies of battlemechs (10 for the Hasek-Davion Academy and 2 for the Tancredi War College) that needed to be assembled to support the new units. Adding to this was the decision to stand up a new Training Battalion at Bromhead to help protect the vitally important world sandwiched between the Taurian Concordat and Capellan Confederation. Altogether 34 companies of battlemechs had to be found to meet these needs. Much of this had already been diverted, either from new construction or from equipment from line regiments replaced by new equipment over the proceeding year. However during November the production of a large number of factories, particularly those nearest the sites of the formation of the new units were diverted. For instance the 1st Tancredi War College Training Light Combat Team would have it's companies filled largely from Woodbine's production, although the first machines off the Penetrator and Rifleman lines that are coming online in November and December are also earmarked for the new unit. This will give the Light Combat Team a slightly heavy table of equipment but this isn't seen as a particularly bad thing. When the unit is brought up to strength by the next graduating class more light and medium cavalry mechs are to be prioritised. Even the 1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion would receive a mixed company of new machines - mostly Enforcer III's, Griffin's, Shadow Hawks and Jaggermech III's from Kallon's plant on Talon. These modern machines would be reserved for the officers commanding the Training Battalion and the finest cadets.
As well as the machines being sent to the various worlds on which training units would be expanded or formed a large number of cutting edge battlemechs, aerospace fighters, tanks and battle armour suits began to be assemble on Muskegon, Talcott, Salem and Victoria. Between the 4 worlds nearly a full expanded RCT's worth of equipment was being put together which wasn't the usual practise. New Dragonlords RCT's were invariably formed on New Avalon, new Avalon Hussar RCT's were usually formed somewhere within the Outback (although that rule had been slightly broken when the 4th Avalon Hussars RCT had been formed on New Valencia to give that industrial world a garrison) and most suspected that the third unit that was to be formed would likely be the 1st Kathil Uhlans which would almost certainly be raised on Kathil itself. What made it stranger was that the 2nd NAIS Cadre and some attached engineering units were busy at work expanding the military bases on all 4 worlds as though in preparation for a large scale new garrisoning force. While the 2nd NAIS was listed as being prepped to move to it's new posting of Clovis within the Kentares PDZ in January 3067. With the vacated base of the 2nd NAIS on Salem itself the new garrisoning posts being prepared would support 2 entire reinforced RCT's across the 4 worlds.
Leaving Tortuga the 2 Duchesses make a stop at the Clan Sun Jaguar capital on Valois. Khan Nevversan makes a large show of having the entire Alpha Galaxy form up to welcome the First Princes's sister and what she knows to be one of his closest friends if not more. However she is shocked when not only the Warrior Caste turn out to greet the 2 women but also huge crowds of lower castes. In a totally unsanctioned and unauthorised outpouring of support the various Civilian Castes line the still rough and ready streets of Jaguar City and roar their welcomes to the Inner Sphere nobles who are intrinsically linked in their minds to the First Prince who has given them back their purpose. When one of her aides suggest deploying Beta Galaxy's 5th Sun Jaguar Guards Cluster to force the lower castes back to their work she immedietly and while Yvonne Davion-Sandoval and Isis Marik are too far away to see smashes him to the ground with a savage blow that smashes his jaw in an impromptu Trial of Grievance and orders him carried away to the medical facility nearby. There to wait for it's med-tech's to return from cheering the visiting ladies. While he waits he can perhaps muse over his errors if the pain isn't too severe.
When Duchess Yvonne and Isis arrive at the steps to the still building Hall of the Sun Jaguar they are welcomed inside and both are invited to address the Warrior Council of the Clan Sun Jaguar. A singular honour. Isis Marik however quickly responds that they would rather address the entire Clan Sun Jaguar and requests that representatives of the Civilian Castes also join the Warriors. When Yvonne Davion-Sandoval supports this request Khan Tiaret Nevversan quickly orders that the various leaders and higher echelons of the Civilian Castes be sent for as quickly as possible. In the meantime she invites the 2 ladies to wait in her own office. As they are led there she hurriedly speaks with her new saKhan Paul Moon and tells him to hurry to the Warrior Council and make even the most hot headed Trueborn understand that they will NOT say a word at this development. These 2 women for all their unassuming stature could bring down the entire weight of the Federated Sun's on the Clan with a simple word to First Prince Victor Davion. Left unsaid is the fact that Victor Davion destroyed the Clan Smoke Jaguar at the height of it's power and the Sun Jaguars are but a pale shadow of that power.
When an hour later Duchess Marik and Duchess Davion-Sandoval walk into the Hall of the Jaguar they find themselves facing not only the various Bloodnamed Warriors, officers above the rank of Star Captain Bloodnamed and the 2 Khan's but also the leaders of all of the Civilian Castes on Valois as well as a smattering of the leadership of those castes. In a move which is obviously choreographed to perfect the First Princes's sister takes the podium to address the Clan and makes a point of welcoming them in the name of her brother and speaking of his strong support of the formation of the Clan Sun Jaguar and their incredible courage in carving out new lives for themselves and all their people here on the Federated Sun's frontier. Only the most brutish of Warriors fail to notice that she is NOT welcoming the Warriors of the Clan. But the entire Clan. Down to the lowest Labourer. Nor is this missed by the representatives of the Civilian Castes who sit up a little straighter as she speaks. Yvonne then goes on to speak of the wide diversity of the Federated Suns, how worlds with hugely different cultures are united under the banner of House Davion and share a common goal and common defence against those who would bring harm to the peoples of those worlds. Integral to this is the guarantee of the Six Liberties. She goes through them individually and explains how each one contributes to the Federated Sun's culture: the right to personal liberty, to own property, to own weapons, to expect fair treatment, to privacy, and to participate in planetary government. She finishes by speaking to the silent hall of her belief that as the Sun Jaguars integrate into the Federated Suns as it's latest people they too will come to benefit from these Liberties.
Into the stunned silence Isis Marik steps up to the podium. She begins by explaining that she, like the Sun Jaguars is a newcomer to the Federated Suns. But she, like them, has come to recognise the strong leadership of Victor Davion and his total commitment to his people. All his people. She stares out and speaks almost directly to the Warriors. Speaking not about forms of government or laws or things that frankly they don't understand. Instead she speaks to something they do understand. A single warrior. A leader. She speaks to the man as one who knows him. A warrior-prince who will fight to protect his realm and his people. Who has dedicated his life to that single purpose. Who stands in the same place that his ancestors stood and who has proven worthy of their blood. Listening Khan Nevversan is shocked at the level of insight the civilian duchess is showing into her Warriors. She had feared after Yvonne's speech that by the end of the day she would be facing a dozen Trial's of Refusal against the Sun Jaguars alliance and fealty to House Davion but she can visibly see the assembled Warriors settling down as their apprehensions are diverted. By using the almost supernatural awe that the Warriors hold the Conqueror of the Smoke Jaguars and Slayer of Ilkhan Lincoln Osis in the Marik girl is showing them how the Liberties that Yvonne Davion-Sandoval had explained to them does not need to mean the loss of martial spirit or abilities. Far from it, the very man who destroyed the Clan Smoke Jaguar was a product of those same Liberties and led men and women who believed in them to victory over the Jaguars.
When Isis Marik sits down the Khan stands. She takes the podium and addresses her people. Compared to the 2 women who have spoke before her she is a hulking giant yet she stands on their shoulders at this moment. She publicly thanks the 2 duchess's for their words of wisdom and promises them that the Sun Jaguars have listened. They are not the Smoke Jaguars of old to mindlessly pounce and trust in raw strength and ferocity to see them to victory. No they have learned the hard lessons taught by First Prince Victor Davion and have emerged from the crucible of the destruction of their old Clan wiser and more flexible. As a first sign of this, she announces impulsively that she has looked at the proposals of the Technician and Labourer Castes to begin using industrial mechs to speed up the building of their Clan and it's infrastructure. To her these proposals show a wisdom that many of their compatriots within the other Clans still do not recognise within the Civilian Castes. She announces that within the week the construction of the 2 battlemech lines will be halted. In their place the Clan will focus it's efforts on building and putting into production a Daedalus GTX2 "Navvy" Construction Mech. To the stunned hall she explains that this industrial mech will in the end speed up the construction of their new enclaves across all 3 worlds and in the end will massively speed up the construction of a viable military-industrial complex. She thanks the 2 duchess's for having shown her the wisdom of this proposal from the various Civilian Caste leaders. She also thanks these leaders for thinking outside of what would be "normal" for a Clan born individual and bringing this idea to her attention. In honour of the 2 duchess's she announces that the new complex will be the Yvonne-Isis Construction Plant.
When the Khan see's Yvonne and Isis to their dropship 3 days later she does so with a broken arm in a sling along with a number of broken ribs and with one of her eyes entirely missing - although she assures them that it will soon be replaced. She has fought 4 Trials of Refusal within 3 days and has only survived the last one due to the brutal support in combat of Galaxy Commander Howell of Beta Galaxy. Had he not charged to her support when her battle armour was crippled she would have been killed. While she recovers both the Galaxy Commander and saKhan Moon have assured any doubters that they stand ready to defend her program and her future plans for integrating the Sun Jaguars into the Federated Suns. With no real leadership the rebel faction of the Jaguars who wish to retain the older ways find itself launching ineffective and disjointed Trials that are defeated one by one throughout November and into December. Worse from the point of view of the traditionalists, the First Prince personally dispatches 2 companies of his finest mechwarriors from the Davion Light Guards, 1st Davion Guards, 3rd Davion Guards and 1st New Avalon Cavaliers all in Clan omnimechs to help win these trials for the Khan's faction. He goes so far as to say that were he not tied down with the duties of his office he would personally accompany these warriors to support the Khan in his own Dire Wolf Prometheus. By the last trial however the traditionalist are noticing that their equipment is no longer being maintained. No Technician or Labourer is prepared to help them arm or repair their battlemechs and battle armour to fight against the reforms which will be to their own benefit. Trials of Refusal against these Technicians and Labourers are met with various other Warriors stepping in to represent the Civilians. In pristine equipment.
On Outreach another former Clan faction begin work on a new battlemech line. With support from NAIS again as well as their own surviving technicians the Wolf's Dragoons begin construction of a new Imp-C battlemech factory line. Entirely Clan Tech this assault mech is intended to form the backbone of Zeta Battalion.
On Defiance a second Sentinel battlemech line goes operational. It's production is split between the AFFS and ComGuards with the AFFS battlemechs being immedietly assigned to the pool for the new 1st Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Training Regiment. Given that the academy is graduating not only troops for the AFFS but also SLDF it is unsurprising to any that many of the machines assigned to it's training regiment are like the Sentinel former First Star League designs revitalised for the modern day era but chosen for not only their effectiveness but also their symbolism.
Achernar Battlemechs announces in November that in the next month they will begin construction on a new Osiris battlemech line on Filtvelt. This is another product of the High Command policy of ensuring that battlemech production is spread out so as to avoid the FedSun's losing access to a design due to damage to a single plant.
Another example of this is when the second Valkyrie line goes operational on Corean's plant on June. This brings this plant up to 3 Centurion battlemech lines, 2 Valkyrie lines and a semi-automated factory producing Musketeer hover tanks. Corean announce that with the completion of the light battlemech line they will now be working on Hammerhead aerospace fighter line to be added to the plant. Corean has never been a provider of aerospace fighters for the Federated Suns, but the growing sales of aerospace fighters not only to the AFFS but also the ComGuards have prompted the company to enter into an agreement with Comstar to produce the iconic fighter and split the sales between the AFFS and ComGuards.
The Blackjack Refit Centre on Talcott finishes it's upgrading and begins construction of new Blackjack-O's for the AFFS in November. The plant already has extensive orders for the new production to the point that GM begins considering a further Blackjack-O line.
On Tancredi the first battlemech line, a Penetrator line goes operation. However the Rifleman line is not far behind and is expected to enter production within the first week of December. Tancredi produced Penetrator's will soon be massively in demand throughout the AFFS due to the incredibly tight spread of the superior lasers produced on the planet. The Tancredi Loyalists in particular will adopt this battlemech as one of their "signature" mechs - although will only deign to use machines built on their homeworld.
The Federated Sun's begins shipping small quantities of battlemechs and vehicles via Cooperland to the Calderon Protectorate. Along with much larger quantities of ammunition and spare parks to allow their existing units to remain operational. None of the equipment is cutting edge or is of iconic Davion designs, however it is a welcome shot in the arm for the stretched forces of the newly formed nation. The AFFS in particular tends to ship them refurbished units from the Boneyards to help keep up the illusion that they aren't supporting the Protectorate militarily.
Not that this matters to the Lord Protector. With no evidence - particularly as the said evidence is still enroute to Erod's Escape - he accuses the Federated Suns of fomenting rebellion within the Concordat and informs "The Poisoned Dwarf Prince" that he will not tolerate this. The newly raised 1st MacLeod's Regiment celebrate this speech by jumping the border and hitting Hansen's Roughriders on Bromhead in an attempt to seize some of the battlemechs being shipped there to help form the 1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion. If that however was their plan it doesn't work out for them. Their plan clearly assumes that the mercenary Hansen's Roughriders will not stand and fight over their employers equipment. This assumption is dead wrong, and soon many of those holding it are just dead. The Taurian unit is not so much routed as shattered in a single 6 hour battle in which the Roughriders use their superior experience and coordination to not only turn the Taurian regiment's flanks but pierce their centre and break them into 2 bloody chunks which are then harried back to their dropships. As the fleeing raiders approach their dropships they find them under a brutal attack from not only the local militia's ground forces but a full wing of older Sparrowhawks and Corsairs which had been used to reinforce the local defences. Where a normal militia would have struggled to deploy and attack so soon, Bromheads locally raised units are very much aware of their precarious position and have worked hard to speed up their deployment rates.
By the time the 1st MacLeod's Regiment pull off Bromhead they leave a third of their strength dead or injured on the world and another third captured as their dropships are so damaged as to be unable to take off. Just 2 weeks after leaving their garrison post on MacLeod's Land with a full regiment barely a battalion makes it home. A rational response would have been to immedietly censure the unit and contact the Federated Suns to request what ransom or terms there would be for the return of the rest of the unit, however the Lord Protector immedietly demands their return on pain of a deceleration of war while also award the entire regiment the Taurian Brand - the tattoo that comes with it to be a shattered Davion sunburst under any awardee's right eye. In response tensions on the frontier which were already near war level escalate further and the AFFS begins preparing for what might be a brutal border war.
Within the Draconis Combine voices are raised to discuss potentially taking advantage of this situation to reclaim worlds lost on the periphery border and within the Galtor Thumb. While the Coordinator doesn't authorise any action these raised voices lead the AFFS to retain it's full garrison within the Draconis March.
Archon Peter Steiner declares strong support for his brother's realm, although stops short of offering any military aid. He simply doesn't have the troops or resources to help right now and knows that a foreign adventure is beyond his capacity. He does however authorise the Kell Hounds to look into any way they can support the AFFS. Although stops short of releasing them from their long standing contracts.
Predictably the Capellan Chancellor loudly announces that the Taurian attack on Bromhead is merely in response to the Davion threat posed by the massive militarisation of the border which has been undertaken by First Prince Victor Davion. In private it becomes common knowledge that the Lord Protectors name for Victor Davion is one that the Chancellor is extremely fond off. It's soon commonplace upon many late night Capellan talk shows and newscasts to refer to Victor Davion as the "Poisoned Dwarf". The 3rd Sian Dragoons and Warrior House Lu Sann are diverted from Repulse to Rollis, but the MASK team on New Roland is not informed.
The Captain-General makes a generic call for calm in response to the escalating tensions, but many joke crudely that he might be speaking to his own realm. Protests against the WOB and some small scale pro-WOB demonstrations are now rife on most major worlds and spreading wildly. In a few cases military troops have had to be called out to put down riots.
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maybe you can jut the add the "normal" production line info when you do the next year in roll up... or maybe the end of next years.
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Did Tiaret declare the Trial of Grievance before or after throwing the punch?
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*hears the sound of a kettle whistling and boiling over*
Oh that's just the Free Worlds League
Excellent update and nice way of getting the Jags to be less "JOCKS ARE NUMBER ONE!"
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Welp, that deals with most of my concerns about the Smoke Jaguars neatly. Helpfully, the ****** side of them are quickly killing themselves off leaving only the sane Jaguars willing to adapt and change with the times and perhaps (shock horror) starting to see their 'lower casts' as not lower, but equal, simply different...
The good news is that the traditionalists are simply too ... well, angry and idiotic to do like all too many factions in the Inner Sphere might, in trying to keep quiet and hide, waiting for the right time, but keep trying to declare trials to turn things back and end up being hosed out of their cockpit. Excellent! Be interesting to see when the 6th Dragoons arrive how they handle things; I'm betting the Kells and Wolves would have pretty well polished the sharp edges off them and a frontline cluster at full strength would more than cover any lost idiots who can't adapt and commit suicide by Khan.
On the other side of the Sphere, WOB must be facepalming at 'Shrapnel (in his brain)' jumping the gun like he did. They clearly wanted to build up the TC as a border threat to the Federated Suns and puppet state, but they completely misjudged how much foaming at the mouth Grover is doing these days. Lets hope the Calderon protectorate might start looking more and more like the sane choice, getting units and planets outright defecting rather than providing the Federated Suns Navy a nice little live fire exercise...
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Welp, that deals with most of my concerns about the Smoke Jaguars neatly. Helpfully, the ****** side of them are quickly killing themselves off leaving only the sane Jaguars willing to adapt and change with the times and perhaps (shock horror) starting to see their 'lower casts' as not lower, but equal, simply different...
The good news is that the traditionalists are simply too ... well, angry and idiotic to do like all too many factions in the Inner Sphere might, in trying to keep quiet and hide, waiting for the right time, but keep trying to declare trials to turn things back and end up being hosed out of their cockpit. Excellent! Be interesting to see when the 6th Dragoons arrive how they handle things; I'm betting the Kells and Wolves would have pretty well polished the sharp edges off them and a frontline cluster at full strength would more than cover any lost idiots who can't adapt and commit suicide by Khan.
If the Jags go against the CCAF they will lose badly because they have no experience in flighting clan warriors or their tech they will get torn to pieces and the FedSuns will also get Rollis back after the lost it during the 1SW.
On the other side of the Sphere, WOB must be facepalming at 'Shrapnel (in his brain)' jumping the gun like he did. They clearly wanted to build up the TC as a border threat to the Federated Suns and puppet state, but they completely misjudged how much foaming at the mouth Grover is doing these days. Lets hope the Calderon protectorate might start looking more and more like the sane choice, getting units and planets outright defecting rather than providing the Federated Suns Navy a nice little live fire exercise...
I hope they do a palace coup is needed to get that lunatic out of the chair so we can get someone sane and not living in a delusional fantasy in the protector's seat.
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maybe you can jut the add the "normal" production line info when you do the next year in roll up... or maybe the end of next years.
Sorry what do you mean?
Did Tiaret declare the Trial of Grievance before or after throwing the punch?
Well it was very... impromptu. Who knows? The warrior in question can't really remember himself... Concussion does strange things to a persons short term memory... ;)
*hears the sound of a kettle whistling and boiling over*
Oh that's just the Free Worlds League
Excellent update and nice way of getting the Jags to be less "JOCKS ARE NUMBER ONE!"
Yeah the FWL is in for some "interesting times"...
Well I figured a good way to make the Jags realise: We respect your culture... but you have to play within our rules.
Welp, that deals with most of my concerns about the Smoke Jaguars neatly. Helpfully, the ****** side of them are quickly killing themselves off leaving only the sane Jaguars willing to adapt and change with the times and perhaps (shock horror) starting to see their 'lower casts' as not lower, but equal, simply different...
The good news is that the traditionalists are simply too ... well, angry and idiotic to do like all too many factions in the Inner Sphere might, in trying to keep quiet and hide, waiting for the right time, but keep trying to declare trials to turn things back and end up being hosed out of their cockpit. Excellent! Be interesting to see when the 6th Dragoons arrive how they handle things; I'm betting the Kells and Wolves would have pretty well polished the sharp edges off them and a frontline cluster at full strength would more than cover any lost idiots who can't adapt and commit suicide by Khan.
On the other side of the Sphere, WOB must be facepalming at 'Shrapnel (in his brain)' jumping the gun like he did. They clearly wanted to build up the TC as a border threat to the Federated Suns and puppet state, but they completely misjudged how much foaming at the mouth Grover is doing these days. Lets hope the Calderon protectorate might start looking more and more like the sane choice, getting units and planets outright defecting rather than providing the Federated Suns Navy a nice little live fire exercise...
Yeah the traditionalists are genuinely shocked that "their" lower caste techs and labourers aren't helping them by maintaining their mechs and elemental suits before they fight the "liberal" Khans supporters to keep lower castes in their place... Shocking when the ungrateful scum don't help you keep them in their place isn't it?!
The WOB right now is sort of thinking "well... we just threw 4 Pinto corvettes away.... dammit."
If the Jags go against the CCAF they will lose badly because they have no experience in flighting clan warriors or their tech they will get torn to pieces and the FedSuns will also get Rollis back after the lost it during the 1SW.
I hope they do a palace coup is needed to get that lunatic out of the chair so we can get someone sane and not living in a delusional fantasy in the protector's seat.
Rollis is a world i WANT back for the FedSuns if I'm honest. The ONLY FS world they never retook... :D
At some point Shraplens got to go... BUt right now he's actually pretty popular. Even in the military... Of course the saner officers are looking around with horrified looks on their faces.
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Sorry what do you mean?
I thought that when you do your end of year roll up that you only were putting in changes that your AU was making to production. I thought it would be nice if you also had what cannon has as production. like the Valk lines on New Avalon that have been in production since the fall of the Star League
its not really important.
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hmm send the jaguars against the taurians?
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They are descendants of SLDF serving the FS. Taurians instantly open the can of canned sunshine.
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Yep, if you want massive over-reaction with lots and lots of nukes do that.
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I thought that when you do your end of year roll up that you only were putting in changes that your AU was making to production. I thought it would be nice if you also had what cannon has as production. like the Valk lines on New Avalon that have been in production since the fall of the Star League
its not really important.
I have thought about doing that - but the problem is we're not told how many lines produce each mech in canon. We know for instance that company x build z battlemech at planet y... but do they have 1 line or 3 producing the battlemech?
I'm still musing over it and might come up with a way to do it.
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It's best not to be known, it leaves some manouvering room.
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3066 - December - War clouds gathering
The already complex juggling of equipment and personnel that usually accompanied the AFFS's graduating the cadets from the various training units and sending them either to form new regiments or to reinforced existing ones was made astronomically more complicated by the High Command ordering units to move towards the Taurian border in case that the situation escalated. First Prince Victor himself had indicated to the High Command and General Staff that he intended to form up a new task force and lead it to the border region personally as a show of strength, but had had to change this plan faced with the almost unanimous opposition to the idea that he lead any potential attack into the Taurian Concordat if that was required. Presented with an almost mutiny from his top ranking officers he had reluctantly agreed to allow the now returned Princes's Champion Ardan Sortek to take up the position of leadership of any potential military action against the Concordat.
To form the core of the Champion's reinforcements, the 3rd Davion Guards RCT was placed under his command on New Avalon itself and ordered to acompany him to the planned staging area of Ridgebrook.
With regards the newly forming units, the First Prince personally announced that the AFFS would be expanded by the creation of 2 new additions to the Davion Brigade of Guards. The first addition to form would be drawn from the existing Guard regiments, each contributing a small portion of their own veteran warriors to help form the unit while having the donated companies replaced by the pick of the graduating classes and experienced troops from other regiments. The Davion Old Guards would be modelled upon the ancient French Imperial Old Guards of Terra. They would have had to serve a minimum of 15 years within the AFFS, at least the last 5 of which had to be within the Davion Brigade of Guards. With roughly a company drawn from each existing RCT within the Brigade the Old Guard would be formed as a reinforced RCT but would remain somewhat under strength for the time being, although plans were for steady trickle of transfers to bring them up to strength over the coming 3 years. This would allow the existing units to retain their skills and new Guardsmen and women to join the ranks to replace transfers to the Old Guard. Although almost every individual transferred was at least rated as a veteran and many were considered elite, the new unit would be listed as regular skill until at least mid 3067 as the various individuals and lances were formed into companies, battalions and finally the full regiment.
Alongside the Old Guard the second unit to be added to the Davion Guards was almost their opposite and were similarly patterned on an old French Imperial Guard unit. The Davion Young Guards RCT was to be formed and in many regards attached to the Old Guard as a training command for the Brigade. The Young Guard would be formed as a full strength reinforced RCT and would be drawn from only the finest graduates of the various training units. The 3 NAIS and 2 Albion Training Cadres in particular contributed the vast majority of the mechwarriors who were to form the Young Guard. The Davion Young Guard RCT was to be where the future leaders of the AFFS would go after their graduating from the training units in order for them to receive a final "polish" and be prepared for leadership positions, either within the Guard itself or the wider AFFS. The other Guard units would draw upon the Young Guard for replacement personnel in the event of losses, but the unit wasn't merely a replacement pool but was to function as a fully operation RCT within the AFFS and was equipped to the highest standard.
For the time being the Young Guard was attached to the Old Guard and both units were dispatched to the newly expanded bases upon Salem, Muskegon, Talcot and Victoria. Each world is to be garrisoned by a battalion of Young Guards with attached supporting forces and a similar sized (eventually) battalion of Old Guards. The 2 RCT's are to cover the 4 vital industrial worlds and also use the opportunity to come together as units - with the Old Guard providing the experience and hardened veteran force to help train the Young Guard while also providing an example of the traditions and skills expected of a Davion Guard unit.
The Avalon Hussars Brigade also see's a large increase and expansion in December-January. The 5th Avalon Hussars RCT is formed up on the world of Cerulean. While it might seem strange to form a reinforced RCT on a world with little strategic importance and with no military factories, far away from any borders the world of Cerulean has become more and more important to the First Princes's plans for the Outback in recent years. The planet is home to Cerulean Waters Inc, which is the single largest supplier of water purification equipment within the Federated Suns. Huge government grants and investments in technology have revitalised the company and it's products are vitally important for the economic turnaround within the Outback. As such the 5th Avalon Hussars is formed on the planet and ordered to defend the key industrial sites.
The 2nd Avalon Hussars on Panpour break of a portion of their strength and dispatch it to Islamabad where it meets up with a small number of graduating cadets to help form the 3rd Avalon Hussars. The 2nd and 3rd will share a great deal of common culture, largely drawn from the culture of the former United Hindu Collective - but unlike the 2nd which is largely dedicated to protecting the key world of Panpour, the 3rd will be released for more general duties when it has fully formed up.
Similarly the 20th Avalon Hussars broke off combat command to help rebuild the 21st Avalon Hussars RCT. The new unit would be dispatched to nearby Maram as a back up against any future problems with Clan Sun Jaguar. They would be garrisoned there, not only to provide a defence against any Jaguar raids if the relationship broke down, but also to provide a nearby source of reinforcements for the Sun Jaguars if they were attacked. The formation and garrisoning of a new RCT there also provided the local worlds who were still nervous about the new Clan that had been granted enclaves so near them with some reassurance that the AFFS had not abandoned them. The 21st would continue the traditions of their parent formation and prove to be a skilled engineering force and would practise these skills by helping build up infrastructure not just on Maram but also the surrounding worlds.
A final Avalon Hussars RCT is added to the rolls when the long deactivated 27th Avalon Hussars RCT is broken off from the 33rd Avalon Hussars RCT. The new unit is dispatched to the vital industrial world of Ruchbah. Although the CEO of the local Michaelson Heavy Industries had long been of the opinion that his own corporate security forces were more than sufficient to protect his plants the High Command had decided otherwise. The vital source of many of their gunship VTOL's had to be protected and the new unit was dispatched to garrison the planet. It's conventional brigades would soon receive major boosts in VTOL gunships and transports, making the 27th one of the fastest units within the AFFS.
As well as the new units the Avalon Hussars Brigade was also expanded when the 4th, 34th and 41st would be upgraded to reinforced regiments of battlemechs. These additions would bring the Avalon Hussars up to 23 separate commands - although many of them would be wildly under strength and consist of barely a single combat command which was slowly being expanded to a full RCT. Of the 23 commands only 7 were currently not upgraded to reinforced status and it was now common knowledge that the entire Avalon Hussars Brigade would eventually consist entirely of reinforced regiments. Marshal Roger Williams Waters is however informed that for the current time being the rate of expansion of the Avalon Hussars will slow. Some new units might be formed in the coming years, but on the whole the rest of the High Command and the First Prince think it would be better to increase the size of the existing commands to their full strength.
Although the plans remain in place for the remaining 3 RCT's (the 2nd, 5th and 6th) of the Crucis Lancers Brigade are still scheduled for upgrading to reinforced status this is put off for at least a year due to the strain of raising the other new units. Although the 2nd Davion Guards RCT on Axton is expanded to a full reinforced regiment this month as a priority - meaning that ever unit in the Davion Brigade of Guards is a reinforced regiment.
As expected the Dragonlords Brigade also saw the formation of a new unit, the 5th Dragonlords RCT. As per tradition the new unit was formed on New Avalon and was when it reached it's full strength to consist of a reinforced regiment - however at the current time it was somewhat under strength and would remain on New Avalon for the coming year where it would train and come together as a unit. As per what was now established practise the 4th Dragonlords RCT would relocate to Novaya Zemlya to continue training, while the 3rd would leave the training centre of Novaya Zemlya and be released to active duties.
As well as the 3 units raised from graduating cadets and the fourth drawn from the Davion Brigade of Guards the High Command also announce that despite the best efforts of the Taurian Concordat's attack on Bromhead the new 1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion will be forming up on schedule and will be bolstering the defences of that vital border world. At the same time they announce that the graduating mechwarriors and troops from the Bell, Brockton and Conroe Reinforced Training Battalions will not be being dispatched to reinforce existing regiments, but will be combined with a number of experienced officers and troops from that world to begin forming cadres for new Borderer regiments. These units will not be active but will build up until such time as they are viable combat commands and activated. They will however be available to reinforced commands on their homeworld in the even of an invasion.
Additionally the Tancredi War College Light Combat Team goes active on Tancredi at this time. Although heavily under strength and likely to remain so until the first full graduating class at the end of the next year the unit will provide a source of recruits trained in the Light Combat Team model for the Tancredi Loyalists. The Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlan's also form as a full Training Cadre at the same time, while the SLDF cadets move onto their own postings. During December the incoming classes for the NAIS and Albion both see the scheduled increases in size. These cadets will spend the next 3 years learning at the 2 most prestigious academies in the Federated Suns before graduating into the Training Cadres - which will expand them to 5 and 3 regiments respectively. The Filtvelt, Robinson and Warrior's Hall Training Battalions will also be upgraded to full regiments this month.
Within the Federated Suns this expansion sets the various news outlets alight. Ill informed news reports fill the headlines and holo-vid news and talk shows with the stories that the AFFS has expanded by no fewer than 13 separate combat commands in a single year (although 3 of them are training units)! While more experienced and educated panellists and reports point out that of these only the 2 Davion Guards units, the 5th Avalon Hussars and the 5th Dragonlords could really be considered combat effective (and only after they are fully formed up and have had some training together) this message is somewhat lost in the crowd. One small but beneficial side effect is a further upsurge in patriotism as many civilians feel pride in their realms growing strength and there is a spike in enlistments across most of the Federated Suns. Although the professional intelligence services of the other states know the truth behind these new formations they also know that they AFFS will slowly bring them up to strength... And when they are all at full strength they will be a formidable foe.
With the 3rd Davion Guards RCT Ardan Sortek heads for the world of Ridgebrook which he has designated the muster point for what is already being referred to as Task Force Sortek. The 2nd FedSun's Dragoons RCT and 3rd Dragonlords RCT, both fresh from war games on Novaya Zemlya are also scheduled to join him there. They will be joined there by the 1st Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry who have left their post on Verlo to give Sortek a fast mobile response unit. The former Vanguard Legion, the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT is also dispatched by Duke Hasek to reinforce Task Force Sortek. The 4th has rebuilt to almost full strength and has had the pick of the equipment produced on Talon and New Syrtis to rebuild from and will provide an excellent assault force. Half of the Illician Lancers regiments will also be joining the Task Force - the 4th and 21st Rangers. Altogether that will give the Princes's Champion 4 RCT's and 3 battlemech regiments. Given that the entire Taurian Defence Forces consists of just 11 regiments and 6 commands of mercenaries many of them under strength this is felt to be a sufficiently heavy offensive force if an attack is required. Attached to this formation is the 1st Corvette Flotilla - which has been reinforced to 8 Fox corvettes with the addition of the FSS Woodstock, FSS Ridgebrook, FSS Kathil and FSS Bryceland. Additionally the 3rd Cruiser Squadron's 2nd Division consisting of the FSS Joseph Davion and FSS Covenant have also been attached to the Task Force. Along with a number of independent fighter regiments and dropship squadrons.
As well as a new training regiment forming on Defiance the battlemech production facilities there also increase, with a Mongoose line being added. This will bring the total number of battlemech lines at the plant to 6 - of which 5 are shared between the AFFS and ComGuards with the sixth solely for the ComGuards.
On Kirklin the Kallon Industries new Penetrator line goes operational, although there is a slight delay to some of the first battlemechs produced. Kallon had deliberately sought to import the higher quality lasers for the battlemech from Tancredi, but a slight delay in shipping has a number of battlemechs left completed except for most of their weaponry. However as soon as the shipments arrive the new battlemechs are fully completed and rushed off to their assigned units.
On nearby Markesan 2 additional Karnov lines finish construction and begin producing the famous VTOL transport. Work however continues on the 2 additional lines for the Alacorn and Von Luckner tanks which are expected to go online in February 3067. Demand for these 2 vehicles has far outstripped supply.
The new Rifleman line on Tancredi goes operational in December, although unlike the Penetrator there is little demand for the updated Rifleman design from the Tancredi Loyalists. However other units such as the 2 nearby Ceti Hussars RCT's and the Bryceland DMM and Conroe Borderer Cadre all are eager to receive the new Riflemen.
Fleet Admiral Buchwald also orders the construction of 2 large refit yards over the world of Edwards in the Crucis March. These 2 yards will not be fit to build warships, but will be easily capable of repairing ships up to a million tons when they are completed, or 2 smaller ships at the same time.
On Sian the Chancellor announces that the Confederation is raising 3 additional battlemech regiments. The 4th Confederation Defence Force, 8th Sian Dragoons and 2nd Capellan Chargers. Although it doesn't take most of the professional intelligence agencies long to realise that these formations are little more than battalion sized. As are many of the other units he has raised. Between the 4 Confederation Defence Forces for instance there is barely 2 regiments worth of battlemechs with only the 1st Confederation Defence Force considered a viable combat command. McCarron's Armoured Cavalry is however considered once again a growing threat, as they various commands slowly rebuild. This rebuilding is at least partially being financed by StarCorp who obviously are carrying a grudge. Between their command battalion and 5 line commands the Big Mac now number roughly 3 regiments of troops. Many of them battle hardened.
In comparison the DCMS add no additional units. However they do work to bring existing units back up to strength - concentrating particularly on their more elite regiments who have seen heavy fighting, although a number of various Regular units are expanded from what was effectively cadres to viable units. There are also plans in the works to expand the Sun Zhang Cadres as well from 4 to 6.
Within the Free Worlds League a motion of no confidence in the Captain-General is placed before Parliament, with it scheduled to be debated within the new year. The Captain-General now has both Knights of the Inner Sphere stationed on Atreus and has augmented them with the 2nd and 8th Free Worlds Legionnaires. He also begins making plans to relocate to Oriente for a "holiday" in the new year. Although these plans are kept secret.
The Magestrix orders the 2nd Raventhir Cuirassiers from their posting on Detriot to reinforce her allies the Taurian Concordat, ordering the unit to take up position on Laconis to help free up Taurian units at the request of her daughters fiancee Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao. His own 3rd Sian Dragoons and Warrior House Lu Sann arrive on Rollis to give additional "support". Unknown to both the Chancellor and Lord Protector the 2nd Cuirassiers are under orders to immedietly withdraw to Detroit if attacked by an AFFS regimental sized formation.
Taking these movements to be signs of him having the full support of his allies the Lord Protector Shraplen orders that all 4 Pinto corvettes be activated. The TCS Revenge, TCS Retribution, TCS Remember Robsart and TCS Resistance all slip free of their moorings with the Hyades Cluster and move towards positions along the border. All 4 are at best marginally operational, with WOB "advisers" serving aboard all of them primarily in the weapons, engineering and navigation departments. The Lord Protector also announces the reformation of the Taurian Volunteer Guard in preparation for the "impending Davion invasion". Dozens of militia regiments along the border are stood up to full readiness and civilian life comes to an almost stand still within a jump of the FedSuns border. He also orders the 3rd Taurian Lancers and the mercenary unit Gordon's Armoured Cavalry to launch a full scale reconquest of the "Davion puppets" within the Calderon Protectorate as of the 1st of January 3067.
-
AFFS
31st December 3066
Independent Commands
1st Arcadians – Veteran – 90% (Re)
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 100% - Klathandu IV
1st Capellan Dragoons – Veteran – 90% - Bell
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Northwind
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) – Outreach
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100% - Tancredi
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 80% - Tikonov
1st Sheraton Knights – Green – 60% - Sheraton - attached support forces (veteran) at 100%
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) - Abbeyville
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – Panpour –
3rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 40% (Re) – Islamabad
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – New Valencia
5th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 80% (Re) -
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 80% (Re)
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) – Yuris
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 90% - Cooperland – Periphery
14th Avalon Hussars – Green – 50% – Woodbine Combat Training Centre
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% - Cassias
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Sun Jaguar Enclaves
21st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 30% (Re) - Maram
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Talon
23rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 50% – June
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% –
27th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 40% (Re) – Ruchbah
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 50% - Gulkana
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% (Re) –
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% (Re) - Tortuga Dominions
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 90% - Lothair
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Kentares
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% (Re) - Benet III
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) – Crofton
Borderer Brigade - with armoured regiment, infantry regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st Aragon Borderers – Veteran – 100%
1st Bell Borderers Cadre – Green – 20%
1st Brockton Borderers Cadre – Green – 20%
1st Conroe Borderers Cadre – Green – 20%
1st Kittery Borderers – Regular – 100%
1st Mitchel Borderers – Green – 110%
1st Tortuga Borderers – Green – 40% - 100% material
1st Woodstock Borderers – Green – 90%
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Regular – 80% (Re)
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re)- Brockway
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Green – 80% (Re) – Colorado
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% - Groveld/Niles
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 90% (Re) - Mitchel
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% - Errai
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Wapakoneta
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Midale
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) – New Mendham
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tikonov
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tancredi
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
Davion Old Guards RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Talcott/Salem/Victoria/Muskegon
Davion Young Guards RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Talcott/Salem/Victoria/Muskegon
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Axton
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) - New Avalon
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) - Galtor
5th Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Addicks
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% - Deneb Kaitos
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Green – 90% - Deneb Kaitos
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% - Tikonov
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% - Hyalite
12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 90% - Skat
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
Dragonlords Brigade - officers drawn from Davion Brigades, rest drawn from Cadres – 3rd to go to Caldwell
1st Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) – Bromhead
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) – Lindsay
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) –
4th Dragonlords RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
5th Dragonlords RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – New Avalon Combat Training Centre
Federated Sun’s Armoured Cavalry – includes an armoured and BA regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st FSAC – Elite – 100% (Re) – Verlo
2nd FSAC – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Axton
FedSun’s Dragoons Brigade
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 100% - Epsilon Indi
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 90% - Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Paris
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Elite – 70% - Genoa
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 70% - Frazer
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Green – 70% - Defiance
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Montour
Lexington Combat Guards
1st Lexington Combat Guards – 32nd Recon – Veteran – 90% (Re)
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – 241st Battle – Regular – 90%
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – 180th Dragoon – Veteran– 80%
New Avalon Cavaliers
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 50% (Re) – El Dorado
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100% - Tripoli
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Veteran – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Elite – 100% - Robinson
2nd Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 100% - heavily upgraded with Omnimechs – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 100%
4th Robinson Rangers – Veteran – 80% - former Fighting Urukhai,
5th Robinson Rangers – Elite – 70% - former Narhal’s Raiders, fanatically anti-Kurita.
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 100% - Robinson
Syrtis Fusiliers
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 90% - New Syrtis
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 70%
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 90% - Talon
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100% -
Capellan March Militias
Achernar CMM – Green – 100%
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
Nanking CMM – Green – 100%
New Syrtis CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 80%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Broken Wheel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 90%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 70% - Niles
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - armour brigade forming
Kentares DMM – Veteran – 50%
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 90% - 2 training companies included
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Academy Training Forces
Filtvelt Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlans – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Tancredi War College Light Combat Team – Green – 50% - LCT
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 100%
Warrior’s Hall Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Training Battalions – organised as LCT’s
1st Bell Training Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Galtor Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Sheraton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Clan Sun Jaguar Touman
Alpha Galaxy
Gold Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
Silver Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
1st Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 50% - Valois
2nd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 80% - Valois
3rd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 40% - Valois
Beta Galaxy – Galaxy Commander Russou Howell
1st Sun Jaguar Grenadiers – Elite – 40%
5th Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 70%
Delta Galaxy
3rd Fidelis Jaguar Cavaliers – Veteran – 60%
1st Fidelis Jaguar Mystics – Veteran – 30% - Star Captain Inamma formerly a Nova Cat
4th Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 50% - entirely freebirth and mostly armour formation
Omega Galaxy
1st Sun Jaguar Militia – Regular – 40% - Fugeres
2nd Sun Jaguar Militia – Green – 40% - Frankson
1st Fidelis Jaguar PGC – Green – 70% - Frankson – mostly infantry and some armour
Clan Sun Jaguar Warships
CSJ Rebirth – Black Lion
CSJ Steve Showers – Potemkin
Mercenary Forces
Blue Star Irregulars – Firgrove
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 100%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 100%
Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 70% operable
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 90%
1st Federated Arcadians – Veteran – 60%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 90% - Galtor
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 80% - Cylene
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – Veteran – 70% - Paris
Hansen’s Roughriders – Veteran – 80%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Veteran – 100%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 90%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 90%
- 21st Ranger – Regular – 90%
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Veteran – 100%
Medusan’s – Veteran – 100% - New Syrtis/Firgrove
Northwind Highlanders – All units garrisoning Northwind
- 1st Kearny Highlanders – Elite – 80% - not contracted
- Stirling’s Fusiliers – Elite – 70%
- Mulvaney’s Regiment – Elite – 70%
- Northwind Hussars – Elite – 70% - not contracted
Regulators – Regular – 80% - Kansu
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Niles
13th Stalking Horse – Veteran – 100% - Alta Vista
12th Vegan Rangers – Addicks and Nanking PDZ
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 90%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 80%
- Delta Regiment – Green – 40%
Wild Geese – Elite – 100%
Wilson’s Hussars (battalion) Veteran – 100% – Bell
Wolf’s Dragoons – garrisoning Outreach
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Zeta Battalion – Elite – 90%
Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
FSS Fox – with Duchess Yvonne and Isis
FSS Indomitable – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Intrepid – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Indefatigable – New Avalon Squadron – Galax
FSS Antrim – Northwind
FSS Murmansk – Northwind
FSS Brest – Draconis Squadron
FSS New Sytris – Capellan Squadron – Kathil
FSS Robinson – Draconis Squadron
FSS Marduk – Outreach
FSS Filtvelt – Outreach
FSS Kenatres – Outback Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Galtor – Outback Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Broken Wheel – Outback Squadron – Dispatched with Conrad Davion
FSS Markesan – Outback Squadron with Duchess Yvonne and Isis
FSS Addicks – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Chesterton – New Avalon Squadron – New Avalon
FSS Tikonov – New Avalon Squadron – Galax
FSS El Dorado – Outback Squadron
FSS Warren – Draconis Squadron
FSS Benet III – Capellan Squadron
FSS Argyle
FSS Tortuga
FSS Clovis
FSS Goshen
1st Corvette Flotilla – Task Force Sortek
FSS Dahar
FSS Edwards
FSS Galax
FSS Kittery
FSS Woodstock
FSS Ridgebrook
FSS Kathil
FSS Bryceland
1st Patrol Squadron – Outback
FSS Congress – Squadron Flagship
FSS Churchill –
1st Cruiser Squadron – Assigned to First Prince
FSS Melissa Davion – First Princes’s Flagship
FSS Hanse Davion – First Prince’s escort
2nd Cruiser Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Alexander Davion – Squadron Flagship
FSS Lucien Davion –
FSS Simon Davion –
FSS Carl Davion
3rd Cruiser Squadron – Capellan March
FSS Robert Davion – Squadron Flagship – home ported New Syrtis
FSS Andrew Davion –
FSS Joseph Davion – Detached to Task Force Sortek
FSS Covenant – Detached to Task Force Sortek
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AFFS DEPLOYMENT December 3066
Draconis March
Addicks PDZ
Addicks DMM – Addicks
5th Davion Guards RCT – Addicks
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Northwind
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Deneb Kaitos
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Deneb Kaitos
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Errai
5th Robinson Rangers – Murchison
27th Avalon Hussars RCT – Ruchbah
12th Vegan Rangers Beta Regiment – Small World - M
Northwind Highlanders Stirling’s Fusiliers – Northwind – M
Northwind Highlanders Mulvaney’s Regiment – Northwind – M
Kentares PDZ
Kentares DMM – Kentares
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Kentares
12th Deneb Light Cavalry – Skat
Fighting Urukhai 8th Striker – Markab – M
Fighting Urukhai Demestri’s Sluggers – Cylene – M
2nd NAIS Cadre – Clovis
Raman PDZ
Raman DMM – Raman
2nd Robinson Rangers – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Galtor
1st Galtor Reinforced Training Battalion – Galtor
4th Davion Guards RCT – Galtor
1st Argyle Lancers – Klathandu IV
6th Feduns Dragoons RCT – Paris
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Tripoli
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – New Mendham
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Benet III
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Wapakoneta
Fighting Urukhai Bar Hounds – David – M
Le Blanc PDZ
Robinson DMM – Robinson
Robinson Battle Academy Training Regiment – Robinson
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Robinson
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Robinson
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – New Ivaarsen
Dahar PDZ
Dahar DMM – Dahar
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Sakhara
4th Robinson Rangers – Cassias
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cassias
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Cimeron
Bremond PDZ
Bremond DMM – Bremond
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Sun Prairie
Bryceland PDZ
Bryceland DMM – Bryceland
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Tancredi
Tancredi War College Light Combat Team – Tancredi
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Tancredi
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Groveld
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Delacruz
1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalion – Conroe
1st Conroe Borderers Cadre – Bell – NOT ACTIVE
3rd NAIS Cadre – Kesai IV
Screaming Eagles – Niles – M
Mayetta PDZ
Mayetta DMM – Mayetta
Milligan PDZ
Milligan DMM – Milligan
14th Avalon Hussars – Woodbine
13th Stalking Horse – Alta Vista – M
Kilbourne PDZ
Kilbourne DMM – Kilbourne
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Abbeyville
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Kilbourne
Capellan March
Achernar PDZ
Achernar CMM – Achernar
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Tikonov
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Tikonov
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Tikonov
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Buchlau
Regulators – Kansu – M
1st Arcadians RCT – Algol
Wild Geese – Achernar – M
Valexa PDZ
Valexa CMM – Valexa
1st Aragon Borderers – New Aragon
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – New Aragon
1st Capellan Dragoons – Bell
1st Bell Reinforced Training Battalion – Bell
1st Bell Borderers Cadre – Bell – NOT ACTIVE
Wilson’s Hussars – Bell – M
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Axton
2nd FSAC – Axton
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Halloran V
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Chesterton
1st Lexington Combat Guards – Algot
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – Algot
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – Demeter
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Goshen
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Demeter – M
Kathil PDZ
4th Dragonlords RCT – Novaya Zemyla
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Kathil
Alcyone PDZ
Alcyone CMM – Alcyone
1st Kittery Borderers – Kittery
1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion – Kittery
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Spica – based there but often in St Ives
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Cammal
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Lee
Nanking PDZ
Nanking CMM – Nanking
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Outreach
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Zurich
1st Sheraton Knights – Sheraton
1st Sheraton Reinforced Training Battalion – Sheraton
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Genoa
1st Woodstock Borderers – Woodstock
1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion – Woodstock
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Epsilon Indi
Wolf’s Dragoons Alpha Regiment – Outreach – M
Wolf’s Dragoons Zeta Battalion – Outreach – M
12th Vegan Rangers Alpha Regiment – Terra Firma – M
12th Vegan Rangers Gamma Regiment – Acamar – M
12th Vegan Rangers Delta Regiment – Terra Firma - M
1st Federated Arcadians – Capolla – M
New Sytris PDZ
New Syrtis CMM – New Syrtis
Warrior’s Hall Training Regiment – New Syrtis
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – New Syrtis
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – New Syrtis
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Talon/Wernke
Medusan’s – New Syrtis
Sirdar PDZ
Sirdar CMM – Sirdar
1st Dragonlords RCT – Bromhead
1st Mitchel Borderers – Mitchel
1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion – Mitchel
1st Crucis Lancers – Mitchel
11th Avalon Hussars – Yuris
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Jacson
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Manapire
1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion – Bromhead
Illician Lancers 59th Striker – Verlo – M
Illician Lancers 9th Rangers – Frazer – M
1st Cunningham Commando’s – Zilliang – M
Hansen’s Roughriders – Bromhead – M
Altair PDZ
Ridgebrook CMM – Ridgebrook
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Lindsay
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Brockway
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Midale
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Task Force Sortek – Ridgebrook
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Task Force Sortek – Ridgebrook
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Task Force Sortek – Ridgebrook
1st FSAC – Task Force Sortek – Ridgebrook
4th New Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Task Force Sortek – Ridgebrook
Illician Lancers 21st Rangers – Task Force Sortek – Ridgebrook
Illician Lancers 4th Rangers – Task Force Sortek – Ridgebrook
Warren PDZ
Warren CMM – Warren
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Hyalite
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Taygeta
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Lothair
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Montour
1894th Light Horse – Firgrove – M
Rim Worlds – Firgrove – M
Crucis March
Archemar Combat Region
Marlette CrMM – Marlette
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – New Valencia
1st Albion Training Cadre – Markesan
1st NAIS Cadre – Johnsondale
Davion Old Guards RCT – Muskegon – 1 Battalion
Davion Young Guards RCT – Muskegon – 1 Battalion
Kestrel Combat Region
Kestrel CrMM – Kestrel
Harlock’s Warriors – Kirklin – M
New Avalon Combat Region
New Avalon CrMM – New Avalon
Davion Light Guards RCT – New Avalon
1st Davion Guards RCT – New Avalon
5th Dragonlords RCT – New Avalon
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – El Dorado
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Galax
Davion Old Guards RCT – Salem/Talcott/Victoria – 1 battalion each
Davion Young Guards RCT – Salem/Talcott/Victoria – 1 battalion each
Nunivak Combat Region
Remagen CrMM – Remagen
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Colorado
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Gulkana
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Killarney
Islamabad Combat Region
Islamabad CrMM – Islamabad
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Panpour
3rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Islamabad
Malagrotta Combt Region
Malagrotta CrMM – Malagrotta
23rd Avalon Hussars – June
Point Barrow Combat Region
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Point Barrow
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Andalusia
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Defiance
Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlan’s – Defiance
Tsamma Combat Region
Tsamma CrMM – Tsamma
5th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cerulean
Anjin Muerto Combat Region
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Anjin Muerto
1st Brockton Reinforced Training Battalion – Brockton
1st Brockton Borderers Cadre – Bell – NOT ACTIVE
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Crofton
Broken Wheel Combat Region
Broken Wheel CrMM – Broken Wheel
Filtvelt Academy Training Regiment– Filtvelt
21st Avalon Hussars RCT – Maram
Periphery Combat Region – To be Tortuga Combat Region when fully integrated
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cooperland
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Sun Jaguar Enclaves
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – New Haiti
1st Tortuga Borderers – Tortuga
1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion – Tortuga
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Industrial/Infrastructure Changes December 3066
Capellan March
Axton
– Wangker plant to double production of Corsairs, from 2 to 4 lines completed, a further 2 lines being added, completion due in February 3065. Tomahawk line being added by January 3066
Bell
- Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards, now being upgraded as a full on rebuild/repair centre capable of repairing and/or upgrading dozens of mechs and vehicles at the same time. Coming online November 3062
Chesterton
- Achernar plant to build Wasps, Phoenix Hawks and Dervishes for AFFS/ComGuards 50/50 – going online in January 3066, February 3066 and August 3066. Lorica battle armour annex going online in April 3066. Expanding with an Argus-O line by September 3067.
Firgrove
- Clyde Shipyards being upgraded to be able to construct dropships not just repair them. Began construction of Excalibur but still upgrading. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065.
- Firgrove Consortium – Greenock School and Manufacturing and Clyde Shipyards, building an Ahab line – entering production in March 3067. Comguards AFFS 50/50 split. – looking into new designs
Kathil – expanding naval slips
- GM plant to expand with a Blackjack-O line by September 3066 and starting a second line to finish in June 3067
Tikonov
– Expansion of the factories there to produce the Archer battlemech, completed in October 3063. Expansion to include a Thug line, coming online in December 3064, 50/50 split Comguards/AFFS
- New factory for New Independence Weapony, building Victors (March 3064) and Battlemasters (July 3064). Entirely built from salvage from Tao Mechworks. An Atlas line being added by October 3066.
New Syrtis
– Johnston Industries - Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 2 to 3 – completed April 3063, a further expansion to 4 lines to be completed by December 3064. Adding a nightsky line by February 3067.
- Expanding naval slips and upgrading them
Novoya Zemyla
– Johnston Industries - Creation of a new Dagger-O plant with 2 lines, first line operational November 3063, second line January 3064 – a new Hatchetman line being added by July 3066 – and an axman line by February 3067.
– Kallon Industries building a new plant to build Templar-O, Enforcer III and Jagermech III’s as well as Cavalier battle armour. Starting in July 3063, the Enforcer and Jagermech lines would come into production in January 3064, the Cavalier plant limited production in April 3064 (reaching full production by July) and the Templar-O wouldn’t come online till January 3065 and even then wouldn’t be fully operational until July.
Outreach
- Blackwell Industries salvaging a Falcon-C line – with help from Clan Sun Jaguar, line will be operational by March 3066. Imp C to have a line started in November 3066, entering production in January 3068.
Crucis March
Andalusia
- Bergan Industries plant to build waylander repair vehicles. Finishing in August 3066. Some thoughts given to adding a Locust line. Locust line shelved to build a new Waylander line – finishing in May 3067.
Augusta
- Corean Enterprise beginning construction of the Musketeer plant – being expanded to fully automated by February 3065
Batavia
- Sabre and Sparrowhakw production to start. Factory starting in May 3065, finishing the Sabre line in December 3065 and the Sparrowhawk line in March 3066. An additional Sabre line for Comstar being funded and built by May 3066.
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Belladonna
- Kallon Industries facilitity to build Hornets, Wolverines, Griffons, Shadow Hawks and Exterminators for the ComGuards/AFFS 5050. Hornet line to go online by November 3065, the 3 55 ton mechs all going online between December 3065 and January 3066 while the Exterminator line going online in June 3066 (actually August) due to huge teething problems. A partisan and challenger tank line also being built – going online in September-November 3065. A demon tank line being built – going online March 3066
Broken Wheel
- new battlemech facility owned by Andoran Industries Ltd set to begin construction of new Clint battlemechs. Going online for spare parts end of 3062, entering limited production by 2nd quarter 3063, full production in 3064. Mercury and Hussar production to be started – coming online in April 3065, 50/50 split between Comguards and AFFS. A second Mercury and Hussar line being added – going online in June and July 3066- a new Clint line being added by April 3067.
- Quickscell plant expanding to 2 pegasus lines, and adding a Hetzer, Vedette and ACP line – to be split between AFFS/ComGuards 50/50, lines going active by the end of December 3065
Crofton
- SunCorp Industries: 2 Warhammer lines, 1 Longbow, 1 Emperor, 1 Black Hawk, 1 Avatar, 1 Sunder and 1 Thanatos line (Thanatos upgrading to omni by December 3066) and 1 new Thanatos-O line under construction to finish in September 3067. A new Highlander line to start construction in August 3066 and finish in August 3067.
Defiance
- A battlemech facility building Nexus, Sentinel, Crab and Flashman battlemechs. Coming online in October 3065. 50/50 split between Comguards and AFFS except the Nexus which is exclusively for the ComGuards. A 2nd Sentinel line being added by November 3066 with a Mongoose line being added by December 3066.
- A small battle armour facility building “Lorica” variant Cavalier BA, coming online in January 3065.
Delavan
- Expanded jumpship production, particular star lords. And new monolith production in cooperation with Challenge. Tramp production to begin in February 3067.
- Universal Air – updating Ares attack craft to put into production.
El Dorado
- Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative plant building Battlemasters and Templar-O battlemechs and Ajax omnitanks. Battlemaster line going online in June 3065 ahead of schedule, Templar-O November 3065 and Ajax line in September 3065. Demon combat tank line being built – going online in February 3066 – 50/50 comstar/AFFS
Filtvelt
- A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works. Dropship yard entering production in April 3063, jumpship yard August 3064 – to produce Mules, Unions and Merchant jumpships.
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in February 3064, fully online December 3064 – 4 lines. Tomahawk line being added by January 3066
- Achernar Battlemechs production facility building a huge industrial mech plant (coming online 1st January 3064, full scale production by June 3064), along with a battlemech annex coming online June 3064 producing dervish with enforcer production added by November). New battle armour plant coming online November 3065 – building Cavaliers, Grenadiers and Infiltrator II’s. Adding an Argus-O line by November 3066. Then a new Osiris line – starting in December 3066 and finishing in November 3067.
– Outback FarmMechs new expansion to build Stinger battlemechs, starting work in November 3063 and finishing in January 3065. Major teething problems delaying the start of full scale production. A licensed Watchman line to go into production by January 3067. Also looking into Locust license.
Galax – expanding naval slips and civilian jumpships. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065.
Islamabad
- Sabre and Sparrowhakw production to start. Factory starting in May 3065, finishing the Sabre line in December 3065 and the Sparrowhawk line in February 3066. An additional Sabre line for Comstar being funded and built by April 3066.
June
– Lycomb-Davion plant to build Stukas (2 lines), to enter initial production December 3063 with full production by June 3064, further expansions of Hellcat and Lightning to be added coming into production October and November 3064. A 3rd Stuka line starting construction in August 3066 – finishing in September 3067.
– Corean Enterprises plant to build an initial line of Valkyrie battlemechs (starting February 3063 and going fully online in December 3063) and a follow on line of Centurion battlemechs (Starting January 3064 and going online March 3065). A semi-automated plant to produce Musketeers, starting in september and going into production in April 3065, 2 more centurion lines being built – finishing in December 3065 and February 3066 – a 2nd Valkyrie line to be completed by November 3066, when a Hammerhead fighter line will start, finishing in August 3067.
- Michaelson facility starting construction – to build initial yellow jackets and hawk moths – finishing in February 3068
Kestrel
– New Independence Weaponry plant being built, Atlas, Gunslinger and Victor lines being built, going online in December 3063 (atlas), February 3064 (victor) and June 3064 (Gunslinger). Secondary expansions planned to build a Jagermech III line by the end of 3064 plus potentially Marauder II and Marauder lines. Marauder line to enter production in November 3065 – Maruader II line to go into production in June 3066. A new Cyclops line going into production in April 3067.
Killarney
– Arc Royal MechWorks new plant to begin construction in January 3064, first Wolfhound line coming online in June 3064 and 2 more being added by March 3065, 2 Arctic Fox lines – entering production in June 3067.
Kirklin
– Kallon Industries, building a Crusader line to their existing plant, finished October 3064. Beginning construction of a Penetrator line – going online December 3066.
Layover
- Salvatore Inc facility now being upgraded rather than allowed to continue limping on. Production of Vengeance class dropships to be massively increased. Some consideration being given to a new facility as well. Work underway and increases started. A further increase scheduled to take place in 3065 with work finishing in February 3066 to increase Vengeance production – further increase to be split between AFFS and ComGuards. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065.
- Quickscell plant to expand to increase production to add a 2nd Hetzer and Vedette line as well as a 2nd APC and a new Pegasus line. Lines going active by November 3065
Markesan
- New Earth Trading Company facility to build 2 lines of Alacorns, 2 lines of Von Luckners and a line of Karnov Transports and a line for Engineering vehicles. Coming online in June 3065 – although limited production of Alacorns and Karnovs will start in January 3065. Production to be split 50/50. A 3rd line of Alacorns and Von Luckners to be added by August 3066. 2 more lines of each to be added by February 3067 and another 2 lines Karnov added by December 3066.
New Avalon
- Lycomb-Davion expansions of Stuka production (4 lines) and to begin construction of Guillotine and Awesome battlemechs – Stuka production increased by start of 3064, Guillotine entering production in November 3064, Awesome in January 3065 – a 2nd line of Guillotines entering production in January 3066 – 2nd line being sold to the ComGuards. – to add Lancelot line by November 3066. Staring work on 2 Huscarl-O lines belatedly and a Hammerhead line – All three finishing between April-May 3067.
- Corean Enterprise beginning construction of the Musketeer plant – being expanded to fully automated by December 3064. Adding a new Centurion battlemech line – starting December 3065 and ending in May 3066. Further Centurion expansions being considered. A new Centurion line going operational in July 3067.
Northfield
- Corean Industries building a Devastator production line for AFFS/ComGuards 50/50 split, going online in August 3066 A new Centurion line going operational in September 3067.
Panpour
- Challenge Systems being funded to increase production of Monolith jumpships and begin construction of two Congress-D frigates. First yard to be ready in February 3063 and the next 4 months later. A further increase in Monolith production to take place in 3064
- Jalastar Aerospace increasing production of sparrohawk and sabre fighters and Centurion, grasshopper and javelin battlemechs. Increases in sparrowhawk and centurion construction prioritised and starting from August 3063, further expansions going on into 3065, This will result in by December 3065 5 Sparrowhawk lines and 3 sabre lines. Spad and Zero lines being built – going into production January and March 3066 respectively.
Point Barrow
- GM plant to be built, starting in June 3063, due to go online in December 3064, building Maruader and Victor battlemechs, with follow on flashman line coming online in August 3065. Grenadier plant coming operation in June 3065
Salem
- Gm plant adding a Blackjack-O line – finishing in July 3067.
Talcott
- Gm plant now producing Grenadiers and Cavaliers in record numbers. Expanding by end of 3065. Blackjack refit centre being upgraded to produce Blackjack-O – by November 3066.
Torrence
- Johnston Industries - 2 Dagger-O lines coming online in November 3064. A Caeser line to enter production in April 3066, Nightsky line to be added by April 3067
- Veridan Dynamics plant reopening to build Tiger medium tanks (starting in March 3067) and a new line for Vali artillery tanks (starting in April 3067).
Vandalia
- Blackstone Industries plant to start construction on January 3067, talon line coming online in December 3067, enfield line in February 3068 and Ostscout in March 3068.
Victoria
- GM plant building Wasp and Blackjack-O lines being built for AFFS/Comguards 50/50. Wasp line going oline by December 3065, Blackjack O going online in July 3066. A BA annex to build Lorica class battle armour going online in February and entering full production by march 3066.
Draconis March
Addicks
– Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 1 to 2, completed February 3063
Alta Vista
- New Independence Weaponry plant being constructed to build Atlas and Victor battlemechs – January 3066 and March 3066 respectively – adding a Gunslinger line by September 3067.
Benet III
– Creation of a new Dagger-O line, completed October 3063
Errai
- Maltex plant being rebuilt. Wyvern production being added by February 3066 and Thug production being added by July 3066. While funded by settlement from Comstar the company will only sell to Comguards excess production after meeting AFFS and mercenary contracts.
Marduk
- Rebirth of Norse Battlemech Works, back in FedSuns hands, building large numbers of Wolverines and Griffons as well as Firestarter, Black hawk and Avatar Omnimechs – Wolverine and Griffon plant already online, Omnimech plant being repaired, coming online March 3063
Mayetta
- Achernar battle armour plant to build Infiltrators, cavaliers and Grenadiers. To come online in December 3065 and full production by March 3066.
Northwind
- Corsara weapons – King Crab, Black Watch and Crab lines now being offered for sale to AFFS and Highlanders. Discussions in expanding production. – offers more king crabs and crabs to AFFS in June. Accepted and work beginning on a line of each mech – finishing in April 3067 for the Crab and December 3067 for the King Crab.
Ozawa
- General Dynamics plant being upgraded from limited production to 2 full lines producing the Kintaro battlemech – 50/50 sales between AFFS/Comguards, but not a popular design with AFFS who will sell most of the mechs on to mercenaries. Existing line upgraded by December 3065, new line added by August 3066. Ostol design being updated – ready to start construction in January 3067 and entering production in December 3067. Sentry line being built, finished in October 3067.
- Veridan Dynamics plant reopening to build Tiger medium tanks (starting in January 3067) and a new line for Vali artillery tanks (starting in May 3067).
Robinson
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks expansions and investments made to increase production, particularly of the up coming Sagittairre battlemech. Watchman line expanded to two and Sagittaire in production as of January 3063. A phoenix hawk line added by February 3064 – Sagittairre expanding to 2 lines by October 3065 and a black knight line finished June 3065 – a 2nd line being added by July 3066 for sale to Comstar – Adding a Battlemaster line by March 3067. Ostol design being updated – ready to start construction in January 3067 and entering production in October 3067.
Sun Prairie
- A new Wangker facility for producing Corsair fighters, starting initial production in December 3064, fully online April 3065 – 4 lines. Tomahawk line being added by January 3066
- Michaelson facility starting construction – to build initial yellow jackets and hawk moths – finishing in December 3067
Tancredi
- Expanding of Laser production to include ER variants and industrial and medical lasers. New models entering production by June 3064. Consideration for battlemech/vehicle production as well.
- Joint Kallon-Prescision plant to build 1 line of Penetrators and Riflemen (2 lines) – lines going operation in Novembers and December 3066 with a shadow hawk line being considered for future expansions.
Verde
- A small dropship shipyard to be built, producing Union and Overlord dropships, the Union yard coming online in March 3065, the Overlord coming online in December 3065. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065. A new Overlord-A3 production facility being considered.
- GM factory A demon tank line being built – going online July 3066
- Ranger Battlemechs – building a Shadow Hawk line – finishing in September 3067
Woodbine
- a new battlemech facility owned by Robinson Standard BattleWorks to produce Watchman battlemechs. Going online in July 3063 – Sentry and Battle Hawk line to be added by August 3064 and September 3064 respectively – a new sagittairre line added by December 3065 and a black knight line to be added by September 3065
Clan Smoke Jaguar
Valois
- Jaguar Industries – building a Guillotine IIC and Wyvern IIC – halted.
- Yvonne-Isis Construction Plant – building 2 Daedalus lines.
Educational Expansions underway
Tancredi War College – being rebuilt and start a small class in 3064 full class in 3065, graduating first class in 3066 with full class in 3067.
Lexington Military Acamdey – being built on Lexington, staffed mostly with LCG Veterans with a few officers from the Davion guards, Ceti Hussars and DLC units. First class being started in January 3066, graduating first class in December 3068
NAIS – expanding, newly expanding class entering academy in December 3066, graduating in December 3069 – at which time 4th and 5th training cadre formed
Albion – expanding, newly expanding class entering academy in December 3066, graduating in December 3069 – at which time 3rd Training cadre formed
Kilbourne Academy – expanding, newly expanding class entering academy in December 3066, graduating in December 3069 – at which time the battalion will be upgraded to regiment
Point Barrow – expanding, newly expanding class entering academy in December 3066, graduating in December 3069 – at which time the battalion will be upgraded to regiment
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Quote from: PsihoKekec on 23 July 2019, 01:45:08
Did Tiaret declare the Trial of Grievance before or after throwing the punch?
Well it was very... impromptu. Who knows? The warrior in question can't really remember himself... Concussion does strange things to a persons short term memory... ;)
wasnt a trial,
simply removal of a possible riot cause,
he can demand trial in a few months once the medics clear him
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3067 - January - On the edge
The new year didn't exactly begin with optimism, with the Federated Suns preparing for war on their border with the Taurian Concordat. Even on their other borders the various regiments and RCT's stood ready for action, aware that old enemies might attempt to take advantage while House Davion's attentions were focused elsewhere. However there was widespread confidence throughout the realm that whatever the challenges that the Federated Suns faced they would be able to defeat them. Confidence in the AFFS was at an all time high - many considered that the AFFS of 3067 was the finest force that the FedSun's had fielded at any stage in it's history. Commanded by battle tested leaders and officers, superbly trained and well equipped with a military industrial complex that for the first time in centuries was actually sufficient to support it. While the FedSun's naval forces hadn't been this strong since before the 1st Succession Wars. No fewer than 45 warships currently served under the Sword and Sunburst and more were under construction and due to finish. Indeed some of the more well connected or merely observant amongst the public knew that this month would see the launching of the first Davion class destroyers in centuries, although these would be updated Davion III's.
The FSS Davion and FSS Defiant both slipped free of their construction slips at Galax while the FSS Defender finished work at New Syrtis and all 3 ships were immedietly used to form the 1st Destroyer Squadron. The squadron would be under strength for the time being and would require a great deal of time to not only undertake shakedown cruises but also to learn to serve together. Still it was felt that this was a good start, particularly as the Admiralty were expecting to see a further 3 Davion III's completing in 3068, with more slips finishing construction and beginning to build the heavy weight destroyers.
At the same time that the 1st Destroyer Squadron was forming Fleet Admiral Buchwald began continuing to reorganise his corvette class warships into flotillas. The 2nd Corvette Flotilla was formed over New Avalon with the specific aim of protecting the capital and the nearby shipyards. A 3rd and 4th Corvette Flotilla's were scheduled to be activated throughout 3067 and assigned to the Capellan and Draconis Marches respectively. Discussions were ongoing as to whether or not to form a 5th Corvette Flotilla to be assigned to the Outback on a permanent basis both as a patrol force and as a reserve, or to merely allow ships to be assigned there on an as required basis.
The Fox corvette numbers were also expanded during January with 2 Fox's slipping forth from the shipyards at New Syrtis. The FSS Sherwood and FSS Tancredi were both completed during January and assigned to patrolling the Outback for the time being.
The Fleet Admiral also arranged for the 1st Patrol Squadron, consisting of 2 Congress-D II ships to move to Cooperland in the periphery. With the aid of the 12th Avalon Hussars and their attached jumpships the Congress's were to patrol the area around Cooperland, particularly towards the Taurian Concordat. This was to be for 2 purposes. Their first and primary purpose was to scout the approaches to the Taurian flank that ran from Althea's Choice towards the newly recognised Calderon Protectorate, both to avoid any surprise attacks on Cooperland if the Taurians found out about the base there and also to scout routes for a potential attack by the AFFS behind what the Concordat considered it's front lines. The second purpose was to scout the systems around Cooperland in order to see if there were any that would be worth colonising. The region even during the Star League had been poorly studied and with the growing prosperity of the Suns it was thought that perhaps a move to push out into the region to connect Cooperland up with the rest of the FedSuns might be in order. If suitable worlds could be found.
Even as these preparations were made the First Prince reached out via Comstar in order to suggest a joint summit between himself and the Lord Protector to try and deescalate tensions. While the First Prince was confident his armed forces could handle the Taurians they wouldn't do it without losses and if the Taurians broke up their nuclear weapons stockpiles things could get very ugly, very fast. As such if there was a way to prevent the situation worsening Victor was eager to take it. As January crept by there was no response from Grover Shraplen. Except for his continued vitriolic speeches ordering his people to prepare for invasion.
In a final attempt to broker peace Victor contacted the First Lord Mansdottir to ask him to intervene and attempt to broker a peaceful solution to the problem. However when the First Lord contracts the Lord Protector the Taurian leader informs him that as he will be becoming a full voting member of the Second Star League when they gather together for the next Whitting Conference he will not take part in any Star League sponsored talks until such time as his realm is a full member. He also drops hints to Christian Mansdottir that he intends to make a motion to expel the Federated Suns from the Star League as his first official act as a ruler of a full member state. When the First Lord feeds this back to Victor, the Prince is left with the growing horrific thought that the Lord Protector is mad...
Given the escalating tensions the First Prince thought he had no other choice but to recall Duchess Isis Marik to New Avalon for her own protection and suggesting to his sister Yvonne Davion-Sandoval that she either return to Robinson or accompany Isis to New Avalon. When the 2 duchess's received these instructions they shared a mutual laugh at Victor's over protectiveness and then agreed to part ways. Isis would return to New Avalon and Yvonne would return to Robinson. Both however sent a message to those worlds which they had been scheduled to stop at and hadn't reached yet, promising that when the current crisis was over they would make good on their promises to visit them.
Even as he prepares for war however the First Prince and his staff continue to plan not only to strengthen the Federated Suns but also help it's economy. One of the major components of this that is addressed in January is the construction of a new battlemech factory complex on the world of Edwards. However unlike the vast bulk of the increased production taking place within the Federated Suns this plant is specifically to be one that provides sales and exports to allies such as the St Ives Compact, Comstar, SLDF, Lyran Alliance and the like. This initial export orientated plant is to be built by New Independence Weaponry and will initially have 2 lines, producing Atlas and Victor battlemechs for export. A similar plant is under consideration to be built on Achernar with their namesake company for the same purpose if the initial one goes well.
At the same time as these expansions are underway or under consideration the AFFS completes it's initial trials on the Javelin-O that has been presented to them by Jalastar Aerospace. The light omnimech passes with flying colours and the AFFS instructs the company that it will provide support for them to shift over all of their existing Javelin lines to Javelin-O production. Although they do insist that a large scale manufacturing base be retained for Javelin battlemech standard parts to help maintain the existing large stock of the battlemech in second line formations. The retooling of the 3 existing lines will take until April-May 3067 but even that isn't sufficient for the AFFS's needs. They intend the new Javelin-O to become their singular light omnimech and First Prince instructs the company that he expects a further 2 lines to be added at each of their other plants at Batavia and Islamabad. There is also the strong suggestion made to the company that they consider expanding with a new plant within the Outback, perhaps on the world of Baxley, to produce the new omnimech. When the company baulk at this it is pointed out that if they are unable to meet the AFFS's needs for the omnimech they may be forced into a licensing agreement with another company that can. At which point lawyers are dispatched to Baxley to begin purchasing the requires real estate for a large new factory.
Watching this development Achernar Battlemech's takes note and begins to look for a location for a new plant at which they can begin mass producing their developing medium weight omnimech. They reason that it is better to jump than to be pushed, and such preparation will allow them to appear as a loyal patriotic company eager to support the FedSuns and AFFS - which can only increase sales the executives reason. They anticipate unveiling the new omnimech in late April or early May.
On El Dorado the Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative begins work on building 2 new Ajax lines and a single new Templar-O line. All 3 parties in the Cooperative have seen large scale returns from the high end equipment being produced on El Dorado and the world itself has underwent an economic boom due to the new plant. This new expansion will take advantage of the economic wealth of the planet and also it's interior position to allow it's production to be widely distributed. The new lines will be expected to come online towards the end of the year.
At the Outback FarmMech's plant on Filtvelt the new Watchman line goes operation. The battlemechs walking of the production line are somewhat rough and ready, but are soon being dispatched to various second line formations such as the Crucis March Militia Brigade and the newly forming 1st Brockton Borderer's Cadre. Rough and ready they may be, but the rugged design is still much sought after within such formations for it's versatility, durability and low maintenance.
On Vandalia the Blackstone Industries plant begins to be constructed. With the deteriorating diplomatic situation Graf Gregory Blackstone had attempted to delay the construction but had immedietly been informed by his extremely highly paid Tharkad based legal counsel that the Federated Suns were moving to restart the legal case against his company and house. He immediately backed down and funded the construction to begin on schedule.
The new Ostol line on Ozawa begins construction during January. In comparison with their Kintaro battlemech design the Ostol already has a full order book from the AFFS even before it has entered production. Most of these orders come from outwith the Draconis March as the Duke of Robinson has his own line for the battlemech starting construction in January - still even with the bulk of the Draconis March orders already taken there is still a high demand for this design from the High Command and Capellan March.
Even with the growing tension between the Federated Suns and the Taurian Concordat the news are filled with an upsurge in the ongoing low level combat between Comstar and the Word of Blake. A large scale battle erupts around the world of Bryant when the CSV Blake's Strength, CSV Narbonne and CSV Manchester jump into the system and surprise the patrolling WoBS Faiths End. The Lola destroyer attempts to manoeuvre away from the attacking warships, but the faster CSV Narbonne manages to keep them under fire and keep them from escaping giving time for the other 2 ComGuards vessels to bring the WoBS Faith's End under fire. The Lola III is soon burning in the dark before finally exploding as a final volley of naval autocannon smashes through her spine.
The 3 ComGuards warships then head for the planet escorting 2 fully refitted and freshly outfitted ComGuards Divisions - the 2nd and 11th from the 3rd ComGuards army -who hit the planet's garrison hard in a lightning strike. However just as the defending 8th Militia Division and it's scattered militia allies is on the verge of breaking the ComGuards troops withdraw hurriedly and pull out. Again escorted by their warships the ComGuards withdraw and leave a badly mauled WOB Division behind along with a destroyed Lola III for only light damage to their own warships and moderate damage to their own units. The ComGuards are beginning to strike back at their dark brethren and with this attack make it obvious that they will not merely sit back and wait to be hit at a time and place of the WOB's choosing.
Comstar celebrate this victory with the funding of 2 additional slips within the Federated Suns at Novaya Zemlya to build additional Fox corvettes. As part of their deal with the First Prince they then fund the construction of another 2 such slips for the Federated Suns at Filtvelt. However knowing that they cannot allow themselves to be too reliant on one source they contract Archon Peter Steiner and ask if he would be interested in a similar arrangement - he instantly invites Precentor Martial Focht to Tharkad with assurances that he will be happy to discuss an agreement. Instead of Focht however, Acting Primus Dow goes himself.
Within the Free Worlds League Parliament the Captain-General's allies manage to derail the motion of no confidence and have it set aside before it can be debated properly. Politically this was a necessity however it leads to further demonstrations throughout the League. Worse a number of units begin asking if such tactics are truely honourable from a Captain-General. One of Thomas Marik's most unlikely allies in recent years, Dame Humphreys of Andurian leaves Atreus and heads back home to her own Duchy immedietly after the no confidence vote is hamstrung which raises a number of questions. On her way back a small problem with her jumpship leaves her stranded in the system of Cameron for a week while it is repaired. During this time Prince Cameron-Jones of the Principality of Regulus just happens to call upon her and discuss with her his plans for the future and concerns about the Captain-General. As well as his advice that it might be unhealthy for her to return to Atreus in the future. Terminally unhealthy. A shaken Duchess resumes her journey as soon as the fault is fixed.
Within the Calderon Protectorate the 3rd Taurian Lancers and Gordon's Armoured Cavalry arrive in the system of Erod's Escape in order to crush the Baron Kithrong's rebellion once and for all. Except they find themselves facing down the guns of the FSS Broken Wheel which had escorted Conrad Davion to the world and was still in orbit. Colonel Nicholas Gordon, a man well known for the care he takes of his troops and officers (most of whom are his family) point blank refuses to lead his regiment in a combat run past the warship and with that refusal the invasion is ended. The 3rd Taurian Lancers faced with a suicide run without the Armoured Cavalry retreats as well - but promises Colonel Gordon that the Lord Protector will hear of this.
Combined with intelligence slipped his way from the Capellan's about the growing task force on Ridgebrook the Lord Protector finds the news that there is a Davion warships in his rear area the ultimate confirmation that his realm is about to be attacked. Worse there might be more. Only a single ship was seen in orbit, but who knew how many were slinking around in the outer system or waiting in ambush. He cannot wait for the Davion's to crush him between them and their puppet Kithrong. He begins to send out orders and contacts the Capellan Ambassador on Taurus. Assurances are given and agreements reached...
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Quote from: PsihoKekec on 23 July 2019, 01:45:08
Did Tiaret declare the Trial of Grievance before or after throwing the punch?
Well it was very... impromptu. Who knows? The warrior in question can't really remember himself... Concussion does strange things to a persons short term memory... ;)
wasnt a trial,
simply removal of a possible riot cause,
he can demand trial in a few months once the medics clear him
If the medics clear him... And if the Khan says it was a Trial... He can demand a Trial of Refusal on her decision I suppose - but then he's already learned what happens if the Khan gets her hands on him for even a single blow...
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I forsee a lot of CCAF, TDF and some AFFS bodies in the future this is going to get messy.
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Hopefully someone will shoot Sharplen before he blows a gasket and brings out the canned sunshine.
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Unlikely, he has managed to get away with his lunacy well into Jihad OTL. That is untill WoB decided to martyr him and the Taurian capital in order to fuel hatred towards Federated Suns.
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Hopefully someone will shoot Sharplen before he blows a gasket and brings out the canned sunshine.
Unlikely, he has managed to get away with his lunacy well into Jihad OTL. That is untill WoB decided to martyr him and the Taurian capital in order to fuel hatred towards Federated Suns.
Time for someone to end a war before it begins with a single bullet
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And then his replacement blames the Federated Suns for his assasination...
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At this point, the best way to deal with this whole issue is a two-pronged approach with the aim of eliminating the Mad man Grover and his junta and instaling a Regency council under the Baron if it can be managed. The best way is probably to provide support to the Loyalist elements of House Calderon still inside of the Concordat, boast support to the protectorate so they can launch offensives of their own and have the AFFS being to plan strikes to prevent the TC from coordinating against them and weaken Grover's image as a strong man the TC need.
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Honestly I don't think the Bulls will go nuke happy - mostly because it won't really damage the Federated Suns forces if they are competently led anyway ... and it risks a level of retaliation that would destroy the Bulls utterly.
Although it might win the Federated Suns a lot of support from the Protectorate (and even might lead to the Protectorate 'conquering' the Concordant if support for Crazy McCrazypants collapses) when despite nukes being used, Sortek and the Federated Suns are very measured and calculated in their retaliation and response. Not crossing the border in a rage and salting the Earth (with Cobalt salted weapons) but perhaps just taking away his Pinto toys and eliminate his limited offensive units by landing on them with combat hardened veterans in full combined arms forces with cutting edge 3060 gear ... against green troops using 3025 gear wondering why the hell their glorious leader decided this was a GOOD idea??!!
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Grover lives in a delusional fantasy at the best of times Chris is that really that surprising that he thinks it's a good idea.
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3067 - February - War!
February started with the news that so many had dreaded. The Taurian Concordat had launched an attack upon the Federated Suns. From Midale to Hyalite the Bull's had hit pushed forward and launched full scale attacks. These weren't spoiling raids or light attacks, but full scale invasions by full battlemech regiments or indeed 2 in many cases.
On Midale the 4th Crucis Lancers RCT found itself under attack from the Pleiades Hussars supported by the Bannockburn Bandit's mercenary force who had arrived via a close in pirate point. The veteran Crucis Lancers unit was dug in and ready for the attack but found itself outnumbered in battlemech forces even with it's reinforced nature. Given the Taurian's different table of organisation the Pleiades Hussars was equal in size to the 4th Crucis Lancers in battlemech's despite the Lancers being a reinforced regiment and the addition of 2 battalions of mercenaries gave the Taurian's the edge. At least in battlemech numbers, although the Lancers had a full armoured brigade and infantry brigade of their own along with an aerospace fighter regiment of 3 wings which gave them air superiority. With the huge advantage of the conventional forces the Hussars and their mercenary allies began a mobile campaign of hitting and moving from target to target, causing initial huge damage across the infrastructure of the world. They did however suffer a constant stream of air attacks and the Crucis Lancers began using their air cover to allow them to use their dropships to hop from target to target, never giving the Hussars time to do more than light damage. After 3 weeks the Pleiades Hussars broke of from this fruitless series of attacks and broke for their dropships alongside the Bandits. However an all out aerospace fighter attack on their dropships as they were loading and with the 4th Crucis Lancers in hot pursuit allowing no time to make anything more than the most basic repairs. This left the attacking force without enough transport assets to lift the whole force from the planet even with losses. Swiftly seizing the remaining mercenary dropships the Pleiades Hussars abandoned the Bandit's with orders that they take to the wilderness and fight a guerrilla campaign until they could be extracted.
Even as the Pleiades Hussars were fleeing for orbit it left Marshal Andrew Giggin's with a difficult choice. He could divert his aerospace assets to attack the fleeing Hussars but this would give the Bannockburn Bandit's time to head into the wilderness, or he could allow the Hussars to flee and use his assets to keep the Bandits under constant air attacks and use these attacks to vector his ground forces into the fleeing Bandits. He swiftly decided to make sure that his garrison post wasn't subjected to a constant threat of attacks from the wilderness and ordered "Wild" Willie Brueckner to attack the Bandits. The 5th Baxley Aerial Recon would maintain oversight of the fleeing mercenaries while the 120th Minette Light Wing and the newly raised 33rd Filtvelt Attack Wing hammered the mercenaries with constant air attacks. The already hammered Bandits found themselves hounded and pursued on the ground and in the air. Barely 2 companies managed to get away and make their way into the wilderness, and most of those were damaged, by the end of February. The remaining mercenaries were either destroyed or were forced to surrender when they were surrounded by overwhelming force.
On Lindsay the 2nd Dragonlords RCT found itself facing combat for the first time. The attacking force, as at Midale arrived via dangerous pirate points that showed that the Taurian Defence Force had kept a close eye upon the border systems to be able to so accurately use pinpoint pirate jump points. Like the 4th Crucis Lancers the 2nd Dragonlords were prepared for the attack but soon found themselves under constant attack as the 1st Taurian Lancers and the Pleiades Lancers threw themselves at the Dragonlords in a furious attack. The Dragonlords sound found themselves hard pressed by the constant attacks, although their 2 battle armour regiments proved to be a godsend. These 2 regiments of troops were almost totally unknown to the attacking Bulls. Although the Taurians had some experience with battle armour these forces were usually deployed in little larger than squad based units or platoon units at the most. Finding themselves facing no fewer than over 2000 battle armour troops they had no real counter for them and lost several companies of battlemechs caused by overconfident mechwarriors who didn't understand the threat these units posed in such large numbers in the initial engagements. After this even the most overconfident mechwarrior became wary of the Davion's "mere infantry". Even with this advantage however the 2nd Dragonlords was definitely on the defensive and their command staff had to inform New Syrtis and New Avalon that they were unable to push the Bull's back off world without help as the fighting ground on. However near the end of the month the Pleiades Lancers abandoned the attacks and lifted off from the planet. Given the damage that the Dragonlords had suffered they weren't in a position to immedietly counter attack the now weakened attacking force, but it did ensure they were no longer in any real danger of being overrun by the 1st Taurian Lancers at least.
The 2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT on Brockway was hit hard by the Concordat Jaegers and the Red Chasseurs. Amongst the finest regiments in the Taurian Defence Force these 2 regiments threw themselves at the Raiders and in an initial attack caused heavy damage. In fact the 2nd Chisholm Raiders found themselves driven back again and again and eventually on the 28th of February the RCT was forced to abandon the world or make what could only be a last stand. The Raiders command staff retreated to their dropships and using their last trump card, their aerospace dominance, left the planet and headed for the rally point assigned to them of the Firgrove system.
On Hyalite the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT the Hyalite Light Infantry attempted to return "home". However their burn in found itself under overwhelming attack from the 2 aerospace regiments attached to the 10th. The Hard Air Division attached to the Light Infantry numbered 16 fighters. To say they were overwhelmed by the 120 fighters of the 10th Deneb Light Cavalrys wings was an understatement. The Hard Air Division was wiped out in minutes and the Deneb Light Cavalry pilots descended upon the dropships of the Light Infantry. Dropship after dropship fell out of formation leaking air and with damage mounting until finally the remaining Light Infantry dropships attempted to turn around before ever reaching the planet. However the Deneb Light Cavalry air wings weren't minded to allow them to withdraw and continued to hit the now retreating Taurian dropships with relentless attacks. To make matters worse, light aerospace fighters streaked ahead of the fleeing Taurian dropships and threatened their waiting jumpships into surrendering under threat of being taken out. With no prospect of escape and stranded in space and facing more attacks the Hyalite Light Infantry were forced to surrender without ever having reached planet fall. Their remaining dropships who could land were ordered down under the guns of the entire 10th and supporting militia forces.
Worryingly for the Federated Suns various intelligence services was the fact that both Pleiades units had left their attacks and had not been located. Additionally the Concordat Commando's and Gordon's Armoured Cavalry as well as the handful of Pinto corvettes that the Concordat was now known to possess were also missing. The best guess was that these units were headed deeper into the Federated Suns. However the question was where they were going. Many thought that the Pleiades units would attempt to head for the Pleiades Cluster while others thought that they might attempt to hit Firgrove or even New Syrtis. As such Task Force Sortek was ordered to hold it's position and await further developments. As a precautionary measure however the 2nd FedSun's Dragoons RCT was ordered to move from Ridgebrook to the Pleiades Cluster.
That wasn't to say however that the AFFS stood still. The 36th Avalon Hussars on Lothair was ordered to mobilise in response to what was now being referred to as an invasion and strike into the Taurian Concordat. The RCT left Lothair and jumped into the Perdition system and headed for the planet. The 3rd Taurian Lancers, the usual garrison for the planet was no longer present leaving the planet garrisoned only by the regular militia and the newly raised Taurian Volunteer Guard formations. The militia however had been gutted by the formation of the new Volunteer Guard formations which were still finding their feet and against a front line formation they were out of their league. The 36th hit the defenders 2 main military bases at the same time across the planet. Quickly overwhelming the smaller base the 36th had a hard fight to break open Fort Freedom, the former SLDF Fort Churchill. Still within a week the 2 major concentrations of military forces on Perdition had been smashed and the 36th moved swiftly to secure the Pinard Protectorates Limited plant. The small security force surrendered when the 36th brought up a full battalion of artillery and threatened to shell them into oblivion while hammering them with air attacks. Securing the compound the 36th began looting it systematically. Every completed Wasp battlemech and vehicle was loaded into transports for shipment off world, while the factory lines themselves were disassembled and prepared for transportation. Many of the workforce of the plant was forced into helping to disassemble the very lines that were their livelihood under the guns of the 36th Avalon Hussars Infantry Brigade.
While the AFFS High Command was reluctant to break up their armoured fist of Task Force Sortek with so many Concordat units still to show themselves they weren't prepared to sit back and let the fighting continue to bleed AFFS units. As such with the 2nd Chisholm Raiders known to be falling back on Firgrove the defending Blue Star Irregular mercenary command were ordered to prepare to go to the aid of the 2nd Dragonlords on Lindsay. They were ordered to smash the attacking Taurian Lancers and then prepare to move on to help counter attack to retake Brockway.
Summarily Hansen's Roughriders were given orders to "finish what they began". With a combined arms conventional brigade attached to them they jumped from Bromhead and arrived in the MacLeod's Land system and headed for the planet. The garrison of the remainder of the 1st MacLeod's Regiment was in no shape to to resist a full scale attack but made the best effort they could. However hit from multiple angles by a larger and more experienced enemy they were soon fully routed and forced to disperse into the more remote parts of their world. At which point the conventional brigade moved into the Pinard Protectorates Limited factory and began a combination of looting and sabotage. Having brought along a large number of transportation dropships a number of large convoys are soon heading back to FedSuns space. Meanwhile Hansen's Roughriders are granted a full battalion of battlemech's seized from the plant and the Taurian defenders as a combat bonus.
Even as he is authorising defensive moments and counter attacks the First Prince petitions the Second Star League for support against the "rogue state" of the Taurian Concordat. In response to this the First Lord suggests a special session of the Star League, which Victor Davion suggests take place on New Avalon as he is obviously tied down to his nations capital due to the ongoing military action. Christian Mansdottir agrees, although several of the other Council Lords are extremely unhappy with that location. Lord Protector Shraplen for instance refuses to even consider that option. After some discussion an alternate suggestion of St Ives is proposed and agreed by all parties. While Victor Davion offers to suspend military operations until the special session is done, Grover Shraplen refuses, feeling that his military has the momentum. As such the First Lord sets a date of the end of March for the special session, requesting that all attendees make their best speed towards St Ives in the hope of avoiding further bloodshed.
Given the intransigence to end the fighting even with a ceasefire of the Lord Protector, First Prince Victor informs Marshal of Armies Jackson that before and during the special session he want's the AFFS to make the Taurians howl for peace. While Task Force Sortek is tied in place awaiting the next Taurian move the First Prince informs the Marshal of Armies to seek other units further from the front and rush them to hit Taurian rear areas, while also ordering the 36th Avalon Hussars and Hansen's Roughriders to move on from Perdition and MacLeod's Land as soon as they complete ransacking the factories on those worlds and continue to cause havoc in the Concordat.
Immediately the 12th Avalon Hussars RCT and the 1st Patrol Squadron are ordered to leave Cooperland and move to hit the Taurian worlds on Charleston, Orkney, Cadiz and threaten the industrial world of Sterope. As well as that the 3rd Chisholm Raiders was ordered from Colorado and ordered to strike at the worlds of Althea's Choice. If that attack went well further targets would be provided. The 34th Avalon Hussars was ordered to leave New Haiti and move into the gap between the 12th Hussars and 3rd Raiders spheres and strike straight for the important industrial world of Dicallus, before potentially moving on to support the 12th on any attack on Sterope. This would mean that combined with the 2 units already attacking into the Concordat this will mean that the Taurians will have 4 RCT's floating around in their rear areas along with 2 heavy warships and a veteran mercenary regiment. Combined with Task Force Sortek which will smash the invading Taurian forces as soon as they reveal themselves the Davion's intend to make sure that Shraplen has no option but to agree to a truce at the special session in March.
On New Syrtis the Nightsky line for Johnston Industries goes online. The first axe wielding mech's of the production line are immedietly dispatched to Firgrove to help make up the losses of the 2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT, along with the production of the other battlemech and vehicle lines on New Syrtis and other nearby industrial worlds like Talon and Panpour. This will allow them to return to around half strength by the end of March.
Another axe wielding mech's production line also came online this month on Novaya Zemlya, with Johnston's plant there adding an Axman line to the active production facilities. The plant immedietly begins construction of a new Nightsky line to add to the duplication of all battlemech designs that New Avalon is pushing hard.
At Delavan's shipyards the Tramp jumpship formally enters production. No fewer than a half dozen of the LF equipped jumpships are laid down initially, with plans to double that production as quickly as possible. Already the building ships have been purchased by the AFFS to give them a rapid response force of jumpships for key units.
The New Earth Trading Company plant on Markesan see's a major boost in production with the number of active production lines for both the Alacorn Mk IV and Von Luckner tanks raising to 5 each. Even with these additions the supply is barely keeping pace with the demand. It does however allow the company to begin construction of a second engineering vehicle line rather than having to concentrate on the front line battle tanks. The demand is certainly there for more engineering vehicles, but until now the demand for the heavier combat tanks was of paramount importance and hence prioritised.
GM also upon hearing of heavy fighting with the 2nd Dragonlord's Armoured Infantry Brigade orders that their Point Barrow production centre expand from merely producing Grenadier battle armour and adding a number of Cavalier lines. It is rightly felt by the company that demand for battle armour will only increase after the success of the battle armoured units on Lindsay.
On Ozawa the Veridan Dynamics plant for Tiger tanks which was scheduled to enter production in January finally goes online. The plant had spent decades if not centuries effectively mothballed and there had been some teething problems when it had initially opened up and began production again. Still the plant is now producing an updated variant of the venerable Tiger tank to be shipped out to militia's throughout the FedSuns. It surprises nobody that the initial production run is scheduled to be sent to the various border worlds on the Taurian border.
At Verde instructions are given to begin the yard there for construction of A-3 Overlords. While the Federated Suns Navy is now well supplied with light warships in the form of the Fox class corvette it is felt that the A-3 still has a place for secondary deployments that don't merit a full warship and also as backup for isolated warships. Construction of the first pocket warships are scheduled to begin in October 3067.
In the Lyran Alliance the captured Texas class battleship begins it's journey to the Galax system. Alongside it comes the Clan Wolf-In-Exile battlecruiser the Implacable, which although heavily damaged is felt to be sufficiently strong to ward of any threat. An escort from the 2nd Cruiser Squadron meets them at Northwind and escorts them the rest of the way there. They are additionally accompanied part of the way by the Archon Steiner and Interim-Primus Dow (who had been caught on Tharkad by the special session) with their own respective warship escorts. Along with the shattered CJF Falcon's Nest come crews for the 5 Fox corvettes that are due to complete soon at Galax in return for the vessel.
Using the special session of the Second Star League the Captain General leaves Atreus and heads towards St Ives. As escort he takes with him a full Thera battlegroup and the 1st Knights of the Inner Sphere. Due to his departure he also sends his family to Oriente where they can spend the time he is away with their Halas family members.
Chancellor Sun-Tzu deliberately waits on Sian for as long as possible before heading for St Ives. He also makes sure to ensure that he and the Lord Protectors escorts will not arrive at the same time or have to travel together at all, as the Lord Protector is passing through the Confederation to St Ives rather than taking the more direct route via the Federated Suns as is perhaps understandable. At this stage the last thing the Chancellor wants is to be linked to that idiot.
Perhaps as a sign of good will the Coordinator leaves Luthien and plots a direct route through his own realm and that of the Federated Suns towards St Ives. Certainly many within the various media's are prepared to see it as an olive branch from Theodore Kurita to Victor Davion. However within the Combine itself it is played as a show of strength, as the Coordinator's transport is no less than the battleship DCS Yamato. This mighty vessel will strike fear into the hearts of all enemies of the Dragon who gaze upon her serried gun batteries!
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The DCS Yamato as a transport must raise quite a few concerns jumping thru FedSuns space. I’d imagine the Prince would send at least a Cruiser and corvette Squadron to ‘escort ‘ it.
The amount of Warships around Saint Ives will be quite entertaining as I can see this meeting as a direct parallel to the Fourth Conference and possibly a ‘start’ to the Jihad.
And regarding ‘deployments’ Victor might want to consider bringing one or two of the Davion Guards units on New Avalon, picking up a couple independent formations or spare units along the way, and then send them from Saint Ives towards the Taurian front as a second task force. Of course keeping the 1st Davion and his Cruiser Squadron as escorts.
Nicely done, and if I haven’t already thanked you for it: thank you for the TO&E. Always love those phone books :)
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The DCS Yamato as a transport must raise quite a few concerns jumping thru FedSuns space. I’d imagine the Prince would send at least a Cruiser and corvette Squadron to ‘escort ‘ it.
The amount of Warships around Saint Ives will be quite entertaining as I can see this meeting as a direct parallel to the Fourth Conference and possibly a ‘start’ to the Jihad.
And regarding ‘deployments’ Victor might want to consider bringing one or two of the Davion Guards units on New Avalon, picking up a couple independent formations or spare units along the way, and then send them from Saint Ives towards the Taurian front as a second task force. Of course keeping the 1st Davion and his Cruiser Squadron as escorts.
Nicely done, and if I haven’t already thanked you for it: thank you for the TO&E. Always love those phone books :)
Victor's already dispatched the 3rd Davions from New Avalon. He could probably send the Light Guards as well but that would be reducing the garrison to a "mere" 4 RCT's - although 1 of those is the newly formed 5th Dragonlords so not sure how effective they would be. Plus whenever he's away he tends to go with the 1st Davions os that reduces the garrison to just 3 RCTs... ;)
He might draw down some forces from elsewhere though - if the war continues after the conference. The 1st Revenant Guards could be spared from Outreach by now. The 1st Crucis Lancers from Mitchel. 17th Avalon Hussars from Cassias. With Task Force Sortek just those few extra units would probably be able to finish mopping up the TDF. As long as they don't break out the nukes.
The tables of organisation are frankly as much for my benefit as anyone elses lol I need them to keep track of where I have everything!!! :D
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I just hope that they check someone out for a bomb in the belly before they start the meeting.
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Can't do that to Taurian delegation, Shraplen would decry it as sapping their essential fluids.
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Hmm the movements of the corvettes and those other forces could they be moving to take out the protectorate? Since the lunatics view them as traitors the crazy fool probably wants to use overwhelming force so he can eliminate them quickly.
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New Syrtis would be a better target, and the Taurians at this time were dumb enough to attack it.
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3067 - February - War!
On Lindsay the 2nd Dragonlords RCT found itself facing combat for the first time. The attacking force, as at Midale arrived via dangerous pirate points that showed that the Taurian Defence Force had kept a close eye upon the border systems to be able to so accurately use pinpoint pirate jump points. Like the 4th Crucis Lancers the 2nd Dragonlords were prepared for the attack but soon found themselves under constant attack as the 1st Taurian Lancers and the Pleiades Lancers threw themselves at the Dragonlords in a furious attack. The Dragonlords sound found themselves hard pressed by the constant attacks, although their 2 battle armour regiments proved to be a godsend. These 2 regiments of troops were almost totally unknown to the attacking Bulls. Although the Taurians had some experience with battle armour these forces were usually deployed in little larger than squad based units or platoon units at the most. Finding themselves facing no fewer than over 2000 battle armour troops they had no real counter for them and lost several battlemechs to overconfident mechwarriors who didn't understand the threat these units posed in such large numbers.
Time out!
Dude, two thousand Battle armor equipped troops are not a force that would kill 'several Battlemechs'. That's a force level that would rip apart entire BATTALIONS of Battlemechs and spit out the broken gyros from their mighty jaws! To put it mildly!
You're talking about having something like 8 Battle Armor operators for each Mech the enemy has!. Granted, they are not Elementals, but the are hardly trash either! They are also probably FAR better trained and led than the Taurians, with a lot more combat veterans in leadership and NCO positions and have a whole Regiment of Battlemechs backstopping them with armor and air support to boot. The Davion unit is also, as I understand the Dragonlords, rocking state of the art technology as a prestige unit while the Taurians are probably going to have small numbers of upgraded machines but mostly be rocking 3025 and 3025 limited refit technology - simply because they don't have the industry or even that much support from the Word of Blake or Confederation, who have their own needs for gear, to get upgrades.
This battle should have started with the overconfident Taurians landing and swarming forward ... right into the death zone where suddenly its "GET THEM OFF ME! GET THEM OFFFFF-" *static* all over the communications, followed by the Davion Mechwarriors charging in during the chaos to systematically start ripping up everything that's not being swarmed with their far more powerful units.
Or something like that.
Even if you said '200' Battle armor troops at least you'd expect them to knock off a few companies of Mechs in a rude shock. But two THOUSAND?!
It's the kind of thing Mechwarrior cultists have nightmares about. Their Mech on the ground, helplessly thrashing with broken limbs as a team of power armor clinging to its head slowly cut the cockpit open with murder on their minds and flamers ready...
It would be 3050 all over again, just far far worse as even a Clan frontline cluster would only support a hundred, two hundred Elementals at best, a Galaxy 5-6 hundred without crazy TO&E changes.
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If i remember correctly when the BDS dropped on the Ghost Bears, they are confronted by a Galaxy made of Elementals - they are ripped in a very short time.
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Time out!
Dude, two thousand Battle armor equipped troops are not a force that would kill 'several Battlemechs'. That's a force level that would rip apart entire BATTALIONS of Battlemechs and spit out the broken gyros from their mighty jaws! To put it mildly!
Agreed!
I think someone has it on their quote wall around here that says something like "if your battle armor tactics are not declared 'shenanigans!' by your opponent then you are doing it wrong"
And this would be some shenanigans with 2000 of them running around.
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Isn't FS BA regiment something like 400+ BA strong?
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A Davion battalion is 256 troopers strong, so depending if they go square or triangle, you're looking at 768 to 1024 plus command elements.
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Yeah I just noticed that too. If Zeta Galaxy had four Trinaries in each of their four Clusters that would equal 1,200 Elementals (assuming they were solely Elementals and not mixed arms (which we know they were slightly))
Might have added a zero there...
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Okay - I've thought it over and frankly: You are all right. The 2nd Dragonlords Battle Armour Brigade should have done a LOT more damage. If i edit it to "several companies of battlemechs" would that make more sense?
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Honestly, even that would be really low balling it if the TCAF units, as described, aggressively tried to smash into them.
But, if the Taurian commander was smart (and cold/calculating/realistic) enough to not reinforce failure pointlessly and given the Dragonlords (despite their excellent training and having key officers as Veterans, they have not actually been in combat as a unit) relatively inexperienced nature ...
I could see the Taurians pushing hard, trying to use shock effect of their two Mech regiments to just bullrush into an RCT (something you should never EVER do!). And their lead battalion hits the Battle Armor formation that is waiting patiently in ambush and it pretty much dies screaming, but the attack commander is quick enough to not reinforce failure and sacrifices it as he pulls back and tries to bypass the strongpoint, with barely a company of Taurian Mechs from said Battalion being able to disengage (read, run faster than the Battle armor can keep up). Or something.
Because honestly, one 3060s era RCT with excellent equipment and regular skill thats in good defensive positions should be an easy match for two regular mech regiments running mostly older technology with little to no supporting units. Let alone an RCT with massed Battle Armor on such a scale and even decent competence in how to use it.
But please don't let me try to write your story for you, its a very bad habit I get into :(
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Crazy idea; those factories you're stripping out, I dare you to offer them, for free, to the Calderon Protectorate. Even with some choice NAIS upgrades to the production line to build advanced model BugMechs.
It would be politically brilliant in that the Taurians would still keep control of the factories, just the sane half of them, plus the lines get upgraded to boot! So the locals now out of work can even just move planets if they really want to :D
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Crazy idea; those factories you're stripping out, I dare you to offer them, for free, to the Calderon Protectorate. Even with some choice NAIS upgrades to the production line to build advanced model BugMechs.
It would be politically brilliant in that the Taurians would still keep control of the factories, just the sane half of them, plus the lines get upgraded to boot! So the locals now out of work can even just move planets if they really want to :D
that is an amazing idea, but I would not give them lv2 tech. you never know were they would end up... but how about updating the factories to so that they increase production by 10 to 15 percent per line? The Clint line from MacLeod's Land might be worth sending to the Sun Jags.
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Honestly I have to agree with Chris.
2000 battlearmour would probably wipe out at least 2 companies from each regiment if poorly led and deployed.
The support troops of the Taurians would just be destroyed.
I played one game where I had 1 company of BA as well as a company of mechs. The BA knocked out 5 mechs and ripped his tanks apart.
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Honestly I have to agree with Chris.
2000 battlearmour would probably wipe out at least 2 companies from each regiment if poorly led and deployed.
The support troops of the Taurians would just be destroyed.
I played one game where I had 1 company of BA as well as a company of mechs. The BA knocked out 5 mechs and ripped his tanks apart.
Out of curiosity what BA were you fielding IS or Clan models?
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Okay I've edited it to them losing several companies in the initial engagement due to overconfident mechwarriors... That should at least boost the numbers. I'll also include a reference to the taurians being VERY wary of BA troops in the next update due to these losses.
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IS standard models, which surprised my opponent. He did not believe they were any use.
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IS standard models, which surprised my opponent. He did not believe they were any use.
He knows better now. >:D
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The big question though is when the FedSun wins what kind of treaty will they sign? I don’t think it would be wise to make it an unfair treaty and I don’t think we should demand any of their worlds, though I think it would be wise to call for a change in government preferably the one made up of protectorate officals. We also want avoid seeming like the First SL in this treaty so maybe the FedSun should offer loans and such so they can rebuild?
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The big question though is when the FedSun wins what kind of treaty will they sign? I don’t think it would be wise to make it an unfair treaty and I don’t think we should demand any of their worlds, though I think it would be wise to call for a change in government preferably the one made up of protectorate officals. We also want avoid seeming like the First SL in this treaty so maybe the FedSun should offer loans and such so they can rebuild?
Agreed try to rebuild the civilian economy as to be a second source for a number of things the Federated Suns uses.
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Honestly I think the best bet is to fight as clean as possible - even if Crazy McCrazy pants tries to do things like nuke Federated Suns planets (presuming the hits are relatively minimal of course). The ideal solution would be to flip the TC from an enemy to an ally, or at least a cordial sort of neutral. That can be done; the key is the Calderon Protectorate. If you can eliminate Shraplen and his most hardcore supporters, you might well be able to pull off a palace coup with Baron Kithrong stepping in to seize power. He already has a lot of backing in the TC and I bet a lot of power players think quietly much like he does, but don't want Crazy Pants to have them shot. And if the Federated Suns has conveniently trashed his most hardcore supporters and there is a belief in a lot of the Powers that Be that the AFFS is poised for a massive counter-invasion that they can't stop, even IF Nukes arereleased (and doing so may hurt the AFFS enough that it forces Victor Steiner-Davion to park a flotila of Avalon class ships in orbit of Samantha and flush their tubes with orbit to surface nukes to make a point to the entire Inner Sphere) ...
You might just be able to flip the TC from an enemy to at least a neutral force willing to open trade links and the like (so much the better if they also kick out the WOB and invite ComStar back, blaming the WOB for a lot of the 'enabling of Shraplen). And that is more than good enough for the Federated Suns. And given time, that thawing might turn to something much more cordial, if guarded.
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3067 - March - Interlude - Case Granite
3rd March, 3067
L-5 Pirate Jump Point
Ridgebrook System
Ridgebrook PDZ
Taygeta OA
Capellan March
Federated Suns
As the effects of the jump wore of Admiral Davidson leaned forward and stared at the sensor readouts with a single thought in mind: Where are they?! He had been promised support. He and his ships had been promised that prior to their arrival their allies would jump into the system and draw of the Davion warships from around the planet, yet all he could see on the readouts were enemy warships already coming to action stations to attack his task force! Worse, the pirate jump point they'd chosen was so close to the planet that there was no chance of getting away without a fight now!
Snarling he turned to the WOB precentor who was his "technical adviser". "Where are the Capellans?! We were promised that they would send no less than 4 cruisers or destroyers and I don't see a single ship! WHERE ARE THEY?!"
The WOB adviser, and damn the fact that the Taurian Navy needed said advisers to run their new ships anyway, merely tried to look calmly back at him and glanced herself at the sensor readouts. "I don't know Admiral. But the Davion's are moving to attack..."
"I can see that!" He only barely kept the shrill sound of panic out of his voice. The sensor readouts were clear on that point, the Davion's had been formed up in 2 formations, each one built around a cruiser with 4 corvette escorts with each formation being in a separate polar orbit. Now those 2 formations were rapidly heading towards his own 4 corvettes and the jumpships and dropships they were escorting. He had only minutes to decide what to do and with the jump batteries spent retreat wasn't an option. With 4 light corvettes and a handful of dropships, attack shuttles and what fighter formations could be scraped together the odds weren't just bad, they were horrific. Worse, not only his own ships would be under the Davion guns but also the large number of troop transports that he was escorting. This attack had been supposed to be a modern day Case Amber, striking the assembled Davion forces when they least expected it and destroying their attack before it could launch. The Taurian Defence Force had committed almost every jumpship and dropship it could spare along with all 4 of it's active warships! All of which were to be used to ensure that the Concordat Commandos, Gordon's Armoured Cavalry, Pleiades Hussars, Pleiades Lancers and 2nd Taurian Lancers. No fewer than 5 of the TDF's commands had been dispatched for this audacious attack on Task Force Sortek to hit them where they least expected it, as their base on Ridgebrook! His own command had been entrusted with making sure they reached their destination safely!
That mission had been largely dependent on the Capellan's keeping their promise. Their ambassador had promised that the Chancellor would dispatch 4 of his own warships to jump into the outer system of Ridgebrook and draw the defending warships out of position 3 days before his own task force was due to arrive. That would have left the orbitals free of enemy ships or at worst case scenario left his 4 corvettes fighting against maybe 1 or 2 Fox corvettes. A hard fight but one that he had been confident he could win. However now he found his 4 light ships facing off against 2 cruisers and 8 Fox's!
The WOB adviser stepped in closer and almost whispered. "We still can win this... We have the special ordinance. Authorise it's use. Immediately in a first strike on the Davion warships. We can smash them quickly and ensure victory... It's our own chance Admiral!"
For a half second the Admiral hovered on the edge of indecision, but the Lord Protector hadn't hand picked a weakling with no resolve to lead Case Granite! He jerked his head with a nod and turned to his communications officer, who was also a WOB "adviser". "Notify all ships. Turn broadside. All missile tubes to load nuclear ordinance and fire on any target of opportunity. Concentrate fire if at all possible on the enemy heavy ships. The Concordant Navy knows it's duty and will buy time for the ground forces to retake Ridgebrook from the enemy!"
He then leaned forward and keyed a personal communication into the arm of his command chair, linking himself with Colonel Monty Scott of the Concordat Commandos's in the dropship Taurian Honour, who was the senior commanding officer of the ground forces. "Monty, things are bad here... You need to run for the planet. I'm going to nuke the bastards, but I'm not sure that will be enough... Get to ground and get in those bastards faces so they can't use orbital fire on you if they win... Good luck and make them pay!"
Even as he sent the message he could feel the TCS Revenge pivoting as it attempted to bring the barracuda missile tubes in the aft quarter of the vessel to bear on the charging Davion ships. All the other warships were doing the same, as the ground forces streaked for the planet in an attempt to avoid being caught in the crossfire.
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Hello Billy Boy Mark II,
first of all thanks for this story.
Your attention to flesh out the story with this much detail is astounding.
You set a high standard for a story.
How to start the following?
I put myself into the shoes of Victor enemies and switched sides so to speak of. And these are the ideas and thoughts that I had.
Right now I have the feeling that this story turned into "Victor Davion curbstomps them all".
You know, that Sun Tzu Liao is supposed to be the Hanse Davion of the CapCon? That he is good at the political game, shrewd, cunning on par with Katrina Steiner (according to his entry on sarna) especially against a beginner like Victor? And right now you have given him a few good cards to play against Victor? And that the Federated Suns are supposed to be the moral good guys without fail?
When the FS raided Highspire they looted works of art.
Now Sunny Boy can accuse Victor and the FS of trying to eradicate the cultural history of the people of Highspire. So he can ask for a censure of the Federated Suns. And as the looting of the Factories can be explained as removing the tools of war to make the people of the FS safe, the stealing of art has no military purpose.
So, Sunny Boy can say, that the behaviour of the FS troops mirrors that of the Greenhaven Gestapo or, as Victor descends from the Steiners and they are Germans - does anybody still remember World War 2 - anybody remembers the Amber Room which was stolen by German troops?
So, maybe it is time for the Davion military to switch its uniforms to those more in line with the uniforms of the units their behaviour emulates, e.g. Greenhaven Gestapo or the uniforms of the Wehrmacht or worse.
And not only that.
If I remember everything about the Succession Wars it was always that planets changed hands, but in no way was a planet looted of its entire cultural history. So Victor crossed a border that was till now obeyed by all Successor States. And therefore to prevent the cultural annihilation of the CC Sun Tzu will be forced to announce that canned sunshine is on the table unless Victor not only returns the cultural artifacts but is also severely punished for breaking the unspoken agreement among the Successor States.
And Sun Tzu can accuse Victor of being a hypocrite. On the on hand he does everything to get back those planets lost to the DC and calls it "His duty towards the People of the Suns", but if Sun Tzu tries to do the same - and the CC lost more planets to the FS than the FS lost to DC - Victor calls it aggression and warmongering. So, if he does not want to be a hypocrite, he should turn over all planets taken fronm the CC, as he regained all planets back from the DC. Tu Quoque anybody?
Grover Shraplen could claim that he is like Victor. As Victor regained the planets lost to Kurita he tries to keep the TC together against Victors attempt to gobble up the TC piece by piece. The planets of the TC were settled by people of the TC who must roll in their graves over their descendents anti-TC behaviour. And the exploration and everything build upon those planets were paid for by the people of the TC. Those planets and everything on them is property of the TC. So if a certain Baron and his people want to live under the rule of the Davions they are free to take the next jumpship heading for the FS leaving the planets and everything on them to the loyal people of the TC. And besides, when his sister Katherine tried to rip off a part of his realm, did he not fight against such separatism? So he should give the same rights to him.
But if said Baron arrives on a FS planet he is no longer a Baron as this title was given to him by the TC. He is just a penniless commoner - if he did not ripped off his former subjects.
And to the looting of the factories: He should ask for an investigation into Victors personal account. By looting the planets of every military hardware he leaves those planets open to attack by Pirates. So all lives lost are on his soul.
And isnt the FC against slavery? Because Pirates always take slaves.
So, how much did the pirates pay him for having the chance of taking slaves?
So, he could ask the the FS sents units to protect those planets against pirate attacks until the TC has reached the military equipment levels before the war and the factories are completely rebuild.
(And if I were Grover I would make sure that those planets are the last to receive any help in rebuilding the factories and the military forces. And the FS forces would be housed like the FRR housed its Mercenaries- just worse, much worse.)
I think that this would receive support from at least House Kurita (who must still be angry about the lost planets and the treatment of Hohiro Kurita.).
I think by now everybody knows that the forces of the FS loot everything, so I would expect that the other realms prepare.
Moving all factories into the mountains (Hesperus anybody), that have only ONE entrance (and if anybody suggests there must be more openings for better access or air supply, he is shot.). And of course a lot of traps and firepower so that even a RCT has problems getting to the loot.
Make sure that nobody helps the FS forces when they dismantle your infrastructure. Making a few examples Maskirovka-style: "The Davions may put a survivable bullet in you if you dont help them, but do you want to know what the Maskirovka does to you and your entire family if you help them?"
You know that the TC was not very cooperative during the Reunification war to say the least? According to HISTORICAL Reunification War page 64 it was the bloodiest campaign (on some planets 1 in 5 citizens was dead) and the TC was blasted back to the Stone Age.
And they used WMD in a, ahem, very liberal way (page 75 Comes ARES unleashed). And they were masters in guerilla warfare.
So, any Davion unit landing on a TC planet should be in a shooting gallery.
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3067 - March - Davion strikes back
March began with the surprise attack upon Ridgebrook by the Taurian forces of Case Granite. Clearly hoping to repeat the long ago success of their Case Amber attack upon the Federated Suns during the Reunification Wars the Taurian's jumped into Ridgebrook at a pirate point near the planet in preparation for their attack. With 4 Pinto class corvettes and a mixed bag of assault dropships the escorting force immedietly attacked the Federated Sun's ships manoeuvring to attack, while the 5 regiments worth of battlemechs and their supporting forces headed straight for Ridgebrook at a maximum burn. What most on the Federated Sun's side couldn't understand was how the Taurian's thought they could win being outnumbered 2.5:1 in warships, and even worse in tonnage.
The battle in orbit was short and brutal, made more so when the Taurian ships in a clear move of desperation opened fire with nuclear weapons in their very first broadside. Thankfully the limitations on their design only allowed them to fire 2 light missiles from broadside with every volley, but still the space between the 2 fleets was soon crisscrossed with the warning icons of incoming nuclear ordinance. Hurriedly imposing themselves between the cruisers and the incoming nukes the Fox class corvettes took the brunt of the attack, meanwhile launching their own attack via missile batteries, dropships and aerospace fighters. Their single prow based barracuda class missile launcher's first launch was a conventional warhead, but follow on warheads were nuclear tipped. The FSS Joseph Davion's own 2 initial missile launches were followed up by much heavier nuclear ordinance than the barracuda launcher's of the corvettes could handle. Even as the first and second volley's were launched the Davion ship's were turning their own broadsides towards the Bull's, allowing them to fire much heavier salvos of weaponry.
In the first few long range missile exchanges the Fox corvettes attempted to shoot down the incoming nuclear missiles with volleys of machine guns and anti missile systems. They were only partially successful. In the first volley of missiles a single 1 got through and hit the FSS Kittery. Due to the light nature of the nuclear warhead the ship wasn't destroyed, although the armour held however the impact of the hit produced a critical hit that resulted in the ship losing all power except emergency life support. The second volley of nuclear weapons resulted in another strike on the crippled FSS Kittery and a fresh hit on the FSS Joseph Davion. The second hit sent the already damaged corvette into an uncontrollable spin that resulted in the crew having to abandon ship with fires raging throughout the ship. The larger Avalon cruiser however shrugged of the hit and continued to fight. The third salvo from the Pinto's was their last proper salvo as by now Davion weapons were smashing through the thinly armoured shells of the refurbished Amaris ships and resulting in heavy losses. This salvo resulted in a single strike on the FSS Edwards which smashed through into it's launch bays and led to a crippling fire gutting the launch bays with heavy loss of life amongst the bay personal. Further fire from the Pinto's single light long range naval laser did little more than damage armour on a number of FedSun's vessels.
Even as the missile strikes were hammering into the Davion ships however returned fire. Their initial missile strikes were concentrated on the TCS Retribution. Although conventional in nature the missiles caused heavy damage, particularly the single Killer Whale strike from the FSS Joseph Davion. The follow on strikes from the Federated Sun's Navy ships matched the Bull's broadsides with nuclear tipped weapons, even as their heavier laser batteries reached out and struck at the Pinto's. The Taurian flagship disappeared in a nuclear firestorm when it was hit by a huge Peacemaker tipped Killer Whale missile. The ship was torn apart in the resulting strike and little more than debris was left by the time the glare had faded. The other 3 Pinto's, while not having such dramatic deaths, suffered the same fate as accurate laser fire and nuclear tipped missiles smashed into them. The few Taurian dropships who survived to charge into closer range found themselves the targets of massed batteries of naval autocannon on the Fox's which tore them apart in a few volleys.
Within 15 minutes the Naval Battle of Ridgebrook was effectively over. All 4 Pinto's and their dropships were gone. A handful of gunboats and fighters remained but these were massively outnumbered and outclassed by the FedSun's fighters attached to the various warships and would soon be hunted down. In return they had destroyed the warship FSS Kittery who's uncontrollable spin and fires would result in the ship breaking apart before she could be brought under control, heavy damage to the FSS Edwards and light damage to 2 other Fox corvettes and the FSS Joseph Davion. The dropship and fighter wings attached to the Davion ships had been largely undamaged due to their massive superiority over their counterparts.
In the meantime however they had bought time for the various ground forces that were to "liberate" Ridgebrook to land. However these landings were heavily contested by the fighter wings of the defending Davion regiments and all 5 Taurian units suffered losses before they had even made planetfall - with the heaviest losses being concentrated in the 2nd Taurian Lancers who saw their single Overlord class dropship brought down while attempting to land. Having had it's engines knocked out while still at 10,000 feet there were no survivors from the crashed dropship.
Even as the various Taurian units combat dropped from their transports or disembarked upon landing the Davion forces of Task Force Sortek were hurriedly moving into attack formations, in some cases using their own dropships to combat hop to nearer the landing zones. The first force to arrive was the 1st Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry, who instead of attempting to overrun the LZ's merely provided a constant harrasment that made unloading even more difficult. When they were joined by the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT's battlemech assets the 2 units proceeded to close in and attack the LZ's properly. With the veteran troops of the former Vanguard Legion leading the way the Davion forces hammered the still shocked 2nd Taurian Lancers who were only saved by the prompt response from the Concordat Commandos. However this response left the Commando's own LZ and dropships vulnerable and the 1st Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry outflanked the relieving unit and attacked their own grounded transportation assets and unloading supplies in a devastatingly swift attack.
By the time the 2 Illician Lancers regiments had arrived to join the attack the Taurian's were already on the ropes. The 2nd Taurian Lancers, hammered even before they landed with heavy losses had been nearly smashed during the initial counter attack by the Davions and now found themselves effectively rolled into the Concordat Commandos who were themselves struggling to hold themselves together. The 2 Pleiades units found themselves soon fighting hard against the bulk of the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers as they attempted to break out from the LZ while under heavy fighter attacks almost constantly. Gordon's Armoured Cavalry also attempted a breakout to the south but soon found itself with a battalion of Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry in front of it fighting delaying actions as the 21st Rangers from the Illician Lancers moved in on their flank. When they attempted to head back to the landing zones they found the way blocked by the 4th Rangers. Having been cut off they seized a nearby ridge and dug in awaiting the Davion's attempting to overwhelm them.
However this attack never came as Ardan Sortek now arriving with the 3rd Davion Guards and the 3rd Dragonlords RCT's took personal command. Ordering the 4th Rangers to remain in a blocking position to keep Gordon's Armoured Cavalry out of the fight he ordered the other regiments under his command to close in on the main body of Taurian Defence Force Regulars. Calling upon the Ridgebrook CMM to provide rear area support, Sortek waited till nightfall while keeping the trapped Taurians under constant artillery and fighter attack. In the early hours of the morning he called down pin point naval laser strikes from the orbiting FSS Woodstock and FSS Ridgebrook onto the Taurian's lines while ordering his own artillery to plaster the area between both lines with Thunder LRM strikes. When the various Taurian's attempted to rush his lines they ran straight into the newly laid minefields. Those who struggled through these found themselves facing dug in Grenadier, Cavalier and Infiltrator II battle armour as Sortek deployed the various battle armour regiments and battalions of the various regiments into the front lines.
By the first dawn after landing the Taurian forces were a shattered mess. After a night of naval bombardment and artillery barrages their dropships were all either destroyed or crippled and their lines had been fragmented. The Pleiades Hussars and Pleiades Lancers had been formed into an adhoc formation of around 3 battalions of battlemech's while the Concordat Commandos had fully absorbed the remaining 2nd Taurian Lancers and even with these additions could barely field 2 and a half battalions of troops. Colonel Monty Scott who was still alive and in command requested via radio what terms Sortek was offering at 8am. The Prince's Champion informed the "invading troops" that his terms were simple. Unconditional surrender. Or he would order his artillery, orbiting warships and fighter wings to smash the ground of their landing zones to glass.
In response the Pleiades troops attempted to breakout from the LZ, refusing to surrender. Even before they reached the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers lines they were losing mech's to Thunder laid minefields, fighter strikes and artillery fire, but when they finally hit the former Vanguard Legion those losses skyrocketed. The heavy and assault mech's of the 4th Fusiliers backed up by entire battalions of Challenger MBT and Alacorn Mk IV held up under the attack of the damaged and ragged Pleiades troops and threw it back. Not content with merely throwing the attack back Leftenant General Chad Dean leads a counter attack personally from the cockpit of his Templar-O. Crushing the retreating remnants of the Pleiades Hussars and Lancers he hammers into the LZ and ends up cutting it in half only stopping when he runs into the Concordat Commando's and engaging in a long range battle with them.
With over half his remaining forces gone and his LZ now a fraction of it's former size Colonel Scott has no choice but to accept Ardan Sortek's "terms" with as much grace as he can muster. Task Force Sortek swiftly hands over the surrendering Taurian's to the Ridgebrook CMM and moves it's entire force to encircle the single remaining Taurian force - Gordon's Armoured Cavalry. Faced with 3 full RCT and 3 battlemech regiments Colonel Gordon offers his own unconditional surrender, but it is refused. Instead he is given generous terms of surrender, assuring him that in return for a token ransom his regiment will remain intact. The only term which the Davion's insist upon is that he switch his contract with the Taurian Concordat to the "true heirs of House Calderon" the Calderon Protectorate.
Refitting his units the Prince's Champion brings the 1st Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry up to full strength and detaches them along with the 2nd FedSun's Dragoons which had been moved to the Pleiades Cluster to counter attack and retake Brockway. They will be joined in this counter attack by the Blue Star Irregulars after they relieve Lindsay.
On Lindsay the 2nd Dragonlords are faced with the veteran 1st Taurian Lancers. The Lancers are smart enough to avoid engaging in a direct fight with the larger Dragonlords formation, particularly given the hard lessons learned about their battle armoured troopers. However this strategy fails when the 2nd Dragonlord's deploys a full battalion of Cavaliers and Grenadiers via air drops from Karnov's into the Taurian's ranks at night. The descending paratrooper battle armour unit land into their camp and proceed to cause heavy casualties before finally being driven off. When word reaches the 1st Taurian's that a warship and 2 regiments of mercenaries have arrived in system to reinforce the Dragonlords it's too much for them. They break off for their dropships and retreat swiftly towards the Taurian Concordat, arriving back on Illuishin with a little over half the strength they left with.
Their retreat leaves the Blue Star Irregular's free to move on Brockway to link up with the 1st FSAC and 2nd FedSun's Dragoons. Along with them go the Kerensky's Blues and 2 Fox corvettes - the FSS Woodstock and FSS Galax. The Concordat Jaegers and Red Chasseur's who have been preparing for an impending counter attack find their preperations to be largely ineffectual when faced with a force that outnumbers them 2:1 in battlemechs and even worse in conventional forces and air support. Their hastily prepared fortifications are bombarded from orbit and strafed by fighter wings. Worse, with 3 warships in orbit and the FedSun's in total control of the air, they cannot withdraw. Dug in hard they face repeated attacks from the 21st Rim Worlds and 2nd FedSun's Dragoons while the 1st Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry and the 1894th Light Horse launch constant raids and probes to find weaknesses for the heavier units to exploit. By the end of March they are still holding out, but neither regiment can field more than a battalion in strength.
The 4th Crucis Lancers continue to hunt what is left of the Bannockburn Bandits. Hounded by the much larger force that knows the terrain and is aided by the locals the Bandit's finally surrender on the 17th.
Even as the invasion forces are being destroyed or routed the AFFS counter attack into the Taurian Concordat itself continues. The 36th Avalon Hussars finally completed the dismantling and looting of the Pinard Protectorate Limited plant and began work on the Alphard Trading Corporation facility. Unlike the Pinard Protectorate plant this looting was merely the seizing of such spare parts and finished equipment as was available. The Federated Sun's Government had contacted Alphard Trading Corporation and the FWL based former headquarters of this company and in return for a large sum of money had agreed not to demolish the plant. Instead ATC FLW retook control of the former breakaway subsidiary. The 36th then moves on and hits the world of Logan's Land. They systematically reduce the planets defensive forces and militias until finally they surrender in early April.
Hansen's Roughriders finishing their own looting on MacLeod's Land leave the planet and strike Pinard itself. The existing militia and new formations of the Volunteer Guard prove little match for the mercenaries and their supporting AFFS conventional forces and the planet's government surrenders on condition that the civilian population isn't harmed. Which leaves the Roughriders free to begin the looting of the Phoenix Hawk and Marauder lines at the plant there as well as the various vehicle lines. It is now obvious that the Federated Sun's is removing the ability of the Taurian Concordat to wage war.
The 12th Avalon Hussars and their accompany warships make short work of the defenders of Charleston and Orkney and finish March hitting Cadiz. Behind them they leave disarmed militias, industrial plants that have been looted of anything of value and new planetary governors who are pro-Kithrong rather than Shraplen. As soon as they finish up on Cadiz they are preparing to hit Sterope.
The green 3rd Chisholm Raiders hit's Althea's Choice. There the Clean Kill mercenary force immedietly and fully declares for the Calderon Protectorate rather than face a full RCT. With the help of the mercenaries the Raiders install a pro-Kithrong governor in the face of only haphazard opposition from Shraplen loyalists.
The 34th Avalon Hussars arrived on Dicallus and soon finds itself facing hordes of Gabriel equipped militia. Even the light weighted 34th finds itself struggling to counter these fast light vehicles, so they simply don't. Instead the battlemech, armour and infantry formations of the 34th seize the government buildings and the plant that produces the Gabriel itself. They leave the countering of the Gabriel's to their attached fighter regiment which is soon running constant CAP over the 34th's garrisoning points. The unit's CO who has studied history ensures that his unit secure access to the genetically engineered dogs the planet is famous for to protect his troops from the local wildlife. With such protections in place the 34th begins the looting and destruction of the Gabriel line. The machinery and schematics are loaded into the dropships of the 34th Hussars are are soon being prepared to be shipped to the Federated Suns. As soon as this is complete the 34th will leave the world and head for the link up with their sister regiment the 12th at Sterope.
On the 31st of March the special session of the Star League begins with Lord Protector going into a shrieking rant about the treachery of the Liao's and the aggression of the Davion's. The Lord Protector has recieved word of the crumbling fronts and the destruction of his counterattacking force on Ridgebrook as well as the total annihilation of his Navy. Worse he has began to hear rumours that the Taurian Guard is preparing to mount a coup to remove him from power - and given that they are the last remaining regular formation under his command that is intact and not committed to other actions this threat is real. He sends word to the 3rd Taurian Lancers to withdraw from the Protectorate border and head for Taurus itself to maintain his rule.
However his rant is cut short by First Prince Victor, who is somewhat confused as to why Sun-Tzu has also been mentioned in it, who informs him that this doesn't have to continue. That if he is prepared to order his units to return to Taurian space and stand down himself as Lord Protector so that a regency council can be appointed for Erik Martens-Calderon then the First Prince will instantly order his troops to halt their operations. The First Prince pleads with the enraged Lord Protector to see sense. His realm is in chaos, his navy destroyed and his ground forces in tatters, it is time to stop. The First Prince is supported in this by the various other Council Lords.
However the Lord Protector refuses. He demands that the Star League evict the Federated Suns from his worlds, award the Concordat the worlds stolen from them by the First Star League and support his realm's just cause. In the face of such demands the Council Lords vote... And censure the Lord Protector. If he does not cease operations against the Federated Suns by the end of April the Concordat will be ejected from the Second Star League. The vote is almost unanimous, with the Chancellor abstaining. After a mere day Grover Shraplen storms out and heads for home.
The Federated Sun's Navy, despite the losses at Ridgebrook actually grows during March 3067. The FSS Sakhara, FSS New Haiti, FSS Malarn, FSS Salem and FSS Northfield all slip from their construction docks at Galax. These ships are sent on shakedown cruises before being assigned to a Corvette Flotilla. A number of Davion III destroyer slips are also completed this month - 1 each at Galax, Kathil and New Syrtis. Work begins on 2 Congress-D II slips at Panpour.
On Firgrove the new Ahab factory line enters production. It's entire production is snapped up by the AFFS and ComGuards, with the first Ahab's for the AFFS going to replace the losses of the 2nd Chisholm Raiders aerospace regiment. The Firgrove Consortium continue to look for new designs to put into production.
On Errai the Maltex Corporation plow's the profits of their sales into setting up a second Thug line. They receive loans to support this project from the planetary government and also the Federated Sun's Government. The AFFS can always use more of the rugged Thug design.
At the Robinsons BattleWork's flagship facility on Robinson the new Battlemaster line begins producing this iconic command assault mech. Already the Duke of Robinson has authorised the new battlemechs to be sent to the various Ranger regiments, although he has made a point of sending a full lance to the 1st New Ivaarsen Chasseur's.
Even as the Council Lords are discussing Shraplen's clear mental breakdown and his refusal to see sense the Chancellor receives word that 2 of his staff have disappeared. While initially it is thought they might have been kidnapped or killed by either St Ives agents or their allies from the Federated Suns it's soon apparent that the 2 men deliberately sought to leave the secure compound and disappear into the teeming cities of St Ives...
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man what a great story line. keep writing what makes you happy and I will keep reading it and waiting more and more and more and more
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A very nice update! Keep up the awesome writing!!
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Posted with permission of billyboy
FSS Woodstock
Captain Livingston was still getting settled into his wardrooms chair he was doing the usual paperwork for running the ship and was reading through a persistent targeting issue they’d had on the forward barracuda launcher, when they’re, was a chime from his desk console.
He pushed down on the button, “yes?” He asked.
The enlisted crewman who took the place of the marine sentry who would have been on a larger ship said, “Sir communication officer to see you with an important message.”
“Send her in Private,” he said.
The door opened and lieutenant Khatri stepped through the door her she was slender and relatively small with black hair and a complexion that spoke of her family’s descent for the old United Hindu Collective worlds. She was on her first deployment with the Woodstock after transferring out from the FSS Covenant where she performed well as the assistant com officer and taking over the vacant role after the previous officer was transferred to an FSS Churchill to take over as the ships XO.
“Yes Lieutenant?” he asked.
“Sir,” Lieutenant Khatri said, “we just got a high priority message from the Foxes’ Den.” She then placed the printout in front of him.
He nodded and took it and read threw it his eyebrows rising slightly as he read through the message he also felt the blood drain from his face a little.
“Lieutenant you are dismissed though expect a command briefing at 1600 with all Senior officers,” he said, “I will inform the XO and the others.”
“Yes sir,” she said and left the compartment.
He quickly punched in the code and the voice of the ships XO Commander Jagger came on he was a Lyran expat from Dongle who had come to the AFFS with the first prince and had come onboard with Livingston when the ship had first floated off the slip. He was currently standing on the bridge as an officer of the watch and was running through a drill with the bridge crews. But he responded to the call quickly.
“Yes sir?” came his thickly accented voice.
“Jagger,” He said, “I want you to pass onto the Senior officers we’re having an emergency briefing at 1600.”
“Right sir,” He said and then asked, “Sir may I ask what’s happened?”
“The Taurian’s,” he said, “have finally lost their damn minds by the looks of it.”
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At 1600 every division head was gathered in the small briefing room that of the Woodstock. He scanned around looking at each of them trying to gauge how they would react to the news; Commander Jagger provided a solid presence to the room as he always did but he looked on edge after they had spoken briefly before the meeting. Next to him was Lieutenant Commander Bruce she was a fiery redhead who was in charge of the tactical department and had some of the best gunnery scores in the gowning fleet.
Moving on the table we had Lieutenant Commander Lucas who was a short intense man who was Chief Engineer on the ship and to him, it seemed he’d memorised all the Foxe’s machinery manuals. Sat next to him was Lieutenant Crossroads whose family were political activist from the Confederation who had managed to flee at the start of the 4th Succession and who was the Ships Navigation officer. Next to her was Lieutenant Blanding the Ships Quartermaster and had short-cropped blond hair and grey eyes. Then there was Surgeon Commander Rierson who looked more like he should have been a prizefighter than a doctor however he had mastered his trade putting men back together when they were fighting the clans and he was glad to have him. Finally, being the junior of the senior officers Lieutenant Khatri was sat at the end of the table.
He stood up and the small talk that had been going on while he looked at them stopped he then said, “Ladies and Gentlemen as you are all aware tensions with the Concordat have been rising” there were a few nods around the table, “Well I have just received the report from High Command that Bromhead has been attacked by force of the Concordat but has been driven off.”
There were a few small smiles at that but most stayed quite knowing what this means, “Right now we are at war with the Concordat to that end we have been ordered to link up with the Dahar, Edwards, Galax, Kittery, Ridgebrook, Kathil and Bryceland to form the 1st Corvette Flotilla at Ridgebrook under Rear Admiral Geary to support Task Force Sortek.”
“Sir,” Jagger asked, “do we have any intel on the progression of the TDF’s own warships?”
“Based on the last brief from MIIO,” he said checking his note, “they are marginally operational at best with the indication that there are Word of Blake advisor aboard who are mainly operating major systems.”
Their Lucas seemed to grimace and said, “if that’s the case sir, then they will be more dangerous to themselves than to us sir.”
“How do you mean Chief?” asked Khatri
“Well Lieutenant,” Lucas said, “It took us time to regain the skills to run a Warship they have Word advisors sure but they are running around in barely operational ships they're going to struggle to handle them and do vital duties like damage control, navigation among other things. That’s not counting that their ships are going to ramshackle at best when it comes to operations, I expect them to have equipment failures daylily.”
“I agree,” he said, “But enough speculation Lieutenant Crossroads I want a course plotted to our rendezvous point, Commander Jagger and Commander Bruce.”
“Yes Sir,” they replied.
“I want to run as many drills and simulations as possible before we reach the rally point,” He said, “we need to be as ready as possible I want you to treat this as if we're going against the Dracs or the Cappies fleets, not a ramshackle fleet I want us to be at our best.”
There we determined nods around the Table at his word they would not let down their prince, the AFFS or their Commander. They would show the bastards what the Cappies and Dracs learned the hard way you don’t mess with the Prince's spear.
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3rd March, 3067
FSS Woodstock
Ridgebrook System
Ridgebrook PDZ
Taygeta OA
Capellan March
Federated Suns
A few weeks later they had arrived in the Ridgebrook system and were drilling with the rest of the Flotilla so far they had been drilling to act as hunter-killers against light Concordat warships and Assault Dropships and working as close-in support for their cruisers so they could provide screening duties for their large consorts.
The bridge was quite it was the main watch with their assistant operators and they were just about to do another set of drills and exercise with the rest of the fleet simulating against a Concordat force playing the role of the Concordat when the suddenly detected a massive burst from the jump point.
“Sir,” came the call from Lieutenant Crossroads, “Unidentified jump signature at pirate point L-5 transferring track to tactical.”
A quick scan by Bruce and she stiffened in her seat and said in a stiff voice, “Sir preliminary analysis suggests their the Concordats missing fleet I’ve got Pintos drive signatures.”
He nodded sharply and pressed his hand down on the console action stations alarm which began blaring crew members all over the ship dropped cards, stopped eating and leapt out of their racks as they hurried to their combat stations throwing on skinsuits as they went.
“all hands action stations,” he said over the speakers, “I say again all hands actions stations incoming Bull flotilla.”
His officers watched as the boards went from red to green as all crew arrived at their stations and then as the last of the light went green as he and the bridge crew finished donning their suits.
“Sir we’ve got a call from the Admiral,” Lieutenant Khatri said, “Orders are to form up in screening pattern 9 around the Covenant!”
“Confirmed,” he said, “Helmsman bring us up next to the Covenant in screening pattern 9. Bruce prepare point defence for incoming ship killers the Bulls are looking to do a repeat of CASE AMBER lets show them times have changed!”
There was a bloodthirsty grin on the younger assistant officers faces as they moved into position.
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Now that was an update.
The Wobbies will be pissed at loosing there insane ally.
Well done. :beer:
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I wonder how long is it going to take for ComStar and the FedSuns to get a new scout hover tank called the Gabriel into their ranks?
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I wonder how long is it going to take for ComStar and the FedSuns to get a new scout hover tank called the Gabriel into their ranks?
Not too long I hope!
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Did FS forces train in use of ortillery beforehand, or did they improvise on Ridgebrook? Also smart move with forcing change of allegiance for GAC, while keeping surrendered regular forces imprisoned until Taurian conflict is resolved.
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Now that was an update.
The Wobbies will be pissed at loosing there insane ally.
Well done. :beer:
Each update is taking hours to do! lol Glad I changed it from quarterly to monthly!!!
I wonder how long is it going to take for ComStar and the FedSuns to get a new scout hover tank called the Gabriel into their ranks?
Not too long I hope!
Not that long... :p
Did FS forces train in use of ortillery beforehand, or did they improvise on Ridgebrook? Also smart move with forcing change of allegiance for GAC, while keeping surrendered regular forces imprisoned until Taurian conflict is resolved.
A bit of training, but mostly improvisation. The thing about it is that the FedSuns doesn't want to wipe out the TC - but they do want to remove it as a threat to their border that keeps them having to position multiple RCT's along it.
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3067 - April - Ceasefire
Even as the Lord Protector rushed home via the Capellan Confederation the Davion assault on his realm continued. On Brockway the 1st Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry, 2nd FedSun's Dragoons and the 2 Blue Star Irregular mercenary regiments are joined by a combat command of the 6th Syrtis Fusiliers - drawn from the reinforced RCT's heaviest assault elements. The 3 assault weighted battlemech regiments with a full regiment of assault and heavy class tanks leads a full on assault on the weakened Taurian lines and breaks them right open in a 3 hour firefight on the 4th of April. Flooding into the gap torn in the Bull lines the other formations soon destroy all organised resistance and formally return Brockway to Federated Sun's control. The combat command of the 6th having fulfilled the mission they were sent on by their Duke take the pick of the salvage and return to their post on New Syrtis. The remaining salvage is divided between the other commands, with the Blue Star Irregulars using the 3 companies worth of battlemech's (albeit heavily damaged battlemechs) to reform their Avatar's of Painful Death regiment, which does leave their other regiments somewhat under strength. The former owners of the battlemech's (those not in military hospitals) are marched away to join the survivors of their fellow regiments in captivity.
Having had their last holdout troops within Federated Suns space crushed morale within the Taurian Defence Force dropped to an all time new low. Not only had their invasion failed but almost every unit which had crossed the frontier had never returned. The active regiments of the TDF now included only the Taurian Guards, 1st Taurian Lancers, 1st MacLeod's Regiment and the 3rd Taurian Lancers supported by the mercenary Longwood's Bluecoats, Vandelay's Valkries and Summer's Storm. Although to call the 1st MacLeod's Regiment "active" was a massive understatement as it numbered little more than a company of battlemechs with a few attached supporting forces. The 1st Taurian Lancers was little better having been reduced to half strength and the unit's morale was paper thin.
From Logan's Land the 36th Avalon Hussars heads on to Norman's Land and Celentaro. There they repeat the mission they performed on Logan's Land, smashing the local militias and systematically reducing the systems defenders to shattered remnants before replacing the local political leadership with those less favourable to the current Lord Protector. The unit has lost a little under a fifth of it's strength on these missions (worse in it's infantry brigade) but is now rated as veteran by the AFFS High Command and is developing a skill for swift assaults.
Having finished the looting of Pinard the mercenary unit of Hansen's Roughriders strike out for Illuishin. They hit the fragile 1st Taurian Lancers and in a running 2 week battle destroy them almost entirely. A handful of remaining Lancers are forced to abandon their equipment and hide in the general population to avoid annihilation. Only a handful of prisoners are taken by the mercenary force who rely on shock and awe to keep the large militia forces of the planet from coming to the Lancers aid until it's too late. After which they begin picking off the various militia and Taurian Volunteer Guard apart in hit and run strikes. While they are unable to seize the vital Vandenberg Mechanised Industries plant, they are able to seize a large proportion of it's finished products awaiting shipment in a lightning strike by 2 cavalry companies and a fast light armoured battalion with 2 mechanised infantry battalions from the AFFS conventional brigade attached to them. By now the elite mercenary regiment has almost twice as many battlemechs as it does mechwarriors, having been whittled down to a little under 2 battalions in strength over the course of their raiding. Before they can finish the job of destroying the Illuishin defences and moving to fully seize the industrial plant they get recall orders from New Avalon... Orders they wish had come a few weeks later but which they obey.
These orders are precipitated by a chain of events that begins when the 12th and 34th Avalon Hussars along with the 1st Patrol Squadron jump into the system of Sterope together. Faced with not 1 but 2 RCT's and 2 huge warships the local government of Sterope immedietly renounces it's allegiance to the "usurper" on Taurus (ignoring that he isn't actually ON Taurus at that moment in time) and declares their allegiance to the "true heir" Erik Martens-Calderon.
This defection of a major industrial system is the beginning of the end for Shraplen. Even as the 3rd Taurian Lancers are landing on Taurus to secure his position the Taurian Guards march to the spaceport to stop them. In a brutal and one sided battle the elite Taurian Guard put down the Shraplen loyalist 3rd Lancers, before moving to seize various organs of the government and declaring for Lord Protector Erik Martens-Calderon. They also invite Regent Baron Kithrong to come to Taurus to begin the formation of a Regency Council under their protection.
With the combined defection of Sterope and the Taurian Guard itself the remaining systems are soon falling over themselves to declare allegiance to the new regime. The only real holdout is the system of MacLeod's Land where the remaining 1st MacLeod's Regiment remain loyal to their former governor. However when Gordon's Armoured Cavalry arrives in system the remnants of the unit flee the system rather than face the furious mercenary regiment. They are soon making their way to Laconis to form a "military-in-exile" for the "True Lord Protector". Given that even having rebuilt with what salvage they can and absorbing the handful of locals who would join them they number barely 2 companies of damaged battlemechs there is little threat of them being used to seize power back for the disgraced Shraplen.
Even as Baron Cham Kithrong is making his way with Erik Martens-Calderon (and his 1st Taurian Pride regiment) to Taurus he is sending messages to the First Prince requesting an immediate ceasefire and peace conference. Even as these messages are being sent (and before they reach New Avalon) the High Command is ordering it's units to withdraw from the Taurian Concordat. First Prince Victor Davion has no territorial ambitions on the Concordat and wishes to make that apparent. Besides which the AFFS forces have achieved their objectives, the Taurian Defence Force is shattered and couldn't mount any offensive actions at the current time and is unlikely to manage to rebuild to a level it can for decades. Going with the retreating Davion troops are the mercenary Longwood Bluecoats. Disgusted with not only their own treatment by the Taurian's but also the abandonment/sacrifice of other mercenary commands they cancel their contract with the Concordat and appeal to the First Prince directly to take service with him. They are instructed to take up position on Great Gorge for the time being while the contracts are ironed out.
However in a clear sign of his intent the First Prince as soon as he arrives back on New Avalon declares the formation of a new military defence firm, the Federated Sun's Defence Industries. With House Davion keeping 50% of the shares he announces that on the 1st June there will be a shares release for general purchase. The initial plant for the new firm is to consist of the salvaged and looted industrial equipment from what is now being known as the Taurian Campaign. From MacLeod's Land half of the Locust production of a single line and 1 Stinger line are joined by 2 Wasp lines and a Vedette, Light SRM Carrier, J Edger hovercraft and Fulcrum hover tank line each. Additional 3 truck lines (Bull Dog and Pit Bull) are added for civilian sales and a Thunderbird aerospace line is a final addition from the various Pinard Protectorate plants. An additional Phoenix Hawk and Marauder line begins assembling fresh from the world of New Vandenberg. This plant begins construction on the world of New Damascus and will take almost 2 years to fully come online although some lines will be assembled faster than others.
Notwithstanding that the bulk of the looted industry goes to this new company on New Damascus a number additional allocations of industry are made.
Andoran Industries Ltd is gifted with the looted salvage for a new Clint and is invited to use it to begin a new factory on Shawnee - with the cost of the line paid for by the initial production of the new plant.
While the New Earth Trading Company is invited to begin production of the Gabriel hover tank not only at it's plant on Markesan but also at a new plant on Kentares. In return for enough salvage to create a new line at each location the New Earth Trading Company is also expected to expand the plant on Kentares to include Von Luckner's and Alacorn Mk IV tanks.
Outback FarmMech's are granted a license by the Federated Sun's Government for the Locust battlemech design. They are also granted half of the pillaged Locust battlemech production facilities taken on MacLeod's Land along with support to put it back together. This will allow them to put the line together at breakneck speed (in comparison to their previous construction timetables).
The mood of these new additional plants formed from salvage taken during the Taurian Campaign is best summed up by Precentor Martial Focht who when asked about it responds with the new famous line "Only the Davion's can make war pay!". While citizens of other nations will use this as an insult the citizens of the Federated Suns take the expression to heart and throw it back at their detractors with pride!
On Baxley in the Crucis March the new Jalastar Aerospace plant to build Javelin-O lines begins construction. The first of the Javelin lines being retooled to Javelin-O production on Panpour itself begins the construction of the new omnimech, with the other 2 not far behind and scheduled to begin production in May. While this won't be anywhere near enough to keep up demand it will at least provide a steady supply of new omnimechs while the expansions on Baxley and Islamabad are pushed ahead.
Andoran Industries Ltd not only receives the offer of support for a new plant in April (an offer they accept by the end of the month) they also see their second Clint line go online at their main plant on Broken Wheel. This gives them 2 Clint lines as well as producing 2 lines of each of the Mercury and Hussar light mech's to be split between the AFFS and ComGuards. From a company that was barely able to keep up with refit orders for their single battlemech design they now have 6 active production lines at their main plant and a new plant about to begin assembly with a seventh line. To many this company more than any other embodies the new found economic and military strength of the Federated Suns.
On Kestrel New Independence Weaponry see's it's new Cyclops line go into production. While sales are strong there is no company plans to expand production beyond the single line given the highly specialised nature of this command design. Although the Federated Sun's Government has already strongly hinted they would approve of a second line to promote redundancy.
The major event in military production within the FedSun's is the first line for the Huscarl-O fighter line on New Avalon going operational. With a second line close behind and a Hammerhead line also nearing completion this will add new designs to the AFFS's fighter wings and is much anticipated. If the designs to as well as expected Lycomb-Davion will be encouraged to increase production at other plants as well.
On Torrence a new Nightsky hatchet armed battlemech production line goes operational for Johnston Industries at the same time as Veridian Dynamic's plant produces it's first full Vali artillery tank in centuries. With the addition of lines at 2 separate plants the Duke of Torrence announces a day of national celebration on the 30th. He also begins campaigning for the Veridian Dynamic's company to be awarded a new vehicle design to add to their production.
The Corsara plant on Northwind completes it's new Crab battlemech line near the end of the month and immedietly offers it's production up to the AFFS and ComGuards. Both militaries are soon buying as many of these battlemechs as can be produced. Entire companies are sent to units which are expected to operate far behind enemy lines or where ammunition stockpiles will be low.
The FSS Joseph Davion is taken into the free cruiser/frigate slip at Panpour by mid April and begins a hurried repair and refit. Given that the armour had held when the missile struck most of what is being replaced/repaired is armour plating and the ship is expected back into service by October. Although a handful of smaller items will require the crew to continue work beyond this time, these repairs will not require yard time. The 3 damaged Fox class corvettes - the heavily damaged FSS Edwards and lightly damaged FSS Ridgebrook and FSS Bryceland are sent to the FSS Edward's namesake system to await the finishing of the repair slips over that planet which are due to come online in December.
Given the initial reports from the naval Battle of Ridgebrook the Davion High Command send orders to Galax to look into improving the Fox corvette design...
The speed of the Davion's victory over the Taurian Concordat is a wake up call for any who might need it across the Inner Sphere. While the Bulls are a Periphery Realm they have always been considered by most to be the premier military power of the Periphery and one which had held off the Star League for years - albeit with a much stronger military. Still the swift victory that the AFFS has won over the TDF is shocking to many. In fact victory is too light a word to many, instead many feel that the AFFS has routed and humiliated the premier military within the Periphery in a few short months while strengthening itself as it did so. Combined with the victories on both the Capellan and Draconis borders it forces even the most sceptical to sit up and take notice. While Theodore Kurita had been somewhat reluctant to fully commit to his son's alliance with the Confederation he now see's no other option but to push forward at full speed with this strategy or see his children's futures dominated by Victor Davion and the future descendants of Hanse Davion.
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looks like the Fed suns needs a battle armor carrier. the new company might want to look at putting something like that together... after it gets a few lines into production for the cash flow.
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Military analysts would probably point out that Bulls were playing into FS hands when they launched invasion, after signaling their moves in advance, leaving their best forces to get destroyed piecemill.
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Well, that's Victor for you I suppose.
Utterly crushes his enemies on the Battlefield ... and then completely misses the political outcomes by several hundred light years by doing stupid things ...
Well looking around the loop;
The Federated Suns can have major confidence in itself. It just took on the TCAF and crushed it without even trying hard AND without having to pull any troops out of other theaters. Normally in the 3025 timeframe this kind of campaign, while Hanse could have done it (minus the warships of course) it would have probably led to the loss of a few worlds on the Combine and Capellan fronts. Now? The AFFS is so Gods Damn Strong that they are maintaining full garrisons along those borders, at key nodal points in the interior and still being able to free up enough troops to go and slap down the uppity Bulls.
The Capellan Confederation has nominally lost nothing, but its going to get out very quickly that Sun Tzu hung his ally out to dry without so much as a fruit basket. Granted, his ally was being utterly insane, but its still clear what happened (Shrappy screaming at Sun Tzu as a traitor probably gave a hint, the Magesty are probably going to get the idea of what happened and soon enough everyone else too). No-one will probably be too surprised that Sun Tzu is an opportunist, but it now makes the point clear; he has no allies, simply convenient assets to support if it suits him and throw under the bus is that suits him too. Even a little raiding in support might have been enough for him to be able to nominally show his support without escalating things very much in a tit-for-tat way, but he couldn't even do that. The Combine are going to have to be very careful going into this.
The Combine have Theodore now getting in on the Kool Aide. He has opportunities here with Victor but that window is going to close sooner rather than later. Going in with the Capellans is just a dumbass move strategically, he is letting his son blind rage drive Combine policy into bad directions. How long before the Black Dragons (in another guise) are able to start poking and prodding the Dragons son to eventually take over from his clearly weak father...
The Free Worlds League is too busy to care much right now, but they'll have to be thinking very careful about the Federated Suns strength. Especially as there are still clearly close ties to the Lyran Commonwealth. Not the Federated Commonwealth yes, but what other Successor State is happily trading good warships for bad warships AND opening its shipyards up to orders at incredibly generous terms?! Something to not discount...
The Word of Blake, surprisingly, can take a few silver linings out of this. Granted, they lost their patsy, but they still have great opportunities to stick with more sane rulers in the TC thanks to Victors political ineptitude. Granted they probably won't be giving them more warships, but in a longer term play, they can look to continue upgrading the shipyards in the Haydes into full blown light warship construction yards, providing technical support from Terra. As well as the material needed to rebuild the TCAF. I wouldn't be surprised after the experience opposing Battle Armor for the TCAF to start massively refocusing, given the destruction of much of their Battlemech construction ability, in new Battle Armor production with the WOB's help. Giving them additional manufacturing capability outside of Terra and keeping the TC as a strategic threat to the Federated Suns in the long term rather than letting them be moved to a more neutral stance.
They also got a good look at the capability of the FSN and their platforms. That the Fox is a tank, but underwhelming in a screening role and not that fast (which is useful data as the ComGuards are buying them now) while the Avalon is a beast that they will need to treat with a great deal of respect. As they are probably going to have to face the FSN sooner rather than later, its good information!
So interesting times ahead...
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An excellent breakdown Chris :) The Davions how really have the weight of forces to fight on two fronts at once, but it would be at a stretch against a near pier opponent like the Combine. But the Cappies after all the roughing up they've had are probably in about the same military league as the Bulls were pre-getting kicked in the teeth.
This means that the Davions could pretty much crush any incursion by the Cappies and then if the Combine leaps in too, they can rotate forces around to engage them as well and once any troops on the Cappie front are done, they can move them in too.
The Dracs have a fairly small navy of good ships, the Kirishima's a fine cruiser, the Kyushu's a nasty raider and the Inazuma's alright and the Yamato's better than nearly anything else in service (because fan designed ships are just generally better than the canon battleships). But they lack numbers, not to compete against what the Suns can lob at them if needed.
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TCAF ? Isn't that the TDF ?
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3067 - May - Peace
May is dominated by Conrad Davion's meetings with the newly appointed Lord Regent Chem Kithrong on Taurus, having went with him from Erod's Escape although without the escort of the FSS Broken Wheel as it is felt that a AFFS warship in orbit over the capital world of the Concordat might be a very bad sign diplomatically. There are a number of contentious issues between the 2 men from the start, however there are a number of areas of agreement. The Baron is more than prepared to accept that this war was started by the Taurian Concordat and offer a formal apology for that - while stressing it was the actions of the former Lord Protector Shraplen and not the true will of the Taurian people. He is not however prepared to pay any form of reparations for the invasion as he see's this as a point which the domestic hardliners would tear him apart on. Conrad Davion is prepared on behalf of the First Prince to waive reparations but he point blank refuses all suggestion that the looted industry and factory production be returned to the Concordat, a point that causes fury in the Taurian diplomats. Multiple factories have been left as hollow shells with entire worlds economies thrown into chaos. At the same time the entire Taurian Defence Force has been gutted and will need massive rebuilding - which will require those same looted factories.
However the Davion delegation led by Conrad is firm. The Taurian Concordat started this war and they cannot now ask for a reset. Worse from the point of view of the Taurian's a significant percentage of their remaining troops are sitting in prisoner of war camps within the Federated Suns. Requests for them to be released are being held up with certain conditions being attached to their release. The most difficult for the Taurian's to swallow is the insistence of the Davion's that the 2 Pleiades units and the Hyalite Light Infantry be disbanded/merged into other commands and their colours stricken from the TDF. Having 3 full battlemech regiments named for planets that have been part of the Federated Suns for centuries is just a recipe for irredentism within the Concordat. Unless the Taurian's will agree to this term then the AFFS will not release the prisoners. After a great deal of argument the Taurians finally agree to the merging of the 3 regiments into a reformed 1st Taurian Lancers, although they do this with poor grace. It's mostly felt that the Bull's caved on this point due to their crippling shortage of battlemech forces and a resultant upsurge in pirate raids on their already devastated worlds.
In return for this concession the Federated Sun's delegation does offer to make civilian investments to the Taurian economy and enter into a free trade agreement with the nation, but only if the Taurian's rescind their Trinity Alliance with the Capellan Confederation. Given the total lack of support that House Liao has shown the Concordat, as well as rumours that the Chancellor left their fleet to die at Ridgebrook the Taurians agree to this relatively easily.
By the end of the negotiations the situation is frankly still frosty. Neither side is particularly happy with the peace treaty, with the Bull's view that they are being left a shattered military and a crippled military industrial complex, while many on the Davion side feel that the Bulls are getting off far to lightly. There are some who think that annexing a huge chunk of the border worlds would be a reasonable response to the attack, but even the most hard line members of the AFFS don't relish the prospect of the constant insurrections they would face if they did that. Better to make a peace that gives the Concordat a chance to rebuild - but makes that process a long and hard one to make them realise just what they did.
Even as the prisoners of war are being returned to the Taurian Concoradat - many without equipment as this has been seized by the various forces which defeated them, the AFFS is redeploying back to a more normal peacetime setting on the Taurian border. Task Force Sortek is formally disbanded and it's component units are sent to new postings. The 3rd Davion Guards return to New Avalon for instance, while the Blue Star Irregulars return to Firgrove. The 2nd Chisholm Raiders returns with their sister regiment the 3rd to Colorado where the 3rd will donate a full company of mechwarriors to help in the 2nd's rebuilding. The 4th Syrtis Fusiliers moves to take up station at Taygeta alongside their twin unit the 3rd Fusiliers, while the 2nd FSAC returns to Axton. The 2nd FedSun's Dragoons take up a new posting on Horsham while the 2 Illician Lancer regiments move to Manapire and Mitchel to reinforce the Sirdar PDZ against any future Liao incursion. The 3rd Dragonlords RCT is ordered to move to New Damascus to secure the safety of the new plants there.
At the same time the various units which had been used to raid the Taurian Concordat return to their pre-war garrison postings and roles. The 1st Patrol Squadron in particular returns to seeking out any pirate groups operating near Cooperland while also looking for potential new colonies.
Within the Federated Suns the CJF Falcon's Nest, escorted by a heavy force of AFFS warships arrives at Galax. The Wolves-in-Exile Implacable had broken off once the crippled battleship was within the Federated Suns and headed for it's own refit at Panpour. Although this would be slightly delayed until October as the slip was currently filled by the repairing FSS Joseph Davion. Along with the ships a full cluster of W-i-E troops headed for Valois and a "return" home. They were expected to arrive in June.
At Andalusia the Bergan Industries plant completed their second Wayland Mobile Base plant and immedietly were flooded with orders from the AFFS. Again plans to build a Locust line were put on hold and work began on a third line for the much in demand Mobile Base vehicle.
The Kallon plant on Belladonna which was supplying both the AFFS and ComGuards announced in May that it would be looking to expand production. A Templar-O line and a Penetrator line were to be added, but weren't expected to come online until July 3068 for the Templar line and March 3068 for the Perpetrator. However both these lines will be exclusively for the AFFS.
On New Avalon the second Huscarl-O line and the new Hammerhead line go operational at Lycomb-Davion's plant. Alongside the production from the initial Huscarl-O line these fighters will be placed for sale with both the AFFS and ComGuards - with the ComGuards buying slightly more Hammerheads and the AFFS buying the bulk of the Huscarl's as the ComGuards have a separate source for that fighter.
Corean also announce that they will be starting a new production line for their light recon mech the Fireball. Demand for this battlemech has never been huge, but it is a steady seller for the company and is popular with a number of light cavalry formations. Given the Federated Sun's Governments strong push towards redundancy of all battlemech and other war equipment production the Fireball is slated to be built on Northfield alongside the existing Devastator line and building Centurion line. It's expected that the Fireball will enter production there in January 3068.
The production of Javelin-O takes a major jump when 2 additional Javelin lines finish retooling on Panpour. However even with all 3 lines going at full speed demand is still much higher than production. New lines are under construction but given the huge popularity of the omnimech it is unlikely that even they will meet demand. As such the FedSun's Government push Jalastar Aerospace to adding a new plant specifically for the Javelin-O. This is finally agreed by the end of the month and the company announce they will begin work on a new Javelin-O factory on the world of Palmyra. No less than 4 lines are envisioned for this new plant.
Production of Vali artillery vehicles goes up in May when the plant on Ozawa goes online. With 2 plants producing this artillery tank Veridian Dynamics now has a best selling vehicle design for the AFFS. The tank is so well regarded that the ComGuards request that they be allowed to buy some themselves. As does the Lyran Alliance. However given that the AFFS has exclusive rights to the production this means complicated discussions need to take place.
On Tancredi the joint project between Kallon and Precision Weaponry announce that they will be adding a Phoenix Hawk line to the plant there. Initially they had been planning a Shadow Hawk line but given the high end lasers a more energy weapon based design was thought to be appropriate.
Within the Lyran Alliance there is an announcement that the shipyards at Gibbs will be jointly upgraded by the LAAF and Comstar to begin producing the Fox class corvette there. An initial 2 slips are to be constructed, followed by more if the project goes well. These will provide warships for both the LAN and ComGuards fleet.
Within the Free Worlds League the Captain General remains on Oriente, where he stopped on his way back from the special session. This is causing some to wonder what the hold up is, although he publicly explains he is just visiting with his in-laws.
Within the Taurian Concordat the various military formations begin re-assembling themselves. However there is a huge backlash against the disbandment of the Pleiades Hussars and Lancers and the Hyalite Light Infantry, but little can be done. The remainders of those 3 units are merged together to form a half strength 1st Taurian Lancers, with a handful of former Lancers from the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Taurian Lancers joining them. The Bannockburn Bandits leave Taurian service and sign on with the Magistracy of Canopus following their disastrous abandonment by the Pleiades Hussars. Although technically in breach of contract few can blame them. A handful of troops, particularly from the disbanded units flee to the Capellan Confederation and join the 1st MacLeod's Regiment. In the meantime the II and IV Corp are struck from the active rolls.
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Taurian Defence Forces Post Taurian Campaign
Taurian Defence Forces
Taurian Guard Corp
Taurian Guard – Veteran – 80%
Concordat Commandos – Veteran – 50%
I Corp
Concordat Jaeguers – Veteran – 30%
Red Chasseurs – Veteran – 30%
Gordon’s Armoured Cavalry – Veteran – 70%
II Corp – Struck from Active Rolls
III Corp
1st Taurian Lancers – Veteran – 50% - Illiuishin – Reformed
IV Corp – Struck from Active Rolls
V Corp
Vandelay’s Valkries – Green – 70% - 2 Battalions
Summer’s Storm – Veteran – 100% – 2 wings
VI Corp –
1st Taurian Pride – Regular – 90%
2nd Taurian Pride – Green – 80%
Taurian Defence Force in Exile
1st MacLeod’s Regiment – Green – 30%
*Note that these are the paper strengths of the units. Many such as the Concordat Commandos are lacking battlemechs for their mechwarriors.
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looks like someone might be pushing for primitive or armed workmechs to fill out their order of battle.
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I was thinking about the update were you talked about the damage to one of warships being repaired. this detailed look at a ship that was hit with a nuk… small one but a nuk. This will give the FedSuns a heads up in what needs to be done to warships to help counter an attack like that again. reinforcing the IS of the ship, changing armor layout our make up, and more close in defense to shoot them down. I would expect that one of the ships would be sent to a major yard for study and testing.
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While Theodore Kurita had been somewhat reluctant to fully commit to his son's alliance with the Confederation he now see's no other option but to push forward at full speed with this strategy or see his children's futures dominated by Victor Davion and the future descendants of Hanse Davion.
Actually, I think Theodore should look into investing in the Concordant as much as possible as an addition. Helping to rebuild their industry and military as quickly as possible. This maintains the pressure on another border, and force the FedSun to keep their strength spread just a bit more.
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It's also chance for WoB, with Taurian economy and army in the toilet, they can extract considerable concessions for asistance, while also fueling irredentist propaganda. And if Concordat chooses Comstar instead, they can throw their support behind Shaplen's government in exile, sponsor pirates and raid Comstar compounds within TC.
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It's also chance for WoB, with Taurian economy and army in the toilet, they can extract considerable concessions for asistance, while also fueling irredentist propaganda. And if Concordat chooses Comstar instead, they can throw their support behind Shaplen's government in exile, sponsor pirates and raid Comstar compounds within TC.
I think they are more likely to go C* than WoB after all WoB did kind of screw them over to. I get the feeling a lot intel was provided to the TDF by the WoB.
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I think they are more likely to go C* than WoB after all WoB did kind of screw them over to. I get the feeling a lot intel was provided to the TDF by the WoB.
I doubt that. Firstly, The WOB were not pushing Idiot Shrappy to go off half cocked like this (in fact they probably advised against it!) and they did provide a huge amount of infrastructure and technology which pretty much no-one else was bothering to give them - and few people are going to do so in the immediate future. I think there is a good chance that relationship is going to survive even if only initially because the WOB is the only one willing to deal with them.
Secondly, ComStar are probably seen as far too closely linked to the Federated Suns by a lot of people in the TC, which is poison.
Third, the WOB is idealy placed to offer genuine material aid to help them rebuild the military factories that Victor idiotically ripped out that no-one else is going to help with. Much like how ComStar are building in the FedSuns and getting a split, so too can WOB step in on all the worlds that idiot Victor sent into immediate recession and depression and offer to build new gleaming factories for a split of the gear. Which they can use to build up their own forces, 'wash' data through to confuse everyone to how big the WOB really is, provide backups to Terra should something happen there...
The WOB are also probably perfectly willing to break open ROM's classic dirty tricks books. Like quietly through third parties sponsoring pirates to start striking worlds in the Bulls rear areas that are now stripped of troops and open to attack. Then, the WOB Milita can step in bravely and lead sweep and destroy patrols that are super effective (thanks to, you know, knowing exactly where the pirates are going to be) an earn them enormous goodwill in the TC Government and population.
Victor has, once again with his sheer political incompetence, managed to win the battle but loose the war.
With that said, Biilly, in an update a while ago I thought you already had the Galax teams actively prepping a refit of the Fox already? Because it seems there are several things that could be done right off the bat to upgrade it I think. Like retrofitting those machine guns into a proper defensive array (although it seems that you're quite downplaying the effectiveness of point defenses and screen launchers in missile duels in Battletech, something I rather approve of), rationalize the naval lasers to give it a heavier secondary battery and perhaps reskin its armor?
Also, as a side note, another interesting takeaway from this battle is that the Avalon class Cruisers, as part of their standard war loads, are in fact carrying nuclear tipped anti-shipping missiles. Although it seems that the single Avalon hit is going to take a very considerable amount of time to repair, six months? For just the repair mostly of its armor? And even that isn't enough time to completely repair it?
Also interested to see what happens with the CWIE cruiser. A Black Lion is the kind of ship only the Federated Suns could love; Autocannons. Autocannons everywhere!. But you could do a couple of interesting retrofits if you got rid of those White Shark tubes (silly red-headed step child of missiles!) and put in something like a close in defense grid...
Keep it comming BBMII!
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I doubt that. Firstly, The WOB were not pushing Idiot Shrappy to go off half cocked like this (in fact they probably advised against it!) and they did provide a huge amount of infrastructure and technology which pretty much no-one else was bothering to give them - and few people are going to do so in the immediate future. I think there is a good chance that relationship is going to survive even if only initially because the WOB is the only one willing to deal with them.
Secondly, ComStar are probably seen as far too closely linked to the Federated Suns by a lot of people in the TC, which is poison.
Third, the WOB is idealy placed to offer genuine material aid to help them rebuild the military factories that Victor idiotically ripped out that no-one else is going to help with. Much like how ComStar are building in the FedSuns and getting a split, so too can WOB step in on all the worlds that idiot Victor sent into immediate recession and depression and offer to build new gleaming factories for a split of the gear. Which they can use to build up their own forces, 'wash' data through to confuse everyone to how big the WOB really is, provide backups to Terra should something happen there...
The WOB are also probably perfectly willing to break open ROM's classic dirty tricks books. Like quietly through third parties sponsoring pirates to start striking worlds in the Bulls rear areas that are now stripped of troops and open to attack. Then, the WOB Milita can step in bravely and lead sweep and destroy patrols that are super effective (thanks to, you know, knowing exactly where the pirates are going to be) an earn them enormous goodwill in the TC Government and population.
Victor has, once again with his sheer political incompetence, managed to win the battle but loose the war.
With that said, Biilly, in an update a while ago I thought you already had the Galax teams actively prepping a refit of the Fox already? Because it seems there are several things that could be done right off the bat to upgrade it I think. Like retrofitting those machine guns into a proper defensive array (although it seems that you're quite downplaying the effectiveness of point defenses and screen launchers in missile duels in Battletech, something I rather approve of), rationalize the naval lasers to give it a heavier secondary battery and perhaps reskin its armor?
Also, as a side note, another interesting takeaway from this battle is that the Avalon class Cruisers, as part of their standard war loads, are in fact carrying nuclear tipped anti-shipping missiles. Although it seems that the single Avalon hit is going to take a very considerable amount of time to repair, six months? For just the repair mostly of its armor? And even that isn't enough time to completely repair it?
Also interested to see what happens with the CWIE cruiser. A Black Lion is the kind of ship only the Federated Suns could love; Autocannons. Autocannons everywhere!. But you could do a couple of interesting retrofits if you got rid of those White Shark tubes (silly red-headed step child of missiles!) and put in something like a close in defense grid...
Keep it comming BBMII!
With regards to the Fox corvettes- there was already a team working on a refit. They are now using the impetuous and experience of the fight at ridgebrook the speed this up. As well as officially having this work done.
The FSS Joseph Davion has probably a 4-6 month refit. Although the armour held it has led to a fair bit of buckling and the like. Plus a good time to refit the ship anyway.
As for the Black Lion - yeah I suspect the techs will be keeping track of the design schematics... And oh look, our new vassals the Sun Jaguars have a Black Lion too... That needs a refit... Another chance to check on how to build these ships. Then send the details off to the think tank, get an updated and put htem into production as the FedSuns battlecruiser/heavy cruiser version.
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You never know. The Davions might play the US to the Bulls' WW2 Japan. They do have that civilian free trade agreement after all & without the military industry to suck up the majority of the Bulls' national GDP, they might recover faster than in canon. Let's not forget the open passage for trade between the Davions & the Calderons mean that it's easy for MIIO to keep an eye on the Bulls & on any WoB shenanigans that they might try.
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your right the Bulls need water and air purifiers. They also have all of those open factory shells. a nice place to put a work mech production area. that will help with the rebuilding. if the Bull's start making merchant class jumpships? the fedsun or a company with in her borders might write a check for one or two. that is a lot of cash or trade.
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Personally, Hohiro in this time line (most time lines end up with him with some form of meloncoholy at best thanks to the Jags) is probably not the ideal heir to the Dragon. He has become obsessed with the 'Yellow Bird' and like Sylvester the Cat is unable to get his 'Tweety' aka Victor. As Chris already pointed out, the Coordinator would do well to send military aid and equipment along with materials to rebuild war factories in the Concordat.
And if I was Theodore, I'd probably look to supersede his son with another heir. The Capellan scheme will backfire badly thanks to Sun-Tzu always being a scorpion- he will sting you and always survive. So, the Coordinator probably should prepare to recognize Kitsune if possible since Minoru is a lost cause for the Combine and Hohiro's obsession is becoming a tad unhealthy.
On the note of heirs, Victor is getting older, and he probably should go ahead and marry someone for an heir and a spare. I won't say who, but she has been hanging out at Castle Davion a lot.
As for the Bulls, I see Comstar and Word of Blake fighting over contracts to rebuild things with Combine merchants also investing heavily and the odd Suns business man with large shoulder outfits also showing up. Probably a couple of Lyran traders as well with Free World League members. The Capellan merchants will be cleverly disguised of course. Probably good sitcom material.
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Those are good points. There's a lot of re-building to do in the Concordant, and there should be all sorts of people and corporations fighting over getting contracts.
StarCorps might be a major corporation that would very much want to help in the re-building.
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3067 - June - An Engagement
Within the 3 worlds of the Clan Sun Jaguar there was a growing discontent within the Merchant Caste. They had learned that their jumpships and dropships were rarely welcome within the Outback of the Federated Suns as many still distrusted the Jaguars. This made trading opportunities difficult to find and usually with high prices attached to them. A handful of worlds, most of them a "safe" distance from the Sun Jaguar enclaves were prepared to trade with them but even these due to knowing that the Jaguars were struggling for trade partners would charge a premium for the items the Jaguars wished to trade for. When they raised these concerns to the Khan she was for a time confused, not sure how to handle this problem as it was outside her training as a warrior. Still she eventually decided to contact Duchess Marik and Duchess Davion-Sandoval to ask for their advice. After a quick series of discussions between the 3 women a solution was suggested. By now the First Princes's push outwards into the Periphery was well known as was his investment within the terraforming industry. The 2 Inner Sphere women suggested that the Sun Jaguars attempt to form the vanguard of this movement. With a large merchant fleet and experienced spacers based upon the very edge of the Outback they were well placed to begin exploratory work to find new colony worlds and indeed had advanced technology that would let them increase the number of potential viable worlds. These worlds could then be "traded" to various groups within the Federated Suns to colonise. Not only would this allow them to profit from their merchant jumpships but it would also help them to normalise relationships with the other FedSun's communities who would be drawn to the Clan to seek help for their own colonisation efforts.
Taking this advice Khan Nevversan ordered her Merchant Caste to begin exploration sweeps, not only in the near space to their own worlds but arcing out into the Periphery around and beyond the Tortuga worlds. Any worlds which had large concentrations of raw materials or were suitable for colonisation were to be flagged for further investigations by small parties drawn from all the Civilian Castes and protected by the Warrior Caste. After some initial concerns, the Merchants soon became enthused with this potential profit bearing enterprise and threw themselves into it with a passion.
At Galax the LAS Tharkad, LAS Donegal and LAS Skye slipped from their slips as did the WiES Wolfbrother and Wolfkin. Along with the production of their own expanding shipyards this gave the Lyran Alliance 11 Fox Corvettes - although 1 of them was still heavily damaged from the battles against the Jade Falcons - and their Wolf-in-Exile have another 2. Critics do point to the fact that over a quarter of their ships have been build in foreign yards, but the vast majority of members of the LAN and the civilian population are just happy to see their fleet expanding!
Also at Galax a new Avalon slip and the slip for the crippled CJF Falcon's Nest complete. The cruiser slip immedietly begins construction of a new Avalon class cruiser while the battleship slip is soon filled by the Texas class battleship. Security is tight but it is soon obvious that the Davion's aren't just repairing and refitting the venerable battleship, they are rebuilding it...
At Kathil the FSS Ian Davion slips free from it's yard and is soon engaged in a shakedown cruise before it join's the 1st Cruiser Squadron - the First Princes's escorting warship squadron. This will bring the Federated Sun's Navy to 11 cruisers - 10 of them Avalon cruisers and a single Covenant class cruiser.
At New Syrtis a new Davion class destroyer slip completes construction and begins work on the next Davion III. A similar slip also enters commission at Filtvelt's yards. This brings the total number of destroyer slips to 11 at 4 separate locations - although just under half of the yards are at Galax.
At Panpour 2 new slips are finished, although only 1 is broadcast. A third Congress-D II slip enters production of the upgraded frigate. Unmentioned to anyone without the highest security clearance is the second battleship slip which has also completed in a remote part of the Panpour system. This secret slip is tasked with duplicating the rebuilding battleship at Galax...
The High Command orders a brief pause to the construction of new shipyards for the time being. There are still 4 Fox corvette slips under construction - 2 for the ComGuards and 2 for the AFFS - but no new yards will begin construction while a review is put in place to see what areas the Federated Suns should concentrate on. Some are pushing for more heavy shipyards to build additional battleships or carriers while many are suggesting that the current trend of mass numbers of light warships backed up by highly capable medium weighted ships should be continued as it has proven itself. Others (not within the Treasury it has to be admitted) wish to pursue both options.
Also in June word comes from Robinson that all 6 Robinson Rangers regiments have now been fully upgraded to RCT's. Mostly this has been done by attaching existing suitable conventional brigades to the battlemech regiments, although in the case of the 6th Robinson Rangers RCT the supporting conventional troops are entirely new formations.
On Great Gorge the Longwood Bluecoat's mercenary regiment is formally granted a Federated Suns contract. Not withstanding it's breach of contract with the Taurian Concordat it is granted favourable terms and a much of it's initial signing on bonus is provided in upgrades to their battlemech forces. Upgrades that were frankly impossible for the Taurians to provide to a mercenary formation, but ones which are considered the bare minimum that the AFFS would consider to be needed to make the unit a viable combat unit in the modern era.
Over dinner with Duchess Marik the First Prince formally proposes on the 20th of June. When asked if he is proposing for dynastic purposes as the First Prince of the Federated Suns to the daughter of the Captain General of the Free Worlds League or as Victor Davion to Isis Marik the normally confident First Prince is thrown for a second before finally almost blurting out that he is proposing as Victor Davion to Isis Marik. Dynastic matters be damned for now. With that assurance Isis agrees happily and both of them announce their engagement the following morning. Even a few years before such an announcement would have caused at the very least grave concern within the Federated Suns, but now with the popularity of the First Prince going from strength to strength and the growing respect many hold for Isis Marik and her attempts to help the FedSuns the news i largely greeted with joy.
Within the Outback a number of small demonstrations take place by the Citizens for Davion Purity against the marriage. In several cases militias are required to be called out - but usually to stop the large counter protects from pummelling the bigoted supports of the fringe movement into the ground.
Just over a week after the formal announcement of the First Princes's impending nuptials Achernar Battlemech's unveil their new offering, the Dervish-O. An entire pre-production company of the new omnimech is handed over for testing by the AFFS on New Avalon, along with the team who designed the new omnimech being volunteered by their parent company to attend Mount Davion or the NAIS to answer any questions that might be raised. Achernar want's this new product to take off and revitalise the company!
On the 30th of June Conrad Davion and Lord Regent Cham Kithrong formally sign the peace treaty between the Taurian Concordat and the Federated Suns. Already the various prisoners of war are begin returned and formed into new or existing units to replace the losses. As a first gesture of goodwill Conrad announces that the Federated Sun's Government will immedietly make available funds to help finish the still problem riddled shipyards over Taurus... To build Merchant class jumpships to help give an immediate boost to the Taurian Concordat civilian economy... Faced with turning down the offer and looking like he is merely signing a truce, or agreeing and having to abandon the possibility of the yards beginning to rebuild the Taurian Navy the Lord Regent feels he has no other option to accept the investments and donation of the Merchant class jumpship design. After all nothing that Conrad has said is in fact wrong...
On Kathil the GM factories there are expanded with a second Blackjack-O line. In a strange announcement for a company that makes most of it's cash in arms sales GM announce that they will be pressing ahead with plans to massively expand the Tunnel Rat mining exoskeleton. Given the huge upsurge in demand for raw materials within the Federated Suns however this is seen by almost every economist as a wise move that is likely to return large profits for the company. GM also announce that their plant on Point Barrow will begin construction of a new Stealth battlemech line which they expect to complete in early 3068. Further Tunnel Rat lines are being considered to be added to not only Point Barrow but also their plants on Salem and Talcott.
On Killarney the Arc Royal MechWork's plant sees both new Arctic Fox-O lines go operation. Specifically to provide the AFFS with a new light omnimech the production is snapped up for the next few years on long term contract. Although the addition of the Javelin-O to the AFFS's battlemech stables has somewhat reduced the need for the Arctic Fox-O it has not removed it entirely and so the omnimech is well received.
While the impending marriage of Victor Davion and Isis Marik is warmly greeted in the Federated Suns the same cannot be said within the Free Worlds League. Already in a state of turmoil this news when it breaks is like oil upon the fire. In an inflamed speech within the Parliament the representatives of the Sirian Holds, Border Protectorate and Free Tikonov worlds declare in one voice that they will not be sold to the Davion's as a dowry for the Captain-General's runaway daughter! Had this been the only speech things might have settled down - but the representatives of the Zion province stood up and announced that they would be more than happy to gifted to the resurgent Federated Suns, as it would at least allow them to be free of the Captain-General's religious fanatic allies in the WOB! An almost riot occurred on the floor of Parliament and it eventually had be suspended until July to allow tempers to cool.
Voices called throughout the League for the Captain General to return to Atreus and exercise leadership and with almost visibly reluctance Thomas Marik left Oriente and began heading for Atreus. He did however make a very public speech that not one League world would be given away to anyone in any circumstances. In an effort to present strong and stable leadership he declares that the worlds of the League will only be able prised from his cold dead hands. Unfortunately many of his enemies turn this image of a strong hand on the steering wheel into that of a power mad tyrant squeezing the League between his fingers and riots break out on both sides on over 3 dozen worlds.
From the point of view of the WOB, the fact that the Captain General doesn't slap down the Zion delegation for their insult to the WOB is a concern. A small sub-faction of the Toyama faction decide to do something about that themselves... A show of strength. To remind their enemies who they are dealing with!
Within the Draconis Combine and the Capellan Confederation the news is greeting with horror. Even if Isis Marik brings not a single battlemech or trooper or c-bill to the marriage the fact that the First Prince of the Federated Suns will now have a potential claim to the Captain General's office of the Free Worlds League is one that fills both the Liao's and Kurita's with dread. Worse, from Sun-Tzu's perspective Victor Davion has claimed the prize he himself discarded. He publicly announces that "Victor Davion is welcome to my leavings..." while privately fuming! When Victor Davion hears the insult uttered by Sun-Tzu Liao the Chancellor will regret his poorly chosen words...
Theodore Kurita, unknown to any except his private doctors, suffers a small stroke at the news of Victor Davion's impending nuptials. While a minor stroke it leaves the Coordinator shaken. Many comment that at this time he becomes almost obsessed with his distant nephew Kitsune Kurita, summoning the boy and his father Miyako Kurita to the Imperial Palace to live there with him. An action that raised the standing of Isoroku Kurita, Warlord of Kurita and Kitsune's grandfather.
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The real question is does Kitsune know his heritage .... also it just occurred to me (although I’ve probably though about this before) ... Kitsune is a Japanese Fox Spirit... Fox... Davion *headdesk*..... carry on
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another sources of income for the sun jags, could be salvage of any wrecks they find. there should be some old warships from the time before the Star League, old Star League, the fall of the SL and threw maybe 2 SW. There also should be a number of jumpships. a Tramp is 770 million C Bills. invaders are half a Billion. That is a lot of funds to help rebuild. and the skills they would develop would also help the Fed Suns
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Or simply dedicate ships to a certain route to guarantee monthly visits
for news and trade
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Why scout outwards for new worlds, though, when there´s plenty of dead and abandoned worlds within the borders that could be reclaimed?
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Why scout outwards for new worlds, though, when there´s plenty of dead and abandoned worlds within the borders that could be reclaimed?
Going to guess that those dead/abandoned worlds would require cleanup etc and so going out and looking for something new would mean not as much work needed cleaning up irradiated stuff or fixing atmospheres.
Also, excellent stuff as always :)
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Why scout outwards for new worlds, though, when there´s plenty of dead and abandoned worlds within the borders that could be reclaimed?
Also the abandoned worlds within the frontier are either heavily damaged by nuclear/bio/chemical weapons and/or still technically already "owned". While a new world is virgin territory, unlikely to be an irradiated war zone and doesn't have anyone who already has a claim on the world.
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Also whist the Jag Merchants might start trading. Boy are they in for a culture shock and folks might take advantage of them. They are use to the Clan system of getting stuff. Bidding etc. Not normal merchantile practises.
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All of which proves, yet again, that the Clans don't know SFA about economics.
Going exploring for worlds that will take God knows how long to exploit as a source of revenue?!?!?
Its actually very simple.
Step 1; They get permission to set up an enclave of Filvette or whatever the March capital is, a region that is notorious for being well away from the technology of the Crucis Core.
Step 2; Inside said enclave, they setup teaching hospitals, scientific facilities, limited factories and so on, to (with generous funding from Prince Davion and help from NAIS) build a full scale clan medical facility with all their incredible technology that is still a long way ahead of the Inner Sphere.
Step 3; They then welcome Inner Sphere nobility from the Suns, Alliance, SIC, FRR and saner parts of the FWL who will pay through the F*#king roof for access to Clan medical science for various reasons and use that money in turn to subsidize more 'basic' (by Clan Medscience standards but light years ahead of anything the periphery regions have seen for 3 centuries) health care for the population as a whole across the outer parts of the Federated Suns, winning the locals over faster than you can say 'MEDIC!'. Also, taking away a lot of the medical tourism market from the MOC (sucks you backed Sun Tzu doesn't it?). You also can slowly teach and train NAIS's best medical people your trade to expand it, with quite low licensing fees that none the less will rake in roughly two butloads of cash from how much people will want this, across the rest of the Federated Suns. And I'm sure the Lyran nobility will be happily sending additional dropships full of money at them to setup a hospital (as the WIE seem entirely dumbasses in canon)...
Step 4; Use the dropship loads of cash pouring in to rebuild your society and form several Limited Liability Companies wholly owned by Clan Sun Jaguar to do what the Smoke Jaguars did in the OTL and run around the friendly parts of the Inner Sphere making even more cash.
Step 5; Get as much legal patent work you can done to protect their manufacturing of Clantech alongside Blackwell (probably a joint legal patent WITH Blackwell in fact) to protect their manufacturing of Elemental Suits. Tweeked just enough that they can get away with it, probably enhanced to make it more usable for people who are not genetically engineered supermen but more normal conventional infantry, using the money from the above steps. Then redeploy Alpha Galaxy with non lethal weapons to try and stop the hoards of people trying to break down the door shouting "SHUT UP AND TAKE MY C-BILLS!"
But Warriors, will be Warriors and fail economics every time :p
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3067 - July - Unrest
For most of July much of the talk within the Federated Suns was the impending marriage of the First Prince. Everyone wanted to know when it would be, what would the service be like, etc... To make it worse for those seeking information there wasn't a lot of it to go around. Official releases were merely that the marriage would take place sometime in 3068. Other details are being kept back for now. Which is just adding fuel to the fire for the demand for information. Duchess Isis Marik, who was already very popular with the Federated Suns given her family history, is now a household name and her popularity is soaring. Even in the Draconis March were there was some concerns that many would feel that she would be used to divert resources to the Capellan Front her tour with the ever popular Duchess Yvonne Davion-Sandoval has made her a figure of respect and affection. On top of all of that the First Prince has had victories on both fronts and added worlds to both of his frontier Marches and so many feel he is entitled to some domestic happiness.
The Taurian front by now is quite and with most of the prisoners returned to the Concordat tensions are beginning to diminish. Although it's noted that the 1st MacLeod's Regiment on Rollis has been granted sanctuary by the Chancellor of the Confederation and a small allowance has been set up to not only support the units rebuilding but also a small "court in exile" for Grover Shraplen. A strike against this unit and the so called court would probably result in inflaming opinion within the Taurian Concordat so for now the AFFS are leaving the exiles alone. At least for now.
Within the Federated Sun's Navy Fleet Admiral Buchwald has now formed up 4 Corvette Flotillas. The 1st Flotilla has a number of damaged ships and is missing the destroyed FSS Kittery and is currently being held in reserve at Edwards. The 2nd Flotilla is permanently assigned to the New Avalon Combat Region - which is considered a vital rear area given the huge number of key worlds, shipyards and military factories within that single region, not to mention the seat of the entire realms government. The 3rd and 4th Flotilla's are assigned to the Capellan and Draconis Marches respectively. There are enough Fox's scattered on various detached duties to form a 5th Corvette Flotilla of 8 vessels, although instead the Fleet Admiral is considering raising the size of each Flotilla to 3 "divisions" of 4 ships each. The Admiral is also considering forming a 4th Cruiser Squadron when the next group of Avalon cruisers finish at Kathil in early to mid 3068 - although he is also wanting to replace the FSS Covenant within the 3rd Squadron and bring the Princes's own 1st Squadron up to it's full strength of 4 ships. One thing which has caused some concern from some other members of the High Command is the officer chosen to command one of the new Avalon cruisers - the XO of the FSS Lucien Davion, Commander Stepan Makarov who was born on Tikonov. Placing such a major warship in the hands of a Tikonov born officer is causing a few raised eyebrows. However these concerns are shut down hard by Marshal Ivor Wasjinji who points out that he himself was born on Tikonov and now commands the entire Crucis Lancers Brigade. Many of his fellow Marshals and Field Marshals had forgot his heritage given how long he has been a staple of the AFFS. Indeed after this aborted attempt to blacklist him the Fleet Admiral orders that Makarov's new command undertake it's shakedown and training cruiser to Tikonov and other worlds in the region.
Within the Federated Sun's military industrial complex a huge order for Naval Autocannon-30's are placed. These guns are now used on the Congress-D II frigates and Davion III destroyers and have become the FedSun's almost standard NAC, but this order is in addition for those already ordered for the building frigates and destroyers and will result in a large scale expansion of their production within the Federated Suns. On top of increased production at Galax a large scale plant will be built on Gulkana to help keep up with demand. A new orbital factory is commissioned that is expected to go into production by November 3068. The defending 28th Avalon Hussars RCT is listed to have it's aerospace regiment brought up to full strength as a priority to help cover this investment, while 2 squadrons of assault dropships are dispatched to provide additional protection. Arrangements are made that the production from this plant when it is finished will be shipped to the various shipyards in LF equipped Tramps with large scale aerospace and dropship protection, perhaps even a Fox or 2.
Despite the massive increases in fighter wings attached to regiments and RCT's - with every RCT for instance now having at least a full aerospace regiment of 60 fighters - as well as the need for large scale fighter wings attached to various warships the High Command begins to make preparations for expanding the independent fighter regiments assigned to the Navy. Even with the huge demand for pilots and aerospace fighters that the expanding AFFS is making on the industrial output of the realm and it's academies the investments in these areas are actually managing to provide a health surplus. So much so that even with the expected return to service of New Syrtis carriers the AFFS can afford to increase independent fighter wings and regiments numbers. Many of these new wings will consist almost entirely of Sparrowhawks, Corsairs and Stukas for now and will be assigned to high risk border worlds and key industrial worlds deeper within the realm. New Avalon for instance will with the addition of a new aerospace regiment now have 6 full regiments of aerospace fighters assigned to protect it with another 3 based in the outer system, on top of the wings and regiments assigned to the garrisoning units and warships in system.
Marshal Deedee Faulkner is told in July that the excess recruits from the New Aragon, Kittery and Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalions will be allocated to form a new 1st Avalon Borderer's which will be attached to her brigade. Before she can bring it up she is told that the fate of the Sheridan Knights is not up for debate. At this stage her constant jockeying for that unit to be assigned to her brigade is now a running sore point with the High Command and some are beginning to question whether or not it is time to retire the veteran officer and replace her with someone who can accept a "no". Others are even going so far as to suggest that the Avalon Borderer's be formed as their own independent regiment in response to her constant politicking to teach her a lesson.
In response to the insult to Duchess Marik by the Chancellor the First Prince directs the Director of the DMI to send teams of MI4 and MI6 into the former Sarna March worlds... With specific orders to cause as much disruption as possible to the CCAF and the local organs of the Capellan State but also to remind the people there of the years of peace and prosperity they had enjoyed within the FedCom. Left unsaid by the First Prince is that the MI6 Rabid Fox teams will almost certainly consider the assassination of Liao loyal planetary governors, militia leaders and regular CCAF officers as "disrupting" the CCAF... First Prince Victor is furious at the word choice of Sun-Tzu towards his new fiancee and every time the Chancellor repeats it (it's now a common insult thrown by Sian towards New Avalon) his anger grows. While he's not prepared to go to war over an insult he is however prepared to make sure that his displeasure is known. Additional he contacts the Korsakov's Cossacks and has their contract shifted over from the AFFS to himself as Victor Davion. The unit is then given full access to the AFFS's ToE and allowed to replace any and all mech's within it's ranks with updated and upgraded equipment during July. A number of "advisers" and "auxiliary lances" are also attached to the unit during this upgrading process - almost all of them drawn from units fanatically loyal to House Davion, including apparently the Fox's Teeth company of the 7th Crucis Lancers RCT...
The Firgrove Consortium which has been looking to increase the types of fighters it's producing announces plans to put an updated Vulcan aerospace fighter into production by August 3068. Although this plant will be somewhat rough and ready and only able to make limited production runs. The AFFS are looking at this development with interest and if the fighter is up to scratch may make investments to mass produce it.
Kallon Industries announces they will be adding a second Enforcer III line on Novaya Zemlya. This will increase their battlemech lines on this plant to 4 as well as their Cavalier battle armour production plant. The new line isn't expected to go online until September 3068.
Universal Air offers an updated and revised Ares Attack Craft up to the AFFS. They present the prototype to the Admiralty and suggest they can put it into full production at their plant on Delevan with almost no notice. The new attack craft is put through it's paces in a hurried trial.
On Kestrel the New Independence Weaponry plant begins expanding with support from the Duke of Kestrel. An additional production line is being constructed to increase production of Marauder II battlemechs, with consideration being given to add Battlemaster production to this facility. The Marauder II expansion is scheduled to finish by November 3068.
The Corean plant at New Avalon see's an additional line of Centurion battlemechs go online. No matter how many of this battlemech are constructed the appetite for them within the AFFS is almost constant. The newer battlemechs are often used to replace older variants which are then dispatched to the March Militias or even various planetary garrisons with their worn out Centurions being either mothballed or sold to mercenary units for refitting into their service. Indeed often the AFFS will sell a Centurion to a mercenary unit and then get an additional income from refitting it at say the Hasek Refit Centre on Bell for the mercenaries!
GM see's it's new Blackjack-O line go into production on Salem. As per the new line on Kathil the company see's long term contracts offered to supply the popular omnimech to the AFFS. By now within the regular formations of the AFFS almost every Blackjack has been replaced by the omni version, although a number of upgraded Blackjack's remain within the March Militias and lower end training formations.
On Woodbine the Robinson BattleWork's plant is announced to have broken ground on a new expansion with a second Battle Hawk line being added. Despite still being almost blacklisted by the 2nd Robinson Rangers the rugged design had developed a strong popularity not only with the March Miltia's but also the various training units of the March and the forming Conroe Borderer's. The line will be completed by February 3068.
Within the Free Worlds League the situation is just about under control when 3 out of the 6 Zion province delegation are killed in a single night - with 2 of the others critically injured and the final member missing. The first attack kills 2 of the 3 dead and injures 1 when a car drives by the restaurant that the 3 MP's are eating at and throws a bomb into it, with nearly 30 others killed or injured. The second attack kills the remaining fatality in the delegation when a sniper shoots the MP as he's leaving the theatre with his wife and the third attack is another drive by shooting that leaves the fifth MP on life support in hospital. The last MP of the delegation is simply missing with his home's door smashed in by military grade breacher rounds and his 3 security guards killed. While nobody officially takes responsibility for the attacks many point the finger at the WOB and the riots which were dying down now flare back up again even worse. Within Zion Province the 13th Marik Militia which had been moved from Irian following the destruction of the 3rd Free Worlds Guard's find themselves barely able to avoid having their garrison posts overrun by rioting civilians. In some cases the reformed militias instead of helping put down the riots actually actively join them. Even outwith Zion the situation is getting worse rather than better and the Captain General rushes back towards Atreus...
While this is all ongoing the MASK agents assigned to Jaffray's Own attempt to arrest no fewer than 11 mechwarriors who are considered disloyal to the Chancellor. When the rest of the unit intervene the MASK agents send word to their supporting forces who are supposed to be on Repulse. Unfortunately these units - Warrior House Lu-Sann and the 3rd Sian Dragoons had been moved to counter any potential threat during the Taurian-FedSun's war and had not returned to Repulse, but nobody had made the MASK agents aware of that. With a quick firefight ongoing in the barracks Colonel Jaffray is forced to make a snap shot decision and joins his troops in destroying the MASK team to the last man before hurriedly fleeing the world and jumping into the Duchy of Andurien in the Free Worlds League where he immedietly seeks asylum and requests his unit be allowed to sign a mercenary contract... The personal intervention of the Duchess herself manages to have him land upon the planet without being blown out of the skies and while under the guns of the 1st Free Worlds Legionnaires Colonel Jaffray begins negotiations for a mercenary contract with no lesser personage than Dame Humphrey's herself...
Within the Liao Commonality a number of other MASK agents begin to report disturbing signs of FedSun's infiltration and support for the Federated SUn's rising... Pro-Sarna March/FS graffiti begins to appear towards the end of the month...
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Sunny must be regretting his life choices by now, same with tommy marik.
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Not sure about Tommy, but I'm pretty sure Sunny is the type to pin all the blame on somebody else.
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I'm honestly surprised that Deedee Faulkner hasn't been relieved of her command at this point. If her superior officers feel they have to start every conversation with 'leave the ****** Knights out of this' then she is pretty much straight up being insubordinate.
Personally if I was her boss, I would have given her the news without saying ANYTHING about the Sheridan Knights. And with each conversation she gets through with her bosses without bringing them up, she gets to keep her job.
The second she does, she is immediately relieved of command and given a choice of either early retirement, or, a General Courts Martial for insubordination with the judged stacked with people who have had to try and explain this to her many many times. The tolerance for her in the AFFS is quite surprising given that she is a relatively low level commander.
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Why IS she dead set on getting them under her anyway?
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Why IS she dead set on getting them under her anyway?
Officer wanting to expand her own baliwick and prestige of her unit.
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I'm honestly surprised that Deedee Faulkner hasn't been relieved of her command at this point. If her superior officers feel they have to start every conversation with 'leave the ****** Knights out of this' then she is pretty much straight up being insubordinate.
Personally if I was her boss, I would have given her the news without saying ANYTHING about the Sheridan Knights. And with each conversation she gets through with her bosses without bringing them up, she gets to keep her job.
The second she does, she is immediately relieved of command and given a choice of either early retirement, or, a General Courts Martial for insubordination with the judged stacked with people who have had to try and explain this to her many many times. The tolerance for her in the AFFS is quite surprising given that she is a relatively low level commander.
She's not used to having to deal with superiors really - she's used to being the commanding officer on her own world and not really getting a lot of attention from her superiors. I'd say the 2 existing Borderer units were pretty much left to their own devices for a long, long time. Which was fine with her. But then she got a promotion, a fancy new office on New Avalon and has had her head swollen a bit by that and see's the Sheraton Knights as being a natural fit for "her" brigade... And you are right she is getting very close to the end of her rope on that one. Mostly what's kept her in her job so far is that she is a good CO and has a long history of leading a combat command with few problems... Call it residual good will that is being used up fast.
Why IS she dead set on getting them under her anyway?
Officer wanting to expand her own baliwick and prestige of her unit.
Kelgar is about 60% right, the rest of it is that most borderer units are now supplied by Training Battalions - as is the Sheraton Knights. Basically she figures they are just a borderer unit with a slightly different name. They are even organised in the same fashion as her borderer's. So they should be brigaded with the borderers and under her command. She probably honestly at first saw it as a minor point that everyone would just agree with her and it's now become a bit of an issue for her... Why wont the others see sense? It's such a natural "fit" in her mind now.
Plus I'm trying to show that despite the successes of the AFFS - they do still have some dissent/cranks within their ranks that have to be dealt with. Growing pains lets call them. She makes a good foil for that... ;)
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3067 - August - A coup
August begins with shocking news from the Free Worlds League, that the Captain-General Thomas Marik has been assassinated in orbit. Details are scarce to begin with it but it appears that having arrived in orbit with his accompanying warships the Captain-General was shuttling down to the planet when one of the warships - at this time it is unknown whether or not the warship in question was part of his escort or part of the defensive fleet around the world - opened fire with a full broadside upon his transport dropship. The dropship carrying Thomas Marik was destroyed with all hands in the initial burst, seconds before a general free for all battle erupted over Atreus. More akin to a Clan Grand Melee than any form of organised battle the ship's of the Free Worlds League Navy fired upon each other seemingly almost at random. Some ships banded together against the "Traitor" Thomas Marik, others in support of the presumed dead leader, with others supporting first one side then the other or opening fire on both. Even ships which had previously declared for or against the murdered leader would seemingly at random switch allegiance as crewmen loyal to that faction took control of the ship. In one particularly noteworthy instance the newly finished Impavido class FWLS Gerald Marik opened fire on both a loyalist and rebel ship with different broadsides controlled by different factions! Along with the transport carrying the Captain-General a large percentage of his guard unit the 1st Knights of the Inner Sphere are destroyed in space, although around half make a hurried planet fall.
Worse from the view of almost everyone is that a number of the ships are known to have deployed nuclear ordinance against each other. The FWLS Sardis for instance is known to have been destroyed by no fewer than 3 nuclear missiles fired by the so called flagship of the First Fleet, the FWLS Xanthos which in turn was destroyed by the firepower of the launched fighters and the FWLS Sardis's 2 attendant Eagle frigates the FWLS Tristram and FWLS Bedevere, although not before destroying the FWLS Bedevere as well and crippling the FWLS Tristram.
The situation on the ground is little better with Parliament having suffered an orbital strike from an unknown warship - at least 3 warships are known to have fired on the planet, the FWLS Menelaus, FWLS Raven and FWLS Attica. Other targets for orbital strikes include the main barracks of the 2nd Knights of the Inner Sphere and the planet's HPG.
By the end of the 3 day free for all the League's First Fleet has been gutted as have the warships that were escorting the Captain-General. Nobody is quite sure how many have escaped damaged or otherwise or indeed how many remain over Atreus and what their loyalties are. Half of the League's Zechetinu I and II ships - 12 of the fast corvettes were known to have been at the planet for instance and at least 2 are confirmed destroyed but the rest are currently unaccounted for, either still at Atreus or scattered. One final known casualty that is reported consistently is the Illium yard at Atreus which has been destroyed by one side or other, taking it's partially build Agamemnon class cruiser with it.
On New Avalon the reports are devoured with horrified interest and appetite. The Federated Suns must know what is going on within the League, yet it appears that not even many within the League know! A handful of facts however are known for sure. Captain-General Thomas Marik has been killed in orbit over Atreus and his government has fallen. The rest of the League is already splintering, with the Duchy of Oriente announcing that they will not recognise any new Captain-General except Janos Marik II, the young son of the murdered Thomas Marik. The Prince of Regulus Kirc Cameron-Jones has also announced that he has evidence that the murdered Thomas Marik was in fact a fake, an impostor and as such is calling for an entirely new line to take the throne - presumably his own. No word has yet been heard throughout August of other known potential claimants/players - namely Kristen Marik or her children, Paul Marik and his daughter Corrine Marik who were both on Atreus at the time of the attack or Therese Marik and her husband Jeremy Brett. Worse with Parliament gone (wiped from the face of Atreus apparently) nobody is quite sure what the legal situation is.
The situation regarding reliable intelligence from the League gets suddenly worse when the various HPG's within the Free Worlds League go off the grid. As far as the various intelligence agencies can ascertain messages are still being passed by the HPG's within the League, but they are not transmitting to any non-League planet under orders from Terra.
The First Prince while keeping pace with all news from the powder keg that the Free Worlds League has became, is also busy attending to his fiancee Duchess Isis Marik. News that her father (at least presumably although Victor knows this isn't the case) is dead has been a shock for her as has the collapse of the League's central government. Thankfully Victor has talked her out of her first instinct which was to rush to Atreus to find out for herself what is going on. For one thing he has told her that if she does so he'll be going with her, with a sizeable chunk of the AFFS to protect her!
He does however send a hurried message to his brother Peter on Tharkad and requests information about what the current state of affairs is for the Kristen Krushers. He is told that 2 days after the news broken of the attack on Atreus and the murder of Thomas Marik the unit packed up into it's dropships and left their garrison post for parts unknown, technically breaking contract.
The First Prince also is in hurried contact with both the Interim Primus Dow and also the First Lord Christian Mansdottir. The First Prince strongly suggests that a Peace Keeping Force be formed to move into the League and prevent civil war - offering up no less than 10 RCT's or battlemech regiments to this force as well as at least 12 warships as a contingent from the AFFS. He even offers to personally lead the AFFS contingent or the entire force if that is approved by the others.
Dow finds himself unable to commit due to the sudden upsurge in WoB activities in the Skye Province, Deiron District and even in FedSun's worlds bordering the WoB Protectorate. His situation has been complicated by a recent naval strike by the Word of Blake in which 3 Dante Frigates - the WoBS Perdition, WoBS Salvation and WoBS Rebirth struck out and attacked a supply convoy of equipment from the FedSun's factories to the various ComGuard Divisions in the Lyran Alliance and on the Clan front. Although over 80% of the convoy was protected it had come at the cost of the CSV Resilience and heavy damage to the CSV Enlightened Path. He does however suggest that the WoB is behind this collapse/attack in the League and that the rest of the Second Star League should unite with Comstar to retake Terra and cleanse the Blakists from the Sphere.
First Lord Christian Mansdottir is a man pushed beyond his limits by the collapse of the Free Worlds League. The leader of a small nation constantly under threat of Clan invasion and sandwiched between 2 major powers he is unable to take decisive action and instead suggests that the matter be discussed at a full formal council in November at Whitting. Until then or until he is requested to do so by a legitimate authority within the League he refuses to dispatch troops, SLDF or volunteer.
Disgusted the First Prince speaks with his Marshal of Armies and returned Champion and orders them to begin plans for an intervention within the League alone if necessary, although he informs them he will at least wait and see how the situation escalates before committing and would prefer to do so with the full backing of the Star League. In preparation for this he instructs them into looking at siphoning off 2 regiments worth of elite and veteran warriors to form a 3rd and 4th Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry from existing formations in the coming year. The FSAC's fast moving and hard hitting approach to warfare will almost certainly be exactly what is required in a fluid situation and the First Prince want's to have access to more such troops if he needs them.
Victor Davion also begins to consider pulling back from the escalating situation in the former Sarna March turned Liao Commonality as he is unsure whether he can afford the distraction purely for revenge on Sun-Tzu Liao for an insult. However before he can order any recall of the teams sent into the region he receives word that Sun-Tzu himself has made a move. CCAF "peacekeeping troops" have moved into a number of League border worlds to "maintain order". The 3rd Confederation Reserve Cavalry hits the world of Shuen Wan, the 4th Tau Ceti Rangers hit Goodna, the 15th Dracon hit Cronula, the 4th Sian Dragoons arrive on Scarborough and the 1st Capellan Chargers are reported to be landing on Furud. All unaffiliated worlds and none currently garrisoned by regular troops, the High Command consider this Sun-Tzu testing out the state of the League under the cover of humanitarian missions rather than outright invasions. Although anyone who thinks those worlds will be returning to League control at the end of the "crisis" doesn't know the Chancellor. More, the return of Shuen Wan in particular would be a major boost to the Chancellor given it's historical economic importance due to the widespread appetite for Kincha fruit within the Confederation's elite historically. Returning that delicacy to the plates of his nobles and warriors might not seem a major matter to most, but within the Confederation it would be a sign of the beneficence of the Chancellor.
While the Federated Sun's can do little for the planets directly, the First Prince orders that anti-Capellan actions within the former Sarna March be stepped up. Propaganda, guerrilla actions and even outright assassinations begin to be ordered to disrupt Sian's control over the Liao Commonality. For instance Zhong-shao Noh Kan Du of the Shin Legion's Mechanised Infantry force on Sarna is assassinated by a sniper while leaving a brothel, while the Liao appointed Governor of Wei and 3 key aides are killed when his VTOL takes an anti-aircraft missile on it's way back to the office from his weekend retreat. Less noticeable but perhaps even more telling are the growing dissent towards Liao rule and underground movements forming that call for a return of Davion rule on over a dozen planets! By drawing off Sian's resources the First Prince can at least divert the Chancellor from further adventures in the troubled waters of the League.
On Crofton the newly renamed SunCorp Industries new Highlander line goes operational. Strangely at least half of it's production is diverted to the Clan Sun Jaguar to help them rebuild their Touman. The other half is sent to high end units like the Davion Assault Guards, 8th Crucis Lancers, etc... In the meantime a third Thanatos-O line begins construction. It is due to complete in July 3068.
The Corean plant on June see's it's new Hammerhead aerospace fighter enter production. Given the escalating situation along the borders the company is contracted to increase production of the Musketeer Hover Tank by upgrading the factory there to fully automated. This will be done by November 3068.
The New Earth Trading Company plant on Markesan has the Gabriel line constructed from Taurian salvage enter production. There will be a number of teething problems with the high spec vehicles that are first produced, but soon the plant is churning out the light hover tank for both the AFFS and ComGuards.
Given the escalating situation Maltex, Norse Battlemech Works and Corsara Weapons are all contacted in August to look at creating secondary back up factories deeper within the Federated Suns. All 3 factories have either been destroyed or captured in the past and the Federated Suns is loath to see this happen again and have them loose access to the excellent battlemech designs they all produce. As such they begin pressing for them to build factories as back ups to their main plants. Similarly Jalastar Aerospace is contacted and requested to add Sparrowhawk production to their building plants on Baxley and Centurion production to Belladonna. Corean is also requested to add a Centurion line to their Augusta based plant. Unlike the others who request time to look into their options, Corean readily agrees by now knowing they will get Government support and increase sales.
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Sounds like the largest space battle in centuries was FWL vs FWL? ( Nominally FWL)
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Sounds like the largest space battle in centuries was FWL vs FWL? ( Nominally FWL)
FWL vs FWL vs FWL, more likely. Plus possibly "vs secretly WoB".
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That was an unsubtle way to remove "Thomas". WoB seems to have lost the subtlety that led to so many centuries of successful "Holy Shrouds"
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Sounds like the largest space battle in centuries was FWL vs FWL? ( Nominally FWL)
FWL vs FWL vs FWL, more likely. Plus possibly "vs secretly WoB".
This! Basically. I mean as I mentioned at one stage there was a ship on both sides, firing into both sides from different broadsides...
That was an unsubtle way to remove "Thomas". WoB seems to have lost the subtlety that led to so many centuries of successful "Holy Shrouds"
In fairness - neither was the Jihad. Nuke it till it glows and shoot it in the dark isn't "subtle".
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That was an unsubtle way to remove "Thomas". WoB seems to have lost the subtlety that led to so many centuries of successful "Holy Shrouds"
They'd pretty much lost that subtlety when they broke openly with Comstar.
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that was a hit on the WoB fleet. to bad that the FWL just lost more of their fleet.
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The FWL fleet was so infiltrated by the Wobbies that the loss of all those ships really hit them the worst.
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Victor needs to start moving more aggressively against the WOB with Dow.
They might not be able to take Terra (although honestly they probably could, Case White was pure plot device and most if not all of the WOB-ROM ****** in the ComGuard fleet were blown in their lesser attempt in TTL) but they could certinally launch a quick series of objective raids like the earlier one ComStar ran. Get in, blast the picket warship, ground and brutalize the ground forces then pull out. With the WOB so focused on the FWL right now, there is probably every chance you could rapidly hit a half dozen systems in their protectorate and even justify it entirely as a tit-for-tat against the constant WOB raiding of ComStar facilities in Federated Suns space.
Or, at the very least I'd suggest that as a gesture, Victor should lean on some manufactures (who frankly, have made out like they have C-Bill printing presses over the last decade thanks to him) to loosen up in regards to selling to ComStar. Like Maltex Corporation, telling them they've had their fun, now stop bitching and offer 50% first refusal to ComStar for the next five years or something. Or have the AFFS slow down its Battle Armor takeup and offer a lot more of the production to ComStar, because they are probably going to need the suits very soon (and its something that can REALLY make a huge difference as the poor Bulls found out)...
Things like that can be done to make a clear point to the Word of Blake that they are on the Federated Suns shit lists and they are going to back ComStar even more in response...
Although I am worried that Victor is setting up a lot of people to die in the former Sarna march for his ego. By fermenting a bunch of uprisings Sun Tzu is going to suppress and thus not be able to get more than toe deep into the FWL mess, it really isn't nice for the people on the world who might actually WANT the Davions back. And stick their necks out.
I hope he's prepared if this DOES take off.
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Victor needs to start moving more aggressively against the WOB with Dow.
Well if the WoB is behind the situation in the FWL, I'd think every other government in the Inner Sphere would be wanting to ensure there are no WoB sleepers in their midst and declare an all out war against them. Between the attacks on the HPG's and this decapitation strike on the entire FWL leadership like that, I just don't see how any of them can ignore the Blakists now.
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3067 - September - troop movements
Even as the Federated Sun's intelligence agencies tries to find out what was going on in the Free Worlds League the situation continued to escalate. There was a second fleet battle over the world of Hamilton in which the FWLS Troy, who's captain had publicly went on record that he would be loyal to the "memory of the murdered Captain-General Thomas Marik" and who was taking his ship towards Oriente, was intercepted by her sister ship the FWLS Aineas which has pledged it's loyalty to the interim-Government on Atreus - although few if any knew exactly what that interim-Government was! In a swift and savage battle the 2 lightly armoured heavy cruisers tore each other apart. Although technically the FWLS Troy was the victor, in that the ship was intact at the end of the battle, she was crippled beyond repair with her jump drive trashed and her spine buckled from multiple impacts and over half her crew dead and cold in the ruptured hull. The remaining crew were hastily evacuated by a pro-Oriente jumpship and continued their journey after scuttling the FWLS Troy.
According to what confused reports were making it out of the League the Duchy of Orloff had also signed on with the pro-Thomas faction of their neighbours the Duchy of Oriente. The bulk of the Marik-Commonwealth seemed to be following or at least waiting for orders from Atreus, while the Sirian Holds and Free Tikonov Province had both declared for the "legitimate government on Atreus". In a move that surprised nobody the WoB run Principality of Gibson had declared for Atreus as well. Although the nearby Principality of Regulus was refusing to join either side and instead had formed a third faction of it's own. Most of the minor provinces and individual worlds seemed to be keeping their own council for now by what the intelligence agencies were gathering. But that could have changed, their news was usually a week or 2 old at best.
One thing that was verified several times was that there was still fighting on Atreus itself. If not in orbit at least. Judging by half jammed transmissions it appeared that at least some of the 1st Knights of the Inner Sphere had made the ground and joined up with survivors of the 2nd Knights who had been bombarded. These 2 shattered formations had reformed into a single force and were fighting on in the name of their murdered leader. Against who was still up in the air.
Just in case the AFFS High Command began moving troops towards the worlds of Capolla, Nanking and Zurich. Although Outreach would be another ideal world given it's shattered and still rebuilding economy after an orbital bombardment it was felt that adding a number of additional units to that worlds garrison would be counter productive and might offend the garrisoning Wolf's Dragoons. The 5th Davion Guards RCT, 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT and 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT moved down from the Addicks PDZ and took up station on Capolla to form an ad hoc Task Force Capolla. Meanwhile the 3rd FedSun's Dragoons RCT left Kittery and headed for Nanking, joining the 1st Lexington Combat Guards and the 2nd FSAC regiment to form the temporary Task Force Nanking. The Davion Light Guards RCT was dispatched from New Avalon to form the basis for Task Force Zurich, being joined by the 12 Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment and the 1st Revenant Guards RCT. This gives the AFFS 3 temporary task forces each consisting of 3 battlemech regiments or RCT's with which to intervene if need by in the worlds bordering the Federated Suns and yet hasn't opened up any gaps in their own defences.
A fourth task force is being assembled on paper to accompany the First Prince if he informs the High Command he is taking command of the front. Of course the 1st Davion Guards RCT will be the centre point of this formation, but in a strange move the 1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT and 6th Robinson Rangers RCT are also flagged to join this formation. Both are green and newly raised commands but are at full strength and many feel that showing 2 units from the various Marches directly under the First Princes's command will be a good move for insuring that the Marches remember who their loyalty is with. The experienced 1st and 7th FedSun's Dragoons RCT's and the Davion Assault Guards already in the Nanking and Achernar PDZ are also flagged as potential additions to any task force built around the First Prince.
Left unsaid in all of this is that these same units could be equally used to drive into the Liao Commonality in the event that relationships break down between the Capellan Confederation and the Federated Suns. Given that intel reports from the Liao Commonality have the entire garrison at less than 10 regiments of battlemechs such a force would easily be able to seize multiple worlds. Particularly if supported by drives into the Commonality from the neighbouring Achernar, Valexa and Alcoyne PDZ's.
On Chesterton the new Achernar plant completes it's new Argus-O line. Plans are put in place to convert the Dervish line there to an omnimech if the AFFS agrees to purchase the new design, as well as adding a second Dervish-O line in that event.
Jalastar agree's to begin production of the popular Sparrowhawk aerospace fighter at Batavia and Baxley, beginning preparations to begin construction of a single line at each factory. They are expected to complete between May and July in 3068.
On June the Lycomb-Davion plant adds a third Stuka line at their factory with the new production being routed to a number of units within the Outback. Plans begin to be put in place to add an Awesome battlemech line at this plant, but this construction won't be started until November and is expected to complete in December 3068.
The New Independence Weaponry plant on Alta Vista completes it's Gunslinger line on the 16th of September and the assault battlemech enters production within the Draconis March. With the increasing supply of assault and heavy battlemech's the Duke of Robinson begins considering forming a new unit on the model of the Davion Assault Guards or other heavy formations.
Norse Battlemech Works agrees on the 20th of September to build a new secondary site deeper within the Federated Suns. Given that the shareholders had largely lost their income from the plant when it was seized by the Draconis Combine and handed over to new owners. Now returned to their control by the actions of the First Prince the owners saw the wisdom in ensuring that no such event happened again. Having considered their options the CEO and board have decided to begin construction of new plant on Mayetta in the new year. The plans are to build a Griffin and Shadow Hawk line at the new plant to begin with. In a surprise move the Federated Sun's Government announce that they will provide the Sling battlemech design for construction at this new factory and will help fund the construction of this line.
With this example in front of them Maltex and Cosara Weaponries step up their consideration of also building a secondary sight. Maltex are considering a site in the Outback, while Cosara at the strong suggestion of the Clan Elders of Northwind are looking for a site on a "Scottish" world. Right now Northfield is the strong favourite, particularly as it is already the site of an existing battlemech factory so has the infrastructure in place to support the factory.
The new company of Ranger Battlemech's on Verde completes it's first battlemech line on the 28th of September. The initial company of battlemechs are all scheduled to be sent to the Duke of Verdes's battlemech force the Vegan Rangers to replace old and worn out Shadow Hawks. The worn out machines will then be returned to Verde where they will be refitted using spare parts from the factory and gifted to the Planetary Defence Force or even the Ducal Guard of the planet to increase protection for the now key factory world. Future production will be sold to the AFFS and AFFS sanctioned mercenary forces to bring in a profit and support further construction.
On Tikonov the Koschei redesign is finally completed and is considered glitch free. As such a full company of prototypes are delivered to the AFFS to be tested to see if the design will be purchased in large numbers as a fast heavy cavalry battlemech. Considering the nature of the 1st Tikonov Cossacks Earthwerks are pushing for it it to become a common design in the locally raised unit.
The High Command isn't the only group who can see that the assembling Davion troops in the region around Zurich could be used to attack the Liao Commonality. The Chancellor calls for additional troops to be sent to the worlds of Aldebaran, Liao and Ningpo. His senior staff begin scrambling for units to rush into position. One of the first units they send orders to are McCarron's Armoured Cavalry that their 2nd or 3rd regiment should be sent to Gan Singh. However unfortunately for the Strategios neither of those 2 regiments make any move during September towards the front, staying on Menke. The 5th and 6th Sian Dragoons ranks are filled with Home Guard units to bring them both up to full strength at least in numbers and are sent to Poznan and Shensi respectively. Some discussions are made towards towards withdrawing the troops from "peacekeeping" duties within the Free Worlds League but this is quickly dismissed by the Chancellor who is keen to make gains while he can. Indeed he begins pressing his Magistracy allies for units to help him expand with a second set of "peacekeepers" into Ohren Province and the nearby worlds of Second Chance and Harsefeld.
The 13th Marik Militia on Zion finds itself in over their heads. By now their 2 attached infantry regiments are deployed in penny pockets to try and keep the peace and a number of isolated garrison postings are almost under constant siege. This unrest is spreading out from Zion into other nearby worlds including the Ohren Province and Ibstock and Park Place. Bernardo, a key factory world with 2 separate battlemech factories on it is also beginning to see early signs of the riots that have already engulfed Zion.
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Victor needs to start moving more aggressively against the WOB with Dow.
They might not be able to take Terra (although honestly they probably could, Case White was pure plot device and most if not all of the WOB-ROM ****** in the ComGuard fleet were blown in their lesser attempt in TTL) but they could certinally launch a quick series of objective raids like the earlier one ComStar ran. Get in, blast the picket warship, ground and brutalize the ground forces then pull out. With the WOB so focused on the FWL right now, there is probably every chance you could rapidly hit a half dozen systems in their protectorate and even justify it entirely as a tit-for-tat against the constant WOB raiding of ComStar facilities in Federated Suns space.
Or, at the very least I'd suggest that as a gesture, Victor should lean on some manufactures (who frankly, have made out like they have C-Bill printing presses over the last decade thanks to him) to loosen up in regards to selling to ComStar. Like Maltex Corporation, telling them they've had their fun, now stop bitching and offer 50% first refusal to ComStar for the next five years or something. Or have the AFFS slow down its Battle Armor takeup and offer a lot more of the production to ComStar, because they are probably going to need the suits very soon (and its something that can REALLY make a huge difference as the poor Bulls found out)...
Things like that can be done to make a clear point to the Word of Blake that they are on the Federated Suns shit lists and they are going to back ComStar even more in response...
Although I am worried that Victor is setting up a lot of people to die in the former Sarna march for his ego. By fermenting a bunch of uprisings Sun Tzu is going to suppress and thus not be able to get more than toe deep into the FWL mess, it really isn't nice for the people on the world who might actually WANT the Davions back. And stick their necks out.
I hope he's prepared if this DOES take off.
In fairness to the FS/Comstar relations the First prince has a LOT of factories already selling 50% of their production to the ComGuards. Chesterton, Firgrove, Tikonov, Belladonna, Broken Wheel, Defiance, El Dorado, Markeson, New Avalon, Northfield, Victoria, Kentares, Northwind, Ozawa and Robinson all have lines either that are partially or fully producing just for the ComGuards. Hell the taxes on these sales are paying for a HUGE chunk of his expansions! So expect more of them to be honest.
As of the last update you can see Victors moving troops into the Nanking PDZ which can if things kick off in the former sarna march move in to secure things. Also from the Davions realpolitik view: if the Liaos come down hard in the former sarna march that will just weaken them further there, while also distracting them from annexing worlds in the League - so making sure that the Capellan Confederation doesnt grow in strength. It's sort of a win win for them. And Victor isn't promising support he isn't delivering. He's merely encouraging unrest with agents - a common tactic, and in fact one that cost him the sarna march in the first place.
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Raids on shipyards in the FWL and Terra by unknown forces will hurt the wobbies abilty to build up.
Might be an idea. :thumbsup:
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I like it that the Sling will get some love.
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In fairness to the FS/Comstar relations the First prince has a LOT of factories already selling 50% of their production to the ComGuards. Chesterton, Firgrove, Tikonov, Belladonna, Broken Wheel, Defiance, El Dorado, Markeson, New Avalon, Northfield, Victoria, Kentares, Northwind, Ozawa and Robinson all have lines either that are partially or fully producing just for the ComGuards. Hell the taxes on these sales are paying for a HUGE chunk of his expansions! So expect more of them to be honest.
Sure, but there is a point where it becomes downright silly in this EXPAND, EXPAND, EXPAND, MORE MORE MORE! The Federated Suns is already probably building more (and better) equipment than the next two nearest Successor States by now plus has a veteran army and navy massive in size (frankly the economics should have bankrupted the Federated suns a very long time ago, but lets just keep that to the side!). Keeping ComStar happy is a very important thing, ESPECIALLY if Dow is starting talks with Peter to start setting up production lines in the Lyran Commonwealth than more lines in the Federated Suns and get all eggs in one basket.
Its not like the factories built thus far are going to vanish after all!
Beyond that, it makes a lot more sense to prioritize the ComGuards right now, even at the expense of the AFFS. The AFFS are already swimming in gear, the ComGuards are still in much worse shape thanks to loosing Terra and still making good all the losses from the ****** stopping the Clans. The WOB and ComStar are also already in a state of war and if you want to hurt the WOB, ComStar are the perfect proxy force. Victor can't really declare war on them YET as they have not done quiet enough to warrant that but ComStar? Comstar are already fighting them and all the support you can give to get ComStar getting in increasingly solid hits is hits you won't have to deal yourself. Politically it shows the WOB that ComStar has the Federated Suns support and that any further pushing might force the Federated Suns to drop the fig-leaf of not being a co-belligerent. It also will boost ComGuard morale to know that Prince Victor is a firm supporter with actions, not simply words. Because I'm sure a lot of people will thinking that they are just getting gear from the Federated Suns because Dow is paying them obscene amounts of money, nothing more than that.
Hell if I were Victor I'd outright offer ComStar the next two or three Davion III warships if they were willing to pay for them. The ComGuard fleet is sorely needing a mid-weight brawler to refill their ranks and the WOB are clearly escalating the stakes, who knows how much of the FWL Navy they might have just grabbed!
I mean, if nothing else, Victor could easily offer that you're willing to change the percentages on the joint lines, so that while total split remains the same in the long term, they get an immediate boost. So say for example its a 50-50 split on a line, Victor might allow ComStar to have an 80-20 split for the next year, then flipping to a 20-80 split for the following year. Allowing Dow and Focht to 'surge equipment into the ComGuards NOW for this war that is about to go hot. Which will also be appreciated by Dow as they can work with Peter Steiner to build some factories going operational two years hence to pick up the slack. Which in turn plays into Victors hands as he can help negotiate those deals with both parties AND try not to become the sole supplier for ComStar and thus the biggest target on WOBs hit list...
The AFFS has ridiculously expanded to its current level, has just fought an incredible successful war that crushed the Concordant as any kind of serious power and has the largest navy in the Inner Sphere. While the FWL and WOB are busy getting into a meat grinder, the Combine are busy whipping the lazy peasants and getting confused when its not making more Mechs appear out of thin air, the Lyran Commonwealth is pretty firmly allied with the Suns still and the Confederation has lost its biggest two allies and is busy declaring war on the FWL. The Federated Suns is about as reasonably secure as you can make it. And there are a lot better things to spent money on frankly than yet another Battlemech factory. At least with Government money.
As of the last update you can see Victors moving troops into the Nanking PDZ which can if things kick off in the former Sarna march move in to secure things. Also from the Davions realpolitik view: if the Liaos come down hard in the former sarna march that will just weaken them further there, while also distracting them from annexing worlds in the League - so making sure that the Capellan Confederation doesn't grow in strength. It's sort of a win win for them.
And Victor isn't promising support he isn't delivering. He's merely encouraging unrest with agents - a common tactic, and in fact one that cost him the sarna march in the first place.
Except this threat doesn't require the Liaos sending in Battlemechs or line troops (who would frankly just get in the way); this is a job for the Maskirovka sending in counter-intelligence agents and special forces teams to root out Victors few MI4 and MI6 teams. And say what you will about the damn Liaos, but their ability to deal with this kind of threat is pretty damn solid and they have had a long time to stamp their presence back on those worlds. In all honestly, Victors intelligence agents shouldn't be able to operate for that long without either relief or having to be pulled out.
There is a very real risk here that if Victors people have found a genuine Davion underground sentiment and activated old sleeper networks, all you'll do is bring out the people who actually believe in this ... and get them all killed in a brutal suppression. Which will in fact only strengthen the Liaos hand by both eliminating long term threats and making it clear to the population that Davion will never actually SUPPORT you as people he wants to liberate, but simply use you as a convenient distraction. Plus a lot of dead Rabid Foxes you can parade before the Star League council as proof of the Davions aggressive intentions.
Not to mention WOB-ROM might well be working hand in hand with Sun Tzu's people to eliminate any Davion operators given that they can control the HPGs and probably have a ground presence through it.
Victor lost the Sarna March because he and his parents didn't bother to properly integrate it into the Federated Commonwealth, then he abandoned it without a fight, then abandoned the Inner Sphere to go play solider boy against the Clans, allowing Sun Tzu to to whatever he wanted. And right now he is going down a dangerous path that may eat up any last goodwill the Federated Suns has in it.
Victor has let his temper at Sun Tzu saying mean things about his wife risk potentially millions or hundreds of millions of lives. I'm honestly surprised Ardan didn't yank him back and tell him to calm down at some point.
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Chris, one would think you don't like Victor. He did not go off and play soldier, he went to end a threat to everyone existence. As to how the FS is paying for the fleet they now have, it's called taxes, exports, etc. Comstar is shelling out financing and buying whatever can be sold to replenish
their ranks. As to the sins of the parents, i disagree with your assessment. The Sarna March was integrated, but it would take 2-3 generations before old allegiances would disappear. If you want to
talk about ignoring whole swaths of planets, look no futher than the Outback regions, historically those regions held the least amount of development for the FS. Victor is the only, in this version, Davion who has tried to correct that.
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Chris, one would think you don't like Victor.
What gave it away? :p
He did not go off and play soldier, he went to end a threat to everyone existence.
No, that is exactly what he did. The Bitch nailed it pretty much dead on with her critique of Victors character, that he LOVED dressing up in the uniform and dashing off to find a fight to engage in with his glorious Battlemech. He was absoloutly named correctly after Ian Davion in that sense; he was utterly blind to what he job actually was; which was leading the Federated Commonwealth! He didn't honestly belong as the Precentor Martials deputy in Bulldog, there were dozens of qualified senior flag officers who could easily have taken that position, but at least he was still in the Inner Sphere then. He had absoloutly no business running off down the Exodus road like he did, what with how incredibly weak his Government was in its loyalty to him. His FIRST DUTY above any other was to rule the Federated Commonwealth/Federated Suns. He grossly abdicated that when he vanished for years into the Periphery, leaving his sister with apparently zero support network in place except for a single man to try and hold his realm.
This fic predicates that Victor apparently wasn't a complete political cinderblock to the point that the High Command and Privy Council 'lol nope' Katherine coming in without bothering to tell Yvonne, but in the OTL, Victor's political incompetence shows through. Katherine actually gave him a pretty damn accurate 'The Reason you Suck Speech' in Grave Covenants prologue at their mothers grave, pointing out he was simply a Mechwarrior out of his depth. And that he didn't WANT to be a political creature, that he looked down on politics and viewed everything through a Mechwarriors eyes - which ended up being a complete disaster again and again through his life.
The Clans could have - and should have - been dealt with by Focht and some handpicked people. Hohiro could have easily taken that position. Victor did NOT need to be there, let alone to engage in single combat with the damn ilKhan.
As to how the FS is paying for the fleet they now have, it's called taxes, exports, etc. Comstar is shelling out financing and buying whatever can be sold to replenish
their ranks.
SImply put, the numbers don't come NEAR adding up for what the Federated Suns has been able to build in this fic vis a vis their actual economic starting position - they would be utterly bankrupt some time ago. But I'm happy to just let that slide to a great degree as its clearly just part of the fun of the fic. But, SOME limits would be nice to actually see now and again.
As to the sins of the parents, i disagree with your assessment. The Sarna March was integrated, but it would take 2-3 generations before old allegiances would disappear.
The Sarna March was NOT integrated. The Federated Commonwealth didn't work anything like hard enough to properly integrate them, sweep away the old order, put a new order in place, level out the pretty incredibly stratified Capellan society and investing the people into wanting this much better society enough that Sun Tzu's attempts to reclaim them in 3050 would have had him fighting massive insurgencies on every world and his limited forces getting chewed up all over the place. Because the bulk of the population LIKE not having thought police everywhere, liked being freed from Servitor slavery, liked having rights like free speech and so on. The cultural shift, especially in the younger generation getting invested into the FedCom, should have been far more pronounced - even by Battletech standards - but nothing of the like was seen.
Ergo, Melissa and Hanse honestly didn't do anything. They just stationed enough troops to make sure Romano couldn't retake it with force, then otherwise did very very little to economically or socially integrate them into the FedCom. So much so that they were almost happy to switch sides when the time came. But its not surprising; its clear Hanse (and by extension Melissa who pretty much just did whatever he told her and seemed to have very little input on strategic decision making) was still very much focused on the Combine. Not the Confederation.
If you want to
talk about ignoring whole swaths of planets, look no futher than the Outback regions, historically those regions held the least amount of development for the FS. Victor is the only, in this version, Davion who has tried to correct that.
Yes and the actual amount of work Victor has done is a drop in the bucket vis a vis the apparent economic feedback he is getting. A handful of dropship schools and an industrial Mech factory does not equate to more than a minor blip.
The Federated Suns even in the Crucis March has an enormously concentrated amount of industry and technology, the outback has a lot of theoretical potential for sure, but you're talking about a FIFTY YEAR timeframe with massive emigration, investment into huge infrastructure projects and education that dwarf what we've seen to start to have real results. Tax revenue will be major neagative for a very long time before it turns around and starts to build and go into 'China crazy double digit' level growth. It's been known by Davion after Davion after Davion that theoretically the outback could be a gigantic growth engine for their economy ... and not one of them has done something about it that amounts to much more than tinkering around the edges. Simply because it requires all the other massive drains on the Federated Suns economy (read; the AFFS and defending against their enemies) to be able to be scaled back and investment redirected, or, external sources of funding.
The FedCom ideally was going to be the latter, with massive Lyran capital and industrial investment into the Outback going to lay the foundation with increasing technology from the Federated Suns to be the growth engine of the FedCom for decades to come, Massive resources flows into the Lyran side as well as a rapidly growing consumer market for them, genuine industrial and planetary investment into the outback for the FedSuns that would start to snowball in due course.
Then Victor went and lost everything :(
Anyway, I don't really mind that for the sake of this fic large chunks of this is hand-waved, thats what good fanfic does to tell a story, but its getting to the point that some genuine strain showing in the Federated Suns economy would be nice with an unhealthy amount of GPD in military and military industries, heavy industrial concerns and so on causing a dangerous skewing in the economy.
But like I've said, I have a very nasty habit of starting to 'write' other peoples fanfics at times when I rant at clouds like an old man, so everyone by all means can feel free to tell me to go and sit back in the corner again :)
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3067 - October - Preparing for Whitting
Even as the situation escalated throughout the Inner Sphere there was some small cause for celebration at least for Clan Sun Jaguar. The 6th Wolf Guards Cluster arrived upon Valois and after a small "Trial of Possession" were absorbed into the Sun Jaguar's Beta Galaxy as the 6th Sun Jaguar Dragoons, a roughly 70% strength unit with elite status. This meant that while Alpha Galaxy was still larger than Beta Galaxy due to the addition of both Keshik's, Beta Galaxy had the largest concentration of elite and veteran warriors within it's ranks. In the meantime work continued on building the infrastructure the Clan would require to continue as a viable entity. As well as the work undertaken to build the 2 lines for the Daedalus industrial mech the Clan had also began a major construction project for a genetic repository worthy of a Clan, as well as a facility to begin producing Iron Wombs. Both projects were actually ahead of schedule due to the fact that the Khan herself had instigated a tradition that when Warriors weren't training or in combat then they would often help with the work of actually working on building these 2 key facilities - a tradition that had been suggested to her by Paul Moon who remembered having actually enjoyed his work when he was a bondsman to the Eridrani Light Horse on Huntress. A handful of traditionalists refused to undertake such "menial" labour but most of the Warriors were coming around to the new ways of doing things - helped by the fact that most of the traditionalists had been pummelled into submission in a series of brutal trials since the visit of the 2 duchess's - Yvonne Davion-Sandoval and Isis Marik. Another facility in the plans was a cutting edge Clan medical centre, but for now the repository and Iron Womb facility took precedence.
First Prince Victor met with the entire High Command and various other high ranking officers of the AFFS on the 3rd of October, prior to his leaving for the Whitting Conference. In an open discussion they discussed the potential conflicts and the AFFS's response. He explained that his plans for the coming year was to limit the entirely new regiments created from scratch to just 2 regiments this year - namely the 6th Dragonlords RCT and a new Avalon Hussars RCT - the 15th. The graduates who would usually have went to form a third new regiment would instead be used to plug holes in existing regiments - particularly those of the Avalon Hussars Brigade which has a large number of commands under strength.
However in addition to the 2 units formed from graduating cadets from the cadres there would be 2 new units formed from drawing upon the veterans of the AFFS, the 3rd Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry and the 1st Kathil Uhlans. He explained that while he had initially thought to raise 2 FSAC units he had been convinced by both the Duke of New Syrtis and the Marshal of Armies that now as the correct time to rebuild Morgan Hasek-Davion's old command. The Tancredi War College's graduating cadre unit would be used to form the core of a new 2nd Tancredi Loyalists LCT and along with the 1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT would be used to form the basis of a new brigade.
Meanwhile the a Galtor Borderer Training Cadre would be formed in a similar way to those of the Bell, Brockton and Conroe Training Cadres. In time it was hoped this new unit would relieve pressure on the Galtor Thumb and allow other Regular Army units to be deployed offensively rather than tied down in defensive deployments.
A final unit to be formed would be the 1st Avalon Borderer's LCT. The First Prince (who had been well briefed) began by explaining that at the current time the Marshal of Armies, Princes's Champion and himself saw a greater need for a number of LCT style units for rapid redeployment and rear area cover. As the various Training Battalions were already organised along the lines of a LCT it was felt their graduates would be ideal to fill this role and as such the graduating mechwarriors and troops of the New Aragon, Kittery and Mitchel Training Battalions - along with a company from the over strength 1st Mitchel Borderer's would be used to form this new unit. This unit would be formed as a new independant command but later expanded into it's own brigade of LCT units...
This was as far as the First Prince got before Marshal Deedee Faulkner interrupted and informed him that surely this new formation should be part of her own brigade and that she had been promised as such! The officers on either side of her slowly edged away as the focus of the entire room turned to the furious Marshal. A quick glance at Jackson Davion and Ardan Sortek from the First Prince quieted them before they could jump to their feet at the interuption and he invited the Marshal of the Borderer Brigade to make her case. She then began to explain how her unit was best placed to absorb this new unit - but not as a LCT but as a full Borderer regiment which could then be used in the manner that the First Prince required. Future units could also be formed within her Brigade, using the graduates from her Training Battalions and this process could be sped up if the First Prince was to assign the 1st Sheraton Knights and it's Training Battalion to her command...
At which point the First Prince held a hand up and sought clarification from Field Marshal Kouranth of the Department of Military Education as to whether or not the Training Battalions were actually assigned formally to the Borderer's Brigade and Marshal Faulkner's command. The grey haired Field Marshal quickly informed the First Prince that no, those units remained within her own department. After thanking the Field Marshal the First Prince then turned on Marshal Faulkner who was hurriedly explaining that she had perhaps misspoke, to tell her to sit down and listen. He explained that he would not tolerate small minded "empire building" within the AFFS. Something that she seemed to be doing a great deal of lately. He explained further that he had been warned by both the Marshal of Armies, Princes's Champion, Field Marshal Gregory Sykes and Marshal Todd Revon's that she was likely to object to these proposals. They had also warned him that she had been told that the 1st Sheraton Knights were not going to be assigned to her brigade and yet constantly attempted to bring the subject back up. All of this, plus her own comments here had confirmed to him that it was time for the Marshal to retire. With honour and gracefully, rather than continue on the downward path of politicising and empire building she seemed to be determined on. She was relieved. Now. He then turned to Todd Revon and asked him to notify Marshal Jimmie Kirston of his promotion to command the Borderer Brigade.
Now that that was dealt with the First Prince finished explaining his plans for the Avalon Borderer's to be a new LCT style formation. He then informed them that he would be going to the Whitting on Tharkad with the 1st Davion Guards RCT and the 1st Cruiser Squadron - although the FSS Ian Davion would be detached to guard New Avalon. In it's place he would be taking the 1st Destroyer Squadron as escorts. He also informed the various officers that he intended to take the opportunity to showcase the Davion III class destroyer as he intended to offer a number of them for sale to the Lyran Alliance and the ComGuards. With 11 of the destroyers building for the Federated Sun's Navy the First Prince was of the view that further expansions in slips could be used for foreign sales to bring in more hard currency for the Federated Suns. Both the Lyrans and Comstar were desperately in need of a medium weight ship that could be used for close in work. At over 4.3 billion c-bills per ship at just basic cost the income could be used to help fund the Davion's own naval production. While Fleet Admiral Buchwald is less than keen for warships to be sold that could go to his own naval forces he has to concede that such funds if put back into the Navy will allow additional ships and shipyards to be constructed.
After this meeting the First Prince heads off towards Tharkad. He leaves his Prince's Champion in charge on New Avalon with the Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion and Duchess Isis Marik to advise him. He takes with him Marshal Galen Cox and Colonel Caradoc Trevana. Added to his security detail at the last minute is 2 points of Elementals from the Sun Jaguars. Khan Nevversan who herself had been the First Princes's bodyguard feels that she still owes a duty of protection to Victor Davion personally and assigns 10 of her finest warriors to his personal protection detail. While some within the AFFS are upset at this suggestion they cannot protect their own First Prince, most are welcoming of the added layer of security. The Prince Victor himself welcomes the additions as another visible sign of the integration of the Sun Jaguars.
After the First Prince has left aboard the FSS Melissa Davion Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion announces that the AFFS will be accepting the Dervish-O for service. He extends contracts to Achernar Battlemech's to refit their 2 existing Dervish lines on New Avalon as well as their Dervish lines on Chesteron and Filtvelt.
At the same time Kallon Industries announces that it will be adding an Enforcer III line not only to their plant on Kirklin. It is expected to go online in August 3068.
On El Dorado 2 Ajax-O omni tank lines are added to the cooperative plant there. The Templar-O line that is being constructed isn't expected to go into production until December later that year. Still the addition of 2 more Ajax-O lines is a welcome one to the various armoured regiments of the AFFS.
Lycomb-Davion announces on the 23rd of October that they would be returning production to Demeter - their original base of operations. They initially would be building a plant to construct Guillotines exclusively for the ComGuards and SLDF (with the blessings of the First Prince), but with plans to expand production their to other designs.
The new facility on New Damascus for the new company Federated Suns Defence Industries has it's first line go operation in October. A Stinger battlemech line made from salvage from the Taurian Campaign goes online and begins production of an updated Stinger design. Even with the updates to this venerable mech, the production goes mostly to training units and March Militias.
Maltex Corporation announces that they will be creating a new facility on Brockton within the Outback. This facility will initially consist of a single line to produce the Wyvern medium battlemech. Initially they had considered building a Thug line, but that design already has some redundancy with the Earthwerks plant on Tikonov also building it, so the Wyvern is considered the priority by the High Command who press for that design to be built first.
The General Dynamic's plant on Ozawa finishes construction of the Sentry class battlemech. Although popular the widespread nature of the Sentry design means that the AFFS authorises the company to offer up to 50% of the output of the Sentry to the ComGuards. While not a cutting edge design it is rugged, durable and easy to learn to control for novice battlemech mechwarriors.
On Robinson the Ostsol line goes operational. This updated design is immedietly an instant favourite for heavy companies who often operate far away from supply lines given it's all energy load out. Using the First Princes's industrial policies the Duke of Robinson has turned what was once very much a secondary supplier of battlemech's for the AFFS into a major defence company. From it's roots of a single Watchman line the factory now encompasses 11 lines at it's primary factory and has a secondary site on Woodbine with another 5 lines and with a sixth building. Still he has noticed a distinct lack of fast light battlemech's within his companies offerings, with only the slower Battle Hawk line being produced on Woodbine within the light battlemech category. While he could easily obtain access to a "bug" light battlemech design like the Locust, Stinger or Wasp the Duke instead sets his sights on either the Javelin-O design from Jalastar or the Scarabus axe wielding design from VEST/Coventry.
The Duke is however pleased to hear that the first Overlord-A3 pocket warships are being laid down at Verde within his March. The plan remains for these dropships to be paired with a Vengeance class aerospace carrier and assigned to Tramp class jumpship equipped with LF batteries - with 3 Tramp's equipped with this way providing a major aerospace force where a Fox isn't available. A supply train will be provided to these ships by a Mule dropships escorted by a handful of Avenger assault dropship on a Merchant class jumpships.
However many within the Federated Suns Navy are unhappy with the supply arrangements and they are pushing for a more dedicated transport than the Mule. As such FedBoeing offers to restart production of the Cargoking and Cargomaster class dropships at their facilities on Galax and Filtvelt. The Duke of Robinson does manage to get this offer extended to include the Verde dropship yard.
Across the Inner Sphere various rulers begin leaving for Tharkad. Kai Allard-Liao unusually remains on St Ives, but instead his mother Candace Allard-Liao takes his place and heads for Tharkad, while Coordinator Theodore Kurita makes arrangement to travel with heavy escort. He leaves his son in command of the Draconis Combine. Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao heads to Tharkad aboard the CCS Elias Jung alongside Lord Protector (in Exile) Grover Shraplen. No representative is sent from the Taurian Concordat's official government who have no interest in the Second Star League - particularly as they are too busy trying to hold their realm together. However the Magestrix Emma Centrella sends her daughter Sun-Tzu's lover Naomi to represent her.
Tellingly no representative comes from the Free Worlds League. The League is far to busy trying to tear itself apart to care about interstellar politics. Various provinces are still declaring their allegiances or holding back, but this month the Silver Hawk Coalition swears they will follow the heirs of the murdered Thomas Marik and pledge their loyalty to the government on Oriente. As do a number of worlds between the Ohren Province and the Duchy of Orloff. The Ohren Province itself, perhaps feeling the threat of Capellan forces announce they too will support Oriente's candidate.
Perhaps feeling momentum slipping away the Prince of Regulus orders his 2nd and 9th Hussars along with the FWLS Phrygia and 3 of the 4 Zechetinu II corvettes sworn to his service to attack and seize the shipyard facility at Clipperton. He would have preferred to annex the much larger and more vital shipyards at Ionus, but he still isn't sure just what is left of the 1st Fleet at Atreus which seem to have sworn loyalty to the new government there. Plus the system will be an ideal stepping off point for seizing Gibson from the WOB.
The operation is a disaster. There are 2 WOB Lola III class destroyers at Clipperton - namely the WoBS End of Wisdom and WoBS Faith's End. These 2 ships immedietly attack the Regulan force with nuclear tipped missiles. However they are met in kind when the 3 Zechetinu II fire back with the same warheads. Going head to head the corvettes are actually able to fire 6 White Shark between them to the Blakist's 4 and are concentrating their fire on only 2 ships rather than 4. However the Lola III's are bigger and tougher ships than the fragile Zechetinu's and both sides are firing full nuclear volleys. No less than 5 volleys are fired in the space of a short and heated battle that leaves both sides hammered. Both Lola III vessels are destroyed in nuclear fire, but they have taken with them the FWLS Phrygia and 2 of the 3 Zechetinu II corvettes as well as significant portions of the escorted transports. With 2 few troops and only a single damaged corvette left the Regulans know they cannot take the planet or shipyards, so instead the FWLS Morava launches it's few remaining missiles at the shipyard and destroys it and the Agamemnon class cruiser building within it before withdrawing.
This defeated invasion and nuclear exchange results in the independent world of Camlann, famed within the League for the Camlann vs Free Worlds case which has splintered the power of the large provinces, announces that it will be obeying Oriente and the rightful heir to the Captain-General Thomas Marik. They go so far as to request additional protection from Oriente and welcome the Duchy to station troops there in preparation for attacks upon the nearby Principality of Regulus.
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What gave it away? :p
No, that is exactly what he did. The Bitch nailed it pretty much dead on with her critique of Victors character, that he LOVED dressing up in the uniform and dashing off to find a fight to engage in with his glorious Battlemech. He was absoloutly named correctly after Ian Davion in that sense; he was utterly blind to what he job actually was; which was leading the Federated Commonwealth! He didn't honestly belong as the Precentor Martials deputy in Bulldog, there were dozens of qualified senior flag officers who could easily have taken that position, but at least he was still in the Inner Sphere then. He had absoloutly no business running off down the Exodus road like he did, what with how incredibly weak his Government was in its loyalty to him. His FIRST DUTY above any other was to rule the Federated Commonwealth/Federated Suns. He grossly abdicated that when he vanished for years into the Periphery, leaving his sister with apparently zero support network in place except for a single man to try and hold his realm.
This fic predicates that Victor apparently wasn't a complete political cinderblock to the point that the High Command and Privy Council 'lol nope' Katherine coming in without bothering to tell Yvonne, but in the OTL, Victor's political incompetence shows through. Katherine actually gave him a pretty damn accurate 'The Reason you Suck Speech' in Grave Covenants prologue at their mothers grave, pointing out he was simply a Mechwarrior out of his depth. And that he didn't WANT to be a political creature, that he looked down on politics and viewed everything through a Mechwarriors eyes - which ended up being a complete disaster again and again through his life.
The Clans could have - and should have - been dealt with by Focht and some handpicked people. Hohiro could have easily taken that position. Victor did NOT need to be there, let alone to engage in single combat with the damn ilKhan.
SImply put, the numbers don't come NEAR adding up for what the Federated Suns has been able to build in this fic vis a vis their actual economic starting position - they would be utterly bankrupt some time ago. But I'm happy to just let that slide to a great degree as its clearly just part of the fun of the fic. But, SOME limits would be nice to actually see now and again.
The Sarna March was NOT integrated. The Federated Commonwealth didn't work anything like hard enough to properly integrate them, sweep away the old order, put a new order in place, level out the pretty incredibly stratified Capellan society and investing the people into wanting this much better society enough that Sun Tzu's attempts to reclaim them in 3050 would have had him fighting massive insurgencies on every world and his limited forces getting chewed up all over the place. Because the bulk of the population LIKE not having thought police everywhere, liked being freed from Servitor slavery, liked having rights like free speech and so on. The cultural shift, especially in the younger generation getting invested into the FedCom, should have been far more pronounced - even by Battletech standards - but nothing of the like was seen.
Ergo, Melissa and Hanse honestly didn't do anything. They just stationed enough troops to make sure Romano couldn't retake it with force, then otherwise did very very little to economically or socially integrate them into the FedCom. So much so that they were almost happy to switch sides when the time came. But its not surprising; its clear Hanse (and by extension Melissa who pretty much just did whatever he told her and seemed to have very little input on strategic decision making) was still very much focused on the Combine. Not the Confederation.
Yes and the actual amount of work Victor has done is a drop in the bucket vis a vis the apparent economic feedback he is getting. A handful of dropship schools and an industrial Mech factory does not equate to more than a minor blip.
The Federated Suns even in the Crucis March has an enormously concentrated amount of industry and technology, the outback has a lot of theoretical potential for sure, but you're talking about a FIFTY YEAR timeframe with massive emigration, investment into huge infrastructure projects and education that dwarf what we've seen to start to have real results. Tax revenue will be major neagative for a very long time before it turns around and starts to build and go into 'China crazy double digit' level growth. It's been known by Davion after Davion after Davion that theoretically the outback could be a gigantic growth engine for their economy ... and not one of them has done something about it that amounts to much more than tinkering around the edges. Simply because it requires all the other massive drains on the Federated Suns economy (read; the AFFS and defending against their enemies) to be able to be scaled back and investment redirected, or, external sources of funding.
The FedCom ideally was going to be the latter, with massive Lyran capital and industrial investment into the Outback going to lay the foundation with increasing technology from the Federated Suns to be the growth engine of the FedCom for decades to come, Massive resources flows into the Lyran side as well as a rapidly growing consumer market for them, genuine industrial and planetary investment into the outback for the FedSuns that would start to snowball in due course.
Then Victor went and lost everything :(
Anyway, I don't really mind that for the sake of this fic large chunks of this is hand-waved, thats what good fanfic does to tell a story, but its getting to the point that some genuine strain showing in the Federated Suns economy would be nice with an unhealthy amount of GPD in military and military industries, heavy industrial concerns and so on causing a dangerous skewing in the economy.
But like I've said, I have a very nasty habit of starting to 'write' other peoples fanfics at times when I rant at clouds like an old man, so everyone by all means can feel free to tell me to go and sit back in the corner again :)
I'm actually prepared to take a LOT of the criticisms in this. The FedSuns IS expanding at a breakneck pace and yes I am having the growth in the Outback start a LOT quicker than a reality based version would (although bare in mind we are talking about a setting with walking battlemechs the size of buildings guys ;)). But I don't really see a lot of "fun" in doing a timeline in which huge chunks of the updates are "economic growth within the Outback was up .1% this month and saw a slight increase in tax revenues"... Not really "fun". :D
If it's any conciliation, there will be "growth" pangs in the medium to long term.
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Since you are writing your own version of events, run it anyway you want. I like what I'm reading.
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I'm actually prepared to take a LOT of the criticisms in this. The FedSuns IS expanding at a breakneck pace and yes I am having the growth in the Outback start a LOT quicker than a reality based version would (although bare in mind we are talking about a setting with walking battlemechs the size of buildings guys ;)). But I don't really see a lot of "fun" in doing a timeline in which huge chunks of the updates are "economic growth within the Outback was up .1% this month and saw a slight increase in tax revenues"... Not really "fun". :D
If it's any conciliation, there will be "growth" pangs in the medium to long term.
Hmm thats very broad that could mean anything from economic issues to calls to set up a periphery march. Though I imagine that we will most likely seem in the near term more civilian factories and other such places spring up in the near future as military production lines bring more income into the region.
Though it wouldn’t hurt to slow down expansion of lines for a year of two at the moment the AFFS has to be in stockpile mode fore all the hardware that they are putting out for their main line units.
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Hmm thats very broad that could mean anything from economic issues to calls to set up a periphery march. Though I imagine that we will most likely seem in the near term more civilian factories and other such places spring up in the near future as military production lines bring more income into the region.
Though it wouldn’t hurt to slow down expansion of lines for a year of two at the moment the AFFS has to be in stockpile mode fore all the hardware that they are putting out for their main line units.
That is the plan to be honest, theres still a line going in here, or there... and there will be more omni lines or putting in back up factories for certain companies, but the large scale huge new factory complexes aren't really being built right now.
And storing hardware isn't a bad idea if a war is coming ...;)
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That is the plan to be honest, theres still a line going in here, or there... and there will be more omni lines or putting in back up factories for certain companies, but the large scale huge new factory complexes aren't really being built right now.
And storing hardware isn't a bad idea if a war is coming ...;)
Point never say no to resupply or upgrade unless your the New Ivaarsen Chasseurs who say no to upgrades when ever they are offered.
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great update... keep writing it the way you want. a lot of us are checking many times a day to see your work.
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3067 - October - Preparing for Whitting
Even as the situation escalated throughout the Inner Sphere there was some small cause for celebration at least for Clan Sun Jaguar.
Anyone else seeing one smug Trinary Star Captain makes a pointed boast about how his Trinary built their complex in half the time of all the other inferiors in the Cluster? Causing every other outraged Trinary to grab their Industrial mechs and build at twice the pace just to show how superior they are then those ****** in the 222nd assault trinary or whatever?
In all seriousness, the Khan might be able to pull back into the original history of the SLDF survivors. How Trials of Position originally were in fact about trying to enforce the RIF Kerensky demanded on reaching the Kerensky Cluster. So that 3/4 of Battlemechs were going to be decommissioned and 4 Mechwarriors would compete for the right to stay on active duty with only one able to do so. Not putting the duty up for a trial per se, but reaching to that precedent that Mechwarriors are expected to rotate through industrial mech duty (and they are expected to excel just as much as perfection is expected in Battlemechs)...
Wonder if you might next see Elementals getting their hands on custom build industrial exoskeletons...
Deedee Faulkner commits suicide.
Um ... wow. She REALLY didn't get it did she?
Heh, she can retire, cash in for a Battlemech and go and join that looser Arisota Neece :D
SHUT UP AND TAKE MY C-BILLS/KRONER!
Well, I'm sure Adam and Peter would dearly love to get their hands on a Davion III or ten - did you ever post the specs for those?
I get the feeling that Peter is going to quietly insist that Victor leave his escort a jump away and only come with his flagship, dito everyone else. Its a bit of a headache when everyone brings fleets of warships into his capital after all.
I mean, I'm sure Victor wouldn't have a problem with that. And Sun Tzu doesn't HAVE any escorts worth the name :D
Theodore might not be happy, but you know, it would be a loss of face to insist that he must bring them because he's totally afraid...
After this meeting the First Prince heads off towards Tharkad. He leaves his Prince's Champion in charge on New Avalon with the Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion and Duchess Isis Marik to advise him. He takes with him Marshal Galen Cox and Colonel Caradoc Trevana. Added to his security detail at the last minute is 2 points of Elementals from the Sun Jaguars. Khan Nevversan who herself had been the First Princes's bodyguard feels that she still owes a duty of protection to Victor Davion personally and assigns 10 of her finest warriors to his personal protection detail. While some within the AFFS are upset at this suggestion they cannot protect their own First Prince, most are welcoming of the added layer of security. The Prince Victor himself welcomes the additions as another visible sign of the integration of the Sun Jaguars.
Thats actually pretty cute. I'm sure that CWIE wouldn't ever consider doing so for Peter after all given that they don't really consider themselves part of the Lyran Commonwealth...
I'm hoping that Caradoc is still Lyran, just because at least in this timeline he hasn't had a reason to say 'To hell with this!' and jump ship.
Politically it would be a nice PR bit showing Victor escorting all those wounded from the Jade Falcon campaign recovered enough to head home back with him to Tharkad.
Lycomb-Davion announces on the 23rd of October that they would be returning production to Demeter - their original base of operations. They initially would be building a plant to construct Guillotines exclusively for the ComGuards and SLDF (with the blessings of the First Prince), but with plans to expand production their to other designs.
Risky place Demeter. OTOH you could also conveniently station a ComGuard L3 or something there to defend the Factory which puts them in a nice position indeed to glare at the WOB across the border. Or the SLDF for that matter, or both!
The new facility on New Damascus for the new company Federated Suns Defence Industries has it's first line go operation in October. A Stinger battlemech line made from salvage from the Taurian Campaign goes online and begins production of an updated Stinger design. Even with the updates to this venerable mech, the production goes mostly to training units and March Militias.
*sigh*
Oh Victor....
Anyway, an updated Stinger isn't a bad Mech to start with for a lot of rear area units, training units and so on. And enough of them then spiced up with a number of other designs are a perfectly sound anti-pirate force in the rear.
Maltex Corporation announces that they will be creating a new facility on Brockton within the Outback. This facility will initially consist of a single line to produce the Wyvern medium battlemech. Initially they had considered building a Thug line, but that design already has some redundancy with the Earthwerks plant on Tikonov also building it, so the Wyvern is considered the priority by the High Command who press for that design to be built first.
Hope its upgraded. That design is just BEGGING for a MML launcher...
The Duke is however pleased to hear that the first Overlord-A3 pocket warships are being laid down at Verde within his March. The plan remains for these dropships to be paired with a Vengeance class aerospace carrier and assigned to Tramp class jumpship equipped with LF batteries - with 3 Tramp's equipped with this way providing a major aerospace force where a Fox isn't available. A supply train will be provided to these ships by a Mule dropships escorted by a handful of Avenger assault dropship on a Merchant class jumpships.
Not sure that's the best use of those ships honestly. It's too much against a lighter force, too little and too valuable against any kind of warship or serious force. Especially as you are reliant on a slower and fragile logistics jumpship chasing you.
I'd think the Tramp + Colossus class ships would be a more natural pairing. Two of those plus an A3 escort would be one hell of a raiding force, with their jumpship able to pop up, spit dropships and then jump clear...
But thats just me :)
However many within the Federated Suns Navy are unhappy with the supply arrangements and they are pushing for a more dedicated transport than the Mule. As such FedBoeing offers to restart production of the Cargoking and Cargomaster class dropships at their facilities on Galax and Filtvelt. The Duke of Robinson does manage to get this offer extended to include the Verde dropship yard.
Seriously, build more cargo dropships (and restart production of an improved Mammoth); the money you will make will force Victor to build a Moneybin like Scrooge McDuck to contain all the cash...
Across the Inner Sphere various rulers begin leaving for Tharkad. Kai Allard-Liao unusually remains on St Ives, but instead his mother Candace Allard-Liao takes his place and heads for Tharkad, while Coordinator Theodore Kurita makes arrangement to travel with heavy escort. He leaves his son in command of the Draconis Combine. Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao heads to Tharkad aboard the CCS Elias Jung alongside Lord Protector (in Exile) Grover Shraplen. No representative is sent from the Taurian Concordat's official government who have no interest in the Second Star League - particularly as they are too busy trying to hold their realm together. However the Magestrix Emma Centrella sends her daughter Sun-Tzu's lover Naomi to represent her.
Why do I get the feeling the first few days will consist of a screaming Shraplen demanding entrance to take the Taurian seat at the table on the grounds of A) He is TOTALLY the legitimate leader of the Concordat and B) The traitors didn't send a delegation anyway so why can't he have the seat followed by C) Demanding that again the Davions be expelled from the Star League ... and Victor turn over his seat to him!
Worrying that the Taurians are refusing to send anyone to the Star League. I'm supposing they are trying to send a message, but even if they couldn't send their leader, honestly, they SHOULD have sent SOMEONE. Decisions are made by those who show up, you don't have to put that much effort into it, but a minimal effort at the least should be made. I have a horrible feeling WOB are already hard at work re-sinking their hooks...
Taco Civil War Tuesday
Welp, looks like the FWL is slowly starting to coalesce around the 'heir' to the Captain General.
Calling it now; said heir happens to be ... the Captain General who magically survived his crash landing and is scared and now full of cybernetics from the crash but otherwise totally fine!!!
Although you'd think that even if some provinces are rallying to Oriente, its worrying that the WOB seem to be keeping their heads down and not being attacked all over the FWL, despite how things had been heating up that way. I get a horrible feeling they are going to use this to eliminate the biggest anti WOB factions, then double down....
But, lets see how the chaos brews!
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I love it how Deedee was permanently kicked out of
Dexter's laboratory AFFS
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3067 - November - Break down
With the Whitting Conference starting in November all eyes within the Inner Sphere and even beyond were drawn to Tharkad. Things started badly with Lord Protector (in exile) Grover Shraplen firstly demanding that he was still the rightful Lord Protector and so able to claim the Taurian seat on the Council, while also making the dual demands that the Star League help restore him to his position within the Taurian Concordat and also expelling the Federated Suns from the Star League for their "unprovoked and sustained attacks upon the peace loving Taurian Concordat and it's people". The fact that his escort is drawn from the 1st MacLeod Regiment which was the unit which attacked the Federated Suns world of Bromhead and so kicked off the whole war seems totally lost upon him. The only Council Lord who spoke up for allowing him to take his seat (although in an almost pro-forma way) was Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao. However even Sun-Tzu didn't support his request for SLDF support to retake Taurus and expelling the Federated Suns. Much though the later option might have appealed to him. Given only the Chancellors lukewarm support the former Lord Protector was refused entry into the Whitting Conference, after which he had to be restrained from attempting to force his way in by his own guards.
Once that dramatic event was over the Whitting Conference itself could start. Christian Mansdottir with almost visible relief gave his opening statement that he was now standing down as First Lord and opened the floor for nominations. Before matters could progress however the Chancellor spoke up that no representative was here from 2 of the member states - the Taurian Concordat and the Free Worlds League and that no vote should take place without their being involved in the debate and vote. Surprisingly Coordinator Theodore Kurita spoke up in support of this motion and suggested that Christian Mansdottir should continue in post until such time as a full Council could be assembled. At this stage it was obvious that the 2 rulers were attempting to make sure that neither Victor Davion or his brother Peter Steiner would take the position of First Lord. So far Sun-Tzu Liao, Kai Allard-Liao and Christian Mansdottir had been the rulers chosen to lead the Star League and many suspected that it was only a matter of time before Victor Davion was nominated. With the "anti-Davion" block missing 2 votes it made the likelihood of such a vote going Victor's way extremely high and so the Chancellor and Coordinator were hoping to avoid this happening by derailing the vote.
Peter Steiner was the one to respond to this, pointing out that there was nothing in the Constitution agreed for the new Star League stating that if a representative chose not to come or was otherwise unable to that the others had to wait for him or her to attend to cast their votes. If such a situation was accepted then it would be an easy way for someone to arrange to remain First Lord indefinitely- by having an ally not attend. Even Christian Mansdottir spoke out against this, stating he had no wish to retain First Lord and that it was time for a new vote. Eventually the outgoing First Lord called a vote on whether to proceed in the abscence of the League and Concordat's representatives. The vote was passed 4-2 with Comstar abstaining. At which point both Sun-Tzu Liao and Theodore Kurita announced that they refused to proceed on this basis and left the chamber, stating they would only return when the full Council was present.
In shock the remaining Council Lords debate what to do. Victor Davion, Peter Steiner, Candace Allard-Liao and even Interim Primus Dow wish to proceed to a vote even in the absence of the others, but Christian Mansdottir refuses to countenance this and leaves himself. With now over half the Council Lords not present the Whitting Conference ends with a whimper. No formal dissolving of the Star League occurs, but nor does an election of a new First Lord. With Elected Prince Regent Christian Mansdottir formally announcing that he no longer considers himself First Lord and with no replacement voted for the Star League and the Star League Defence Forces are left in limbo. Shortly after this many commentators and anlysts begin to refer to the Second Star League as the "Zombie Star League" - neither dead or alive but somewhere in between.
While furious with this state of affairs the First Prince meets with his brother and the Interim Primus while on Tharkad and also with the Wolves-in-Exile Khan. There he explains that he intends to make a number of warships available to them for purchase. Namely Fox corvettes in a steady numbers and also small numbers of Davion III destroyers and perhaps Congress-D II frigates. However with the exception of Fox corvettes these new ships will be coming from new yards. The current ships building are destined for his own fleet but he is prepared to build at least 2 and maybe more destroyer slips to provide ships to his allies and at least the same number of frigate slips. On this point both Peter Steiner and Phelan Kell speak out that this won't work, as they don't need destroyers and frigates in 4 or 5 years but need them now. Gavin Dow agrees with them on this after a few seconds thought.
After some consideration on their points and quick meetings with his 2 advisers the First Prince agrees. The FSS Daring and FSS Dryad are due to complete at Galax in the coming March. When they are completed he will order 2 Davion III destroyers laid down to be offered 1 to Comstar and 1 to the Lyran Alliance. As well as building additional slips to expand the number of ships on offer. When Khan Kell points out that leaves his Clan with nothing, the First Prince promises that as soon as a Davion III or Congress-D II finishes in 3069 he will be offered his choice of ships to be built. He also promises that Clan Wolves-in-Exile will be offered 1 of the 2 Fox corvettes being built at Filtvelt and due to finish in a few short months. With the other being offered to the Lyran Alliance. The 2 slips there will then continue to build ships for the Lyrans and Wolves with any that aren't bought by those 2 powers offered to Comstar.
Neither Archon Steiner or Primus Dow are particularly happy to be having to pay the Federated Suns for large scale warships, but given their need and lack of warship production facilities they have no other option. Both privately suggest to the First Prince that they might be prepared to license the Davion III and Congress-D II of him, but he rejects both proposals. All such production will continue under the control of the Federated Suns and the ships will then be sold on. Neither man can object too strongly as not only do they need the ships but Victor is promising to keep the "profit" margins on each sale to around 10%, which compared to the costs of setting up a new shipyard makes the deal more attractive. Left unsaid however is that under the Federated Sun's War Powers Act of 2789 the First Prince will be able to seize any warships building for foreign states if the nation is in a state of war. Albeit he will then have to compensate the original purchasers. Khan Kell is less bothered about this as his Clan simply isn't in a position to build the warships he needs so buying them from the Davion's is an acceptable course of action. Plus he knows he can get excellent prices even now for his Clantech weapons and battlemechs that will somewhat reduce the costs for him.
The men then move onto the discussions about the Free Worlds League and what to do about it. The Archon points out he is moving troops to the FWL-Lyran border and can if need be send in peacekeepers. Although given the Liao's incursions already this would be seen in a very negative light. Suggestions that the ComGuards be used are brushed aside by Interim Primus Dow who says they are fully committed to the WOB War. At this point the First Prince asks if this conflict was resolved in Comstar's favour would they then be able to help in the League. When the Primus assures him that would be the case yes, he suggests that the Lyran Alliance, Federated Suns and Wolves-in-Exile enter into a pact to support a strike on Terra to remove the Word of Blake from control of the mother world. He's prepared to commit no fewer than 20 regiments and RCT's and a similar number of warships, but only if the Lyrans and Wolves commit to a sizeable force as well. At this stage Candace Allard-Liao also joins the discussion and commits to sending at least 2 RCT's to this attack.
Dow is understandably keen to push them to support the First Prince on this suggestion and makes extensive promises to them in return for such a commitment. After a brief adjournment in which the Archon discusses the matter with his General of Armies Adam Steiner, Peter is able to give an assurance for 10 ground regiments of battlemechs and 8 warships. Khan Kell promises his Alpha Galaxy and the Werewolf. Plus the Implacable if it completes it's refit in time. After further discussion it is agreed that this attack will take place in early 3069. The matter is to be kept secret until then.
The Interim Primus, with this assurance in place resolves to launch his own large scale attack upon the WOB to reduce their ability to counter this proposed attack. While he doesn't doubt this will result in heavy ComGuard casualties, with the Federated Suns, Lyran Alliance, St Ives Compact and the Wolves-in-Exile prepared to move into active participation in the war he can afford these casualties. However just in case he meets with Peter Steiner and finalises arrangements for 4 Fox class slips to be built at Gibbs - 2 for the ComGuards and 2 for the Lyrans, as well as a large scale purchase of battlemechs and vehicles. With Comstar financing and Lyran industrial production these yards will be built and completed by March 3068 at which point they will lay down their first corvettes.
Back within the Federated Suns the Marshal of Armies continues to prepare for the deployment of the graduating classes and forming of new units. Alongside the reforming of the 15th Avalon Hussars RCT as a reinforced regiment he intends to divert a full battalion to the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 27th Avalon Hussars with another battalion split between the 5th and 9th Hussars. This will massively increase the strength of these green rated units without reducing the combat effectiveness of a more seasoned unit. The 12th and 17th Avalon Hussars will also be upgraded to reinforced status. As will the 2nd Crucis Lancers RCT. At the Duke of Robinson's request the 1st Robinson Rangers RCT will also be upgraded to a reinforced regiment at this stage.
The Marshal of Armies in conjunction with Marshal Talles of the Ceti Hussars Brigade begins planning for an upgrade to all 3 Ceti Hussars RCTs. Rather than concentrate expand their numbers, instead this upgrade will focus on upgrading their forces. At the current time the combined arms units are formed from a battlemech regiment, 3 armoured regiments and 5 infantry regiments with supporting artillery and fighter support. The proposed reform involves converting 2 full infantry regiments to battle armour regiments as well as expanding the infantry forces with the addition of a further third battle armour regiment. While each combat command is of course organised to the individual units tastes, this will mean that at least on paper each RCT can be divided into 3 combat commands which will provisionally consist of a battlemech battalion, armour regiment, battle armour regiment and infantry regiment. In practise certain combat commands will be specialised with more or less of each type of troop but it's felt the addition of such large numbers of battle armoured troopers can only increase the effectiveness of the unis. Particularly given the results of the 2nd Dragonlords battle armour brigade on Linsday. These limited expansions and upgrades will take place over the entirety of 3068 to give the new members time to integrate and the existing infantry time to get used to their new equipment.
Fleet Admiral Buchwald also received a preliminary report on the Fox II upgrade that he had commissioned with the First Princes blessing. The upgrade drastically increased the firepower of the vessels. While the ship carried 2 less Naval Autocannon the remaining 8 had all been upgraded to NAC-20s rather than the smaller NAC-10s that the ship currently boasted. Missile tubes had been doubled to 16 and while the Naval Lasers remained at the same number they had all been upgraded to NL-55's rather than the half and half split between NL-55's and 45's on the current vessel. Similar upgrades to the anti-fighter and missile weapons had been proposed. Meanwhile the fighter contingent had been upgraded to a full wing of 20 aerospace fighters and the small craft increased from 2 to 6. The already tough ship had seen it's armour increased as well. While this had all come at a cost in the amount of supplies it could carry, the corvette was after all a warship and expected to go into combat. Where guns and armour were more important than supplies. Plans were put in place for all new construction destined for the Federated Suns Navy to be upgraded to the new specifications, while the existing ships would be rotated through the refit centre at Edwards to be upgraded to the new specifications. It was expected that the 2 large slips at Edwards would each be capable of dealing with 2 ships at once, and refitting a ship within 6 months. This would mean that a full flotilla of 8 ships could be refitted within a year.
Impressed with the high quality of the prototypes provided to them the AFFS gives the green light for the Koschei fast heavy battlemech to enter into production. A single line is to be built to produce this design as although the AFFS can see a use for it they consider it something of a niche design and envision it mostly being deployed to the Tikonov Cossacks and nearby March Militia forces. As such there is no need for it to enter large scale production. The line is estimated to go online by October 3068.
On Batavia Jalastar Aerospace's new factory see's it's first Javelin-O line enter production. The second line isn't expected to begin production until 3068, however the new supply of Javelin-O's is welcomed by the AFFS. At the same time another Javelin-O production line goes active at their Islamabad plant.
New Independence Weaponry plant on Edwards see's it's Victor line go operation. From once having to content themselves with foreign built Victors the AFFS now has a number of production lines at various plants producing the popular assault mech. The Atlas line continues under construction. There are no further plans to expand on this site at the current time.
On Filtvelt the Achernar Battlemech's factory finishes it's Osiris class production line. Despite now having 4 battlemech lines the actual battlemech factory continues to be dwarfed by the ever expanding industrial mech facility which continues to grow in leaps and bounds.
Also on Filtvelt Outback FarmMechs completes it's Locust line from Taurian salvage. Where once the company had barely eked out a living rebuilding and refitting old industrial mech's they are now the proud owners of 3 battlemech production lines, although not for cutting edge designs. Still the profits from the sale of these battlemechs is allowing the company to expand it's agricultural industrial mech facilities to full scale production rather than just refits and limited builds. They have (with some government support) managed to obtain licenses for the Cattlemaster and Harvester Ant industrial mechs and will now be building full scale industrial lines to produce them.
On Shawnee the new Andoran Industries plant goes online with the companies third Clint battlemech line. Comstar offers to provide funds to increase production there to include Mercury and Hussar battlemechs - again in return for 50% of the output being sold to them. Although not contractually obliged to do so (at least not for the Clint battlemechs), the company is already offering them 50% of the Clint production built at both it's factories now as well as the Mercury and Hussar battlemechs it produces, with the blessings of New Avalon.
Cosara Weapons formally began entering talks with the government of Northfield to build a new plant to build at least Crab and King Crab battlemechs upon their planet. While eager to get the company to build, the government of the planet was keen to get the most benefit for it's citizens as it could out of the deal and so the negotiations would last into 3068.
On Valois the Yvonne-Isis Construction plant finally goes online a month late. The plant consists of 2 Daedalus industrial mech lines which are soon marching off the production lines and straight into the hands of Technician Caste pilots who are almost invariably tested out trueborns or failed freeborn mechwarriors. While these pilots might not have been up to commanding a full omnimech or battlemech they are almost all more than capable of handling the Daedalus and are soon heavily engaged in construction projects across not only Valois but on Fugeres and Frankson. A full company is gifted to the 20th Avalon Hussars for their help in building basic infrastructure and housing.
Within the Free Worlds League nobody is surprised when the Duchy of Andurien declares it's secession from the faltering League. More surprising is when the Mosiro Archipelagos joins the newly independent Grand Duchy of Andurien. The independent worlds of Kanata and Deschenes also secede and join the Grand Duchy - which isn't surprising particularly in Kanata's case given it's long history with the Duchy of Andurian, even once being it's capital when Andurien itself was under Capellan occupation. The Government in Exile of Furud which is currently garrisoned by the CCAF also petitions to join the Grand Duchy.
The new Grand Duchy also announces that it has reformed the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Defenders of Andurian. Left unsaid is that these units have been formed by the defection of the 1st, 5th and forming 9th Free Worlds Legionnaires bolstered by a number of militia drawn from the Duchy's worlds. Jaffray's Own are offered the position of the 4th Defenders but turn it down and instead sign a mercenary contract to protect the Grand Duchy. The Legionary Training Academy is renamed the Humphreys Training Academy and quickly re purposed to providing troops for the new Grand Duchy. A lack of military industrial capacity did however have the newly formed nation send a jumpship carrying a delegation to New Syrtis to request a military trade deal with the Federated Suns via dead systems to avoid the CCAF.
The rest of the League were too busy fighting and shouting at each other to really pay any attention to the secession. However token protests were lodged from Oriente. Sian made no comment at all, but did make plans to move 2 battlemech regiments to the border... As soon as it could find them. Or raise them.
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Well Grover seems to be in for a short and eventful life in exile.
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3067 - November - Interlude: Tikonov
Usually when Stepan Makarov was entertaining an old friend he would either do so at his townhouse in Tikograd or at the old family estate just outside of New Moscow instead of his small (small being an relative term) personal dacha. Even when he was on Tikonov he rarely used the dacha, only really coming out here when he wanted to be alone or to hunt in the nearby forest. Still when the old friend coming to visit was a convicted mutineer, deserter and traitor... Well the usual social graces had to be put aside. So here he was sitting at the kitchen table sipping vodka waiting in the dark for Dmitri Rosilov, former Captain in the AFFC's 3rd Republican Guard, to arrive. Hardly how he wanted to spend his last shore leave before taking command of the FSS Charles Davion, particularly when he had managed to obtain tickets for the ballet for himself and the widowed Baroness Yalena Livovna. Still Dmitri wasn't the sort you left hanging.
Stepan nearly jumped out of his skin when there was a quite knock on his back door, but hurriedly stood and moved to open it. He paused when he saw not one but two men standing outside his back door. "You said you would come alone..."
Dmitri gave his usual charming smile as he stepped inside and moved towards the table and the open bottle of vodka. "Ahhh... Stanislav is a friend, one of Baranov's people."
The thuggish looking Stanislav stepped inside and shrugged. "I'm just here to make sure Dmitri doesn't let old friendship cloud his good judgement..."
Stepan sighed and shrugged himself, closing the door. "Dmitri doesn't believe in letting friendship cloud any sort of benefit to him or his cause... So I'm guessing your here to kill me if I don't make the right noises."
The thug's face split into a wide smile. "Dmitri said you were smart... Yes, that's my job... Nothing personal."
"Not much of a job is it?" Stepan stopped on the way to the table and secured an additional glass for Stanislav before pouring them all a drink. After they had each downed the vodka he refilled and spoke. "So... What brings you back to my door Dmitri and with such charming company?"
"The cause. Always the cause." Dmitri's smile went up a notch and he made a dramatic flourish with his hand. "Free Tikonov has need of you Baron Makarov."
Commander, soon to be Captain Makarov snorted. "Nobody calls me baron. Not even on the estate. My grandfather seemed to take that title to his grave with him..."
"But you a Baron. A member of one of the oldest and noblest houses of Tikonov..." Dmitri started.
"And soon to be a captain in the Federated Suns Navy. Commanding an Avalon no less..." Stanislav interupted. "A powerful ship."
"If you are wanting me to defect with an Avalon cruiser you might as well shoot or strangle or knife me now... That isn't possible!" Stepan barked back.
"Not at all, not at all... No we just want you to... Do nothing. Absolutely nothing." Dmitri shot his companion a glare to tell him to shut up. "That isn't so hard, and doesn't involve commandeering a ship of war! We just need you to have your crew stand down for a few short hours... And ideally allow a dropship to dock with you. We'll take it from there..."
Dmitri continued on for almost an hour in the same line. Explaining Free Tikonov's plans to invade (although he called it liberate) Tikonov from the Federated Suns. All four Tikonov Republican Guard regiments along with the Free Republic Revolutionary regiment would arrive via pirate jump point and burn for Tikonov - while Captain Stepan Makarov ordered his future vessel the FSS Charles Davion to stand down and or sabotages the ship so it couldn't intervene. Specially training infantry would then dock with the ship and help seize it in the name of Duke William Baranov, Supreme Leader of the Free Tikonov Republic. While the five regiments of battlemechs would land, instigating a revolt and join with the various revolutionary groups to seize the planet and return it to freedom. With at least five battlemech regiments and perhaps some Cossacks who had seen the light stationed on the planet and taking up positions within the extensive fortifications and with their own Avalon class cruiser in orbit the Davion's wouldn't have a chance of returning the planet to the Suns and would have to cut their losses Dmitri assured him with all the confidence of a fanatic.
"And the Old Wolf?" Stepan spoke softly, by now most of the bottle of vodka gone.
"He'll have to go... He's sold out the Cause for reconciliation with his traitor grandson. We'll allow him to leave into exile... We know you are fond of your cousin..." Dmitri's lie was so smooth that you'd have to know him particularly well to know it was a lie. Duke Paul Ryan-Bowman, his distant cousin and the man who had got him into the navy, was not going to be allowed to quietly go into exile where he might form a nucleus for a pro-FedSuns resistance. No, like so many other Russian leaders who had been overthrown or deposed he would be quickly killed in some basement or dark forest. Out of sight. The body likely destroyed.
Makarov sighed. "Why do you need me?"
"Because you will command an Avalon class cruiser!" Stanislav spoke up after being silent for most of the discussion. "Even a strong military force on planet might be attacked by the Davion's if they control the orbitals! We had hoped to gain access to a League warship, but the late Captain-General was too smart to let us get our people into positions of authority on any of them... And then we heard through back channels about your pending promotion and we realised that we were being blessed with an opportunity!"
"And in return...?" Stepan knew how Dmitri Rosilov's mind worked. While he spoke of a "Cause" he was more than anything a strong believer in what was best for Dmitri Rosilov. He expected others to be the same. While this Stanislav with no last name didn't know him and would distrust him unless he thought that he was another man like Dmitri.
"Whatever you want. Grand High Admiral of the Free Republican Navy. Hell we'll rename the Avalon after you if you want, the FRS Stepan Makarov! Better than some Davion princeling...!" Dmitri laughed. "Or money, land, whatever you want! Your family while seeped in prestigious history isn't exactly what it used to be Stepan... Being distant cousins to the Ryan-Bowman's has got you nothing but medals and empty gratitude... Emperor Baranov knows how to treat his people!"
"Emperor? I thought he was now Supreme Leader?" Stepan tried to make it a joke, but Stanislav scowled regardless.
"Oh just one of his little affectations, he likes the older title so some of us in the inner circle still use it..." Dmitri was back to smiling again.
"And you Dmitri? What do you get? Will you be Baron Rosilov? Or Colonel Rosilov?" Stepan chuckled.
"Oh I'm already a Colonel! The 2nd Tikonov Republican's my command. But Baron sounds good doesn't it?" The tradesman's son grinned.
Stepan smiled nodding and then paused to consider. "Fine... But only on the condition that the Old Duke goes into exile. I won't be party to his murder. Is that clear?"
"Of course, of course... Hell I love the Old Wolf myself, he got me into the academy at the same time he sent you to Galax remember? We don't want to hurt him, hell you and me, we'll ask the Emperor to grant him a nice pension! We'll be important men, barons!" Dmitri assured his old friend. While Stanislav sat wordless. Perhaps he was to be the one to kill the Duke.
"Very well then... It's agreed. To Grand High Admiral Makarov and Baron Rosilov!" The two old friends clinked glasses and downed the last of the vokda laughing.
Less than five minutes later the two men slipped out. Makarov then hurriedly slipped the ear bud of the recording device he had placed on the side of the path earlier into his ear to listen.
"Well?" Stanislav.
"He's in. If he hadn't made the condition about that drunken fool Ryan-Bowman I'd have said we'd have had to kill him. But he loves that old drunk and is probably trying to save him from his treachery... He's our man." Dmitri assured his companion.
"You better be right."
"I've known Stepan for 30 years. Since we were children. He's a patriot. We can count on him..." Dmitri spoke with absolute conviction as they walked off down the path between the rose bushes and out of range of the receiver.
Moving slowly to his dinner table Stepan reached under the table to release the small recording device that he had received from a rather grim faced agent from Duke Ryan-Bowman's own Tikonov secret police, the Okhrana, earlier that day. Even before Dmitri had left the spaceport they had contacted him to let him know his old friend had arrived on Tikonov and would be coming to see him. Working alongside the DMI the Okhrana kept a close eye on Free Tikonov Revolutionaries on and around Tikonov. The mixed MI5 and Okhrana Intervention Squad that had been deployed around his dacha would wait till the two revolutionaries were safely away before coming to get the recording of the conversation. As he waited Stepan began wording the report that he would be preparing for Marshal Daniel Darwith of MI2 and no doubt Fleet Admiral Buchwald as well.
Even knowing it was his duty to betray his old friend, Captain Makarov couldn't help but feel guilty. They had been friends since childhood and not just that but if the FedSuns used the intelligence he was giving them to lay a trap a lot of son's and daughter's of Tikonov were going to die for nothing. But at the end of the day Dmitri had been right about one thing, Stepan Makarov was a patriot for his homeworld. And he could see the growing prosperity that the Federated Suns was bringing to his world. The security and good governance, particularly since Duke Paul had stopped acting against them and had begun to work with New Syrtis and New Avalon in an attempt to mend bridges with his estranged grandson, was visible perhaps to him more than most as it was sometimes years between his visits home. So the changes were noticeable. The new mines. The new factories. Large new agricultural areas opening up for use. Free Tikonov would destroy all that and leave his world shattered and besieged by the very men and women who had until now been helping it grow. No. He was too much of a patriot to do that to his world. And too loyal to his oaths, not only to the Federated Suns Navy and First Prince but also his oaths to the Duke of Tikonov. Dmitri should have remembered that Stepan was a man of his word and not assumed he was a scheming liar like he himself was!
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That friendship was over the second Dmitri brought along a thug for no other purpose than to kill him if he did not make the right noises.
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That friendship was over the second Dmitri brought along a thug for no other purpose than to kill him if he did not make the right noises.
Yeah, that was a bit of a faux pas. When your lifelong friend refuses to follow you into high treason, you kill him yourself instead of delegating that duty to underlings.
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That friendship was over the second Dmitri brought along a thug for no other purpose than to kill him if he did not make the right noises.
Dmitri strikes me as the sort of guy who doesn't really have real friends. Just useful people he can get to help him...
Yeah, that was a bit of a faux pas. When your lifelong friend refuses to follow you into high treason, you kill him yourself instead of delegating that duty to underlings.
Yeah some things you just have to do yourself!
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Well Dmitri messed up rather badly and the regiments they are dropping in system are going to get turned into so much orbiting garbage.
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The Duchy has the potential I would think industrial wise. Andurien has aerospace manufacturing and a light tank factory, and Shiro produces the Stalker, Hermes 2 and Wasp. Plus the Ontos. Lopez produces the Riever and I believe has a laser factory.
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Wow, asking a ships captain (who has managed to earn his way to such a prestigious fleet command against all the probable scrutiny and bias given his origins) to betray his crew and let them all be slaughtered by a boarding team (and lets not kid ourselves, an FSN crew isn't going to just stand down when their ship is suddenly being hijacked) ... betrays a complete lack of understanding of who this guy is. That he's going to throw all that away just so some tiny group of people who call themselves the TRUE rulers of a planet can come back in and sit on the big chair?
OTOH, choosing the right side here has ensured he'll be trusted and probably a natural leader figure of Tikonov well into the future.
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I've always had a soft spot for a FS Tikonov with the Ryan-Bowmans in control... ;)
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Seems like a Tikonov Aladdin Avengers... seems like it’s gonna end the same way too.
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granted he could simply blow the boarding dropship up and then broadcast what the leadership of these units is about to do, and let the units gut themselves internally, a mini civil war
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some one is about to lose a lot of mechs and tanks.
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or simply get a very big invitation from command to walk off the dropships in single file, unarmed, no mechs, or Capt Makarov can test his guys orbat skills
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I just was thinking. now the Sun Jags have something that every planet will want, in those workmechs. At least after they make enough (for each planet) to get all of the other projects back on schedule. I would say that after they get about 36 on each planet, then they could put about half of the production on the open market.
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So WoB was taking care of Tikonov patriots/idiots growing their forces to five full mech regiments, but with chaos in FWL they slipped the leash and are making move of their own to take Tikonov. I reckon inteligence services will have a field day extracting information from the prisoners about recruitment, training and supply of these fools.
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3067 - November - Break down
While furious with this state of affairs the First Prince meets with his brother and the Interim Primus while on Tharkad and also with the Wolves-in-Exile Khan. There he explains that he intends to make a number of warships available to them for purchase. Namely Fox corvettes in a steady numbers and also small numbers of Davion III destroyers and perhaps Congress-D II frigates. However with the exception of Fox corvettes these new ships will be coming from new yards. The current ships building are destined for his own fleet but he is prepared to build at least 2 and maybe more destroyer slips to provide ships to his allies and at least the same number of frigate slips. On this point both Peter Steiner and Phelan Kell speak out that this won't work, as they don't need destroyers and frigates in 4 or 5 years but need them now. Gavin Dow agrees with them on this after a few seconds thought.
After some consideration on their points and quick meetings with his 2 advisers the First Prince agrees. The FSS Daring and FSS Dryad are due to complete at Galax in the coming March. When they are completed he will order 2 Davion III destroyers laid down to be offered 1 to Comstar and 1 to the Lyran Alliance. As well as building additional slips to expand the number of ships on offer. When Khan Kell points out that leaves his Clan with nothing, the First Prince promises that as soon as a Davion III or Congress-D II finishes in 3069 he will be offered his choice of ships to be built. He also promises that Clan Wolves-in-Exile will be offered 1 of the 2 Fox corvettes being built at Filtvelt and due to finish in a few short months. With the other being offered to the Lyran Alliance. The 2 slips there will then continue to build ships for the Lyrans and Wolves with any that aren't bought by those 2 powers offered to Comstar.
Neither Archon Steiner or Primus Dow are particularly happy to be having to pay the Federated Suns for large scale warships, but given their need and lack of warship production facilities they have no other option. Both privately suggest to the First Prince that they might be prepared to license the Davion III and Congress-D II of him, but he rejects both proposals. All such production will continue under the control of the Federated Suns and the ships will then be sold on. Neither man can object too strongly as not only do they need the ships but Victor is promising to keep the "profit" margins on each sale to around 10%, which compared to the costs of setting up a new shipyard makes the deal more attractive. Left unsaid however is that under the Federated Sun's War Powers Act of 2789 the First Prince will be able to seize any warships building for foreign states if the nation is in a state of war. Albeit he will then have to compensate the original purchasers. Khan Kell is less bothered about this as his Clan simply isn't in a position to build the warships he needs so buying them from the Davion's is an acceptable course of action. Plus he knows he can get excellent prices even now for his Clantech weapons and battlemechs that will somewhat reduce the costs for him.
Gotta say, Peter and Dow seem rather salty for people being offered the opportunity to BUY WARSHIPS at near enough to list AFFS prices from the Federated Suns!!
I mean there was never anything stopping Peter from building his own warship slips - if he's too f*#king lazy to put the time and effort into getting started until ComStar come knocking? That's not Victors fault! He gave them an incredibly good deal for the Falcons nest. Exchanging a half working hulk for three new warships and a buttload of other war material, a few jumpships, a LOT of spare parts AND the right to buy Fox class hips indefinitely!
And even after all that when Victor is offering a limited purchasing of very very powerful modern Destroyer and Frigate units, instead of waving as much money as necessary to get their hands on these things, they are crying that its not enough and all but demanding more?!?!
Given the shit Victor got from the Lyran side of the sundered Commonwealth after doing more to defend it than pretty much any other Steiner in recent history ... I wouldn't be surprised if he started to get a little annoyed. Although I suppose it could just be a context issue and that they are actually very grateful of Victors support and alliance, despite everything and just angry at the situation they are in and their lack of action in doing a damn thing about it...
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3067 - December - Expansions and Exchanges
December as ever started with the Davion High Command frantically putting in place the orders for the setting up of new units, diverting of replacement and reinforcement personnel to the various units who needed them and managing the host of other issues that always arose from this. Although this process was planned and arranged throughout the year there was always a number of issues that arose that needed to be quickly resolved. The Department of Military Education, Department of the Quartermaster and Department of Military Administration always found themselves massively overworked in December and found themselves longing for the "peace" of just having to run a major interstellar military.
As per what was now considered almost tradition the 6th Dragonlords RCT formed up on New Avalon, with the 5th heading to Novaya Zemlya and displacing the 4th which was then released to active combat deployment. In this case the 4th Dragonlords RCT was dispatched to reinforce Valexa on the Capellan border. Slightly more surprising is when the 15th Avalon Hussars RCT is ordered to be formed on the world of Robinson rather than a more traditional training world. However it is soon engaged in a series of war games and training exercises at the Robinson Combat Training Centre with the 6th Robinson Rangers RCT. The well established unit has been training extensively against the Robinson DMM and 1st Robinson Rangers but this new opponent gives them much needed additional experience against a foe that they aren't used to.
The next unit which is raised is the 3rd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry. Instead of being formed from raw recruits this unit draws its personnel from the various elite units of the AFFS - for instance a full battalion of it's new mechwarriors were originally Davion Guardsmen (from the Light, 1st and 5th Guards), while the Deneb Light Cavalry's 8th and 10th RCT's provide a company each of mechwarriors. To ensure a continuity in the command a company each from the 1st and 2nd FSAC are also included in this "draft". This results in a veteran formation being created, although it will fight at regular status until it can come together properly as a unit. This won't take as long as usual however due to the excellent command staff assembled for the unit. The units who have donated the personnel for the new 3rd FSAC are prioritised for the very best replacement troops that can be found either from the wider AFFS or the cream of the graduating cadets from the Cadres. In such a way they remain at full strength and will have time to integrate the replacements while still creating a viable combat unit in the 3rd which is stationed on Daniels.
A similar approach is taken with the newly reforming 1st Kathil Uhlans. Formed as a full reinforced RCT it's new command staff is given the pick of the new recruits as well as the right to assemble a cadre drawn from the finest soldiers in the AFFS. The Davion Assault Guards, Davion Heavy Guards, 1st Ceti Hussars, 5th and 6th Syrtis Fusiliers and the 3rd and 7th Crucis Lancers are all tapped to provide a company or so of troops for the new formation's battlemech regiment. The rest of the unit is drawn in smaller numbers from other units and from the finest graduating cadets who are hand picked for their skills. The emphasis is placed on forming a mobile and hard hitting heavy weighted unit and the Quartermaster's department spares no expense in the new RCT's equipment. Clantech omnimechs, although always in short supply, are diverted to give the new unit a full battalion's worth, while more common but still high end Inner Sphere omnimechs such as the Templar-O, Thanatos-O, Argus-O and Javelin-O's are dispatched in large numbers, with even a handful of prototype Dervish-O's being found for the unit. What conventional battlemechs are assigned to the unit are all amongst the finest machines the entire Federated Suns can produce. The unit is of course formed on Kathil itself to widespread acclamation from the local population and indeed the wider Capellan March and Federated Suns.
Almost unnoticed in the news due to the hype behind the 1st Kathil Uhlan's return to the active rolls is the reformation of the Tancredi Loyalist Brigade. Based on their namesake world the brigade is formed around the existing independent command of the 1st Tancredi Loyalists and the newly founded 2nd Tancredi Loyalists - which draws the bulk of it's forces from the graduating cadets of the 1st Tancredi War College LCT along with a handful of suitable graduates from the Kilbourne and Sakhara academies. The new LCT would be formed up on Kesai IV where it would train with the 3rd NAIS Cadre.
Likewise the 1st Galtor Borderer's would also be added to the rolls during December, although only as a Cadre. Similar to the Bell, Brockton and Conroe Borderer regiments the 1st Galtor would be retained purely as a training command until it had reached a viable size to be considered ready for active duty. Plans put that at 4-5 companies of battlemechs and proportionate supporting forces for these units.
The graduating mechwarriors and supporting conventional troops from the 1st New Aragon, 1st Kittery and 1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalions as well as the over strength company from the 1st Mitchel Borderer's are used to create the 1st Avalon Borderer's LCT. Formed up as a heavy weight defensive unit, the new LCT is intended to provide rear area security to vital interior worlds while also being available to deploy to reinforce a faltering offensive or shore up a collapsing defensive line on the border. As such it is deployed to Edwards within the Crucis March, which is not only a growing industrial hub but also right on the border of both the Draconis and Capellan Marches. If this unit worked out additional Avalon Borderer's LCT would be formed in a similar line.
The 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 9th and 27th Avalon Hussars would between them receive slightly more than 5 battalions of graduating mechwarriors to attempt to bring them up to combat ready formations. While usually such large scale influx of newly graduating mechwarriors were avoided in case it reduce skill levels and destroy unit cohesion all of the above units are still rated as green troops and are all units which have only formed relatively recently and so this is not thought to be a concern. However to help reduce any potential risk of this the new battalions for the 2nd, 3rd,4th and 27th Avalon Hussars are kept as separate almost training battalions within the formation, while the 2 companies sent to each of the 5th and 9th will be spread between the 4 battalions of the regiments.
This level of expanding the AFFS is only possible due to the increased number of graduates coming from the expanded training units and academies which are keeping pace with the AFFS's expansions and allowing them to continue to add new units. In addition to the manpower the massive expansion of the military industrial might of the Federated Suns is allowing these new units to be equipped with cutting edge technology.
One area of concern however within the High Command and for Marshal Waters of the Avalon Hussars is the huge increase in units that the Avalon Hussars Brigade has seen. While massively increasing the strength of not only the Hussars Brigade but also the AFFS there is a growing awareness that the Brigade has somewhat lost it's elite status within the AFFS. On the 31st of December 3060 the Avalon Hussar's had had only 7 active commands and they were all rated as regular or veteran units. Now the Brigade has 24 active commands - a full third of which are rated as green. While the units continue to be in receipt of the finest equipment a number of officers are becoming worried that they are in danger of becoming the "regular" brigade for the AFFS - like the Marik Militia is for the FWLM. As a way to counter this a marked increase in training is ordered across the entire Brigade and some pressure is placed upon members of the High Command to perhaps allow a pause in new Avalon Hussars RCT's to allow the formation to catch it's breath. An expansion of the FedSun's Dragoons Brigade in line with designating them the "regular" units of the AFFS while allowing the Hussar's to retain their pride of place as one of the premier units of the FedSuns is considered by some to be a route to take. Not a single Avalon Hussar officer is unhappy with the huge increase in strength they have received under the First Prince, but such an increase means little if they lose what makes them the Avalon Hussars they rationalise.
The First Prince and his escorts stay on Tharkad for a number of days to finalise plans with the Lyran Alliance and Comstar about the coming hostilities with the Word of Blake. These talks are all confined to the highest levels and are in strictest secrecy. However the First Prince takes his leave of his brother on the 8th of December and is soon rushing back through the Lyan Alliance towards home. He makes a brief stop at Thorin to assure the sister of Lt. Colonel Archer Christifori that her brother is doing well at the NAIS and will be returning soon.
Hansen's Roughriders sell much of their salvage from the Taurian Campaign to the AFFS (much of it will be stored for using to form the 1st Bromhead Borderer's when enough soldiers graduate from the Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion to make it a viable unit). With the funds that the unit gains from selling over 5 companies of battlemechs along with 2 more companies of their own unit's equipment they reequip with the latest battlemech designs and hardware that the AFFS will sell them - which given their strong showing in the Taurian Campaign is to a very high standard - while also recruiting 2 additional companies of elite mercenary mechwarriors to refill their ranks. This will allow the regiment to form up as 2 battalions and a command company with cutting edge weaponry.
The Illician Lancers take a different route with their own salvaged Taurian equipment and loot. Taking the nearly 4 companies of Taurian salvage they were gifted by a grateful AFFS they reform their 1st Rangers regiment on their landhold of Lackland. Initially the reborn 1st would remain at Lackland and act as a training command for the rest of the Lancers until it reached full strength which might take years unfortunately.
During December the AFFS also announced they would be building the Sandoval Refit Centre on Clovis. This would be a mirror of the Hasek Refit Centre on Bell but to provide the same services for units stationed in the Draconis March. Given the large scale of the project it isn't expected to be completed until March 3069 - although limited repairs will be possible before that.
The NAIS also released their Thunderbolt-NAIS refit for license to the various military industrial companies of the Federated Suns. Earthwerks on Tikonov immedietly snapped up the license and rushed to put the new design into production at their existing Thunderbolt line. This conversion over would be completed in March 3068. However both Johnston Industries and Kallon Industries also bought a license to produce the new variant of the Thunderbolt. Johnston would begin construction of a line at each of their New Syrtis and Torrence factories while Kallon would begin work to produce the battlemech on Kirklin.
The Davion-Com company on Defiance which is jointly owned by House Davion and Comstar also begins work on adding a Warhammer line at the current time. Again the production of this will be split between the FedSuns and ComGuards.
Universal Air has now doubled Tramp production at their facility at Delavan and even this isn't keeping up with the demand for the LF equipped jumpship from the AFFS. They are also producing the Ares Attack Craft now for the AFFS and in particular the Federated Suns Navy. Both the huge jumpships and small craft designs are wildly popular to the point that Universal Air is having to look at how to expand production even faster. They are loathe to license the Ares in particular.
At El Dorado the Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative plant has it's second Templar-O line go operational. With the growing production of various factories the AFFS is now able to stockpile spare battlemechs at a number of key locations, but the demand for Templar's is still so high that as fast as one is finished it is rushed off to the regiments calling out for them!
With the increased demand for omnimechs to upgrade the equipment levels of the various AFFS regiments Arc Royal MechWorks is approached for increasing production of their Arctic Fox-O. While the Javelin-O is more popular at least on nationalist grounds there is still a large demand for the Lyran design.
At Markesan the New Earth Trading Companies second engineering vehicle line finishes construction. They start work on a second Gabriel line and a fourth Karnov line which will finish in June and October 3068 respectively.
On New Damascus the Federated Suns Defence Industries plant finishes rebuilding the 2 Bull Dog lines which they had received from Taurian salvage. These civilian trucks are soon selling widely to many small concerns throughout the Outback in particular. Demand is so high that the company (which after all is primarily formed to provide military produces) licenses the truck design to Veridan Dynamics who begin constructing 3 lines to produce the vehicle on Torrence with the support of the Duke of that world.
The first production line on Vandalia for the company Blackstone Industries enters operations near the end of December and begins producing Talon's for the AFFS. The other 2 lines are due to enter production in the first quarter of 3068. Blackstone is finally beginning to slowly reduce the backlog of orders it has from the AFFS. Although most analysts the company employed are suggesting that they will need at least 2 lines of each mech to keep pace and reduce the backlog in any meaningful way.
GM decides in December to begin expanding their new Victoria plant which provides battlemech's for the AFFS and ComGuards. These new lines are largely to be aimed at expanding sales to the ComGuards in particular - as most of the new production will be duplication of battlemech's the AFFS already has sufficient lines for.
The Ozawa based factory for General Dynamics completes it's Ostsol line. From a company which was producing a handful of outdated Kintaro battlemechs only a short time ago, it now has 3 battlemech designs being produced by 4 lines. Whereas the Ostsol's produced on Robinson are mostly going to units within the Draconis March, the half produced for the AFFS from this line are dispatched more widely into the Crucis and Capellan Marches.
The first of the new Michaelson Heavy Industries factories goes online on the world of Sun Prairie. The plant begins producing Yellow Jacket and Hawk Moth gunships, with each design having 2 production lines. The initial production runs are diverted to the 1st and 2nd Ceti Hussars and the Tancredi Loyalist brigade.
The 2 large repair slips for warships complete at Edwards and immedietly go to work on the 3 damaged Fox corvettes. The first of these slips will begin work on the lightly damaged FSS Bryceland and FSS Ridgebrook. The second slip will begin work exclusively on the much more heavily damaged FSS Edwards. The 2 lightly damaged corvettes would normally have returned to service by March or April 3068, and the more damaged FSS Edwards probably May. However all 3 ships will also be upgraded to the new Fox II standard while undergoing repairs. All 3 ships will return to service in June 3068. Alongside the FSS Edwards in the large second repair slip will be the FSS Dahar which is just undergoing a refit. These 4 ships will be the first to be upgraded. All new corvettes laid down from this point all will be built to the Fox II standard.
Given the fact that the repair yards at Edwards are likely to be busy refitting the large number of Fox corvettes plans are put to create 2 additional repair facilities - although smaller than the one at Edwards with just a single repair slip at each location. The Capellan March's facility will be built at Novaya Zemlya and the Draconis March's at Verde. Both these facilities will be finished by December 3068.
Admiral Buchwald also enters into talks with Challenge Systems about increasing the facilities for the Congress-D II's production. He suggests to them not just to expand the Panpour slips, but also to create a new yard facility within the Outback. Part of his plan is also to use the funding and industrial shipping to cover adding a third battleship yard in secret. Or at least semi-secrecy.
Archon Peter Steiner announces the upgrading of the 15th and 19th Arcturan Guards to RCT's. He also declares the formation of the 6th Alliance Guards RCT and the 16th Lyran Regulars. He also continues the rebuilding of the 2nd and 4th Royals RCT who took such heavy losses in the Jade Falcon Campaign. His General of Armies, Adam Steiner, begins reinforcing the worlds between Pandora and Fort Loudon, due to a Clan Wolf buildup in the worlds they took at the bottom of the Clan Jade Falcon Occupation Zone. The newly reformed 10th Lyran Guards RCT is assigned to garrison the important factory world of Pandora alongside the 3rd Donegal Guards RCT.
Within the Free Worlds League the Prince of Regulus, with some loss of prestige following his losses over Clipperton launches a swift diplomatic military strong arm campaign and convinces the Regulan Free States to join his faction as well as annexing the world of Drusibacken on the border of the Marik Commonwealth. He also manages to get at least 4 worlds around the Regulan Free States and his own periphery side border to sign mutual defensive pacts with him which give him control of their militias and resources.
The Atreus loyal government formally announce that Corrine Marik has been appointed Captain-General of the Free Worlds League and call upon all loyal son's and daughters of the League to obey her government. Perhaps anticipating a less than resounding response they also send troops to ensure that the vitally important industrial worlds of Irian, Savannah and Connaught. The Duchy of Graham-Marik also renews it's pledges of loyalty to Atreus. Similar diplomatic moves are made to win over the Stewart Commonwealth, but the old Duke of Stewart is less than keen to declare for one side of another at this time.
In a totally overlooked development the 1st and 2nd Magistracy Highlanders deployed to Aspropirgos and Thurrock respectively. Officially at the request of the local governments. A small team from the Ebon Magistrate go with them to ensure that if anyone asks they will be able to provide such "requests" existed prior to the landing of troops.
At the same time the CCAF is frantically searching for units with which to meet their many commitments, particularly with the total withdrawal of the Taurian Defence Force from the Trinity Alliance. They are beginning to be stretched thin with little possibility of relief. Using new cadets from the various academies the CCAF forms the 9th Sian Dragoons and 3rd Capellan Chargers, however these units are badly under strength. They do manage to flesh out a number of existing Sian Dragoons regiments. Still to call these troops "green" would be a generous designation. Nonetheless the 7th and 8th Sian Dragoons and the 2nd Chargers are sent to the new Grand Duchy of Andurian's border. The 2 Sian Dragoons are moved to Sigma Mare and the 2nd Chargers to Shiba. The 2nd Chargers are joined by Warrior House Lu-Sann and the 3rd Sian Dragoons. This gives the CCAF a decent sized force facing the Grand Duchy's reborn Defenders. Although the units are almost entirely green except for Warrior House Lu-Sann which is rated as regular.
It is with the Capellan Confederation facing this challenge that the Chancellor is approached by Precentor Martial Cameron St. Jamais of the WOB with an offer of an exchange...
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AFFS
31st December 3067
Independent Commands
1st Arcadians – Veteran – 100% (Re)
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 100% - Klathandu IV
1st Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - Edwards
1st Capellan Dragoons – Veteran – 100% - Bell
1st Kathil Uhlans – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Kathil – fighting as regular until mid 3068
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Northwind
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) – Outreach
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 90% - Tikonov
1st Sheraton Knights – Green – 70% - Sheraton - attached support forces (veteran) at 100%
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 90% (Re) - Abbeyville
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Panpour –
3rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – Islamabad
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – New Valencia
5th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) -
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re)
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) – Yuris
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) - Cooperland – Periphery
14th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 60% – Woodbine Combat Training Centre
15th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) -
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% (Re) - Cassias
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Sun Jaguar Enclaves
21st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 40% (Re) - Maram
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Talon
23rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% – June
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% –
27th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – Ruchbah
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% - Gulkana
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) –
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) - Tortuga Dominions
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% - Lothair
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Kentares
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) - Benet III
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Crofton
Borderer Brigade - with armoured regiment, infantry regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st Aragon Borderers – Veteran – 100%
1st Bell Borderers Cadre – Green – 30%
1st Brockton Borderers Cadre – Green – 30%
1st Conroe Borderers Cadre – Green – 30%
1st Galtor Borderers Cadre – Green – 20% - newly formed
1st Kittery Borderers – Regular – 100%
1st Mitchel Borderers – Green – 100%
1st Tortuga Borderers – Green – 50% - 100% material
1st Woodstock Borderers – Green – 100%
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Regular – 90% (Re)
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re)
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Green – 70% (Re)
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) - Mitchel
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Errai
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) –
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) –
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tikonov
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – Tancredi
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
Davion Old Guards RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) - Talcott/Salem/Victoria/Muskegon
Davion Young Guards RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Talcott/Salem/Victoria/Muskegon
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Axton
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) - New Avalon
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) - Galtor
5th Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Addicks
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% -
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Green – 90% -
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% -
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% -
12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100%
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
Dragonlords Brigade - officers drawn from Davion Brigades, rest drawn from Cadres
1st Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) – Bromhead
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) – Lindsay
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 90% (Re) –
4th Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
5th Dragonlords RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
6th Dragonlords RCT – Green – 90% (Re) – New Avalon Combat Training Centre
Federated Sun’s Armoured Cavalry – includes an armoured and BA regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st FSAC – Elite – 90% (Re)
2nd FSAC – Veteran – 80% (Re)
3rd FSAC – Veteran – 80% (Re) – fights as regular until mid 3068
FedSun’s Dragoons Brigade
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 100% - Epsilon Indi
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% -
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Paris
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Elite – 80% - Genoa
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 80% - Frazer
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Green – 70% - Defiance
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Montour
Lexington Combat Guards
1st Lexington Combat Guards – 32nd Recon – Veteran – 90% (Re)
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – 241st Battle – Regular – 90%
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – 180th Dragoon – Veteran– 80%
New Avalon Cavaliers
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 60% (Re) – El Dorado
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100% - Tripoli
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Veteran – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) - Robinson
2nd Robinson Rangers RCT – Veteran – 100% - heavily upgraded with Omnimechs – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 100%
4th Robinson Rangers RCT – Veteran – 90% - former Fighting Urukhai,
5th Robinson Rangers RCT – Elite – 80% - former Narhal’s Raiders, fanatically anti-Kurita.
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Regular – 100% - Robinson – earmarked for task force victor
Syrtis Fusiliers
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 100% - New Syrtis – earmarked for task force Victor
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 80%
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 70% -
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100% -
Tancredi Loyalists
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100% - Tancredi
2nd Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 75% - Kesai IV
Capellan March Militias
Achernar CMM – Green – 100%
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
Nanking CMM – Green – 100%
New Syrtis CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 100%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Broken Wheel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 90%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 80% - Niles
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - armour brigade formed
Kentares DMM – Veteran – 60%
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 100% - 2 training companies included
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Academy Training Forces
Filtvelt Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlans – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Tancredi War College Light Combat Team – Green – 100% - LCT
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 100%
Warrior’s Hall Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Training Battalions – organised as LCT’s
1st Bell Training Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Galtor Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Sheraton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Clan Sun Jaguar Touman
Alpha Galaxy
Gold Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
Silver Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
1st Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 60% - Valois
2nd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 80% - Valois
3rd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 50% - Valois
Beta Galaxy – Galaxy Commander Russou Howell
1st Sun Jaguar Grenadiers – Elite – 50%
5th Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 80%
6th Sun Jaguar Dragoons – Elite – 80%
Delta Galaxy
3rd Fidelis Jaguar Cavaliers – Veteran – 70%
1st Fidelis Jaguar Mystics – Veteran – 40% - Star Captain Inamma formerly a Nova Cat
4th Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 50% - entirely freebirth and mostly armour formation
Omega Galaxy
1st Sun Jaguar Militia – Regular – 50% - Fugeres
2nd Sun Jaguar Militia – Green – 50% - Frankson
1st Fidelis Jaguar PGC – Green – 80% - Frankson – mostly infantry and some armour
Clan Sun Jaguar Warships
CSJ Rebirth – Black Lion
CSJ Steve Showers – Potemkin
Mercenary Forces
Blue Star Irregulars – Firgrove
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 90%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 90%
- Avatar’s of Painful Death – Green – 40%
Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 70% operable
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 100%
1st Federated Arcadians – Veteran – 70%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 90% - Galtor
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 80% - Cylene
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – Veteran – 80% - Paris
Hansen’s Roughriders – Elite – 70%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Veteran – 100%
- 1st Rangers – Green – 40%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 90%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 80%
- 21st Ranger – Regular – 80%
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Veteran – 100% - personally employed by the First Prince
Longwood’s Bluecoats – Veteran – 90% - 2 Battalions
Medusan’s – Veteran – 100% - New Syrtis/Firgrove
Northwind Highlanders – All units garrisoning Northwind
- 1st Kearny Highlanders – Elite – 90% - not contracted
- Stirling’s Fusiliers – Elite – 80%
- Mulvaney’s Regiment – Elite – 80%
- Northwind Hussars – Elite – 70% - not contracted
Regulators – Regular – 80% - Kansu
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Niles
13th Stalking Horse – Veteran – 100% - Alta Vista
12th Vegan Rangers – Addicks and Nanking PDZ
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 90%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 80%
- Delta Regiment – Green – 50%
Wild Geese – Elite – 100% -
Wilson’s Hussars (battalion) Veteran – 100% – Bell
Wolf’s Dragoons – garrisoning Outreach
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 100%
- Zeta Battalion – Elite – 90%
Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
FSS Fox –
FSS Broken Wheel – Outback
FSS Markesan – Outback with Duchess Yvonne and Isis
FSS El Dorado – Outback
FSS Sherwood – Outback
FSS Tancredi – Outback
FSS Salem
FSS Northfield
1st Corvette Flotilla – Crucis March - Reserve
FSS Dahar – refitted by June 3068
FSS Edwards – Heavily damaged – refitted by June 3068
FSS Galax
FSS Kittery – DESTROYED
FSS Woodstock
FSS Ridgebrook – light damage – refitted by June 3068
FSS Kathil
FSS Bryceland – light damage – refitted by June 3068
2nd Corvette Flotilla – New Avalon Combat Region
FSS Indomitable – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Intrepid –
FSS Indefatigable –
FSS Addicks –
FSS Chesterton –
FSS Tikonov –
FSS Argyle
FSS Tortuga
3rd Corvette Flotilla – Capellan March
FSS New Sytris – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Benet III
FSS Clovis
FSS Goshen
FSS Marduk – Outreach
FSS Filtvelt – Outreach
FSS Sakhara
FSS New Haiti
4th Corvette Flotilla – Draconis March
FSS Robinson – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Antrim –
FSS Murmansk –
FSS Brest –
FSS Kenatres –
FSS Galtor –
FSS Warren –
FSS Malarn
1st Destroyer Squadron
FSS Davion – Squadron Flagship
FSS Defender –
FSS Defiant –
1st Patrol Squadron – Cooperland
FSS Congress – Squadron Flagship
FSS Churchill –
1st Cruiser Squadron – Assigned to First Prince
FSS Melissa Davion – First Prince’s Flagship
FSS Hanse Davion – First Prince’s escort
FSS Ian Davion – First Prince’s escort
2nd Cruiser Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Alexander Davion – Squadron Flagship
FSS Lucien Davion –
FSS Simon Davion –
FSS Carl Davion
3rd Cruiser Squadron – Capellan March
FSS Robert Davion – Squadron Flagship – home ported New Syrtis
FSS Andrew Davion –
FSS Joseph Davion –
FSS Covenant –
-
AFFS DEPLOYMENT December 3067
Draconis March
Addicks PDZ
Addicks DMM – Addicks
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Deneb Kaitos
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Errai
5th Robinson Rangers – Murchison
27th Avalon Hussars RCT – Ruchbah
12th Vegan Rangers Beta Regiment – Small World - M
Northwind Highlanders Stirling’s Fusiliers – Northwind – M
Northwind Highlanders Mulvaney’s Regiment – Northwind – M
Kentares PDZ
Kentares DMM – Kentares
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Kentares
12th Deneb Light Cavalry – Skat
Fighting Urukhai 8th Striker – Markab – M
Fighting Urukhai Demestri’s Sluggers – Cylene – M
2nd NAIS Cadre – Clovis
Raman PDZ
Raman DMM – Raman
2nd Robinson Rangers – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Galtor
1st Galtor Reinforced Training Battalion – Galtor
1st Galtor Borderers – NOT ACTIVE
4th Davion Guards RCT – Galtor
1st Argyle Lancers – Klathandu IV
6th Feduns Dragoons RCT – Paris
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Tripoli
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – New Mendham
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Benet III
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Wapakoneta
Fighting Urukhai Bar Hounds – David – M
Le Blanc PDZ
Robinson DMM – Robinson
Robinson Battle Academy Training Regiment – Robinson
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Robinson
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Robinson
15th Avalon Hussars RCT – Robinson
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – New Ivaarsen
Dahar PDZ
Dahar DMM – Dahar
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Sakhara
4th Robinson Rangers – Cassias
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cassias
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Cimeron
Bremond PDZ
Bremond DMM – Bremond
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Sun Prairie
Bryceland PDZ
Bryceland DMM – Bryceland
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Tancredi
Tancredi War College Light Combat Team – Tancredi
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Tancredi
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Groveld
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Delacruz
1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalion – Conroe
1st Conroe Borderers Cadre – NOT ACTIVE
3rd NAIS Cadre – Kesai IV
2nd Tancredi Loyalists LCT – Kesai IV
Screaming Eagles – Niles – M
Mayetta PDZ
Mayetta DMM – Mayetta
Milligan PDZ
Milligan DMM – Milligan
14th Avalon Hussars – Woodbine
13th Stalking Horse – Alta Vista – M
Kilbourne PDZ
Kilbourne DMM – Kilbourne
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Abbeyville
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Kilbourne
Capellan March
Achernar PDZ
Achernar CMM – Achernar
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Tikonov
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Tikonov
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Tikonov – flagged for joining Task Force Victor
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Buchlau
Regulators – Kansu – M
1st Arcadians RCT – Algol
Wild Geese – Achernar – M
Valexa PDZ
Valexa CMM – Valexa
4th Dragonlords RCT – Valexa
1st Aragon Borderers – New Aragon
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – New Aragon
1st Capellan Dragoons – Bell
1st Bell Reinforced Training Battalion – Bell
1st Bell Borderers Cadre – Bell – NOT ACTIVE
Wilson’s Hussars – Bell – M
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Axton
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Halloran V
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Chesterton
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – Algot
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – Demeter
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Goshen
Korsakov’s Cossacks – Demeter – M
Kathil PDZ
5th Dragonlords RCT – Novaya Zemyla
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Kathil
1st Kathil Uhlans RCT – Kathil
Alcyone PDZ
Alcyone CMM – Alcyone
1st Kittery Borderers – Kittery
1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion – Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Spica – based there but often in St Ives
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Cammal
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Lee
3rd FSAC – Daniels
Nanking PDZ
Nanking CMM – Nanking
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Zurich
1st Sheraton Knights – Sheraton
1st Sheraton Reinforced Training Battalion – Sheraton
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Genoa – earmarked for Task Force Victor
1st Woodstock Borderers – Woodstock
1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion – Woodstock
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Epsilon Indi – earmarked for Task Force Victor
Wolf’s Dragoons Alpha Regiment – Outreach – M
Wolf’s Dragoons Zeta Battalion – Outreach – M
12th Vegan Rangers Gamma Regiment – Acamar – M
12th Vegan Rangers Delta Regiment – Terra Firma - M
1st Federated Arcadians – Capolla – M
5th Davion Guards RCT – Capolla– Task Force Capolla
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Capolla – Task Force Capolla
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Capolla – Task Force Capolla
1st Lexington Combat Guards – Nanking – Task Force Nanking
2nd FSAC – Nanking – Task Force Nanking
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Nanking – Task Force Nanking
Davion Light Guards RCT – Zurich – Task Force Zurich
12th Vegan Rangers Alpha Regiment – Zurich – Task Force Zurich– M
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Zurich – Task Force Zurich
New Sytris PDZ
New Syrtis CMM – New Syrtis
Warrior’s Hall Training Regiment – New Syrtis
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – New Syrtis
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – New Syrtis
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Talon/Wernke
Medusan’s – New Syrtis
Sirdar PDZ
Sirdar CMM – Sirdar
1st Dragonlords RCT – Bromhead
1st Mitchel Borderers – Mitchel
1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion – Mitchel
1st Crucis Lancers – Mitchel
11th Avalon Hussars – Yuris
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Jacson
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Manapire
1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion – Bromhead
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Horsham
Illician Lancers 59th Striker – Verlo – M
Illician Lancers 9th Rangers – Frazer – M
Illician Lancers 21st Rangers – Manapire
Illician Lancers 4th Rangers – Mitchel
1st Cunningham Commando’s – Zilliang – M
Hansen’s Roughriders – Bromhead – M
Altair PDZ
Ridgebrook CMM – Ridgebrook
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Lindsay
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Midale
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Taygeta
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Taygeta
1894th Light Horse – Firgrove – M
21st Rim Worlds – Firgrove – M
Avatar’s of Painful Death – Firgrove – M
Warren PDZ
Warren CMM – Warren
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Hyalite
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Lothair
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Montour
Crucis March
Archemar Combat Region
Marlette CrMM – Marlette
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – New Valencia
1st Albion Training Cadre – Markesan
1st NAIS Cadre – Johnsondale
Davion Old Guards RCT – Muskegon – 1 Battalion
Davion Young Guards RCT – Muskegon – 1 Battalion
1st Avalon Borderers LCT – Edwards
Kestrel Combat Region
Kestrel CrMM – Kestrel
Harlock’s Warriors – Kirklin – M
New Avalon Combat Region
New Avalon CrMM – New Avalon
1st Davion Guards RCT – New Avalon – earmarked for Task Force Victor
3rd Davion Guards RCT – New Avalon
6th Dragonlords RCT – New Avalon
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – El Dorado
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Galax
Davion Old Guards RCT – Salem/Talcott/Victoria – 1 battalion each
Davion Young Guards RCT – Salem/Talcott/Victoria – 1 battalion each
Nunivak Combat Region
Remagen CrMM – Remagen
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Colorado
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Colorado
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Gulkana
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Killarney
3rd Dragonlords RCT – New Damascus
Islamabad Combat Region
Islamabad CrMM – Islamabad
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Panpour
3rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Islamabad
Malagrotta Combt Region
Malagrotta CrMM – Malagrotta
23rd Avalon Hussars – June
Point Barrow Combat Region
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Point Barrow
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Andalusia
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Defiance
Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlan’s – Defiance
Tsamma Combat Region
Tsamma CrMM – Tsamma
5th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cerulean
Anjin Muerto Combat Region
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Anjin Muerto
1st Brockton Reinforced Training Battalion – Brockton
1st Brockton Borderers Cadre – NOT ACTIVE
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Crofton
Broken Wheel Combat Region
Broken Wheel CrMM – Broken Wheel
Filtvelt Academy Training Regiment– Filtvelt
21st Avalon Hussars RCT – Maram
1st Illician Rangers – Lackland – m
Periphery Combat Region – To be Tortuga Combat Region when fully integrated
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cooperland – dispatched to hit Charleston
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Sun Jaguar Enclaves
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – New Haiti – dispatched to Dicallus
1st Tortuga Borderers – Tortuga
1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion – Tortuga
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Industrial/Infrastructure Changes 31st December 3067
Capellan March
Axton
– Wangker plant: increased to 6 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line.
Bell
- Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards,
Chesterton
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Line Argus-o, 1 Dervish, Phoenix Hawk and Wasps – AFFS and ComGuards 50/50 split but not Argus-O. Lorica Battle armour plant for ComGuards. Dervish line upgrading to O status by June 3068.
Demeeter
- Lycomb-Davion: 1 Guillotine line for SLDF/ComGuards finishing in December 3068.
Firgrove
- Clyde Shipyards: Excalibur and Colossus dropships
- Firgrove Consortium – Greenock School and Manufacturing and Clyde Shipyards: 1 Ahab line for 50/50 split with AFFS ComGuards – starting producing of an updated Vulcan heavy fighter, going into limited production in August 3068.
Kathil – expanding naval slips
- GM: 2 extra Blackjack-O lines. Expanding Tunnel Rat lines.
Tikonov
– Earthwerks: 1 Thug, 1 Archer, 3 Cataphract, 1 Thunderbolt, 1 Quickdraw, 1 Thrus, 1 Ahab (former Transit), 3 Sabre (former Thrush) lines, Comguards/AFFS Koschei line being built – October 3068. Converting Thunderbolt line to NAIS variant
- New Independence Weapony: 1 Atlas, 1 Victor and 1 Battlemaster line.
New Syrtis
– Johnston Industries - Expansion of the Dagger-O lines from 2 to 3 – completed April 3063, a further expansion to 4 lines to be completed by December 3064. Adding a nightsky line by February 3067. Adding a Thunderbolt line by October 3068.
- Expanding naval slips and upgrading them
Novoya Zemyla
– Johnston Industries : 2 Dagger-O lines, 1 Hatchetman line, 1 Axman line with a Nightsky line being added by January 3068.
– Kallon Industries: 1 Templar, Jaggermech III and Enforcer III line. Cavalier battle armour annex. A new Enforcer III line being built – going online in September 3068.
Outreach
- Blackwell Industries salvaging a Falcon-C line – with help from Clan Sun Jaguar, line will be operational by March 3066. Imp C to have a line started in November 3066, entering production in January 3068.
Crucis March
Andalusia
- Bergan Industries: 2 Wayland Mobile Base lines, a third being added by July 3068. Locust plans on hold.
Augusta
- Corean Enterprise: fully automated Musketeer plant – adding a Centurion line by April 3068.
Batavia
- Jalastar Aerospace plant: 2 Sabre and 1 Sparrowhawk – 1 Sabre line for Comstar. 1 Javelin-O line and another finishing January 3068. – to add a Sparrhawk line, completing July 3068.
Baxley
- Jalastar Aerospace plant, building Javelin-O, 2 lines under construction, starting in April 3067 and going online in July 3068 and August 3068. – to add a Sparrhawk line, completing in May 3068.
Belladonna
- Kallon Industries: 1 Hornet line, 1 Wolverine, 1 Griffin, 1 Shadow Hawk, 1 Exterminator, 1 Partisan, 1 Challenger MBT, 1 Demon Tank line also operating. All production split 50/50 between ComGuards and AFFS. 1 Templar-O line going operational in July 3068 and a Penatrator line going online in March 3068. Both only for AFFS.
Brockton
- Maltex Corporation: 1 Wyvern line – finishing in November 3068
Broken Wheel
- Andoran Industries Ltd: 2 Clint lines, 2 Hussars and 2 Mercury lines split 50/50 between ComGuards/AFFS
- Quickscell plant expanding to 2 pegasus lines, and adding a Hetzer, Vedette and ACP line – to be split between AFFS/ComGuards 50/50,
Crofton
- SunCorp Industries: 2 Warhammer lines, 1 Longbow, 1 Highlander, 1 Emperor, 1 Black Hawk, 1 Avatar, 1 Sunder and 2 Thanatos-O lines – a 3rd Thanatos-O line by July 3068.
Defiance
- Davion-Com: 1 Flashman, 1 Crab, 2 Sentinel, 1 Mongoose, 1 Nexus 50/50 split between Comguards and AFFS except the Nexus which is exclusively for the ComGuards. Adding a Warhammer line by December 3068.
- A small battle armour facility building “Lorica” variant Cavalier BA, coming online in January 3065.
Delavan
- Universal Air – large scale production of Star Lord and Tramp as well as new monolith production in cooperation with Challenge. Ares attack craft being produced in growing numbers.
Edwards
- New Independence Weaponry – 1 Victor and Atlas line under construction February 3068.
El Dorado
- Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative: 1 Battlemaster line, 2 Templar line, 3 Ajax line, 1 Demon line (50/50 ComGuards/AFFS).
Filtvelt
- FedBoeing: A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works. Dropship yard entering production in April 3063, jumpship yard August 3064 – to produce Mules, Unions and Merchant jumpships. Cargoking and Cargomaster production being added byt July 3068
- Wangker: 4 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line.
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Argus-O, 1 Dervish, 1 Enforcer, 1 Osiris lines, as well as a massive industrial mech production facility building a huge industrial mech factory and a battle armour annex – building Cavaliers, Grenadiers and Infiltrator II’s. Dervish line upgrading to O status by July 3068.
– Outback FarmMechs: 1 Watchman and 1 Stinger line, a locust line being assembled by November 3067 from Taurian salvage. Building a Harvester Ant and Cattlemaster line – October and November 3068.
Galax – expanding naval slips and civilian jumpships. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065. Large scale expansion of NAC-30s production. Dropship Cargoking and Cargomaster being added by April 3068
Gulkana
- Yeffter’s Weapons now producing major NAC-30 numbers for warships. Going online in 3068 – November
Islamabad
- Jalastar Aerospace: 2 Sabre and 1 Sparrowhawk – 1 Sabre line for Comstar. 2 Javelin-O lines to enter production in November 3067 and January 3068.
June
– Lycomb-Davion: 3 Stuka, 1 Hellcat, 1 Lightning line. An Awesome line being started in November 3067 and finishing in December 3068.
– Corean Enterprises: 3 Centurion lines, 2 Valkyrie, 1 Hammerhead lines as well as a semi-automated plant to produce Musketeers, upgrading semi automated plant to automated by November 3068.
- Michaelson facility starting construction – to build initial yellow jackets and hawk moths – finishing in February 3068
Kestrel
– New Independence Weaponry: 1 Atlas, 1 Marauder II, 1 Cyclops, 1 Gunslinger, 1 Victor, 1 Marauder and 1 Jaggermech III line. An additional Marauder II line being added by November 3068 and then possibly a Battlemaster line.
Killarney
– Arc Royal MechWorks: 3 Wolfhound lines and 2 Arctic Fox-O lines. Looking into increased Arctic Fox-O lines.
Kirklin
– Kallon Industries: 1 Penetrator and Crusader line added to existing plant. Adding an Enforcer III line by August 3068. Adding a Thunderbolt line by November 3068.
Layover
- Salvatore Inc: Large scale production of Vengeance and Colossus dropships divided between the AFFS and ComGuards.
- Quickscell: 2 Vedette, 2 Hetzer, 2 Heavy APC, 1 SRM Carrier, 1 LRM Carrier, 1 Laser carrier, 1 Autocannon carrier, 1 Scorpion, 1 ACP and 1 Pegasus line.
Markesan
- New Earth Trading Company facility: 5 existing Alacorn lines, 5 Von luckner lines, 3 Karnov lines, 2 Engineering vehicles, 1 Gabriel line. Production split between AFFS and ComGuards 50/50 – 2nd Gabriel line and 4th Karnov line – finishing in June 3068 and October 3068 respectively.
New Avalon
- Lycomb-Davion: 6 Stuka lines expansions of Stuka production (4 new lines), 1 Hellcat line, 1 Lightning line, 2 Huscarls lines, 1 Hammerhead line, 1 Awesome line, 2 Guillotine lines, 1 Lancelot line – half of Guillotine and Lancelot production to go to ComGuards
- Corean Enterprise: 1 Black Hawk KU, 1 Trebuchet line, 6 Centurion lines (2 of them new), 1 fireball line and a fully automated Musketeer plant as well as an automated Valkyrie plant.
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Argus-O, 3 Enforcer III, 1 Phoenix Hawk, 1 Osiris, 1 Wasp, 1 Locust lines and 2 Dervish lines being upgraded to Dervish O – finishing in February 3068.
New Damascus
- Federated Suns Defence Industries: 1 Stinger, 1 Wasp line, 2 Bull Dog lines, 1 Marauder line (going online in January 3068), 1 Phoenix Hawk line (going online in April 3068), 1 Wasp lines (January 3068), 1 Locust line (February 3068), Thunderbird aerospace line (March 3069), 1 vedette line (September 3068), 1 Fulcrum line (June 3068), 1 Light SRM Carrier (March 3068), 1 J edger line (May 3068), 1 Pit Bull line (January 3068).
Northfield
- Corean Industries: 1 Devastator line for AFFS/ComGuards 50/50 split, 1 Centurion line, 1 Fireball line going operational in January 3068.
Palmyra
- Jalastar Aerospace: 4 lines of Javelin-O, going online in March, June, July and August 3068.
Panpour
- Challenge Systems being funded to increase production of Monolith jumpships and begin construction of two Congress-D frigates. First yard to be ready in February 3063 and the next 4 months later. A further increase in Monolith production to take place in 3064
- Jalastar Aerospace increasing production of sparrohawk and sabre fighters and Centurion, grasshopper and javelin battlemechs. Increases in sparrowhawk and centurion construction prioritised and starting from August 3063, further expansions going on into 3065, This will result in by December 3065 5 Sparrowhawk lines and 3 sabre lines and 3 extra Centurion lines. Spad and Zero lines being built – going into production January and March 3066 respectively. 3 existing Javelin lines being converted to Javelin-O – starting January 3067 and retooled by April-May 3067.
Point Barrow
- GM: 1 Victor, 1 Marauder, 1 Flashman line along with a Grenadier and a new Cavalier production plant being added by January 3068. Stealth line being added by March 3068.
Salem
- Gm plant added a Blackjack-O line
Shawnee
- Andoran Industries Ltd – 1 Clint line. Sold to AFFS/Comguards 50/50
Talcott
- Gm plant now producing Grenadiers and Cavaliers in record numbers. Expanding by end of 3065. Blackjack refit centre being upgraded to produce Blackjack-O – by November 3066.
Torrence
- Johnston Industries: 2 Dagger-O lines, 1 Caeser and 1 Nightsky lines. Adding a Thunderbolt line by August 3068.
- Veridan Dynamics plant reopening to build Tiger medium tanks (starting in March 3067) and a new line for Vali artillery tanks (starting in April 3067). 3 Pitbull truck lines – finishing in May 3068.
Vandalia
- Blackstone Industries: 1 Talon line, plant to start construction on January 3067, enfield line in February 3068 and Ostscout in March 3068.
Victoria
- GM: 1 line of Blacjack-O and 1 line of Wasps – building for AFFS/Comguards 50/50. As well as a Lorica BA annex for Comguards. Expanding this plant – 1 Nightstar line going operational in October 3068, 1 Malestrom line going operational in September 3068 and 1 Cestus line going operational in August 3068.
Draconis March
Addicks
– Johnson Industries: 2 Dagger-O lines, 1 Hatchetman, 2 Goblin line
Alta Vista
- New Independence Weaponry: 1 Atlas, 1 Gunslinger and 1 Victor
Benet III
– Johnson Industries: 1 Dagger-O line
Clovis
- Sandoval Refit Centre – being built, due to finish in March 3069
Errai
- Maltex: 1 Thug, 1 Wyvern line. Adding a 2nd Thug line – going operational in February 3068.
Kentares
- New Earth Trading Company: 1 Gabriel line building, finishing by December 3067, an Alacorn and Von Luckner line in the works – finishing October 3068 and November 3068. Production split between the AFFS/ComGuards
Marduk
- Norse Battlemech Works: 1 Avatar-O, 1 Black Hawk KU, 2 Wolverine, 2 Shadow Hawk, 1 Firestarter-O
Mayetta
- Achernar battle armour plant to build Infiltrators, cavaliers and Grenadiers. To come online in December 3065 and full production by March 3066.
- Norse Battlemech Works: 1 Griffin, 1 Shadow Hawk and 1 Sling line to be built – starting in the New Year and finishing in February 3069 and March 3069 and January 3069 respectively.
Northwind
- Corsara weapons: 1 King Crab, 1 Black Watch and 2 Crab lines now being offered for sale to AFFS and Highlanders. December 3067 for a new King Crab. Crab and King Crab new lines to be sold to the AFFS and Comguards – LOOKING FOR SECONDARY SITE
Ozawa
- General Dynamics: 1 Ostsol line, 2 Kintaro lines, 1 Sentry line, 50/50 sales between AFFS/Comguards, but not a popular design with AFFS who will sell most of the mechs on to mercenaries.
- Veridan Dynamics: 3 Tiger lines, 1 Vali line– Comguards and LA wanting Vali.
Robinson
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks: 2 Sagittairre, 1 Battlemaster, 2 Black Knights (1 for Comstar), 1 Arus-O, 1 Ostsol, 1 Phoenix Hawk, 1 Sentry, 2 Watchman lines
Sun Prairie
- Wangker Aerospace: 4 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line
- Michaelson: 2 Yellow Jacket, 2 Hawk Moth lines.
Tancredi
- Expanding of Laser production to include ER variants and industrial and medical lasers. New models entering production by June 3064. Consideration for battlemech/vehicle production as well.
- Joint Kallon-Prescision: 2 Rifleman lines and 1 Penetrator line, a Phoenix Hawk line under construction – due April 3068.
Verde
- FedBoeing: Colossus, Overlord-A3, Overlord and Union dropships being produced. Cargoking and Cargomaster production being added by December 3068-January 3069.
- GM: 1 Demon tank line
- Ranger Battlemechs: 1 Shadow Hawk line
Woodbine
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks: 1 Sagittairre, 1 Black Knight, 1 Sentry, 1 Watchman and 1 Battle Hawk line – 1 Battlehawk line being added by February 3068.
Clan Smoke Jaguar
Valois
- Jaguar Industries – building a Guillotine IIC and Wyvern IIC – restarted – finishing April 3068 and May 3068
- Yvonne-Isis Construction Plant – building 2 Daedalus lines. Finishing in October 3067
Educational expansions
New Armstrong Flight Academy – expanded as of 3063 class, first expanded class graduating end of 3066
Filvelt Academy – expanded to a full regiment as of 3063 class. First expanded class graduating end of 3066
Filvelt Flight School – started construction 3063, first (small) class 3064. First class graduating end of 3066
Robinson Battle Academy – rebuilding/expanding to a full regiment, by end of 3063. First class graduating end of 3066
Warrior Hall – expanding to a full regiment by end of 3063. First class graduating end of 3066
Tancredi War College – being rebuilt and start a small class in 3064 full class in 3065, graduating first class in 3066 with full class in 3067.
Defiance - a new training facility planned to be named the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy to be jointly run by the AFFS and SLDF. Scheduled to begin classes 3064. First class graduating end of 3066.
Lexington Military Acamdey – being built on Lexington, staffed mostly with LCG Veterans with a few officers from the Davion guards, Ceti Hussars and DLC units. First class being started in January 3066, graduating first class in December 3068
NAIS – expanding, newly expanding class entering academy in December 3066, graduating in December 3069 – at which time 4th and 5th training cadre formed
Albion – expanding, newly expanding class entering academy in December 3066, graduating in December 3069 – at which time 3rd Training cadre formed
Kilbourne Academy – expanding, newly expanding class entering academy in December 3066, graduating in December 3069 – at which time the battalion will be upgraded to regiment
Point Barrow – expanding, newly expanding class entering academy in December 3066, graduating in December 3069 – at which time the battalion will be upgraded to regiment
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Billy Boy Mark II Have you thought of building jump ship which can carry more then three drop ships?
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Billy Boy Mark II Have you thought of building jump ship which can carry more then three drop ships?
They are building Star Lords and Monoliths.
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I'm glad you're keeping track of all this stuff. My little computer is working up a sweat just reading it.
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was someone working on Clint IIC?
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They are building Star Lords and Monoliths.
yes but a larger amount of them would make things safer
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So many green units, why does the word WAR keep flashing before my eyes. >:D
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So many green units, why does the word WAR keep flashing before my eyes. >:D
To be fair you have to look at the Brigades...
The Independents are some solid dependable units there and a bunch of trouble-shooters.
The Avalon Hussars I’m a bit concerned how much they are spreading out their units to create more regiments. As a result their overall rating has gone way down backed up by only a handful of veteran units: im afraid they might become paper tigers of a sort.
The Borderers are green but I wouldn’t expect much: he Aragon unit is their only bright star.
The Chisholm Raiders I don’t expect much but with three Regiments I think they will be okay.
The Ceti Hussars could use some skill upgrades in the future hopefully.
The Crucis Lancers and the Davion Brigade of Guards are as elite as you come: even with the Brigades expansion they will be the centerpiece of ANY force.
The Deneb Light Cavalry never impressed me much: I don’t expect much out of them either.
The FSAC and Dragoon’s are veterans and you could trust hem with some solid assignments. Another couple of brigades to include this are the New Avalon Cavaliers, the Lexington Combat Group, and the Chasseurs.
The Dragon Lords are getting there but need actual combat seasoning: I think their vast expansion could be a bit of their undoing. I imagine they might lose a couple units and fold them into the others.
The Robinson and Syrtis Brigades are quite solid but I would question their loyalty of course: depending on the conflict in question.
The Tandcredi Loyalists are green but again their a brand new unit.
As always the militias and training battalions are green.
The Jaguars... their rebuilding in the same way the CWIE and Nova Cats are. They seem a bit better treated than the Nova Cats and in much better position in the galaxy than the Wolves (who face constant threats from the Falcons). I don’t know if this will last long or if hey will demand a combat posting/world near SOME border: the Chaos March maybe?
So TLDR: I’m worried about the Avalon Hussars and the Dragonlords but the rest *shrugs* Their real strength is their new Navy of course: with Blakists throwing around nukes they have the navy to really stand up to it. They also have a head start on just about everyone else there.
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Honestly, I was Victor I'd certinally pretty much look at closing down any more rebuilds of heavy RCTs for the time being and be much more focused on pouring resources and personnel into brand new static March Milita LCTs - albeit indirectly. Look at your line units that might still be running older and field refit equipped units and start directing production to upgrade all of their Battlemechs, Vehicles and Aerospace units (in all honestly Victor shouldn't be stockpiling Mechs until upgrades are done much more across the board). Have the old equipment then shipped off to the refit yards to be overhauled back to zero-hour units and use them to build up new March Militia and Border units, possibly by Federalizing local milita units as the core of a new March Milita.
And he needs to make sure that green units in garrison are as often as possible being paired off against Elites and Veterans for war games and exercises to really train them hard. It's not quite as good a real combat, but its honestly not that far off either in terms of drilling the lessons in and polishing back the rough edges of a green unit to make them true regulars.
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Hey rereading the update it looks like the fedsun is expanding into the civilian market more this year. Also more Congress-Ds will help enormously in keeping the rear secure. Same for expanding the dragons is going to help but at this point its probably wise to have an expansion break as it where to allow the new units to even out and for personel, training and admin
Also I think the Cappellans may have discovered a perpetual in the family tomb mad max is going to be spinning so fast in his grave we could hook a generator up to him and he will provide power for the whole world.
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Chris OFarrell, you are right.
On the one hand Victor has the political acumen of a gauss rifle slug, e.g. none.
His father and mother must be rolling in the graves.
Hanse Davion was no political genius but even he would have not looted the TC totally. I think he would have returned some of the already looted material as a reward for removing Grover.
And Melissa?
Boy, she would have done even more and won the hearts and minds of the TC before you could say Hello.
Hohiro
Even though with the death of Omi Kurita there is not much between Victor and Hohiro, they had a good relationship while fighting the Clans. And then Victor spurns him!
I think that after shown the DC samurai culture by Omi I thought that Victor would be more political when Commanding General Hohiro asked for troops.He angered him (ok, they had a war, but still - in the future Victor will have to deal with Coordinator Hohiro - unless he has an accident - and a Coordinator holding a grudge is not recommended. Victor should look into the future and plan accordingly! That is the difference between a patriot and a politician. As a patriot you hate the DC, but as a politician you have to think of the future and how to minimize any possible damage to your people. Yes, the DC is a tyranny, but better to shake hands with Hohiro every year than having every five years a war.).
And after rereading I think that the breakup of the FedCom was Victors decision. He could have fought for it.
(Why did he just walk away? I did not understood it in canon and here again. OK, it is the FedSuns reborn, but still)
Victor made a policy of "You stay on your side and I stay on my side. If you dont I stomp you flat!"
Now he is violating this statement by moving forces into the CC.
So, logically speaking now Sunny Boy would have the right to kick Victor - if he could.
Yes, I know it is a reaction to Sunny Boy calling Isis his leavings, but I dont think that Sunny Boy would use such a crude language. He is a noble and Victor kicked im. So I would suspect he uses more nice words that have this crude meaning. But even if he used such foul language, Victor should know Sunny Boy enough that such an insult is to be expected. And assassinations are no good response. It could get out of hand.
Mercenaries
I think there will be also repercussions for the Mercenary trade.
Till now we had the raid-counterraid-countercounterraid ad infinitum. And everybody was happy with it and accepted it.
Now with Victor responding with full war to such raids, I think the other powers will be wary raiding the FS.
On the other hand, if they attack they will be vary wary of their own mercenaries, because they know that they will be given the choice between a) surrender and keep your mechs or b) loose all your mechs.
So the mercenaries will have a strong incentive to surrender and that will force the Successor State to use "collateral". Remember what happened to the Dragoon dependents? I think we will see more of that.
On the other hand the mercenaries could change their contracts to a)if the unit looses its mechs to the defending state (FS) then the employer is required to give a mech of the same weight class to the dispossessed warrior or b) the unit may not be used in an offensive way against a state that behaves by taking all the mechs.
And do you all remember that at the beginning of the setting that only the DC took all your mechs? Now Victor is stepping into the shoes of the DC.
So, while the FS had at the beginnings of BATTLETECH the halo of righteousness the actions of Victor (looting art= Greenhaven Gestapo and confiscating all mechs= DC) have removed that nearly totally.
And last thought:
OK, the FS are producing mechs like there is no tomorrow, but think long term.
At some point the tax income from the FS does not support any more mech regiments. And then you have 100 mech producing centers and you can use only 10 or so to replace damaged or worn out mechs. That in turn will lead to unemployment, recession and unhappy people. And unemployment will lead to less taxes and that means less regiments can be supported ad infinitum.
So Sunny Boy should be well advised to behave and just wait for the FS to implode on itself.
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was someone working on Clint IIC?
Not yet, but the Sun Jaguars are considering it after the Wyvern and Highlander IIC.
yes but a larger amount of them would make things safer
That goes for everything! ;) But yes they are trying to expand those numbers.
So many green units, why does the word WAR keep flashing before my eyes. >:D
Well yes, a lot of green units. But the officers are mostly combat tested veterans.
To be fair you have to look at the Brigades...
The Independents are some solid dependable units there and a bunch of trouble-shooters.
The Avalon Hussars I’m a bit concerned how much they are spreading out their units to create more regiments. As a result their overall rating has gone way down backed up by only a handful of veteran units: im afraid they might become paper tigers of a sort.
The Borderers are green but I wouldn’t expect much: he Aragon unit is their only bright star.
The Chisholm Raiders I don’t expect much but with three Regiments I think they will be okay.
The Ceti Hussars could use some skill upgrades in the future hopefully.
The Crucis Lancers and the Davion Brigade of Guards are as elite as you come: even with the Brigades expansion they will be the centerpiece of ANY force.
The Deneb Light Cavalry never impressed me much: I don’t expect much out of them either.
The FSAC and Dragoon’s are veterans and you could trust hem with some solid assignments. Another couple of brigades to include this are the New Avalon Cavaliers, the Lexington Combat Group, and the Chasseurs.
The Dragon Lords are getting there but need actual combat seasoning: I think their vast expansion could be a bit of their undoing. I imagine they might lose a couple units and fold them into the others.
The Robinson and Syrtis Brigades are quite solid but I would question their loyalty of course: depending on the conflict in question.
The Tandcredi Loyalists are green but again their a brand new unit.
As always the militias and training battalions are green.
The Jaguars... their rebuilding in the same way the CWIE and Nova Cats are. They seem a bit better treated than the Nova Cats and in much better position in the galaxy than the Wolves (who face constant threats from the Falcons). I don’t know if this will last long or if hey will demand a combat posting/world near SOME border: the Chaos March maybe?
So TLDR: I’m worried about the Avalon Hussars and the Dragonlords but the rest *shrugs* Their real strength is their new Navy of course: with Blakists throwing around nukes they have the navy to really stand up to it. They also have a head start on just about everyone else there.
The Avalon Hussars have grown perhaps too fast and have a lot of green units. Which is why they have stopped and are concentrated on getting them back up to strength and training them.
The Borderers are pretty green, but they do just have to hold in place mostly - and free up better units to go on the offensive. Although the Aragon Borderers might be considered for offensive actions at least.
You might be a little unfair on the Deneb Light Cavalry - 3 veteran RCT's with double strength fighter wings are nothing to be sniffed at.
I'd hazard a guess (;)) that the Dragonlords will be mostly assigned to support an existing veteran or elite unit to add firepower and huge numbers of battle armour to their ranks. Without a doubt they will take heavy losses in a war, and may have entire units struck from the rolls, but the survivors will come out as a battle hardened force to rebuild around. Probably.
Of the Robinson and Syrtis brigades my concern would be the Rangers. Only 2 long term units, the rest are a mix of former mercenaries, new formations and all of them are adjusting to RCT status. While the Fusiliers do have a former merc unit in their ranks but only 1 and 2 green newly formed units - that probably not many will expect too much from initially at least. The Fusiliers will just have more "cohesion" as half are existing formed and experienced long term Fusilier RCT, compared to only a third of the Rangers and all of them adjusting to being RCTs.
Honestly, I was Victor I'd certinally pretty much look at closing down any more rebuilds of heavy RCTs for the time being and be much more focused on pouring resources and personnel into brand new static March Milita LCTs - albeit indirectly. Look at your line units that might still be running older and field refit equipped units and start directing production to upgrade all of their Battlemechs, Vehicles and Aerospace units (in all honestly Victor shouldn't be stockpiling Mechs until upgrades are done much more across the board). Have the old equipment then shipped off to the refit yards to be overhauled back to zero-hour units and use them to build up new March Militia and Border units, possibly by Federalizing local milita units as the core of a new March Milita.
And he needs to make sure that green units in garrison are as often as possible being paired off against Elites and Veterans for war games and exercises to really train them hard. It's not quite as good a real combat, but its honestly not that far off either in terms of drilling the lessons in and polishing back the rough edges of a green unit to make them true regulars.
Traditionally there is only a single MM per PDZ/Combat Region - but thats one reason he's building up the Borderer Brigade. Defensive units who can hold key worlds (and some of the Borderer's are being formed in the Outback and not on active borders for anti piracy work) and free up other units to take the offensive. The Mitchel Borderers for instance aren't going to last long against a McCarron's Armoured Cavalry regiment, but they will probably hold out long enough for help to arrive from say a FSAC or Dragoon RCT. The build up of this brigade is a major plus and another reason so many were pissed at Faulkner - she had been promoted to a brigade that didn't exist a few years ago and had grown from 2 starting units with an extra newly formed to a brigade that when she was sacked had 5, a 6th promised and 3 cadres to be the centre of new commands. She didn't have a lot to complain about in the eyes of most.
Hey rereading the update it looks like the fedsun is expanding into the civilian market more this year. Also more Congress-Ds will help enormously in keeping the rear secure. Same for expanding the dragons is going to help but at this point its probably wise to have an expansion break as it where to allow the new units to even out and for personel, training and admin
Also I think the Cappellans may have discovered a perpetual in the family tomb mad max is going to be spinning so fast in his grave we could hook a generator up to him and he will provide power for the whole world.
The Congress-D will be a mix of escorts, rear area security, etc... And are almost mini-carriers carrying a full regiment of aerospace fighters. So very very useful against anything short of an invasion fleet.
Chris OFarrell, you are right.
On the one hand Victor has the political acumen of a gauss rifle slug, e.g. none.
His father and mother must be rolling in the graves.
Hanse Davion was no political genius but even he would have not looted the TC totally. I think he would have returned some of the already looted material as a reward for removing Grover.
And Melissa?
Boy, she would have done even more and won the hearts and minds of the TC before you could say Hello.
Hohiro
Even though with the death of Omi Kurita there is not much between Victor and Hohiro, they had a good relationship while fighting the Clans. And then Victor spurns him!
I think that after shown the DC samurai culture by Omi I thought that Victor would be more political when Commanding General Hohiro asked for troops.He angered him (ok, they had a war, but still - in the future Victor will have to deal with Coordinator Hohiro - unless he has an accident - and a Coordinator holding a grudge is not recommended. Victor should look into the future and plan accordingly! That is the difference between a patriot and a politician. As a patriot you hate the DC, but as a politician you have to think of the future and how to minimize any possible damage to your people. Yes, the DC is a tyranny, but better to shake hands with Hohiro every year than having every five years a war.).
And after rereading I think that the breakup of the FedCom was Victors decision. He could have fought for it.
(Why did he just walk away? I did not understood it in canon and here again. OK, it is the FedSuns reborn, but still)
Victor made a policy of "You stay on your side and I stay on my side. If you dont I stomp you flat!"
Now he is violating this statement by moving forces into the CC.
So, logically speaking now Sunny Boy would have the right to kick Victor - if he could.
Yes, I know it is a reaction to Sunny Boy calling Isis his leavings, but I dont think that Sunny Boy would use such a crude language. He is a noble and Victor kicked im. So I would suspect he uses more nice words that have this crude meaning. But even if he used such foul language, Victor should know Sunny Boy enough that such an insult is to be expected. And assassinations are no good response. It could get out of hand.
Mercenaries
I think there will be also repercussions for the Mercenary trade.
Till now we had the raid-counterraid-countercounterraid ad infinitum. And everybody was happy with it and accepted it.
Now with Victor responding with full war to such raids, I think the other powers will be wary raiding the FS.
On the other hand, if they attack they will be vary wary of their own mercenaries, because they know that they will be given the choice between a) surrender and keep your mechs or b) loose all your mechs.
So the mercenaries will have a strong incentive to surrender and that will force the Successor State to use "collateral". Remember what happened to the Dragoon dependents? I think we will see more of that.
On the other hand the mercenaries could change their contracts to a)if the unit looses its mechs to the defending state (FS) then the employer is required to give a mech of the same weight class to the dispossessed warrior or b) the unit may not be used in an offensive way against a state that behaves by taking all the mechs.
And do you all remember that at the beginning of the setting that only the DC took all your mechs? Now Victor is stepping into the shoes of the DC.
So, while the FS had at the beginnings of BATTLETECH the halo of righteousness the actions of Victor (looting art= Greenhaven Gestapo and confiscating all mechs= DC) have removed that nearly totally.
And last thought:
OK, the FS are producing mechs like there is no tomorrow, but think long term.
At some point the tax income from the FS does not support any more mech regiments. And then you have 100 mech producing centers and you can use only 10 or so to replace damaged or worn out mechs. That in turn will lead to unemployment, recession and unhappy people. And unemployment will lead to less taxes and that means less regiments can be supported ad infinitum.
So Sunny Boy should be well advised to behave and just wait for the FS to implode on itself.
Victor has taken the TC of the board in the short-medium term. Longer term, that's not so great. But he is investing in the TC's civilian side to help make up for gutting their military industrial complex. Whether that works... *shrugs*
Hohiro and Victors mutual respect/friendship was always based around Omi in my opinion. Take that away and they were always going to drift apart - sped up by Victor's taking the lions share of the glory from the Clan Campaign and then doing so well on his return to the Fedsuns, while Hohiro was still just "the heir". Victor did make a mistake when Hohiro asked for troops - a major one to be honest, but i dont want a perfect Victor. He thought that nominating him would keep Hohiro sweet, he didn't anticipate having to then provide troops to support him.
He walked away from the LA (in this) because to regain it would have been civil war, something he was always keen to avoid. The FS was still loyal to him in this timeline.
He's not moved forces - just agents. Which all sides do. He hasn't invaded or even raided a CC world. But yeah, there is a fine hair splitting going on there. You make the right point however- Sun Tzu COULD use Victors own actions to justify hitting back harder, but he can't. Not really.
The FS isn't taking ALL your mechs if you are a mercenary. For instance Bannockburns Bandits and Gordon's Armoured Cavalry both still exist, in fact Gordons Armoured Cavalry got of pretty lightly for invading the FS - I'd have to ch eck but they might have got of best of all the invading forces by a HUGE margin. As for looting Highspire - they looted a traditional enemies palaces in return for an attempted heavy attack on a FS industrial/military target. Any real concerns about that counter attack might have been somewhat mitigated when it was found out the Thugees had nerve agents in their temples. Hard to feel sorry for a world that has those lunatics training with battlemechs and access to nerve agents.
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Regarding the Taurians, it strikes me that it might be a good idea to sell them new, high quality, equipment for self defence but make sure that it is defensively oriented gear rather than offensive. They will feel more secure and you won't have to worry about them while it can be played as a "peace offering".
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Regarding the Taurians, it strikes me that it might be a good idea to sell them new, high quality, equipment for self defence but make sure that it is defensively oriented gear rather than offensive. They will feel more secure and you won't have to worry about them while it can be played as a "peace offering".
Thats not a bad idea! :D
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Regarding the Taurians, it strikes me that it might be a good idea to sell them new, high quality, equipment for self defence but make sure that it is defensively oriented gear rather than offensive. They will feel more secure and you won't have to worry about them while it can be played as a "peace offering".
who and what would you do that with? About the only thing I could think of is selling them slow heavy mechs and assault tanks? fast mechs make a good raiding force and assault weight tanks are almost pill boxes. I would go with "standard" designs not FS centric.
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I have to agree that selling military equipment to the TDF as long as its non davion centric design is a good idea since it will foster good will to an extent especially if you offer a discount. It will also allow the TDF to rebuild and defend against any pirate, CC, Grovers goons or MC that decide to do something rather stupid.
Also maybe a covert offer to funnel some cash to help rebuild some of the gutted factories.
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Maybe sell the Taurians equipment that is heavy on ammo weapons. That way, if they're planning any long trips, they have to haul more supplies with them. Won't affect them as much in defensive operations. Plus they can make their own ammo, put people back to work.
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Traditionally there is only a single MM per PDZ/Combat Region - but thats one reason he's building up the Borderer Brigade. Defensive units who can hold key worlds (and some of the Borderer's are being formed in the Outback and not on active borders for anti piracy work) and free up other units to take the offensive. The Mitchel Borderers for instance aren't going to last long against a McCarron's Armoured Cavalry regiment, but they will probably hold out long enough for help to arrive from say a FSAC or Dragoon RCT. The build up of this brigade is a major plus and another reason so many were pissed at Faulkner - she had been promoted to a brigade that didn't exist a few years ago and had grown from 2 starting units with an extra newly formed to a brigade that when she was sacked had 5, a 6th promised and 3 cadres to be the centre of new commands. She didn't have a lot to complain about in the eyes of most.
Yeah I'm aware of the tradition, but honestly converting MM's to LCTs and making a lot more of them would make more sense if they are intended to be static defensive formations (not to mention work to spread units loyal to New Avalon first and foremost through the regions. Especially if you then rotate the units around between Marches, with different names of course to break up issues with them becoming too loyal to various regions) every 4-5 years.
But that's neither here nor there really.
Victor has taken the TC of the board in the short-medium term. Longer term, that's not so great. But he is investing in the TC's civilian side to help make up for gutting their military industrial complex. Whether that works... *shrugs*
Honestly, they were never ON the board to begin with. We saw what their best shot at the Federated Suns amounted to; a humiliating defeat, despite nominally having centuries to build themselves up to take their shot. The Federated Suns didn't even break a sweat smashing the bulk of their forces in a matter of weeks. At that point, things like looting their military factories (or at least not giving them back when the sane people won) is just vindictive looting that causes many more problems.
1. It leaves the Concordant vulnerable. Not simply to the Federated Suns but to all manner of pirates, the Capellans, various unaligned systems and so on. Not to mention the Central Governments abilities to actually impose its will should more regions breakaway to try and go with Shrappy or declare themselves independent or whatever. Without any real practical way to build themselves back up defensively, they are pretty ****** as a nation state. Which is going to be utterly unacceptable for them. Ergo, if the Federated Suns are going to be smug hardasses, they are going to have no choice but to accept any other power (read; the Word of Blake) stepping in and offering to rebuild their lost military. Even probably accept them happily if the Word play their cards carefully, as true friends, splitting factory output or something. Or the WOB stationing a couple of divisions on the Federated Suns border for reals. On their best behavior but even by simply being there, forcing Victor to keep significant troops facing them and if he goes to war with the WOB, making things extremely difficult.
2. It's going to make the medium and long term strategic situation worse for the Federated Suns for very dubious short term gains. Again, the TC when they had a military proved to be little more than a fly to be swatted - lesson pointedly made clear. Victor didn't need to DO anything more to them. A few factories were not going to let them rebuild to even their pre-war level for a decade or two (its not like these are advanced automated places pumping out regiments here). There was a golden once in 5 centuries opportunity there to get a GENUINE peace with the TC in the aftermath, which is worth infinitely more to the Federated Suns than a handful of ancient half working Battlemech plants (especially when the Federated Suns is probably bringing that much military capacity online internally every few months!) ... and they blew it. Victor had the chance to flip the strategic situation on its head and instead chose to heap the humiliation on them by emasculating them to the point that they will feel (and be) utterly powerless. On top of centuries of stamped in 'anti-Davion' propaganda.
3. It pretty much makes a lie of Victors overtures and actions towards Kithrong. As in when he was a breakaway state of the TC Victor was happy to all but throw military material at him as the 'true' leader of the TC and guardian of the Calderon line. Then suddenly when he gets control over the TC, Victor is busy ripping out everything that isn't nailed down and telling him to try and re-engineer and retrain incredibly specific supply lines and economic realities from military production to civilian production? Which even IF things go perfectly will still result in a massive economic depression for years? There is no way anyone can read this as anything but 'I was happy to support you to hurt the TC when you were opposed to them, now that you ARE the TC I want your asses as weak as possible forever! Mwhahaha!
4. Investing in the civilian side isn't a fix for their short and medium term issues (which is where you need to win them over right now). And that will happen internally anyway as the budgets cut back from Shrappys insane military spending to a more normal posture. Its going to take time for Victor to make any real difference and in that time period it could easily be that Kithrong is kicked out of power because the TC has gone completely to economic hell.
5. Shipping equipment to them honestly won't help things much at all. Oh they'll take the equipment because they have no choice but it'll still feel so much like the Inner Sphere, again, destroying all their native industries and then forcing them to buy stuff from the Inner Sphere - from the ****** davions, because they just stole all their factories, now they are selling their stolen factories products to them! Just like the Star League did! Again, humiliation on humiliation!! (insert Unreal Tournament 'HUMILIATION!' here). They saw themselves as the premier military power in the Periphery, now the damn Marions are probably more powerful than they are!
Victor had a golden opportunity to, as Tywin Lannister put it, 'After you force someone to bend the knee, you must extend a hand to help them back to their feet'. Instead, he's looted stuff he really doesn't need and ensured that we're in for another 500 years of hate on that border. Where as if he had shown mercy after the war ended, worked to heap the blame on Shrappy and tried hard to open up a dialogue to define this as a new chapter, he might have been able to make some real progress. Even to the point of making real gestures like paying reparations for the Reunification War to some level. Victor is so absurdly popular and especially with his new fiances help, he'd easily be able to sell it to his people as the closing of an old chapter and start of a new one.
I mean, frigen Hanse leaped at flipping flipped Saint Ives and the Tikonov Free Republic into an allied nation and ultimately annexed nation respectively the second he had the chance. War - even defensive wars- exist to serve a political end. Victor however STILL thinks like Clanners, that Wars exist to serve the purpose of Wars.
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So - Victor do what Victor do best - be one of the worst in the political game, only looking at the military angle.
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3068 - January - new and old threats
With the new units founded and beginning to come together the Federated Sun's High Command welcomes the First Prince back to New Avalon following the Whitting Conference on Tharkad. Plans begin to be put in place to attack the WOB in early 3069, regiments and RCT's as well as sufficient warships. While the temptation is to pack the formation with the most elite units possible a number of less experienced units are also considered to bulk out the elite "spear tip" and provide numbers.
Within the former Sarna March the Federated Sun's continue to support resistance movements. While mostly still passive or at most engaged in low level attacks upon the CCAF garrisons and Home Guard units, a handful of open resistance movements begin more active operations. Stretched thin with their operations on the League frontier the CCAF can do little but divert a handful of additional conventional units into the Liao Commonality to bolster their planetary garrisons.
The High Command also became aware that their secret base on Farstar had fallen of the grid sometime in the previous year. Reports had stopped coming from the planet via Black Box and as such the AFFS considered sending a ship to find out what had happened. However given reports coming in from the region of Clan Snow Raven ships and their elite Alpha Galaxy being seen, it was decided that they were likely responsible for the loss of the Farstar base. When reports surfaced that a naval battle had occurred at the Draconis Combine system of Kanzaka at which apparently a Clan warship had been destroyed the High Command decided that sending any further assets in anything less than squadron level strength would merely be asking for them to be destroyed or captured by the Ravens. Given some rather unreliable reports however that the Snow Ravens have been in peaceful talks with the Outworld's Alliance the First Prince requests that the FedSun's ambassador to that periphery realm discuss perhaps arranging a meeting between the Federated Suns and Clan Snow Raven at a neutral location to see if peaceful coexistence can be arranged. This is in preference to forming a full scale task force to send out as a show of strength. Although the Federated Suns Navy could provide such a task force it would leave them weakened on other frontiers, particularly if ships are lost in battle.
However just in case the newly constructed FSS Hobbs and FSS Rowe are used to form the beginning of the 5th Corvette Flotilla along with the FSS Sherwood and FSS Tancredi which until now were deployed on independent operations. The half strength 5th Flotilla is ordered to patrol the Bryceland, Milligan and Kilbourne PDZ's along the Outworld's border. Just in case. The 4 Fox corvettes are ordered to attempt to avoid action against Clan Snow Raven ships but to attempt to delay them and keep them from attacking FedSun's planets in the region. The 5th Flotilla is prioritised for new ships to bring them up to strength as soon as possible and some consideration is given to assigning heavier ships to a nodal force to back them up.
As well as the FSS Hobbs and FSS Rowe the former FSS Pleiades completes it's rebuilt in the Comstar's Faslane class CSV Plymouth. Coming from the yardship rebuilt an updated design the ship also has a new name. Where the hulk of the FSS Pleiades had entered refit, the rebuilt New Syrtis II carrier now carries the name the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion. Awaiting the ships is not 1 but 2 of the finest crews that the Federated Sun's Navy can assemble and a double fighter compliment. The plan is to use the FSS for the time being to work up crews and aerospace regiments for carrier operations. At least until the FSS Ran Felsner, FSS Aaron Sandoval and FSS Matilda Davion are completed in 3069. With those names announced it is clear that the new naming convention for the Davion's carriers are war hero's and great military leaders of the AFFS.
Alongside the announcement of the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion's launch the Federated Sun's Navy announces the new Fox II specifications will be used for all future Fox corvettes. They don't mention any details of the new design, nor whether or not the existing Fox's can be upgraded to the new design. However eagle eyed naval attaches and intelligence officers are quick to notice that alongside the damaged FSS Edwards, FSS Ridgebrook and FSS Bryceland the undamaged FSS Dahar is also going into refit at Edwards. The implications are evident. When taken into account that the FedSun's is building a repair slip at Novaya Zemlya and Verde it is obvious that the Davion's intend to refit their Fox fleet to the upgraded design.
With the first of the new carriers entering service to much acclaim and the investigations on the new Fox II design Fleet Admiral Buchwald is able to almost bury the announcement that Challenge Systems will be building a new shipyard complex at June in the Outback. Officially the new yard will be to expand construction of the versatile Congress-D II frigates, with an open secret being that a new slip for the Syrtis II carriers is also being constructed there. This official slip for the frigate and "hidden" slip for the carrier is in fact to hide the fact that there is a third slip being built - to build an Iron Duke class battleship. While it will be impossible to hide this large slip forever, it will give the AFFS a good year's head start before anyone find out they are building a new slip for battleships. Already plans are being put in place to add a further fourth slip to build Iron Duke battleships.
The shipyards at Filtvelt complete a Fox class corvette for the Lyran Alliance and Clan Wolf-in-Exile. The LAS Buena and Clan Wolf-in-Exile ship Wolf Blood head for the Lyran Alliance with their new crews at the end of January on a combined delivery/shakedown cruise.
On New Syrtis Duke Hasek with the approval of the First Prince on New Avalon enters into a military trade deal with the Grand Duchy of Andurien and officially recognises them as a independent nation. A large scale trade is arranged for 4 full battalions of refitted older battlemechs that formerly were used in the Syrtis Fusiliers and Capellan Dragoons amongst other units. While not the cutting edge of military equipment they have been fully rebuilt and refitted in the Hasek Refit Centre on Bell. At least twice that number of tanks are also provided of a similar vintage and source. The delegation also manages to obtain 5 full flight's of brand new Sabre aerospace fighters given the AFFS's preference for the Sparrowhawk. In return the Andurien delegation agree to granting the Federated Sun's a license to the Reiver class aerospace design along with a number of cash payments and raw materials and finished goods. This license will be granted to Lycomb-Davion and Firgrove Consortium when the deal is finalised in April. Further long term trades in weapons and goods will also be put in place at that time.
The First Prince also requests that Leftenant General Carrie Zetso and Duke Pravin Singh of the Islamabad CrMM and world of Panpour come to New Avalon to discuss a matter he wished to run by them. Both individuals immedietly suspect that the First Prince has discovered that the Duke of Panpour has been blackmailing the General and head to New Avalon with dread.
On Novaya Zemlya the Johnson Industries factory see's the Nightsky line enter production. A further addition is planned to add a Caeser line to this factory by the start of 3069.
The Blackwell Industries plant on Outreach begins producing limited numbers of Imp-C battlemech's for the Wolf's Dragoons and AFFS. Almost the entirety of the AFFS's share is diverted straight to the Davion Guards Brigade with a handful also assigned to a number of elite units like the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers, 1st Robinson Rangers and 6th Syrtis Fusiliers. With that line completed Colonel Maeve Wolf orders the company to begin working on a new line - to produce the Gallowglas-WD.
The Jalastar Aerospace factory on Batavia finishes completion of it's second Javelin-O line. A similar event happens at their Islamabad factory as a second Javelin-O also enters production there. Even with these additions there is still a great deal more demand for the new omnimech within the AFFS - and the company is pushing ahead with it's lines for the Javelin-O on Baxley and Palmyra as quickly as it can. Indeed the company is considering whether or not to build additional lines for this incredibly popular mech.
Federated Defence Industries second Wasp line, a Marauder heavy battlemech and a Pit Bull truck line goes operational. The speed of this new plant's expansion is continuing to accelerate as more and more war salvage is reassembled and brought up to a modern standard.
The Corean Industries plant on Northfield see's a much more limited expansion as the Fireball light battlemech line goes operational. This gives the plant an assault battlemech, medium battlemech and light battlemech line.
January also see's the Cavalier production facility on Point Barrow go online for GM alongside the heavier Grenadier battle armour plant. Both of these plants (even the brand new Cavalier one) are undergoing almost constant expansions to keep up with demand for the battle armour suits within the AFFS. This continued expansion is matched by GM's plant on Talcott.
Northwind based Corsara Weapon finally agree's to begin construction of a new plant on Northfield. Initially this will be limited to Crab production with plans to add King Crab production if it proves feasible.
Within the Draconis Combine the Coordinator authorises the raising of a 7th An Ting Legion as well as a 3rd Genyosha. While the 7th Legion will be a green training unit at least at first, the 3rd Genyosha will be formed from veterans drawn from across the DCMS and will be a veteran unit once it has formed up. He also continues to expand damaged units back up to full strength, however he also secretly forms 2 new Pesht Regulars - the 12th and 13th Pesht Regulars. Knowing that the Pesht Regulars Brigade is not considered a prestigious unit he decides that it is unlikely that his enemies will be looking for expansions within this least regarded Regular formation. As such the 2 new units are formed out on the Periphery border and ordered to begin training against each other to raise their skill levels. They are to be a hidden force that he can deploy as a last resort to either secure Luthien or against any invasion.
On Sian Precentor Martial St James of the WOB meets with Chancellor Sun-Tzu to formally offer to transfer 2 veteran regiments worth of mechwarriors with their equipment to his control along with the same again in equipment. In return he asks only two things: the release of Kali Liao into his hands and the handing over of the battalion of FedSun's battlemechs seized on Talon years ago. On the face of it this is the deal of the century, 240 battle hardened mechwarriors and 480 battlemech's in return for one lunatic family member and 30 odd battlemechs. However Sun-Tzu puts the Precentor Martial off, not making a decision during January. It isn't family loyalty that stay's his hand but instead simple practicality. What does the WOB want with his sister and this equipment...? Whatever the reason Chancellor Liao knows that it is not for his benefit, or even for Kali's but instead part of the WOB's own plans. Plus he is furious that the WOB know's about the hidden battlemech battalion he has kept secret from all but his most trusted advisers and select members of the Death Commando's... Which of them has betrayed him?!
Within the Free World's League the Principality of Regulus attempts to strong arm the Rim Commonality into joining them. After checking with the 8th Orloff Grenadiers the government of the province on Lesnovo informs the Principalities envoys that they will be refusing the request for them to rejoin the Principality. They don't however request support from the Atreus based government.
Both Oriente and Atreus are actively attempting to woo the Duchy of Tamarind and Marshal Jeremy Brett into siding with them. In discussions with his wife Theresa Marik the Marshal attempts to steer a neutral course to avoid having to commit his forces and prestige to either side. He does however offer to host a conference to try and patch up the growing differences between the 2 factions. An offer both sides slap down.
-
Good to see Sunny using some common sense and not taking the deal straight away.
Though I am curious what they want the Mechs for? In my mind it could be for a possible false flag like C* has pulled in the past or for research.
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False flag sounds interesting. The FS know the Cappies have them so maybe start a war between the 2 of them. >:D
-
Like hell those two Regiments will be loyal.
Out of curiosity would we be seeing star blocks for the new designs, both naval and mechanized? Just curious.
-
That's the true Liao thinking, looking for traitors everywhere. It's an intro to all out war though, those mechs will be used in false flag operation (probably against DC) and those WoB troops and Kali will make sure to pull CC into the war as well. So we will probably have WoB + CC + DC + pro WoB FWL faction vs. FS + LC + Comstar + anti WoB FWL factions.
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Billy Boy Mark II
With the Kurita angle - when I think of long term, yes this would have been a problem if Omis would have survived and an OFFICIAL child would exist.
Because said child would have been eligible for the Throne of the DC. And Hohiro would have feeled threatened, maybe expecting a MI-6 Rabid Fox showing up unexpectedly. Not to forget the traditionalists of House Kurita.
But still, a politician has to think longterm. Especially a noble ruler who will not be removed from office by elections.
And with Highspire: I disagree. Yes, poison gas are WMD, but what have pieces of art to do with WMD?
As a citizen of the FS I would gladly see the AFFS stomping through Highspire thrashing any workshop that could be used to manufacture equipment for laboratories making WMDs. (OK, thats makes any workshop eligible for destruction - I admit).
But the duty of the AFFS is the security of its citizen - not stealing art.
I could understand it, if the AFFC would have removed the art and sent them directly to Sian with a note "If your sister and her thuggees continue on the road of WMDs, we will be forced to use WMDs against Highspire. And it would be a ... shame if these fine pieces of art would then be incinerated. Greetings Victor."
And in the TC campaign the AFFS did not steal art. So, there is a logical break in the behaviour of the AFFS.
-
I hope Sun Tzu is smart enough to take those Mechwarriors ... and spread them the hell out across the entire CCAF so each Regiment might have a half dozen at best, in different companies and different battalions.... But good to see he is smart enough to stop and ask WTF they are doing - or more specifically, who they are going to try and false flag and possibly drag him into. And if this might be help with too high a price...
Very nice news on the Naval front. Couple of questions;
1. I'm guessing the Lyran and WIE Corvettes are going to be sold as Fox IIs from this point forward, for logistics if no other reason in AFFS construction lines. But will Victor licence the Fox II design to the Lyrans & ComStar to build in the Lyran Alliance? Because the Fox II is a pretty damn impressive design. For something under 250KT its ridiculously powerful. It'll frankly rip up the Lola IIIs and Essex class destroyers the WOB still use and spit them back out. Its not until you get to something like a Dante that you might well be able to outmatch it, but even then a Fox II with a canny captain might well be able to beat it if it doesn't make maximum use of its agility. And suffice to say compared to the Corvettes the WOB are running? Ha! And the Federated Suns is building them everywhere!
2. Can we get the stats of the Iron Duke? I'm very interested to see what a modern Federated Suns Battleship looks like, designed and built as a reaction to their neighbors! Also going to be hilarious to see the reactions of the Combine who agonized and fretted but decided to build a dozen Battleships to at LEAST let them perhaps concentrate everything against the Suns and achieve a critical local superiority ... hang on, WTF do you mean the Federated Suns is building 4 Battleships at the same time!!??!?! DRAGON NOT HAPPY!
3. The New Sytris II is going to be a bloody beast against the WOB. High operational tempo massed wings of fighters - I'm presuming a lot of Omnifighters, high-end fighters and the like - are going to make life miserable for the Blakests. How many though is the Federated Suns going to be looking to put into service? They are probably the most manpower intensive warship they have (and highly effective because of it, but even so...) and even using the Morgan Hasek-Davion as a training ship, its going to take time to build up the personnel.
4. Still wondering what's up with the Covenant and its skeleton crew thingy a while back...
The joint attack on the WOB looks quite promising, but pulling off a surprise attack is going to be hard given how competent WOB ROM is (well plot fiaty anyway, that doesn't seem to be in effect really in this fic). And the WOB is probably rather distracted with the FWL civil war as they try to manipulate events to ensure their faction comes out on top. Getting a massive strike force in striking distance of Terra undetected though...that's tough.
Best bet is probably going to be to have the orders to hit Terra known only at the very highest of levels and only unsealed when they are one jump and a matter of hours away. With a perfectly sane cover story like a massive AFFS/Saint Ives task force heading into the Lyran Alliance to make a pre-emptive strike on the Wolves or Falcons now that the Truce is effectively over. With clear efforts to keep it a secret from the Clans but less so from the WOB. And as far as all their spies and agents say, that is absoloutly what is happening ... right up until suddenly a gigantic invasion force hits Terra. HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Victor, Peter and Kai should make their support highly conditional though on ComStar opening up Terra. No more closed system bullshit like ComStar and then the WOB had, but making it much more open and accessible to all mankind. Engaged with the Inner Sphere again.
Its very worrying that Farstar went silent without even being able to get a Black Box message out, a process that should take minutes at best. It suggests that someone got onto the planet undetected and hit their base with a great deal of accuracy. Or, someone popped into orbit above it and blew it off the planet before they were spotted (I doubt a super secret MIIO base has a full scale detection grid). Might be Clanners ... might be the Combine. Might be someone else...
Amusing to see Victor cheerfully throwing Andurien masses of equipment to have fun in their little civil war. If nothing else, it'll be a very useful counterweight to the Liao-Canopian alliance. Wonder how many jump ships it would take to setup a useful deep-space command circuit across Liao space. Give them direct access to Davion markets - and Lyran ones indirectly for that matter...
Also good to see AFFS Battle Armor production continuing to build on itself. They must be collectively producing multiple regiments worth of the things every month now across the Federated Suns and the more elite units increasingly having hoards of Battle Armor as part of their TO&E. Making them just that much more of a nightmare to fight...
-
Considering how many people aren't happy with the WoB I'm surprised St Jamis would make his short trip considering all of them are going to know and suspect something is up
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On Sian Precentor Martial St James of the WOB meets with Chancellor Sun-Tzu to formally offer to transfer 2 veteran regiments worth of mechwarriors with their equipment to his control along with the same again in equipment. In return he asks only two things: the release of Kali Liao into his hands and the handing over of the battalion of FedSun's battlemechs seized on Talon years ago. On the face of it this is the deal of the century, 240 battle hardened mechwarriors and 480 battlemech's in return for one lunatic family member and 30 odd battlemechs. However Sun-Tzu puts the Precentor Martial off, not making a decision during January. It isn't family loyalty that stay's his hand but instead simple practicality. What does the WOB want with his sister and this equipment...? Whatever the reason Chancellor Liao knows that it is not for his benefit, or even for Kali's but instead part of the WOB's own plans. Plus he is furious that the WOB know's about the hidden battlemech battalion he has kept secret from all but his most trusted advisers and select members of the Death Commando's... Which of them has betrayed him?!
Two WoB regiments flying Capellan colors. Sunny-Boy should take a good look how well that worked out for the Free Worlds League.
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Two WoB regiments flying Capellan colors. Sunny-Boy should take a good look how well that worked out for the Free Worlds League.
Problem is with how his borders are lighting up and the internal troubles he is having he may just take a swig from the poisoned cup.
Only because he is desperate for manpower and had a divinity complex.
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I hope Sun Tzu is smart enough to take those Mechwarriors ... and spread them the hell out across the entire CCAF so each Regiment might have a half dozen at best, in different companies and different battalions.... But good to see he is smart enough to stop and ask WTF they are doing - or more specifically, who they are going to try and false flag and possibly drag him into. And if this might be help with too high a price...
Very nice news on the Naval front. Couple of questions;
1. I'm guessing the Lyran and WIE Corvettes are going to be sold as Fox IIs from this point forward, for logistics if no other reason in AFFS construction lines. But will Victor licence the Fox II design to the Lyrans & ComStar to build in the Lyran Alliance? Because the Fox II is a pretty damn impressive design. For something under 250KT its ridiculously powerful. It'll frankly rip up the Lola IIIs and Essex class destroyers the WOB still use and spit them back out. Its not until you get to something like a Dante that you might well be able to outmatch it, but even then a Fox II with a canny captain might well be able to beat it if it doesn't make maximum use of its agility. And suffice to say compared to the Corvettes the WOB are running? Ha! And the Federated Suns is building them everywhere!
2. Can we get the stats of the Iron Duke? I'm very interested to see what a modern Federated Suns Battleship looks like, designed and built as a reaction to their neighbors! Also going to be hilarious to see the reactions of the Combine who agonized and fretted but decided to build a dozen Battleships to at LEAST let them perhaps concentrate everything against the Suns and achieve a critical local superiority ... hang on, WTF do you mean the Federated Suns is building 4 Battleships at the same time!!??!?! DRAGON NOT HAPPY!
I'll go ahead and ask if Billy Boy Mark II will let me post the stats of some of this ships.
As far as the Fox II goes? Yeah it is a potent ship and one thing to remember is that it has 5 collars so will often carry along additional aerospace cover. Besides they now have enough of them that a single Fox would be a rare exception, you would instead see them move in groups.
The Dante is the only one that you mentioned that I consider a true Warship, the rest are Star League era Invasion support craft. Besides all of them could be easily upgraded if they had the needed Yard space. It would just mean tying up the Titan Yards docks for a length of time or rely on using some other systems docks.
The FWL Civil War has also crippled their ability to straight up pirate multiple Warships, meaning that the WOB Fleet is much smaller. The WOB also has a very specific weakness, there is nothing preventing the Davion's and Comstar from hitting the Titan Yards, capturing it and either disassembling it to move elsewhere or just hold it, preventing them from making more ships and servicing many of their own. Would let them avoid the slog to invade Terra also until later.
The issue is that the Davions have a lot more yards producing Warships and an unknown number of Dropships being produced. Which is a good thing since otherwise they have 3 enemies nearby who are also Warship producers.
I got permission to post the ships, so first is the Iron Duke.
AeroTech 2 Vessel Technical Readout
VALIDATED
Class/Model/Name: Iron Duke (Texas Conversion)
Tech: Inner Sphere / 2618
Vessel Type: WarShip
Rules: Level 2, Standard design
Rules Set: AeroTech2
Mass: 1,560,000 tons
K-F Drive System: (Unknown)
Length: 1,209 meters
Sail Diameter: 1,375 meters
Power Plant: Standard
Safe Thrust: 3
Maximum Thrust: 5
Armor Type: Lamellor Ferro-carbide
Armament:
64 NAC/30
32 AR10 Launcher
64 LRM 20+ArtIV
64 Ultra AC/10
64 Ultra AC/20
64 Large Pulse Laser
64 Medium Pulse Laser
176 AMS
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Class/Model/Name: Iron Duke (Texas Conversion)
Mass: 1,560,000 tons
Equipment: Mass
Power Plant, Drive & Control: 280,800.00
Thrust: Safe Thrust: 3
Maximum Thrust: 5
Kearny-Fuchida Hyperdrive: Compact (Integrity = 30) 705,900.00
Lithium Fusion Battery 15,600.00
Jump Sail: (Integrity = 6) 108.00
Structural Integrity: 85 132,600.00
Total Heat Sinks: 5,016 Double 4,222.00
Fuel & Fuel Pumps: 12,240.00
Bridge, Controls, Radar, Computer & Attitude Thrusters: 3,900.00
Fire Control Computers: 70,536.00
Food & Water: (180 days supply) 1,272.75
Armor Type: Lamellor Ferro-carbide (2,706 total armor pts) 2,652.00
Capital Scale Armor Pts
Location: L / R
Fore: 496
Fore-Left/Right: 451/451
Aft-Left/Right: 451/451
Aft: 406
Cargo:
Bay 1: Fighters (30) with 4 doors 4,500.00
Small Craft (8) 1,600.00
Cargo (1) 5,000.00
Bay 2: Fighters (30) with 4 doors 4,500.00
Small Craft (8) 1,600.00
Cargo (1) 5,000.00
Bay 3: Cargo (1) 20,305.25
DropShip Capacity: 6 Docking Hardpoints 6,000.00
Grav Deck #1: (95-meter diameter) 50.00
Grav Deck #2: (55-meter diameter) 50.00
Grav Deck #3: (65-meter diameter) 50.00
Life Boats: 118 (7 tons each) 826.00
Escape Pods: 118 (7 tons each) 826.00
Crew and Passengers:
120 Officers (103 minimum) 1,200.00
280 Crew (237 minimum) 1,960.00
220 Gunners (179 minimum) 1,540.00
30 1st Class Passengers 300.00
60 2nd Class Passengers 420.00
120 Steerage Passengers 600.00
128 Marines 640.00
256 Marine Battle Armor Troopers/Elementals 1,792.00
200 Bay Personnel .00
Weapons and Equipment Loc SRV MRV LRV ERV Heat Mass
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) Nose 60 60 60 -- 200 7,160.00
4 AR10 (20 KW, 12 WS, 8 B) Nose * * * * 80 2,720.00
8 LRM 20+ArtIV(162 rounds) Nose 13(128)13(128)13(128) -- 48 115.00
8 Ultra AC/10(320 rounds) Nose 36(360)36(360) -- -- 64 136.00
8 Ultra AC/20(320 rounds) 128 184.00
8 Large Pulse Laser Nose 12(120) 7(72) -- -- 80 56.00
8 Medium Pulse Laser 32 16.00
22 AMS(1104 rounds) Nose -- -- -- -- 22 103.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) FL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) FL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) FL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) FL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) FL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
4 AR10 (20 KW, 12 WS, 8 B) FL/R * * * * 160 5,440.00
8 LRM 20+ArtIV(162 rounds) FL/R 13(128)13(128)13(128) -- 96 230.00
8 Ultra AC/10(320 rounds) FL/R 36(360)36(360) -- -- 128 272.00
8 Ultra AC/20(320 rounds) 256 368.00
8 Large Pulse Laser FL/R 12(120) 7(72) -- -- 160 112.00
8 Medium Pulse Laser 64 32.00
22 AMS(1104 rounds) FL/R -- -- -- -- 44 206.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) L/RBS 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) L/RBS 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) L/RBS 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) L/RBS 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) L/RBS 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
4 AR10 (20 KW, 12 WS, 8 B) L/RBS * * * * 160 5,440.00
8 LRM 20+ArtIV(162 rounds) L/RBS 13(128)13(128)13(128) -- 96 230.00
8 Ultra AC/10(320 rounds) L/RBS 36(360)36(360) -- -- 128 272.00
8 Ultra AC/20(320 rounds) 256 368.00
8 Large Pulse Laser L/RBS 12(120) 7(72) -- -- 160 112.00
8 Medium Pulse Laser 64 32.00
22 AMS(1104 rounds) L/RBS -- -- -- -- 44 206.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) AL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) AL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) AL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) AL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) AL/R 60 60 60 -- 400 14,320.00
4 AR10 (20 KW, 12 WS, 8 B) AL/R * * * * 160 5,440.00
8 LRM 20+ArtIV(162 rounds) AL/R 13(128)13(128)13(128) -- 96 230.00
8 Ultra AC/10(320 rounds) AL/R 36(360)36(360) -- -- 128 272.00
8 Ultra AC/20(320 rounds) 256 368.00
8 Large Pulse Laser AL/R 12(120) 7(72) -- -- 160 112.00
8 Medium Pulse Laser 64 32.00
22 AMS(1104 rounds) AL/R -- -- -- -- 44 206.00
2 NAC/30(200 rounds) Aft 60 60 60 -- 200 7,160.00
4 AR10 (20 KW, 12 WS, 8 B) Aft * * * * 80 2,720.00
8 LRM 20+ArtIV(162 rounds) Aft 13(128)13(128)13(128) -- 48 115.00
8 Ultra AC/10(320 rounds) Aft 36(360)36(360) -- -- 64 136.00
8 Ultra AC/20(320 rounds) 128 184.00
8 Large Pulse Laser Aft 12(120) 7(72) -- -- 80 56.00
8 Medium Pulse Laser 32 16.00
22 AMS(1104 rounds) Aft -- -- -- -- 22 103.00
1 Lot Spare Parts (1.00%) 15,600.00
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTALS: Heat: 10,032 1,559,950.00
Tons Left: 50.00
Calculated Factors:
Total Cost: 22,571,896,000 C-Bills
Battle Value: 429,268
Cost per BV: 52,582.29
Weapon Value: 214,783 (Ratio = .50)
Damage Factors: SRV = 23,796; MRV = 22,121; LRV = 15,076; ERV = 5,704
Maintenance: Maintenance Point Value (MPV) = 1,157,901
(154,835 Structure, 422,090 Life Support, 580,976 Weapons)
Support Points (SP) = 1,390,500 (120% of MPV)
BattleForce2: Not applicable
And the second is the approved Fox block II
AeroTech 2 Vessel Technical Readout
VALIDATED
Class/Model/Name: Fox (Corvette) Block II 240k ton
Tech: Inner Sphere / 3057
Vessel Type: WarShip
Rules: Level 2, Standard design
Rules Set: AeroTech2
Mass: 240,000 tons
K-F Drive System: (Unknown)
Length: 440 meters
Sail Diameter: 990 meters
Power Plant: Standard
Safe Thrust: 3
Maximum Thrust: 5
Armor Type: Lamellor Ferro-carbide
Armament:
24 AMS
12 Machine Gun
48 Large Pulse Laser
24 Medium Pulse Laser
8 NAC/20
16 Barracuda
8 NL55
Manufacturer: Federated-Boeing Interstellar, Port Sydney Naval Shipyards
Location: Galax, Alarion
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Class/Model/Name: Fox (Corvette) Block II 240k ton
Mass: 240,000 tons
Equipment: Mass
Power Plant, Drive & Control: 43,200.00
Thrust: Safe Thrust: 3
Maximum Thrust: 5
Kearny-Fuchida Hyperdrive: Compact (Integrity = 6) 108,600.00
Lithium Fusion Battery 2,400.00
Jump Sail: (Integrity = 3) 42.00
Structural Integrity: 100 24,000.00
Total Heat Sinks: 960 Double 622.00
Fuel & Fuel Pumps: 5,886.00
Bridge, Controls, Radar, Computer & Attitude Thrusters: 600.00
Fire Control Computers: .00
Food & Water: (167 days supply) 230.00
Armor Type: Lamellor Ferro-carbide (636 total armor pts) 480.00
Capital Scale Armor Pts
Location: L / R
Fore: 117
Fore-Left/Right: 106/106
Aft-Left/Right: 106/106
Aft: 95
Cargo:
Bay 1: Fighters (20) with 6 doors 3,000.00
Bay 2: Small Craft (6) with 2 doors 1,200.00
Bay 3: Cargo (1) with 1 door 4,800.00
DropShip Capacity: 5 Docking Hardpoints 5,000.00
Grav Deck #1: (112-meter diameter) 100.00
Life Boats: 23 (7 tons each) 161.00
Escape Pods: 23 (7 tons each) 161.00
Crew and Passengers:
33 Officers (27 minimum) 330.00
72 Crew (60 minimum) 504.00
60 Gunners (50 minimum) 420.00
8 1st Class Passengers 80.00
8 2nd Class Passengers 56.00
24 Marine Battle Armor Troopers/Elementals 168.00
70 Bay Personnel .00
Weapons and Equipment Loc SRV MRV LRV ERV Heat Mass
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4 AMS(96 rounds) Nose -- -- -- -- 4 10.00
2 Machine Gun(200 rounds) Nose 0(4) -- -- -- 0 2.00
6 Large Pulse Laser Nose 7(72) 5(54) -- -- 60 42.00
3 Medium Pulse Laser 12 6.00
1 NAC/20(20 rounds) Nose 20 20 20 -- 60 2,508.00
2 Barracuda(20 msls) Nose 4 4 4 4 20 780.00
4 AMS(96 rounds) FL/R -- -- -- -- 8 20.00
2 Machine Gun(200 rounds) FL/R 0(4) -- -- -- 0 4.00
6 Large Pulse Laser FL/R 7(72) 5(54) -- -- 120 84.00
3 Medium Pulse Laser 24 12.00
1 NAC/20(20 rounds) FL/R 20 20 20 -- 120 5,016.00
2 NL55 FL/R 11 11 11 11 340 4,400.00
2 Barracuda(20 msls) FL/R 4 4 4 4 40 1,560.00
6 Large Pulse Laser L/RBS 7(72) 5(54) -- -- 120 84.00
3 Medium Pulse Laser 24 12.00
1 NAC/20(20 rounds) L/RBS 20 20 20 -- 120 5,016.00
2 Barracuda(20 msls) L/RBS 4 4 4 4 40 1,560.00
4 AMS(96 rounds) AL/R -- -- -- -- 8 20.00
2 Machine Gun(200 rounds) AL/R 0(4) -- -- -- 0 4.00
6 Large Pulse Laser AL/R 7(72) 5(54) -- -- 120 84.00
3 Medium Pulse Laser 24 12.00
1 NAC/20(20 rounds) AL/R 20 20 20 -- 120 5,016.00
2 NL55 AL/R 11 11 11 11 340 4,400.00
2 Barracuda(20 msls) AL/R 4 4 4 4 40 1,560.00
4 AMS(96 rounds) Aft -- -- -- -- 4 10.00
2 Machine Gun(200 rounds) Aft 0(4) -- -- -- 0 2.00
6 Large Pulse Laser Aft 7(72) 5(54) -- -- 60 42.00
3 Medium Pulse Laser 12 6.00
1 NAC/20(20 rounds) Aft 20 20 20 -- 60 2,508.00
2 Barracuda(20 msls) Aft 4 4 4 4 20 780.00
1 Lot Spare Parts (1.00%) 2,400.00
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TOTALS: Heat: 1,920 240,000.00
Tons Left: .00
Calculated Factors:
Total Cost: 16,559,838,160 C-Bills
Battle Value: 86,304
Cost per BV: 191,877.99
Weapon Value: 45,178 (Ratio = .52)
Damage Factors: SRV = 2,854; MRV = 2,586; LRV = 1,767; ERV = 748
Maintenance: Maintenance Point Value (MPV) = 338,882
(151,248 Structure, 111,010 Life Support, 76,624 Weapons)
Support Points (SP) = 200,541 (59% of MPV)
BattleForce2: Not applicable
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900 pt broadsides are one hell of a message :o
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900 pt broadsides are one hell of a message :o
Indeed - although honestly I'd drop 25-33% of those NACs to at least give it some level of secondary long range energy battery. Its very much locked into a close range beat stick role which is dangerous if it gets isolated in a fleet battle or alone, a lot of ships can simply sit out of range and slice it to bits a chunk at a time. I'd also probably slice out two of the dropship collars too, it doesn't need a massive amount of parasites (especially as the Fox class brings a whole butload and there are swarms of them flying around).
The mere 20KT cargo space is also a bit worrying; this is a battleship thats going to have to operate VERY close to supply lines because it's going to go through those NAC shells awfully fast with not much in the way of reloads. Dito missiles.
With that said, if this thing gets into point blank range, even the CGBS We Are Totally Not Compensating For Anything is going to very screaming for someone to get it off them...
As for the Fox, its very bizarre that the refit keeps machine guns. Swapping them to AMS is a complete no brainier with little to no cost, so...
Also, I'd keep the consumables constant across all your platforms. You don't want one ship able to stick it out for 180 days on deployment with on-board stocks and one at 167. Little things like this can be painful for logistics.
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Indeed - although honestly I'd drop 25-33% of those NACs to at least give it some level of secondary long range energy battery. Its very much locked into a close range beat stick role which is dangerous if it gets isolated in a fleet battle or alone, a lot of ships can simply sit out of range and slice it to bits a chunk at a time. I'd also probably slice out two of the dropship collars too, it doesn't need a massive amount of parasites (especially as the Fox class brings a whole butload and there are swarms of them flying around).
The mere 20KT cargo space is also a bit worrying; this is a battleship thats going to have to operate VERY close to supply lines because it's going to go through those NAC shells awfully fast with not much in the way of reloads. Dito missiles.
With that said, if this thing gets into point blank range, even the CGBS We Are Totally Not Compensating For Anything is going to very screaming for someone to get it off them...
As for the Fox, its very bizarre that the refit keeps machine guns. Swapping them to AMS is a complete no brainier with little to no cost, so...
Also, I'd keep the consumables constant across all your platforms. You don't want one ship able to stick it out for 180 days on deployment with on-board stocks and one at 167. Little things like this can be painful for logistics.
NAC/30s go out to Long range and there are a lot of missiles to throw at anyone who tries to linger at extreme range and taunt you with NPPCs or N-Gauss Rifles. As for resupply, I'd be using DropShips for that (and more fighters... always more fighters) and probably form a JumpShip transported "fleet train" to follow and allow for rapid replenishment after any action.
To put 20,000 tonnes of cargo into perspective: that's more than two Arleigh Burke class DDGs or two and a half Astute class SSNs in terms of mass although I accept they have a crew of about 1400 rather than 100-300.
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Well on the Iron Duke it does have 30k of actual Cargo, just 5k is in each of the Aerospace Bays. Cargo is always a crap shot on how much each ship has, early craft from the 2750 book looked like they were more transport ship and invasion support with ortillery on order then actual warships. The NAC's also have decent ammo, 50 rounds for each gun which gives a rather large amount to work with long term, even if they have to shift them between bays.
Then you had later craft that carried an erratic amount of actual cargo, sadly I have not really found any 'required' amount and just shot for 1% spare parts, good fuel and about 2% for total cargo space.
As far as the Fox MG's go, they were either overlooked or just a case of not everything being exactly optimized.
Perhaps the Suns can get the designs for a large fleet supply ship eventually?
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As for the Fox, its very bizarre that the refit keeps machine guns. Swapping them to AMS is a complete no brainier with little to no cost, so...
Looks like they all went on the Iron Duke ;D
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NAC/30s go out to Long range and there are a lot of missiles to throw at anyone who tries to linger at extreme range and taunt you with NPPCs or N-Gauss Rifles.
I'll grant you the range on NAC/30s is actually longer than I thought it was, but the point still stands. At long and extreme range trying to hit a mobile target is VERY hard, even with a crack crew of gunners the odds are pretty long. And these kind of engagements can stretch for hours or days at a time. The ship with the long range lasers or PPCs can pretty much fire on any shot it wants, even if the odds are terrible because they have essentially unlimited ammo to keep taking low percentange hits and they will slowly peck the other ship to death given enough time. Where as the Iron Duke has to hold its fire unless they really want to get mission killed by running out of ammo for their weapons (and then REALLY killed when the other ship can then close into more effective range and slice you to bits).
The Iron Duke is really only good for a single intense engagement (against a peer), perhaps two. Then it MUST resupply or else its in increasingly great risk. Which makes it very much a defensive Battleship that has to operate near secure supply bases and supply lines. Which isn't a bad thing mind you; it means that the Federated Suns had a horrifically powerful defender on its borders that makes even the thought of crossing it enough to make Kuritan Admirals shake (and possibly give Snow Raven Star Admirals hard ons, its hard to tell) but not a useful strategic offensive weapon.
As for resupply, I'd be using DropShips for that (and more fighters... always more fighters) and probably form a JumpShip transported "fleet train" to follow and allow for rapid replenishment after any action.
You can try that, but history has shown a great many times that Murphy has an incredible fondness for f*#king over Wunderwaffe that require heavy external logistics support to be effective. You may well often not GET that chance (or simply have your logistics taken out by a clever enemy) leaving your ship completely naked to any enemy capital unit.
Hence why I'm extremely leery about having zero secondary energy battery which, IMO, should be a MUST for any warship to give it options to fall back on. And even in Battleship cases, giving them an anti-dropship/corvette/destroyer battery that can be used to swat down annoying fast movers while the big guns are focused on the big threats.
It's a Doctrine question of course, but I shudder at the idea that you could loose a massive capital ship simply because you run out of ammo.
To put 20,000 tonnes of cargo into perspective: that's more than two Arleigh Burke class DDGs or two and a half Astute class SSNs in terms of mass although I accept they have a crew of about 1400 rather than 100-300.
I'm aware. But it adds up in terms of extended campaigns. You have 32 AR/10 launchers (which for some crazy reason are loading up White Sharks - have whichever engineer thought that up immediately shot as a Capellan agent and put that tonnage into more Killer Whales and Barracudas!) each with 20KW, 12WS and 8BC.
To assign each launcher a reserve magazine of 5KW and 5BC (spits at the White Sharks) would need 12K tons of cargo alone. Autocannons and secondary weapons would take thousands of more tons, that 20K tons of cargo space is shrinking very rapidly. We know warships carry things like armor patches and SHOULD be carrying a hell of a lot more than a thousand or so tons of spare parts given how many things there are that can break down in the field or after battle that will need some minimal level of spares, emergency supplies and so on.
And those 5000 ton bays will also not last as long as you might hope for their parasites (although I applause the idea of them as a ready store directly for the flight decks). That's what, 130 tons or so per parasite per bay? Which may sound like a lot, but when you add the magazines to top up the fighters ammo after each sortie, spare parts for each fighter including primary weapons (and alternate configs if we're talking about Omnis), spare engines, plenty of stocks of replacement armor pannels, reactors, electronics e.t.c., it actually starts to quite quickly add up, even with Battletech Ragnarok proofing after a few battles. OTOH there will probably be less fighters after each mission anyway, so it probably events out a little. but its still going to get tight in campaigns as opposed to battles.
But good on making sure the ship has enough fuel to support its parasites, the number of canon and fan designs that happen to forget this little thing!!!!!
Anyway, fleet trains are a risky choice to make up for it - you loose your convoy at the wrong time or get hit at the wrong time and suddenly you could be a LONG way from home with very limited ammo on this ship. Which means you either have to fight very conservatively to make your shots count (which is a big risk) or go like normal and hope you defeat the enemy before you run out of bullets (which is also a big risk). Or have to assign more warships to protect it because its turned into a bigass target.
It's why the McKenna is still such a good design IMO. Its excellent in every aspect except for close in defense thanks to its weapons loadout (and honestly a close in grid is easy to add) because it has the sickening close in autocannon punch as well as the NPPC and Laser arrays to blast away at long range - even if it completely runs out of ammo, it has enough pew-pew guns to make most other things on the field think very carefully about closing.
But honestly, this is probably speaking entirely from my Bias on ship design :)
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I don't disagree and would prefer more weapons that reach Extreme range but am not sure whether the Iron Duke will get access to bracket fire to improve the odds of connecting
I don't see the Iron Duke being a design to lead a battle group deep to the Clan Homeworlds and so would expect her to be operating at shorter supply line operational settings. My feeling about the fleet train is that it would be sitting there with the invasion or counter-invasion force that would be coming and so would be integral to the force rather than an after thought (if worried, slap 5 Mammoth class DropShips full of supplies to a Fox class corvette and have them just hang back beyond extreme range in combat). You should be able to refill the ammunition bays from deeper storage quite quickly ie between phases of engagement and then top that up from the fleet train ships soon after, such as before the counter attacking force jumps in.
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3068 - February - Liberty and Death
With the commissioning of the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion in January the ship is used to officially create the 1st Carrier Battle Group. Left unsaid is the fact that until further ships are commissioned the 1st CBG is in fact only the New Syrtis II carrier. Given the speed of the carrier Fleet Admiral Buchwald's plan is to add at least 2 Davion III destroyers and an Avalon cruiser to each Carrier Battle Group. The last thing he or the other admirals want is for a carrier to find itself in an unsupported gun battle with a ship designed for actual ship to ship action. The addition of the 3 warships to the group will give the carriers added protection.
Along with the formation of the much under strength 1st CBG Fleet Admiral Buchwald also meets with First Prince Victor Davion and Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion to discuss the future of the Federated Suns Navy and future construction. He begins by making the strong case for a balanced fleet. He knows that the Treasury in particular are pushing for a fleet that mostly consists of Fox corvettes backed up by a strong force of cruisers and destroyers with few heavy ships, but he argues this could leave them facing defeat in detail against enemies with fewer but stronger ships who are able to concentrate them against the lighter ships of the FedSun's Navy. While he wishes to continue production of the versatile Fox II corvettes and upgrade the existing ships to the new standard along within a growing force of cruisers and destroyers he thinks that a large force of battleships and carriers are also needed. The Admiral wishes to continue expanding slips for battleships and carriers as well as a handful of new cruiser, frigate and destroyer slips to continue expanding their numbers. When asked what further he needs beyond that, he informs the First Prince that in his opinion the Federated Sun's Navy requires a battle cruiser or heavy cruiser design to support the building battleships. After some discussions the First Prince agrees that the Federated Suns will approach Clan Sun Jaguar about refitting their Black Lion class and repairing it. They are already doing this for the Clan Wolves-in-Exile Black Lion the Implacable. With the experience from these refits and the technical specifications he want's the think tank at Galax to begin designing up upgraded Black Lion III - the new number taking into account the original Black Lion I cruisers of the old Terran Hegemony. Jackson Davion does raise the issue of a second corvette design might be considered, one faster and more manoeuvrable than the Fox I and II's but this potential project is put on hold for now.
In the meantime the First Prince commits to a new carrier slip to be built at New Syrtis as well as a fourth battleship slip to be constructed at Kathil. In addition to these 2 capital slips the First Prince also promises a further Avalon slip at Filtvelt. He is concerned that at the current time 7 out of the 8 Avalon construction slips are concentrated at Kathil. He want's to ensure that the signature cruiser of the FedSun's is not able to be halted in production by a single strike. With a single additional slip at Galax he feels that dividing production between 3 widely separated systems will prevent the temptation for such an attack and reduce it's impact if it is launched.
At the same time the Duke of New Syrtis George Hasek is undertaking conversations at long distance with the Dukes of Kathil and Tikonov. Having seen the formation of the Draconis March's Tancredi Loyalist LCT's and the New Avalon backed Avalon Borderer's LCT unit (along with the rumours that the Chisholm Raiders RCT's might be used to form more LCT style units) he is keen to form a Capellan March equivalent. He approaches both Dukes in the hope they might agree to support a move where the Duke of Kathil's 1st Capellan Dragoons or the Duke of Tikonov's world's 1st Tikonov Cossack's might be used to form the basis for the Capellan March's LCT unit. However neither Duke Petyr VanLees or Duke Paul Ryan-Bowman are keen to see their own or their worlds units "dismembered". Nor do they feel that their units have the combined arms experience to properly fit into the Light Combat Team mould. As such Duke Hasek resolves to form a new LCT unit in the coming year. Looking back through the mists of time he opts to reform the long destroyed 1st Syrtis Hussars as a LCT style formation. The single Syrtis Hussars formation had been something of an aberration within the AFFS compared to the multi-regimental strength of the Syrtis Fusiliers Brigade and after their destruction in the First Succession War were never reformed. Their old colours will be returned to the active roll as a LCT formation the Duke decides. He decides to appoint Major Raul Bethune, his Minister of Finance's husband and current command of the 1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion, to lead the unit with a promotion to Colonel. Many will consider this a political appointment, but the future Colonel is a combat veteran with the 1st FSAC and a well known and respected training officer - ideal for a new unit. Better he has experience with the Training Battalions which have been organised as provisional LCT's years ago so has the experience of working with the combined arms approach of the LCT. If anyone considers the officer to be a political appointee more the better, they will underestimate the command.
On Edwards the New Independence Weaponry plant's second line goes online. Alongside the Victor line that had previously entered production a new Atlas facility begins producing the assault battlemech. In a surprise move the AFFS offers half the production of both battlemech's to the ComGuards. Both designs are in production at Kestrel and Alta Vista and so the AFFS can afford to be generous.
Michaelson Heavy Industries see's their new plant on June go operational. There are 2 lines each of the Yellow Jacket and Hawk Moth gunships at the plant. All are immedietly purchased for the AFFS. With the sudden influx of gunships from June and Sun Prairie in addition to the existing factory on Ruchbah the VTOL battalions of the AFFS are growing real teeth. The ComGuards approach the AFFS about a subcontract to provide them with more of these hard hitting VTOL's. To meet this need a large scale plant is authorised for the world of Marlette, the production of which will be 4 lines of each design. This plant will go operational in January 3069 and in the meantime the AFFS sell any excess production they don't have an immediate need for to assist the ComGuards.
On New Avalon Achernar's Dervish battlemech lines are fully upgraded to produce Dervish-O omnimechs. A third Dervish-O line begins construction and is due to produce it's first omnimech by November 3068.
The Federated Suns Defence Industries plant on New Damascus see's it's upgraded Locust battlemech line go operational. This now gives the plant a single heavy battlemech line and 4 light battlemech lines in addition to their civilian truck lines.
The Blackstone factory on Vandalia see's the Enfield line go online on the 23rd February. While a useful battlemech the increased prestige of the Enforcer III, upgraded Centurions and now Dervish-O's reduce demand for this battlemech from the AFFS. As such few additional orders are placed which allows the plant to begin working on the backlog of previous orders from the AFFS to Blackstone Industries. The Enfields largely end up in the March Militia's and a number are passed on to loyal mercenary forces.
Maltex Corporation see their second Thug battlemech line go operational on Errai. Unlike the previous lines the production of this facility is earmarked for the ComGuards. Maltex by now feels that they have made their point to the ComGuards and are keen to get a share of the large orders being placed with defence firms. It isn't mentioned but New Avalon also put some pressure upon them to offer this production lines output to the ComGuards as a way to help bury the hatchet. In return for this show of good will the Federated Sun's quietly arrange for the Maltex Corporation to receive the specifications for an updated Highlander class battlemech to be built at their new factory on Brockton.
The Robinson Standard BattleWork's secondary plant on Woodbine see's a new Battle Hawk line go operational. The rugged light battlemech is now a staple of the March Militias and Training Battalions not only within the Draconis March but also the Crucis March, with some even being seen as far away as Bromhead!
Within the Free World's League there is a lull as none of the factions wishes to plunge the entire League into open war. At least not until they are ready. However all of the various Captain-General's continue to appeal for the loyalty and support of worlds, regiments and warships...
The ComGuards begin rearranging their Fleets. The 1st Fleet has a number of heavier and slower ships concentrated in it as a defensive/heavy battle force. While the 2nd Fleet has the remaining Dante frigates, Suffren and Lola III destroyers concentrated as a raiding and attack force. Both Independent Squadrons remain in commission - with the 1st being damaged ships still requiring repair and the 2nd the new construction, currently 2 Fox corvettes. Comstar's few agents within the WOB are reporting that the Titan shipyards are continuing to build Dante, Suffren and Zechetinu II class warships in increasing numbers. The Precentor Naval Alain Beresick although knowing that his fleets will be expanding with new Fox corvettes and even Suffren being built in the Faslanes also knows that the weight of metal is growing against him. While he can count on the FedSuns and Lyran Alliance Navies to support him he has been assured that doesn't change that his own fleet isn't growing to the same level as the WOB's. He resolves with the Interim Primus Dow to do something about this. He can at least report that with the growing number of fighters (and Vengeance dropships from Salvatore Inc) from the FedSun's his naval forces can at least bring to bare a large number of fighter wings in any future battle.
On Sian the Chancellor is making every effort to have to avoid having to agree to the WOB's deal. He continues to push for further expansions of his naval forces which every report shows are falling further and further behind. He now has in addition to the cruiser slip at Necromo 2 additional cruiser slips at Capella as well as 2 corvette slips producing the "Sian" class corvettes - twins of the Inazuma corvette. He orders the building of 2 additional corvette slips as fast as possible. In desperation he is even having to consider adding warship slips at Sarna despite his distaste for that world.
When he however receives reports from his agents about the fact that the "Grand Duchy of Andurien" is entering into a military trade deal with the Federated Suns he begins to feel he has little choice. If the Federated Suns can solidify a full military alliance with Andurien and build them up as a counterpoint to the Capellan Confederation they can force him to divide his attention and attack him from both sides. With such a strategic threat he feels he has to strangle the alliance in it's cradle, before it can be formalised. He agrees with St Jamais to the deal on offered and arranges for Kali Liao to be released and the equipment sent to wherever the WOB wish. In return he requests that the 2 regiments worth of troops be sent to Betelgeuse as are the new battlemechs. He designates the 2 new units the 1st and 2nd Liao Guard and orders them to use the equipment to upgrade local Home Guard units and others he would send to the world to form a 3rd and 4th Liao Guards. These new units and the forces he has already arranged to be built up on the Andurien border will be used to destroy the still forming Grand Duchy. He also contacts his allies the Canopian's and suggests dividing the proto-state between the Confederation and Magistracy. The 2 new Sian class corvettes completed in 3067 are also dispatched to give the forces some warship support. This plan has the added bonus of returning the Andurien Commonality to the Confederation. Such a move would certainly help his prestige within the CCAF and wider Confederation which has been shaken of late.
These forces won't be ready until at least April. Perhaps longer.
Kali Liao leaves Sian in the company of St Jamais and heads straight for Highspire to retake the active reigns of leadership of her Death Cult...
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Joy.
Interesting days ahead for sure.
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Why do I have a sneaking suspicion that the Cappies..well Kali will try for some 'Grand Gesture' at Victor's wedding. And if it gets the Bride or the Groom, I don't think there will be a force in the Inner Sphere that could stop the Suns military and the leadership from removing the Capellan Confenderation from existence.
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I wonder if Sun Tzu will let it slip that the Wobbies have Kali on Highspire.
Fun and games to begin. >:D
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I wonder if Sun Tzu will let it slip that the Wobbies have Kali on Highspire.
Fun and games to begin. >:D
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OHHHH that would be funny
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he can even let it slip in court at the next star league thing just to watch Vic reach for the phone
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The problem for him is that some of Kali's agent are CCAF personell and even part of his entourage to St. Ives conference, there is no way he can sufficiently disawow her actions to deflect the backlash and he knows that if Kali pisses Victor well enough, he will come for his head and Kali is capable of pissing of Victor that much.
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The problem for him is that some of Kali's agent are CCAF personell and even part of his entourage to St. Ives conference, there is no way he can sufficiently disawow her actions to deflect the backlash and he knows that if Kali pisses Victor well enough, he will come for his head and Kali is capable of pissing of Victor that much.
Aye its why i'm thinking that with the wedding coming up, the Thuggee's or even worse the Mananeiaiena domini thuggee hybrid things make a very lethal introduction or 'gesture' of the wrath of Kali.
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Aye its why i'm thinking that with the wedding coming up, the Thuggee's or even worse the Mananeiaiena domini thuggee hybrid things make a very lethal introduction or 'gesture' of the wrath of Kali.
Then she promptly gets killed by a hot drop by several RCTs and Rabid Foxes who hit high spire with the force of a speeding train plowing into a smart car.
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Then she promptly gets killed by a hot drop by several RCTs and Rabid Foxes who hit high spire with the force of a speeding train plowing into a smart car.
Oh indeed, and I don't think Victor would stop there if they managed to get his wife. I think the CapCon itself would stop being a thing.
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Honestly I don't think the wedding is a possibility. If you're waving plot fiat like the WOB has in the original timeline, security is just going to be too tight around the event for Kali to dream of pulling anything off - especially if its on New Avalon.
As for the last chapter, there's a lot to unpack here!
Funny enough, more Fox II's than big ships is actually a better option when it comes to surviving in a high-intensity war with nukes being flung around. Both because you can built a LOT more of them and because you can afford to loose them more. The Fox has a quite decent close in defense array for its size and can haul along expendable assault ships for extra close in protection. In the Kingdom of the blind where all other warships have been destroyed, the one-eyed man in king after all. Not sure the Federated Suns really needs Battlecruisers as yet. The Davion III honestly probably fills that role well enough and the Avalon is a best of a ship. You don't really want a Black Lion, what you want is to trade licenses with the Lyrans. A fast pocket battleship would be perfect to fill the gap between the larger 'slug it out' Iron Duke and smaller 'Avalons' (not to mention be an excellent support ship for a fast carrier task force) - but I suppose that's not happening :(
ComStar seem to be eyeing off the Terran yards as a strike target. I can understand why , but honestly, given that Terra is going to get slammed next year, you can wait. I'd go for a different target entirely. Scrap their heavy/light/independent squadrons in favor of a raiding force, a defensive force and a standing up/repair unit. The defensive force slated to babysit Tukayyid, the standing up/repair unit training and/or waiting for repairs in their yardships and their raiding force now with the WOB committed to the FWL civil war the way they are, deep striking from Ross or Luyten, whichever one is still active across the Terran regions to destroy any picketing WOB warships around. Defeat them in detail. It's a win-win whatever the WOB do. If they pull back to concentrate and protect Terra, it gives ComStar, the Federated Suns and Lyran Alliance far more room to raid and attack into the WOB protectorate. If they try to attack ComStar, Tukayyid is a long way away and will be defended anyway - and if they attack the Federated Suns, there is a very high chance whatever they sent won't be coming back.
Still IF you think you can pull a hit and run attack on Titan...
Have to admit, Sun Tzu is also acting more clever than I thought he might. Accepting the WOB troops ... then throwing them away to take on Andurien? If they win, they'll probably be chewed up and much easier to manage in case they turn on him. If they loose, they'll probably still do a LOT of damage which will preclude Andurien doing anything but looking to a defensive stance for quite some time. In either case, he doesn't have to worry about a long term threat of a WOB unit inside his borders he may or may not control. Definitely a 'lemons from lemonade moment here. Although I can see he is just a tad worried about his sister. He might be able to quietly get word to Victor via Saint Ives in a totally deniable never Sun Tzu, who delights in his sisters return to society for the Glory of the State!!!!1111
I'm still not sure exactly what the WOB hope to gain from the Templars. SOME kind of false flag is obvious. An internal one wouldn't really work, what with how strong Victors position is without any real internal faction to play with in this sense. Teddy has no desire to go to war with the Clans on one side and an ever more powerful FedSuns on the other. Making it look like Victor is backing a FWL faction on behalf of his bride wouldn't really do anything much. The Bulls have been pretty badly snapped ...
You MIGHT try to drive a wedge between Peter and Victor by making it look that Victor is making a play for hte Archons throne through some patsy, but it would still look so clumsy by using his own signature Mechs ...
Still, looking forward with interest to see what the WOB are going to try and pull off here.
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Aye its why i'm thinking that with the wedding coming up, the Thuggee's or even worse the Mananeiaiena domini thuggee hybrid things make a very lethal introduction or 'gesture' of the wrath of Kali.
And how will they make their way past New Avalon patrol squadron? Because i doubt WoB, with current commitments, will send significant naval contingent to break through and it's kind of hard to make such large infiltration on most secure of the worlds in the FS. So any attacks on New Avalon will be of minor kind, with mayor attacks in border region.
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And how will they make their way past New Avalon patrol squadron? Because i doubt WoB, with current commitments, will send significant naval contingent to break through and it's kind of hard to make such large infiltration on most secure of the worlds in the FS. So any attacks on New Avalon will be of minor kind, with mayor attacks in border region.
I'd say on the guest list. Not some huge attack or something. But if you could get some augmented thugge's on world, phyiscally altered to look like X Y Z people that have been very much killed. it would be a suicide mission. And of course I dunno how they could pull it off but in the build up towards it you might be able to get agents into place on world.
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I'd say on the guest list. Not some huge attack or something. But if you could get some augmented thugge's on world, phyiscally altered to look like X Y Z people that have been very much killed. it would be a suicide mission. And of course I dunno how they could pull it off but in the build up towards it you might be able to get agents into place on world.
Something along the line of the Donner bombing, I´d say.
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Something along the line of the Donner bombing, I´d say.
Indeed. Or an agent with soem organs removed and replaced with a container for neurotoxins. Imagine the horror scene of
"All rise."
*Here come the bride starts playing*
And then. Boom. A horribly wet sound, and a green mist and then the screaming starts before the holcam footage is very very quickly shut off.
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Marauder you just conjured a truly delightful image for me as I was having lunch.
What a wedding to remember. ;)
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Honestly, those kind of batman villain attacks WOB pulled off in the OTL were huge plot fiat contrivances (and the Donner bombing was unashamdly so a massive plot device to get rid of the likable characters and shove Stone and his ilk down our throats :( )
Against a competent security force on home ground, the most likely outcome is going to be the plot being stopped long before it gets anywhere near the targets given that Victor and his people are smart enough to know that there are a lot of people who would love to kill everyone at said wedding.
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Competent plots fall by the wayside when you need to make money.
The whole WOB storyline was poorly written and worked out, if you can't think of a way for the WOB to win just us nukes and don't worry.
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3068 - March - Marriage Announcement
In early March the AFFS High Command became aware that Kali Liao had been released from her confinement. While they weren't sure why or how this had happened, given her death cult activities she was a person that the various Davion Intelligence Agencies always kept an eye on, so her release had been flagged up as a major event. In response all garrisons within the Capellan March were notified and ordered to stand up readiness just in case she launched some sort of lunatic attack with her remaining followers. Preparations were also made for specialists in chemical and biological warfare to be sent to the border planets most considered at risk of a Thuggee attack, while the St Ives, Comstar, Lyran Alliance, friendly FWL states and breakaway provinces and the SLDF were also notified. Plans were developed to launch a preemptive attack on Highspire with the intent of seizing Kali Liao if she was about to launch an attack. At the highest level's within the AFFS some were made aware that while the Regular Army were considering seizing her, the DMI's MI6 Rabid Fox teams had a much more final solution to the problem of Kali Liao in mind during any potential "extraction". First Prince Victor Davion was not made aware of these alternate plans.
During March the Victor Davion also announced that he would be marrying Isis Marik in July of 3068. While that wasn't much notice for a royal wedding of this magnitude, it was thought that given the uncertain state of affairs within the Second Star League and earlier marriage date would be preferable. Security which was already high was stepped up further across not just the world of New Avalon where the ceremony was to take place but also the entire Crucis March and even the 2 border marches. Invitations were sent out to all of the various rulers of the Inner Sphere and even beyond, but only a handful responded that they would attend in person. Archon Peter Steiner, Khan Kell, Duke Kai Allard-Liao and Lord Regent Baron Kithrong all responded they would attend - the last of which was something of a surprise. However a welcome one as far as the Ministry of Foreign Relations was concerned!
The various Free Worlds League's Captain-Generals all responded that they would only attend if they were the only Captain-General invited and given official recognition by both of the happy couple, as well as assurances of support both diplomatically and financially in any "future" civil war. Particularly from Isis Marik herself. Oriente in particular was keen to push for her to support her half siblings rights to the office of Captain-General, while the Prince-Captain-General of Regulus was keen more for military trade deals in return for his attendance. All of these requests were refused. By Isis Marik herself in most cases.
Nobody however was surprised by the refusal of the Coordinator and Chancellor of the Draconis Combine and Capellan Confederation to attend. Particularly in light of not only the recent military actions by the AFFS against both states but also the still high tensions on both borders. The Coordinator's response was at least more polite than the Chancellors.
A final response came as something of a shock, when the President of the Outworld's Alliance, who had been invited almost on a pro-forma basis, requested to know if he could bring as his guest Galaxy Commander Thorsten Magnus of the Clan Snow Raven's Alpha Galaxy. This caused something of a fit within both the High Command and Ministry of Foreign Relations. On the one hand it would be a major coup for the Federated Sun's to have a major Clan figure like the Galaxy Commander attend, but the security risks were high! Some within the High Command however saw it as a way to gain information as to what had happened to their base on Farstar and ideally seek the return of any "bondsmen" that the Clan might hold. However it was unlikely that the Galaxy Commander would come without a heavy warship escort. Reports were clear that the Alpha Galaxy had attached to it the Swift Wing Naval Star - built around no lesser ship than the CSR James McKenna. One of the last of the McKenna class battleships. A ship that the Federated Sun's had no real counter too at the current time. After some hesitation President Mitchell Avellar is informed he may bring his guest and that the Federated Sun's Ambassador to the Outworld's Alliance will enter into discussions as to an appropriate escort.
The High Command orders the 26th Avalon Hussars RCT to leave it's garrison posting on Andalusia and head for their new post on the world of Moravian on the Capellan border. The 20th, 39th and 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT's are also being considered for redeployment to the Capellan March. One suggestion is for their former garrison posts to be filled by newly raised Avalon Borderer's LCT's.
The Fox corvette ship that had finished at Filvelt in March had been considered to be sold, however instead it was commissioned as the FSS Remagen. Also finishing at Galax were the FSS Kittery II, FSS Mirach, FSS Logandale, FSS Weldon and FSS Redfield. The FSS Remagen, FSS Mirach, FSS Logandale and FSS Weldon were assigned to the newly formed 5th Corvette Flotilla, while the FSS Kittery II takes her fallen namesakes place within the 1st Corvette Flotilla and the FSS Redfield was assigned to detached duties. The next ship laid down in the FSS Remagen's old construction slip is however offered to Comstar as a matter of contract.
The FSS Daring and FSS Dryad also commissioned at Galax while the FFS Durban completes at New Syrtis, bringing the total number of Davion III destroyers up to 6. This allows Fleet Admiral Buchwald to bring the 1st Destroyer Squadron up to it's full strength by assigning the FSS Durban to it, while using the other 2 destroyers to form the core of a 2nd Destroyer Squadron which is then assigned to a shakedown cruise of a particularly secretive nature and drops of the grid. The vacant slips at Galax then begin work on 2 new destroyers - but this time not for the Federated Sun's Navy but for the Lyran Alliance Navy and Comstar, while the slip at New Syrtis begins work on the FSS Diomede.
At Kathil 2 new Avalon cruisers are also completed and assigned to their shakedown cruises. The FSS Charles Davion and FSS Richard Davion are assigned to the 3rd and 1st Cruiser Squadrons respectively. The FSS Charles Davion is ordered to Tikonov for her shakedown cruise while the FSS Richard Davion is ordered to patrol the dead systems around the capital of New Avalon. The FSS Covenant, with her place within the 3rd Cruiser Squadron taken by the FSS Charles Davion is moved to detached duties at Panpour and ordered to undergo an extensive refit in the same slip that has just completed refitting the Clan Wolves-in-Exile battlecruiser Implacable. During this refit the last of her old crew are reassigned and their places taken by hand picked replacements.
The Federated Suns Terraforming Agency announces it's first major project on the 28th March 3068, with the First Princes's own fiancee in attendance at the press conference. They announce that they will soon begin work on the world of Rochester to return that world to it's Star League heyday. The large scale filtration systems that had once made this world an abundant and prosperous member of the Federated Suns would be rebuilt and put back into commission. Left unsaid was the huge economic benefit that the "Green Jelly Gold" that had been a byproduct of these filtration systems would bring alongside the huge boost to agricultural production on the world. Work will begin almost immedietly with the first filtration centres going online by the start of the next year although it will take decades to return Rochester to what it once was. This announcement proves to be wildly popular within the Draconis March - although it does lead to a small upsurge in anti-Kurita feeling at the references to the destroyed filtration systems and the huge casualties that this had inflicted upon the civilian population of Rochester by Combine troops.
At Belladonna the new Penetrator battlemech line goes operational. Although initially planned to only provide battlemech's for the AFFS the High Command offer half the output to the ComGuards as a gesture of support given the plans to enter the war against the WOB.
Federated Sun's Defence Industries see's an additional vehicle production line go operational in March, this time to produce military vehicles. The looted, reassembled and upgraded production line begins producing Light SRM Carriers for the various March Militia's and Planetary Guards of the FedSuns. Even a handful of front line formations who specialise in urban combat seek to have some of these light vehicles assigned to them.
GM's Point Barrow plant also see's it's new Stealth battlemech line go operational in March. Some thought is being given to adding a Blackjack-O line.
The new Blackstone Industries plant on Vandalia finally goes fully operational when it's third line, an Ostscout production facility goes online. While the other 2 designs built there have been less than hugely popular the AFFS snaps up as many of this superb recon mech as it can. Indeed given the demand the company may be forced to build a second Ostscout line.
Within the Grand Duchy of Andurien the various military leadership begins to receive reports of Capellan buildups along the frontier. Worse they also become aware finally of the 2 worlds seized by the Capellan's allies the Magistracy of Canopus. Concern turns to alarm when after having secured the worlds of Thurrock and Aspropirgos the Magistracy Highlanders move on and land on the worlds of Butzfleth and Fagerholm. Behind them Thurrock and Aspropirgos's new governments apply to rejoin the Magistracy. While the build up of CCAF troops and the movements of the Highlanders might not be related, only a fool wouldn't take precautions. The garrison's of the nearby Andurien world's are ordered to high alert just in case. Requests are also made to expedite the delivery of the military equipment from the Federated Sun's to help found a 4th Defenders regiment.
Rather worryingly for Marshal Jeremy Brett he also begins to hear reports of troop build ups within the Lyran Alliance's Cavanaugh Theatre. Spearheaded by the 4th and 6th Alliance Guards RCT these new troop developments are officially to prevent trouble spilling over the border according to the LAAF's press releases, but it's hard for the stressed Marshal not to see the possibility that the Lyran's might engage in the same sort of "peacekeeping" efforts as the Capellans...
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great update.
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3068 - March - Marriage Announcement
A final response came as something of a shock, when the President of the Outworld's Alliance, who had been invited almost on a pro-forma basis, requested to know if he could bring as his guest Galaxy Commander Thorsten Magnus of the Clan Snow Raven's Alpha Galaxy. This caused something of a fit within both the High Command and Ministry of Foreign Relations. On the one hand it would be a major coup for the Federated Sun's to have a major Clan figure like the Galaxy Commander attend, but the security risks were high! Some within the High Command however saw it as a way to gain information as to what had happened to their base on Farstar and ideally seek the return of any "bondsmen" that the Clan might hold. However it was unlikely that the Galaxy Commander would come without a heavy warship escort. Reports were clear that the Alpha Galaxy had attached to it the Swift Wing Naval Star - built around no lesser ship than the CSR James McKenna. One of the last of the McKenna class battleships. A ship that the Federated Sun's had no real counter too at the current time. After some hesitation President Mitchell Avellar is informed he may bring his guest and that the Federated Sun's Ambassador to the Outworld's Alliance will enter into discussions as to an appropriate escort.
And here comes the Battleship mafia :))
Pft, give me the First Princes cruiser squadron and I'll make mincemeat of the vaunted McKenna with two Avalon class ships.
Who cares if he brings it, worse case you can just nuke the damn thing if you don't want to fight nice anyway and he's hardly going to be allowed park it in orbit over New Avalon.
But no, the Battleship admirals will rapidly point and say 'SEE, THIS IS WHY WE NEED IRON DUKES! MAOORR MONEZIESSSS PLZ!'
Anyway, Theodore really seems to be hating on Victor something fierce. And I'm not quite sure why. They had a pretty minor border skirmish but that was years ago and hardly a result of unprovoked aggression from the Federated Suns or anything. Yet he has been acting recently (what with demolishing the Star League and refusing to come to Victors wedding) like Victor has been randomly picking Combine planets to carpet bomb or something. It's one thing to simply be envious of the steadily growing strength of the Federated Suns, but this is something else. He seems determined to make Victor see him as an enemy - which is probably not a very good place to be.
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3068 - April - Preparations
April began with word coming from the Outworld's Alliance that Galaxy Commander Thorsten Magnus had agreed to bring only his 1st Raven Phalanx Cluster and the CSR James McKenna to New Avalon. The rest of his escort - the 6th Raven Battle Cluster and the remaining 3 warships of the Swift Wing Naval Assault Star would await his return at Manassas. This of course left the AFFS facing "only" an elite cluster of clan warriors and one of the most powerful battleships ever constructed in their capital system. However with all 8 Fox corvette's of the 1st Corvette Flotilla reinforced with the FSS Fox, FSS Broken Wheel, FSS Salem and FSS Northfield as a third division, while the 5th Corvette Flotilla will accompany the Clan Snow Raven Naval Star to Manassas and will remain there as escort for the CSR Blizzard, CSR White Terror and CSR Spur. Along with the 1st Corvette Flotilla at New Avalon will be the 4 Avalon class cruisers of the 1st Cruiser Squadron supported by the 4 Davion III destroyers of the 1st Destroyer Squadron all in system along with the high numbers of aerospace fighter regiments and assault and pocket dropship squadrons if is felt that the Federated Sun's Navy can handle the situation. The concentration of 20 warships in a single system by a single naval power is the largest non-Comstar/WOB fleet formation since the end of the 1st Succession War and one that generates no small amount of pride in the Federated Sun's Navy. Particularly as this is not the entirety of their strength and they are continuing to maintain their patrol deployments. This is also seen as an opportunity to show the Clanner's the military potential and power of the Federated Suns and how ill advised it would be to pick a fight with them.
Wedding preparations push forward with an almost frenzied pace, but nothing is allowed to compromise security. The various Federated Sun's Intelligence Agencies also contribute to reinforcing security and in a surprising move a small team is even sent from the Tikonov based Okhrana who are tasked with ensuring that no Free Tikonov dissidents disrupt the proceedings.
With no fewer than 5 battlemech formations on the world - no less than 4 of which are RCT's - the High Command are confident that no major ground assault will be able to quickly overwhelm the garrison. Particularly in light of the massive force of warships and other aerospace assets in system. That doesn't however stop them from standing up the entire senior year of the cadet corp of the NAIS and Albion Military Academies to help with security. While their training mech's, other equipment and training might not be up to full AFFS standards the High Command adds effectively a 5 or more scratch regiments to their security force for the duration of the wedding festivities. The remainder of the cadet corp are formed into provisional infantry battalions and used to reinforce the conventional forces of the senior cadets. Extra conventional infantry brigades are drafted in, with specialist military police units attached to them to help with crowd control and routine patrols. Ardan Sortek, the Prince's Champion himself, is placed in overall command of the security for the event, with Marshal Galen Cox as his deputy.
Amongst the guests of honour a final addition is made at the First Princes's personal intervention. A number of Lyran Alliance military personnel who are completing their prolonged treatment at NAIS are invited to stay and attend the ceremony, led by Lt. Colonel Archer Christifori himself and given a place of honour.
In the meantime the FSS Charles Davion arrives in the Tikonov system and begins a series of exercises. Between patrols and training the crew are all granted shore leave, with the officers of the ship (led by a native son of Tikonov) given an almost royal welcome by Duke Ryan-Bowman and feted with balls and parades. These events give the Duke and a number of high ranking Davion officers on the planet opportunities to meet with Captain Makarov and pass on the latest updates on the Free Tikonov's movements. He assures them that when they make their move, he and his ship will be ready for them. Left unmentioned by all is the fact that 2 of the Avalon cruiser's dropship ports are currently occupied by Conquistador class dropships. Officially in case any informants are feeding info back to Free Tikonov these are listed as having been dispatched empty to be assigned to the Davion Assault Guards RCT on Tikonov. Unofficially these troop carriers are packed with Federated Sun's Marines.
With the naval industrial expansions that had been ordered in previous months as well as an entirely new shipyard being built at June the Federated Sun's overspends by a few billion C-bills and accidentally manages to acquire enough equipment and material to build a hidden repair facility. This is helped by the fact that the Federated Suns is already building 2 repair slips - at Verde and Novaya Zemlya - already. This hidden fifth repair slip (2 are already operational at Edwards) begins assembly in the dead system of Arcadia near New Avalon. This hidden facility is only to be used in the event of war and to return battle damaged ships to operational status in secret. Even if the enemies of House Davion launch deep strikes to take out repair facilities and naval shipyards as happened within the 1st Succession War it is hoped that this facility will remain hidden and so give the FedSun's a facility to keep it's warships operational. Even if someone finds out that there is a hidden repair slip, the location will at least be unknown. Even better for the FedSun's purposes, Arcadia is a former industrial system with huge amounts of destroyed and abandoned infrastructure. Finding a shut down and hidden repair facility that is running silent in the vastness of such a system will be nearly impossible it is felt. This repair slip is deliberately designed to be able to handle up to 1.6 million tons, allowing it to even repair an Iron Duke class battleship or up to 4 Fox corvettes at a time.
The First Prince meets with Leftenant General Carrie Zetso of the Islamabad CrMM and Duke Pravin Singh of the world of Panpour and immedietly realises something is wrong. The Leftenant General is sweating buckets and the Duke is clearly trying far to hard. He immedietly has his guards step in and summons Marshal Melora Li-Vehn of MI5 and asks her to bring a team of her Relentless Hounds. As they wait he makes the offer to both individuals to come clean now before things get really bad for them. At which point Leftenant General Zetso comes to attention and informs the First Prince that she has been being blackmailed by the Duke of Panpour since he found out that her ancestor helped invade the United Hindu Collective in support of the usurper Vanray. She informs the shocked First Prince that she is prepared to give a full and detailed confession to all actions she has taken while being blackmailed. The Duke of Panpour loudly denounces these allegations and in a fit of temper lunges at the General. For which he is rewarded with a broken arm and 3 cracked ribs as the First Princes's Elemental bodyguards wrestle him to the floor. In fury the First Prince orders him dragged out of the room to receive medical treatment: in a prison infirmary. He summons a number of other officers and several members of the Department of the Judiciary to meet with him and General Zetso who has waved the right to counsel. He sends word to the world of Panpour that Count Kirsh Larouque should take control of the planet while the matter of Duke Singh's blackmail is looked into and for Leftenant General Willard Martin to move to Panpour and take command of the Islamabad CrMM.
The Firgrove Consortium and Lycomb-Davion receive the Riever fighter design production rights and begin work on building facilities to put the assault weighted aerospace fighter into production. The Firgrove line will not go operational until July 3069, but the Lycomb-Davion line will be finished by February 3069.
The Augusta plant for Corean Enterprises adds a Centurion line, which enters production on the 8th of April, a full week ahead of schedule. Producing one of the signature battlemechs of the AFFS the plant is immedietly granted a full order book.
At Galax the first of the Cargoking and Cargomaster dropships are laid down. The huge sprawling megaplex has re-purposed a number of existing dropship yards while also constructing new ones to put the 2 designs into production. Even before the first dropship is laid down the AFFS has bought the production of the military Cargomaster variant for the next 5 years, while orders for the civilian Cargoking are similarly into the 3070's.
New Damascus see's the Federated Sun's Defence Industries plant adding a Phoenix Hawk line. This is the last of the battlemech lines being constructed, although a single aerospace fighter line and a number of vehicle lines remain under construction.
The new plant on Palmyra for Jalaster Aerospace, delayed by nearly 3 weeks due to a delayed shipment of key components from Panpour, goes online with it's first Javelin-O line. A further 3 lines for the same omnimech are expected to go operational in the coming months.
Along with the Phoenix Hawk line on New Damascus a second line goes online for this popular medium cavalry mech. On Tancredi the joint Kallon-Precision factory adds this design to it's production. Equipped with the extremely high end lasers from the Precision Weaponry Plant buried in a linked artificial cavern the Phoenix Hawk's produced on Tancredi will be much sought after by mechwarriors.
Clan Sun Jaguar also see's it's first battlemech production facility go operational on the 29th of April. The Guillotine IIC begins construction at the Jaguar Industries factory. The Khan immedietly offers a significant proportion of the new facilities production to the AFFS at a very generous price in raw materials for her Clan. While the High Command and almost ever commanding officer within the AFFS is almost drooling at the possibility of adding these Clan Tech battlemechs to their rosters the First Prince is firm. He agrees to buy only 25% of the production and requests that the Sun Jaguars use the rest to rebuild their shattered Touman. Once they have filled their ranks they can offer more of their production for sale. With the raw materials that this trade brings in the Khan orders work restarted on the initially started and then cancelled Clint IIC. The first of the Davion's Guillotine IIC are dispatched to the 1st Davion Guards and Davion Heavy Guards.
On the 30th of April the CCAF launches their attack upon the Grand Duchy of Andurien. The 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Liao Guards leave the world of Betelgeuse and jump into the Grand Duchy. The 1st and 3rd arrive at a pirate point in the Shiro III system while the 2nd and 4th arrive in the Conquista system. Each green unit has been matched up with a WOB provided veteran regiment and all 4 regiments proceed to burn towards the target worlds at full speed.
As well as this invasion the 7th and 8th Sian Dragoons leave Shiba and move on the Andurien world of Lurgatan. Both Sian Dragoon units are green but the world is known to be defended by only a militia force that is unlikely to give the Dragoons much of a fight. Meanwhile Warrior House Lu-Sann and the 3rd Sian Dragoons also leave Shiba and head for Sadurni. The 1st Capellan Charger's leave the occupied world of Furud (much to the delight of the abused populace) and head to link up with their sister unit the 2nd, who lift of from Shiba, at the world of Lopez.
The 2 Sian class corvettes assigned to the attack hold back for the time being. Nobody is eager to lose even a light corvette warship against an opponent who is known to have no warships of their own.
The 2nd Canopian Cuirassiers and the 3rd Canopian Fusiliers, both on detached duty within the Capellan Confederation also jump from Capellan space and head for their target worlds - Cursa and Leyda respectively. Openly aligning with the Capellan invasion of the Grand Duchy of Andurien.
The 2nd Defenders of Andurien at Lopez, although not initially attacked are ordered to hold in place as the Andurien Defence Forces's Command knew that further strikes were coming. They were ordered to prepare to face an invasion, and these preparations would stand them in good stead when the 1st and 2nd Capellan Chargers arrived in early May.
The green 3rd Defenders of Andurien, on Sadurni were given no such time, facing invasions from Warrior House Lu-Sann and the 3rd Sian Dragoons. Rightly considering the Warrior House the primary danger the 3rd's command staff ordered the 3rd's aerospace assets to attack the incoming formation and concentrate on Lu-Sann. Although only able to knock down a single Union dropship they did manage to destroy a full third of the Warrior Houses mechwarriors before they landed.
On all the other worlds targeted the invaders would find themselves facing only militia and conventional forces. On Andurien itself the 1st Defenders and their mercenary allies Jaffray's Own held themselves ready for a headhunting strike on the capital world. While some amongst the Defenders questioned the loyalty of the previously Capellan troops of Jaffray's Own, most knew that should any of the unit fall into Capellan hands they would face immediate execution and knew that they would fight to the last.
With the invasion now confirmed the various teams of negotiators from the Grand Duchy stepped up their efforts to hire any mercenary forces they could. In a move that frankly astounded them both the 1st Kearny Highlanders and Northwind Hussars immedietly accepted the frankly poor terms on offer. What wasn't mentioned was the extremely generous "top up" payments that House Davion made to these 2 units to make up the difference in the contract price. The AFFS also quietly granted the 2 mercenary units priority of transport through it's jump stations down into the Capellan March so they could "hop" through the Capellan Confederation and join the defence forces of their new employer... During that travel they were joined by Korsakov's Cossack's. While the Cossack's would remain personally hired by Victor Davion they would be "loaned" to Dame Humphreys "for the duration of hostilities"...
The First Prince also contacted Hampton's Hessens and offers them a similar contract to the Cossack's in his own name to help defend the Grand Duchy, and makes very generous offers of payment and equipment. However the mercenary force remains on the fence about taking the offer for the time being.
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And here comes the Battleship mafia :))
Pft, give me the First Princes cruiser squadron and I'll make mincemeat of the vaunted McKenna with two Avalon class ships.
Who cares if he brings it, worse case you can just nuke the damn thing if you don't want to fight nice anyway and he's hardly going to be allowed park it in orbit over New Avalon.
But no, the Battleship admirals will rapidly point and say 'SEE, THIS IS WHY WE NEED IRON DUKES! MAOORR MONEZIESSSS PLZ!'
Anyway, Theodore really seems to be hating on Victor something fierce. And I'm not quite sure why. They had a pretty minor border skirmish but that was years ago and hardly a result of unprovoked aggression from the Federated Suns or anything. Yet he has been acting recently (what with demolishing the Star League and refusing to come to Victors wedding) like Victor has been randomly picking Combine planets to carpet bomb or something. It's one thing to simply be envious of the steadily growing strength of the Federated Suns, but this is something else. He seems determined to make Victor see him as an enemy - which is probably not a very good place to be.
When have admirals ever NOT wanted more big ships to play with...? >:D
As for this decision not to come - actually that's not political. Well not as such. Theodore doesn't want to attend a wedding and be picturing his daughter Omi in the place of the bride - if thinks had went differently.
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And here comes the Battleship mafia :))
Pft, give me the First Princes cruiser squadron and I'll make mincemeat of the vaunted McKenna with two Avalon class ships.
Who cares if he brings it, worse case you can just nuke the damn thing if you don't want to fight nice anyway and he's hardly going to be allowed park it in orbit over New Avalon.
But no, the Battleship admirals will rapidly point and say 'SEE, THIS IS WHY WE NEED IRON DUKES! MAOORR MONEZIESSSS PLZ!'
Anyway, Theodore really seems to be hating on Victor something fierce. And I'm not quite sure why. They had a pretty minor border skirmish but that was years ago and hardly a result of unprovoked aggression from the Federated Suns or anything. Yet he has been acting recently (what with demolishing the Star League and refusing to come to Victors wedding) like Victor has been randomly picking Combine planets to carpet bomb or something. It's one thing to simply be envious of the steadily growing strength of the Federated Suns, but this is something else. He seems determined to make Victor see him as an enemy - which is probably not a very good place to be.
Chris you sound like your planning to rob off with Billy Boys Iron Duke class for your own SI?
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Hello,
So far, this story is fascinating to read. Are there plans in the future to provide an overview of mechs, vehicles, and aerospace developed over this period? It doesn't need to provide actual game stats. Also, isn't there a black program in which the FS is actually hand-building Clan weaponry?
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When have admirals ever NOT wanted more big ships to play with...? >:D
A fair point.
Although 20 warships sounds a little excessive, thats not as excessive as going to the point of mobilizing the entire cadet corps and such! There is paranoia and there is paranoia...and there is this!
Still I suppose the Warships (and the fact that the Robinson and Capellan squadrons of the FSN, Corvette and Cruiser and the patrol Congress class ships remain on station despite this show of force is all about sending a very pointed message). Wonder who Peter is bringing with him - he does have a long way to go...
As for this decision not to come - actually that's not political. Well not as such. Theodore doesn't want to attend a wedding and be picturing his daughter Omi in the place of the bride - if thinks had went differently.
Ah, fair enough. Although somewhat political none the less. But you'd expect someone to represent the family. Not his 'official son, who seems a little bit crazy these days, but perhaps Minrou?
I for one am actually fascinated to see all the Clanners sitting around in a corner engaging. The Sun Jaguars, the Wolves (In Exile), the Dragoons, the Snow Ravens and I wouldn't be surprised if the Nova Cats and Diamond Sharks send someone to represent them. The former BECAUSE IT WAS FORESEEN and the later because they have giant $$ signs in their eyes at all the people hanging around they can make deals with...
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Hello,
So far, this story is fascinating to read. Are there plans in the future to provide an overview of mechs, vehicles, and aerospace developed over this period? It doesn't need to provide actual game stats. Also, isn't there a black program in which the FS is actually hand-building Clan weaponry?
There might be... And there was, but now they have better sources. Outreach and Clan Sun Jaguar.
A fair point.
Although 20 warships sounds a little excessive, thats not as excessive as going to the point of mobilizing the entire cadet corps and such! There is paranoia and there is paranoia...and there is this!
Still I suppose the Warships (and the fact that the Robinson and Capellan squadrons of the FSN, Corvette and Cruiser and the patrol Congress class ships remain on station despite this show of force is all about sending a very pointed message). Wonder who Peter is bringing with him - he does have a long way to go...
Ah, fair enough. Although somewhat political none the less. But you'd expect someone to represent the family. Not his 'official son, who seems a little bit crazy these days, but perhaps Minrou?
I for one am actually fascinated to see all the Clanners sitting around in a corner engaging. The Sun Jaguars, the Wolves (In Exile), the Dragoons, the Snow Ravens and I wouldn't be surprised if the Nova Cats and Diamond Sharks send someone to represent them. The former BECAUSE IT WAS FORESEEN and the later because they have giant $$ signs in their eyes at all the people hanging around they can make deals with...
It's not paranoia when they are out to get you! :D
I presume there will be an ambassador of some sort to represent those who don't attend.
Should be interesting to see how the various clan and once clan factions deal with each other! :D
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Chris you sound like your planning to rob off with Billy Boys Iron Duke class for your own SI?
I could see it showing up as a boondoggle :-)
"When have admirals ever NOT wanted more big ships to play with...? >:D"
also the more REALLY big ships no matter how mediocre, require more Grand admiral positions and staff positions so it is a great "social admiral" ticket puncher
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3068 - May - Sian advances
Even as May began the AFFS High Command and the First Prince were working frantically to respond to the Capellan Confederation's invasion of the Grand Duchy of Andurien. Diplomatically the Federated Suns condemned the unprovoked aggression of the Chancellor in the strongest terms and offered every extension of support to the Grand Duchy short of active military involvement in the fighting. Extensive lines of credit were offered to the Andurien's for military purchases, technical support and medical and relief supplies offered at no cost. Not only at the highest level but at almost every level the Federated Sun's swung to support the Andurien's. Comparison's were made to Sun-Tzu Liao's attack upon the St Ives Compact and his aggression's within the former Sarna March on almost every talk show and holo-news show within the Sun's. Charities sprung up overnight in order to funnel cash and medical supplies to the "free loving peoples of Andurien". Duke George Hasek, always the strongest voice against House Liao, speaks up against the aggression particularly and even began gathering military supplies and volunteers to send to Andurien's aid.
The 3 mercenary commands that have been hired or loaned to the Grand Duchy are rushed through the FedSun's and then jump through dead systems into the Capellan Confederation towards Andurien. They may or may not be escorted during this dangerous stage by a Federated Sun's aerospace regiment which is on an anti-piracy patrol and has "accidentally" followed the pirates through several dead systems into the Confederation.
The growing conflict within Andurien however is overshadowed (at least within the Federated Sun's) by reports of a battle over the world of Tikonov. On the 15th of May a large jump signature is detected at a pirate point within the system. Shortly after this a huge formation of transport dropships begins heading for the planet at combat drop speeds, ignoring the FSS Charles Davion in orbit as though not concerned about what the cruiser's guns and missiles might do to them. A number of older IFF transponder codes are sent along with assurances that this is a combat training operation. However this fools nobody and the defending forces mobilise.
Rising from the planet nearly 2 full aerospace regiments along with a full squadron of pocket warships head straight for the invading force which by now is estimated to contain almost 5 full battlemech regiments - although seems to contain few aerospace assets. A running dog fight explodes around the convoy of invading troops with the few aerospace fighters and assault dropships trying to keep the transports safe. Again and again the elite pilots of the Davion Assault Guards wings sweep in and break through to strafe the transports, however given the sheer number of them they aren't doing enough damage to stop them.
Which is when the FSS Charles Davion suddenly surges forward at an angle to unmask it's main batteries. Missiles, naval lasers, huge naval autocannon and even naval Gauss rifles open fire and smash into the convoy. Even the lightest of these weapons is enough to split most of the lighter transports in half and the heavier ordinance smashes even the largest of the Overlord's carrying the now confirmed Free Tikonov troops. The warships own dropships and fighters swarm to join in the attack, led by the 2 Conquistador class vessels.
Even as the invasion convoy is being savaged the communications channels from their jumpships at the pirate point are filled with screams for aid. The 2nd Destroyer Squadron's FSS Daring and FSS Dryad have jumped into the same pirate point and have proceeded to order the jumpships to stand down or be destroyed. Worse, alongside the 2 Davion III destroyers have come a number of Monolith class jumpships carrying Vengeance dropship carriers and Overlord A-3 pocket warships and Avenger assault dropships. Some of these remain to take the jumpships under control, but the vast majority of them are soon charging towards the rear of the invasion convoy alongside the FSS Dryad.
Trapped between the FSS Charles Davion to their port, the dropships and fighters dispatched from Tikonov and with the FSS Dryad and even more dropships and fighters coming up from behind the convoy splinters and most of the dropships attempts to make their best speed towards Tikonov. A few realistic captains do however stand down and broadcast their surrender. Those that attempt to make the run find themselves harried the entire way there, ship after ship exploding. Those that do reach orbit are forced to land wherever they can and are mostly scattered across the continents of Kazan and Ufa. On Kazan the defending Davion Assault Guards make short work of the roughly 2 battalions of scattered troops that manage to make planet fall, while on Ufa the Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group prove their loyalty and restrict the invaders to the more isolated areas until support arrives from the 1st Tikonov Cossack's who had been deployed to Pskov and Krasnodar, as well as a combat command from the Davion Assault Guards. In total a little over 3 and a half battalions of battlemechs actually manage to reach the planet through the gauntlet of aerospace fighters, combat dropships and warships, with roughly 2 battalions of those eventually surrendering - often when their battlemechs are destroyed. In space another 2 battalions worth of troops have been captured when their transports struck their IFF and allowed themselves to be boarded. One particular prisoner is Colonel Dmitri Rosilov of the 2nd Tikonov Republican Guard - or as he is referred to by his captors, Captain Dmitri Rosilov soon to be the shot as the traitor Dmitri Rosilov. While initially defiant the senior prisoner undergoes a marked shift in mood (to bordering on abject terror) when it is explained that Duke Ryan-Bowman has requested that his secret police take the lead in interrogating the prisoners, particularly those known to them... After all he is a known mutineer and deserter and so is not covered by the Ares Convention...
The salvage and dropships taken by the AFFS are gathered on Tikonov and some thought is given to using them to form a 2nd Tikonov Cossack's. Although a handful of the more modern battlemech designs from the Free Worlds League are handed over to the NAIS for inspection. The jumpships are either auctioned off by the AFFS to civilian ownership or refitted and taken into service with the AFFS. As for the prisoners, most of the officers will be interrogated by the various intelligence agencies - with those who were mutineers or former AFFC or AFFS often suffering the tender touches of the Okhrana on Tikonov itself. Those who are FWL born or who don't at least have any charges of treason to be levelled against them are spared more rigorous interrogation and are instead held as potential pirates rather than traitors. The common troops are also interrogated although to a lesser extent and put to hard work - although like the officers any former personnel of the AFFC or AFFS are prepared for trial for treason.
First Prince Victor Davion sends words to all of the potential Captain-Generals denouncing this invasion of his realm and attack upon his subjects. He demands answers and reparations for this invasion. Left unsaid is the result of the last time a major industrial world of the FedSun's was attacked.
Within the Outback 2 worlds have been found near the world of Cooperland that are suitable for colonisation by the 1st Patrol Squadron. Small teams are dispatched to begin preparations for settlements upon the planet. They are provisionally named Fox's Den and Resurgence by the officers of the 1st Patrol Squadron.
On Baxley the Jalastar Aerospace plant see's a Sparrowhawk line go operational. As soon as it's completed a second Sparrowhawk line immedietly begins. The AFFS has an almost unlimited appetite for the Sparrowhawk fighter.
The Federated Sun's Defence Industries plant see's the J Edgar line go operational. Demand for the vehicle is slight, but sales are obtained from planetary defence forces throughout the Outback.
Veridan Dynamic's see their new civilian truck lines go operational. This has been a gamble, as until now they have been a military industrial company only. However sales start strong and only grow.
The Clan Sun Jaguar's Jaguar Industries completes it's Wyvern IIC production line. With 2 battlemech IIC lines built and a third building the Clan scientists agree with the Khan that the time has come to put a full omnimech into production. After a great deal of consideration the Mist Lynx is chosen. While many advocated the more prestigious and powerful Warhawk or Dire Wolf assault omnimech it is felt that some additional experience building an omnimech line is called for before putting them into production. However it is agreed to begin preliminary work for both of those designs at the same time.
On the Andurien-Capellan front the 1st and 2nd Chargers arrive at Lopez. They are met with the dug in 2nd Defenders of Andurien and large numbers of local militia troops. In a characteristic attack of the old Capellan Chargers the newly reformed Chargers throw themselves at the fortified lines of the Defenders. Again and again the assault and heavy battlemech's slammed into the 2nd Defender's lines but were unable to break them. Finally, heavily depleted the Chargers withdrew to their own lines after nearly a week of assaults, only to find themselves caught up in a furious counter attack by the Defenders who had preserved their strength for just such an opportunity at heavy cost to the local militias. The green Capellan units broke and fled back to their dropships, fleeing the world in failure with their ranks heavily depleted. However the defensive battle for over a week and then a large scale assault left the 2nd Defenders shattered themselves and unable to do more than attempt to rebuild their ranks from the salvage.
Between them the 1st and 2nd Chargers came to the world of Lopez with nearly 16 companies of heavy and assault battlemechs between them. They leave with little more than half of that. However reluctant to return to the Confederation in abject failure they instead head for the world of Calseraigne which has joined the Grand Duchy. Undertaking repairs on the way they will arrive in June.
The green 3rd Defenders get no such luck as their counterparts on Lopez. Even weakened from the aerospace battle Warrior House Lu-Sann forms the tip of a spear that smashes into the 3rd Defender's lines while the 3rd Sian Dragoons follow them through the breach. Allowing the Defenders no time to reform the Warrior House continues almost relentless attacks backed up by the Dragoons. Finally after nearly 2 weeks of being driven back again and again the remnants of the 3rd Defenders are routed and flee the planet. They jump to Xanthe III and attempt to reform but number barely a battalion of damaged battlemechs. Warrior House Lu-Sann has been badly mauled by the continued attacks and reduced to a single operational company, while the 3rd Dragoon's are down almost a full battalion in strength. Therefore the 2 units are ordered to remain where they are and garrison the newest Confederation planet.
On all the other worlds the attacking forces find themselves facing only militia and conventional troops and swiftly overrun them. The 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Liao Guards who have taken light causalities while seizing their objectives begin refitting and preparing for their next target.
With Furud already under occupation and with the worlds seized by the Capellan's Canopian allies as well the Grand Duchy has lost 7 out of it's 21 worlds. A full third of the small state has already fallen. But word of reinforcements heading in their direction stiffens their resolve to fight on, as does the arrival of the first of the Davion battlemech's sold to them. These are dispatched to Mosiro to upgrade a handful of militia units into the 4th Defender's of Andurien and to Xanthe III and Lopez to help rebuild the heavily damaged 2nd and 3rd Defenders. The 1st Defenders and Jaffray's Own, knowing the invasion is coming, prepare as best they can on Andurien itself.
The rest of the Free Worlds League find itself torn. On the one hand they disapprove of the Andurien Seccession, yet at the same stage they do not enjoy watching men and women that were their comrades and fellow citizens just a few short months ago be killed and their worlds seized by Capellan's. This is particularly common amongst the Free Worlds Legionnaires - indeed a handful of non-Andurien Legionnaires begins to head towards Andurien to offer their services in small trickle. These are directed to Mosiro to reinforce the forming 4th Defenders.
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new dropships and jumpships will help the FS trading. two small FWL power just got gutted one lost most of their Mechs/dropships/jumpships. the other one lost a third of their planets. I wonder how both will recover.
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I could see it showing up as a boondoggle :-)
"When have admirals ever NOT wanted more big ships to play with...? >:D"
also the more REALLY big ships no matter how mediocre, require more Grand admiral positions and staff positions so it is a great "social admiral" ticket puncher
It is a typical Battleship by people who have not fought a battleship battle and had an order for "big AC broadsides, we are Davions!"
I mocked up a replacement taking some of the criticisms here and cut the NAC/30 down to a 540 broadside, increased each guns ammo to 300 rounds each, and then added 12 NL 45 on each broadside arc too. Changed missile load out to 8 KW and 16 Barracuda per tube. Finally increased the AMS ammo to 300 rounds per gun.
Cargo is still smallish at around 35k tons with another 15k tons of spares.
Then again the ability to hit anything at extreme range is pretty low until you push to elite level gunnery.
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Anyone else wanna see Katherine show up for her brothers wedding under some diplomatic immunity hilarity? :D
With Victor, Yvonne, Arthur and Peter trying very hard to stay the hell away from her...
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Well, that one is possible - she and Vlad have a very special sense of humor after all.
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Well, that one is possible - she and Vlad have a very special sense of humor after all.
getting to that system undetected would be an issue, and then being allowed to get to the planet would be another major problem. then again her bother has a bunch of warships in system already.
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Anyone else wanna see Katherine show up for her brothers wedding under some diplomatic immunity hilarity? :D
With Victor, Yvonne, Arthur and Peter trying very hard to stay the hell away from her...
While every guardsman and sniper have their eyes and sights trained on her ready to give her a new breathing hole if she so much as twitches funny.
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“God’s, what’s with you people? So I had our mother killed to usurp her Throne, then I tried to take Victors all the while I was gleefully the secret and willing sex toy of the Khan of the most hardcore invading Khan around. Can’t we all just leave it in the past already!?”
Actually come to think of it, we have not really heard a peep about Katherine in a long time. Nor any hint of traitors continuing to insist she was totally a victim and in the right and never guilty. I’m going to guess that while there will always be a fringe crazy who totally think she is the TRUE ARCHON, they are pretty much an irrelevant fringe by this point, more than a few probably quietly purged once Peter and Adam got things under control...
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She is most likely waiting for her moment to strike against the LA and the Falcons so she can claim the whole pot before going after Victor and the FS. That and she maybe busy trying to make sure she isn't going to be knifed in her sleep or challenged in a trail.
Also those people who joined her I recon a few are LIC or people who are nursing a grudge for joining the clans and getting ready to take care of her.
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3068 - June - Brutality
With the conflict on the Andurien front taking up so much of the CCAF's attention and time the various Davion Intelligence supported resistance groups within the former Sarna March began to step up their activities. A number of civil disturbances and attacks on the infrastructure of Capellan rule in the region were organised by the infiltrated agents and carried out by the local resistance groups. In some cases open armed attacks took place on isolated garrisons, although none successful. What the pro-Davion rebels did however manage to do on a number of worlds was create no-go areas for the local garrisons, securing isolated areas where the rebels could operate almost with impunity and out in the open. For the time being these areas were small and in the most remote areas of the planet, but they did provide safe areas for the AFFS to provide some limited support in the form of small arms and similar equipment.
On the basis of the reports from the former-Sarna March the High Command was in a continual process of updating their War Plan Rat II and Rat III. While some had suggested a more subtle name for these War Plans it was felt that the Capellan Confederation would have to be inhabited entirely by brain dead cretin's not to know that the AFFS had a War Plan for invading their realm and finishing what Hanse Davion had started or at least reclaiming what they had retaken since 3057. Rat II was the invasion and reconquest of the former Sarna March and was the more "prominent" of the War Plans, while Rat III was largely hidden in plain sight by the more prominent Rat II and consisted of an invasion of the Victoria Commonality from the staging worlds of the Sirdar PDZ. This is seen as the vulnerable underbelly of the Capellan Confederation and plan Rat III is designed to gut the Confederation while the bulk of the CCAF is held and ground down by Rat II.
As one of the aspects of this the AFFS proceeded to hire the Lone Star Regiment mercenary command. The Lone Star Regiment are sent to Axton, with small elements filtered through Bell's Hasek Refit Centre for some basic upgrades as part of the contract. Another aspect is the request by the First Prince that Clan Sun Jaguar send troops to serve under his personal direction in any combat between the Federated Sun's and Capellan Confederation. Khan Nevversan, far from merely dispatching troops personally agrees to lead her own Alpha Galaxy to serve under the First Prince's command. Although she does detach the Silver Keshik from Alpha Galaxy and assign it to Delta.
On Tikonov the after effects of the failed invasion continue to be felt. Crack downs across the planet on "Free Tikonov" activities are widespread. The Duke goes on the holo-news to speak out against Free Tikonov and points out that the "brave" members of that organisation had been willing to combat drop upon their own world and bring the horrors of war to the homes of the people of Tikonov. They were willing to inflict massive damage upon the infrastructure and cities of the world they claimed to love for no other reason than their own political gain and ideology. He makes a damning indictment of "Supreme Leader" William "Bud" Baranov and his overwhelming ambition, comparing him to Amaris with his assumption of the title of "Emperor". He calls upon his people to turn away from the cancer of this toxic organisation and unite with him in building for themselves a place within the Federated Suns as one of it's most powerful and wealthy worlds. His message is met with moderate support, helped by the fact that most of the voices which would have been raised against such a message are currently in custody.
The Federated Sun's Navy also see's a number of warships commissioning. At Galax 5 Fox class corvettes commission, the FSS Talcott, FSS McHenry, FSS Ulan Bator, FSS Ozawa and FSS Lothair. Along with the FSS Markesan, FSS El Dorado and FSS Redfield these are used to form a 6th Corvette Flotilla which is assigned to patrolling the Outback. This uses up the last of the "free" Fox corvettes, although the 6th Corvette Flotilla will largely be deployed in pairs much as they had previously been done as independent warships. At Kathil the FSS Reynard Davion commissions and is used to begin forming the 4th Cruiser Squadron, although for now it will consist of only the single ship and will be assigned to the Crucis March. Galax shifts over production from the Fox to the Fox II design in the 5 yards which begin construction of their next batch of corvettes.
The refit yard at Edwards completes the repairs and refits on the FSS Dahar, FSS Edwards, FSS Ridgebrook and FSS Bryceland to Fox II. The next 4 ships to enter the refit yard are the 1st Division of the 4th Corvette Flotilla - the FSS Robinson, FSS Antrim, FSS Murmansk and FSS Brest. These will be be finished in December 3068. The plan is to give each corvette flotilla at least an upgraded division as soon as possible. This will be sped up with the 2 additional refit slips at Verde and Novaya Zemlya finish in December, with the FedSun's then having the capacity to upgrade a full flotilla at the same time.
On Chesterton the newly built Dervish line has finished upgrading to the cutting edge Dervish-O. The first of these new omnimechs will be used to upgrade the 5th Crucis Lancers RCT that is garrisoning Chesterton. Further runs of the omnimechs will be routed to the 2nd Davion Guards RCT and the 2nd and 3rd Lexington Combat Guards on nearby worlds. A second line for the omnimech begins construction literally almost as soon as the initial line is upgraded. This is part of the Federated Sun's push to mostly expand production of the higher end omnimech designs or those designs which have no duplicated production site at the current time.
At Markesan the New Earth Trading Company add's a second Gabriel line, who's production is split between the AFFS and ComGuards. By now the huge sprawling plant is one of the largest single producers of armoured vehicles within the entire Federated Suns and perhaps the entire Inner Sphere.
On the planet of Bristol Interstellar Expeditions uncover a large underground garage that contains dozens if not hundreds of Fury command tank. The AFFS immedietly snaps up ever single one of them and provides funds and support for building a new facility to produce this superb command tank for the AFFS. When Comstar offers to go half on the costs of this the AFFS reluctantly agrees. While they are happy to have the financial support there are many who wished to keep the design for themselves. This increased funding does allow Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons to begin construction of no less than 3 production lines for the Fury.
Federated Sun's Defence Industries see's another vehicle line go operational at their plant on New Damascus. The Fulcrum hover tank enters production. This leaves just the Vedette medium tank and Thunderbird aerospace fighter lines under construction.
At Palmyra the second Javelin-O line enters production. The third production line is scheduled to finish next month, with the final line planned for operations by August. This plant has been singled out to be the single largest supplier of the light omnimech and to specialise in this design. No plans are currently in place to add other battlemech designs or aerospace fighter production to Palmyra.
Reports from Andurien continue to paint a bleak picture for the Grand Duchy in the first week of the month. Claybrooke voluntarily defects to the Magestry of Canopus under threat of imminent invasion, leaving the worlds of Pilpala and Calseraigne cut off from support. Worse the 1st, 2nd and 4th Liao Guard lift off from their conquered worlds and jump into Andurien at the zenith jump point. The 3rd Liao Guard splits itself between Shiro III and Conquista as a garrison force. Even as the Liao Guard regiments are pushing through the heavy aerospace defences of Andurien a second force of CCAF troops arrive in system. The 7th and 8th Sian Dragoons, escorted by 2 Sian class corvettes, jump in at the nadir jump point. With the bulk of the aerospace defenders already committed to halting or delaying the first invasion force the second one finds itself with an easy run to Andurien. Some commentators do note that it is strange that the more veteran force was offered up as the preliminary force to be blunted in constant aerospace attacks and without warship support, while the green 7th and 8th Dragoons would have been the more logical choice.
The 7th and 8th Sian Dragoons make landfall in and around Baroda, the world's second city. When they are fired upon by a small force of militia tanks with a lance of almost antique battlemech's in support they respond with overwhelming firepower and level an entire suburb in their attack. With the city cowed by such brutal actions the 7th takes up a garrison posting while the 8th continues to expand their initial foothold on the planet. However they soon run into a counter attack by Jaffray's Own. While the reinforced battalion of mercenaries are outnumbered nearly 2:1 they consist of almost entirely hardened combat veterans compared to the still green 8th. Crushing the 8th's 3rd Battalion in a one sided massacre they outflank the remainder of the unit and proceed to begin rolling it up as nearby militia conventional forces rally to them. The 8th is saved from total destruction only by their sister regiment striking out from Baroda and rushing to their aid. Even this relief column is badly bloodied before finally forcing Colonel Jaffray to withdraw his troops. While he has lost nearly half his intial battlemechs, he has managed to salvage almost a full company of former Sian Dragoon battlemechs and returns his force to around 3 companies in strength with a mixed brigade of conventional troops formed around them. He even has enough salvage to equip a provisional company of Andurien militia with battlemech's in support of his command, although these warriors are beyond green. In return he has smashed almost 4 companies of the already under strength 8th Sian Dragoons who are folded into the 7th to replace their own losses. Even with the 2 companies of shattered 8th mechwarriors the 7th is reduced to a little over 7 companies and is forced to go on the defensive until such time as the other invading commands arrive.
Unfortunately for the 7th the 1st, 2nd and 4th Liao Guard ignore their besieged comrades and land directly at the spaceport of Hulan. However this invasion site was predictable and the defending Andurien troops had not only heavily mined the area but also emplaced strong artillery units within striking distance of the military spaceport. The 1st Liao Guard lose nearly half their strength within minutes of landing and the 4th fares little better. However the 2nd, while still inbound responds to the attack on the 1st Wave and lands instead in a combat drop directly upon the artillery batteries shelling the spaceport. In a brutal and one sided battle they destroy the defending artillery units and massacre their crews and support personnel. This bloody battle is indicative of the type of fighting that will become the norm on Andurien. As soon as the spaceport has been secured the mostly intact 2nd Liao Guard begins the push towards Jojoken the capital of Andurien, with the 1st Guard in support and the brutalised 4th remaining to garrison the spaceport.
Mirroring the Battle of Andurien in 3039-40 the 1st Defenders attempt to stop the advance on Jojoken at the town of Callan. However unlike in '39 the invaders don't allow themselves to be caught against the river and proceed to systematically shell and burn the town in front of them to drive the 1st Defenders back and out of the prepared positions. Worse in a number of occasions the Liao Guard call down orbital laser strikes to clear their path through the town. Civilian casualties are horrific and the 1st Defenders find themselves attempting to cover fleeing columns of refugees from attacking Liao Guard mech formations. Falling back towards Jojoken the Defenders harden their resolve to stop the enemy before they can reach the rebuilt city. If the Liao troops respond in the same way as they have at Baroda and Callan the entire city will be engulfed in flames and the civilian death count could rise into the millions. The Defender's attached aerospace wing and the planetary aerospace wings do at least manage to drive the 2 Sian class corvettes from orbit or risk being stung to death, although this costs them nearly half their remaining strength.
Just as the 1st Defenders of Andurien are preparing to sell themselves in a final stand in the approaches to Jojoken the comm's channels are filled with the sound of bagpipes. The Highlander's have arrived at a pirate point and throw themselves into orbit and proceed to combat drop onto the planet. The Northwind Hussars scream down on top of the damaged Hulan spaceport and it's still reeling garrison. Having received reports of the brutal way in which the Liao Guards have acted the Hussars are in no mood to offer surrender terms and smash the 4th Liao Guard and send the few survivors fleeing towards the 1st and 2nd Guards.
The 1st and 2nd Guards have been attacked by the 1st Kearny Highlanders, but more capable than the 4th have managed to fight their way out of the trap of being caught between the hammer of the Highlander and the anvil of the Defenders. This has however left them 1st Liao Guards as no longer combat effective and they and the survivors of the 4th are folded into the 2nd. This leaves the 2nd Liao Guards at almost full strength and the unit proceeds to break off combat and head for the city of Baroda, linking up with the 7th Sian Dragoons to hold this city, hammering the conventional forces attached to Jaffray's Own on their way into the city.
As June ends the Andurien's and Capellan's hold their lines and begin counting the cost. The 1st Defenders have been reduced to just 5 companies in the brutal fighting at Callan and are struggling with the guilt of the civilian casualties at that battle. The 2 Highlander regiments have suffered moderate losses but remain combat effective and move up to support Jaffray's Own - although contact between the formations are fraught with tension, particularly with Loren Jaffray's former command the Northwind Hussars.
On Calseraigne the 1st and 2nd Chargers arrive and proceed to attack the planet. Even as the planet attempts to surrender. Taking out their frustration for their losses on Lopez the Charger's smash the garrison of militia troops despite almost every militia unit of the planet having stood down. However their one sided massacre of the planets "defenders" is halted when Sian orders the 1st Chargers to immedietly head for Andurien while the 2nd settles down to garrison Calseraigne.
Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao also seeks to have the Magistracy commit the 1st and 2nd Magistracy Highlander's to the battle on Andurien to help support his badly battered troops. He makes the point that this is their chance to knock the Andurien's out of the war and force them to surrender. If the war goes on, then theoretically the League or Federated Sun's might intervene - and force the Canopian's from their war gains... With visible reluctance the MAF agree's to dispatching their own Highlanders to Andurien in July...
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I wonder what the Blue Stars are doing.. a merc warship could be very useful. not looking good for the groups standing against the Cappies. :(
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Now that would be a thought, some warship support for the Anduriens.
I wonder who has plenty of warships and can afford to lendlease 1 or 2. :brew: >:D
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Wow.
Sun Tzu really seems to be trying to provoke Victor into copy-pasting his Fathers wedding present for his bride :D
Its also interesting (and sad) that only a few decades after they had worked together to try and take out the Capellan Confederation, the MOC is now attacking Andurien with the Confederation. And seemingly dangerously overstretching themselves, without realizing they are simply fodder for Liao (and/or are too stupid to realize they are just fodder for Liao).
That might bite them in the ass later if the FWL pulls itself together and goes looking for some revenge against them...
LOL at Sunny happily throwing the WOB troops into the grinder face first while guarding his green troops more though. I wonder if Victor could openly call the First Lord to ... oh, wait. Too bad about that. Wonder what the hell the SLDF are even doing right now, sort of standing around kicking the dirt or something? Dito the graduating classes...
The amusing thing is that Sun Tzu is giving Victor the perfect cover to hit Terra with at the end of the year. He moves massive forces into the secure parts of the Terran Corridor, clearly with plans to leap all over Sun Tzu and punish him for his horrific crimes (with a cover that he is going into the Lyran Alliance to help them in a strike on the Wolves or something that WOBROM 'congratulates' itself for penetrating ... until suddenly using L/F batteries, all the warships that are 60 light years away suddenly rip through time and space to drop into the Terran system.
Opps!
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Excellent updates, I get the feeling that this is all coming to a boil very soon!
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3068 - July - A Davion Wedding
With the wedding of the First Prince Victor Davion and Duchess Isis Marik scheduled for the 14th July the entire Federated Suns and particularly the AFFS and the High Command were incredibly busy. The day had been made a national holiday - except unfortunately for members of the various emergency services and the various arms of the AFFS. Celebrations were planned on over 500 planets, ranging from a world wide event on New Avalon to small scale village level events on worlds throughout the Outback. Unsurprisingly the entire AFFS was stood up to it's highest level to ensure that the day went without problems.
As July progressed the number of VIP's arriving soon had the gossip magazines and holo-news stations busier than they had been in decades, along with the more serious news stations. For instance the arrival of President Mitchell Avellar's arrival on board the CSR James McKenna with Galaxy Commander Thorsten Magnus was considered almost as newsworthy as Archon Peter Steiner's arrival with Marie Hussfiel acting not as his aide but as his partner! The First Prince personally greeted all of the VIP's alongside his bride to be. When greeting the President of the Outworld's and his guest he made the point of inviting the President and the Galaxy Commander to have a brief tour of a Fox corvette - although more than a few noticed that the ship chosen was an unmodified Fox I. Other keen eyed observers noticed that the greeting of Khan Kell of Clan Wolves-in-Exile was somewhat muted, which wasn't a surprise given the historically strained relationship between Phelan Kell and Victor Davion. The greetings given to both March Lords who were attending in person, and to Duke Kai Allard-Liao and his mother were much warmer. Even the usually prickly Duke George Hasek seemed to relent at the greeting of his cousin and was even seen to share a joke with the happy couple on the tarmac of the spaceport.
One notable late addition to the roster of VIP's attending was the official ambassador of the Grand Duchy of Andurien to the Federated Suns - the former head of the delegation which had been sent to New Syrtis for aid. The distant cousin to Dame Humphrey's arrived with Duke George Hasek and was granted accommodations within the Duke's own New Avalon residence, but the major sign of Federated Sun's support for the Grand Duchy was the First Prince's personal greeting and invite to discuss the "terrible situation developing within the Grand Duchy". The various "ambassadors" from the factions within the Free World's League and indeed the Capellan Confederation's ambassador loudly protested the granting of such a welcome and invitation to a representative of a false state! In no uncertain terms they were told by Conrad Davion that if they felt so strongly they were of course welcome not to attend any of the diplomatic events around the wedding and indeed the wedding itself. Which had their loud protests turn into pro-forma protests quickly.
The arrival of Lord Regent Baron Kithrong was another source of news, when Victor Davion met him alongside the Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion. All three soldiers were soon in a deep conversation as they walked to the waiting transport and while nobody could call the body language warm it was soon obvious that they all bore a deep respect for each other. It was to nobodies surprise when Baron Kithrong announced the next day that he had raised the discussion of a return of some of the "looted" military industrial equipment with the First Prince. He acknowledged that the First Prince had informed him that he considered this equipment to be legitimate spoils of war, but that the discussion had been both frank and had constructive and he foresaw that he and the First Prince might be able to come to some sort of agreement if the 2 sides both negotiated in good faith.
The marriage itself took place in the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Avalon City. Even given the huge size of the cathedral it is packed with the great and good of the realm and of the entire Inner Sphere. In a small ceremony the previous day Duchess Isis Marik has been baptised into the New Avalon Church, although her fiancee had insisted that she did not have to do this - pointing out that his mother had not done so. Yet Isis had insisted in turn that she wished to create a new life for herself as the wife of the First Prince of the Federated Suns and as Isis Davion. As such she felt that she should make this step.
The ceremony itself is a simple (as far as such a state occasion can be) ceremony presided over by no lesser personage than the New Avalon Pope, although various representatives of those religions and churches involved in the Unfinished Book are also included in the ceremony to a greater or lesser extent. Wearing a custom designed gown created by the finest fashion designers within the Federated Suns Isis Marik married Victor Davion who was wearing the uniform of an officer in the 1st Davion Guards without rank insignia.
The wedding reception afterwards was somewhat tense, particularly for the less friendly representatives. After all it had been at their wedding reception that Hanse Davion had promised his new bride Melissa Steiner-Davion the Capellan Confederation as a wedding present. However the speeches pass without such dramatic gestures or declarations of war. Isis Davion promises her new husband as her wedding present to bear him strong children, worthy of his name, while Victor Davion promises to include her as his partner and equal in all things. After the last major state affair this is seem as almost anti-climatic by many.
One major military redeployment occurred this month when the Davion Old Guard RCT left their garrison postings and headed for the world of Bell on the Capellan Confederation border. Given the prestige of the unit this is considered a not so subtle indication of disapproval of Sian's recent actions. Alongside this move is the fact that even after the wedding the AFFS does not stand down from it's state of heightened alert. Even as the various VIP's and nobles make their way home or remain to do deals, the AFFS continues on their heightened state of alert. Across the border the units of the CCAF are also at full war readiness, but only the most fanatical of them fail to notice how badly outnumbered they are...
A week after the happy couple are married the Bergan Industries Federated Sun's branch announce the completion of their third Waylander Mobile Base production line. Again they then begin planning to add a Locust line.
On Batavia the Jalastar Aerospace's new Sparrowhawk line goes operational. While on Baxley a new Javelin-O line goes operation for the same company. Jalastar Aerospace also see their purpose built Javelin-O factory on Palmyra expand production with a third line for the state of the art omnimech.
Kallon Industries see's the new Templar-O line they were building on Belladonna go operational. While the rest of the factories production is split between the AFFS and ComGuards the new Templar-O line is specifically for the AFFS and is not offered up for sale to the ComGuards.
SunCorp industries also see's its third Thanatos-O line go operational in July. They then start work on a third Warhammer line which is estimated to finish by March 3069. The FedSun's Government is keen for the company to set up a back up secondary factory on another world and raises this with them during July.
At Filtvelt the FedBoeing shipyards lay down their first Cargoking and Cargomaster dropships. Unlike at Galax these are all laid down in brand new shipyards that have been purpose built to produce the 2 designs rather than being retasked to build them.
Also at Filtvelt Achernar's production line for the Dervish battlemech finishes it's upgrades and begins to produce Dervish-O. The company begins considering whether to build a new Argus-O or Dervish-O line at the plant in the future.
On Andurien the situation remains at a stalemate for a number of weeks, with limited fighting continuing around the city of Baroda. The entrenching 2nd Liao Guard and 7th Sian Dragoons demolish entire neighbourhoods to create kill zones and set mines and gun emplacements throughout the city to make sure that they cannot be overrun easily. Meanwhile in orbit the various fighter wings of the Andurien and mercenary forces fight a running battle to keep the 2 Sian class corvettes from being able to bombard the planet.
The 1st Chargers are the first of the Capellan reinforcements to arrive and make planet fall within the city of Baroda, at a former plaza that has been "expanded" to accommodate their dropships by the 2nd Liao Guard. They are swiftly in the defending lines and are often used to lead counter attacks at any Andurien probe. Roughly 2 regiments worth of elite mercenaries and a mixed group of conventional troops from the local garrison and militia are now besieging roughly 3 regiments of Capellan troops within the city.
Shortly after they arrive the 1st and 2nd Magistracy Highlanders also arrive in system. The defenders are extremely apprehensive that if these troops land within Baroda they will create an almost unstoppable force combined with the CCAF troops already there and that they will soon break out and begin overrunning the planet, but instead the Magistracy Highlanders headed for and seized the city of Qinda. With the 1st Defender's tied down garrisoning Jojoken and their mercenary allies busy holding the line against the Capellan forces in Baroda this allows the 2 Highlander regiments from the Magistracy to expand and take under their control a large area of the planet. The only good news was that the Canopian troops had not attempted to break the siege on Baroda.
Real good news arrived on Andurien when word reached the embattled capital that Korsakov's Cossack's had arrived on Shiro III and utterly destroyed the single battalion of the 3rd Liao Guards that had been garrisoning the planet. Leaving the remnants of the local garrison and government to reorganise themselves the Cossack's had swiftly moved on and struck at the remainder of the 3rd Liao Guards on Conquista. The remaining 2 battalions of the 3rd Liao Guards realise they are no match for the fanatically anti-Liao Cossack's and they attempt to fight an irregular battle, fading back into the wilderness of the world. However in this they are thwarted by the locals who give every aid possible to the Cossack's in hunting down the Guards. At the end of July the 3rd Liao Guards are still a viable formation, but are scattered and struggling to stay ahead of their pursuers. Worse, the so recently installed pro-Liao government has been overthrown and the legitimate authorities freed and returned to power. The 3rd Defenders of Andurien who have rebuilt to half strength on Xanthe III swiftly move to redeem themselves and head for Conquista at the end of July to continue the hunt for the 3rd Liao Guards while the Cossack's head off to cause more mischief for the CCAF.
In response the CCAF dispatches the veteran Shin Legion to hunt down Korsakov's Cossacks. They also order the 4th Tau Ceti Rangers and 15th Dracon from their postings on Goodna and Cronulla respectively to hit the worlds of Wallacia and Kujari to help expand towards the Andurien worlds of the former Mosiro Archipelagos. Some voices within the Mosiro world's speak up for leaving the Grand Duchy and attempting to come to an arrangement with the encroaching Capellan Confederation but the victories at Shiro III and Conquista steady nerves as does the growing strength of the still forming 4th Defenders of Andurien who are garrisoned on Mosiro itself.
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It just seemed a little too cliche to have Victor offer Isis the CC as a wedding present... ;)
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It just seemed a little too cliche to have Victor offer Isis the CC as a wedding present... ;)
This is probably the biggest surprise he could spring on his enemies: He did NOT declare war during the wedding banquet, and they made all their preparations for nothing! :D
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This is probably the biggest surprise he could spring on his enemies: He did NOT declare war during the wedding banquet, and they made all their preparations for nothing! :D
Senior Strategos for the CCAF: "The rat bastard! He tricked us!"
Junior Strategos in a panic: "You mean he HAS invaded us?!"
Senior Strategos: "No! That's what tricked us... The rat bastard..."
Second Junior Strategos: "I wouldn't mention the R word around the Chancellor... He's already jumpy as hell..."
Senior Strategos: "Good point. I'll tell the Chancellor the danger has passed..."
Junior Strategos: "Unless it's all part of an elaborate trap and he's going to invade right after his honeymoon..."
Senior Strategos and Second Junior Strategos: "You rat bastard..."
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shaping up to be the year of the rat.
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It just seemed a little too cliche to have Victor offer Isis the CC as a wedding present... ;)
What? She was supposed to get it by marriage anyway. >:D
shaping up to be the year of the rat.
Wasn't Sun Tzu described at one point as rat faced?
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Senior Strategos for the CCAF: "The rat bastard! He tricked us!"
Junior Strategos in a panic: "You mean he HAS invaded us?!"
Senior Strategos: "No! That's what tricked us... The rat bastard..."
Second Junior Strategos: "I wouldn't mention the R word around the Chancellor... He's already jumpy as hell..."
Senior Strategos: "Good point. I'll tell the Chancellor the danger has passed..."
Junior Strategos: "Unless it's all part of an elaborate trap and he's going to invade right after his honeymoon..."
Senior Strategos and Second Junior Strategos: "You rat bastard..."
"He hasn´t invaded us TODAY. What if he invades us tomorrow?"
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Or the day after tomorrow.
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A
Dothraki Davion wedding without at least three deaths declarations of war is considered a very dull affair :P
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he could save killing Sunny as a christening gift for his first child
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he could save killing Sunny as a christening gift for his first child
That or plant the FedSun flag in his ass.
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3068 - August - Bad News
The First Prince had spent most of the end of July on "honeymoon" albeit a honeymoon that involved daily updates from various military officers and government officials about the escalating situation across the entire Inner Sphere. However as of the 1st of August he was officially back at work, although with one major change. Whereas before Duchess Isis Marik had been a semi-constant adviser who attended meetings at which the First Prince wished her to be at, now Duchess Isis Davion was an almost semi-permanent presence within most meetings with the First Prince. The only real exception was military briefings at which the Duchess herself would point out she could rarely have any real input. She did however prove to have a number of extremely useful insights on the inner workings of the Capellan Confederation not only on the civilian side but often on who the military advisers were that Sun-Tzu Liao actually listens to.
In the meantime the First Prince and his military advisers in the High Command continued to build up troops in the Achernar and Nanking PDZ's. The 39th Avalon Hussars RCT moved from Kentares to the border world of Algol, while the 17th Avalon Hussars RCT moved to Bharat. The 4th Davion Guard's RCT also shifted from Galtor to Sheraton. To almost all those watching this was a clear buildup that the First Prince could unleash as his own version of his father's Operation Rat. Worse from the point of view of the Capellan Confederation there was little they could do to counter it. The entire Liao Commonality was in chaos, with the resistance movements now almost at the point of open rebellions, while their own troops were either already committed to trying to keep a lid on the situation or diverted to pursue the conquest of Andurien. A handful of worlds such as Liao continued to show stalwart support for the government on Sian and seemed immune to the efforts of the Davion's to cause chaos, but these worlds were few and far between.
The fact that these movements of troops to the Capellan border were largely a cover to get them into position for the strike against the WOB was lost on almost everyone. After all it made perfect sense for the AFFS to begin preparing to invade the Confederation to almost everyone who knew even the most basic history of not only the realms but also the two rulers... Certainly the Chancellor was firmly of the view that the First Prince was preparing to invade his realm and called out to the SLDF and the First Lord Mansdottir to support his realm. The only reply he got was Christian Mansdottir informing him he was no longer First Lord and the SLDF informing him that they would not move unless the First Lord told them too...
Near the end of August the First Prince himself left New Avalon and headed for his forward command post for the coming fighting of Tikonov. With him went the 1st Davion Guards RCT as his personal unit. A small detachment of the 1st Guards would remain on New Avalon with Duchess Isis.
Thus it was left to Duchess Isis Davion to announce on the 31st August that the Federated Sun's had formally grown by 3 further worlds. The worlds of Resurgence and Fox's Den had formally received their first colonists and were now being admitted to the Federated Suns as full member worlds alongside the nearby periphery world of Cooperland. For the time being these worlds would be grouped within the rather ill defined "Periphery Combat Region", however she informed the listening media that in time it was likely that this would be formally split and recognised as 2 further Combat Regions of the Crucis March, the first centred on Tortuga and the second probably on Cooperland. One point she was happy to make was that these would be the first worlds added to any Successor State by colonisation rather than war since the fall of the First Star League.
On Firgrove the Firgrove Consortuim's aerospace fighter line to produce the updated heavy Vulcan fighter begins producing it's first fighters. These are snapped up by both the ComGuards and AFFS who begin evaluating them to see whether or not they are a viable and useful design.
At Kirklin the Kallon plant see's the new Enforcer III line enter full production. While Kirklin has long been a major supplier of vehicles for the AFFS the new battlemech lines are adding to it's value. It now produces not only the Enforcer III but also the Crusader and Penetrator battlemech's for the AFFS.
The Jalastar Aerospace factory on Palmyra finishes it's construction during August. It now has 4 dedicated lines for constructing Javelin-O omnimech's and is one of the most modern and efficient factories within the entire Federated Suns. Alongside the production lines for full battlemech's is a large scale spare parts facility which provides the AFFS with ample kits to not only maintain the Javelin-O's that it buys but also refit and repair them even in the face of almost total destruction.
Johnston Industries see's it's new Thunderbolt NAIS line go operational in August as well. This if the first of the new factory lines to go operational (although the existing Thunderbolt line at Tikonov has already been upgraded to the NAIS specifications) and the orders are soon coming thick and fast.
GM see's the Cestus line at Victoria go online at the same time. This line has been part of the redundancy plan that the High Command and Federated Sun's Government has been pushing most of the major industrial companies to follow. With the memories of the Succession Wars, nobody is keen to see a vital design lost to a single strike.
The prolonged negotiations between New Independence Weaponry and DefHes finally complete. For a large cash transfer and a license to produce the Victor battlemech, DefHes agree's to allow New Independence Weaponry to produce the Zeus battlemech at 2 locations within the Federated Suns but only for domestic sale. Immediately work begins at the companies Kestrel and Tikonov factories to put this design into production.
Ranger Battlemech's of Verde who are producing the Shadow Hawk battlemech mostly for the mercenary community announce that they have obtained a license to produce the Warhammer class battlemech from the Federated Sun's Government and will begin work on a facility to produce the new battlemech and hope to have it in production by December 3069.
With the movements of more and more AFFS troops to his borders Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao is feeling apprehensive. Worse with the fighting on the Andurien front beginning to see-saw back and forth he can't draw his troops down on that front. In fact he frankly needs more troops to push onward to victory. This results in him personally going to the world of Menke in August to meet with the officers of McCarron's Armoured Cavalry and Lord Marcus Baxter. Repeated attempts to redeploy McCarron's Armoured Cavalry from Menke had met with stonewalling by the brigade who seemed to have no intent to actually leave Menke on the orders of Sian. Only the 4th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry regiment was currently off world, posted to Ares as it had been for some years. The other rebuilding regiments were all still garrisoning their homeworld.
Faced with such intransigence the Chancellor would usually dispatch his Death Commando's or MASK agents, but with his current shortage of troops and the huge prestige of the unit he feels obligated to go to Menke to resolve the issues personally. In a 6 hour long meeting with Lord Baxter and his officers he is forced to make concessions. Concessions that leave him furious, but regain him control over the semi-rebellious unit. Not only does the Chancellor have to make economic concession's to help rebuild the world of Menke from the damage inflicted during the recent FedSun's invasion, he is also forced to promise them a replacement for lost Mitchel. No lesser world than Andurien itself is to be granted to Lord Baxter as his new fief. Along with ruler ship over a reinstated Andurien Commonality as it's overall leader. To say this is more than Sun-Tzu was willing to pay is a massive understatement, but in return Lord Baxter promises to lead his own command battalion as well as the 1st and 3rd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry to Andurien and to secure it in Sun-Tzu's name. A heavy price for 2 regiments worth of troops, but one Sun-Tzu feels he needs to pay. As an insurance the Chancellor orders the 2nd Sian Dragoons to leave Menke and accompany Lord Baxter.
Within the Grand Duchy itself the 2nd Defenders of Andurien are forced to leave their hard held positions on Lopez and head for Andurien. While Lopez is a vital world, it will mean nothing to hold onto it if Andurien herself falls to the invaders. They quickly move to Andurien and find themselves used to fight a mobile campaign against the 1st and 2nd Magistracy Highlanders to prevent them seizing even more of the world.
At Baroda the 1st Capellan Chargers launch a full scale assault into the mercenary formations who are holding the siege lines of the planet. Jaffray's Own meet them head on and in a horrendously bloody fight manage to throw them back into the city badly mauled. The mercenary command's battalion is reduced to a single company of battlemech's while their attached company of Andurien natives is effectively wiped out. Worse from the point of view of the command structure is Colonel Jaffray's own battlemech is destroyed and he is left at death's door and is medically evacuated to Jojoken. The remainder of the battalion folds into the 1st Kearny Highlanders. While some thought was given to returning them to the Northwind Hussars there is still a great deal of bad feeling between the former comrades. The Charger's who had been at half strength before their breakout attempt are reduced to 2 damaged companies of battlemechs in this fight.
The 2nd Liao Guard and 7th Sian Dragoons, taking lesson's from the brutal break out attempt of the Chargers begin a series of probes, stretching the Highlander's lines thin. Using their interior lines they begin a slow and gradual erosion of the Highlanders ability to hold the entire perimeter. On several occasions they have the opportunity to break the siege, but don't do so deliberately. They know such a breakout will end in a bloody battle and are content to merely keep the Highlanders pressed while awaiting reinforcements...
The 4th Tau Ceti Rangers, swiftly pacifying Wallacia largely due to their reputation of honourable treatment of defeated foes, move on from Wallacia and strike out at Mosiro. The 4th Defenders of Andurien, who are still forming up, along with the planetary militia attempt to defend their world but are soon crushed by the veteran Rangers. Worse from the point of view of the rest of the Grand Duchy the other two worlds of the former Mosiro Archiplegos immedietly surrender to the Capellan Confederation rather than face invasion...
On Conquista the 3rd Defenders of Andurien and their local allies continue to hunt the 3rd Liao Guard. While the Defenders have a slight numerical edge and are of a higher skill level the 3rd Liao Guard manages to stay just one step ahead for now.
The only bright news coming to the embattled defenders of the Grand Duchy are reports that Korsakov's Cossack's have struck again. This time they have crossed the border into the Confederation and smashed into the staging world of Shiba. Hitting the planet before the few defenders can properly mobilise they Cossack's seize huge stocks of equipment and ammunition before sending it back into the Grand Duchy to help supply their allies. What they cant use themselves or send back they destroy before leaving the world one step ahead of the Shin Legion. Even with them unable to hold the world in the face of Capellan reprisals, the Cossack's have in a single action cut the flow of supplies for the invading troops in half until a new supply depot can be built up.
With the Capellan Confederation picking off isolated worlds near Andurien the world of Ipswich formally petitions to join the Duchy of Oriente and is accepted. The 6th Oriente Hussars is dispatched to garrison the world to prevent any attacks.
Chancellor Sun-Tzu receives one final piece of bad news as August comes to a close... The CCS Edmund Salindar the latest Feng Huang cruiser was missing. During it's trial's the ship had jumped out of the Capellan system where it had been built... And not returned.
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WOB?
Or MIIO copying from the WOB playbook?
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WOB?
Or MIIO copying from the WOB playbook?
Most likely the Word of Blake. MIIO is more internal intelligence/operations than international operations. For the FedSuns, that would have to be an operation under DMI or the Department of Military Intelligence probably DMI6 with a Rabid Fox Team with DMI4 Stealth Fox. The problem is that a lot of those elements are probably tied up in Liao Commonality and getting into position against the Word of Blake.
Then again, it could be the St. Ives Compact.
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Most likely the Word of Blake. MIIO is more internal intelligence/operations than international operations. For the FedSuns, that would have to be an operation under DMI or the Department of Military Intelligence probably DMI6 with a Rabid Fox Team with DMI4 Stealth Fox. The problem is that a lot of those elements are probably tied up in Liao Commonality and getting into position against the Word of Blake.
Then again, it could be the St. Ives Compact.
Or maybe Free Capella? Or whatever Tormana´s operation was called.
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Sunny Boy is between a rock and a hard place.
When WOB made him that offer maybe he should have informed Victor, but whom could he trust with such a message if WOB knew about the mechs?
And Victor would have surely demanded those mechs back.
(And the question is: What would have Sun-Tzu gotten in return? Some loot the Davions took, a guarantee that Victor would let live Sun Tzu a few more days or what? And Victor would have demanded that Sun Tzu does remove his soldiers from the planets of the former FWL.)
Now, he is committed and must ride the tiger. Hoping that the tiger doesnt throw him off and eats him.
He should really have behaved himself and rebuild the CC and develop all worlds of the CC and then looking at the uninhabited systems try to colonize them.
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Well kali and her mad bunch just made off with a warship probably with WoB help to. Kali with a warship along with her insane cult even though it was decimated has gone to rather frightening on the British scale of understatement fairly quickly.
The theft though means that everyone will be on high alert and with it the already strained CCAF becomes even more taught.
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Well kali and her mad bunch just made off with a warship probably with WoB help to. Kali with a warship along with her insane cult even though it was decimated has gone to rather frightening on the British scale of understatement fairly quickly.
The theft though means that everyone will be on high alert and with it the already strained CCAF becomes even more taught.
Oh crap, I hadn´t thought of THAT possibility. Crazy Kali and her band of Merry Murdering Madmen, with a warship at their disposal? I think people will wish themselves back to when they only had to worry about Thuggee with nerve gas.
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and now more warship go missing. I hope this one just had a miss jump and will be gone for months and then a year or so to repair.
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Kali with a warship, what could be more fun.
I wonder if she's thinking to pay back sunny boy for the imprisonment. >:D
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Kali has this weird loyalty to her brother, she is probably blaming everyone but him. Still, her having a heavy cruiser increases her mass murder potential manyfold. So let us hope it was merely a missjump due to shipyard cutting corners to finish it faster. But it probably isn't.
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Billy Boy wouldn't have something as boring as a misjump.
I see murder and mayhem in his future. :D
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The issue is if Kali made off with the warship is were will she home port it? The crew is going to need food and equipment to keep the ship running as well as fuel.
This rules out quite a few systems and even if it was in a dead system people are going to start to notice a lot of food and equipment disappearing somewhere.
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IF this was Kali, big if, given that she's working hand in glove with the Word of Blake now, I don't think we have to wonder about her not having logistical support.
She may be heading for Highspire, but more likely she's heading for one of the hidden worlds for now to assemble her cult into something like her own personal Shadow Division like she did in canon. And she'll reappear at the worst possible time on terror raids or something. They may or may not have mass quantities of chemical weapons left - the Davions were rather direct in their attacks to try and destroy every stockpile and collapse every mountain redoubt after all, but I'm sure she can be a pain in the ass some other way if necessary...
Andurien looks like its coming to a head. The reinforcements Victor sent in let them hold the line, but the Highlanders must be starting to get close to 'bug out' time unless more reinforcements arrive. And arrive soon. And when the Big MAC arrive, they'll be in a position to break the situation pretty decisively.
Still, the rest of the FWL must be getting a bit ansty. Sure none of them were happy with Andurien declaring independence, but in a practical sense its hardly any different to what the other provinces did, even if politically it IS a different thing. I mean, surely none of them are going to be at all happy with the Crappies taking Andurien off the FWL like this?
I wonder if you MIGHT see Oriente offer some more material support to Andurien, to keep them in the fight if nothing else and bank a favor with them (and indirectly with the Davions and Isis??). Or even
Still, I'd be surprised if they are able to hold out very much longer. OTOH the 'quick and clean' war Sun Tzu wanted has turned into yet another disaster, costing him a lot of men and manpower, humiliating concessions to the Big MAC and any pretenses of being an ally to the Free Worlds League (whatever form it takes) meaning he now has NO secure borders...
Poor bastard can't get a break :D
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3068 - September - War
Reports from the Confederation caused a major concern for the First Prince and the High Command during September. A large number of Capellan aerospace assets up to and including warships were suddenly rushing from system to system with no discernible pattern or reason. Only a single Feng Huang class cruiser remained stationary over Sian, with the rest of the Capellan Navy seemingly engaged in a complex war game or exercise. The final conclusion of the AFFS's analysts was that the Confederation was attempting to "loose" a number of warships in preparation for war with the Federated Suns or to strike against Andurien. As far as they could tell it was the only logical reason for such bizarre behaviour and the Federated Sun's Navy did their best to keep track of the various Capellan warships - although they have to admit to having totally lost sight of at least one Feng Huang cruiser, the newly commissioned CCS Edmund Salindar which has totally disappeared. Still they are able to keep track of roughly where most of the Capellan Confederation's warship fleet is. When war came, the Federated Sun's Navy's first mission would be to hunt them down and crush them using overwhelming local superiority.
As part of these plans the 1st Corvette Flotilla, now reinforced to 12 corvettes, moved from their reserve position within the Crucis March into the Achernar and Nanking PDZ along with the First Princes's own escorting 1st Cruiser Squadron where they join with the single ship 4th Cruiser Squadron and the under strength 2nd Destroyer Squadron. The 1st Destroyer Squadron along with the Capellan March based 2nd Corvette Flotilla's 2nd Division move into the Valexa PDZ. The 1st Patrol Squadron move up from Cooperland and along with the 3rd Cruiser Squadron and 1st Division of the 2nd Corvette Flotilla begin patrolling and guard duties at key worlds within the Capellan March. The FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion deploys to Tikonov with the 1st Cruiser Squadron. While it's fighter wings are still training in carrier operations they are now felt to be sufficiently experienced to face combat operations if required. Their back up wings are left in place at Kathil to give this key world additional protection. Strikes are planned at the known location of all Capellan warships the minute war is declared. The 6th Corvette Flotilla moves into the Sirdar PDZ.
The timing of this is causing Fleet Admiral Buchwald some frustration. In just another year the Federated Sun's Navy will be significantly reinforced and better able to manage the threat posed by the Capellan warships. He is expecting 14 Fox II corvettes, 8 Davion destroyer, 3 Avalon Cruisers, 2 Congress-D II frigates and 3 New Syrtis carriers to commission at some point in 3069. The carriers in particular would give the FedSun's a major increase in combat power in any naval engagements. In comparison the entire Capellan Navy consists of now 6 cruisers, 3 destroyers and now 4 corvettes. He has reliable intelligence that the Capellan's expect to commission an additional cruiser and 4 more corvettes in '69 compared to his own 30 warships. The balance of power is only shifting more and more in the favour of the AFFS and the longer the war can be held off the stronger the Federated Suns will be in comparison to the Capellan Confederation in the eyes of the Fleet Admiral.
This fact is not lost on any of the rest of the High Command nor upon the First Prince. Even a delay of a single year will result in a much stronger Federated Sun's Navy and an even greater disparity between the steadily expanding Regular Army and the CCAF. A delay of 2 years in active combat operations will result in the first of the Federated Sun's new battleships being in commission.
However these considerations collapse when on the 19th of September the CCS Edmund Salindar reappears. Repainted in black and red the huge cruiser, now named the Avatar of Kali appears at an incredibly risky pirate point almost on top of St Ives itself just beyond the moon of Cochrane, wrecking the ships jump engines in the jump. However the ship itself remains intact and heads straight for the planet. If there were any doubts of the ships hostile intent it fires on every dropship within range with it's naval lasers and destroys 2 small scientific outposts on the moon almost in passing. The only communications except from weapon's fire is droning chanting to the Death Goddess Kali being transmitted on every frequency. As it rounds the moon it launches it's 6 dropships, 4 of them are Overlord class troop transports but the remaining 2 are Vengeance class carriers and along with the ship's own fighters they disgorge over 100 fighters.
Defending aerospace fighters and dropships rush to meet the oncoming behemoth even as summons of aid are sent out to any and all nearby St Ives and Federated Sun's commands. The fighters used by the attacking wings are of an unknown types and are piloted be seemingly elite pilots who crash into the defending fighter wings of the 1st St Ives Lancers, St Ives Academy Training Group and an independent aerospace regiment. The numbers are roughly equal but the invaders have an edge in skill and technology on all but the single wing of fighters from the Lancers. The assault dropships and 2 Overlord A-3 pocket warships bought from the FedSun's attempt to break through the dogfight and reach the Avatar of Kali but the ship turn and opens up on them with a full broadside smashing them into pieces. The Avatar of Kali manages to reach orbit of St Ives with only light damage and immedietly begins to bombard the capital of Tian-tan. Broadside after broadside crash into the city, particularly the areas around the Ducal Palace.
Early reports are that Duchess Candace Allard-Liao, her daughter Kuan-yin Allard-Liao, daughter-in-law Deiddre Lear and 2 grandchildren David Lear and Melissa Allard-Liao had managed to reach the bunkers under the palace, but the bombardment continues relentlessly and soon all contact is lost. The last reports are that the sustained bombardment was causing some cave in's throughout the bunkers. Again and again the fighters of the St Ives defenders throw themselves at the Avatar of Kali but their attacks are broken up by the ship's escorting fighters. The handful that make it through the escorts are too few to destroy the ship, although the ship is heavily damaged when a single Lightning class aerospace fighter closes to suicidal range and manages to launch a nuclear tipped missile at the ship's port side. The Avatar, bleeding air and clearly heavily damaged rolls ship and continues the bombardment from it's undamaged starboard guns.
Even as the fighters battle to destroy the huge cruiser raining death down onto the city of Tian-tan the Duke of St Ives is leading his own 1st St Ives Lancers to meet the incoming battlemech forces which conduct a combat drop onto the cities spaceport. Although all 4 of the Overlords have suffered light damage they have largely been ignored by the defending aerospace fighters who have concentrated understandably on the cruiser. This has allowed them to reach atmosphere and drop their 4 battalions of battlemechs relatively unmolested.
As soon as the last of the "Warrior Houses" Rakshasa and White Tiger have jumped from the Overlords the ships engines go to full power. However they aren't attempting to reach orbit again, instead all 4 dropships turn their armoured noses towards the Ducal Palace and red line their engines, turning themselves into nearly 10,000 ton kinetic missiles...
Duke Kai Allard-Liao advances on the descending Thuggee cultists even as behind him any hope that his family are still alive disappears in the 4 huge fireballs where his home once stood. Considered by almost everyone to be the finest mechwarrior in existence he throws himself at the Thuggee's with a reckless fury that removes the self doubts which usually limit him and turns him into something resembling an unstoppable force of nature. Unfortunately the Thuggee's had known that if he was not at the palace he would respond in this way and have taken preparations. Every single LRM missile in their battlemech's launchers are tipped with nerve gas obtained from their shattered temples on Highspire while their battlemechs have been treated to resist the nerve agent and they themselves have been issued neutralising agents to administer to themselves just prior to combat. They have no intention to fight a warrior like Kai Allard-Liao in a "fair fight" and instead blanket his position in LRM fire. Through the fire Yen-Lo-Wang comes staggering as behind the iconic battlemech the charging 1st Battalion of the St Ives Lancers falter and fall to the nerve agent. Even as his troops die behind him the Duke of St Ives's battlemech crashes to the ground and lies still. Just in case and showing an almost superstitious dread of the former Champion of Solaris an entire company of Warrior House Rakshasa pour fire into the recumbent Yen-Lo-Wang until it's reactor overlords and explodes.
With the Duke dead and the 1st Lancers gutted by nerve agent tipped missiles the 4 battalions of Thuggee fanatics run rampage through the city of Tien-tan, firing into businesses, shops and homes as they hunt down and destroy any remaining defenders. The casualties skyrocket as they continue to fire nerve agent filled missiles into fleeing crowds and packed refugee columns. When they finally run out of missiles they continue to massacre anyone they can with conventional weaponry. However when their missiles run out they are struck by the remnants of the 1st St Ives Lancers reinforced now by the St Ives Academy Training Group and the ComGuard's 87th Division. Mercy is neither asked for or given as the 2 sides smash into each other in a battle within the ruins of a vibrant city. Occasional flashes of naval orbital laser fire only add to the death toll both military and civilian. However by dawn on the 21st the last of the Thuggee battlmechs have fallen and their pilots are dead.
At the same time the last of the Thuggee's are being destroyed within the ruins of Tien-Tan, the so far uncommitted fighters attached to the 87th Division launch from their base and head for the orbiting Avatar of Kali. The remaining St Ives fighters provide an escort and manage to keep the by now worn and damaged fighters of the warship's depleted screen from intercepting more than 3 of the 39 fighters. Of the remaining 36 ComGuard fighters no less than 12 are carrying nuclear ordinance - supplied by St Ives. While not closing to the suicidal range of the first nuclear strike upon the Avatar of Kali no fewer than 11 of the 12 nuclear equipped fighters manage to launch and 7 nuclear warheads hit the warship. With her entire starboard side effectively destroyed, her back broken and over half the ship open to the void and the other half powerless the ship begins to slowly break apart in orbit. In one final attempt of mass murder the single remaining Vengeance class carrier (the other had been destroyed in the fighting) attempts to emulate the 4 Overlord dropships who rammed the planet. However aware of the possibility the surviving ComGuards and St Ives fighters swarm the ship and destroy it. A number of enemy fighter pilots do however manage to reenter orbit and ram the planet using their aerospace fighters as makeshift kinetic missiles to cause additional damage now that they have no hope of landing on a friendly carrier.
The reports from the still intact HPG station on St Ives filter out to the rest of the Inner Sphere. The 2nd St Ives Lancers immediately heads for the planet as do the the 5th FedSun's Dragoons RCT and the FSS Goshen and FSS Clovis. They arrive too late to help destroy the Avatar of Kali or the invaders but immedietly begin working to help save who they can from the devastated capital city of the planet. Work immediately starts on digging out the former Ducal Palace in the vain hope of finding survivors.
The entire Inner Sphere reacts in horror at the devastation and war crimes committed upon St Ives by a vessel of the Capellan Confederation. The Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao, appearing visibly horrified broadcasts a fervent denial of involvement and the denouncement of his sister's actions. He calls upon the CCAF and all loyal Capellan Confederation to wipe her and her demented followers out.
First Prince Victor Davion, having already condemned the attacks and sent word to Korsakov's Cossack's to escort Cassandra Allard-Liao to wherever she wishes to go (along with his private and heartfelt condolences to her personally), now turns to the Chancellor's broadcast. In 4 simple words he voices the feelings of his entire realm. "Too little. Too late."
On the 23rd of September, while the flames of Tien-tan are still visible from orbit, the Federated Sun's formally declares war upon the Capellan Confederation. Operation Rat II and Rat III are immedietly authorised for implementation. Dozens of RCT's and battlemech regiments lift off from garrison postings and head for their jump off points to invade the Confederation. Escorting them are dozens of warships and hundreds of jumpships. Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion at his princes's command masterminds the invasion from New Avalon and arranges for the attacking forces to hit the Confederation in a single attack. On the 1st of October the AFFS will break like a tsunami across the Confederation and in the words of Admiral William "Wet Willie" Kossacks of the 2nd Davion Guards will "wipe the foul taint of the Liao's from the Inner Sphere forever..."
The Federated Sun's is joined in this deceleration of war by the Lyran Alliance, although given the distance involved this will be little more than a gesture of support. No formal deceleration of war is made by the St Ives Compact - largely due to it's current decapitated state, but every single military force within the St Ives Military Command goes to a war footing.
Within the Federated Sun's the military industrial sector ramps up production of everything from combat boots to battlemechs. Volunteers flood into the recruiting stations beyond even the already impressive numbers. Entire regiments of infantry and armour are formed up from these volunteers and begin training, with the best candidates directed towards the expanding military academies for more advanced training as battlemech mechwarriors, aerospace fighters, battle armour troopers or officers.
The existing military industrial output is expanded when the Koschei line on Tikonov is personally commissioned by the First Prince. The production along with salvage from the failed Free Tikonov invasion is set aside to form a 2nd Tikonov Cossack's.
Johnston Industries announce that the entire production of their new Thunderbolt line on New Syrtis will be donated to help rebuild the 1st St Ives Lancers on the 30th September. They are joined in this deceleration by Kallon Industries who promise the same for their new Enforcer III line on Novaya Zemlya and by GM who promises the output of their new Maelstrom line on Victoria.
Federated Sun's Defence Industries Vedette line also goes operation in September. While it's product is hardly the cutting edge of military production it is snapped up and diverted to the large number of training armoured regiments.
On the Andurien front the first half of the month is filled with growing despair for the Grand Duchy's defenders. Lord Baxter and his attached regiments arrive at the world on the 17th and land at the Canopian LZ. With customary arrogance Lord Baxter orders the 1st and 2nd Magestracy Highlander's to follow his commands and launches a 2 pronged attack. With his own command battalion, the 1st McCarron's Armoured Cavalry and the 2nd Magestracy Highlanders he heads for the capital city of Jojoken and it's entrenched garrison the 1st Andurien Defenders. The 3rd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry and 1st Highlanders is dispatched to break the siege of Baroda.
Faced with being pinned between the relieving column and the garrison the 1st Kearny Highlanders and Northwind Hussars break contact and swing back towards Jojoken to join the garrison there. Or at least that's what they intend the Capellan's to think. Instead they march across country and manage to hit the flank of the advancing column of Lord Baxter. The experienced Marcus Baxter isn't caught entirely unprepared although his flanking scouts are swiftly crushed. Their deaths do at least give him time to mount a proper defence. He manages to hold his line against the attacking Northwind Highlanders long enough for them to be forced to withdraw back towards Jojoken as the 2nd Liao Guard advances on their rear.
Even as all of this is happening word reaches the Grand Duchy of the attack upon St Ives. While many commanders within the Confederation are horrified into an almost paralysis by this, Lord Baxter reacts swiftly and launches a full scale attack upon Jojoken before the knowledge can sap the morale of his troops. His own 2 regiments lead the attack side by side with the fanatical 2nd Liao Guard and are soon smashing their way into the city block by block. The other Capellan units move up in support,but the Magistracy Highlanders commit themselves only to patrols around the perimeter of the city. The only small mercy is that Lord Baxter renounces orbital bombardment so as not to draw any parallels between his own attacks and those of the "mad Thuggees".
As the news of the fate of Tien-tan spreads morale amongst the civilian population of Andurien falters and crumbles, with widespread attempts to leave not only Jojoken but also the entire world. Other worlds within the Grand Duchy see similar flight by those who are able and soon a large number of refugees are heading into the Free Worlds League or even in some cases around the Capellan Confederation's periphery border and into the Federated Suns. As September ends the city of Andurien is a battle zone, but the Grand Duchy is still on it's feet although is beginning to come apart under the relentless assaults of the CCAF.
Within the Confederation itself there is shock at the bombardment of St Ives. However the ever present MASK units within the long standing Confederation worlds manage to almost immedietly shut down any protests while cutting off feed from St Ives. Within the former Sarna March however this is impossible and open rebellions break out on over 2 dozen worlds. On Ningpo the rebelling civilian population is joined not only by elements of the Home Guard but also by the Green Giant's mercenary company of former-AFFS General Arisota Neece who breaks her contract with Sian in disgust at the news. Laurel's Legion's 2 under strength battlemech battalions immedietly attempt to destroy the Green Giant's for breach of contracts but the Green Giants, former Chisholm Raiders almost to a mechwarrior fade back and lead them on a wild goose chase into the rebel areas while stinging them with minor raids. The Legion isn't helped by the horrendous levels of morale amongst many of it's troops due to the pictures from St Ives spreading like wildfire...
Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao upon receipt of the deceleration of war from the Federated Sun's is seen to have a borderline nervous breakdown by those closest to him. Through backdoor channels he immedietly requests to know what conditions the Federated Sun's would accept in order to avoid war - even offering up the head of his sister as soon as he can find her... Unconditional surrender is the single 2 word response he gets...
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IF this was Kali, big if, given that she's working hand in glove with the Word of Blake now, I don't think we have to wonder about her not having logistical support.
She may be heading for Highspire, but more likely she's heading for one of the hidden worlds for now to assemble her cult into something like her own personal Shadow Division like she did in canon. And she'll reappear at the worst possible time on terror raids or something. They may or may not have mass quantities of chemical weapons left - the Davions were rather direct in their attacks to try and destroy every stockpile and collapse every mountain redoubt after all, but I'm sure she can be a pain in the ass some other way if necessary...
Andurien looks like its coming to a head. The reinforcements Victor sent in let them hold the line, but the Highlanders must be starting to get close to 'bug out' time unless more reinforcements arrive. And arrive soon. And when the Big MAC arrive, they'll be in a position to break the situation pretty decisively.
Still, the rest of the FWL must be getting a bit ansty. Sure none of them were happy with Andurien declaring independence, but in a practical sense its hardly any different to what the other provinces did, even if politically it IS a different thing. I mean, surely none of them are going to be at all happy with the Crappies taking Andurien off the FWL like this?
I wonder if you MIGHT see Oriente offer some more material support to Andurien, to keep them in the fight if nothing else and bank a favor with them (and indirectly with the Davions and Isis??). Or even
Still, I'd be surprised if they are able to hold out very much longer. OTOH the 'quick and clean' war Sun Tzu wanted has turned into yet another disaster, costing him a lot of men and manpower, humiliating concessions to the Big MAC and any pretenses of being an ally to the Free Worlds League (whatever form it takes) meaning he now has NO secure borders...
Poor bastard can't get a break :D
You were saying about Sun-Tzu not able to catch a break...? >:D
For the record also - the Warrior Houses? The unknown fighters? Hell half the crew? Kali's friends backing up her Thuggees. So you are entirely correct. She's now being used pretty much as a puppet by the WOB. A wildly deranged, unpredictable puppet. But one they can use as long as they keep a LONG distance between themselves and her.
The Grand Duchy of Andurien is falling apart. They have been smashed, battered and hammered. The mercenary support let them hold the line for a little while longer but frankly the Highlanders aren't here for a do or die last stand. And the Andurien's are reduced to basically 3 badly mauled units of their own. If Andurien could hold for a few more months maybe the FedSuns can save them, but they are starting to crack. It's unlikely they'll hold out long enough. The Big MAC might be bastards, but they are competent bastards after all.
As for the rest of the League - Oriente would LOVE to help the Anduriens if only to get the prestige and stomp on Sian's toes. But if they do that, they weaken themselves against the Atreus faction and Regulans.
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******, now I'm on tenterhooks waiting for the next one.
Sure, it's a FedSunsFY! story and it's probably going to go the way Victor and the Federated Suns are after, but it's the parts in-between that fascinate me here. Things like the looks at other states, the production ramp-ups, whenever there's a character interaction, etc.
This opposite-day Xin Sheng and it's ramifications in the assault on Andurien and how that will fall out will be a good read.
I wish there was a Threadmark/Reader function with the board. Wonder if that's a suggestion that can be made?
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You were saying about Sun-Tzu not able to catch a break...? >:D
For the record also - the Warrior Houses? The unknown fighters? Hell half the crew? Kali's friends backing up her Thuggees. So you are entirely correct. She's now being used pretty much as a puppet by the WOB. A wildly deranged, unpredictable puppet. But one they can use as long as they keep a LONG distance between themselves and her.
The Grand Duchy of Andurien is falling apart. They have been smashed, battered and hammered. The mercenary support let them hold the line for a little while longer but frankly the Highlanders aren't here for a do or die last stand. And the Andurien's are reduced to basically 3 badly mauled units of their own. If Andurien could hold for a few more months maybe the FedSuns can save them, but they are starting to crack. It's unlikely they'll hold out long enough. The Big MAC might be bastards, but they are competent bastards after all.
As for the rest of the League - Oriente would LOVE to help the Anduriens if only to get the prestige and stomp on Sian's toes. But if they do that, they weaken themselves against the Atreus faction and Regulans.
Andurien only needs to hold out until Sunny Boy realizes that he can choose between having the MAC conquer Andurien for him or having the MAC defend his celestial ass on Sian.
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Damn... just damn...
I imagine one of those realistic gritty war movies with Micheal Bay in charge of pyrotechnics: Kai charging across the field carving apart enemy Mechs with Hatchet and Gauss strikes. Then a scene with like Death Star technicians reading the superlaser ‘Target One has entered the field: all forces half and retarget Priority One’. Then a scene from Thermopoly where a thousand arrows fly into the sky: and blackness envelops the screen. A minute later some second perspective sees a dozen PPCs blasting apart the remains of the mech and suddenly a Tarrentino Style Red Rage overwhelms the field.
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Damn Kali just signed her own death warrant with a single act.
This raise a question though will the DC support them in this and run the risk of being tarred with the same brush?
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This raise a question though will the DC support them in this and run the risk of being tarred with the same brush?
If the DC was to attack the Suns while they were busy carving up the Confederation, then yea, things will get sticky.
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If the DC was to attack the Suns while they were busy carving up the Confederation, then yea, things will get sticky.
Then Victor unleashes the Jaguars for "Luthien 2: Battlemech Boogaloo"
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Sunny Boy is about as deep in the shit as any person can possibly be.
St. Ives happened because the Word of Blake struck that deal with him with the intent of making the St. Ives attack happen, and Sunny Boy almost certainly understand that.
Just about the only thing he can do to take revenge is to make public, to the entire Inner Sphere, how the Word of Blake is involved in this. That should throw a spanner into further covert actions of the Wobbies.
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If the DC was to attack the Suns while they were busy carving up the Confederation, then yea, things will get sticky.
Less then you'd think, the AFFS still has a cruiser squadron in the Drac March plus it's corvettes and more warships in reserve. And with a lot under construction, they can even afford to be aggressive with them. Plus they are not moving any units really away from the March either, with still more in reserve. And if they can knock off enough of the CCAF Navy in the opening, they can pull back a lot of those ships. That is what Victors buildup has done for the AFFS.
If Hohiro is stupid enough to attack the Federated Suns border he'll find its both waiting and on a full war footing. And probably having enough logistics and reserves moving in from the Crucis March to even go on the offensive ... New Independence Weaponry is probably up for a 'hostile' takeover of Independence Weaponry after all :D
As for Sun Tzu, well, he be ******. If he could be assured of being able to live his life out in peace, he might have been able to just abdicate in favor of Casandra. But I think we're a long way past that. Even if it's pretty clear Kali did this all herself, he was ultimately responsible for both setting her free and managing to loose an entire damn warship! Interesting that Marcus seems to be making a play to carve his own state out of what's left of Andurien? Bet we see the rest of the MAC lift off 'to reinforce the attack' plus their dependents, a hop skip and jump ahead of the Davion attack no doubt incoming...
Good to see the ComGuard being big damn heroes here, be sure to play that up in the propaganda to continue to set them apart from the WOB!
And happily it looks like thanks to the already running incitement in the Sarna March, the AFFS will (mostly) be able to all but walk right in here. Which, conveniently will let them prepare staging grounds for Terra without it looking at all suspicious ....
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If the DC was to attack the Suns while they were busy carving up the Confederation, then yea, things will get sticky.
Sticky, as in tar.
Geez, the internet really needs a sarcasm font.
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man.... all I can say man...… okay give me some more or I will not be able to sleep tonight.
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IIRC in 4th SW Atlas the Wei gas took up up to hour to work through filters, so Kai should have some time to kill some of the lunatics.
This gets me thinking about Shadow divisions, OTL they were supposed to be en route to Clan worlds when Jihad started, I doubt they are TTL.
I wonder if MAC will still continue it's assault on Andurien when they get the news of AFFS regiments landing on Menke. As AFFS units are only jump away while Baxter is fuhrter.
WoB got itself a lease of time and now they will probably use the captured AFFS mechs for false flag attack that will get the DC involved.
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There probably aren’t as many shadow divisions as OTL right now.
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Wow..just...blimey. Bleak but superby written.
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Sticky, as in tar.
Geez, the internet really needs a sarcasm font.
... yeah I deserved that :-[
Still, I can see how the WOB would like this to play out. Set off a Capellan-Federation war. Then at the right point as the AFFS is fully committed, find the least stable Combine commanders on the border and hit them with False Flag attacks, using the Templars mixed in with otherwise standard units to make it very clear who is attacking. Set things off as hard and fast as possible to ensure that even if Victor and Theodore THINK they are being played by a third party, their subordinates jump the gun so far and fast that its impossible to pull things back anytime soon...
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This also totally derails the planned attack on Terra, and no matter how it ends, and it really only can end one way owing to the massive disparity between forces, the AFFS will be rebuilding for a year or two at least. This gives the WoB more time to build up and do other shenanigans.
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This is true - although it might not be as bad as you think. The AFFS simply needs to fight smarter as well as harder.
The biggest issue in fighting the WOB is obtaining naval superiority, then supremacy, both in the Terran system and throughout the WOB protectorate which they have to garrison. The AFFS if they make their opening strike against the Capellans hard and well, should be able to negate the CCAFs warships pretty damn quickly which will let them start to pull back their warship commitments in a few months.
The AFFS should also take the opportunity to pair green/fresh units that don't have much combat experience out of their more senior people and NCOs, with elite and veteran units sent to keep them from getting into too much trouble. Blood them against the CCAF to get them some critical first combat experience relatively safely and that confidence that will stand them well if and when it comes to facing the WOB (not all of them are going to be Shadow Divisions after all). The LAAF and ComStar are still providing masses of ground troops, the most critical thing the Federated Suns can bring is its warship fleet, at least for the first phase. And hell, smashing the CCAF Navy would be excellent combat testing for AFFS ships that have not seen action against the Bulls, which is most of them.
You can even be really cheeky by using your elites to smash the CCAFs biggest problem units like Warrior Houses, the Big MAC if they don't run for it and a few others, then rotate them up to the restored Sarna March which is mostly an easy garrison posting to be quickly rebuilt from losses, while 'lesser line units them push 'South' towards Capella and the Southern Capellan march thrust through Saint Ives and Ziliang. And this just so happens to put a dozen or so of the best RCTs the AFFS have in striking distance of Terra...
The sheer bulk and logistics the AFFS has built up now would let them sent the CCAF running for it while swinging around and (with ComStar and Lyran help) smashing the WOB, who are also probably highly distracted by the FWLs 'On again, Off again fighting right now.
It starts to get tricky though if the Combine decides to make a move - or is incited by the WOB to make a move in reaction. And/or they also unleash the HPG whiteout as Terra comes under attack to try and slow down their enemies strategic moves...
Although hilariously, this even helps Peter. He's declared war on the Capellans and now he can move troops down into the former Sarna March to garrison worlds in an agreement with his brother, as a clear sign of support, solidarity and all that guff! As historically the Lyrans were the troops garrisoning the Sarna March and their running home when The Bitch called were what caused the massive chaos march problem, so, making up for that.
Naturally, he'd be putting his troops closest to Terra as they are the closest worlds to the Alliance and building supply bases up in Skye and stuff, which both sends a message to the Combine not to try and take advantage of this situation! Oh look, suddenly HE'S in position too!
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3068 - October - Operation Rat II First Wave
On the 1st of October the AFFS High Command unleashed Operation Rat II's First Wave upon the Confederation. All along the border of the Liao Commonality Davion units surged across and began hitting worlds in overwhelming strength. Where regular CCAF defenders were present multiple RCT's and battlemech regiments would descend in attacks reminiscent of the original Operation Rat, where only Home Guard and scattered local defenders were present a single RCT would often by sufficient. Alongside these forces regular army conventional brigades and independent aerospace regiments would accompany them to ensure victory. Large flotilla's of Monolith, Star Lord and Tramp jumpships would appear at a jump point and disgorge overwhelming AFFS forces to attack the worlds targeted.
Wave One
Alderbaran
The defending Ambermarle’s Highlanders realised they stood little chance of holding the border world when on the 1st of October the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT and the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT arrived in system. Outnumbered by even just 1 of these commands the Highlanders knew they were grossly outmatched. The 2 battalion's of the Capellan unit were facing no less than 7 battalions of battle hardened AFFS troops and the numbers in the air were even worse. The 120 fighters of the 4th Deneb led the way and swatted the 12 defending fighters of the Alderbaran Home Guard Fighter Regiment from the air with almost contemptuous ease. At which point they joined the 60 fighters of the expanded AeroGrenadiers in hammering home the lessons of air superiority on the Ambermarle's Highlanders and their still forming Home Guard allies. By the time the AFFS RCT's actually made planet fall over half the Highlanders had been destroyed and the rest scattered in a vain attempt to avoid the pin point strafing runs of the Davion fighters. The Home Guard units were in an even worse state. When the Highlander's attempted to flee the planet on the 18th after a series of costly fighting retreats they were immedietly jumped by 2 full wing's of Deneb Light Cavalry fighters and faced with having their dropships blown from the sky they immedietly surrendered. The fact that they attempted to fight at all was somewhat surprising to the Strategios on Sian given their reputation.
Liao
The AFFS was taking no chances with the world of Liao. Along with the Dynasty Guard the planet was garrisoned by the Warrior House Dai Da Chi and was known to have a fanatical local Home Guard force as well as a scratch regiment of cadets from the Liao Conservatory of Military Arts. To match these formations the Davion High Command had dispatched a task force led by the Davion Light Guards and 5th Davion Guards RCT's, backed up by the 2nd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry and 1st Lexington Combat Guards and the mercenary Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment. Along with these troops came no less than 3 mixed conventional brigades of support forces.
However before the ground forces had even deployed the Federated Sun's Navy committed the 2 Avalon cruisers the FSS Reynard Davion, FSS Charles Davion and the FSS Daring and FSS Dryad Davion III destroyers to hunting down the CCS Aleisha Kris along with 2 full independent aerospace regiments. Facing with no less than 4 enemy warships the CCS Aleisha Kris immedietly jumps from the system rather than face certain destruction. The Davion warships leave in pursuit, although the 2 aerospace regiments remain to protect the ground forces in case the cruiser comes back.
The 2 Davion Guard's units immedietly headed for a landing to face off against the Dynasty Guard backed up by the 2nd FSAC, while the 1st Lexington Combat Guards and the Vegan Rangers made for a landing zone that would allow them to drive on Chang-an and seize the Liao Conservatory of Military Arts. Leaving the defence of the capital in the hands of the cadets and the Home Guard Warrior House Dai Da Chi headed for the Dynsasty Guard and linked up with them as the Davion forces were landing.
The limited fighter formations of the CCAF units didn't allow them to contest the landings, but unlike on Alderbaran they were at least strong enough to contest air superiority over the actual battle grounds, although the cadet wing of the Conservatory took heavy losses doing this. The veteran Dynasty Guard attempted to hold a strong defensive line against the 5th Davion Guard's and Light Guards who continued to probe at their lines, while Warrior House Dai Da Chi fought a more fluid battle on it's flanks to hold the 2nd FSAC from outflanking them. Relying on their elite mechwarrior troops the Warrior House managed to blunt every single one of the 2nd FSAC's attacks and inflicted heavy losses upon the larger formation. However on the 21st the Davion Light Guards swung away from the main fighting against the Dynasty Guard's just as the Warrior Houses's 2nd battalion committed to attacking the 2nd FSAC's 1st battalion. Caught off guard and out of position the Warrior House's battalion found itself caught between the hammer of the Light Guards and the anvil of the 2nd FSAC. Attempting to fight free they found the Light Guards everywhere, pushing and herding them until finally they were wiped out on the 25th when the entire remaining strength of the 2nd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry smashed into them. Dai Da Chi's 1st battalion took heavy casualties attempting to break through to their embattled comrades and upon word reaching them of their total destruction launched an enraged attack upon the Davion Light Guard's lines. Inflicting heavy casualties on the light battlemech's of the Light Guards they were soon themselves surrounded and crushed, with barely 2 lances making it back to the Dynasty Guards lines. This left the Capellan Hussar unit facing off against no less than 3 AFFS commands that although mauled were still intact.
Leaving the 15th and 21st Liao Defenders regiments to hold the line and delay the enemy troops the Dynasty Guards and their armoured formations made an attempt to break contact and obtain room to maneuver on Liao's extensive grasslands. The 5th Davion Guards took the bait of the 2 infantry regiments, however both the Davion Light Guards and 2nd FSAC swept around the blocking force and maintained contact with the Dynasty Guards in a running battle that suited their combat style perfectly. At this stage the Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment which had been pulled back from the fighting in Chang-an (after having been used in the initial push to break the enemy lines) committed to a combat drop to cut off the Dynasty Guard and surround them. Although only partially successful it did reduce the Dynasty Guard to below 50% and Sang-shao Eric Salzman realised that to remain on Liao was to doom his unit and headed for his dropships, which had been based in a small and heavily defended military spaceport, with the Davion units hot on his heels.
Sacrificing his fighter wing to break a hole in the Davion's air cover he managed to extract roughly a reinforced battalion of his regiment from the planet and fell back to Palos to rebuild. The Dynasty Guards however had managed to bloody the Davion units they'd faced.
Even before Sang-shao Salzman made his break for his dropships the city of Chang-an had largely fallen to the Davion troops. The local Home Guard and cadets from the academy had attempted to hold defensive lines throughout the city, but had systematically been driven back deeper and deeper into the city after the Alpha Regiment of the Rangers broke their initial lines, before finally making their stand at the Conservatory itself. Despite repeated calls on them to surrender they had remained defiant and finally the 1st Lexington Combat Guards backed up by 2 mixed brigades of conventional forces had closed in and destroyed the defenders as well as levelling the Conservatory itself. While fighting would continue into November, by the end of October the planet of Liao had been largely secured for the Federated Suns. The 1st Lexington Combat Guards had lost a battalion in the heavy fighting and between them the 2 Davion Guard's units had lost nearly 5 companies of battlemechs, but the 2nd FSAC had suffered the worst casualties proportionally, losing nearly half their strength. The Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment had suffered only light casualties.
Ningpo
Ningpo received the special attention of the Federated Sun's Navy. Knowing that the Hell's Black Aces made this world their home Fleet Admiral Buchwald dispatched the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion and the 2 Congress-D II frigates the FSS Congress and FSS Churchill. Between them these warships were able to put 240 fighters into space these were bolstered by a full elite independent aerospace brigade of 180 fighters. Between these fighters formations the AFFS felt it could make sure that the Black Aces did not run rampant over any invasion force. This huge aerospace commitment escorted the 4th Davion Guards RCT and the 1st Sheraton Knights towards the planet.
The battle in space proved a bitter and hard fought engagement, even before a single battlemech had landed. With all of their customary skill the Black Aces launched continual strikes against the inbound convoy and it's fighter escorts in an attempt to halt the invasion. Again and again they attempted to break through and hit the troop dropships but the best they managed was to inflict minor damage on the FSS Churchill. Having lost over half their strength and with the Davion's almost having reached the planet they abandoned their garrison posting and using their own dropship and jumpship support fled the world.
The other defending formation, Laurel's Legion, felt that they would face little mercy from the Davion's having abandoned their contract with the FedCom during Operation Guerrero. They therefore dug in around the capital of Ningpo the city of Ningbo. As soon as they had landed securely the 2 Davion formations moved forward and began to slowly push into the city. Again and again the 4th Davion would use it's overwhelming firepower to push forward, drawing in the Legion's forces and Home Guard formations to stop them, and then the 1st Sheraton Knights would use this diversion to make strong headway in their own sectors. Entire suburbs and neighbourhoods fell to the Sheraton Knights in this manner and the Capellan troops soon learned to respect the heavy armoured formations that the Knight's used to hold the ground their battlemech's took.
In a 3 week battle Laurel's Legion was effectively destroyed as a combat formation and it's few survivors surrendered on the 30th October, after the death of Sang-shao Alexia Laurel, to Marshal Orsina of the 4th Davion Guards. The remaining Home Guard formations surrendered the next day. In her reports back to New Avalon the Marshal took pains to highlight the contributions of the 1st Sheraton Knights in the battle and gave them a great deal of the credit for the successful conquest. The Knight's were then tasked with holding the world, while the 4th Davion's prepared to push onward.
Gan Singh
The 1st Revenant Guards RCT hit Gan Singh like an unstoppable juggernaught. Facing only Home Guard formations, most of which were barely a year or so old, the elite RCT smashed the largest concentration within a day and was finished the mopping up within a week. In fact the Revenant's managed to crush the few defenders so quickly and efficiently that they had to wait for another week before the follow on conventional brigade that was to secure the world arrived. At which point they jumped to Shensi to join the attack there.
Pleione
The 39th Avalon Hussars RCT remained slightly under strength when they arrived on the world of Pleione. However even an under strength reinforced regimental combat team proved far in excess of what they Home Guard defenders of the world could manage. In fact over half of the mostly infantry formations immedietly surrendered and several others broke into civil war when the hardliners backed up by the attached MASK detachments attempted to force the others to fight. Only the divided nature of the defending formations scattered across the world proved a delay to the 39th's conquest of the world.
Poznan
While on paper the 5th Sian Dragoons on Poznan were a large and well equipped formation that could prove a major hindrance for any AFFS force in fact they were a paper tiger. Almost half of their troops and mechwarriors were Home Guard warriors upgraded to a regular formation in an act of desperation by the Chancellor. However New Avalon was taking no chances and as well as the veteran 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT they had assigned the 1st Woodstock Borderer regiment to the attack. While the green troops of the Woodstock Borderer's were facing their first action they were much better equipped than the upgraded Home Guard that made up 4 companies of the 5th Sian and had a much more extensive military education and training as well as longer coming together as a unit. More they were backed up by the 1st FedSun's Dragoons. Taking the lead Marshal Ally Swanson crashed into the 5th Sian Dragoons using her heavier and larger formation to break their lines into 2 unequal formations. She then turned her RCT on the larger and more experienced proportion while dispatching the Woodstock Borderer's to hunting down the bulk of the enemy's 3rd Battalion which consisted of Home Guard troops.
While the 1st Woodstock made a number of mistakes in these running battles, outnumbering your equally inexperienced opponents 3:1 allows you to recover from these. Even more when a mixed battalion of Dragoons are detached to back you up. By the time the dust settled the 5th Sian's 3rd Battalion had either surrendered or been reduced to so much scrap, while the Borderer's had suffered roughly 2 companies worth of destroyed or heavily damaged battlemechs. Their technicians were however confident in being able to rebuild at least a company's worth from salvage and the damaged battlemechs.
Even as the Woodstock Borderer's were earning their spurs against the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Sian Dragoon's Marshal Swanson was engaged in destroying the remainder of the unit. Using her renamed 1st FedSun's Dragoons Jump Infantry regiment along with a battalion of air mobile battle armour troops carried by Karnov's she managed to capture the 5th's dropships. With the Capellan's trapped on the planet she closed with her main force and in a 2 day battle starting on the 14th wiped them out. The survivors were taken into custody and the Marshal ordered her unit to use what salvage it could to bring themselves back up to as high a strength as they could before they were ordered on to the next world. The 1st Woodstock Borderer's settled into garrisoning the world and mopping up any remaining pockets or resistance.
Shensi
The defending 6th Sian Dragoons like the 5th were partially built up with Home Guard units, although theirs were of a slightly higher quality and had received better equipment at their upgrading. The attacking force of the veteran 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT which had received large numbers of upgraded battlemech's and vehicles themselves as well as enough aerospace wings to bring them up to full "light cavalry" strength soon had the 6th in retreat but found their signature guerrilla tactics ill suited for a final closing battle to either drive the enemy from the world or destroy them. Again and again the 6th Sian Dragoons escaped destruction by the narrowest margins due to the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry's reluctance to fully commit to an all out attack.
If the 6th's hopes had been raised that they might be able to continue to hold out for some time then they were cruelly dashed by the arrival of the 1st Revenant Guards RCT. Taking command of the invasion Marshal James McFarland dispatched the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry to counter any formation of the Sian Dragoons that attempted to head into the wilderness to continue the fighting in a guerrilla campaign, although he kept the bulk of their aerospace assets for the final attack. His Revenant Guards closed with the retreating 6th and crushed them in a single bloody engagement along with the Home Guard units which had been attached to them. With a strong aerospace force sweeping down on any retreating enemy formations or damaged battlemechs or guiding in the 8th Light Cavalry's troops if they force was too large the 6th Sian Dragoons was removed as an effective force. By the 31st of October the world of Shensi had been secured for the FedSuns.
Styk
The Davion Assault Guards and the 1st Tikonov Cossack's were dispatched to the world they had once raided but with orders to seize it this time. If anything the balance of forces was even worse than it had been for their attack in 3063. This time the Cossack's weren't a single reinforced battalion of barely organised auxiliaries, but were now a combat command in their own right and numbering 9 full companies of battlemechs most of them freshly built on Tikonov. While the Davion Assault Guards remained their usual brutally overpowered self.
Sang-shao Syn Sum Orr had no illusions that his Hussar's who were little more than a training cadre for the Liao Conservatory of Military Arts would fare any better than the planet's previous defenders the Kamakura's Hussars who had been wiped out in October 3063. As such he made only token efforts to hold the factories, before loading what supplies and completed battlemech's onto his dropships and fleeing the company. His single largest loss was when some Davion aerospace fighters managed to shoot down one of his Union dropships as it had almost reached orbit killing the entire company embarked. Syn's Hussars would fall back to the world of Corey to buy time for reinforcements to help them hold the line.
While the hurried retreat of the Syn's Hussars would save the unit, it had the unforeseen side effect of dooming the world of Tsitsang. With Styk so quickly captured the Davion Assault Guards left the factory world in the possession of the 1st Tikonov Cossack's and moved for the world which had been listed as a second wave target early.
Just after the Davion Assault Guard's had left the CCS Aleisha Kris jumped into the system having fled Liao. Unfortunately for the cruiser the Tikonov Cossack's immedietly contacted the Federated Sun's Naval units in the area via HPG (with Comstar tech's having been brought from Tikonov to take over the station) and within hours of the Capellan cruiser having jumped in she was followed by the FSS Reynard Davion, FSS Charles Davion, FSS Daring and FSS Dryad. Again faced with overwhelming odds the CCS Aleisha Kris fled deeper into the Liao Commonality, arriving at Second Try.
Tsitsang
Although listed as a target for the second wave the early conquest of Styk allowed Marshal Stephan Cooper to seek permission and obtain it to hit it during the first wave. Defended only by Home Guard troops the planet's defenders put only a token resistance up against the Assault Guard's landing zones and then promptly surrendered to save themselves from annihilation.
St Andre
Renshield's Dragoons on St Andre had hoped not to be struck in the initial attacks, but these hopes were in vain when the 1st Aragon Borderer's and the 4th Dragonlords RCT arrived in system. The veteran Dragoons withdrew to Fort Ravenglade and prepared for a lengthy siege. The facilities anti-air weaponry kept the Borderer and Dragonlord's aerospace wings from overwhelming and bombing the defenders into oblivion, but proved little use against the huge numbers of battle armour troops that the 4th Dragonlords deployed in support of not only their own advances but also that of the Borderer's. Within the narrow tunnels the battle armour troopers proved deadly even against battlemechs and both sides losses mounted steadily.
However the fanatical Dragoons dug in hard and managed to hold off the invaders for the entire month of October. Again and again they managed to hold the 2 AFFS formations at bay although at heavy cost. By the end of the month they had lost a little over 4 companies of battlemechs, but had inflicted at least half again as many losses on the attacking formations. As the Dragonlords however became more and more used to the style of the Dragoon's however they were managing to inflict greater and greater losses upon the defending units and Shang-shao Renshield knew that he required reinforcements as soon as possible and sent word to Sian that he could not continue to hold out much longer on the 31st October.
Hunan
Although Warrior House Fujita had barely 2 companies of battlemech forces ready for action the Davion's intelligence reports thought that the unit was at the full new autherised strength of a Warrior House - 2 battalions. As such they had dispatched not 1 but 2 full regiment's to Hunan. The 2nd and 3rd Lexington Combat Guards made planet fall with overwhelming strength. Faced with such an invasion the Warrior House broken into small lance sized formations and went to ground. The 2nd Lexington Combat Guard would deploy to hunt them down, while the 3rd managed the process of securing the world's key areas.
Menkar
With only small and disheartened Home Guard units who were struggling to even hold down the rebellious population on the planet, the invasion by the 1st Capellan Dragoons and an attached infantry brigade was the final straw. What few troops were still fighting lay down their arms and surrendered within hours of the 1st Capellan's attack. The bulk of the former rebels were immediately formed up as a planetary militia while the rebellion's leaders were sworn in as the new government by the end of October.
Jonathan
Isolated in a salient digging into Federated Sun's space the various advisers to the Chancellor had advised him against sending regular formations to the world and as such the defence of this forward outpost of the Confederation was largely in the hands of a handful of Home Guard units. When the Davion Old Guards arrived in early October several of these units made the mistake of attempt to resist this "new" formation that was likely inexperienced. The hardened veterans who made up the Old Guard swiftly disabused them of this impression and crushed them with all the skill the First Prince would have expected from a unit of his Guard's Brigade. He personally dispatched them permission to add their first battle honour to their regimental flag.
Foochow
Another Davion Guards unit landed almost unopposed on the world of Foochow in early October. The 2nd Davion Guards over strength aerospace assets preceded them and for 2 days prior to the main formation hitting planet fall smashed the defensive infrastructure of the planet into broken pieces. Military bases, troop columns and military storage depots were bombed into craters by the elite pilots of the 2nd's fighter wings. By the time the 2nd Davion Guards touched down over 75% of the Home Guard formations had already been destroyed by air attacks. The remaining formations, usually in isolated areas immedietly surrendered rather than face not only continued air attacks but also an elite unit of the Davion Guards.
Foot Fall
The 5th Crucis Lancers RCT attacked the poorly defended world of Foot Fall as part of the first wave of Operation Rat II. Marshal Olaf Richardson, now returned to full health, leads his Remagen Lancers against the world of Foot Fall in what for them is vindication. Long defenders of the Sarna March who were forced to retreat in '57 they have now returned and hit hard and fast. Again and again any attempt to organise a resistance is hit with overwhelming firepower and using their fanatically anti-Thuggee hatred from their own experience to push them forward. In a brutal and one sided campaign the Lancers return the world to the control of Victor Davion. At which time they request permission to be included in the follow on wave to hit Highspire. They have a blood fued with Kali's Thuggees and intend to settle it personally!
Summary
At the end of Wave One of Operation Rat II the AFFS had hit 15 worlds within the Liao Commonality and seized effective control of 14 with the final world's defenders under heavy siege and not expected to hold out much longer. While a small number of resistance groups had sprung up the AFFS was firmly in control of most of the worlds they had struck. Worse from the point of view of Sian the AFFS had destroyed 5 full battlemech commands and had another 2 either under siege or forced to break up and head into wilderness areas to survive. Another 3 commands had taken heavy damage and or been forced into retreat by overwhelming enemy strength. While the single Capellan warship stationed on the frontier that had been attacked had managed to survive it had only done so by fleeing almost at the first signs of trouble. The CCS Aleisha Kris was ordered to rally to Palos where the CCS Sundermann Rhys would join her in November. The Strategos hoped that the 2 cruisers would be able to provide each other support and could be used to counter Davion warships in the Commonality.
The Davion High Command was quietly pleased with the initial gains and ordered that Wave Two be started on schedule on the 1st of November. It was time to pile on the pressure.
With the defensive lines within the Liao Commonality already cracking the Strategios on Sian ordered the 1st and 4th Capellan Defence Force to move to Sarna. Other units were hurriedly prepared to move to rebuild a defensive line. However word was already reached the Chancellor's military advisers of Operation Rat III...
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Damn talk about a gut punch the CCAF and the Warrior house's just got hammered. The FedSun has taken the initiative and they aren't letting go, hell the WoB is probably shocked at how quickly the CCAF is getting sliced and diced.
They were probably expecting more of a speed bump.
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WOW.... 14 systems.. that is what a fourth of the CC? I just wonder what the two WoB units are going to do. if the FS does enough damage, the others will attack the CC to retake key planets. looks like Big Mac is going to be their own bosses, in a few months.
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Hah, this is what happens when you keep playing stupid games and expect to not suffer. And to think if Sunny hadn't pushed to not elect a new First Lord there likely would have been an option to have the Star League arbitrate the peace without the CC getting its military and industry wrecked or stolen from them. They likely would have been stripped of a lot of worlds and be removed from the ranks of the great powers but they would have survived as a state. But, really how could Sun Tzu have been so stupid? He was told in no uncertain terms in a very public message that if anyone from the CC disavowed or not used the chemicals on anyone no matter who the same chemicals that were removed and not secured by the Star League then the FedSuns would declare war and destroy them utterly. He had all the information he needed to know this was something that could happen. His Sister's cultists were the ones with the chemicals before they went missing, the WoB wanted her released, his sister was close to the WoB which means she likely told them about the chemicals and the plans for it and how they would hide it. All of that says they want to use her and her cultists to start a war that he knows he has no hope of winning. No one will come to his help now that his sister has used the chemicals to kill so many. Even the WoB plan to launch a false flag attack on the DC is unlikely to do much the FedSuns still have more than enough forces to hold the line on that boarder while they finish off the CC.
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Reminds me of the 4thsw atlas.
A painful reminder to the cappies of who's the boss.
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I am now wondering why they just did not punch threw an area around Terra all the way to the FWL. Then Roll up the boarder. that would push any units to the outer edge of explored space. it would open your rear to predation for some of the FWL powers. I just do not want a bunch of CC units making a run for the FWL.
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WOW.... 14 systems.. that is what a fourth of the CC? I just wonder what the two WoB units are going to do. if the FS does enough damage, the others will attack the CC to retake key planets. looks like Big Mac is going to be their own bosses, in a few months.
Not a quarter, but probably around 5%... which is a lot to lose in one month.
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CC's been living on the edge for a while and only surviving on developer fiat.
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I'm curious what other insanity will kali attempt to 'save' the CC.
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3068 - October - Operation Rat III First Wave
Even as Operation Rat II kicked off and began reconquering the former Sarna March the AFFS launched a second major offensive. Having learned the lesson from the original Operation Rat of the Fourth Succession War the AFFS wasn't going to give the CCAF any respite. They were going to push them on every frontier and tear ragged chunks from every single one of the Confederation's Commonalities.
Menke
The first world hit in Operation Rat III was the most important. Menke as a key industrial world and the base for McCarron's Armoured Cavalry was a priority target that couldn't be left alone. As such the AFFS committed 4 regiments of the Illician Lancers mercenary formation led by the elite 6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT and bolstered by a full armoured conventional brigade and 2 more infantry brigades. Facing this attack were the 2nd and 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry, both of which were under strength, between them fielding just a little over a regiment of battlemechs. The local Home Guard while partially rebuilt from the last AFFS invasion of the planet had suffered as funds had been diverted to rebuild the various McCarron's Armoured Cavalry commands.
Despite realising the odds that they were facing the 2 McCarron's Armoured Cavalry formations moved into the jungles of their planet and began to prepare for a long guerrilla war with what Home Guard formations had been rebuilt. Having learned the lessons of the previous battles they made no effort to secure or attempt to hold the various industrial targets, knowing that if they were forced to stand and fight they would be swiftly overrun. Unfortunately for the Cavalry the AFFS had deliberately brought along the Illician Lancers who had some experience of this sort of fighting. Using the same tactics as before but with larger forces the Illician Lancers kept the 21st Rangers as a rapid response unit in orbit while the other 3 regiments pushed deep into the jungles, setting up fire bases, aggressively patroling and hunting for any trace of the retreating Capellan forces. Any combat would instantly see Illician Lancer patrols zooming in on the firefight and holding the Armoured Cavalry in place as the 21st dropped up to a battalion directly into the fighting. Again and again isolated companies of MAC troops were cut off and destroyed, while the Lancers continued to push them deeper and deeper into the wilderness.
Behind the Lancers the 6th Syrtis Fusiliers and the conventional troops seized and took control of the various cities and industrial plants on the planet. Unlike last time there was no wholesale demolitions or looting of industrial equipment. The AFFS had come to stay, and newly promoted Marshal Richard Silver began setting up the basic's for civilian government with help from specialist teams as the month went on.
By the end of October there was still active resistance from the defenders of Menke, but their plight was becoming desperate as they continued to be hounded and harried through the jungles by overwhelming numbers of AFFS troops and mercenaries. Between the 2 commands the Big Mac had lost nearly a battalion of troops already.
Victoria
The Commonality capital was defended by the Prefectorate Guard and the 3rd Victoria Rangers. Along with them the CCS Ilsa Hyung was stationed in the system. The first of the defenders to fall was the powerful cruiser, when on the 1st of October it was ambushed by the FSS Robert Davion, FSS Andrew Davion and FSS Joseph Davion of the 3rd Cruiser Squadron, supported by the entire 6th Corvette Flotilla. Facing 11 warships the CCS Ilsa Hyung was over matched, out gunned and caught flat footed having just rushed back from a patrol along the border to take up station at Victoria. The cruiser was forced into a 20 minute battle the outcome of which was never in doubt. When the battle was finished the FSS Joseph Davion had taken moderate damage and light damage had been inflicted upon the FSS Ozawa and FSS Lothair, but the CCS Ilsa Hyung had been utterly destroyed.
With the warship taken care off the main invasion fleet jumped in. The 1st Crucis Lancers RCT, 2nd FedSun's Dragoons RCT, 3rd Dragonlords RCT, 11th Avalon Hussars RCT and the 1st Cunningham Commando's along with a full independent battle armour regiment specially equipped for tunnel headed for Victoria. Each of the AFFS RCT's had also had additional battle armour support attached to them and the Dragonlords had been tasked with providing the main support within the tunnels themselves. The AFFS had learned the lesson of the last battle of Victoria.
Landing in overwhelming force the 4 RCT's and attached mercenary battlemech regiment began to slowly advance both above and below ground on the main defensive positions of the Capellans. The 2nd FedSun's Dragoons with the Cunningham Commandos advanced on the Victoria Academy of Arms and Technology which was defended by 2 battalions of the 3rd Victoria Rangers, while the 11th Avalon Hussars began fighting their way through the remaining battalion of the Rangers towards the Earthwerk's plant. The 1st Crucis Lancers and 3rd Dragonlords found themselves facing off against the elite rebuilt Prefectorate Guard.
The fighting on Victoria was characterised by slow grinding battles both above and below ground with frequent short ranged firefights and costly assaults on prepared positions. The High Command had known that this would be a war of attrition and prepared accordingly, with huge amounts of military supplies arriving to keep the Davion forces supplied in this high intensity conflict. The only relatively swift victory was when the 11th Avalon Hussars's 4th Battalion of heavy and assault machines managed to smash their way through the similarly weighted 2nd Battalion of the 3rd Rangers. With their lines broken the 11th's lighter elements rushed through and managed to isolate and contain the remaining battlemechs of the Rangers which were then systematically crushed by the 4th Battalion. By the end of October they had secured the Earthwerk's Incorporated's plant and were able to dispatch the majority of their strength to help the push on the academy...
Rollis
The 2nd Victoria Rangers knew they would be the target of a heavy attack at their position on Rollis and had little faith in their "allies" the 1st MacLeod's Regiment of the Taurian-Defence-Force-in-Exile to aid them. So it was with a growing sense of dread that the green Rangers saw the icons of a large invasion force on their long range sensors.
The AFFS had sent the 8th FedSun's Dragoons and 3rd Ceti Hussar' RCT's to retake Rollis once and for all for the Federated Suns. When they had also discovered that MacLeod's Regiment was also stationed on this world they had specifically attached the elite Hansen's Roughriders to the invasion force with a specific order: to hunt down the periphery exiles and destroy them once and for all.
This mission failed when the Taurian force, the bulk of which had been on the receiving end of a Roughrider attack on no less than 2 occasions, broke before the AFFS forces even made planet fall. Fleeing in their dropships the exiles disappeared deeper into the Confederation, leaving the 2nd Rangers alone to face the invasion.
Outnumbered 2:1 by the regular battlemech forces of the 2 RCT's the Rangers were soon in full retreat through the heavy forested terrain of Rollis, with the 3rd Ceti Hussar's acting as beaters for the heavier weighted 8th Dragoons who followed behind them to crush any attempt to turn around and fight. Unfortunately for the 2nd Victoria Rangers the Hansen's Roughriders, deprived of their intended target, swept in on their flanks and in conjunction with the Ceti Hussar's combined arms formations pinned them in place for a full scale assault by the FedSun's Dragoons.
In a 3 day battle the 2nd Victoria Rangers did themselves proud, throwing back attack after attack and nearly managing to break free from the trap on 2 seperate occasions. However outnumbered 3:1 and facing vastly more experienced opponents the green unit was finally routed and forced to surrender when the Roughriders managed to block their last breakout attempt and held them in place long enough for the 8th's assault mech's to close in and crush their sacrifical rear guard. By the 27th of October Rollis had been returned to Federated Sun's control after centuries and the remaining roughly reinforced battalion of the Victoria Rangers were made POW's.
Corodiz
The massively under strength 1st Victoria Rangers realised immedietly upon the arrival of the 1894th Light Horse that they couldn't hold the planet in the face of the elite mercenary regiment backed up by a mixed brigade of conventional AFFS forces. Therefore they conducted a running battle for almost 2 weeks before finally withdrawing to Muridox to preserve their remaining strength (roughly a battalion) in the hope of possibly being reinforced and being able to counter attack. The 1894th had suffered roughly a company of losses, but drew upon their cadre of the Avatar's of Painful Death who were still on Firgrove to make up these losses by the end of the month.
Zanzibar
Lochardt's Ironsides also found themselves as the recipient of an attack by a Blue Star Irregular formation, this time the 21st Rim Worlds, alongside the twin RCT's of the 3rd and 4th Syrtis Fusiliers. The 7 companies of the Ironside regiments found themselves facing over 3:1 odds and were soon in full retreat. With enemy formations pressing them from all sides they finally broke out by charging the green 3rd Fusiliers and breaking through their lines before the other units could move to support them. However this break out attempt cost them along with the running battles over half their strength and on the 30th of October a bare bones battalion of damaged battlemechs and exhausted pilots fled the world. Behind them the mauled 3rd prepared to hold their ground and garrison the world while the 4th Fusiliers and 21st Rim Worlds prepared to move onto wave two targets.
Xieng Khouang
Facing off against the Home Guard formations that were the only garrison of the planet was the 1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT. At full strength this new formation had been dispatched with the intent of blooding it against a minor opponent. The command staff of the 1st, knowing the units untested nature undertook a slow and careful campaign to ensure they were not subject to any surprises. Even with this however the world's Home Guard could soon see the writing on the wall and began to surrender in droves particularly after the new Comstar adepts at the HPG station began broadcasting the news from St Ives. By the end of the month the world was secured.
Holloway
The 5th Confederation Cavalry, although a veteran unit had not rebuild from it's shattering in the last Davion incursions, and with barely a reinforced battalion in strength found themselves facing off against the reinforced battlemech regiment sized formation and supporting forces of the 1st FSAC. Putting up only token resistance the 5th conceded the world to the AFFS and withdrew to Grand Base.
Necromo
The 7th Sian Dragoons were largely relying upon the CCS Zhejiang to help protect this vital shipyard world from any attack. However these plans were shattered when the 3rd Corvette Flotillas's 2nd Division arrived in support of the 1st Kathil Uhlan's and the 3rd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry. Although individually the Impavido class destroyer was larger and more powerful for the Fox corvettes of the Federated Sun's Navy, it was outnumbered 4:1 and worse the Fox's were all carrying at least 1 Vengeance class dropship packed with elite aerospace fighters trained in anti-warship strikes. It's own assault dropships and 18 fighters were no match for the huge wave of fighters launched against it and the destroyer was swiftly crippled, it's engines hammered by repeated strikes. At which time the Fox's moved in and tore it apart with concentrated broadsides.
With their destroyer protector smashed the 7th Sian Dragoons abandoned any hope of a conventional defence and dispersed into the wilderness in an attempt to hold out until relieved. However this suited the attacking Uhlan's and FSAC troops to a tee as they broke into battalion sized hunter groups and began to run down the dispersed companies of the Dragoons. While a handful of small formations would continue to hold out deep in Necromo's wildernesses for several months, the 7th had ceased to exist as a fighting formation and the planet was considered secured by the end of October.
Ares
The 4th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry had hoped to be overlooked by any attack in vain when the 7th Crucis Lancers RCT and the 6th Robinson Rangers RCT jumped into the system. Despite the 7th Lancers being the largest threat, the Cavalry actually struggled to get a handle on the 6th Robinson Rangers RCT's tactics at first. Given that no Robinson Ranger unit had been seen on the Capellan Confederation border for decades it was perhaps unsuprising that the intelligence reports on the new Ranger RCT's were lacking in detail. As soon as Marshal Jasper Zibler the senior commander of the invasion force became aware of this he began using the Rangers as a foil to keep the attention of the 4th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry while his own 7th Crucis Lancers supported them and backed them up in any engagements.
Finally on the 28th of October the 4th abandoned the world. While they still numbered roughly 2 battalions of battlemechs and were a viable combat command they were slowly being driven back, trading space for time and both were running out. Repeated attempts to call for aid had been ignored and the news coming from the other fronts was dreadful. Worse they had heard of the attack on Menke. If they were going to die, they reasoned they would rather die on their own ground.
Capricorn III
Fresh from training on Robinson the 15 Avalon Hussars RCT arrived on Capricorn III and began the systematic destruction of the local Home Guard. Using signature Avalon Hussar's cavalry tactics they outmaneuvered and destroyed any attempts by the Home Guard formations to meet them in battle or hold ground against them. A handful of Home Guard formations attempted to disperse to continue resistance but gunship companies of VTOL's soon began hunting them down.
New Sagan
Similarly to the 15th Hussars on Capricorn the 26th Avalon Hussars RCT touched down and began to seize the planet of New Sagan from it's defending Home Guard formations. However the commanding officer of the New Sagan Home Guard was quicker on the uptake than his compatriot on Capricorn and made no effort to fight the 26th in open combat. Instead he ordered his largely infantry formations to melt back into the citizenry and continue the fight from hiding. Faced with these difficult conditions the 15th's CO requested additional infantry formations to be dispatched to the world to aid in putting down the resistance on the 31st October.
Summary
Operation Rat III was slightly smaller in the number of worlds hit than Rat II, hitting only 11 worlds. Yet it had contained 25 battlemech regiments or RCT's crossing the border which was actually a single regiment larger than the forces committed to Operation Rat II (although Rat III's battlemech formations were almost 35% mercenary compared to just a single mercenary regiment committed to Rat II). Yet over 10 of these regiments had hit only 2 worlds which continued to hold out as Wave one drew to a close. On the other 9 worlds hit the AFFS had either destroyed the defenders, routed them from the world or broken them into non-effective combat formations dispersed and of little current threat unless Sian could launch a counter attack. Rat III had also seen the destruction of 2 Capellan Warships over Victoria and Necromo respectively.
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Safe to say Rat II and Rat III have the Capellan Confederation reeling in agony in a single month. This is what happens when you get hit by a stronger enemy with more troops who can pick his spots and batter you with overwhelming firepower. You get hurt. Badly. And every unit destroyed, routed or forced into surrendering is one less to help form the second defensive line now that the first has been shattered...
For the record the Davion's cant keep up one wave a month for long. But while they can, they are making headway. Things will slow down as damage mounts up.
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Well looks like the FedSuns now have another shipyard that they can use. I wonder how many slips and what size they are in the Necromo System. Also were there any ships being built or repaired that are now the property of the FedSuns. St. Ives needs to get back in on the action. They need to absorb the border worlds surrounding it There are nearly a dozen targets but most are probably targets in wave 2 so they need to act fast which means Cassandra needs to get back in control.
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OK, Sun-Tzu, handing over Kali - what the hell were you thinking?
Now you look at a gun aimed at your head.
But there is one silver lining: The comment of a certain Admiral. Not much, only a tiny little bit, but still.
Sun-Tzu has been given a very good propaganda tool.
To quote: and in the words of Admiral William "Wet Willie" Kossacks of the 2nd Davion Guards will "wipe the foul taint of the Liao's from the Inner Sphere forever..."
Now Sun-Tzu can go and announce that the FS plan to genocide the CC, that all Capellans will be wiped out. Rally the people behind him, prepare them for a guerilla warfare 100%.
But back to Kali.
He knows that Kali is crazy.
To use the Batman terminology: We are not talking about the Penguin-, Black Mask- or Riddler-crazy. We are talking about the Joker crazy. And for the sake of his realm he should have Kali killed the second WOB made this offer. Because he should have thought what would the WOB do with Kali?
And then he should have given Kali`s remains to WOB telling them that they did not demand that Kali be alive when turned over. I think that Victor - and the rest of the Inner Sphere - would be pleased to hear that this craziness is permanently over.
And if Victor would have only half the brains his father had, he would have told Sun-Tzu that if his forces withdraw from the FWL worlds then he would be willing to let the CC exist for a few more years - and this offer would be extended if he would behave, e.g. safe and silent border. And Victor would tell this to his nobles and the FWL nobles to make it stick.
On the other hand: What is the CC doing?
They know that the Davions can come any time they want. And they dont prepare for it.
Ok, putting a unit there and there, but I am talking about strategy. For instance from the 36 strategems "Attack Wuji to save Fuji."
You say, that the CC cannot pull it off? Let me explain.
Yes, the standard jumppoints are known, so using them is suicide, but what about NON-standard jumppoints?
Just look at a solar system from the side and the sun is where the fingers of the clock rotate around. The planets are in the range from 9-3 on the clock, and the zenith and nadir point are at 12 and 6.
OK, lets say that the zenith and nadir point are 11-1 and 5-7, but what about the space from 7-11 and 1-5?
If the Mask had done its job they would have jump coordinates for these areas of a solar system for all solar systems of the CC and the Capellan March of House Davion. And we are not even talking about the space between the solar systems.
So, a CC taskforce could jump into the Capellan March and target lone planets and make the people scream for the FS navy, why they dont protect them.
And last but not least.
I know its a touchy thing.
We all know the story behind the Scourge of Galedon. Started as a failsafe, a doomsday wepon of the DC. And then forgotten.
So, was the DC the only one with a doomsday weapon?
And werent also the WMDs thought to be used in the case the realm falls to the enemy?
Sun-Tzu knows that if Victor is nice he will just receive a bullet to the brain. If Victor feels vindictive I suspect he exiles Sun-Tzu to Brazen Heart. (Now that would be pure irony.)
So, why did Sun-Tzu pull not a Nero? Whats his plan? (IF he has one that is.)
IIRC in 4th SW Atlas the Wei gas took up up to hour to work through filters, so Kai should have some time to kill some of the lunatics.
I remember reading something about it. It was a story about WWI. But before I posted here I searched but couldnt find anything. But the internet forgets sometimes very fast.
It was called Maskbreaker.
It is known how a gas mask work.
So what if you add some chemical to the poison gas that attacks the filtration part of the gas mask?
Either the filtration unit stops working (you breathe poison gas) or the filtration part clogs up (you either suffocate or remove the gas mask and breathe the poison gas.)
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I remember reading something about it. It was a story about WWI. But before I posted here I searched but couldnt find anything. But the internet forgets sometimes very fast.
It was called Maskbreaker.
It is known how a gas mask work.
So what if you add some chemical to the poison gas that attacks the filtration part of the gas mask?
Either the filtration unit stops working (you breathe poison gas) or the filtration part clogs up (you either suffocate or remove the gas mask and breathe the poison gas.)
´Mechs are built to operate in vacuum. They are air-tight. No filtration to attack here. And I struggle to imagine any chemical compound that would break a ´Mech´s sealing but would not attack whatever container is used to deploy it. In game terms, the ´Mechs heads would operate as if in a vacuum - roll for a breach on every hit, and if a breach occurs (or the head armor is gone), nerve gas enters the cockpit and kills the pilot.
Besides, we´re talking about nerve gas, which merely requires skin contact, not poison gas that needs to be inhaled. Entirely different mechanism of killing you.
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Damn the bad times just keep on rolling the CCAFs way 26 worlds taken in October and quite a few units heavily damaged, decimated or ceased to exist and taken with the Warship casualties the CCAF moral must have dropped through the 9th circle of hell by now.
Victor seems to be trying to out do his farther right now in terms of planting a knife in the CC gut and kicking them while they are down.
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I wonder if the CC units will be recalled from Andurien , or the Big MAC will try to make it his home.
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I wonder if the CC units will be recalled from Andurien , or the Big MAC will try to make it his home.
I am going to bet that Big MAC set up in that area as their new home, and survivors filter into them over the next year to help them rebuilt. it will be interesting to see what they use to out fit their units when the CC are no longer available.
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Baxter's pride cannot take the loss of Menke, not to mention leaving two MAC regiments to die there, so he will either try to finish battle for Andurien fast and return to CC, or cut his losses and return to CC immediately.
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I wonder what will happen with the MAC though. The Confederation is imploding like an Urbanmech failing a crush-depth test right now and the MAC are far from at their full strength. It's also going to take Baxter considerable time to pull back from his little adventure and get all the way back to Menke - and the AFFS have enough forces on-planet right now to keep up the tempo of the operations at a very high rate. The units there are just not going to last long. And its rapidly going to have Andurien being an irrelevant sideshow in the long term.
Then add to that the fact that all the Big MACs dependents are there as well. Even if the AFFS are far too professional to even look at holding them hostage or anything like that, it means they can't just write off the planet or evacuate it casually. And without a state backer, they are not exactly going to be paying the bills. Either they defect to the Federated Suns (and given the sheer bad blood between both sides I can't see that happening) or find a new employer. I'm sure Theodore would love to have them, but that is a LONG way to go ... and its probably a Mercs market in the FWL right now. Even if there may be some ill feeling towards what they did to Andurien, the sheer need for good troops by all the factions involved means I think a bidding war for their services is likely if they can extract enough people...
Heh, just remembered Starcorps have a facility on planet that has been actually helping to rebuild the Big Mac at Mates Rates because of their grudge at the Federated Suns coming and looting their facilities during the last tustle. Welp, I guess Suncorps industries has a new factory to its name :D
Of course, my secret hope is that Baxtor tries to come charging in like the blood knight he is ... just in time to run into a couple of Fox II Corvettes that were hiding on the other side of the planet and swing around to pincer his dropships. And with a single message of "Duke Roderick sends his regards" the FCS Wernke and the FCS Talon unleash hell.
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3068 - October - St Ives
Even as Operation Rat II and Rat III were smashing into the Capellan Confederation the St Ives Compact continued to bleed. As though the attack upon St Ives itself had been a signal small groups of Thuggee terrorists began a campaign of terror within the Compact. Striking out with bombings and attacks upon not only the military but also the government of various worlds and even key infrastructure. The planetary dukes of Denbar, Texlos and Brighton were all killed, with the Duke of Milos being left in a coma after his VTOL transport was shot down with a shoulder launched rocket. The various St Ives Military Command suffered similar losses - the 2nd St Ives Lancer's Colonel Lucas Tolec being killed when sabotage resulted in her Victor's ejection seat deploying while the plating above her chair wasn't blown free. A bridge on Denbar was destroyed when an armoured company from the 1st St Ives Janissaries was crossing it, resulting in 7 tank crews drowning when their vehicles were dumped into the water below. Again and again small groups of fanatical death cultists struck out at clearly pre-planned targets with little regard for their own lives or for civilian casualties.
These attacks were however merely the precursor for what was to come. On the 7th of October a number of Invader class jumpships appeared over Milos, Indicass, Warlock and Brighton. They immedietly each disgorged a single Overlord class dropship along with a Leopard CV dropship and an Achilles assault dropship. The 2 transport dropships headed for the world within the system while the Achilles began attacking all jumpships and dropships at the jump point. Smaller formations consisting only of Leopard CV and Achilles dropships jumped into a number of other systems on Merchant class jumpships.
Even as the attacks at the jump points were causing heavy losses in jumpship and dropships the 4 Overlord and their Leopard CV escorts streaked for the planet. At Indicass the elite aerospace wing of the 1st St Ives Cheveau-Leger's managed to destroy the Leopard CV and it's fighters before crippling the Overlord before returning to finish off the lamed vessel. However at the other target worlds the 3 Overlords survived to drop their battlemech battalion's upon the world. As per the attack on St Ives the transport dropships then attempted to ram into targets of opportunity as kinetic missiles - usually military bases or key government locations. At Milos the Overlord which had managed to combat drop it's troops was intercepted and destroyed in the air before it could reach it's target, but at Warlock and Brighton an Overlord each reached their targets - the primary base of the Devon's Armoured Infantry on Warlock and the city centre of the planetary capital on Brighton. On Brighton the heavily damaged Leopard CV also managed to ram into the water plants for the capital city, cutting off all water to the various agencies trying desperately to save the burning city centre.
The 3 battalions of troops which did manage to land on the various St Ives worlds were swiftly engaged by the defenders. Each was functionally identical down to the paint work and mech designs used to the units which had attacked St Ives. These "Ghost Warrior Houses" as they were quickly labelled at least lacked their St Ives compatriots access to nerve agents, but they fought with the same fanatical intent of causing as much damage and as many deaths as possible. Although it was quickly noticed that these "Ghosts" were not as well trained as the primary attack force that hit St Ives. Warlock particularly suffered from these attacks as much of Devon's Armoured Infantry had been totally destroyed with their base. The militia there had to hang on for as long as they could until the 1st Kittery Borderer's arrived courtesy of the AFFS to hunt down the attackers. Along with the Borderer's came 4 separate formations of assault and pocket warship dropships with Tramp class transports to hunt down the commerce raiders.
The "Ghost" Warrior Houses were swiftly hunted down and destroyed. However this left more St Ives worlds heavily damaged and their defenders bloodied. Along with the almost total destruction of the 1st St Ives Lancers in September the St Ives Military Command was reeling. Worse the attacks at the jump point had gutted much of the once powerful civilian space fleet of St Ives and left the trading infrastructure in tatters.
It was to this shattered realm that Korsakov’s Cossacks brought Cassandra Allard-Liao home. Linking up with their sister regiment, Rubinsky's Light Horse, they headed straight for St Ives. Swiftly arriving with the 2 professional mercenary formations she began to take the reigns of power. Cassandra was hit with a final blow when word came that the bodies of her mother, twin and other family members had been found in the ruins. Worse her brother Quentis Allard-Liao was missing. He had disappeared with his posting with the 2nd St Ives Lancers overnight just before she arrived.
In response to his disappearance, the assassination of their commander and the attack upon their garrison posting of Milos the 2nd St Ives Lancers had jumped the border and struck the world of Harloc. The green garrison of the 7th Confederation was totally over matched and was soon shattered and retreating off world. Although the 2nd had suffered tremendous casualties themselves due to the furious nature of their assaults and had been reduced to just half strength.
Similarly the Brighton based 2nd Janissary Brigade had responded to the brutal attacks by lashing out and strike at the Capellan world of Gei-Fu where they had destroyed the garrison of the 3rd Capellan Defence Force's remaining reinforced battalion. Although again at heavy cost to themselves, which combined with the losses of destroying the "Ghost" battalion that dropped onto Brighton left them at little more than 30% strength.
The Blackwind Lancers, always loose canons had also launched an attack, hitting the world of Hustaing. The 6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry had however proven a much tougher opposition than was expected and had defeated the Lancer's initial attempts to overrun them with ease and proceeded to launch counter attacks against the much more experienced invaders. A bloody battle had left the 2 sides both depleted and forced to fall back to repair and refit damaged battlemechs before resuming the fighting.
Taking stock of the situation the new Duchess began to try and reorganise her shattered formations. With the almost total loss of Devon's Armoured Infantry and the near destruction of the 1st St Ives Lancers alongside the St Ives Academy of Martial Science Training Group during the attack upon the capital Duchess Cassandra had little to work with. Worse at least 3 of her units had launched unsanctioned attacks on their own without proper support or command and had suffered heavy losses.
Only the 1st Janissary Brigade and Roman's Mounted Fusiliers remained at or near full strength amongst her regular formations given the losses of the last month or so. The civilian side of her government was in even worse state, with the loss of so many jumpships and destruction of so much infrastructure. With no other option she was forced to send word at the end of the month to First Prince Victor that unless help was dispatched from the Federated Sun's it was unlikely that the St Ives Compact could survive as a viable star nation...
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Man, Kali REALLY doesn't like Saint Ives. And Saint Ives internal security is really pretty pathetic.
In any event, Casandra has a hell of a lot of work to do. Rat III can probably shift at least some forces into Saint Ives, if nothing else it'd make an excellent staging ground. And if they have enough spare personnel, Victor can probably scrap up from new production and reserve stockpiles enough military equipment to mostly replace their immediate losses.
But damn, thats a LOT of damage inflicted. And the splashback of this on the Confederation is yet again enormous, the sheer propaganda value to everyone who hates the Capellan Confederation of these attacks is huge. Kali is going to have a ten figure price on her head soon...
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Man, Kali REALLY doesn't like Saint Ives. And Saint Ives internal security is really pretty pathetic.
In any event, Casandra has a hell of a lot of work to do. Rat III can probably shift at least some forces into Saint Ives, if nothing else it'd make an excellent staging ground. And if they have enough spare personnel, Victor can probably scrap up from new production and reserve stockpiles enough military equipment to mostly replace their immediate losses.
But damn, thats a LOT of damage inflicted. And the splashback of this on the Confederation is yet again enormous, the sheer propaganda value to everyone who hates the Capellan Confederation of these attacks is huge. Kali is going to have a ten figure price on her head soon...
As far as Kali is concerned the Allard-Liaos are traitors to the true Liaos. They are all that is wrong with the sphere. If she had the choice between killing any Allard-Liao or Victor Davion - she'd probably shoot the Allard Liao twice.
St Ives security isn't bad as such... But how do you plan for a death cult led by a madwoman with access to state of the art military equipment, WMD and loaned troops by her bf who is the military leader of a group of religious fanatics...?
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As far as Kali is concerned the Allard-Liaos are traitors to the true Liaos. They are all that is wrong with the sphere. If she had the choice between killing any Allard-Liao or Victor Davion - she'd probably shoot the Allard Liao twice.
St Ives security isn't bad as such... But how do you plan for a death cult led by a madwoman with access to state of the art military equipment, WMD and loaned troops by her bf who is the military leader of a group of religious fanatics...?
I'm sort of surprised Victor hasn't forked out and hired the Bounty Hunter to go after her with his band. If there is anyone who can get to her through an army of insane cultists it's the Bounty Hunter.
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I'm sort of surprised Victor hasn't forked out and hired the Bounty Hunter to go after her with his band. If there is anyone who can get to her through an army of insane cultists it's the Bounty Hunter.
The Bounty Hunter will need more than the company of Mechs at his/her disposal to get to Kali.She got her thuggees and whatever St. Jamais has given to her uses.
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The Bounty Hunter will need more than the company of Mechs at his/her disposal to get to Kali.She got her thuggees and whatever St. Jamais has given to her uses.
Well what ever the case Kali is a dead woman she just earned herself a hefty bounty along with a lot of angry AFFS boots looking to step on her throat. Along with other people I mean Jumpship destruction is considered taboo from the SWs people will hate her and the CC on principle now.
Though I'm worried about St Ives most of there jump ships have been taken out along with a great deal of their civilian and military infrastructure. They are hanging by a thread and victor better be ready to displace Jumpships with warship escort loaded with humanitarian relief, construction equipment ectra.
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So as usual, what ever happened to Quintus Allard-Liao?
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Probably kidnapped by Thugees, so Kali can kill one Allard-Liao personally. Perhaps she will film it and make the video public.
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Probably kidnapped by Thugees, so Kali can kill one Allard-Liao personally. Perhaps she will film it and make the video public.
That will make whats left of the enraged St Ives forces and the FedSun hot drop onto highspire sooner to kill her since no one wants the the crazy woman alive.
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If she is on the Highspire. She just might be somewhere in the WoB protectorate squeezing more favors from her lover.
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As far as Kali is concerned the Allard-Liaos are traitors to the true Liaos. They are all that is wrong with the sphere. If she had the choice between killing any Allard-Liao or Victor Davion - she'd probably shoot the Allard Liao twice.
Well, to be fair to Kali, she was not simply insane but blasted by her mother from Birth to Death about how evil and horrible and so on her aunt was and all the hoards of hell spawned by them, so its not surprising really...
St Ives security isn't bad as such... But how do you plan for a death cult led by a madwoman with access to state of the art military equipment, WMD and loaned troops by her bf who is the military leader of a group of religious fanatics...?
Honestly, far better than that.
Death Cult Religious Fanatics actually tend to make very poor special operations and black operations troops specifically because they lack the cold, calm, methodical and logical mindset needed to get into position without arousing suspicions or acting impulsively on the spur of the moment. They are just not the kind of deep cover long term people you can put in place to activate like that (which is why in real life such sleepers are more or less, popular fiction aside, unheard of as while you might put a deep cover agent in place, they also tend to not be the kind of people cheerfully willing to die for the cause or commit atrocities).
I mean seriously, these guys apparently pulled off perfectly executed assassinations of no less than four planetary level rulers in a time of war when their security should have been massively stepped up. And this in a society where high nobles supporting Saint Ives would have lived under the threat for decades now of people from Sian coming in the middle of the night to slit their throats or what not. Lest we forget how Justin died! Their security should be near as next to airtight both in terms of at a long distance fingering these people trying to blend into the population and in terms of routine security measures making these kind of operations all but impossible.
Its one thing for a surprise attack with a legion of troops and a warship or two to attack conventionally, but these kinds of black ops, if they were pulled off like this? That's pretty much either pure incompetence on the part of Saint Ives and their security forces at every level (and the less said about one of the last few bloody Ruling family members 'vanishing when he should have been shoved into a secure bunker with rings of infantry around him, the better) or, the entire security force of Saint Ives has been compromised from the ground up. The later seeming more likely given the shooting down a VTOL with a MANPADS which would require very detailed information that only the inner circle of the Duke would have.
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Could be WoB ROM operating in support of the Thuggies and them claiming all the responsibility from WoB ROM. The death cult just gives them a handy fall guy.
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But what ever the case Kali is burning through followers like a lion at an all you can eat tied down cow herd,
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It is a death cult, they are supposed to do things like that once they get all worked up, leaving behind seeds for the next generation, unless dashing officer, who happens to look like Pierce Brosnan, thouroughly uproots them.
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Were any building warships captured by the FedSun? What about the Jumpships they have captured? Victor could "give" St. Ives the captured Jumpships and any dropships they captured as well to help stabilize the Nation. Also with the new output in jumpship and dropship production in the FedSuns really good deals could afford to be made with St. Ives. The TC might also be able to help they do have their shipyards building Civilian ships instead of military ships so now they have a market opening open.
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Were any building warships captured by the FedSun? What about the Jumpships they have captured? Victor could "give" St. Ives the captured Jumpships and any dropships they captured as well to help stabilize the Nation. Also with the new output in jumpship and dropship production in the FedSuns really good deals could afford to be made with St. Ives. The TC might also be able to help they do have their shipyards building Civilian ships instead of military ships so now they have a market opening open.
This is why more jumpship production is needed
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This is why more jumpship production is needed
Production is already increased in the FedSuns in fact most shipyards that aren't just pure refit and repair yards are building Jumpships and dropships.
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3068 - October - General Update
Even as Operations Rat II and Rat III were smashing through the CCAF the Davion High Command were not resting on their laurels. They continued to fine tune the plans for additional waves into the Confederation as well as beginning plans to prop up the St Ives Compact which by now was obviously faltering. Alongside these plans they also began to begin allocation of the graduating classes which would be ready for deployment to the Regular Army in December. For the first time as well there would be a graduating class from the Lexington Military Academy. This combined arms academy would be graduating enough cadets to form up as either an under strength regiment or as 2 LCT style formations, with particular emphasis placed upon battle armour troopers within the infantry. After some consideration plans were put in place to form the 1st and 2nd Lexington Academy Light Combat Teams in December. The idea was that the 1st would serve as the cavalry formation consisting of light and medium battlemech designs while the 2nd would be the heavier unit with heavy and assault designs predominating. Once these cadets had finished their tour within the training commands the Lexington Combat Guards regimens would get first choice of the cadets, with the Ceti Hussars and Deneb Light Cavalry formations also being given preference - although some talk was also suggested that some of the cadets could be used to form additional Avalon Borderer LCT's.
Given the active combat going on along the entire frontier the High Command had decided to lower the usual number of commands formed. While casualties had so far been light, there was no guarantee this would continue, so not only did the High Command want to send troops to those units which had suffered losses they also wanted to keep a reserve to continue to do so. However a number of commands would be raised. Only a single full RCT would be formed, the Point Barrow CrMM. However a number of other commands would also be created. The 1st Avalon Borderer's LCT would be joined by no less than 4 new commands to create a brigade - the these new formations would be formed from roughly a reinforced regiment of graduating cadets as well as troopers drawn from the various Reinforced Training Battalions. The plan was for these units to be deployed throughout the interior of the Federated Sun's to allow larger formations to be deployed to the frontiers. The Tancredi Loyalist Brigade would also be expanded with the formation of a 3rd Tancredi Loyalists LCT, while Duke Hasek had already made clear his plans to create a LCT of his own - the 1st Syrtis Hussars LCT. There would be 2 final formations created, the 1st Bromhead Borderer Cadre would be formed up and a 2nd Tikonov Cossack's formed from salvage from the aborted invasion of Tikonov and new production from the world with graduates of the Tikonov Martial Academy and a handful of vetted prisoners from the destroyed Tikonov Republican Guard units mixed in with some local militia volunteers - in a similar manner to how the original Cossack's were formed.
While on paper the formation of 9 new commands (and 2 additional training commands) during war time would seem to stretch the AFFS beyond reasonableness, the High Command were confident they could manage this. The new commands were all being drawn either from specialised or regional academies or were LCT formations or indeed both. Only 3 actual battlemech regiments would officially be formed - 1 of them a March Militia and the other 2 being cadres to be the basis for expansions later. Neither the 2nd Tikonov Cossack's or the 1st Bromhead Borderer Cadre was unlikely to be beyond a battalion in strength initially, little more than LCT's themselves. None of these formations would be pushed into the front lines, but instead used to garrison rear areas and allow larger and more experienced formations to be freed up to continue the major pushes into the Confederation.
On Filtvelt despite the war a large new complex opened to increase production of agricultural industrial mechs. The Outback FarmMech's plant's new facility was opened with the Harvester Ant line. The Cattle Master line was just behind this and already plans were being put in place to add more lines.
The New Earth Trading Companies plant on Markesan saw it's 4th Karnov line go operational and it's first VTOL's immediately snapped up. The AFFS having seen the benefit of the versatile transport was prepared to buy as many of them as it could get its hands on, and the ComGuards had a similar position. The New Earth Trading Company also saw the second of it's production liens go operational on Kentares in October, producing the Alacorn Mark VI Heavy Tank. The AFFS's portion of this production is quickly routed to the Robinson Ranger RCT's armoured brigades.
GM's plant on Victoria also saw the Nightstar assault battlemech design enter production on the 18th of October. As with this plant's entire production the new battlemechs were sold to both the AFFS and ComGuards on a 50/50 split.
In the Grand Duchy of Andurien the battle lines around Jojoken begin to crack. Neither of the Northwind Highlander regiments which make up the bulk of the defenders are inclined to make a last stand in the ruins of the city and they inform the Andurien's that they will be pulling out at the end of the month. At the urging of her military advisers Duchess Dalma Humphrey's accepts the Highlander's offers to evacuate her and her family from Jojoken. A small force from the 1st Andurien Defenders will accompany her while the bulk of the regiment continues to fight on in her name.
This decision to evacuate the government/rulers of the Grand Duchy is bolstered when reports arrive from Conquista and Lopez. The Shin Legion has dropped onto the world of Conquista and joining forces with the almost shattered 3rd Liao Guards launched a full scale attack upon the 3rd Defenders. Although the Andurien unit had put up a strong resistance initially with reports coming in of the Liao invaders growing momentum the 3rd had eventually broken and fled the planet.
Absorbing the remaining 3rd Liao Guards into their own ranks to make up for their losses the Shin Legion had then struck at Lopez. Now actually over strength by almost a company on their technical full strength the Shin Legion were pressing the 2nd Defenders hard there and hope was fading that the unit would be able to resist for much longer. The 2nd Defenders although a veteran unit were still rebuilding from their earlier battles. In a bruising week long battle they had been reduced to a single reinforced battalion and although they had cost the Shin Legion at least a battalion's worth of battlemechs the Capellan unit still had twice their numbers. Worse, most of the 2nd Defender's were damaged while the Shin Legion had at least a full battalion of fresh battlemechs to throw into the fight.
Even as the 2nd and 3rd Defenders are being hammered, the 4th Tau Ceti Rangers move on from Mosiro and at Lord Baxter's urging launch a lightning attack and take the 2 worlds of Deschenes and Kanata. The Magistracy also launch attacks using Ramilie's Raiders and seize Pillpalla.
Civilian morale already failing collapses during October. Even worlds that are not targeted begin to lose hope having seen the war engulf the Grand Duchy. Ingonish and Villanueva although not struck promptly surrender to the Canopian's to avoid invasion at the end of October. Huge waves of refugees continue to flee, either into the Free Worlds League or many into the friendly Federated Suns.
Even as these reports come in Lord Baxter's own assault continues to grind through Andurien's capital city. Block by block, neighbourhood by neighbourhood the defenders are pushed back. Finally on the 30th October the 2 Northwind Highlander units break off and head for the dropships. The 1st Defenders at a prearranged signal go on a counter offensive directly into the heart of the enemy offensive to buy the Highlanders and the Duchess herself time to evacuate. Even as the Highlanders and various Andurien dropships are blasting off packed with as many refugees as they can fit into them the 1st Defender's fall back on the palace to make their last stand, abandoning the rest of the city that they are now too stretched to hold alone.
Marcus Baxter, furious when he hears of the escape of the Duchess as well as the casualties inflicted upon the 3rd McCarron's Armoured Cavalry by the counter attack orders an orbital bombardment upon the palace before he launches his own final assault which is scheduled to take place in early November... In the meantime he also sends word to the 2nd, 4th and 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry to pull out of their garrison postings and head for Andurien space. Judging by the reports he's getting he knows they can't hold for much longer and refuses to watch them die in last stands... And he will need them for his own plans. He contacts the commanding officers of the 4th Tau Ceti Rangers, Shin Legion and 15th Dracon all assigned to the Andurien Theatre and invites them to attend Andurien to discuss how best to respond to the reports from back in the Confederation. The commands on Andurien itself are also invited to discuss matters with the new Duke of the Andurien Commonality, or so he has taken to calling himself even as the Ducal Palace is hammered by orbital strikes as October ends...
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the New Duke has two cor. class ships?
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Technically the Capellan Navy has 2 Sian/Inazuma class corvettes assigned to Andurien.
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I wonder how the New duke will make nice with the FS. it will be hard to hang onto his "Area" with out having a nice hold card to pay off someone.
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I think most of those Big Mac Regiments are ethier dead or badly damaged and I don't think he has the numbers or training to deal with counter insurgency operations.
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Interesting. Typical Baxter really, throws temper tantrums and doesn't have any ability to look at the Big Picture - and with Archie no longer there to do so for him, well...
Nor does the news seem to have caught up yet to him that the 2nd and 5th are pretty much dead (and the Big MACs dependents for that matter essentially hostages of the Federated Suns) or that the 4th are already incommunicado and on their way to Menke to die with the 2nd and 5th.
Making it more fun, he has no infantry, none of the people he needs to try and run a nation and while he might have theoretically eliminated major military resistance, the population hate his guts AND the exiled Government is intact. And with a big ally to play with (or failing the Federated Suns, there are FWL groups who would probably happily take over Andurien and be welcomed by the population).
Fitting that the Big Mac follow their master into death in the same way; massive overreach :))
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I find it unlikely that the rest of the Big MAC forces are going to be happy with their leader abandoning their home.
Also the Duchy is getting wrecked now. It is time to go into exile in an allied power gather the people fleeing and rebuild to attack and retake their homes alongside the FedSuns.
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Hey before BigMac went and became a house unit how did the CC pay for them? Because canonically weren't they always strapped for cash?
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One of the things that was perpetually draining the Capellan Confederation (and to an extent the other Great Houses) coffers was pouring money into the mercenary market. Because anyone you didn't hire could wind up working for an enemy... and there's that whole zero sum game cropping up again.
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Hey before BigMac went and became a house unit how did the CC pay for them? Because canonically weren't they always strapped for cash?
I imagine a lot of it is the income of Menke itself.
They are effectively the local lords, so any income the planet makes, be it agriculture or manufacturing, they get a cut. Plus generous salvage rights and a few other perks and bonuses like shares in the various local industries.
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3068 - November - Operation Rat II Second Wave
Even as the Capellan's were still reeling from the First Wave of Operation Rat II the AFFS was launching the Second Wave. Keen to keep up the momentum and strike before the CCAF could regain it's feet the AFFS pushed it's supply lines to the limit to support the units in moving forward into the mostly defencless Liao Commonality. Front line combat commands were pushed forward from the worlds they had just secured while conventional brigades and various second line or under strength formations were moved into the newly conquered territories to free up troops to push deeper into the Confederation.
St Andre
The single major holdout from the First Wave, Renshield's Dragoons found themselves under increasing pressure as November rolled on. With the veteran 1st Aragon Borderer's providing heavy fire support the 4th Dragonlords continued to advance through the tunnels. Additionally the High Command dispatched an aerospace regiment that specialised in ground support as well as 2 full artillery regiments to the world. As soon as they arrived and were deployed the AFFS launched a full scale assault upon Fort Ravenglade both from the air, from the ground and underground in the tunnels on the 21st of November.
While inflicting heavy casualties upon the ground support fighters Fort Ravenglades's anti-aircraft batteries were finally silenced and the Dragoon's found themselves unable to meet the strength of both AFFS units. Stretched beyond the breaking point they were unable to hold the defences and after a brutal 3 day battle were finally destroyed entirely within the ruins of the Fort. However before they were defeated they managed to reduce the 1st Aragon Borderer's to barely half strength and the 4th Dragonlord's were even worse off, being reduced to only 40% of their effective full strength. Neither unit would take part in further combat during Operation Rat II - with the 4th Dragonlord's remaining on St Andre and the 1st Aragon Borderer's falling back to New Aragon to begin rebuilding.
Second Try
The Wild Geese mercenary regiment jumped into Second Try having been held in reserve for the First Wave. Unlike in most cases they didn't have an attached AFFS Regular Army regiment or RCT side by side with them, showing the huge faith the High Command had in this prestigious mercenary formation. Although for occupational duties and more general support the AFFS had also dispatched 2 infantry brigades and an armoured brigade to aid them, but under strict orders to follow the commands of Brigadier Alisande Faulkner. Facing off against the Wild Geese and their supporting formations were the Harloc Raiders, a veteran CCAF command that had a great deal more experience than most CCAF units at facing unorthodox enemies.
However the over strength nature of the Wild Geese soon caused the Raiders a great deal of difficulties. Each "Squadron" of the Wild Geese was organised as effectively a double strength battalion with attached VTOL, Armour and Battle Armour troops. So although officially facing "only" a single regiment the Raiders found themselves outnumbered nearly 2:1 in battlemechs. Worse their own support formations were woefully outmatched by the integrated nature of the Wild Geese's support troops, while the supporting Home Guard formations were similarly outclassed by the regular conventional units of the AFFS invasion force.
With the Darkhorse Squadron engaged in running battles to keep them constantly in contact, the Raiders were soon beset by the Blackhorse Squadron's jump capable battemechs. Whenever they stopped to fight, the assault and heavy battlemechs of the Ironhorse Squadron would move up in support of the other 2 Squadrons and proceed to hammer the Raiders relentlessly. After a bruising battle on the 17th in which the Raider's 3rd Battalion suffered almost 50% casualties combined with earlier losses Sang-shao Wu Deng Tang felt he had no other option but to retreat from Second Try and attempt to reform his command deeper within the Liao Commonality. To stay on Second Try was only going to invite total destruction. He therefore led his battered command to Ulan Bator to attempt to reform.
Unfortunately for the Raiders the Wild Geese after basic repairs immedietly followed them to that world and would continue the battle into December...
Elnath
The Davion Light Guards RCT fresh from their conquest of Liao and still at almost 80% strength moved onto the world of Elnath in the Second Wave. As per the AFFS's intelligence briefings they would face only Home Guard opposition, although given the closeness of the Free World's border the local forces had been reinforced with around a company and a half of run down old battlemechs retired from front line service. Against small scale raiders this augmentation would no doubt have been useful, however when faced with an entire elite RCT from the Davion Brigade of Guards these battlemech's were little more than targets. In a 2 week blitz the Light Guard swept the planet and seized all local military forces equipment or destroyed them if they resisted. By the end of November the world of Elnath had been returned to owing allegiance to Victor Davion.
Yunnah
The Light Guard's fellow 5th Davion Guards RCT faced similar opposition when they struck out from Liao and hit Yunnah. Except in their own case the local government made no effort to fight and instead ordered all Home Guard formations to surrender immedietly and remain in their barracks. A handful of isolated units refused this order was were summarily crushed by the Davion Guards, but on the whole the planet of Yunnah fell without much resistance to House Davion.
Palos
The CCS Aleisha Kris and the CCS Sundermann Rhys had been joined at Palos by the mercenary Black Aces aerospace regiment which promptly confiscated what limited aerospace assets the world had. On world the Dynasty Guard had done the same with whatever battlemech's and tanks they could scrape together from the Home Guard units. Most of what they seized was little better than scrap, but they were at least able to use some of the equipment to rebuild their own damaged battlemechs in preparation for the upcoming Davion attack.
On the 4th of November the first waves of this attack arrived. The Federated Sun's Navy led the way with the FSS Reynard Davion, FSS Charles Davion, FSS Daring and FSS Dryad having been joined in their pursuit of the CCS Aleisha Kris by the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion and her escorting Congress-D II frigates the FSS Congress and FSS Churchill who still have an elite aerospace brigade in support.
While the CCS Sundermann Rhys's captain is eager to fall back further in the face of the heavy imbalance of forces, he is constrained by the fact that the CCS Aleisha Kris's jump engines are depleted from her flight from Liao. Faced with either abandoning the Kris and facing charges of treason and cowardice or fighting a hopeless battle against the odds he chooses the later. Both Feng Huang cruisers advance to meet the incoming Federated Sun's Naval forces with the Black Aces in support.
Attempting to keep the range long to suit their own armament the 2 Capellan cruisers are soon struggling to do so as they are forced time and time again to manoeuvre in the face of incoming fighter attacks. Their own aerospace assets and the Black Aces are stretched too thin trying to keep back the overwhelming FedSun's fighter strength. Every time they are forced to divert from their course to avoid fighter strikes the Davion III destroyers in particular close the range under the cover of their Avalon cruiser support. Worse despite their best efforts the Federated Sun's fighters continue to get through and cause mounting damage. The FSS Daring and FSS Dryad finally manage to catch the CCS Sundermann Rhys in a crossfire when it's engines are damaged by a fighter attack from a full aerospace regiment sized strike from the FSS Congress. Even as the 2 destroyers move in close while hammering out devastating naval autocannon broadsides the FSS Reynard Davion and FSS Charles Davion fire longer ranged missiles at the beleaguered cruiser. Worse from the point of view of the cruiser, the Black Aces choose this moment to break off from their defensive duties and flee. Now reduced to barely a quarter of their full strength they have had enough of this hopeless battle and head for their hidden dropships.
Perhaps in light of the CCS Sundermann Rhys's loyalty in staying in Palos to aid them, the CCS Aleisha Kris slow's it's own pace and attempts to rush to the aid of their sister ship. Or perhaps because the captain of the Kris knows the fate likely to be handed out to him if he does not. The huge cruiser's captain orders a charge through the swarm of fighters who attempt to prevent him reaching the fight, taking heavy damage but managing to catch the FSS Dryad between the Sundermann and his own guns. The lighter destroyer takes heavy damage before managing to break off, however even as the FSS Dryad falls back the FSS Daring fires a final broadside into the CCS Sundermaan Rhys and hit's it's fuel tanks. The Feng Huang class cruiser, already a bleeding wreck explodes leaving only a handful of escape pods containing survivors of it's crew.
The CCS Aleisha Kris, now alone and unsupported, attempts to break off, but a full strike by the fighter wings from the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion reduce the cruiser to a wreck that has almost no power and is barely able to move. With over half his weapons gone, his armour non-existant and most of his crew dead or injured the captain of the CCS Aleisha Kris orders a surrender broadcast, before taking his standard issue laser pistol and killing himself still on the bridge. He had intended to retire to his quarters but had been notified that they had been destroyed in the fighting.
With the enemy warships dealt with the Federated Sun's Navy move into orbit of the planet and begin fighter strikes upon the Dynasty Guard's position. The FSS Dryad jumps out of system to head for repairs, while the FSS Daring secures the hulk of the captured cruiser. Meanwhile the 1st Lexington Combat Guards and the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT move into the system and head for the world of Palos.
Landing on the 25th of November in LZ's secured by the massive aerospace superiority of the FedSun's Navy, they begin a careful drive on the planetary capitol of Xer. The Dynasty Guard have concentrated almost the entirety of the Home Guards remaining conventional forces in the city and have prepared for a long urban conflict. The 1st Kestrel Grenadiers deploy their heavy battle armour formations and begin a slow and gradual advance into the city, while leaving the 1st Lexington Combat Guards to maintain the perimeter. The fighting is short ranged and brutal, with neither side asking or giving quarter. The massively outnumbered Dynasty Guard have the advantage of prepared positions and local support, compared to the numbers and aerospace support of the AFFS units. After a single week of brutal fighting however Marshal Stromp of the Kestrel Grenadiers sends word to New Avalon requesting additional forces, preferably a Dragonlord's unit with attached battle armour. Reluctantly the High Command order the 5th Dragonlords from Novaya Zemlya to support the attack.
Wei
The 1st Revenant Guards RCT and the Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment combined to hit Wei during the Second Wave. While this was seen as overkill by many, given the planet's links to nerve agent gases used on St Ives the High Command felt that no mistakes were to be made. The defending Home Guard units stood no chance and were smashed by coordinated strikes across the world by the 2 elite units. Company and battalion sized formations would strike almost simultaneously across the world and destroy or capture most of the Home Guard and all known former sites of nerve agent storage. At which point the investigation teams that had followed the troops would begin their own work. The High Command wanted to know exactly what level of stocks had been taken, types and any hints there might be of just how much might still be unaccounted for - although given the destruction of the Highspire Thuggee cave system this would be difficult. At least without investigating these caves as well...
Shipka
The 4th Davion Guards arrived on Shipka just in time to take the surrender of the local garrisons and planetary government - who immediately proceeded to attempt to convince Marshal Orsina that they had been closet Davion Loyalists all along and had sought to undermine Sian's decrees at every opportunity. At least between throwing victory parades for the "invaders".
Corey
The Davion Assault Guards, fresh from seizing one factory world moved onto Corey in the Second Wave. Syn's Hussars having been on the receiving end of the Davion Assault Guards attack on Styk were in no mood to contest the conquest of the planet against the same overwhelming force. Again Sang-shao Syn Sum Orr proceeded to abandon a world after making only a token gesture of protecting it. This time he fell back all the way to Capella. Where he was summarily shot for cowardice in the face of the enemy and replaced in command of the disgraced regiment. While this was going on the Assault Guards secured control of Corey's battlemech factories and began the work of implementing a pro-FedSun's local government.
Highspire
The Davion High Command were taking no chances at all with the world of Highspire. They ordered the 2nd Davion Guards RCT, Davion Old Guards RCT and 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT to seize Kali Liao's personal fief alongside no less than 5 brigades of conventional troops - all of them trained in anti-chemical and biological tactics. Landing in overwhelming strength they proceed to seize the planetary capital of Crescent and begin advancing slowly on the Chu-li mountains. Infantry formations fanning out behind the battlemech forces to seize and search at almost every small town and even village. A large data base of information beginning to be assembled on any potential Thuggee loyalists.
At the Chu-li mountains the Davion Old Guard's RCT is faced with large scale infantry attacks, Thuggee cultists throwing themselves at the Davion lines. Calling in aerospace support from the 2nd Davion Guards the Old Guard hold in place while the 1st FedSun's Dragoons sweep around behind the huge formations of infantry and begin seizing control of their bases of operations.
Near the end of November and facing annihilation the Thuggee formations break into smaller ones and attempt to go to ground to continue the resistance from the mountains. However amongst the conventional units are a demi-brigade of 3 regiments of mountain troops from planet Cerulean. With 3 regiments of specialised troops at the AFFS's disposal the hunt for the Thuggee cultists through the mountains swiftly turns in favour of the Davion's, although none are so foolish as to believe that the Thuggee's will be wiped out over night. Long term plans are for the 1st Cerulean Mountain Infantry Brigade to remain on the planet for the foreseeable future.
In the meantime the Old Guards move in and secure the partially excavated collapsed cavern network and specialist troops move in to begin searching for any signs of remaining nerve agents...
New Macao
The 5th Crucis Lancers move on from Foot Fall and hit the poorly defended world of New Macao during the Second Wave. With a full strength veteran RCT attacking the local Home Guard units the battle should have been over quickly, however the defending Home Guard put up a stubborn resistance that lasted through most of November. As though determined to redeem their worlds reputation after the limited resistance offered during the Fourth Succession War, the defending forces fought fanatically. However while they managed to inflict minor losses on the Lancers they were unable to do more than delay the fall of New Macao to the Davion forces. By the end of November the resistance had been reduced to scattered and ineffectual resistance groups who were all that remained of the organised Home Guard formations.
Mandate
Leaving Menkar the 1st Capellan Dragoons headed for the world of Mandate. Although the world was only defended by the local Home Guard formations, the AFFS High Command ordered the mercenary battalion Wilson's Hussar's to the planet to aid them. However a small delay in leaving Menkar meant that Wilson's Hussar's arrived a week earlier than the 1st Capellan Dragoons and found themselves forced to fight a mobile battle against large numbers of conventional forces. While this was unfortunate for the mercenaries and led to heavy casualties, it did lead to the Home Guard being out of position when the 1st Capellan Dragoons did arrive. Swiftly destroying the Capellan militia the Dragoons offered their apologies to the surviving 2 companies of Wilson's Hussars. Along with these apologies Colonel Dunn promised to recommend to his patron the Duke of Kathil that the Hussar's be given the pick of his worlds production to replace their lost battlemechs. While still angry at having been left hanging, the Hussars at least were mollified by the generous gesture and genuine nature of the apologies.
Sakhalin
In a suprise move the 2nd and 3rd Lexington Combat Guards were ordered on a deep strike to seize the world of Sakhalin near Sarna. The always restive world's Home Guard refuse to fight in a hopeless battle against the Lexington Combat Guard and instead hand over the pro-Capellan government and those few members within their own ranks who had advocated resistance. While they would prefer to not belong to any Successor State and to reform the Sarna Supremacy, the few years of Capellan rule hadn't endeared the people to House Liao and their Sian based government. The FedCom's rule had at least been lighter and allowed more local freedoms.
Hurriedly digging in the 2nd and 3rd Lexington Combat Guards prepare for any possible counter attack. Having secured Sakhalin as a potential jump off point for an attack on Sarna the 2 units are aware that the Liao's will be desperate to throw them back and prevent an attack on the vital world of Sarna.
Summary
The AFFS had hit 11 worlds in their Second Wave, down slightly from 15 in their First Wave. However they had faced even less opposition and in most cases had swiftly overwhelmed the limited defenders and secured the planet with light losses. They had also mopped up the single hold out from the First Wave on St Andre. Only on Palos was there any real resistance with the Dynasty Guard continuing to hold out. However intelligence estimates were that they Guards had been reduced to under a battalion and were it not for the local militias supporting them would be swiftly crushed. As soon as the 5th Dragonlord's arrived with their heavy battle armour formations the AFFS was expecting a swift victory.
In the end however the 10 world's which had been fully secured (although a handful had small resistance movements) when added to the 15 that were now secure from the First Wave meant that the Confederation had lost access to no less than 25 worlds, 2 of which were the site of battlemech production facilities. They had also destroyed a full 6 battlemech formations of the CCAF and 2 priceless warships as well as the desertion of what remained of the Hell's Black Aces. Warrior House Fujita while technically still in existence had been scattered into the wilderness of Hunan and had been reduced to such a low strength that a single mixed brigade of conventional troops were all that was required to keep them at bay, and had reduced them to making little more than nuisance attacks. Similarly the Dynasty Guards while still an active formation were now facing almost total annihilation on Palos. Worse the AFFS had secured a jump off point to attack Sarna. If that world fell it was likely that all resistance within the Liao Commonality would collapse. Even as Sian attempted to find new troops to reinforce the front the attacks continued and the CCAF was now stretched beyond breaking point...
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I think the CCAF is going to be a long time rebuilding after this if it can. It’s was in a weaker position from canon (ignoring plot shields) and a lot of factories that have only been recently reclaimed have been lost along with a lot of capital both political and economic.
This is a crippling blow more so than the 4SW.
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I think the CCAF is going to be a long time rebuilding after this if it can. It’s was in a weaker position from canon (ignoring plot shields) and a lot of factories that have only been recently reclaimed have been lost along with a lot of capital both political and economic.
This is a crippling blow more so than the 4SW.
You think there will be a CCAF after this is over?
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You think there will be a CCAF after this is over?
They can’t destroy all the random laundries in the periphery the CCAF has
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Well that is it for the FedSuns rapid advance on that front. Their supply lines are too stretched at this point to keep going. They need to spend the next few months consolidating their gains and building new supply depots, reinforcing their current supply lines, rebuilding the damaged Regiments, and getting St. Ives back in shape to secure their flank.
I really hope you aren't planning on Kali, the Thuggee, and WoB to have another massive success with their remaining nerve agent. I have to agree with Chris that the way it was portrayed is in no way reasonable.
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They can’t destroy all the random laundries in the periphery the CCAF has
I would bet that the FS only has about two waves left, before they outrun their supply lines. After those two major pushes, they might be able to take a few more worlds but it will be a case of one here and one there every two or three months.
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They can’t destroy all the random laundries in the periphery the CCAF has
well, they could, but soon everyone has shared borders worlds will start
scooping them up or they will soon just defect to avoid the damages
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I would bet that the FS only has about two waves left, before they outrun their supply lines. After those two major pushes, they might be able to take a few more worlds but it will be a case of one here and one there every two or three months.
They also need to think about the Dracs getting involved as well so far the AFFS has been to quick off the mark and have practically steam rolled any CCAF regiments they have engaged but if the Dracs get involved their already strained supply lines will get worse.
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The supply lines are only stretched on the CC front. The other boarder still has all of its own supplies and support structure intact and not in use on the CC. If the Dracs attack they will face forces more than ready to hold the line.
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Also, I seem to recall that the CC doesn't have much depth to it?
3 or 4 jumps and they should already be right through?
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This was Wave II of Rat II. I wonder what Wave II of Rat III will entail?
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3068 - November - Operation Rat III Second Wave
With Operation Rat II battering it's way down through the Liao Commonality the Chancellor and his military advisors were desperate for good news from any front. Yet the front lines between the CCAF and Operation Rat III were not the place to look for good news. As November began the AFFS had the 2 key worlds of Menke and Victoria under heavy siege and had occupied 9 other worlds. This situation was even worse than the dark days of 28-30 when at least the CCAF was only threatened on a single front. Now ever single Commonality (with the exclusion of the "new" Andurien Commonality) was under threat and facing invasions.
Menke
The situation on Menke for the continued to go from bad to worse for the 2nd and 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry. Down to a little over 2 battalions between their 2 regiments they were being hunted by a force that outnumbered them 7 or 8 to 1. No matter their skill, no matter their home field advantage it came down to a game of simple numbers in the end, and the AFFS forces on planet had more.
In any other situation the regiments might have simply ignored the orders coming to them from their commanding officer, Marcus Baxter to attempt to leave the planet. After all it was their home. Their landhold. Where their homes, families and income came from. Yet their home had become a death trap for the mechwarriors of the 2nd and 5th and they knew it. Yet given the overwhelming firepower arrayed against them and the AFFS's total aerospace superiority (as well as rumours of a Fox warship somewhere in system) they couldn't simply make a break for it.
The solution as suggested by Zhong-shao Rhamses McCarron was as revolutionary as it was unpopular. Indeed the remnants of the 5th nearly went into open rebellion at the very suggestion. However faced with the choices of dying inch by inch in the jungle or following Rhamses's suggestion the remaining officers of the 2 trapped units relented. They did however to a man and woman demand that the young Zhong-shao himself act upon his own idea.
Therefore the patrol from the 9th Illician Rangers were astounded when the Emperor class battlemech piloted by none other than 1 of the 2 heir's to the world walked quietly from the jungles into their sights, with all of it's weapons powered down. Rhamses requested that he be brought before Marshal Silver to discuss an arrangement.
When brought before the AFFS Marshal the young "major" was blunt and to the point. He offered that the 2nd and 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry would quit the world without any further fighting and indeed would give oaths to the fact they would not engage the AFFS or it's mercenary allies in any further fighting on any other world for the current conflict and in return he wanted safe passage for the 2 units and also the dependants of the various Big Mac regiments. The FedSun's would get the world of Menke without any further fighting and in return McCarron's Armoured Cavalry would be allowed to leave unhindered with their equipment, mechwarriors and families.
This was far above the pay grade of the Marshal and he quickly kicked it up the chain to New Syrtis. As much as George Hasek was tempted to deal with the matter personally he took the advice of his staff and proceeded to contact the First Prince with the offer. After less than 24 hours consideration Victor Davion gave his assent to the deal - although insisted that the St Ives also be included in the list of factions the Armoured Cavalry wouldn't be able to fight for the current conflict.
The rest of November then was spent on Menke not in furious combat and jungle guerrilla warfare, but instead in the former owners of the world packing up their personal items and families and preparing to leave. While they kept their possible destination a secret, nobody was fooled. They were heading for Andurien.
A final act by the AFFS against the by now reviled McCarron's Armoured Cavalry was completed when the brokered deal was released to the people of Menke just prior to the evacuation of the former overlords. No doubt some MASK agent on Menke would be able to feed back to Sian the disloyalty of one of his premier commands... Any attempt by the Chancellor to punish them would only weaken both the Big Mac and the CCAF as well. The 2nd and 5th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry weren't ignorant of the Chancellor's response to this news and took their leave from the world knowing they'd have to run a gauntlet to reach Andurien, reviled now by foe, friend and former allies.
The invading force of AFFS troops and mercenaries took the time to refit. While they couldn't leave the world until the Big Mac, they could at least prepare themselves for any future deployments. Ensuring they would be ready and as fully equipped and supplied as they could be.
Victoria
The defenders of Victoria at least had no intention of betraying their oaths to the Chancellor and continued their fanatical resistance to the invasion. Although outnumbered and surrounded as well as isolated from each other the Prefectorate Guard and the remaining 2 battalions of the 3rd Victoria Rangers continued to fight on against the odds.
The green Victoria Rangers, although disheartened by the loss of their 2nd Battalion at the Earthwerk's plant continued to maintain their existing numbers by drafting promising cadets from the Victoria Academy of Arms and Technology into any battlemech's they could repair or salvage with the help of the technical school of the academy. Loses in these cadets lances however were astronomically high with few of them lasting more than a single engagement. The 2nd FedSun's Dragoons and the 1st Cunningham Commando's, former brother regiments renew their old bonds in this fighting and prove that the 2nd joining the FedSun's Dragoons has done nothing to reduce the effectiveness of the 2 units fighting together. They are soon able to pin the remaining Rangers in place, while allowing the newly arrived 11th Avalon Hussar's to attack from the southern flank of the pocket around the Victoria Academy. Once again the 4th Battalion of the 11th leads the way and breaks through a scratch company of cadets to allow the rest of the 11th to pour into the rear lines of the Rangers. Even with their lines broken and a large scale formation of AFFS regular's in their rear areas running rampant the 3rd fight on, forting up wherever they can and are prepare to sell themselves dearly. Repeated calls from the AFFS officers to the "gallant defenders and cadets of the Academy" to surrender are refused point blank. Leaving the attacking AFFS forces no other option but to systematically clear the tunnels and caverns one pocket of resistance at a time. Using overwhelming firepower and superior numbers the Davion troops and mercenaries are able to destroy the 3rd for little additional loss. Many of these losses come from the attempts by the attacking troops to spare the defenders lives if at all possible, but even with these efforts few of the 3rd survive to be taken prisoner and even less of the cadets.
The Prefectorate Guard can do no less than follow the example of the "lesser" regiment of the 3rd Victoria Rangers and fighting on despite the terrible odds against them. Over the course of November they fight a bloody fighting retreat as they fall further and further back towards and eventually into the Shengli Arms factory. Again and again lances of the Guard would turn on their attacks and launch suicidal counter attacks to allow the rest of their formations to disengage and fall back to the next prepared position. Even the addition of the 2nd FedSun's Dragoons to the attacking 1st Crucis Lancers RCT and 3rd Dragonlords RCT did little to hasten the process of reducing the fanatical defences. As November ended the Prefectorate Guard still remained in possession of roughly a third of the now ruined Shengli Arms facility although reduced to a scratch battalion of troops huddled in the ruined production lines. Refusing the almost pro-forma offer of surrender from Marshal Rand-Davion of the 1st Crucis Lancers they swore they would "do the 3rd Rangers proud" and "show the Davion Dogs how Capellan's can die". The AFFS formations began preparing for a last push in the first week of December...
Grand Base
The 5th Confederation Reserve Cavalry had barely landed upon Grand Base in the hopes of rebuilding and resupplying before news came that their tormentors had followed them. Worse they had been joined by the 4th Avalon Hussars RCT. While the 4th might be green, they were an expanded regiment of battlemech's with a full RCT in support and their addition to the invasion made an impossible situation almost ludicrously one sided.
Marshal Rudolph Chapman immedietly released his own reinforced regiment of elite troops and their supporting forces to attack the 5th Confederation Reserve Cavalry, while also sending out heavy patrols to the Death Commando training establishment's upon the world. The 4th he ordered to strike out and seize secondary targets while also supporting his attacks upon the 5th. Within 2 weeks he had managed to secure the planet and reduce the 5th to half it's original strength, namely to 2 companies of battered battlemechs. At which point he managed to pin them with a battalion of his own troops while bringing up and entire combat command of the 4th Hussars. Faced with annihilation the Reserve Cavalry surrendered.
The world would however remain a hothead of resistance as Death Commando instructors and potential recruits continued to fight a guerilla war from the worlds deadly jungles. Faced with these attacks Marshal Chapman took advangate of the status of his regiment and sent a personal request to the First Prince. Even as his unit and the 4th began to prepare to move off world the new garrison was dispatched: the 2nd and 3rd Jaguar Guards Clusters of Alpha Galaxy of Clan Sun Jaguar is heading for the world to hunt down the Death Commando's on planet. These are warriors raised and trained in the jungles of Huntress.
Muridox
The 3rd Ceti Hussars RCT struck out from the newly secured world of Rollis and headed for the planet of Muridox as part of the Second Wave. While relatively worthless in itself the target is in fact not the world, but it's garrison. The 1st Victoria Rangers, barely a battalion strong is the only uncommitted unit of the Commonality "brigade". It is the High Command's intent to destroy this unit and with it the morale of the entire Victoria Commonality.
However with his command little more than a battalion in size, Sang-shao Green is no fool and releases the PR disaster the destruction of his command would be for the FedSun's given the surrender of the 2nd Ranger's on Rollis and the imminent destruction of the 3rd on Victoria. As such he doesn't wait for the 3rd Ceti Hussars to land, but instead retreats off world taking with him the cream of the world's Home Guard which he folds into his own command as 2 additional companies of troops. He falls back to Drozan to link up with the Marshigama’s Legionnaires in the hope that combined the 2 units might be able to launch a counter attack. With the loss of not only their own garrison but the best of their Home Guard the world of Muridox falls to the 3rd Ceti Hussars with barely any fighting.
Pojos
The 8th FedSun's Dragoons RCT also fresh from Rollis launch an attack on the world of Pojos in the Second Wave. Attacking the minor world they swiftly rout the defenders and crush any thoughts of further resistance with their trade mark heavy and assault weighted battlemechs. Indeed such is the swiftness of their victory the High Command quickly send orders for the unit to press onto the world of Quimberton and leave the defence of Pojos in the hands of a mixed conventional brigade that had moved up in support of the 8th.
Quimberton
The 8th, running low on supplies attempts a similar attack to the one that reduced Pojos in a matter of days as they land at the tail end of December. However the local Home Guard are commanded by a Sang-shao of the "old school" of Romano Liao. With surrender not even an option he launches his mostly infantry with a handful of armoured companies into the 8th's landing zones with an almost horrific disregard for casualties. In a 5 day battle the 8th manage to effectively wipe out the bulk of the Home Guard, but only after having almost all of their battlemech's heavily damaged and their infantry brigade devastated by the heavy losses that the Quimberton Home Guard inflicted when things got almost hand to hand. Although only 2 full companies of battlemechs and a similar percentage of their armour regiments are lost the 8th FedSun's Dragoons RCT is effectively removed from future active operations until they can recover and rebuild. The entire unit however is awarded the Limp Sword Flag and Marshal Weintaub is personally awarded the Syrtis Medal of Honour and made a Knight of the Capellan People by Duke Hasek himself. Quite a turn around from 3061 when the Marshal referred to the Duke as "the traitors blood run true".
Columbine
The 1894th Light Horse advanced to the world of Columbine in the Second Wave. Facing little more than Home Guard formations of weekend warriors the elite mercenary regiment routed those formations rash enough to contest their landings before sweeping the rest of the militia clean from the world in a matter of weeks. By the time the follow on conventional AFFS brigade arrives on the 21st November there is little for them to do.
Vard
The 21st Rim World's sister regiment of the 1894th Light Horse arrive on Vard and face little more opposition than the other Blue Star Irregular command. Indeed even less, in that the Home Guard formations which had long been allowed to languish given Vard's interior position on a quite front until recently, are barely able to form up before the 21st have made planet fall. A few carefully planned displays of the Rim World's martial abilities and on the few units which have managed to deploy to face them and the rest of the Home Guard simply melts back to their homes. Leaving the 21st to await the arrival of the follow on conventional units of the AFFS to begin securing the planet.
Larsha
Faced with the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers and knowing Leftenant General Chad Dean's reputation from the holo-news the planetary duke of Larsha immedietly ordered his actually rather experienced regiments of Home Guard troops to stand down rather than face the no doubt brutal reprisals and attacks into cities that the notorious former mercenary unit would launch. Even given the high quality (for Home Guard) of his troops and their equipment due to their status right on the periphery border the Duke is under little illusion that they can defeat the elite RCT. He is also aware that Larsha's hopes of regular CCAF reinforcements are somewhere between nil and zero. The almost reluctance with which the General accepts the surrender of his world reassures the Duke he has made the right choice!
Randar
The final 3 attacks of Operation Rat III's Second Wave are kept back right until almost the end of November. On the 20th of November the 1st Kathil Uhlan's RCT hit the world of Randar alongside the 8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT. Although landing late in Operation Rat III's Second Wave the 2 RCT's swiftly overwhelm the Home Guard units that are all that Randar has to defend itself with, taking only minimal losses. Combined with the other late target of the Second Wave these 2 formations are a dagger pressed at the throat of the Capellan Commonality's capital world itself.
No Return
At the same time the 1st Kathil and 8th Fusiliers are hitting Randar the elite 7th Crucis Lancers are landing on No Return with the support of Khan Nevversan, her Golden Keshik and 1st Sun Jaguar Guards Cluster. Allowing the Khan to take the lead as a mark of honour the 7th have little more than mop up duties to perform as the Sun Jaguars smash the local Home Guard formations into scrap in a matter of days. Not even in the worst nightmares of the local Home Guard had they ever envisioned facing Clan warriors and the planet surrenders with almost indecent haste.
Minnacora
The attack upon Minnacora almost seems an after thought when the 15th Avalon Hussars RCT arrive from Capricorn III. Without the overwhelming numbers or Clan warriors of the other late invasions the unit is unable to fully pacify the world within the single week after they land and the end of November, but the world is effectively secure and well on the way to officially surrendering. Although the green 15th does take some losses against dug in Home Guard formations.
Summary
The initial attacks of the Second Wave of Operation Rat III were devastating enough. Yet with the last 3 worlds attacked the Strategios is rocked to their core and the Chancellor lapses into a frenzied rant at their incompetence that remind many of his mother and grandfather before finally collapsing into an almost comatose state for 2 days. These 3 attacks leave no less than 4 full RCT and a Clan formation at the gates of Capella itself. A world held currently only the the Holdfast Guard and the "cowardly" Syn's Hussar's who's commanding officer has just been shot. To call the defence of the Commonality Capital faced with this potential invasion threadbare is an understatement. The Warrior House's Ma-Tsu Kai and Ijori are ordered to rush to Capella and the 1st Capellan Defence Force newly arrived upon Sarna is ordered to turn around and rush back to Capella. Orders are sent out to form a new force upon the world of Capella, the Capellan Sacred Volunteers - a scratch force of infantry with little training and few weapons beyond obsolete small arms who are ordered to defend "every inch of the sacred soil of Capella to the last drop of their blood!".
The AFFS has taken 10 new worlds in the Second Wave and also secured Menke from the First Wave. While Victoria is still technically holding out nobody in either the CCAF or the AFFS or the Inner Sphere at large expects this to continue for more than a week into December. The loss of Grand Base is a major blow, but one that is almost ignored given the now real and very imminent threat of an invasion of a further Commonality capital world at Capella.
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This was Wave II of Rat II. I wonder what Wave II of Rat III will entail?
Ask and ye shall receive!
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I wonder when the rats are going to start running from Rat II and Rat III? I bet it will start with just a few cargo dropships and merchant class jumpships. But once word spreads about missing ships... it is going to hit the fan.
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Well, Sunnys sanity is going the way of the dodo.
I just hope Kali doesn't turn up and take charge.
Hey BillyBoy will we get another St. Ives update?
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Capellan Sacred Volunteers. Is this going to be like in Clover Spear?
And I see Wilson's Hussars have the same luck as always.
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You would think the regiments in Andurien would be recalled by now, or if they are all changing their loyalty to the Big MAC.
Don't they know that the AFFS are desperate for targets. >:D
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You would think the regiments in Andurien would be recalled by now, or if they are all changing their loyalty to the Big MAC.
Don't they know that the AFFS are desperate for targets. >:D
There's probably orders to that effect being screamed at them from Sian. But tragically, the transmissions were garbled and due to the issues with our HPG we can't ask for a reply. So sorry old chap.
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3068 - November - Operation Rat III Second Wave
With Operation Rat II battering it's way down through the Liao Commonality the Chancellor and his military advisors were desperate for good news from any front. Yet the front lines between the CCAF and Operation Rat III were not the place to look for good news. As November began the AFFS had the 2 key worlds of Menke and Victoria under heavy siege and had occupied 9 other worlds. This situation was even worse than the dark days of 28-30 when at least the CCAF was only threatened on a single front. Now ever single Commonality (with the exclusion of the "new" Andurien Commonality) was under threat and facing invasions.
Menke
Well that ended amusingly. Most other Merc units would have been able to simply switch sides, get recognized by the Federated Suns as the new owners of the world and away you go. See, this is what happens when you keep working for a ****** up state that desires to keep throwing you at its much more powerful rival! with orders to keep doing war crimes! Although I'm actually surprised that the AFFS accepted the offer. The last of the Big Mac were in a position to be taken down in short order, being heavily damaged, zero supplies and outnumbered 7-8 to one with their family members at least nominally hostage to the good graces of the AFFS (Not that the AFFS would do anything there but its the thought that counts!). The AFFS doesn't get terribly much by letting them go ... on the other hand, the sheer humiliation of making them beg for their lives and leave their homeworld with their tails between their legs ... and the Liaos wanting them dead?
Yeah, that's something that's going to have Victor and the High Command smirking as they silently sip their champagne....
Although I'd worry that Victor is (yet again) falling into his own 'tactical at the expense of the strategic habits. Why would you want to reinforce an occupied Andurien under Baxters fist?
Victoria
They swore they would "do the 3rd Rangers proud" and "show the Davion Dogs how Capellan's can die". The AFFS formations began preparing for a last push in the first week of December...
Yeah. At that point, agree that they will do so ... and call in the ortillary. There is a point where this kind of fanatical resistance needs to have a very clear point made that if you ignore constant requests to surrender what is absoloutly clearly an untenable position ... be it on your head and ****** risking your own troops for the sake of honor. Poor brainwashed idiots.
Grand Base
Even as his unit and the 4th began to prepare to move off world the new garrison was dispatched: the 2nd and 3rd Jaguar Guards Clusters of Alpha Galaxy of Clan Sun Jaguar is heading for the world to hunt down the Death Commando's on planet. These are warriors raised and trained in the jungles of Huntress.
That ... sounds a lot like hunting down bandits, I'd be very careful about how you put thus to the Trashborns! And I'm not sure Clanners are the right people to send against Death Commandos leading fanatics. That kind of asymmetric warfare has historically been the kryptonite of Clan units. At least send a few MI6 teams in to 'advise' them, perhaps localizing the enemy units to call in headhunter Elemental strikes or something?
Muridox
Hey look a Smart Government that 'nopes!' any suicidal last stands!
Pojos
Hey look, a dumbass Government that engages in a suicidal last stand ... and lasts about as long as you might think!
Quimberton
???
That man should be relieved his his command and court martialed for incompetence in the face of the enemy, not given a Knighthood! A full RCT with the best equipment taking massive losses against nothing more than light infantry with IEDs determined to suicide charge his LZ?!?
Well at the last if you have to give him a medal to hide his incompetence and impact morale, make sure to 'promote' him to some REMF post.
Columbine
NomNomNom!
Vard
NomNomNom!
Seriously, good to see that the Home Guard are smart. Once things calm down and they are ferrited out, they could make excellent recruits for the new local Milita if they are loyal to their people and not to the crazy.
Larsha
Hey look, a sane leader who keeps his people alive knowing when to fold em. He'll go far in the future.
Randar
NomNomNom! Hillariously as the Star League folds, the former Ulhans who went to the SLDF and 1st Royal Battlemech regiment might be up for grabs, how about a second Ulhans :D
Make them a 'White Knight' counterpoint to the Genyosha? Except, you know, better? :D
No Return
Be very very careful giving Clanners blueballs. :)) They came all this way for a glorious fight for the first time in forever ... and they get this? Well, hopefully they know this is just a warmup, a chance to loosen the muscles, get the blood pumping and all that before the big game...
Minnacora
I'm going to put down the continued Home Guard resistance mostly to massive disinformation and info-control programs by the state, so that the vast vast majority of the worlds and their defenders don't know that this is one tiny slice of a massive invasion. And they are all being told this is just one raid by the hated Davions and the might of the CCAF is on its way they just need to hold on...or something like that.
Also on that note, ComStar are presumably sending more people in to take all those HPGs over? That could be very interesting - I doubt many of the WOB people are going to go quietly and unless I'm wrong, ComStar still hasn't setup its own HPG factories, the WOB are in control of the only ones on Terra itself, so if they are disabling the HPGs before pulling out...
As for Capella, the fact that the CCAF are even worried about this and not about SIAN itself shows a marked lack of understanding of what Victors goals are in this war. Poor bastards.
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Well that ended amusingly. Most other Merc units would have been able to simply switch sides, get recognized by the Federated Suns as the new owners of the world and away you go.
The AFFS doesn't get terribly much by letting them go ... on the other hand, the sheer humiliation of making them beg for their lives and leave their homeworld with their tails between their legs ... and the Liaos wanting them dead?
Yeah, that's something that's going to have Victor and the High Command smirking as they silently sip their champagne....
Yeah. At that point, agree that they will do so ... and call in the ortillary. There is a point where this kind of fanatical resistance needs to have a very clear point made that if you ignore constant requests to surrender what is absoloutly clearly an untenable position ... be it on your head and ****** risking your own troops for the sake of honor. Poor brainwashed idiots.
yeah I could see a lot of merc units fighting for 15-20 minutes and then saying ok, we made a best effort and massively outmatched, transmit our surrender
i would had told the sniveling Baxter to go ahead and run, the civvies are safe, we arent the Liao
at the factory, transmit one surrender request, glass a 100 meter line in front of them, transmit again, there will be no more requests, and our ground forces will not need to fire another shot
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Despite the success in this wave the FedSuns are at the limit of how far they can go with their established supply lines. They need to build up new lines in their conquered territory and get their allies the St. Ives Compact and the Grand Duchy Government-in-exile built back up before they move onto the next set of attacks. In order to buy that time and keep the CC off-balance is to have raiding forces led by detachments of the FSN going around in the rest of the CC sowing chaos and unrest. That way in a few months the next wave can go off and tear massive amounts of territory, resources, and units from the remaining CC. Plus it will allow the Terra Task Force more time to build up since without the St. Ives forces the whole operation is lessened. Since Victor should be smart enough to know not to use them for his war with the CC until after Terra is dealt with.
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I'm really enjoying this :)
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Yes, and I am waiting for the next installment. Please, PLEASE, PLEASE!!!
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Hiya guys, sorry I was on holiday. Once I clear the backlog of work (never work for a small law firm!) that I have to get through regular service will resume!
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Hiya guys, sorry I was on holiday. Once I clear the backlog of work (never work for a small law firm!) that I have to get through regular service will resume!
Ya never need appologise :)
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It's his own fault, he spoiled us rotten with his steady rate of updates before his vacation.
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Ditto to both comments: take your time , but hurry up... please maybe we enjoy it a lot ya spoiled rotten bunch we are. The best and worst of the BattleTech Community: when will then be now? ;)
(Sarcasm heavily implied: hope you enjoyed your vacation, sucks to be back)
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3068 - November - St Ives
In response to the new Duchess of St Ives's request for aid the Federated Sun's Government began to rush support and supplies forward to the embattled nation. Jumpships under heavy escort began arriving in St Ives's systems carrying dropships packed with medical and other emergency supplies as well as teams of experts to help bring the situation under control. Alongside these experts came the soldiers of the 5th FedSun's Dragoons RCT and the 1st Kittery Borderer's who formed almost a "mobile brigade" of troops which rushed from one emergency to another. With much of the St Ives's Military Command devastated by the losses of the last few months and by the loss of central control the 2 Federated Sun's units were often the only ones available to be rushed to a world if there was an attack or similar emergency.
In the meantime Duchess Cassandra Allard-Liao attempted to secure her position on St Ives itself. The remnants of the 1st St Ives Lancers which were now little more than a combined arms regiment immedietly swore allegiance to her alongside the 2 mercenary commands that she had brought with her. The 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers and 1st Jannissaries Brigade also sent word of their support while garrisoning their respective posts. Roman's Mounted Fusiliers while not making any formal pledge at least continued to take orders and didn't launch any unsanctioned attacks of their own.
In comparison the 2nd St Ives Lancers on Harloc and the 2nd Jannissaries Brigade on Gei-Fu refused any orders to pull back to the St Ives Compact. Both units clearly had decided that given the shattered state of the CCAF there was little that Sian could do against their occupation of the 2 border worlds.
Unfortunately at least in the case of the 2nd Jannissaries they were wrong. The 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry and 3rd Capellan Chargers regiments, both hovering around half strength themselves moved to combine and hit the world of Gei-Fu combined on the 24th of November. With both regiments individually stronger than the Jannissaries the St Ives's unit found itself facing almost 3:1 odds and both regiments were eager to revenge themselves for the destruction of the 3rd Capellan Defence Force. Immediately upon landing the 2 Capellan regiments began launching blistering attacks against the St Ives regiment which was hovering around 30% of it's full strength and still contained a large number of battlemechs and tanks which required repairs. With no real connection to the local population or knowledge of the planet the Jannissaries were hounded from the planet within 5 days. The regiment that returned from it's aborted conquest of Gei-Fu was shattered with almost no remaining unit cohesion. Given the losses it had suffered and it's shattered state Duchess Cassandra ordered the unit to St Ives where she intended to fold it into the 1st St Ives Lancers to help rebuild that unit that was at least in a state that would allow rebuilding.
While the 2nd St Ives Lancers and 2nd Jannissaries Brigade had refused orders to fall back, the Blackwind Lancers had simply ignored them and thrown themselves back into the fighting with the 6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry. Both units were determined to destroy the others and often went into the battles with already damaged battlemechs and with many of their soldiers sporting bandages with existing wounds. Both units hovered around 2 battlemech battalions of strength, with the Blackwind Lancers having a slight advantage in experience and the 6th having the advantage of fighting on their home ground. The Confederation Reserve Cavalry also had some reinforcements trickling in from the local Home Guard units.
Over the course of November the fighting on Hustaing descended into an almost Succession Wars level of brutality. Quarter was neither asked, nor given by either side. Finally after almost a full month of heavy and brutal fighting the Blackwind Lancers realised they were facing annihilation and attempted to break off and retreat off world. Even knowing that they had won, the 6th and it's remaining militia allies pressed the Lancers as they retreated, despite their own losses. By the end of November around 2 companies of Blackwind Lancers had managed to get off world and were heading back into the St Ives Compact. They left the 6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry in a similar state and the local Home Guard almost totally destroyed. What was left of the Home Guard were folded into the 6th to bring them up to around a battalion of battlemechs with some attached armour and infantry formations.
Even more worrying for the new Duchess of St Ives was the almost total breakdown of civilian supply lines between her worlds due to the heavy losses of jumpships in the attacks. The world of Warlock for instance was only able to avoid mass starvation due to massive shipments of food from the nearby Federated Sun's world of Kittery and smaller shipments from other FedSun's worlds which had agricultural export industries. By the end of November nearly 80% of all goods transported within the Compact were being transported in FedSun's hulls by FedSun's shipping lines. Even with this aid and support the Compact's civilian economy was entering it's worst recession since the 1st and 2nd Succession Wars, worse even than the one which had followed their breakaway from the Capellan Confederation!
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Damn even with all the aid flowing in from the FedSuns I'll be amazed if St. Ives survives this. It can ethier fragment, rejoin the CC not bloody likely I'd say, join FedSuns, or try to stay stable.
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Yay an update! Looks like the new Duchess of St. Ives has a mountain size work ahead of her. The St. Ives Compact will need at least a few years of humanitarian help from the FS and other friendly nations.
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this seems like an area were the FedCom could send small units (mech co or a mech co and tank co) that was on garrison duty to get some combat experience. use them for small raids to weakening the CC. they just land take out a some CC mechs or tanks run around then pull out to hit the next planet. the problem would be the jumpships. they are needed by the St I. but a scout class with a union could buy time for St I
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Well that is about what was expected for the St Ives Compact. Victor should be capturing dropships and jumpships in his war. It is a good idea to move those ships to St Ives Compact to replace the ones they lost.
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Well that is about what was expected for the St Ives Compact. Victor should be capturing dropships and jumpships in his war. It is a good idea to move those ships to St Ives Compact to replace the ones they lost.
Sell a load of the captured ones to St. Ives at a 80% discount along with any captured war material and new built stuff so they can rebuild their shattered commands. Hell sent them a few CC factories as a show of good faith.
You know kind of like a grand gesture.
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Sell a load of the captured ones to St. Ives at a 80% discount along with any captured war material and new built stuff so they can rebuild their shattered commands. Hell sent them a few CC factories as a show of good faith.
You know kind of like a grand gesture.
I like the idea of that. Everything taken from the Cappellans repainted and sold to St. Ives for massive discounts. ‘Victors just giving it to the state as a sort of I support this splinter faction in the civil war. ‘Unconditional Surrender and St. Ives gets its own state back.
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I was thinking more along the lines of lend lease. like the warships they gave Russian in WW2
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I hope that Blackwind Lancers will be folded into another unit and never revived.
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Glad to see this going again!
Well, looks like Saint Ives is on its last legs as a nation. The only real question is if they outright become part of the new Capellan March of the Fedeated Suns (and what is now the Capellan March becomes the Sytris March or something), or, they just become their own little sub-march and a defacto client states.
Because its pretty much one or the the other if they want to survive.
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3068 - November - General Update
Following upon from the planning in October the High Command on New Avalon began beginning the practical preparations for the new commands they intended to form. Stockpiles of battlemechs, tanks, aerospace fighters and other equipment were built up at the mustering sites of the new units - always somewhere that was already protected by an existing unit or other strong garrison so as to avoid any "temptation" for someone to attempt to raid the mustering point. Although some of the equipment set aside for the new formations were cast offs from other regiments the High Command made sure to send at least some newly built front line equipment even to the new Broken Wheel CrMM - which was now possible given the huge expansion of the military industrial production within the FedSuns. As well as the various Regular Army formations the formation of the various new training commands also had to be supported not only with equipment but also with hand picked officers and NCO's who would be best placed to continue the military education of the various cadets.
The High Command also finalised the issues with the Islamabad CrMM. Leftenant General Carrie Zetso's career with the Islamabad CrMM was effectively over, however a number of voices had been raised to attempt to salvage what they could of this well respected officers career - particularly given how forthcoming she has been in disclosing the full scope of the crimes committed. As such she was given the option of retirement or transfer to command one of the new Avalon Borderer LCT. Although she would remain at her current rank the smaller size of her prospective command was an obvious demotion, but the General accepted with almost embarrassing gratitude, having assumed her military career was over. She was however warned that she had a great deal to do to redeem herself and she would be carefully watched. Duke Pravin Singh however had no such mercy given to him. He was stripped of his titles and sent to jail for the crime of blackmailing a serving officer within the AFFS for his own political and economic gain. Count Kirsh Larouque was immedietly informed that he was the new Duke of Panpour and informed this was subject to him rooting out any remaining corruption on his new fief.
The evacuated Duchess of Andurien also meets with Conrad Davion on behalf of his cousin Victor Davion. Also present is Duchess Isis Marik, the First Princes's consort. Both promise her continued support not only for herself and her government in exile but also the flood of refugees who are mostly housed within the Capellan March. Conrad Davion promises that the Federated Sun's will attempt to retake the Grand Duchy, but admits that given the distance between the front lines and Andurien this will be difficult. In the meantime however and as a sign of good will the First Prince will gift a newly discovered and habitable world on the Periphery border of his realm to the Duchess and to the people of Andurien. New Andurien will be a protectorate of the Federated Suns and the FedSun's will happily aid in the movement of the exiles from the current refugee camps to the world and help set up a functioning colony for them. The handful of surviving Defenders of Andurien will be reequipped and set up as the planetary garrison. While the exiled Duchess is unhappy that the FedSun's refuses to commit to a full on crusade of liberation of her homeworld she is practical enough to realise that this was never likely and accepts with pained grace the offer of a new homeworld for those of her people who have fled into exile with her. Although she promises both Conrad Davion and Isis Marik that she fully intends to reclaim her lost homeland no matter the cost.
On Outreach the Wolf's Dragoons see their industrial company Blackwell open a new line for a Clantech Gallowglass class battlemech. While the AFFS strongly suggest they round out their production with a medium weight battlemech, the Wolf's Dragoons are eager to restart production of their iconic Marauder II IIC battlemech. This leads to some delay as the 2 sides argue over which is the best option for pushing ahead.
The new Maltex facility on Brockton finishes construction of the Wyvern class battlemech line. The Highlander line continues to be built and is scheduled to begin producing the assault class battlemech in May 3069.
At Filtvelt the Cattlemaster industrial mech line enters production and is soon shipping the popular mech across the Outback and beyond within the Federated Suns. While Outback FarmMech's are most proud of their 3 battlemech lines their agricultural industrial mechs are a major seller for them.
The Yeffter’s Weapons plant in orbit over Gulkana begins work on it's first of the huge new NAC-30's that it has been commissioned to provide for the growing Federated Sun's Navy. These huge naval autocannon are to form the backbone of the firepower of many of the ship classes currently either planned or under construction and the new plant is to help meet the demand.
The Corean Enterprise industrial facility producing Musketeer Hover Tanks on June upgrades from semi-automated to fully automated in November, increasing production of the popular medium tank to meet demand. This brings the number of fully automated facilities producing this tank to 3 throughout the Federated Suns and even with this massive production the demand is barely being met.
The New Independence Weaponry plant on Kestrel has it's new Marauder II production line go online on the 23rd of November. This expansion is just another reason for the AFFS pushing the Wolf's Dragoons to produce a Clantech medium battlemech rather than a Marauder IIC variant.
Kallon Industries Kirklin plant also see's a new Thunderbolt line go operation in November, bringing the total number of battlemech lines at this facility to 4. The Thunderbolt line is producing the NAIS variant of the battlemech under license.
On New Avalon Achernar's production facilities are expanded with a third Dervish-O line going operational. Even as the first omnimechs are marching of the production facility they are swiftly being allocated to some of the new commands.
The New Earth Trading Company facility on Kentares see's their Von Luckner production line begin construction, although a few hiccups with the turret assembly facility will result in a backlog of semi completed tanks that will only be caught up with by Christmas. Further expansions are under active consideration.
The front lines on Andurien finally collapse and the last of the 1st Defenders are wiped out in their last stand at the Ducal Palace by a combination of orbital strikes and artillery barrages. A handful of infantry hold out in the cellars of the palace until the 4th of November, but they are finally burned out by specially outfitted battle armoured troopers. On the 5th of November the new self styled Duke Baxter announces the formal formation of the Andurien Commonality of the Capellan Confederation with himself at it's head. Sian remains silent on the matter but doesn't formally endorse his new title.
The new Duke's first order of business is to begin rebuilding work. Priorities are given for industrial sites, his Ducal Palace and the training facilities on the planet. While these are underway he meets with the commanding officers of the Shin Legion, 15th Dracon and 4th Tau Ceti Rangers. He formally offers each of their commanding officers titles and fiefs within the new Andurien Commonality and commensurate lesser titles and lands for their subordinates. He also promises to support them against any recall orders from Sian making the point that if they follow said orders they will only be thrown into the meat grinder of the Federated Sun's Front. All 3 officers accept. Alongside his own units this will give him more than enough firepower to hold onto his position - indeed he begins sending feelers to the garrison formations on the Capellan conquered League worlds such as Shuen Wan and Cronulla which aren't formally part of his Commonality. Or at least not yet. More worrying for the government on Sian similar feelers are sent to worlds such as Sigma Mare and Shiba...
On Sian the disloyalty of Duke Baxter would normally be a major concern, however compared to the news from the front it's a minor matter. Chancellor Sun-Tzu enters into negotiations with the WOB in desperation for troops to bolster his shattered lines, however even his "friends" within the WOB are cold to his entreaties.
Coordinator Theodore Kurita makes a major play on the 26th of November when he "invites" First Prince Davion to a secret meeting face to face to discuss the current crisis. The language in the invitation ruffles more than a few feathers with the AFFS officers and FedSun's diplomatic staff who see it, but the First Prince agrees almost instantly and suggests meeting in the Northwind system. However this is immedietly refused and instead the Coordinator suggests the dead system of Lockdale, once a thriving Hegemony capital world, as a neutral meeting site. Reluctantly the First Prince agrees, but with the condition that he can bring a strong escort which is accepted...
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I have a bad feeling about the meeting with Teddy.
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The new Duke of Panpour might find it valuable to partner with Dame Humphreys to reestablish Andurien Aerospace to build the Riever, Stingray and most importantly the Shiva OmniFighter with financial aid from House Davion/FedSuns government grants with technical support from Jalastar Aerospace(in exchange for a Shiva production license)on New Andurien.
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Teddy wants to show off his big new battleship?
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Teddy wants to show off his big new battleship?
Whose engines will probably give out and it will require a tug ;D
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3068 - November - General Update
The evacuated Duchess of Andurien also meets with Conrad Davion on behalf of his cousin Victor Davion. Also present is Duchess Isis Marik, the First Princes's consort. Both promise her continued support not only for herself and her government in exile but also the flood of refugees who are mostly housed within the Capellan March. Conrad Davion promises that the Federated Sun's will attempt to retake the Grand Duchy, but admits that given the distance between the front lines and Andurien this will be difficult. In the meantime however and as a sign of good will the First Prince will gift a newly discovered and habitable world on the Periphery border of his realm to the Duchess and to the people of Andurien. New Andurien will be a protectorate of the Federated Suns and the FedSun's will happily aid in the movement of the exiles from the current refugee camps to the world and help set up a functioning colony for them. The handful of surviving Defenders of Andurien will be reequipped and set up as the planetary garrison. While the exiled Duchess is unhappy that the FedSun's refuses to commit to a full on crusade of liberation of her homeworld she is practical enough to realise that this was never likely and accepts with pained grace the offer of a new homeworld for those of her people who have fled into exile with her. Although she promises both Conrad Davion and Isis Marik that she fully intends to reclaim her lost homeland no matter the cost.
Unsurprising. Although there are possibilities ahead to be sure, she'd better settle in for a long wait and be fully prepared to make her home work here.
The Yeffter’s Weapons plant in orbit over Gulkana begins work on it's first of the huge new NAC-30's that it has been commissioned to provide for the growing Federated Sun's Navy. These huge naval autocannon are to form the backbone of the firepower of many of the ship classes currently either planned or under construction and the new plant is to help meet the demand.
And why, the question keeps getting asked, does the Federated Suns need THAT many NAC/30s pray tell? And why does Victor giggle like that every time we ask? :))
The front lines on Andurien finally collapse and the last of the 1st Defenders are wiped out in their last stand at the Ducal Palace by a combination of orbital strikes and artillery barrages. A handful of infantry hold out in the cellars of the palace until the 4th of November, but they are finally burned out by specially outfitted battle armoured troopers. On the 5th of November the new self styled Duke Baxter announces the formal formation of the Andurien Commonality of the Capellan Confederation with himself at it's head. Sian remains silent on the matter but doesn't formally endorse his new title.
The new Duke's first order of business is to begin rebuilding work. Priorities are given for industrial sites, his Ducal Palace and the training facilities on the planet.
Yeah, um, good luck with that given that the locals despise you with the hate of a thousand suns, he has no Government, no industries supporting him. And if he tries to coerce the locals he will have the mother of all insurgencies on his hands across the place...
Unsurprisingly, Baxter is about to find that having cut his ties loose with Sian for all intents and purposes, he has SFA in terms of ability to actually Govern the place, enemies on all sides and probably a Mask officer close at hand just waiting for the termination order. Even as the Federated Suns continues their systematic obliteration of the Capellan Confederation as he squats on planets Victor has offically recognized and has a Government in exile waiting with him
I give him a year, tops.
Coordinator Theodore Kurita makes a major play on the 26th of November when he "invites" First Prince Davion to a secret meeting face to face to discuss the current crisis. The language in the invitation ruffles more than a few feathers with the AFFS officers and FedSun's diplomatic staff who see it, but the First Prince agrees almost instantly and suggests meeting in the Northwind system. However this is immediately refused and instead the Coordinator suggests the dead system of Lockdale, once a thriving Hegemony capital world, as a neutral meeting site. Reluctantly the First Prince agrees, but with the condition that he can bring a strong escort which is accepted...
Well this isn't suspicious in any way shape or form. And what exactly is so critical he wants a face to face instead of communication via HPG ...
Wonder if they'll have a real face to face, but I think the security teams on both sides would go utterly nuts. So just a direct video conference or something...
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Just wondering if we could get a list of what units the MAC have in the Duchy of Andurien.
I don't think they have that much infantry or armour and they cannot recruit locally.
There would be so many uprisings on every world.
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Teddy wants to show off his big new battleship?
Good then the ship can break when he tries to use it.
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Good then the ship can break when he tries to use it.
I’m expecting either a Palmyra like event or an actual meeting with maybe Kitsune making an appearance. Those or a WoB style attack on the level of Outreach.
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I’m expecting either a Palmyra like event or an actual meeting with maybe Kitsune making an appearance. Those or a WoB style attack on the level of Outreach.
Theodore is likely going to try and use Victor's bastard to try and get concessions from Victor or he will reveal his existence. Not that it would help Kurita at all. It will hurt them more than it will hurt Victor. He was told the child died everyone was told the child died. This just makes Theodore look like a scumbag.
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3068 - December - Capellan Front
As December began the Capellan Confederation Armed Forces braced themselves for a Third Wave, however as the days passed no further attacks came. Instead reports from holdout forces on Davion conquered planets and the few garrisons who were still resisting reported that the AFFS was consolidating their positions and refitting/repairing their equipment, no doubt in preparation for further attacks. However just as the CCAF began to breath in relief the AFFS launched 4 limited attacks with mostly second line or mercenary formations, while completing military operations on 2 more.
Remshield
The Valexa CMM landed on Remshield in mid December and immedietly began attacking the local Home Guard formations. The Home Guard formations had been built up since the world was reclaimed by the Confederation and built up around CCAF retiree's who were given land grants on the planet and as such was not only better equipped than most similar Home Guard formations but also had a hard core of veterans around the formations. Against a March Militia formation 10 years ago this would have given them a decent chance of defending the planet or at least holding out for some time. However the modern day March Militia's had been reequipped with cast offs from more prestigious regiments which had been largely replaced with brand new equipment, and indeed in a many cases the March Militia's had been the recipient of a fair amount of modern equipment either rebuilt or even new construction. Having suffered losses in the reprisal raids of 3063 and been brought up to strength in the last 5 years the Valexa CMM had more than it's fair share of new equipment and now used that tech advantage to their benefit.
Facing a much better equipped opponent with more recent battlefield experience even the better than average Home Guard on Remshield found itself swiftly outclassed. The Valexa CMM hit the Home Guard again and again and didn't relent. Finally around the 28th of December the Home Guard formations were forced to break up into smaller groups and go to ground in the no doubt vain hope that reinforcements might arrive to save them. The Valexa CMM settled in to root out the remaining Home Guard at their leasure.
Ulan Bator
This world was hit early in December when the Wild Geese followed the fleeing Harloc's Raiders from Second Try. Faced with once again fighting the elite mercenary unit which still outnumbered them massively the Raiders didn't even try to defend the planet before falling back again. This time they decided to fall back deeper into the Confederation and headed straight for Harloc to attempt to reclaim their homeworld from the 2nd St Ives Armoured Cavalry. Leaving Ulan Bator to be occupied by the Wild Geese.
Tsingtao
Leaving the 2nd to hold Sakhalin the 3rd Lexington Combat Guards moved swiftly to secure the world of Tsingtao. Again like at Remshield the world was held only by Home Guard formations which while more fanatical than those at Remshield were worse equipped and trained. In a series of swift battles the mostly infantry formations were routed and destroyed by the 3rd Lexington Combat Guards within 2 weeks, although the unit dropped to around only 2 battalions of battlemech's during the fighting.
Palos
The arrival of the 5th Dragonlord RCT added a huge amount of firepower to the existing AFFS presence upon Palos, although the 5th was a newly raised formation that was still considered green by the High Command. However the risk to the unit under the careful eyes of the elite 1st Kestrel Grenadiers and veteran 1st Lexington Combat Guard was considered slight. Rather than give the Dragonlords their own sectors the 2 more senior units temporarily absorb the 5th into their own ranks as back up for their own battle hardened troops. Lance and Company sized formations of Dragonlords march into battle alongside the Grenadiers and Combat Guards and continue the relentless drive to destroy the Dynasty Guards, while the large formations of battle armoured troops of the 5th are used to bolster the Grenadier's own large scale battle armour formations in the heavy urban fighting.
The Dynasty Guards put up a good fight, but in previous battles they have already been reduced to around a battalion and even the addition of the local Home Guard does little to provide much in the way of effectiveness. Worse the AFFS troops have adapted their tactics and are now making it a particular point to knock out any Dynasty Guard troops, tanks or battlemech's that show themselves in preference to their militia allies. Every lost Guardsman or woman cannot be replaced. While the Guard do manage to use this to their advantage on a number of occasions by having Home Guard formations appear as Guards, there is little scope for this given the poor equipment and training of the Home Guard compared to the "real" Guard.
Outnumbered heavily against 3 almost full strength RCT's the Dynasty Guard can do little during December except sell their lives dearly. Finally on the 29th of December their Home Guard allies break and begin surrendering en-mass when the reality that no help is coming hits home. With their lines shattered and AFFS forces pouring in to isolate the remaining holdouts the Dynasty Guard attempt to fall back on the planetary capital building, but only a company of them make it. With so few defenders left the heroic last stand envisioned fizzles out in an overwhelming attack by 2 battlemech battalions of the 5th Dragonlords backed up by a 8 mixed battalions of armour and battle armour.
Victoria
Similarly to their sister regiment the Dynasty Guard all the Prefectorate Guard could do on Victoria was make a last stand. All hope had by now faded and even the most fanatical of the troops knew that no help could possible arrive in time. Allocating his own 1st Crucis Lancers RCT and the 2nd FedSun's Dragoons RCT to the final attack with the 3rd Dragonlords RCT in support Marshal Rand-Davion orders the attack on the 11th of December. The engineering elements of the 3 regiments are all detached in preparation for the attack and are even reinforced by engineers from the 11th Avalon Hussars. After 2 days of brutal tunnel fighting the AFFS units have managed to drive the remaining Capellan's into a few small isolated chambers within the factory complex - which they promptly collapse on top of the last holdouts. Delaying until the 11th to launch the attack had allowed the Davion engineers to carefully map out the remaining tunnels and prepare charges to bring down a number of Capellan held areas's roofs. Most of the CCAF troops die in the cave in, however Marshal Rand-Davion orders that the engineers begin digging out any survivors that they can. No soldier deserves to die alone in the dark he tells his troops and soon volunteers from all of the AFFS formations on planet are digging out the few Capellan's who have not been crushed.
Madras
The Sirdar CMM is brought forward to attack the world of Madras in late December. On the 23rd of December the AFFS March Militia lands on the planet, just in time to receive the surrender of the garrison and planetary ruler. With word having leaked out that no fewer than half the Capellan Hussar Brigade has been destroyed and word coming through forbidden news sources of the CCAF facing defeat on almost every front the local Duke is under no illusions as to the likelihood of his world being able to hold out even against a second line formation like the Sirdar CMM.
Summary
This combined "demi-wave" has resulted in only 4 new worlds falling to the Federated Sun's, however it has also included the loss of both Victoria and Palos which had been hit in previous waves. Worse the 2 of the 4 worlds which had fell had done so with barely a shot fired, while the other worlds Home Guard had put up only ineffectual and short lived resistance. To both the High Command on New Avalon and to the Strategios on Sian the implications were clear. The CCAF had been stretched to breaking point and the outer shell of resistance had now been cracked. While a number of "fortress" worlds such as Sarna and Capella were being prepared to resist the invasions the CCAF was no longer able to contest the AFFS's attacks on a broad front. All that had potentially stopped dozens of worlds falling to the AFFS in December had been their own halt to refit their equipment, rest their troops and extend their supply lines. When, and it was a "when" not an "if", Victor Davion launched a third full wave the results were likely to be catastrophic for the Confederation.
Worse when the Marshigama’s Legionnaires were ordered from Drozan to take up post on Housekarle in order to prevent or delay a drive from Operation Rat III towards Sian they instead relocated to the Andurien Commonality and offered their services to Duke Baxter. The message to the Strategios was clear, morale was now collapsing within the CCAF even in units that had not yet been fed into the meat grinder. Ion Rush and Talon Zahn requested a meeting with the Chancellor in order to explain the reality of the strategic situation to him. While neither man had so much as whispered the word surrender in their request the Chancellor responded with rage and refused to see both of them. Neither man was arrested or removed, but their once free access to the Chancellor was now gone.
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Welp I hope the soldiers of Marshigama’s Legionnaires are ready for the consequences. Even when the Capellan Confederation is having 'happy' days, that kind of out and out disobeying direct orders generally results in your family being very publicly conscripted into servitor infantry battalions with the honor of going in against Davion Devil mechs with rifles and orders to not take one step back!
And that's if you're lucky and they're not just all lined up against the wall and shot one by one, with the footage sent priority HPG to said soliders.
If they're lucky, their families are on a world that has already fallen to the Davions.
In any event, running from one part of the Capellan Confederation to the other only delays the inevitable. And if Baxter declares independence, then he paints a giant target on his back anyway. So good luck with that!
That Dragonlords attack was also hilarious. A company of Mechs against 2 Battalions of Mechs + 8 Battalions of Battle Armor with armored support?! The word 'curbstomp' is thrown around an awful lot these days, but...
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That Dragonlords attack was also hilarious. A company of Mechs against 2 Battalions of Mechs + 8 Battalions of Battle Armor with armored support?! The word 'curbstomp' is thrown around an awful lot these days, but...
A damaged company that's watched it's entire regiment smashed and has been in combat against overwhelming forces on not one but two worlds... To say they would have been at less than full combat strength is an understatement... A company of walking wounded in crippled mechs with almost no ammo and tissue paper armour... Against 2 battalions of almost fresh troops in top of the line mech's backed up by 8 conventional battalions of troops. Ya think the AFFS were sending a message there...? :p
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3068 - December - General Update
Even as the AFFS consolidated it's position on the worlds it had seized from the Capellan Confederation the High Command on New Avalon continued to work to raise new regiments and reinforce existing ones with graduating warriors from the academies while also funnelling new machines and equipment to the front. In any given year the Department of Military Education, Department of the Quartermaster and Department of Military Administration always found themselves overstretched during December, but with a full war also taking place they are worked of their feet and end up borrowing staff from other administrative posts in order to stay on top of everything.
The first new units to formally be added to the rolls were the 1st and 2nd Lexington Military Academy Light Combat Teams. Each consists of a LCT style formation, with the cavalry styled 1st forming up on Lexington itself while the more heavy weight 2nd was formed up on the world of Sun Prairie to give additional protection to the factories there. The formation of the 2nd Lexington Military Academy LCT would allow the redeployment of the 9th Avalon Hussars RCT to Glenmora on the Draconis Combine border.
The single RCT sized formation planned for 3068 began forming up during December upon the world of Point Barrow. The return of the Point Barrow CrMM to the active rolls was welcomed with huge celebrations within the Point Barrow Combat Region. While since Prince Victor's return their region had not lacked for battlemech forces - with the 11th FedSun's Dragoons RCT bolstering the 2 training units currently - the fact was that the Regular Army formations which had been assigned to the Combat Region were liable to be called away to more active areas in the event of war. This was unlikely to happen to the Point Barrow CrMM and it gave the area a much greater level of not only security but continuity of defenders that was welcomed.
The AFFS also formed an entirely new Brigade in December the Avalon Borderer's Brigade, formed around the 1st Avalon Borderer's LCT and the 4 units which were to be formed up this month. The 1st would remain at it's posting on the world of Edwards and continue to train there was well as protect the factories on that world. The 2nd Avalon Borderer's LCT would take up a similar posting on the industrial world of Torrence, where it would use the nearby New Avalon Combat Training Centre to improve it's skills. The 3rd Avalon Borderer's LCT would be formed upon the world of Chirikof to protect the command post of the Chirikof Operational Area. The 4th would be formed upon the world of Clovis while the present garrison of the 2nd NAIS Cadre would be moved closer to the border, moving to the world of Mara. The 5th Avalon Borderer's would form up on the world of Benet III where unlike at most postings the current garrison of the 41st Avalon Hussars RCT would remain. The plan was that in the event of war with the Combine the 41st would be freed up for offensive operations while the 5th Avalon Borderer's would remain behind to protect it's base and the factories on the world of Benet III. These deployments would cement in the minds of not only the High Command but also the Avalon Borderer's themselves their role within the AFFS - they would be the reserves, holding key worlds to free up more prestigious units for offensive work. While a few of the new soldiers of the Borderer's would decry these deployments the vast majority realised that this was not only vital work but also work that would allow them to continue to train in relative security in order to later be transferred to commands such as the Avalon Hussars or Crucis Lancers.
The deployment of the 5th Avalon Borderer's LCT to Benet III was mirrored when the newly formed 3rd Tancredi Loyalist LCT was ordered to move to the world of Klathandu IV to back up the 1st Argyle Lancers who had been based on that world since 3063. Whether the 3rd Tancredi was to fufil a similar role to the 5th Borderer's and protect the world if the Argyle Lancers went on the offensive or were instead intended to join the Lancer's in any attack was left open ended for now. It did however merit some note within commentators that this was the first time that a Loyalist LCT had been deployed beyond the confines of the Bryceland PDZ.
Alongside the formation of the Avalon Borderer's Brigade the Tikonov Cossack's were upgraded from a single independent regiment into a demi-brigade during December with the formation of a 2nd Tikonov Cossack's. With the 1st Cossack's deployed to take part in Operation Rat II the 2nd was formed to replace them on the key world of Tikonov. Similar to the 1st the new unit would be largely a cavalry formation, however with a slightly heavier weight of battlemechs taking particular advantage of the new Tikonov produced Koschei. Unlike most of the new units the 2nd Cossack's would be massively under strength and would be added to the rolls while only at around half strength.
Similarly the 1st Bromhead Borderer's Cadre would be added to the rolls with the plan being that it would slowly expand until it became an active Borderer regiment. With the progress being made by Operation Rat III a few within the High Command had questioned the need for the Bromhead Borderer's to actually be formed given that the Capellan border was being pushed further and further back from the world. However given the recent problems with the Taurian Concordat and the nearby unsettled space between the Concordat and Canopian space the addition of a permanent Borderer unit is still felt to be worthwhile.
The final command to be formed during December would be the 1st Syrtis Hussars LCT on New Syrtis itself. The battlemechs and equipment used to equip this new unit were entirely sourced and funded by Duke George Hasek in his role as Minister for the Capellan March and Duke of New Syrtis, while the personnel would be drawn exclusively from the cold world of New Syrtis itself. Unlike most Syrtis Fusiliers the new formation is to be equipped with exclusively light and medium cavalry battlemechs and is designed to be a mobile formation that can be used for reconnaissance missions or raiding. They will also have a secondary speciality of arctic fighting due to their background and training at the New Syrtis Training Centre.
As the new formations began to take shape more personnel and equipment was routed to the units which had received damage in the ongoing battles on the Capellan front in order to replace losses. As per what was now standard doctrine the High Command attempted to avoid flooding a unit with newly graduating troops from the training cadres in order to prevent the loss of vital experience. For instance while the High Command had more than enough replacement personnel to bring the 4th Davion Guards RCT back to full strength they instead dispatched only a single company of battlemech mechwarriors with commensurate numbers of conventional personnel in order for the unit to retain it's elite status. A steady flow of replacements push into the former Sarna March and the occupied worlds of the Victoria, Sian and Capellan Commonalities.
In a surprise move the First Prince celebrates Christmas on Tikonov with his new wife at his side. Isis Davion had secretly been rushed from New Avalon to her husband's side in time for Christmas. The Duke of Tikonov places his own winter palace at their disposal and makes a great show of welcoming Isis Davion to his world, commenting on how good it is for families to be together at this time of year - strongly hinting to the First Prince that perhaps elements of the Wild Geese might be re-positioned to the world of Tikonov so that he might see his grandson...
On Demeter the new Lycomb-Davion plant to produce Guillotine class battlemechs for the AFFS and ComGuards goes operation and immedietly begins shipping the popular heavy battlemech to nearby ComGuard's formations and AFFS units. The production allocated to the AFFS is sent predominantly to help the rebuilding of the nearby 1st Aragon Borderer's and to the still forming 1st Bell Borderer's Cadre. Lycomb-Davion also see's their factory on June add an Awesome battlemech production facility this month. They consider whether or not to add an Awesome line to Demeter or a Guillotine line to June to add further redundancy to these 2 designs.
The Davion-Com plant on Defiance adds a Warhammer line to their existing production facilities in December. Far from the front lines this additional line still see's it's production rushed by the ever increasing numbers of jumpships plying Federated Sun's space towards the front lines to bolster not only the AFFS but also the ComGuards.
Corsara Weapon's on Northfield which had entered production in November begins to ship large numbers of Crab battlemech's to the ComGuards and lesser numbers to the AFFS - where they mostly end up in the Draconis March Militia's and Robinson Rangers brigades.
With the additional security provided by the new Point Barrow CrMM GM decides to upgrade their plant on that world by adding a new Blackjack-O line. This news is seen by many within the Outback that the investments in their security can lead to increased investments in their planets industries. As such a number of worlds rulers begin to make active efforts to bolster their militia formations or petitioning to form new units to protect their worlds.
On Torrence the Veridan Dynamic's plant's Pitbull truck lines are doubled to 6. Even with this increase demand is still higher given the huge industrial expansions going on throughout the Federated Suns. Further expansions are planned.
FedBoeing's shipyard over Verde see's the first Cargomaster and Cargoking dropships begin to complete. However the initial dropships will require a few hasty refits after their initial shakedown cruises within the Verde system. This will delay actual production until next month.
Even as the war continues the AFFS contacts various Military-Industrial Companies to discuss the rebuilding of the shattered Victoria based Shengli Arms facility. GM and Kallon both declare interest in buying the remnants of the facility to put it back into production, as does Johnston Industries. Bids are invited from all 3 companies.
Northwind see's the return of the 1st Kearny Highlanders and the Northwind Hussars from the Andurien front. Both units have taken heavy losses and accept garrison contracts with the AFFS for the world of Northwind to allow themselves to rebuild over time. The Northwind Hussars are somewhat reluctant to accept a contract with the FedSuns however the offer of free medical care for all wounded Northwind Highlanders at the NAIS and other elite hospitals swings them around to accepting the contract. As is the offer that the members of Jaffray's Own who have survived and been reabsorbed into the Highlanders will be granted full pardons - conditional upon them swearing to never take up arms against the Federated Suns or House Davion. While a few speak out against demanding Highlanders give such oaths, most accept that given that they joined the CCAF this is a generous offer from House Davion. "Colonel" Jaffray himself, still in a medical coma, is rushed to the NAIS to receive treatment.
Within the Capellan Confederation fighting comes to Sian itself, but not by any AFFS raid. Instead a company of Death Commando's attempt to take Sang-shao An Shennu of the Red Lancers into custody in a swift operation into the Red Lancers barracks. The Red Lancers's commanding officer is the daughter of the traitor Duke of Larsha and as such leaving her in command of the largest and most effective military formation on Sian is felt to be ill advised. Unfortunately for the plans to take her into custody quietly, a Red Lancer company returning from a training exercise see the Death Commando's arresting their commanding officer and attempt to free her. In a swift and brutal firefight the Death Commando company is overwhelmed and destroyed by the Red Lancers who at the sound of battle mobilise around them. For a few short hours the Red Lancers are on the verge of being declared traitors and attacked, until cooler heads prevail. Ion Rush himself arrives alone at the barracks of the Red Lancers and convinces them to stand down and for Sang-shao to voluntarily surrender herself into his custody. He gives her his own personal word of honour that she will not be mistreated. This incident does however leave the Red Lancers with a strong aversion to the Death Commando's and costs both units almost a company each of warriors who were killed in the aborted battle.
Duke Baxter during December petitions the Chancellor for the worlds of Sax, Principia, Niomede and Shiba all of which were historically worlds of the Andurien Commonality to be returned to his newly reclaimed Commonality. Sian makes no reply. They do however instruct the 1st and 2nd Capellan Chargers to head towards the Federated Sun's front and take up posts Wright and Nihal in preparations to retake Grand Base.
Sian also announces the formation of the 10th, 11th and 12th Sian Dragoons all on Sian. All 3 regiments are a mix of military graduates and Home Guard formations many of which are still equipped with their original equipment. All of the new formations are under strength and their officers mostly walking wounded from destroyed commands or retired veterans recalled to the colours. Sian's holo-news channels however point out that this brings the garrison of the world to an invincible 5 regiments of patriots bolstered by the Chancellor's own Death Commandos!
The Lyran Alliance-Free World League frontier see's the LAAF send the 10th Lyran Regulars to the world of Epsilon, the 7th Donegal Guards to Nestor, 7th Lyran Regulars to Nockatunga and the 2nd Donegal Guards to Promised Land - all for "security reasons" and to "ensure the security of the worlds in question". All factions within the fractured League decried the move as a blatant land grab.
The Duchy of Tamarind in particular is extremely concerned by these aggressive moves towards their frontier by the LAAF and immedietly announce the formation of the 1st and 2nd Tamarind Militia to counter this aggression and bolster their defenders. The Silver Hawks Coalition, also threatened by the seizure of Nestor announce that they too will add a new regiment to their active formations. The Eagle regiment is formed from militia drawn from the various worlds of the Coalition.
Coordinator Theodore Kurita arranges to meet with the First Prince Victor Davion at Lockdale. Both rulers will be entitled to bring a large escort to ensure their safety to the meeting which is scheduled to take place on the 24th January 3069.
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it could be a Rocking New Year. >:D
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I think one of the next brigades given consideration for reformation should be the Arcadian cuirassiers. They were a small 2 regiment brigade which served from their home world of Demeter and lasted into 2nd succession war. Perhaps reform them as the An Arcadian Borderers regiment?
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Interesting, but why in the hell is Peter making waves on the FWL border right now? It doesn't gain him very much at all and just raises tensions considerably for no real purpose...
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You assume that it's Peter & not one of his dukes or generals messing around. There's also the WoB infiltrators to consider. They might have messed around with the orders.
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Honestly, that kind of 'oh it must have been one of the Dukes!' gets really old really quickly. Peter is more than strong enough now in his position that if anyone launched an unauthorized offensive into the FWL (and somehow he didn't find out before it went off which seems equally unlikely), he would be able to publicly rebuke them and order the troops back, with an apology to the FWL.
Multiple planets being attacked though is a lot more than one Duke making a play, thats a movement that could only realistically be sanctioned by Tharkad.
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Interesting, but why in the hell is Peter making waves on the FWL border right now? It doesn't gain him very much at all and just raises tensions considerably for no real purpose...
Peter is more than aware that right now a a large chunk of the Lyran nation are looking at the Federated Suns and thinking - "maybe we made a mistake...".
His brothers conquered "half the Capellan Confederation" and is "Hanse reborn" according to some... Peter managed to repel the Jade Falcons (nothing to be sneered at) but it isn't in the same league. He's looking for a few cheap gains to bolster his popularity. He's not intending any major invasion - just picking of some low lying fruit as it were. It's a PR stunt more than a genuine military invasion.
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Well Victor is going to have to make a choice now stay true to his word and swing his forces to Terra or tell ComStar to hold off the attack while the war is on and he builds up more ships and resources. The second is is the smart choice but it depends on ComStar agreeing and not just going off on their own. The WoB is rebuilding the defenses in the Sol system but no one knows that because scouts and spies haven't been sent in to check.
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There is no way FS can commit to assult on Terra now, it will have to wait until AFFS recovers from the Capellan war.
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I duno, I actually think they could pull it off.
First, they've been building units non stop now and up-teching them non stop for so long that the strictly defensive units they have on the borders and backstopping key worlds are pretty damn considerable. The Combine Border is the only really dangerous border and even then, the Combine have their own problems, what with the Clans still waiting out there and the Truce timeline now over, meaning the Clans can attack anytime they want...
Secondly, the ComGuards are providing the bulk of the ground forces. Victor promised I think 20RCTs, but if Peter provides his troops too, even if Victor has to cut back to 15RCTs or 12RCTs, its still a pretty bloody overwhelming force. The Federated Suns even has the opportunity now with the new Capellan worlds, to quietly start building forward logistics bases, ostensibly to support the ongoing attacks, but far enough 'back' no attempt at an Operation Ripooste II could be made...which would put them very close to Terra. There are still a LOT of RCTs that have not been touched in this campaign, the key is going to be how quickly Victor can finish off Sian to be safe in taking a break.
Third, Terra is a hard target, BUT, it's a single target and logistically much easier to support an attack against than an entire Successor State. The key (and biggest help the Federated Suns can do) is orbital supremacy. The FSN has done its job more or less with the Capellans, they don't even really have a 'fleet in being' anymore. Victor can afford to concentrate his fleets heavily into an all out attack into the Terran system on schedule, along with the Comguard fleet and whatever Peter sends. Smash the crap out of the WOB defenses, gain orbital supremacy over a matter of a week or two, then he can withdraw most of his warships back into the Federated Suns (heading back home through the Draconis March as a pointed message to not ****** with him). Then at their leisure with Terra blockaded, you can start landing your troops.
In all honestly, AFFS casualties have been pretty light thus far - and more than offset by the new units being built up and replacements shipped into the damaged units. The overmatch is just that great.
The only real sticking point is how fast Victor can hit Sian and cripple the Confederation as a coordinated state. He can even afford to take his foot off their throat if they have both their legs broken, walk over to smash the WOB, then turn back to finish off the Confederation at his leisure. Just make sure you have a solid stop line and you eliminate any last reaction forces that might cause trouble and don't over-extend.
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I duno, I actually think they could pull it off.
First, they've been building units non stop now and up-teching them non stop for so long that the strictly defensive units they have on the borders and backstopping key worlds are pretty damn considerable. The Combine Border is the only really dangerous border and even then, the Combine have their own problems, what with the Clans still waiting out there and the Truce timeline now over, meaning the Clans can attack anytime they want...
Secondly, the ComGuards are providing the bulk of the ground forces. Victor promised I think 20RCTs, but if Peter provides his troops too, even if Victor has to cut back to 15RCTs or 12RCTs, its still a pretty bloody overwhelming force. The Federated Suns even has the opportunity now with the new Capellan worlds, to quietly start building forward logistics bases, ostensibly to support the ongoing attacks, but far enough 'back' no attempt at an Operation Ripooste II could be made...which would put them very close to Terra. There are still a LOT of RCTs that have not been touched in this campaign, the key is going to be how quickly Victor can finish off Sian to be safe in taking a break.
Third, Terra is a hard target, BUT, it's a single target and logistically much easier to support an attack against than an entire Successor State. The key (and biggest help the Federated Suns can do) is orbital supremacy. The FSN has done its job more or less with the Capellans, they don't even really have a 'fleet in being' anymore. Victor can afford to concentrate his fleets heavily into an all out attack into the Terran system on schedule, along with the Comguard fleet and whatever Peter sends. Smash the crap out of the WOB defenses, gain orbital supremacy over a matter of a week or two, then he can withdraw most of his warships back into the Federated Suns (heading back home through the Draconis March as a pointed message to not ****** with him). Then at their leisure with Terra blockaded, you can start landing your troops.
In all honestly, AFFS casualties have been pretty light thus far - and more than offset by the new units being built up and replacements shipped into the damaged units. The overmatch is just that great.
The only real sticking point is how fast Victor can hit Sian and cripple the Confederation as a coordinated state. He can even afford to take his foot off their throat if they have both their legs broken, walk over to smash the WOB, then turn back to finish off the Confederation at his leisure. Just make sure you have a solid stop line and you eliminate any last reaction forces that might cause trouble and don't over-extend.
No I also thought that the units assigned for the Terra attack had not been used but a lot have been used in the war. The OP said this on AH "A lot of the troops have been deployed - for instance the Davion Assault Guards, Kestrel Grenadiers, etc... But there is still a solid core of troops that could be used to attack terra. If Victor agrees to commit them - but they are his last reserves frankly." Which means Victor has used up the build-up in his war with only a much smaller core left that he wants to use in the current war as his reserve.
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Eh?
Victor doesn't NEED to use those units for the Terran attack, he can easily substitute others in.
I'll grant you Victor has thrown a lot of force at the Confederation, something on the order of 35 or so RCTs, 15 independent regiments and 10 or so Merc units. Which in 3025 would be a HUGE amount of the AFFS's force...
But this isn't 3025.
Keeping in mind I think I'm underrating the units that have been brought online as a whole heap have been stood up since the last OOB post;
RCT Brigades;
24 Avalon Hussar RCTs. 6 Committed.
8 Crucis Lancers RCTs. 3 committed.
8 Dragonlord RCTs. 3 committed.
9 FedSuns Dragoons RCTs. 3 committed.
6 Sytris Dragoons RCTs. 5 committed (although honestly they are going to be involved anyway and staying put so it makes sense).
6 Robinson Rangers RCTs. 1 committed (although that's probably as much a political gesture by Sandoval to Hasek and Victor).
10 Davion Guards RCTs. 6 committed.
6 Deneb Light Calvary RCTs. 2 committed.
6 DragonLords RCTs. 3 committed.
3 Ceti Hussar's RCTs. 1 committed.
Independent RCTs;
1st Kathil Uhlan's RCT
1st Revenant Guards RCT
Independent Regiment Brigades;
9 Borderer Brigade Regiments, 2 committed.
3 Lexington Combat Guards Units, 3 Committed
3 FSAC, 3 Committed
Note- these are the only two Brigade sized forces that committed all their units to the war.
Independent Units;
1st Capellan Dragoons
1st Tikonov Cossack's
1st Sheraton Knights
Sun Jaguars Golden Keshik
1st Sun Jaguars Guards Cluster
March Militia Units;
Valexa CMM
Sirdar CMM
Merc Units;
Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment
1st Illician Lancers
2nd Illician Lancers
3rd Illician Lancers
4th Illician Lancers
1st Cunningham Commandos
Hansen's Roughriders
1894th Light Horse
21st Rim Worlds Blue Star Irregulars
Wild Geese
So, we have 35 RCTs, 11 Independent regiments (which are a mixture of forces) and two Clan units. Then 10 Merc units.
The only defensive units committed are the two CMM units. That leaves twenty seven March Militia units around key worlds on the borders. It leaves 15-20 Merc units still in reserve, many of which are multi-regimental formations. It leaves all the training units, organized as LCTs spread out across the Suns that, are granted, pretty green, but well equipped and if attached to other units, perfectly well suited for defensive work. It doesn't include the bulk of the Sun Jaguars forces that are probably going to get blueballs if they don't find someone to go and beat up like their Khan is (don't want to even think of how much shouting she had to do to lay down the law on who got to go with her and smash crappies heads in in a REAL war - and who got to stay at home...). It doesn't include plenty of other independent commands still running around the Federated Suns. The Chisholm Raiders RCTs are untouched....
The Federated Suns has something North of 80 RCTs (could be a 100 if the March Milita units are organized as RCTs frankly).
Worse, the sheer overwhelming force Victor has smashed the CCAF, knocking out almost all their major mobile units and strategic reserves like the Big MAC, Warrior Houses and knocking off most of their warships, means that whats left are huddling onto a smaller and smaller number of planets. Even worse, Victors units (for the most part) have had a pretty damn easy time of it. So much so that Victor has already started to ship reinforcements to his units and rebuild them! In the field! He could easily chop half of his ground units out of the loop in favor of just leaving garrison infantry and armored units, sending the Mech and Aerospace units to Terra where they will be far more useful.
In short, if Victor wants to still commit to Terra, he has MORE than enough reserves to do so while holding his borders. The Concordant is neutralized as a strategic threat of any kind and is pretty clearly in its death throes. The Periphery regions are able to more than look after themselves now with the pirate threat crushed and enough local milita units able to easily crush any leftovers too stupid to find somewhere else to hit. There are still plenty of march milita units on key worlds blocking any deep strikes. The Draconis March is still very well defended based on deployments, with five of the six Robinson Rangers present and plenty of other units around in depth. The Combine OTOH has at least three, if not four, other powers to really worry about on its border meaning that the force Theodore might be able to commit if he thought for some crazy reason it was a good idea to poke Victor, would be frankly, insufficient to do more than take a couple of border planets if he was very lucky. If he is hoping to try and intimidate Victor with this meeting, he's really walking an incredibly dangerous line...
IMHO, Victor could easily pull back 10-15 of his RCTs now that he has crushed the Capellans mobile forces, they are overkill. Replace them with 5-6 fresh RCTs from his reserves, while sending those 10-15 units up to the Terran Regions. Officially, to rest and rebuild in peace (and perhaps give poor Sun Tzu a pathetic ray of hope that Victor is sending a message that he is willing to end this war at some cost??!!). Also seemingly sending a message to Teddy that just because Victor is fighting the Confederation, he can drop 15 RCTs into Dieron if you do anything stupid. And the WOB not having a clue, hopefully, that they are about to get sealed hand-delivered orders after they have arrived and had a month or two to rest and rebuild (material losses are frankly irrelevent given the AFFs's factories now!), that they are going for the Homeworld...
The even better news is that, as noted at the start of this war, the Federated Suns has a whole load of new naval construction about to finish. So you can very quickly move those ships in a shakedown cruise to the Confederation and still keep hunting for the handful of warships Sun Tzu has left, then release the veteran ships again to head North (with some clever MIIO misdirection with changed names and transponders from other ships showing them perhaps heading in a different direction??) via uninhabited but picketed systems, quickly, to place them at a jump off point to hit Terra on schedule...
The biggest problem is keeping WOB from finding out from agents in ComStar. Best bet might me ComStar and Peter moving units into the upper Sarna March, openly in support of Victors righteous crusade to finally take down the Liao monster. Making it look to the WOB like they are just trying to cash some free PR by getting in on the action in a perfectly safe REMF way...until suddenly everyone jumps to Terra.
Not that I'm trying to tell Billy how to write his incredibly fun story or anything crazy like that!
Just noting that the sheer absurd buildup of the AFFS means that unlike Hanse, Victor has a glut of units he can still move around, especially with his other borders pretty much dead quiet.
Frankly, the only thing limiting his ability to hit Terra at the same time, are his jumpships. They have been improving sure, in terms of their numbers and coverage, but ...
He might have to do what Hanse did and conscript some jumpships - if only for a month or two rather than years!- just to get his strike force into Terra. But its probably more logical to keep the ground forces back for the first waves and just focus on an overwhelming warship invasion. Secure space superiority - then supremacy- for the ComGuards and Peter to hit with multiple armies across Terra and Sol and Victor can send his ground forces into the fight a few months later as fresh troops. His warships are frankly far more critical to the operation than his RCTs, at least in the opening few months.
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Great updates as always and blimey, I didn't quite realise the AFFS had quite that reserve of forces available. The Cappies are pretty much screwed. The Davion's have their boot on their throat and its only a matter of applying pressure, until there's either a Palace coup and Sunny suffers a tragic accident whilst looking at his sword collection or cleaning his pistol. Or, Suns warships enter orbit over Sian and start landing troops. The latter would be a bloody endeavour though.
There's also the Sun Jaguars who would probably openly relish the chance at a fight.
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Eh?
Victor doesn't NEED to use those units for the Terran attack, he can easily substitute others in.
I'll grant you Victor has thrown a lot of force at the Confederation, something on the order of 35 or so RCTs, 15 independent regiments and 10 or so Merc units. Which in 3025 would be a HUGE amount of the AFFS's force...
But this isn't 3025.
Keeping in mind I think I'm underrating the units that have been brought online as a whole heap have been stood up since the last OOB post;
RCT Brigades;
24 Avalon Hussar RCTs. 6 Committed.
8 Crucis Lancers RCTs. 3 committed.
8 Dragonlord RCTs. 3 committed.
9 FedSuns Dragoons RCTs. 3 committed.
6 Sytris Dragoons RCTs. 5 committed (although honestly they are going to be involved anyway and staying put so it makes sense).
6 Robinson Rangers RCTs. 1 committed (although that's probably as much a political gesture by Sandoval to Hasek and Victor).
10 Davion Guards RCTs. 6 committed.
6 Deneb Light Calvary RCTs. 2 committed.
6 DragonLords RCTs. 3 committed.
3 Ceti Hussar's RCTs. 1 committed.
Independent RCTs;
1st Kathil Uhlan's RCT
1st Revenant Guards RCT
Independent Regiment Brigades;
9 Borderer Brigade Regiments, 2 committed.
3 Lexington Combat Guards Units, 3 Committed
3 FSAC, 3 Committed
Note- these are the only two Brigade sized forces that committed all their units to the war.
Independent Units;
1st Capellan Dragoons
1st Tikonov Cossack's
1st Sheraton Knights
Sun Jaguars Golden Keshik
1st Sun Jaguars Guards Cluster
March Militia Units;
Valexa CMM
Sirdar CMM
Merc Units;
Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment
1st Illician Lancers
2nd Illician Lancers
3rd Illician Lancers
4th Illician Lancers
1st Cunningham Commandos
Hansen's Roughriders
1894th Light Horse
21st Rim Worlds Blue Star Irregulars
Wild Geese
So, we have 35 RCTs, 11 Independent regiments (which are a mixture of forces) and two Clan units. Then 10 Merc units.
The only defensive units committed are the two CMM units. That leaves twenty seven March Militia units around key worlds on the borders. It leaves 15-20 Merc units still in reserve, many of which are multi-regimental formations. It leaves all the training units, organized as LCTs spread out across the Suns that, are granted, pretty green, but well equipped and if attached to other units, perfectly well suited for defensive work. It doesn't include the bulk of the Sun Jaguars forces that are probably going to get blueballs if they don't find someone to go and beat up like their Khan is (don't want to even think of how much shouting she had to do to lay down the law on who got to go with her and smash crappies heads in in a REAL war - and who got to stay at home...). It doesn't include plenty of other independent commands still running around the Federated Suns. The Chisholm Raiders RCTs are untouched....
The Federated Suns has something North of 80 RCTs (could be a 100 if the March Milita units are organized as RCTs frankly).
Worse, the sheer overwhelming force Victor has smashed the CCAF, knocking out almost all their major mobile units and strategic reserves like the Big MAC, Warrior Houses and knocking off most of their warships, means that whats left are huddling onto a smaller and smaller number of planets. Even worse, Victors units (for the most part) have had a pretty damn easy time of it. So much so that Victor has already started to ship reinforcements to his units and rebuild them! In the field! He could easily chop half of his ground units out of the loop in favor of just leaving garrison infantry and armored units, sending the Mech and Aerospace units to Terra where they will be far more useful.
In short, if Victor wants to still commit to Terra, he has MORE than enough reserves to do so while holding his borders. The Concordant is neutralized as a strategic threat of any kind and is pretty clearly in its death throes. The Periphery regions are able to more than look after themselves now with the pirate threat crushed and enough local milita units able to easily crush any leftovers too stupid to find somewhere else to hit. There are still plenty of march milita units on key worlds blocking any deep strikes. The Draconis March is still very well defended based on deployments, with five of the six Robinson Rangers present and plenty of other units around in depth. The Combine OTOH has at least three, if not four, other powers to really worry about on its border meaning that the force Theodore might be able to commit if he thought for some crazy reason it was a good idea to poke Victor, would be frankly, insufficient to do more than take a couple of border planets if he was very lucky. If he is hoping to try and intimidate Victor with this meeting, he's really walking an incredibly dangerous line...
IMHO, Victor could easily pull back 10-15 of his RCTs now that he has crushed the Capellans mobile forces, they are overkill. Replace them with 5-6 fresh RCTs from his reserves, while sending those 10-15 units up to the Terran Regions. Officially, to rest and rebuild in peace (and perhaps give poor Sun Tzu a pathetic ray of hope that Victor is sending a message that he is willing to end this war at some cost??!!). Also seemingly sending a message to Teddy that just because Victor is fighting the Confederation, he can drop 15 RCTs into Dieron if you do anything stupid. And the WOB not having a clue, hopefully, that they are about to get sealed hand-delivered orders after they have arrived and had a month or two to rest and rebuild (material losses are frankly irrelevent given the AFFs's factories now!), that they are going for the Homeworld...
The even better news is that, as noted at the start of this war, the Federated Suns has a whole load of new naval construction about to finish. So you can very quickly move those ships in a shakedown cruise to the Confederation and still keep hunting for the handful of warships Sun Tzu has left, then release the veteran ships again to head North (with some clever MIIO misdirection with changed names and transponders from other ships showing them perhaps heading in a different direction??) via uninhabited but picketed systems, quickly, to place them at a jump off point to hit Terra on schedule...
The biggest problem is keeping WOB from finding out from agents in ComStar. Best bet might me ComStar and Peter moving units into the upper Sarna March, openly in support of Victors righteous crusade to finally take down the Liao monster. Making it look to the WOB like they are just trying to cash some free PR by getting in on the action in a perfectly safe REMF way...until suddenly everyone jumps to Terra.
Not that I'm trying to tell Billy how to write his incredibly fun story or anything crazy like that!
Just noting that the sheer absurd buildup of the AFFS means that unlike Hanse, Victor has a glut of units he can still move around, especially with his other borders pretty much dead quiet.
Frankly, the only thing limiting his ability to hit Terra at the same time, are his jumpships. They have been improving sure, in terms of their numbers and coverage, but ...
He might have to do what Hanse did and conscript some jumpships - if only for a month or two rather than years!- just to get his strike force into Terra. But its probably more logical to keep the ground forces back for the first waves and just focus on an overwhelming warship invasion. Secure space superiority - then supremacy- for the ComGuards and Peter to hit with multiple armies across Terra and Sol and Victor can send his ground forces into the fight a few months later as fresh troops. His warships are frankly far more critical to the operation than his RCTs, at least in the opening few months.
You've listed the Dragonlords Brigade twice, were you referring to a different one with, one with eight RCTs?
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December 3068 AFFS
AFFS
31st December 3068
Independent Commands
1st Arcadians RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re)
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 100% - Klathandu IV
1st Capellan Dragoons – Veteran – 100% - Bell
1st Kathil Uhlans – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Kathil
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) –
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) – Outreach
1st Sheraton Knights – Regular – 60% - Sheraton - attached support forces (veteran) at 100%
1st Syrtis Hussars LCT – Green – 100%
Avalon Borderer’s
1st Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - Edwards
2nd Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - forming Torrence
3rd Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - forming Chirikof
4th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - forming Clovis
5th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% -
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) - Abbeyville
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – Panpour –
3rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 80% (Re) – Islamabad
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) – New Valencia
5th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) -
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re)
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) – Yuris
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) - Cooperland – Periphery
14th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% – Woodbine Combat Training Centre
15th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 90% (Re) -
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% (Re) - Cassias
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Sun Jaguar Enclaves
21st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 50% (Re) - Maram
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Talon
23rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% – June
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% –
27th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% (Re) – Ruchbah
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% - Gulkana
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) –
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) - Tortuga Dominions
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% - Lothair
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) -
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) - Benet III
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Crofton
Potential new hussars –7th (generic), 8th (assault), 16th (light fast assault),
Borderer Brigade - with armoured regiment, infantry regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st Aragon Borderers – Elite – 60%
1st Bell Borderers Cadre – Green – 40%
1st Brockton Borderers Cadre – Green – 40%
1st Bromhead Borderers Cadre – Green – 20% - newly formed
1st Conroe Borderers Cadre – Green – 40%
1st Galtor Borderers Cadre – Green – 30%
1st Kittery Borderers – Veteran – 90%
1st Mitchel Borderers – Green – 100%
1st Tortuga Borderers – Green – 60% - 100% material
1st Woodstock Borderers – Regular – 100%
To be formed:
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re)
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Green – 80% (Re)
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) -
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Errai
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) –
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 90%
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) –
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) –
Davion Old Guards RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) -
Davion Young Guards RCT – Green – 100% (Re) –
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) -
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) -
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) -
5th Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) –
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% -
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Green – 90% -
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% -
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% -
12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100%
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
Dragonlords Brigade - officers drawn from Davion Brigades, rest drawn from Cadres – 3rd to go to Caldwell
1st Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) – Bromhead
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) – Lindsay
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) –
4th Dragonlords RCT – Veteran – 50% (Re)
5th Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) – Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
6th Dragonlords RCT – Green – 90% (Re) – New Avalon Combat Training Centre
Federated Sun’s Armoured Cavalry – includes an armoured and BA regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st FSAC – Elite – 90% (Re)
2nd FSAC – Veteran – 60% (Re)
3rd FSAC – Veteran – 90% (Re)
FedSun’s Dragoons Brigade
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 70% - Epsilon Indi
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 50% -
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Paris
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Elite – 80% - Genoa
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 50% - Frazer
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Green – 70% - Defiance
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Montour
Lexington Combat Guards
1st Lexington Combat Guards – 32nd Recon – Veteran – 60% (Re)
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – 241st Battle – Regular – 90%
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – 180th Dragoon – Veteran– 60%
New Avalon Cavaliers
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 70% (Re) – El Dorado
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100% - Tripoli
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Veteran – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) - Robinson
2nd Robinson Rangers RCT – Veteran – 100% - heavily upgraded with Omnimechs – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 100%
4th Robinson Rangers RCT – Veteran – 90% - former Fighting Urukhai,
5th Robinson Rangers RCT – Elite – 90% - former Narhal’s Raiders, fanatically anti-Kurita.
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Regular – 100% - Robinson – earmarked for task force victor
Syrtis Fusiliers
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 100% - New Syrtis – earmarked for task force Victor
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 50%
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 70% -
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100%
Tancredi Loyalists
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100% - Tancredi
2nd Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100% - Kesai IV
3rd Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100%
Tikonov Cossacks
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 90%
2nd Tikonov Cossacks – Green – 50%
Capellan March Militias
Achernar CMM – Green – 100%
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
Nanking CMM – Green – 100%
New Syrtis CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 80%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Broken Wheel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 100%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Point Barrow CrMM – Green – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 90% - Niles
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - armour brigade formed
Kentares DMM – Veteran – 70%
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 100% - 2 training companies included
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Lexington Military Academy Light Combat Teams
1st Lexington Military Academy LCT – Green – 100%
2nd Lexington Military Academy LCT – Green – 100%
Academy Training Forces
Filtvelt Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlans – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Tancredi War College Light Combat Team – Green – 100% - LCT
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 100%
Warrior’s Hall Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Training Battalions – organised as LCT’s
1st Bell Training Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Galtor Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Sheraton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Clan Sun Jaguar Touman
Alpha Galaxy
Gold Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
1st Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 60% - Valois
2nd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 80% - Valois
3rd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 50% - Valois
Beta Galaxy – Galaxy Commander Russou Howell
1st Sun Jaguar Grenadiers – Elite – 50%
5th Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 80%
6th Sun Jaguar Dragoons – Elite – 80%
Delta Galaxy
Silver Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
3rd Fidelis Jaguar Cavaliers – Veteran – 70%
1st Fidelis Jaguar Mystics – Veteran – 40% - Star Captain Inamma formerly a Nova Cat
4th Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 50% - entirely freebirth and mostly armour formation
Omega Galaxy
1st Sun Jaguar Militia – Regular – 50% - Fugeres
2nd Sun Jaguar Militia – Green – 50% - Frankson
1st Fidelis Jaguar PGC – Green – 80% - Frankson – mostly infantry and some armour
Clan Sun Jaguar Warships
CSJ Rebirth – Black Lion
CSJ Steve Showers – Potemkin
Mercenary Forces
Blue Star Irregulars – Firgrove
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 90%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 80%
- Avatar’s of Painful Death – Green – 30%
Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 70% operable
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 100%
1st Federated Arcadians – Veteran – 70%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 90% - Galtor
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 80% - Cylene
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – Veteran – 80% - Paris
Hansen’s Roughriders – Elite – 70%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Veteran – 100%
- 1st Rangers – Green – 50%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 90%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 80%
- 21st Ranger – Regular – 80%
Lone Star Regiment – Regular – 110%
Longwood’s Bluecoats – Veteran – 90% - 2 Battalions
Medusan’s – Veteran – 100% - New Syrtis/Firgrove
Northwind Highlanders – All units garrisoning Northwind
- 1st Kearny Highlanders – Elite – 60% -
- Stirling’s Fusiliers – Elite – 90%
- Mulvaney’s Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Northwind Hussars – Elite – 40% -
Regulators – Regular – 80% - Kansu
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 90% (Re) – Niles
13th Stalking Horse – Veteran – 100% - Alta Vista
12th Vegan Rangers – Addicks and Nanking PDZ
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 80%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 90%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 80%
- Delta Regiment – Green – 60%
Wild Geese – Elite – 100% -
Wilson’s Hussars (battalion) Veteran – 100% – Bell
Wolf’s Dragoons – garrisoning Outreach
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 100%
- Zeta Battalion – Elite – 100%
Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
1st Corvette Flotilla (Re) – Achernar and Nanking PDZ
FSS Dahar – Flotilla Flagship – Fox II
FSS Edwards – Fox II
FSS Galax – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Kittery II
FSS Woodstock – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Ridgebrook – Fox II
FSS Kathil
FSS Bryceland – Fox II
FSS Fox – 3rd Division Flagship
FSS Broken Wheel –
FSS Salem
FSS Northfield
2nd Corvette Flotilla – New Avalon Combat Region
FSS Indomitable – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Intrepid –
FSS Indefatigable –
FSS Addicks – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Chesterton –
FSS Tikonov – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Argyle
FSS Tortuga
3rd Corvette Flotilla – Capellan March – 1st Division New Syrtis PDZ, 2nd Division Valexa PDZ
FSS New Sytris – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Benet III – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Clovis
FSS Goshen
FSS Marduk – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Filtvelt –
FSS Sakhara
FSS New Haiti
4th Corvette Flotilla – Draconis March
FSS Robinson – Flotilla Flagship – Upgrading to Fox II by December 3068
FSS Antrim – 1st Division Flagship – Upgrading to Fox II by December 3068
FSS Murmansk – Upgrading to Fox II by December 3068
FSS Brest – Upgrading to Fox II by December 3068
FSS Kenatres – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Galtor –
FSS Warren –
FSS Malarn
5th Corvette Flotilla – Draconis March, Bryceland, Milligan and Kilbourne PDZ
FSS Sherwood – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Tancredi – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Hobbs –
FSS Rowe –
FSS Remagen – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Mirach
FSS Logandale
FSS Weldon
6th Corvette Flotilla – Sirdar PDZ
FSS Markesan – Flotilla Flagship
FSS El Dorado – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Redfield
FSS Talcott
FSS McHenry – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Ulan Bator
FSS Ozawa – light damage
FSS Lothair – light damage
1st Destroyer Squadron – Valexa PDZ
FSS Davion – Squadron Flagship
FSS Defender –
FSS Defiant –
FSS Durban –
2nd Destroyer Squadron – 1st Cruiser Squadron
FSS Daring – Squadron Flagship
FSS Dryad
1st Patrol Squadron – Capellan march patrolling
FSS Congress – Squadron Flagship
FSS Churchill – Light damage
1st Cruiser Squadron – Assigned to First Prince – Tikonov
FSS Melissa Davion – First Prince’s Flagship
FSS Hanse Davion –
FSS Ian Davion –
FSS Richard Davion
2nd Cruiser Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Alexander Davion – Squadron Flagship
FSS Lucien Davion –
FSS Simon Davion –
FSS Carl Davion
3rd Cruiser Squadron – Capellan March
FSS Robert Davion – Squadron Flagship – home ported New Syrtis
FSS Andrew Davion –
FSS Joseph Davion – Moderate damage
FSS Charles Davion
4th Cruiser Squadron – Tikonov
FSS Reynard Davion –
Detached Duties
FSS Covenant –
1st Carrier Battle Group – Tikonov
FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion – New Syrtis carrier
-
AFFS DEPLOYMENT DECEMBER 3068
Draconis March
Addicks PDZ
Addicks DMM – Addicks
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Deneb Kaitos
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Errai
5th Robinson Rangers – Murchison
27th Avalon Hussars RCT – Ruchbah
12th Vegan Rangers Beta Regiment – Small World - M
Northwind Highlanders Stirling’s Fusiliers – Northwind – M
Northwind Highlanders Mulvaney’s Regiment – Northwind – M
Kentares PDZ
Kentares DMM – Kentares
12th Deneb Light Cavalry – Skat
Fighting Urukhai 8th Striker – Markab – M
Fighting Urukhai Demestri’s Sluggers – Cylene – M
2nd NAIS Cadre – Mara
4th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Clovis
Raman PDZ
Raman DMM – Raman
2nd Robinson Rangers – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Galtor
1st Galtor Reinforced Training Battalion – Galtor
1st Galtor Borderers – NOT ACTIVE
1st Argyle Lancers – Klathandu IV
3rd Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Klathandu IV
6th Feduns Dragoons RCT – Paris
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Tripoli
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – New Mendham
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Benet III
5th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Benet III
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Wapakoneta
Fighting Urukhai Bar Hounds – David – M
Le Blanc PDZ
Robinson DMM – Robinson
Robinson Battle Academy Training Regiment – Robinson
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Robinson
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – New Ivaarsen
Dahar PDZ
Dahar DMM – Dahar
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Sakhara
4th Robinson Rangers – Cassias
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Cimeron
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Glenmora
Bremond PDZ
Bremond DMM – Bremond
2nd Lexington Military Academy LCT – Sun Prairie
Bryceland PDZ
Bryceland DMM – Bryceland
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Tancredi
Tancredi War College Light Combat Team – Tancredi
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Tancredi
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Groveld
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Delacruz
1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalion – Conroe
1st Conroe Borderers Cadre – NOT ACTIVE
3rd NAIS Cadre – Kesai IV
2nd Tancredi Loyalists LCT – Kesai IV
Screaming Eagles – Niles – M
Mayetta PDZ
Mayetta DMM – Mayetta
Milligan PDZ
Milligan DMM – Milligan
14th Avalon Hussars – Woodbine
13th Stalking Horse – Alta Vista – M
Kilbourne PDZ
Kilbourne DMM – Kilbourne
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Abbeyville
Kilbourne Academy Training Battalion – Kilbourne
Capellan March
Achernar PDZ
Achernar CMM – Achernar
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Tikonov
2nd Tikonov Cossacks – Tikonov
1st Davion Guards RCT – Tikonov – earmarked for Task Force Victor
Regulators – Kansu – M
1st Arcadians RCT – Algol
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Bharat
Valexa PDZ
1st Aragon Borderers – New Aragon
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – New Aragon
1st Bell Borderers Cadre – Bell – NOT ACTIVE
1st Bell Reinforced Training Battalion – Bell
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Halloran V
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Goshen
Lone Star Regiment – Axton – M
Kathil PDZ
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Kathil
Alcyone PDZ
Alcyone CMM – Alcyone
1st Kittery Borderers – Kittery – Detached to St Ives
1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion – Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Spica – based there but often in St Ives
Nanking PDZ
Nanking CMM – Nanking
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Zurich
1st Sheraton Reinforced Training Battalion – Sheraton
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Genoa – earmarked for Task Force Victor
1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion – Woodstock
Wolf’s Dragoons Alpha Regiment – Outreach – M
Wolf’s Dragoons Zeta Battalion – Outreach – M
12th Vegan Rangers Gamma Regiment – Acamar – M
12th Vegan Rangers Delta Regiment – Terra Firma - M
1st Federated Arcadians – Capolla – M
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Nanking – Task Force Nanking
New Sytris PDZ
New Syrtis CMM – New Syrtis
Warrior’s Hall Training Regiment – New Syrtis
1st Syrtis Hussars LCT – New Syrtis
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Talon/Wernke
Medusan’s – New Syrtis
Sirdar PDZ
1st Dragonlords RCT – Bromhead
1st Mitchel Borderers – Mitchel
1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion – Mitchel
1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion – Bromhead
1st Bromhead Borderers Cadre – Not active
Altair PDZ
Ridgebrook CMM – Ridgebrook
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Lindsay
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Midale
Avatar’s of Painful Death – Firgrove – M
Warren PDZ
Warren CMM – Warren
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Hyalite
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Lothair
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Montour
Crucis March
Archemar Combat Region
Marlette CrMM – Marlette
1st Albion Training Cadre – Markesan
1st NAIS Cadre – Johnsondale
Davion Young Guards RCT – Muskegon – 1 Battalion
1st Avalon Borderers LCT – Edwards
Kestrel Combat Region
Kestrel CrMM – Kestrel
Harlock’s Warriors – Kirklin – M
1st Lexington Military Academy LCT – Lexington
New Avalon Combat Region
New Avalon CrMM – New Avalon
3rd Davion Guards RCT – New Avalon
6th Dragonlords RCT – New Avalon
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – El Dorado
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Galax
Davion Young Guards RCT – Salem/Talcott/Victoria – 1 battalion each
2nd Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Torrence
Nunivak Combat Region
Remagen CrMM – Remagen
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Colorado
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Colorado
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Gulkana
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Killarney
3rd Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Chirikof
Islamabad Combat Region
Islamabad CrMM – Islamabad
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Panpour
3rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Islamabad
Malagrotta Combt Region
Malagrotta CrMM – Malagrotta
23rd Avalon Hussars – June
Point Barrow Combat Region
Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion – Point Barrow
Point Barrow CrMM – Point Barrow
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Defiance
Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlan’s – Defiance
Tsamma Combat Region
Tsamma CrMM – Tsamma
5th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cerulean
Anjin Muerto Combat Region
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Anjin Muerto
1st Brockton Reinforced Training Battalion – Brockton
1st Brockton Borderers Cadre – NOT ACTIVE
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Crofton
Broken Wheel Combat Region
Broken Wheel CrMM – Broken Wheel
Filtvelt Academy Training Regiment– Filtvelt
21st Avalon Hussars RCT – Maram
1st Illician Rangers – Lackland – m
Periphery Combat Region – To be Tortuga Combat Region when fully integrated
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cooperland –
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Sun Jaguar Enclaves
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – New Haiti –
1st Tortuga Borderers – Tortuga
1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion – Tortuga
Detached Duty
Korsakov’s Cossacks – St Ives – M
Operation Rat II
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Alderbaran – Palos
5th Dragonlords RCT – Palos
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RC – Alderbaran
Davion Light Guards RCT – Liao - Elnath
5th Davion Guards RCT – Liao – Yunnah
1st Lexington Combat Guards – Liao – Palos
2nd FSAC – Liao
12th Vegan Rangers Alpha Regiment – Liao – Wei
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Gan Singh – Shensi – Wei
4th Davion Guards RCT – Ningo – Shipka
1st Sheraton Knights – Ningpo
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Pleione
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Poznan - Highspire
1st Woodstock Borderers – Poznan
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Shensi
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Styk
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Styk - Corey
4th Dragonlords RCT – St Andre – Garrison
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – Hunan – Sakhalin
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – Hunan – Sakhalin – Tsingtao
1st Capellan Dragoons – Menkar – mandate
Wilson’s Hussars – Mandate
Davion Old Guard RCT – Jonathan – Highspire
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Foochow – Highspire
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Foot Fall – New Macao
Wild Geese – Second Try – moving on to Ulan Bator
Valexa CMM – Remshield
Operation Rat III
Illician Lancers 59th Striker – Menke
Illician Lancers 9th Rangers – Menke
Illician Lancers 21st Rangers – Menke
Illician Lancers 4th Rangers – Menke
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Menke
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Victoria
1st Crucis Lancers – Victoria
11th Avalon Hussars – Victoria
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Victoria
1st Cunningham Commando’s – Victoria
Hansen’s Roughriders – Rollis
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Rollis – Muridox
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Rollis – Pojos – Quimberton
1894th Light Horse – Corodiz – Columbine
21st Rim Worlds – Zanzibar – Vard
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Xeing Khouang
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Zanzibar
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Zanzibar – Larsha
1st FSAC – Holloway – Holloway – Grand Base
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – Grand Base
1st Kathil Uhlans RCT – Necromo – Randar
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Randar
3rd FSAC – Necromo
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Ares – No return
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Ares
15th Avalon Hussars RCT – Capricorn III – Minnacora
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – New Sagan
Sirdar CMM – Madras
Alpha Galaxy
Gold Keshik (Trinary) – No Return
1st Sun Jaguar Guards – No return
2nd Sun Jaguar Guards – Grand Base
3rd Sun Jaguar Guards – Grand Base
-
Industrial/Infrastructure Changes 31st December 3068
Capellan March
Axton
– Wangker plant: increased to 6 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line.
Bell
- Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards,
Chesterton
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Line Argus-o, 1 Dervish-O, Phoenix Hawk and Wasps – AFFS and ComGuards 50/50 split but not Argus-O or Dervish-O. Lorica Battle armour plant for ComGuards. 1 Dervish-O line finishing by February 3069.
Demeter
- Lycomb-Davion: 1 Guillotine line for SLDF/ComGuards
Firgrove
- Clyde Shipyards: Excalibur and Colossus dropships
- Firgrove Consortium – Greenock School and Manufacturing and Clyde Shipyards: 1 Ahab and 1 Vulcan line for 50/50 split with AFFS ComGuards –Building a Riever fighter line – going operational in July 3069
Kathil – expanding naval slips
- GM: 2 extra Blackjack-O lines. Expanding Tunnel Rat lines.
Tikonov
- Earthwerks: 1 Thug, 1 Archer, 3 Cataphract, 1Koschei, 1 Thunderbolt, 1 Quickdraw, 1 Thrus, 1 Ahab (former Transit), 3 Sabre (former Thrush) lines, Comguards/AFFS
- New Independence Weapony: 1 Atlas, 1 Victor and 1 Battlemaster line. 1 Zeus line going operational in September 3069
New Syrtis
– Johnston Industries: 4 Dagger-O lines, 1 Caeser line, 1 Thunderbolt, 1 Axman line, 1 Hatchetman line, 1 Nightsky line, 1 Garm line, 2 Goblin tank lines, 3 Glory tank lines
- Expanding naval slips and upgrading them
Novoya Zemyla
– Johnston Industries : 2 Dagger-O lines, 1 Nightsky line, 1 Hatchetman line, 1 Axman line. A further Caeser line being added by January 3069
– Kallon Industries: 1 Templar, Jaggermech III and 2 Enforcer III line. Cavalier battle armour annex.
Outreach
- Blackwell Industries: 1 Imp-C, 1 Gallowglass-WD and 1 Falcon-C line. Arguing over medium or Maruader II IIC line.
Crucis March
Andalusia
- Bergan Industries: 3 Wayland Mobile Base lines,. Locust plans restarted – work commencing in September 3068 and finishing in August 3069.
Augusta
- Corean Enterprise: 1 Centurion line and a fully automated Musketeer plant
Batavia
- Jalastar Aerospace plant: 2 Sabre and 2 Sparrowhawk – 1 Sabre line for Comstar. 2 Javelin-O lines.
Baxley
- Jalastar Aerospace plant: 1 Sparrowhawk line, 1 Javelin-O line, building Javelin-O line online August 3068. – to add a Sparrhawk line, completing in July 3069.
Belladonna
- Kallon Industries: 1 Hornet line, 1 Wolverine, 1 Griffin, 1 Shadow Hawk, 1 Exterminator, 1 Penetrator, 1 Templar-O, 1 Partisan, 1 Challenger MBT, 1 Demon Tank line also operating. All production split 50/50 between ComGuards and AFFS except Templar-O.
Bristol
- Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons plant: building 3 lines for Fury command tanks – going online in January, March and April 3069.
Brockton
- Maltex Corporation: 1 Wyvern line – a Highlander line finishing in May 3069.
Broken Wheel
- Andoran Industries Ltd: 2 Clint lines, 2 Hussars and 2 Mercury lines split 50/50 between ComGuards/AFFS
- Quickscell plant expanding to 2 pegasus lines, and adding a Hetzer, Vedette and ACP line – to be split between AFFS/ComGuards 50/50,
Crofton
- SunCorp Industries: 2 Warhammer lines, 1 Longbow, 1 Highlander, 1 Emperor, 1 Black Hawk, 1 Avatar, 1 Sunder and 3 Thanatos-O lines – a 3rd Warhammer line by march 3069.
Defiance
- Davion-Com: 1 Flashman, 1 Warhammer, 1 Crab, 2 Sentinel, 1 Mongoose, 1 Nexus 50/50 split between Comguards and AFFS except the Nexus which is exclusively for the ComGuards.
- GM: A small battle armour facility building “Lorica” variant Cavalier BA
Delavan
- Universal Air – large scale production of Star Lord and Tramp as well as new monolith production in cooperation with Challenge. Ares attack craft being produced in growing numbers.
Edwards
- New Independence Weaponry – 1 Victor and Atlas line split between the AFFS and ComGuards.
El Dorado
- Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative: 1 Battlemaster line, 2 Templar line, 3 Ajax line, 1 Demon line (50/50 ComGuards/AFFS).
Filtvelt
- FedBoeing: A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works. Dropship yard entering production in April 3063, jumpship yard August 3064 – to produce Mules, Unions and Merchant jumpships. Cargoking and Cargomaster production being added by July 3068
- Wangker: 4 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line.
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Argus-O, 1 Dervish-O, 1 Enforcer, 1 Osiris lines, as well as a massive industrial mech production facility building a huge industrial mech factory and a battle armour annex – building Cavaliers, Grenadiers and Infiltrator II’s. Considering building a new Argus or Dervish line.
– Outback FarmMechs: 1 Watchman, 1 Locust,1 Stinger line. Industrial mech production – 1 harvester ant line and 1 cattlemaster line
Galax – expanding naval slips and civilian jumpships. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065. Large scale expansion of NAC-30s production. Dropship Cargoking and Cargomaster being added April 3068
Gulkana
- Yeffter’s Weapons now producing major NAC-30 numbers for warships.
Islamabad
- Jalastar Aerospace: 2 Sabre and 1 Sparrowhawk – 1 Sabre line for Comstar. 2 Javelin-O lines
June
– Lycomb-Davion: 3 Stuka, 1 Hellcat, 1 Lightning line and 1 Awesome battlemech line. Considering a Guillotine line or adding Awesome to Demeter.
– Corean Enterprises: 3 Centurion lines, 2 Valkyrie, 1 Hammerhead lines as well as an automated plant to produce Musketeers,
- Michaelson: 2 Yellow Jacket and 2 Hawk Moth lines.
Kestrel
– New Independence Weaponry: 1 Atlas, 2 Marauder II, 1 Cyclops, 1 Gunslinger, 1 Victor, 1 Marauder and 1 Jaggermech III line. 1 Zeus line going operational in July 3069 and then possibly a Battlemaster line.
Killarney
– Arc Royal MechWorks: 3 Wolfhound lines and 2 Arctic Fox-O lines. Looking into increased Arctic Fox-O lines.
Kirklin
– Kallon Industries: 1 Penetrator, 1 Thunderbolt, 1 Crusader, 1 Enforcer III line added to existing plant.
Layover
- Salvatore Inc: Large scale production of Vengeance and Colossus dropships divided between the AFFS and ComGuards.
- Quickscell: 2 Vedette, 2 Hetzer, 2 Heavy APC, 1 SRM Carrier, 1 LRM Carrier, 1 Laser carrier, 1 Autocannon carrier, 1 Scorpion, 1 ACP and 1 Pegasus line.
Markesan
- New Earth Trading Company facility: 5 existing Alacorn lines, 5 Von luckner lines, 4 Karnov lines, 2 Engineering vehicles, 2 Gabriel lines. Production split between AFFS and ComGuards 50/50
Marlette
- Michaelson: 4 Yellow Jacket and 4 Hawk Moth lines building for ComGuards – completing in January 3069.
New Avalon
- Lycomb-Davion: 6 Stuka lines expansions of Stuka production (4 new lines), 1 Hellcat line, 1 Lightning line, 2 Huscarls lines, 1 Hammerhead line, 1 Awesome line, 2 Guillotine lines, 1 Lancelot line – half of Guillotine and Lancelot production to go to ComGuards. Building a Reiver line going operational in February 3069.
- Corean Enterprise: 1 Black Hawk KU, 1 Trebuchet line, 6 Centurion lines (2 of them new), 1 fireball line and a fully automated Musketeer plant as well as an automated Valkyrie plant.
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Argus-O, 3 Dervish-O, 3 Enforcer III, 1 Phoenix Hawk, 1 Osiris, 1 Wasp, 1 Locust lines
New Damascus
- Federated Suns Defence Industries: 1 Marauder, 1 Phoenix Hawk, 1 Stinger, 1 Locust, 2 Wasp line, 1 Fulcrum line, 1 Vedette, 1 J Edgar line, 1 Light SRM Carrier, 1 Pit Bull, 2 Bull Dog lines, Thunderbird aerospace line (March 3069),
Northfield
- Corean Industries: 1 Devastator, 1 Centurion and 1 Fireball line for AFFS/ComGuards 50/50 split of the Devastator line.
- Corsara Weapons: 1 Crab line – for AFFS/ComGuards
Palmyra
- Jalastar Aerospace: 4 Javelin-O line,
Panpour
- Challenge Systems: large scale production of Monolith jumpships.
- Jalastar Aerospace increasing production of sparrohawk and sabre fighters and Centurion, grasshopper and javelin battlemechs. Increases in sparrowhawk and centurion construction prioritised and starting from August 3063, further expansions going on into 3065, This will result in by December 3065 5 Sparrowhawk lines and 3 sabre lines and 3 extra Centurion lines. Spad and Zero lines being built – going into production January and March 3066 respectively. 3 existing Javelin lines being converted to Javelin-O – starting January 3067 and retooled by April-May 3067.
Point Barrow
- GM: 1 Victor, 1 Marauder, 1 Flashman, 1 Stealth line along with a Grenadier and Cavalier BA plant. Both being expanded almost constantly. Adding a Blackjack-O line – finishing in November 3069
Salem
- Gm plant added a Blackjack-O line
Shawnee
- Andoran Industries Ltd – 1 Clint line. Sold to AFFS/Comguards 50/50
Talcott
- Gm plant now producing Grenadiers and Cavaliers in record numbers. Continuing to be expanded continually. Blackjack refit centre upgraded to produce Blackjack-O.
Torrence
- Johnston Industries: 2 Dagger-O lines, 1 Caeser, 1 Thunderbolt-NAIS and 1 Nightsky lines.
- Veridan Dynamics plant reopening to build Tiger medium tanks (starting in March 3067) and a new line for Vali artillery tanks (starting in April 3067). 6 Pitbull truck lines – increased Pitbull production being considered
Vandalia
- Blackstone Industries: 1 Enfield line, 1 Talon line and 1 Ostscout line. 2nd Ostscout line being considered
Victoria
- GM: 1 Nightstar, 1 Maelstrom, 1 Cestus, 1 line of Blacjack-O and 1 line of Wasps – building for AFFS/Comguards 50/50. As well as a Lorica BA annex for Comguards.
Draconis March
Addicks
– Johnson Industries: 2 Dagger-O lines, 1 Hatchetman, 2 Goblin line
Alta Vista
- New Independence Weaponry: 1 Atlas, 1 Gunslinger and 1 Victor
Benet III
– Johnson Industries: 1 Dagger-O line
Clovis
- Sandoval Refit Centre – being built, due to finish in March 3069
Errai
- Maltex: 2 Thug, 1 Wyvern lines – 2nd thug line to sell to the ComGuards.
Kentares
- New Earth Trading Company: 1 Alacorn, 1 Von Luckner 1 Gabriel line.Production split between the AFFS/ComGuards. Considering expanding.
Marduk
- Norse Battlemech Works: 1 Avatar-O, 1 Black Hawk KU, 2 Wolverine, 2 Shadow Hawk, 1 Firestarter-O
Mayetta
- Achernar battle armour plant to build Infiltrators, cavaliers and Grenadiers. Expanding.
- Norse Battlemech Works: 1 Griffin, 1 Shadow Hawk and 1 Sling line to be built – starting in the New Year and finishing in February 3069 and March 3069 and January 3069 respectively.
Northwind
- Corsara weapons: 2 King Crab, 1 Black Watch and 2 Crab lines now being offered for sale to AFFS and Highlanders. Crab and King Crab new lines to be sold to the AFFS and Comguards
Ozawa
- General Dynamics: 1 Ostsol line, 2 Kintaro lines, 1 Sentry line, 50/50 sales between AFFS/Comguards, but not a popular design with AFFS who will sell most of the mechs on to mercenaries.
- Veridan Dynamics: 3 Tiger lines, 1 Vali line– Comguards and LA wanting Vali.
Robinson
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks: 2 Sagittairre, 1 Battlemaster, 2 Black Knights (1 for Comstar), 1 Arus-O, 1 Ostsol, 1 Phoenix Hawk, 1 Sentry, 2 Watchman lines
Sun Prairie
- Wangker Aerospace: 4 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line
- Michaelson: 2 Yellow Jacket, 2 Hawk Moth lines.
Tancredi
- Expanding of Laser production to include ER variants and industrial and medical lasers. New models entering production by June 3064.
- Joint Kallon-Prescision: 2 Rifleman lines, 1 Penetrator line and 1 Phoenix Hawk line.
Verde
- FedBoeing: Colossus, Overlord-A3, Overlord and Union dropships being produced. Cargoking and Cargomaster production being added by December 3068-January 3069.
- GM: 1 Demon tank line
- Ranger Battlemechs: 1 Shadow Hawk line and adding a Warhammer line by December 3069.
Woodbine
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks: 1 Sagittairre, 1 Black Knight, 1 Sentry, 1 Watchman and 2 Battle Hawk lines
Clan Smoke Jaguar
Valois
- Jaguar Industries – 1 Guillotine IIC, 1 Wyvern IIC, building a Clint IIC – finishing January 3069 and Mist Lynx line being built finishing in July 3069.
- Yvonne-Isis Construction Plant – 2 Daedalus lines.
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CCAF December 3068
Capellan Hussars
Red Lancers – Elite – 80%
Prefectorate Guard – Elite – 0% (Re) – Destroyed on Victoria
Holdfast Guard – Elite – 90%
Dynasty Guard – Veteran – 0% - Destroyed on Palos
Warrior House Orders – unless otherwise stated 1 battalion
House Imarra – Veteran – 80% - Two battalions
House Kamata – Elite – 60% - Two battalions
House Hiritsu – Elite – 40%
House Lu Sann – Veteran – 40% - Sadurni Invasion
House Dai Da Chi – Elite – 0% - Destroyed
House Fujita – Regular – 0% - remnants fighting as guerrillas
House Ma-Tsu Kai – Veteran – 70% - Two battalions
House Ijori – Regular – 60% - Two battalions
Death Commando’s
1st Battalion – Elite – 66%
2nd Battalion – Elite – 100%
Confederation Reserve Cavalry
2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Veteran – 50%
3rd Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Green – 100% - Shuen Wan
5th Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Veteran – Destroyed
6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Elite – 30%
7th Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Regular – 40%
Capellan Defence Forces
1st Capellan Defence Force – Regular – 90%
2nd Confederation Defence Force – Regular – 30% - almost without officers
3rd Confederation Defence Force – Green – Destroyed
4th Confederation Defence Force – Green – 30%
Liao Chang-Cheng
Renshield’s Dragoons – Veteran – 0% - Destroyed
Vong’s Grenadiers – Regular – 60%
Syn’s Hussars – Green – 90%
Victoria Commonality Rangers
1st Victoria Rangers – Kingston’s Rangers – Regular – 50%
2nd Victoria Rangers – Sung’s Rangers – Green – 40% - surrendered
3rd Victoria Rangers – Green – 0% - Victoria – Destroyed
McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry
MAC Command Battalion – 60% - Task Force Andurien
1st McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – Elite – 80% - Task Force Andurien
2nd McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – Elite – 50% - Moving to Andurien
3rd McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – Veteran – 40% - Task Force Andurien
4th McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – Veteran – 60% - Moving to Andurien
5th McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – Veteran – 30% - Moving to Andurien
Citizens Honoured
4th Tau Ceti Rangers – Veteran – 100% - Goodna
15th Dracon – Regular – 100% (Re) – Cronula
Lockhardt’s Ironsides – Regular – 30%
Laurel’s Legion – Veteran – 0% - Two battalions - Destroyed
Capellan Brigade
Ambermarle’s Highlanders – Regular – 90% - Two battalions - Destroyed/Surrendered
Harloc’s Raiders – Veteran – 50%
Marshigama’s Legionnaires – Regular – 90% - Two battalions
Shin Legion – Veteran – 80% -
St Cyr’s Armoured Hussars – Green – 90% - Two battalions
Sarna Martial Academy’s Training Cadre – Green – 80% - battalion
Sian Dragoons
1st Sian Dragoons – Green – 100%
2nd Sian Dragoons – Regular – 60% - heading for Andurien
3rd Sian Dragoons – Regular – 70%
4th Sian Dragoons – Green – 80% - Scarborough
5th Sian Dragoons – Green – 100% - Poznan – 40 home guard
6th Sian Dragoons – Green – 100% - Shensi – 40% home guard
7th Sian Dragoons – Green – 0% - destroyed on Necromo
8th Sian Dragoons – Green – 0% - Destroyed in 1st Wave, Andurien
9th Sian Dragoons – Green – 50%
10th Sian Dragoons – Green – 80%
11th Sian Dragoons – Green – 60%
12th Sian Dragoons – Green – 40%
Capellan Chargers
1st Capellan Chargers – Veteran – 20% -
2nd Capellan Chargers – Regular – 30%
3rd Capellan Chargers – Green – 40%
Liao Guard
1st Liao Guard – Veteran – 0% - Destroyed in 1st Wave Andurien
2nd Liao Guard – Veteran – 90%
3rd Liao Guard – Green – 00% - Absorbed into the Shin Legion
4th Liao Guard – Green – 0% - Destroyed in 1st Wave Andurien
Capellan Confederation Navy
Inazuma/Sian class Corvettes
4 Sian corvettes – 2 Andurien, 2 Sian
Impavido Destroyers
CCS Zhejiang – destroyed over Necromo
CCS Xizang – Sian
CCS Anhui – Capella
Feng Huang Cruisers
CCS Elias Jung – Capella
CCS Franco Martel – Sian
CCS Aleisha Kris – Destroyed over Palos
CCS Sundermann Rhys – Destroyed over Palos
CCS Ilsa Hyung – destroyed over Victoria
CCS Avatar of Kali – stolen by Thuggee destroyed over Necromo
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CCAF Deployment December 3068
Liao Commonality
Dynasty Guard – Palos – Destroyed
5th Sian Dragoons – Poznan – Destroyed
6th Sian Dragoons – Shensi – Destroyed
Renshield’s Dragoons – St Andre – Destroyed
Vong’s Grenadiers – Kaifang
Laurel’s Legion – Ningpo – Destroyed
Hell’s Black Aces – 25% and fled to parts unknown
Rivaldi’s Hussars – Bora – M
Sarna Martial Academy’s Training Cadre – Sarna
1st Capellan Defence Force – Sarna
4th Confederation Defence Force – Sarna
Ambermarle’s Highlanders – Alderbaran - Destroyed
House Dai Da Chi – Destroyed
House Fujita – Broke up into small forces to fight on
Capellan Commonality
Holdfast Guard – Capella
Syn’s Hussars – fled Styk and Corey and fell back to Capella – CO shot.
House Ma-Tsu Kai – Capella
House Ijori – Capella
4th McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – Ares – retreating to Andurien
7th Sian Dragoons – Necromo – Destroyed
2nd Confederation Defence Force – Ingersoll
3rd Confederation Defence Force – Destroyed
Sian Commonality
Death Commandos – Sian
Red Lancers – Sian
1st Sian Dragoons – Sian
10th Sian Dragoons – Sian
11th Sian Dragoons – Sian
12th Sian Dragoons – Sian
9th Sian Dragoons – Purvo
2nd McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – retreating to Andurien
5th McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – retreating to Andurien
3rd Capellan Chargers – Homestead
2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Bentley
5th Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Destroyed Grand Base
6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Hustaing
7th Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Harloc retreating to Sian
St Cyr’s Armoured Hussars – Sendalor
House Imarra – Sian
House Kamata – Betelegues
1st Capellan Chargers – Wright
2nd Capellan Chargers – Nihal
Harloc’s Raiders – falling back to Harloc
Victoria Commonality
Prefectorate Guard – Destroyed
3rd Sian Dragoons – Gunthar
1st Victoria Rangers – retreated to Muridox
2nd Victoria Rangers – surrendered
3rd Victoria Rangers – Destroyed
Lockhardt’s Ironsides – routed from Zanzibar falling back to Egress
House Hiritsu – Destroyed
Andurien Theatre/Commonality
3rd Confederation Reserve Cavalry – Shuen Wan
MAC Command Battalion – Andurien
1st McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – Andurien
3rd McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry – Andurien
4th Tau Ceti Rangers – Mosiro
15th Dracon – Kajuri
Marshigama’s Legionnaires – Fleeing to join Duke Baxter
4th Sian Dragoons – Scarborough
2nd Sian Dragoons – Andurien
2nd Liao Guard – Andurien
Shin Legion – Detached hunting Cossacks
House Lu Sann – Sadurni
Naval Deployment
2 Sian corvettes – Andurien
2 Sian corvettes – Sian
CCS Zhejiang – Necromo – Detroyed
CCS Xizang – Sian
CCS Anhui – Capella
CCS Elias Jung – Capella
CCS Franco Martel – Sian
CCS Aleisha Kris – Destroyed
CCS Sundermann Rhys – Destroyed
CCS Ilsa Hyung – Victoria – Destroyed
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nice update. I know it is a lot of hard work, but I have been enjoying it.
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nice update. I know it is a lot of hard work, but I have been enjoying it. I still think that the WD should go with a Firefly C instead of the Mad IIC
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nice update. I know it is a lot of hard work, but I have been enjoying it.
I'm not gonna lie - this IS hard work. Takes a fair bit of effort keeping it all straight in my head. So if I do make a mistake and put a unit in the wrong place - please forgive me. :p
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I meant Hoplite C not but a firefly C would be a nice light mech
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Looking at the damage now in detail I can safely say it sucks to be wearing the uniform of the CCAF and warrior house robes
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Honestly at this point the Confederation is so ****** that they are incredibly lucky the FWL is busy with a little civil war right now. Even so, I wouldn't be surprised at all if we start to see some nibbling at the border. Not a huge amount, just one planet here, another planet there. Nothing that would stretch these factions much, but just sweeping up a handful of strategically valuable planets for bargain basement prices...
The only question really now is what the FedSuns next move is. I mean, the Crappies are concentrating increasing numbers of their units onto key planets. Which leaves masses of planets with no defenses other than militia. The question is, does the Federated Suns sweep up dozens of worlds at bargain basement prices ... or go for the throat by deep striking Sian and one or two other key worlds, then look to clean up the masses of planets afterwards at their leisure?
Choices, choices...
But whatever else, you NEED to get those warships and kill them now. Otherwise 3-1 odds you'll find them in the hands of the WOB pointed right back at you...
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But whatever else, you NEED to get those warships and kill them now. Otherwise 3-1 odds you'll find them in the hands of the WOB pointed right back at you...
I'll second that.
As for the other choices: I'd say go for Capella. Hopefully the two warships there will make a stand there. You deny the CapCon the shipyards there. And of course there is the issue of taking the very planet after wich the entire nation is named.
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I'll second that.
As for the other choices: I'd say go for Capella. Hopefully the two warships there will make a stand there. You deny the CapCon the shipyards there. And of course there is the issue of taking the very planet after wich the entire nation is named.
Looks like it will be a tough nut to crack ground side two warrior house and two CCAF Regiments (in various states) along with whatever 'volunteer' battalions they can scrape together it they won't be worth much but will still take down troops before they die.
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Not gonna lie: I love the phone book style updates of forces.
Don’t get me wrong the rest is awesome but to me it’s always fun to see force dispositions, tables if organizations and equipment and the like.
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3069 - January Interlude - The Coordinator and First Prince
"Enough Victor. You've made your point." With 6 simple words Theodore Kurita opened the discussions between himself and the First Prince of the Federated Suns. Considering how many months of effort it had taken to set the meeting up, how many units had been moved to provide security for this dead system, how many advisers had had to be cut out of the meeting to keep it practical and in some regards informal, it didn't seem like a particularly impressive opening salvo. However the words were said with total conviction. Unfortunately perhaps too much conviction. Instead of the Coordinator's hoped for conciliatory tone there was a hint of the order about it and he knew it.
Sitting in the hurriedly built dome which had been constructed for the meeting which lay exactly half way between his own Colossus class command dropship and Theodore's older modified Overlord class command dropship Victor reflected that the 2 regiments of troops in orbit and the crews of the half dozen warships would be shocked at the informality between the 2 men who were from longstanding rival houses. The preparations for Operation's Bird Dog and Bulldog however had led to the himself and Theodore becoming more relaxed in each others presence. While things had become strained between them since, at least this last vestige of their former alliance remained. Which is why he responded to the older man without any of the usual political phrases that were becoming more and more natural to him as First Prince. "It's not enough Theodore. You have seen the holo-vids from St Ives. Kai and almost his whole family dead. An entire city destroyed and it's people massacred..."
"The work of his sister! Not Sun-Tzu! You can't destroy the whole Capellan Confederation because of one crazy bitch!" Theodore snapped, uncomfortable with that line of argument given that he had seen the footage of St Ives.
"I can. I think that's the whole point of this meeting. I can destroy the Confederation and you know it. What you are asking me to is not too... To hold my hand. Let's admit that at least between ourselves." Victor fired back.
For a second Theodore struggled to fight down the anger at the arrogance displayed by the younger ruler. He had once almost considered himself something of a mentor figure to a man that might have been his son-in-law if things had worked out perfectly. That time was past, but it was still hard to hear the total self assurance in the tone of the younger man - worse to know that he wasn't wrong. All of his own analysts agreed. If the war continued it could now end only one way: with the total conquest of the Capellan Confederation by the Federated Suns. Which was anathema to the long term safety and security of the Draconis Combine. Forcing himself to nod he ground out. "Yes. You can. But you shouldn't."
"Why not? Because it makes my realm stronger? Because it removes a threat to my borders? Because it finishes the job my father started 40 odd years ago? Or because it weakens the position of the Combine in relation to my own realm? That's the real reason you want me to stop Theodore, let's not pretend otherwise. You want me to leave a viable ally for your own realm on my other border as a threat to the Federated Suns... And that argument is hardly one I'm going to see much favour in!" Victor leaned forward, his eyes flashing with fire. "There won't be any more St Ives. My children won't face the threat of any more mad Liao's sending assassins for them. Nor will my subjects. I'm going to end this Theodore... Be sure of one thing, Sun-Tzu Liao will go down in history as the last Chancellor of the Capellan Confederation!"
There. It had been said. What Theodore Kurita had hoped to avoid having to discuss. But to the older man's credit he didn't shrink from the argument. "Fine. Your right. It does benefit my realm to keep the Confederation as a viable state on your border! But think of it this way - you are destabilising the balance of power within the entire Inner Sphere! Risking a Fifth Succession War! All because of your hate for Sun-Tzu! Is it worth that? Trust me Victor, this isn't worth it!"
A cold laugh wasn't perhaps the answer that the Coordinator had hoped for. Victor leaned forward and something inside him almost visibly snapped. "Trust you? Why would I trust you Theodore? After all... You lied about Omi and my son. Kitsune. Yes... I know about Kitsune "Kurita". I believed your lies when you told me them. But my intelligence agencies are remarkably competent. They soon discovered the lie you hid from me. That I have a son. One you were raising as a full blooded Kurita. I KNOW!"
Theodore recoiled in horror at the revelation that Victor knew and at his roar across the table! He knew! All his careful arguments seemed to blow away in the face of the fury in Victor's eyes now. Before he could speak Victor continued. "As for risking destabilising the Inner Sphere... Risking a Fifth Succession War? There's no risk of that. Right now this war is between the Confederation and the Suns. The only way it could escalate would be if another party was to join in... Is that what your telling me Theodore? Are you really prepared to go there?"
Fighting past the greying of his vision and the pained tightness in his chest Theodore almost growled with the shooting pain surging through him. "I am the Coordinator of the Draconis Combine. I do not answer to you Victor! I will do what I must for my realm... As I always have. Regardless of the cost! Do not force my hand on this!"
Victor stared back levelly at the older man, sensing in some way that Theodore was in pain perhaps ill and for a second his resolve flickered and the words of question formed on his lips, but then he remembered Curtis's single grainy picture taken at long range of a small boy playing in the Imperial Palace on Luthien and his resolve slammed back into place. Standing he looked down on the Coordinator and shook his head. "I'm not forcing your hand Theodore. You are trying to force mine and it won't work. If you decide to stand with the Butcher's of St Ives that blood is on your hands... I'm fighting to end such massacres. Not save their perpetrators. Throw your lot in with the Liao's if you wish... But this isn't the War of '39. Be careful what choices you make. They will have consequences."
Before Theodore could master the growing pain in his chest to respond the First Prince turned and strode from the small room they had been meeting in, leaving him to stare at the closing door in the bleak knowledge that he had failed...
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Like seriously what the hell did he expect to happen. The only thing he could have offered it he had managed to figure out was to offer replacement troops and forces for the attack on Terra. That would have been a decent deal to stop or at least pause the death of the CC. Too bad he wasn't aware that the attack is happening. He had to make the effort at least so I give him props for trying at least.
Also with the CC in such a bad way their periphery border is likely not well defended. If Victor reached out to the power on the southern boarder of the CC with the offer of alliance they could take some of the boarder worlds and spread the CCAF even thinner. If the Aurigan Coalition managed to recover it could be in a good position for some light expansion.
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Teddy needs to be careful if he has burned all his bridges through this entire meeting by trying to brow beat victor. Also they are still strong on the DC border even with the units that have been pulled away and have the advantage in hulls.
He really dosen’t want to force a confrontation especially if the bears smell blood.
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Nice story interlude! The DC Coordinator should have a doctor look at him after that meeting? I wonder who will it hurt more politically about Kitsune? Will the Draconis March in the FS or the staunch DC conservative (Black Dragon) take up arms in protest? Keep it up!
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When Teddy dies (not if), it would be best if the war against the CC was finished. Hohiro is gonna need to prove himself to the warlords of the DCMS for them to listen.
Sure he will throw them into battle hoping a few get killed. Then there is the BDS he'll have to deal with, because they will get froggy.
Maybe Teddy isn't too far off about a 5th SW.
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Wow.
So, Teddy. A man representing a nation that still EXPLICITLY holds as a fundamental truth that House Kurita has a divine right to rule all of mankind and that any seeming stepping back from that it simply The Dragon biding it’s time ... has the sheer hubris to walk in and treat the most powerful man in the Inner Sphere like a subject?
...
Huh, sounds legit :))
In all seriousness, this is on Teddys head - all of this. He’s let his actions burn the bridges with Victor rather than trying to stay engaged with him. He’s the one who flat out walked out on the Star League, which was his best chance to try and constrain Victor politically, in an incredibly obvious tantrum because despite all his 'totally have respect for you!' bullshit, he prefered to destroy the Star League than let Victor have a turn at the big chair (despite Victor supporting HIM for the position and letting him go as First Lord!!!). He’s the one who let his Son go more and more crazy and refused to snap him back into place. He’s the one who had Victors Kid hidden From Him!!!! for Gods sake, which can only be taken as a secret dynastic play against the Federated Suns and nothing else (and is incredibly cruel to do to a Father, telling him his Child was DEAD while secretly raising him!!!)
And the best move he can come up with in this face-to-face meeting ... is to first tell Victor 'that's enough!'. Then to openly tell him that yes, he WANTS the madman state still around ENTIRELY as a threat and leverage for the Combine to use against the Federated Suns! Which is wrong on about five different levels! And then when Victor calls him out on his Son, he simply snarls back that he'll always act in the interests of the Draconis Combine, not even pretending to have ANY interests but that in mind as he comes to tell Victor to stop!!
I mean, bloody hell, the only good news is that this was probably a private not recorded conversation. Because if this went public in the Federated Suns (and Lyran Alliance and Saint Ives Compact for that matter...)
I mean, he COULD have tried to play the 'it's enough because if you push Sun Tzu to the 'nothing left to loose' point, whats to stop him picking 100 Davion planets with minimal defenses but accessible populations and dropping WMDs on every major population center with Death Commando sneak teams as a final act of spite?' card. Try to bring Victor around to a negotiated surrender to the Confederation. Perhaps with Casandra taking over, Sunny executed alongside his sister and a reduced but still available rump state for the long term?
But no, he thinks, he'll just show up and issue Victor orders and he'll meekly OBEY THE WILL OF THE DRAGON! like all his subjects...
Even his whole ‘5th Succession War’ thing makes no real sense (unless its in the context of rampant WMD use). The Lyran Alliance is a firm ally to Victor, an industrial partner to Victor and Victor damn near has as much if not more popular SUPPORT than Peter does there! The Clans constrain the Combine - as does the Alliance for that matter. The FWL is busy in a civil war with little time to worry about everyone else. The Confederation is about to die anyway and the Federated Suns borders are secure on the Southern and Eastern flanks thanks to earlier actions, with a massive military-industrial complex that is just going insane now. The WOB are the only wild card in the deck and they are no friends of Theodore given how in bed he is with ComStar anyway (and they're also tied up a lot in the FWL right now anyway)...
Instead he showed up sounding like Hans Blix from Team America.
Theodore: "You must stop this invasion of the Confederation, then let them rebuild up to attack you again and so I have an ally to threaten you with as I try to contain you and make sure you are no threat to my police state! So stop the invasion ... or else!"
Victor: "Or else ... what?"
Theodore: "Or else we will be very angry with you! And the Combine will write you a letter, telling you how angry we are!"
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yep
now if he publicly allowed for the former CC to slowly
recombine under their own leadership or parliament whatever they decide
then a lot of the energy that goes to guerrillas starting up goes to politics
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talking about running a bluff with a pair of threes
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3069 - January - Operation Rat II Third Wave
After a brief pause to regroup and resupply during December Operation Rat I launched back into active combat operations in the New Year. With the CCAF abandoning worlds to attempt to reinforce critical "fortress" worlds such as Capella, Sian and Sarna in the hope of holding onto these vital worlds the AFFS launched a series of mop up attacks throughout January, seizing poorly defended worlds in the face of only limited local resistance. In some cases the local Home Guard put up a stiff resistance, however in a number of incidents with morale within the CCAF plummeting the local units surrendered almost immedietly.
Kaifeng
Leaving the 5th Dragonlords RCT to hold the newly reconquered world of Palos the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT moved to strike at the world of Kaifeng on the 7th of January. At this stage of the campaign the Grenadiers had been in a number of hard fought actions however with a steady supply of replacement equipment and soldiers they remained near full strength. By now the elite RCT had been assigned a similar priority to the Davion Brigade of Guards and their ToE and the quality of their soldiers and officers reflected this. Facing them were Vong's Grenadiers who had been sent conflicting orders to "hold the planet to the last man and woman" and also "to fall back on Sarna if forced to do so". In direct comparison to the AFFS Grenadier unit Vong's was massively under strength with only 2 battalion's of battlemechs and warriors who although rated as regular in experience were by now showing serious signs of morale problems. While they themselves hadn't been directly attacked as yet the news that is leaking in from unofficial sources as well as the fact their garrison posting has changed from being a secure inner world to a border one has them starting to fall apart even before they are attacked.
With only a token resistance from the Capellan aerospace forces The 1st Kestrel Grenadiers make planet fall and begin their drive on their Capellan counterpart Grenadier's dug in positions. Knowing the Grenadier's number 4 battalions of predominantly heavy and assault machines Sang-shao Coung Vong has his forces dug in as best he can between the capital city and the 1st Kestrel's landing zone. However he's shocked to hear reports that a battalion of light and fast medium AFFS battlemech's have appeared in his rear areas between himself and the capital of Mahabodhi! While he is still digesting this information and deciding whether he should fall back from his defensive works to attempt to overrun this AFFS battalion the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers make the decision for him by launching a full scale attack.
With a known enemy force in their rear area and attacked by the elite troops of the Kestrel Grenadier's Vong's Grenadier's defensive formations collapse within the hour. Individual companies attempt to fight their way out to rally at Mahabodhi, but find themselves ambushed and attacked by the unknown force of light and medium battlemech's which are soon identified as elements of the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry who Marshal Stromp had requested support her drive on Kaifeng having been impressed with their performance on Alderbaran. While only a reinforced battalion had been attached to her force, the Marshal had hidden them within her own landing force and detached them to take full advantage of their speed.
Vong's Grenadier's are crushed as an effective formation in the 3 days of brutal fighting before their remnants trickle into the city of Mahabodhi. With every surviving battlemech heavily damaged and with almost no ammunition left Zhong-shao Aimee Yung-Tsi orders what's left of the regiment to make for their dropships and flee the world - and is immedietly shot by Maskirovka Liason Jordan Marche. Who is himself then killed by the surviving 3 members of the Zhong-shao's 1st Company. With only a company and a half of surviving battlemech's and having just committed treason by shooting Maskirovka Liason Marche the few surviving members of Vong's Grenadiers surrender to the oncoming Kestrel Grenadiers and are taken into custody. A handful of the disillusioned CCAF troops will eventually end up being accepted to join the AFFS - where they will mostly end up in the Outback as part of March Militias. Between the 2 AFFS regiment's they have lost roughly a battalion of troops and equipment.
Truth
While the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers and their Deneb Light Cavalry allies are taking Kaifeng the 1st Lexington Combat Guards are arriving upon the world of Truth. With no regular battlemech forces the local Home Guard units put up what can generously be described as a token resistance before surrendering to the AFFS unit.
Zaurak
With the loss of Kaifeng and Truth Zaurak and 3 other worlds are effectively cut off from the rest of the Capellan Confederation (although jumpships can still reach them from Sarna). When the 1st Capellan Dragoon's arrive in system they haven't even reached landfall before the local commander and the planetary governror surrender the world to the Federated Sun's and formally request absorption into the FedSun's.
Menkib, Matsu and Heligoland
With the fall of Kaifeng, Truth and surrender of Zaurak all within a few days of each other the remaining worlds in the short lived "Zaurak pocket" all send word to the Federated Sun's that they wish to surrender immedietly. Local FedSun's agents have been on planet for months working on sowing discontent with the Confederation and now watching the almost total collapse of the CCAF in the face of the AFFS juggernaut few on these 3 worlds wish to put up a bloody and inevitably futile resistance to the AFFS. Token garrison forces of mostly conventional brigades are rushed to the planet to help put down any pro-Capellan uprisings or hold outs against the change in government.
Quemoy
The Home Guard garrison of Quemoy finds themselves facing the veteran 2nd Davion Guards RCT in the New Year. With the 2nd's over strength air wings hammering them whenever they gather the garrison is forced to disperse or be annihilated. While a few of the infantry formations continue to resist from the more isolated areas of the planet the 2nd Davion Guards have little difficulty in reconquering the planet.
Bora
The Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment is dispatched to take the surrender of the world of Bora in January. Although ordered to fight to the last bullet and then throw themselves at the invaders with bayonets the local Home Guard collapses in the face of the invasion. Just as in the Fourth Succession Wars the planet puts up almost no resistance when the AFFS's mercenary troops arrive to retake the planet.
Phact
The Davion Assault Guard's in what can only be described as a massive case of overkill are dispatched from Corey to secure the world of Phact for the Federated Sun's. While the Home Guard predominantly infantry garrison launches suicidal attacks upon the invading Davion troops, often attempting to use satchel charges to disable the Guard's battlemech's they are soon routed and the world secured. A total of 3 battlemech's are damaged during these attacks, although the single battalion of armour that the Home Guard fields manage to inflict more damage but few additional losses.
Wazan
The 1st Revenant Guard's RCT lands on Wazan and finds the local's almost pathetically eager to surrender. The only isolated incident of resistance is when a member of the local Duke's staff, a hidden Maskirovka agent, attempts to kill the Duke and Marshal Steiner during the surrender ceremony. While both men escaped unharmed 3 infantry soldiers of the 1st Revenant Mechanised Infantry are killed. This puts a pall over the planet's surrender and leads to some tension between the locals and the Revenant's, however the world is quickly secured.
Old Kentucky, Tsinghai, Campertown and Chambdo
With the crumbling CCAF lines apparent to all the Davion High Command decide to make a calculated gamble and instead of dispatching the Davion Light Guard's to strike against a single word they instead order the elite unit to break into 4 separate combat commands, each built around a battalion of battlemech's. They are ordered to strike at the worlds of Old Kentucky, Tsinghai, Campertown and Chambdo at the same time and to move as fast as possible, giving the illusion that the full RCT is upon each world. Additional conventional units are attached to each combat command in order to bolster the numbers and provide a force able to provide garrisons. As a precaution the Light Guards are instructed that if they face any major resistance to break off and attempt to harry the enemy while reinforcements are rushed to support them. The High Command task the 39th Avalon Hussar's RCT as this reinforcement unit although they are hoping to allow it to remain on Pleione for the time being.
On Old Kentucky and Campertown the operation is a total success, convincing the local enemy Home Guard forces that they are facing an entire elite RCT and they surrender within days of the Light Guard's arrival. On Chambdo the local Home Guard commander twigs to the deception - but surrenders anyway. While he knows he can probably hold out against a single combat command for months, he knows that this is likely merely the first wave and any resistance will be met with the AFFS diverting either the rest of the Light Guards to his planet or perhaps even additional RCT's.
Only on Tsinghai does the Light Guard's face any real opposition. An unseen observation post report back the Light Guard's true numbers and this rallies the defender to resist. As per orders the Light Guards fall back into the planet's wilderness and fight a harassing campaign, knowing it will be weeks for reinforcements to arrive. However unexpectedly the Wild Geese mercenary regiment upon nearby Ulan Bator dispatches it's Black Horse Squadron to assist. The addition of 6 more companies of battlemech's allows the Light Guard's to go back on the offensive and soon crush the local resistance. By the end of the month all 4 worlds have fallen to the AFFS.
Overview
January leaves the Capellan holdings within the Liao Commonality reduced to the worlds of Sarna, Sarmaxa, Lesalles and Raballa. Of these only Sarna has any real garrison upon it - consisting of the 1st and 4th Capellan Defence Force and the Sarna Martial Academy's Training Cadre. Due to distrust in the population of Sarna the world's Home Guard formations had been limited in size and equipment and were able to add little to these numbers. Given the exposed and increasingly isolated nature of the defenders of Sarna a few within the Strategios are even heard to whisper that perhaps the 1st and 4th should be recalled to support the defenders of Capella. However abandoning Sarna is still considered a step too far, with the orders from the Chancellor that Sarna must be held! Even more worrying for the Strategios is the almost total collapse of the Home Guard on many of the worlds which have fallen during the Third Wave. It had been hoped that these units would continue to fight and bleed the Davion invaders reducing their strength prior to any attack upon Capella or Sarna, but these hopes have clearly been in vain! The only good news from the point of view of Sian was that the Hell's Black Aces had shown up at Capella and pledged to help defend that world. They were immedietly assigned to support the warships there.
New Avalon on the other had was delighted with Operation Rat II's Third Wave given that 14 worlds had fallen to the AFFS, casualties had been light and another CCAF regular army formation had been destroyed. The Confederation's morale was clearly crumbling and while the strain of pushing forward was mounting, everyone from the lowest newly recruited private to the Marshals and Field Marshal's of the High Command were eager to keep up the momentum! The Federated Sun's finally had a chance to wipe the Capellan Confederation from the map's of the Inner Sphere!
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Anyone else seeing AFFS Pac-Man nomming down on planet sized pellets? :D
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3069 - January - Operation Rat III Third Wave
Even as the AFFS forces in the former Sarna March surged forward once again and began picking off lightly defended worlds their counterparts below the old border in Operation Rat III did likewise. Worse from the point of view of the CCAF forces the fall of Menke and Victoria had released several units to rejoin the forward progress. The entire Illician Lancers mercenary brigade's forces on Menke for instance left the planet to it's garrison of the 6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT...
Nihal
On Nihal the garrison of the 2nd Capellan Chargers should have been able to put up a stiff resistance - or at least they would have been able to if they were not hovering around at around a third of their official strength. Faced with the veteran Illician Lancer's 4th Ranger's who numbered 3 times their forces the Charger's would have been best served to either fall back or break into smaller groups and fight a guerrilla campaign. However that wouldn't have been in keeping with the ethos of the Capellan Chargers Brigade. Instead they threw themselves directly at the 4th Ranger's landing zone in a furious assault. Knowing the calibre of their opponents the Rangers were waiting for them and in a 3 hour engagement destroyed the 2nd Charger's almost to the last trooper - although they took heavy casualties themselves. With the sacrifice of the 2nd Charger's the local defenders promptly surrendered.
Raphael
The 59th Striker regiment of the Illician Lancers arrived on the world of Raphael alongside an AFFS conventional infantry brigade to face a stiff defence from the local Home Guard. It was soon apparent that the news blackout of the true state of the Confederation's strategic situation had been entirely successful on Raphael and the local defenders truly believed that the Confederation was winning the war and they would be relieved soon. As such they fought with fanatical bravery to hold on long enough for the "cavalry" to arrive. It was tragic for them that no such "cavalry" had been dispatched. Instead they spent themselves on attacking again and again against the Striker's until eventually near the end of January the truth was apparent to even the most fanatical of Liao loyalist... Help wasn't coming. At which time resistance collapsed into scattered pockets. Before they were defeated the Home Guard did at least manage to knock out nearly 2 companies of Lancers.
Decatur
The Decatur Home Guard was bolstered by the recruits from the Duchy Regional Training Centre on Decatur and indeed had a number of out dated battlemech's within their ToE. Knowing this the Davion High Command had assigned not only the Illician Lancer's 9th Ranger's regiment but also the 4th Avalon Hussars RCT. Although normally the commanding officer of the 4th would have been in command, given the green nature of the Hussar's and the longstanding ties between the AFFS and Ranger's the CO of the 4th Avalon was ordered to follow the Lancer's lead.
With the 4th Avalon Hussar's providing the numbers and the 9th Ranger's providing the experienced troops the training formations of the RTC were soon overrun and routed, while the Home Guard formations were isolated on Decatur's many islands by the 4th's air wings achieving total air superiority. With this situation the AFFS and mercenary formations were able to pick of small isolated pockets of Home Guard troops using overwhelming force, one by one. Although officially fighting would continue into February the world was effectively secure by the end of January.
Bellatrix
The final regiment of the Illician Lancer's, the 21st Ranger's arrived at Bellatrix and had the least difficulty of all their sister regiments in securing the planet. A single battalion of infantry Home Guard troops refused the planetary Duke's order to surrender and attempted to fight them before being crushed in a less than an hour.
Egress
Leaving the 2nd FedSun's Dragoons and 3rd Dragonlord's RCT's to hold Victoria the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT moved on to hit the world of Egress in January. While the 1st Lancer's had seen heavy fighting in Victoria they had received replacement personal and equipment and were operating at almost 80% of their reinforced regimental strength, with similar levels in their supporting units. As such they were more than a match for the defending Lockhardt's Ironside's regiment who had fled to Egress after their defeat on Zanzibar.
Worse from the point of view of the defenders, as soon as the AFFS recieved confirmation of the presence of the Ironsides on Egress they rushed the 1st Cunningham Commando's from Victoria to reinforce the 1st Crucis Lancers to ensure the destruction of the Capellan unit. Faced with overwhelming odds even before the arrival of the Commando's in the system the Ironside's had been fighting a war of movement attempting to maintain their limited strength. With the arrival of the Commando's the situation went from hopeless to impossible and Shang-shao Rhianna Lockhardt contacted Marshal Rand-Davion and requested to surrender on honourable terms. The former mercenary command was informed that if they were to surrender and agree to take up a mercenary contract with the AFFS on a long term contract they would be allowed to keep their remaining battlemech's and receive generous terms.
A handful of Capellan loyalists refused these terms and attempted to continue to resist, but the bulk of the remaining Ironsides's (roughly 2 companies of battlemechs) renounced their allegiance to the Confederation and returned to mercenary service before signing a 20 year contract with the AFFS. They were immedietly dispatched to Rentz as an anti-piracy unit in the Outback.
Hurik
The 11th Avalon Hussar's RCT struck Hurik alongside the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT. Leftenant General Dean found being under the command of Marshal Justin Leabo of the 11th somewhat galling, but was smart enough to hold his temper and follow orders. Particularly given that the the experienced Leabo who had always had some skill at diplomacy and politics allows the 4th's commanding officer to operate almost entirely independently. With the heavyweight 4th smashing any attempt by the local Home Guard to resist and the 11th securing the world's vital cities and strategic locations Hurik is soon secured for the Federated Suns.
Grand Base
On Grand base the 2nd and 3rd Sun Jaguar Guards begin hunting down the Death Commando trainees and training staff who had fled into the jungles. This ongoing war of ambush and booby traps would go on for several months until the last Death Commando affiliated soldier is killed deep in the jungles. The Clan Sun Jaguar Warrior's while finding the tactics of the Death Commando's dishonourable do at least relish the challenge - particularly the Elemental trinaries.
Geifer
Leaving the world of Randar in the hands of the 1st Kathil Uhlans's the 8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT moves on and hits the world of Geifer. An internal world that has never been considered to be at threat, the local Home Guard are poorly equipped and badly trained. Hurried attempts to reinforce them with conscripts have done little to improve the actual effectiveness of the defences. Against a full RCT the defending Home Guard are only able to put up a few weeks worth of resistance before they are forced to surrender.
Relevow
The Duke of Relevow fled the world at the first jump signals of the arriving 6th Robinson Ranger RCT. Along with him he took most of the planetary treasury and his immediete family - which unfortunately also ended up decapitating most of the Home Guard formations which were led by various cousins and nephews of the Duke. With the planet almost totally lacking in leadership the 6th Robinson's main problem was the fact that many of the Home Guard formations continued to fight as nobody was available to order them to surrender. This led to a number of brutal if short lived actions in which the Ranger's used their overwhelming firepower to destroy the ad hoc resistance.
Aldertaine
The elite 7th Crucis Lancers RCT moved to secure the world of Aldertaine for the Federated Sun's near the tail end of January. Long considered an internal world the defences of the world were if anything in even worse state than Geifer's and the mere presence of a strong AFFS force in the system was enough to cause widespread panic and desertions in the few Home Guard formations that the world had. As such although the world didn't officially surrender to the 7th Crucis Lancer's until the end of January there was little real fighting.
Gei-Fu
With intelligence provided by the St Ives Compact regarding the prescence of the 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry and 3rd Capellan Charger's on the world of Gei-Fu the High Command in conjuction with Duke Hasek sprung into action. The opportunity to wipe out both damaged commands while they were still recovering from the heavy fighting involving the 2nd Janissaries was too good to miss.
Leading the attack came the 3rd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry which after December had returned to 90% of it's operational strength of a full reinforced regiment. While not as elite as the 1st FSAC the 3rd was still an incredibly effective veteran unit staffed by some of the finest soldiers in the AFFS and with the best equipment possible. If that wasn't enough the High Command also rushed the elite 7th FedSun's Dragoons RCT and the 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT to attack the world alongside the 3rd FSAC.
Facing these 3 AFFS formation's the 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry was hovering around half strength, while the 3rd Capellan Charger's were effectively even worse off. The 2nd's commanding officer Shang-shao Mai Tee Phyn attempted to bolster her forces by effectively absorbing the 3rd Capellan Charger's into her own formation as a reformed and reinforced 3rd battalion, however the 3rd's headstrong officers and mechwarriors refuse this order and instead resolve to fight the campaign their own way. Instead of falling back with the 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry to attempt to hold out as long as they can, the 3rd make's their stand in the planetary spaceport hoping to inflict heavy damage on any descending AFFS troops as they land in dropships.
This hope is shattered when the 3rd FSAC undertakes a command drop right on top of the 3rd Charger's positions. Although the 3rd Chargers fights well for a green unit and has the advantage of position, they are eventually crushed by the much larger and more experienced 3rd FSAC. At which time the FSAC reforms itself while securing the spaceport. The Dragoons and Raiders are soon on planet and begin pursuing the 2nd Reserve Cavalry.
The 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry manages to avoid being pinned down throughout January, but is unable to inflict any meaningful losses upon the AFFS formations who are hounding it across both the world's continents. Any attempt to stand and fight will only lead to their destruction, and all it will take is one mistake on the part of the Cavalry and they will be trapped and destroyed by the much larger Davion formations...
Summary
With the loss of so many worlds and even more the loss of a number of additional military commands the Strategios find's it has little to offer Chancellor Sun-Tzu's demands that they counter attack or at least stem the advance of the Davion hordes during February. While Sian itself is safe, both Sarna and Capella are now on the front lines and are week by week becoming more isolated. The invasion of a further 11 worlds (10 of which fell almost immedietly to the invaders) is now beyond any attempt to downplay. The CCAF has been exposed as a paper tiger and world after world is falling to the oncoming Davion forces.
Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao, by now struggling to control his temper at the best of times, upon the arrival of the Duke of Relevow and his family upon Sian he orders they all be executed as cowards for abandoning their duty. Few amongst the CCAF are particularly upset by this given that the planetary Duke no doubt contributed to the swift fall of his world and abandoned the Home Guard troops there to defeat - however the execution of his entire family including civilians causes some unease. This unease skyrockets when the Chancellor orders the execution of Sang-shao An Shennu for her father the Duke of Larsha's treason in surrendering his world. This infuriates the Sang-shao's own command of the Red Lancers but also Ion Rush who had personally given assurances to the Sang-shao that she would not be mistreated. A personal appeal by Ion Rush and Talon Zahn to the Chancellor is refused as is the request that she be at least executed as an officer - instead of being killed by firing squad she is executed by hanging.
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Ohh.... Nice update! So will the AFFS slow down and consolidate their gains? Will First-Prince Victor SD Take a few weeks to review the FedSuns strategic outlook and other threats like the WoB and the DC?
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Ohh.... Nice update! So will the AFFS slow down and consolidate their gains? Will First-Prince Victor SD Take a few weeks to review the FedSuns strategic outlook and other threats like the WoB and the DC?
Right now the AFFS is trying to keep up momentum - particularly given the widespread collapse of morale within the CCAF and Home Guard. They are probably planning at least one last big push to take Capella and/or Sarna, then another pause to resupply, consolidate etc...
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3069 - January - St Ives Update
While things had improved marginally within the St Ives Compact during December, in the New Year most realised that this had been the calm before the storm. The new Duchess of St Ives found more and more of her government collapsing due to sheer inertia. Kali Liao's attack hadn't managed to destroy the St Ives Compact but it was now becoming apparent that she had managed to cripple it and potentially fatally wound it. The most obvious and stark threat now to the St Ives Compact however was no longer the Capellan Confederation or the Thuggee Cult but in fact the Federated Suns. Ironically the very ally that was propping them up.
On the 5th of January the planetary government of the world of Texlos formally petitioned New Avalon to join the Federated Suns. They were soon joined on the 11th by the world of Teng and on the 15th by Tallin. On the 27th the world of Ambergrist joined them in seeking admission into the Federated Suns. The loss of any one of these worlds would be crippling for the small state and the loss of all 4 was almost certainly fatal. Worse it was almost certain that if these worlds did secede and join the FedSun's then others would no doubt follow. Whispers were coming that Warlock and Taga were also considering the move.
Duchess Cassandra could do little to prevent these movements. Her own government was still in ruins, her military overstretched and frankly her entire economy was on the verge of a potential crash that had not been seen since the First Succession War - worse the only thing propping her government and nation up both politically, militarily and economically at this point was the very Federated Sun's that her worlds were petitioning to join! The only current silver lining was that the Federated Sun's had made no official response to the requests to join it, but few amongst her advisers were naive enough to think that their neighbour would turn down adding 4 rich industrial worlds to it's realm!
Gripping the bull by the horns she contacted First Prince Victor Davion directly and requested that they might meet to discuss the future. She made it clear she was prepared to rush to his command post on Tikonov or meet with him on New Avalon at his convenience. Instead she was surprised to hear back from him immedietly that he would himself travel to St Ives and meet with her upon her own world. Fresh from his meeting with the Coordinator he promised to head directly to St Ives at his best speed. He would arrive in early February
In the meantime Duchess Cassandra folded both the remaining 2nd Janissaries and Blackwind Lancers into her own rebuilding 1st St Ives Lancers - bringing this shattered unit up to around 2 battalions in strength. Although on paper the unit remained elite rated and now at a respectable 60% of it's full strength the unit cohesion was abysmal. The entire 2nd battalion were former Janissaries and Blackwind Lancers and were still finding their way to working together - let alone with the existing 1st battalion. Both units survivors were also hoping that eventually they would be broken off to reform their former commands.
Meanwhile on Harloc the rogue 2nd St Ives Lancers found themselves facing off against Harloc's Raiders. Both units were hovering around half strength and both were rated as veteran troops however the world of Harloc rose up in an almost overwhelming wave in support of "their" regiment. The 2nd St Ives Lancers found almost every single move they made reported to the Raiders or worse blocked by civilians who they were forced to either massacre or go around. With the memories of St Ives fresh in their mind and hoping to avoid any accusations of acting in the same way as the Capellan's the Lancers again and again attempted to manoeuvre their way out of these difficult circumstances, only to find themselves permanently fighting at a disadvantage against the Raiders.
Worse the Raiders were soon joined by the 6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry from their posting on nearby Hustaing. Coming to the conclusion that hovering at around a battalion in strength would allow them little chance of surviving against a Federated Suns regiment let alone a full RCT the 6th had upon hearing word that the Harloc's Raiders had moved to Harloc resolved to combine forces with them into a potentially usefully strengthened unit. The addition of the battle hardened 6th's single battalion of troops as well as the popular support allowed the Raiders to finally pin down the 2nd St Ives Lancers on the 29th of January and force them off world with heavy casualties.
The 2nd St Ives Lancers fell back on Milos to take up station there and attempt to rebuild, but they were reduced to a bare company and a half of mechwarriors plus some supporting troops. They had managed to inflict significant casualties upon the 2 CCAF regiments facing them but the now amalgamated 6th Harloc's Cavalry Raiders still numbered almost 2 battalions of elite troops. Duchess Cassandra considered again ordering the 2nd St Ives Lancers to St Ives to merge into her rebuilding 1st St Ives Lancers, but decided to allow them to remain where they were for the time being. There were only so many shattered commands the 1st could absorb.
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Hey when the AFFS takes Sian funny idea why not make the Celestial Throne a tourist attraction? Five C-Bills to sit on it and ten C-bills to get your photo taken on it, I can see people and nobles lining up to do that.
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make the st. ives march and turn the Capellan Confed into the FWL March.
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Yeah, look, at this point Casandra it's time to admit Saint Ives always was a client state of the Federated Suns. Kali knocked the supports right out from under you, might as well make it official and get a map redraw to boot.
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He’s the one who has hidden Victors Kid From Him for Gods sake which can only be taken as a secret dynastic play against the Federated Suns and nothing else!
It isn't even something the Kurita's haven't tried before.
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Yeah, that's why this looks so horribly bad.
I mean, it's hard to see how Theodore really could have screwed it up much more really. Victor himself has probably now dropped the last of his respect for Theodore and is reviewing ALL his actions since 3050 through new eyes. That Theodore used Omi's (genuine) infatuation with him as a useful thing to strengthen the alliance during the darkest days of the Clan war. Then when Hanse died, he 'allowed' Omi to resume contact to continue the lever on Victor, even more useful as he ascended to Archon Prince. Then he used it to help Victor come to the 'correct' conclusion to go after the Smoke Jaguars in Bulldog and liberate the Combine rather than the Lyran Alliance, encouraging the two of them to screw around because with Victor now in a weakened state politically it could be a very useful thing to have 20 years down the track. A nominal claim to the Federated Suns AND Lyran Commonwealth, probably forseeing that SOME kind of Civil War would take place.
All cold and calculated. That Omi's affection was genuine, but Theodore used it with the same cunning and out-of-the-box thinking to do what was necessary for the Combine to win, just like he did in 3028, 3039, 3050...
Theodore coming to this meeting and bluntly ordering Victor to stop his invasion (which Victor see's as entirely righteous and simply the endgame of Sun Tzu pushing him for too long, Saint Ives just being the last straw) and freely admitting that he doesn't care about the bloodshed, just having a threat on Victors flank ... it's not surprising that everything crystallized into place to the point that Victor played his ace and revealed he knew about his Son. And then Theodore in the icing on the cake moment, outright admitted to Victors face he is ONLY and will ONLY ever act in the best interests of the Draconis Combine and its preeminence over all.
As this point I think its safe to say that, combined with Hohiro being even MORE nuts about Victor being his enemy now, the brief good relations with the Combine of the 3050s are dead and buried.
I'd suggest that Victor even re-gift the Covenant to Peter. Just to get rid of the damn Combine crap (and as a clear slap in the face to the Combine who gifted the Cruiser to them). Because nothing is more insulting than re-gifting a very expensive present :D
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Yeah, that's why this looks so horribly bad.
I mean, it's hard to see how Theodore really could have screwed it up much more really. Victor himself has probably now dropped the last of his respect for Theodore and is reviewing ALL his actions since 3050 through new eyes. That Theodore used Omi's (genuine) infatuation with him as a useful thing to strengthen the alliance during the darkest days of the Clan war. Then when Hanse died, he 'allowed' Omi to resume contact to continue the lever on Victor, even more useful as he ascended to Archon Prince. Then he used it to help Victor come to the 'correct' conclusion to go after the Smoke Jaguars in Bulldog and liberate the Combine rather than the Lyran Alliance, encouraging the two of them to screw around because with Victor now in a weakened state politically it could be a very useful thing to have 20 years down the track. A nominal claim to the Federated Suns AND Lyran Commonwealth, probably forseeing that SOME kind of Civil War would take place.
All cold and calculated. That Omi's affection was genuine, but Theodore used it with the same cunning and out-of-the-box thinking to do what was necessary for the Combine to win, just like he did in 3028, 3039, 3050...
Theodore coming to this meeting and bluntly ordering Victor to stop his invasion (which Victor see's as entirely righteous and simply the endgame of Sun Tzu pushing him for too long, Saint Ives just being the last straw) and freely admitting that he doesn't care about the bloodshed, just having a threat on Victors flank ... it's not surprising that everything crystallized into place to the point that Victor played his ace and revealed he knew about his Son. And then Theodore in the icing on the cake moment, outright admitted to Victors face he is ONLY and will ONLY ever act in the best interests of the Draconis Combine and its preeminence over all.
As this point I think its safe to say that, combined with Hohiro being even MORE nuts about Victor being his enemy now, the brief good relations with the Combine of the 3050s are dead and buried.
I'd suggest that Victor even re-gift the Covenant to Peter. Just to get rid of the damn Combine crap (and as a clear slap in the face to the Combine who gifted the Cruiser to them). Because nothing is more insulting than re-gifting a very expensive present :D
Well yes given the Covenant to the LA would be a major gift... However it's just undergone a very useful refit... And the High Command have some ideas for it and any Sian (Inazuma) class corvettes they can "acquire" from the shattered CC...
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I just hope that the Hell's Black Aces have been flipped and when the FedSun comes knocking. a pair of warships gets knocked out, but recoverable.
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As far as St. Ives Compact, it could become part of the FS as its own March or Victor could grant some of the newly captured worlds to St. Ives to prop them up more as its own nation? It would also give any CC refugees a chance to go somewhere other than FS or the FWL.
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I am hoping Victor is smart with St Ives. Right now they are hurting but they are more useful as an allied State than as a part of the FedSuns. By remaining Independent it allows the people of the CC a place they can go to that is the real heart of their culture. It also stops and removes major insurgency and rebellious occupied worlds from being an issue. If the people of the CC have nowhere to go except abandoning what makes them a culture they will stay and make life hell for the FedSuns. By taking the jumpships, dropships, and any industry they can claim and moving it to St Ives in order to rebuild them plus adding more worlds to its holdings to strengthen it makes removes the majority of the unrest that would come from taking all the worlds. Breaking up the non-vital areas of the CC into smaller states with pro FedSuns governments or by putting them at odds with each other will stop a reunification from happening. Cause for all the power Victor and the FedSuns now have they simply cannot control and occupy the whole of the CC.
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The Federated Sun's finally had a chance to wipe the Capellan Confederation from the map's of the Inner Sphere!
Something tells me that WoB will do something at this point. It's simply unacceptable for the to allow FS a complete victory.
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I am hoping Victor is smart with St Ives. Right now they are hurting but they are more useful as an allied State than as a part of the FedSuns. By remaining Independent it allows the people of the CC a place they can go to that is the real heart of their culture. It also stops and removes major insurgency and rebellious occupied worlds from being an issue. If the people of the CC have nowhere to go except abandoning what makes them a culture they will stay and make life hell for the FedSuns. By taking the jumpships, dropships, and any industry they can claim and moving it to St Ives in order to rebuild them plus adding more worlds to its holdings to strengthen it makes removes the majority of the unrest that would come from taking all the worlds. Breaking up the non-vital areas of the CC into smaller states with pro FedSuns governments or by putting them at odds with each other will stop a reunification from happening. Cause for all the power Victor and the FedSuns now have they simply cannot control and occupy the whole of the CC.
Yes they can, thanks to Battletech planets for the most part shrugging and getting on with the new boss, same as the old boss :p
The Federated Suns has an advantage here in that there are vast swaths of disenfranchised populations in the Servitors and oppressed groups, political prisoners and so on, who can be counted on to become champions of the new order. While most of the general population will see nominal improvements in their situation or at least no negatives. The problem comes at the highest levels, but MIIO don't have extensive files written up for what nobles can be counted on to work with the new regime as genuine champions of their peoples and planets, which ones can be counted on to be trouble and need to be replaced with better locals. It'll be the work of decades mind you, but its not all bad. The former Sarna March has a lot of planets that seem to be ready to throw back in with the Davions and the experience there and from the 3030s can be used to streamline things now.
People just don't move around in bulk in Battletech, Jump Ship logistics just mean you can't move masses of people. The only people who might move around in this scenario are the rich and powerful, the movers and shakers, and there is a bit of a danger of them all migrating to Saint Ives of all places because they think its 'a last bastion of the Capellan nation!' Honestly, the Federated Suns is going to have to absorb and assimilate the Confederation if they want a real, lasting peace. There were be plenty of fringe 'down with the Fedrats!' groups all over the place, but very few of them will be a genuine threat. And if you can really get into the people for whom this change is a HUGE improvement, then they'll be taken care of without the FedSuns having to do terribly much at all.
It won't be easy of course and tie down a lot of occupation troops for some time, but the AFFS can handle it with the right touch.
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3069 - January - General Update
Even as the High Command continued to celebrate the successes's of Operation Rat II and Rat III they didn't however get to rest on their laurels. As well as preparing for the "big push" to retake (as everyone was sure to phrase it) Sarna and take Capella they also continued to work to reinforce the Draconis March. Nowhere was this more evident than in the voids of space. In January 3069 the 4th Corvette Flotilla assigned to the Draconis March was upgraded in quality and number of ships. The Flotilla's 1st Division of 4 Fox corvettes all completed their upgrade to the II variant. They were replaced in the repair slips over Edwards by the 2nd Division's 4 corvettes. However to make up the shortfall of warship hulls while the 2nd Division was upgraded and in light of the growing tension on the Draconis Front Fleet Admiral Buchwald assigned the 4 Fox II corvettes completing at Filtvelt (the FSS Hoff and FSS Benedict) and New Syrtis (the FSS Stein's Folly and FSS Redfield) to the 4th Flotilla as it's 3rd Division. This meant that even with 4 ships being upgraded until June the 4th Flotilla numbered 2 full divisions of Fox II warships.
FSS Diamond and FSS Diana, 2 Davion III destroyers completed at Galax were also used to create a new 3rd Destroyer Squadron which was to be home ported over Robinson. While many had argued for the reinforcement of the 2nd Destroyer Squadron to a full 4 ships, the High Command had agreed with Fleet Admiral Buchwald that the additional deployment options of a new squadron was more useful. Similarly the FSS Duncan, completed at New Syrtis, instead of being sent to the 2nd or 3rd Destroyer Squadron was assigned to the Morgan Hasek-Davion's 1st Carrier Battle Group as it's first escort.
All of the now empty construction slips were immedietly refilled with more warships to begin construction. Not only did the finishing slips receive new orders, but the new Challenge System shipyard at June also saw it's first 2 slips go online and lay down a Congress-D II class frigate and New Syrtis class carrier. Additionally the shipyards of the Federated Sun's during January managed to complete 2 Fox corvettes - who were sold 1 each to the Lyran Alliance and to the Wolves-in-Exile - and 4 more were sold to the ComGuard's from the shipyards at Novaya Zemlya. The LA, WiE and ComStar all requested that future ships be constructed to the II variant, but they were informed that this would require additional negotiations. Still the sale of these 6 Fox corvettes was a major boost in the funding of the Federated Sun's Navy given the combat operations being undertaken. Perhaps even more of a boost was the knowledge that these were just the first ships of many that could be expected to be added to fleet in the coming year - including no less than 3 New Syrtis class carriers!
After the meeting between the Coordinator and the First Prince tensions immedietly skyrocketed along the FedSun's Combine border. On both sides military commands stood up to full readiness in preparation for an attack or even for the orders to launch one of their own. Matters were made worse when near the end of January the Coordinator's personal physicians confirmed to Prince Hohiro that his father had suffered a major heart attack during or immedietly after the meeting with First Prince Victor Davion. While the physicians assures the prince that his father would recover, he was at least for the time being temporarily incapacitated and could not be stressed if he was to recover.
Given Hohiro Kurita's by now deep hatred of all things pertaining to Victor Davion the fact that the despised Davion had driven his father to this ignoble injury was more than enough for him to seize the opportunity it presented. All DCMS commands were placed on a war footing and every major warship slipped from it's moorings and headed out into the dark to take up their war time postings. Hohiro in conjunction with the Warlord's of Benjamin and Galedon began moving troops to staging areas near the FedSun's frontier. The plan was simple. A two pronged pincer strike from near Misery and Prosperina to converge on Robinson. At the very least it would result in the AFFS having to draw troops from their exposed "Galtor Thumb" or risk them being encircled and cut off. With enough troops and luck it was considered that the Dragon might even close it's claws upon the world of Robinson and cut the heart from the treacherous Sandoval's! Yet such preparation's took time. Hohiro had to move fast, before his father could recover sufficiently to urge caution, yet not so swiftly that he wasn't ready. Worse he had to keep such preparation's hidden from the Warlord of Pesht - his mother - who would no doubt take the matter to his father.
As hidden as these attempts were, the AFFS wasn't blind to the growing forces on their frontier and made their own preparations in light of the intelligence filtering in from the Combine. Despite still being extremely under strength the 1st Conroe Borderer's and the 1st Galtor Borderer's were ordered to stand too and were added to the active rolls to give their worlds additional defensive formations. To aid them their local Training Battalion's were ordered to consider themselves for the time period a 2nd battalion to each formation.
First Prince Victor himself spent January rushing from his meeting with the Coordinator to meet with the new Duchess of St Ives. Even as he did so additional reports reached him at every stop of the faltering situation in the Compact. Duke Hasek even made the point of sending him a message suggesting that one "quick fix" would be for the Compact to be absorbed into the Capellan March as the St Ives PDZ and that he would personally assure the First Prince that the worlds would then be carefully integrated in a way to ensure they were productive members of the Sun's. While thanking his cousin for the suggestion, the First Prince did rebuff the intent.
Victor was also busy sending messages to Comstar and the Lyran Alliance during January repeating previous notifications that the attack on Terra would have to be delayed. He had a major humanitarian crisis and a war on one border and the beginnings of another on his other frontier. Now was not the time for him to divert a huge chunk of his forces to retake the Terra system. Archon Steiner took his brother's news with quite (and behind the scenes happy) acceptance, but Interim Primus Dow was furious and demanded that Victor "keep his word". The argument that followed between the two men would sour relations between them permanently. At the end of it however Gavin Dow was in no doubt of his status of junior partner in any anti-WOB coalition or alliance involving the Federated Suns. The Federated Sun's would continue to support Comstar and the ComGuards, however this would take second seat to their own needs and demands. Victor assured Dow that he would keep his word, but that he would do so in a practical and measured way and not above the safety and security of his people!
During January the Johnston Industries plant on New Syrtis finished construction of it's new Caesar line. With the completion of this battlemech line the company decided to add an additional third Dagger-O line to keep pace with increasing demands during wartime.
On Bristol the first Fury Command Tank line in hundreds of years roared to life and began producing the venerable but still lethal command vehicle. Before they were even painted the first of these new tanks were loaded onto transports and rushed to the armoured formations of such units as the Davion Assault Guards and other commands readying for the coming battles!
The Michaelson plant on Marlette entered production for the ComGuard's during January. Producing the gunship VTOL's for which the company was justly famous for they began shipping out to the various ComGuard's Divisions throughout the Federated Suns. None were shipped to ComGuard formations within the Draconis Combine.
Norse Battlemech Work's new plant on Mayetta also began producing from the first of it's 3 building lines. The other 2 lines are not far behind the Sling in entering production and the first lance of the new battlemech is donated to the Mayetta DMM. Further production is earmarked for the Tancredi Loyalist LCT's.
On Valois Clan Sun Jaguar announces that it's Clint IIC line has now been completed although work continues on the more high tech Mist Lynx omnimech production facility. The AFFS does, through Duchess Isis Marik as an intermediary, contact the Clan to ask if they would be prepared to sell "upgrade kits" to allow the AFFS to upgrade some of their own Clint's, Wyvern's, Guillotine's and Highlander's to an IIC specification in addition to the numbers they buy directly. The Khan promises to take this under advisement - and to discuss the matter with her Technician, Merchant and Scientist advisers as to the feasibility of the suggestion.
On Sian at the end of the month the Chancellor summons Ion Rush and Talon Zahn to the Celestial Throne room where he lays out his plans to repel the Davion invasion. In a 3 hour monologue he explains to the experienced generals that the Davion's have made a fatal mistake and have underestimated the loyalty and dedication of the Capellan people's to their beloved Chancellor. As soon as the Davion's set foot on Sarna and Capella the local populations will rise up in support of the "True First Lord Of the Star League". He goes on to explain in detail how the masses of true believers will drown the invading forces in blood, forcing them to use up their ammunition to prevent the human style wave attacks from overwhelming them immedietly, at which time the regular forces defending the world will have no problem at all in sweeping the field of any remaining Davion's. Using the captured Davion equipment and taking advantage of the plummeting morale of the AFFS which had just seen it's best troops destroyed to the last man and woman the CCAF would then launch a counter attack which would retake the "sacred commonality worlds of Victoria, Liao, Tikonov... and Chesterton". The Chancellor did not deign to take advise or questions from his generals but merely sent them forth to implement his divine plan...
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Quick Sunny, to the Führerbunker!!! :D
EDIT
Slightly more seriously, Dow needs to ****** be yanked back by the rest of the First Circuit. It's pretty bloody clear that, through no fault of his own, Victors strategic situation has gone to shit and accordingly he needs to change priorities. Angrily yelling at him, demanding he stick to the timetable ... its not going to do anything but piss off ComStars greatest (and honestly, only real) patron and champion. What he SHOULD have done is feel free to vent and scream all he wants in private, then politely and calmly present and offer alternatives to Victor.
Like scaling down his commitment or even dropping the request for Ground Forces to a couple of RCTs instead of 20, but wanting as many warships for a couple of months as Victor can possibly spare, to destroy the WOB fleet and SDS grids, after which point ComStar can take things over themselves. Or looking for some concessions with more support for the ComGuard fleet. Or something! But he's a complete failure as a politician if his first instinct is to try and angrily yell Victor into doing what he wants!
Its honestly about time for the First Circuit to find their damn balls and start yanking his choke chain a few times at this point. And I'm sure that by now there is a very good chance SOMEONE in the WOB has found out about the planned raid, what if Dow is yelling at Victor about it over HPG channels where all you need is ONE ROM sleeper from WOB in the chain somewhere...so good work there Dow! Way to invite a preemptive attack...
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Well I think we can well and truly say Sunny has gone over the cuckoo line now. The generals and others have to see the writing on the walls and have now had to deal with 3 successive generations of insane Liaos. I am thinking a coup to remove that family from power is eminent in order to gain surrender terms from the FedSuns and Victor.
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I think sunny is in for a bit of lead poisonings
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Well, lead based cranial enema is a sure way to permanently cure insanity.
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Theodore coming to this meeting and bluntly ordering Victor to stop his invasion (which Victor see's as entirely righteous and simply the endgame of Sun Tzu pushing him for too long, Saint Ives just being the last straw) and freely admitting that he doesn't care about the bloodshed, just having a threat on Victors flank ... it's not surprising that everything crystallized into place to the point that Victor played his ace and revealed he knew about his Son. And then Theodore in the icing on the cake moment, outright admitted to Victors face he is ONLY and will ONLY ever act in the best interests of the Draconis Combine and its preeminence over all.
It's the Combine. When called on their BS their response has always been rage tantrum with a side of atrocity.
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I hate to be that guy... but in this context it should be Suns. No apostrophe.
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What Victor should do is take Sarna and the other world first. Then raid the remaining worlds around the rest of the CC steal everything they can and destroy the rest and then build up for longer. Time is on the side of the FedSuns here. The longer they go on the more ships and war materials they make. The taken goods can be used to help St Ives Recover and make it a more appealing place for the CC worlds to join instead of staying with the soon to be dead state. The CC no longer would have the capacity to repair or equip its forces and with Sunny going full insane grandpapa they will not be able to reverse the downfall and will just make it worse with purges and executions of "traitors" same as what Amaris did during the Fall of Star League. Eventually, the people will revolt and aid the FedSuns if only out of a desire for vengeance.
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Is anyone else worried that we haven't heard from Kali for quite some time?
She must be going even more manic with rage at what's happening but she has been oddly quiet and I can't help but worry about what the insane woman is planning.
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We can only hope that even the WoB has decided she's too crazy for them.
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3069 - February - Operation Rat II Fourth Wave
As the Fourth Wave kicked off what the Capellan's had been dreading for months finally occured. Large scale forces descending upon the "Fortress Worlds" of Capella and Sarna... Worse, the AFFS not content with attacking these worlds the Davion's were continueing to push on deeper into the Confederation, striking more and more poorly defended worlds.
Sarna
Sarna's defenders had done what they could to prepare for the invasion, but with a lack of warship support they knew that they would not be able to stop the invading Davion's before they made planet fall. Still they rushed as many aerospace fighters and hastily militarized dropships into production as they could. The pilots and crews for these new assets were recruiting from not only the Sarna Martial Academy but also the plant workers and any retired veterans on the world. Any faint hope that they might be able to blunt the invasion in space were entirely dispelled when the invasion force jumped in led by the 1st Patrol Squadron, 1st Destroyer Squadron and the 2nd Division of the 3rd Corvette Flotilla. No less than 10 warship's - 2 Congress-D II, 4 Davion III and 4 Fox I class ships - were leading the attack. Backing them up were multiple independent aerospace regiments and assault dropship formations.
Sending the hastily assembled dropship and aerospace forces available to the defenders against this overwhelming force was tantamount to throwing them away for little to go gain - a suicide mission. They were sent anyway. With predicatable results. The scratch force of aerospace fighters and converted dropships charged into the defensive fire of the Davion ship's and their veteran supporting wings and burned without inflicting damage on a single warship. A number of Davion fighter wing's took heavy losses and several pocket warships and assault dropships were destroyed or damaged, but the warship's themselves remained intact and led the way forward to take up orbital positions around Sarna.
At which point the first wave of the invasion forces began to land. Leading the way came the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT (specifically brought up from their garrison posting on Kathil where they had been replaced by the 2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT). The 5th had a history on Sarna, but with the invasion itself led by their old commanding officer Field Marshal Nathaniel Hasek himself this time they were determined to "do it right". Therefore rather than rushing ahead, they were merely leading the way for the other 2 RCT's in the first wave. Following them in were the 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT and the 1st Kestrel Grenadier's RCT's. This first wave crashed down around the planetary capital of Sarna and within days was engaged in heavy fighting with the 1st Capellan Defence Force.
Under almost instant heavy pressure from not 1 but 3 veteran formations Sang-shao Garry Weinrib was forced to call upon the troops of the 4th Capellan Defence Force to reinforce his lines. This left the rest of the planet only covered by the Sarna Martial Academy Cadre and a handful of Home Guard units. While hurried reinforcement's had brought the Cadre up to roughly 5 companies of battlemech's these new additions had actually reduced the overall effectiveness of the formation despite it's increased size.
As soon as the AFFS intelligence officers had become aware that the 4th Capellan Defence Force was shifting to support the 1st, they sent word to the second wave of the invasion force who were waiting in nearby systems...
Using pirate jump points closer to the planet the already overwhelming firepower of the invading AFFS formations were bolstered by the arrival of the 1st Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry, 2nd Lexington Combat Guards and 1st Tikonov Cossacks. These new formations all at nearly full strength crashed down to Sarna in a wide formation, closing quickly on the isolated Sarna Martial Academy Cadre and the few Home Guard formations which had been determined to be a valid threat. The Cadre was swiftly overrun and the Home Guard formations largely surrendered in the face of the overwhelming firepower within days of the second waves arrival!
By the end of February the city of Sarna was fully besieged, with the 1st and 4th Capellan Defence Forces fighting hard to hold their lines against repeated attacks and struggling to do so. Morale, which had already been low, had almost entirely collapsed with the news that the Davion's second wave had chopped the Cadre and the supporting Home Guard units to bits in a matter of days. Worse than just the loss of 1 of the 3 defending units, what little intelligence was reaching Sang-shao Weinrib made him aware that with the destruction of the Cadre the Davion's second wave was now heading to reinforce the first wave in attacking him in the capital city. When their forces were added to the existing troops facing him the outcome would only be a matter of time... He hastily reformed his command, folding the massively under strength 4th into his own 1st while attaching the few Home Guard units he had under his command directly to his company commands... Weinrib was more and more convinced that his reorganisations were little more than moving the deck chairs on a sinking ship, but he was determined to hold out for as long as possible.
Sarmaxa
The 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT arrived over Sarmaxa even as word of the invasion of Sarna had reached the defenders. The local Home Guard under orders from both Sarna and Sian to "drown the Davion invaders in their own blood" promptly surrender as the first of the dropship's burn flares became visible over their world.
Raballa
The world of Raballa had always been known for it's loyalty towards House Liao and yet had surrendered easily during the Fourth Succession Wars. Perhaps as an effort to redeem that disloyalty the defending Home Guard units were determined to fight as hard as they could against any invasion. The 5th Crucis Lancers RCT's was however more than they could realistically expect to fight off. The local Home Guard formations put up a stiff fight at the spaceport before attempting to withdraw into prepared defensive lines around the planet's capital city, however the 5th Lancers pressed them so hard that they were unable to properly disengage and reform in their defensive lines. In a short ranged messy firefight the Raballa Home Guard was destroyed, but at the loss of roughly a fifth of the Lancer's fighting strength.
Lesalles
Keen to avoid any destruction of their native ecosystem - such as their famed tree's and the much prized Lesallian Mailsloth - and aware of the likelihood of reinforcements arriving to help them, the local Home Guard commanding officer and the planetary duke sent out word that they surrendered as soon as the 39th Avalon Hussars RCT arrived in system. The only fighting was caused when a number of pro-Liao loyalists attempted to seize the planetary duke to force him to resist, but this was dealt with by the Home Guard and his own bodyguards before the 39th had even managed to touchdown. All that was left for the Hussar's to do was to take up garrison positions...
Summary
With the entire Liao Commonality now conquered (or reconquered) only Sarna remained holding out. Or more appropriately a single city on Sarna remained flying the flag of House Liao as overwhelming force moved in around it...
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You cut off a bit at the end of the update.
The WoB most likely took the ship and her and went to Terra there is nothing else she can do anymore. They have used all the assets they had in their "somehow" perfect execution of their attacks on St Ives that insane cultist managed to pull off without no one noticing that they were cultist or insane laying low for years. She is of no use to them now and they will either kill her or take her with them because they will not let the FedSuns get her.
Well that went about as well as what was expected. Now only Capella is left of the main targets. What is the status of that secret shipyard meant to increase the repair rate of the FedSuns during war? Also with Sarna taken how much of the Sarna March is left? And will it be possible to raid and steal the industry of the other worlds like what they did during the other attacks and wars?
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You cut off a bit at the end of the update.
The WoB most likely took the ship and her and went to Terra there is nothing else she can do anymore. They have used all the assets they had in their "somehow" perfect execution of their attacks on St Ives that insane cultist managed to pull off without no one noticing that they were cultist or insane laying low for years. She is of no use to them now and they will either kill her or take her with them because they will not let the FedSuns get her.
She still has some value as a target. If the Word let it be leaked that Kali and her surviving supporters are holed up in some specific place, cooking who knows what new mass-murderous scheme, the AFFS would be practically obliged to come and kill her... which could set the stage for a WoB ambush.
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You cut off a bit at the end of the update.
The WoB most likely took the ship and her and went to Terra there is nothing else she can do anymore. They have used all the assets they had in their "somehow" perfect execution of their attacks on St Ives that insane cultist managed to pull off without no one noticing that they were cultist or insane laying low for years. She is of no use to them now and they will either kill her or take her with them because they will not let the FedSuns get her.
Well that went about as well as what was expected. Now only Capella is left of the main targets. What is the status of that secret shipyard meant to increase the repair rate of the FedSuns during war? Also with Sarna taken how much of the Sarna March is left? And will it be possible to raid and steal the industry of the other worlds like what they did during the other attacks and wars?
Arcadia's secret repair yard is still building. Now all of the Sarna March (excluding a few FWL worlds) has been reconquered, along with a good chunk of the Capella Commonality, a fair chunk of the Victoria Commonality and some even of the Sian Commonality.
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Arcadia's secret repair yard is still building. Now all of the Sarna March (excluding a few FWL worlds) has been reconquered, along with a good chunk of the Capella Commonality, a fair chunk of the Victoria Commonality and some even of the Sian Commonality.
Sunnys brain must have gone the way of his Grandfathers when he gets the news of what has happened.
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She still has some value as a target. If the Word let it be leaked that Kali and her surviving supporters are holed up in some specific place, cooking who knows what new mass-murderous scheme, the AFFS would be practically obliged to come and kill her... which could set the stage for a WoB ambush.
Except as we have stated before the WoB does not have the forces to fight the AFFS. Any force sent to deal with Kali would have an extremely powerful warship complement which the WoB can't hope to match. And it is even worse on the battlemech and ground forces portion. The WoB's greatest advantage is the fact that they are safe in their own territory because of the SDS making it a grind to attack. They cannot on the other hand attack like they did in canon since they are vastly weaker and smaller than that in this TL.
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Except as we have stated before the WoB does not have the forces to fight the AFFS. Any force sent to deal with Kali would have an extremely powerful warship complement which the WoB can't hope to match. And it is even worse on the battlemech and ground forces portion. The WoB's greatest advantage is the fact that they are safe in their own territory because of the SDS making it a grind to attack. They cannot on the other hand attack like they did in canon since they are vastly weaker and smaller than that in this TL.
Who said anything about a fair fight? Nukes! Command-denotated nuclear mines in orbit. Nuclear artillery. Nuclear charges seeded in the ground of the landing zones. Nuclear charges seeded in the ground around "Kali´s hide-out". Nukes everywhere!
Oh, and probably nerve gas, too, just for fun.
And it´ll be all for nothing, because Kali isn´t there.
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3069 - February - Operation Rat II Fourth Wave
As the Fourth Wave kicked off what the Capellan's had been dreading for months finally occured. Large scale forces descending upon the "Fortress Worlds" of Capella and Sarna... Worse, the AFFS not content with attacking these worlds the Davion's were continueing to push on deeper into the Confederation, striking more and more poorly defended worlds.
Sarna
Sending the hastily assembled dropship and aerospace forces available to the defenders against this overwhelming force was tantamount to throwing them away for little to go gain - a suicide mission. They were sent anyway. With predicatable results. The scratch force of aerospace fighters and converted dropships charged into the defensive fire of the Davion ship's and their veteran supporting wings and burned without inflicting damage on a single warship. A number of Davion fighter wing's took heavy losses and several pocket warships and assault dropships were destroyed or damaged, but the warship's themselves remained intact and led the way forward to take up orbital positions around Sarna.
Court Martial whoever was in charge of the Davion wings that took heavy losses when they had such overwhelming advantages.
Unless they died of course - unlike the Combine, the AFFS doesn't put corpses on trial and sentance their family to slavery when they are found guilty ::)
Otherwise, strike the unit from the rolls and disperse its personnel to other fighter units. And mental note; someone needs to make a 'TOP GUN' fighter school for the AFFS's next generation of fighter pilot leaders to attend and learn advanced tactics, including working with warships...
Still, from the CCAF point of view, what a stupid waste of material! If you're going to go Kamikaze, then GO Kamikaze! Issue the nukes to the fighters and base your entire plan around punching through the Davion screen to let a select group of fighters play Radioactive Miraborg...otherwise what the hell was the purpose behind this death ride?! Must be Mask 'advisors' in the command structure following orders to ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK and that any hesitation or delay is clearly prelude to a unit preparing to surrender...
It would have been far wiser to keep the fighters on the ground and under cover in newly constructed dirt strips near primary targets, then scramble them as the troopships enter the atmosphere. Keep your pilots as fresh as possible and engage with very little time for the defending interceptors to stop them and the warships cannot do anything to stop you, unless they want to start shooting up civilian targets when their shots miss. And as a bonus, it even gives the defending pilots a slim chance of surviving as at least they can eject. Or keeping them close to hand to unleash against ground troops as a last ditch card to play at the right time...
Oh well.
At which point the first wave of the invasion forces began to land. Leading the way came the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT (specifically brought up from their garrison posting on Kathil where they had been replaced by the 2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT). The 5th had a history on Sarna, but with the invasion itself led by their old commanding officer Field Marshal Nathaniel Hasek himself this time they were determined to "do it right".
You mean not be waved ahead by Hanse Davion to get themselves killed as a pointed example to the entire Capellan March of what exactly Hanse Davion did to traitors and those who supported them? :D
He hastily reformed his command, folding the massively under strength 4th into his own 1st while attaching the few Home Guard units he had under his command directly to his company commands... Weinrib was more and more convinced that his reorganisations were little more than moving the deck chairs on a sinking ship, but he was determined to hold out for as long as possible.
Honestly the problem is that when you get outnumbered THAT bad, the attackers simply do not stop. The attackers can rotate units in and out of the attack, getting enough sleep, food and downtime to be then rotated into the attack again, working nice 9-5 office hours and all that! While the defenders are pretty much under attack 24/7 - not simply harassment attack, but full scale attack...
Once you reach this point, you surrender. Even if Weinrib himself refuses to, the subunit commanders should be throwing in the towel now - shooting their political officers in the back if necessary. Elites with strong morale might be able and willing to hold on for various reasons, but with morale at rock bottom...
Sarmaxa
The 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT arrived over Sarmaxa even as word of the invasion of Sarna had reached the defenders. The local Home Guard under orders from both Sarna and Sian to "drown the Davion invaders in their own blood" promptly surrender as the first of the dropship's burn flares became visible over their world.
Wonder if word is finally starting to get out through the WOB news blackout of just how ****** the Confederation is...
Raballa
The world of Raballa had always been known for it's loyalty towards House Liao and yet had surrendered easily during the Fourth Succession Wars. Perhaps as an effort to redeem that disloyalty the defending Home Guard units were determined to fight as hard as they could against any invasion. The 5th Crucis Lancers RCT's was however more than they could realistically expect to fight off. The local Home Guard formations put up a stiff fight at the spaceport before attempting to withdraw into prepared defensive lines around the planet's capital city, however the 5th Lancers pressed them so hard that they were unable to properly disengage and reform in their defensive lines. In a short ranged messy firefight the Raballa Home Guard was destroyed, but at the loss of roughly a fifth of the Lancer's fighting strength.
Ouch. That's rough. Although I'm guessing that things are going to be messy for a while if the Home Guard are that fanatic, the local population might have a lot of fanatics as well...
Lesalles
Keen to avoid any destruction of their native ecosystem - such as their famed tree's and the much prized Lesallian Mailsloth - and aware of the likelihood of reinforcements arriving to help them, the local Home Guard commanding officer and the planetary duke sent out word that they surrendered as soon as the 39th Avalon Hussars RCT arrived in system. The only fighting was caused when a number of pro-Liao loyalists attempted to seize the planetary duke to force him to resist, but this was dealt with by the Home Guard and his own bodyguards before the 39th had even managed to touchdown. All that was left for the Hussar's to do was to take up garrison positions...
See, this is how you stay in power. Duke swears loyalty to the Federated Suns, flags change, plants stay happy; everyone is happy!
Summary
With the entire Liao Commonality now conquered (or reconquered) only Sarna remained holding out. Or more appropriately a single city on Sarna remained flying the flag of House Liao as overwhelming force moved in around it...
Lets just hope no-one (like the Maskirovka) does anything stupid now...I could just see SOMEONE nuking the city out of spite to deny the Davions their prize (and punish Sarna for AGAIN failing and falling to the hated Davions...)
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3069 - February - Operation Rat II Fourth Wave
Sang-shao Garry Weinrib
/quote]
and his buddy Alexandar Zivojinovich?
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3069 - February - Operation Rat III Fourth Wave
Along with the invasion of Sarna and the reclamation of the rest of the former Sarna March by Operation Rat II the AFFS continued with Operation Rat III and in particular launched their attack upon the vital world of Capella...
Capella
The first wave of AFFS forces into the Capella system were of course warships. The FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion led the way, but accompanying her were the 4 operational Avalon class cruisers of the 3rd and 4th Cruiser Squadrons (the FSS Reynard Davion was awaiting repairs having suffered moderate damage so far in the campaign) along with the FSS Daring and FSS Duncan both Davion III class destroyers. Backing these heavier warships up is the entire 1st Corvette Flotilla - 12 Fox class corvettes, a third of which have been upgraded to Block II class ships. To match these the Capellan's have the CCS Elias Jung cruiser and the CCS Anhui destroyer. The 2 Capellan Navy warships are backed up by a strong contingent of assault dropships from the local shipyards as well as the Hell's Black Aces aerospace regiment and some local aerospace formations. However even in these numbers they are grievously outnumbered, with the Federated Sun's Navy having not only brought along their embarked fighter strength and dropships but dozens of additional assault dropships dropped off by jumpships and a number of independent aerospace regiments.
Worse from the point of view of the defenders the first wave includes 3 full RCT's. The sight of the icons of the Davion Assault Guards RCT is enough to cause the ground defenders to pale, but the icons of the 2nd Davion Guards RCT and the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT in the invasion force adds no less than another 200+ fighters to the Capellan's space based forces headache. Even with losses the 2 RCT's have more fighters than the entire defending force - and they are only part of the invasion flotilla and are there purely to reinforce the aerospace formations embarked with the naval forces.
The captain of the CCS Elias Jung who is in command of the black water forces defending Sarna would dearly love to break off and flee, to fight a hit and run campaign in other systems to try and bleed the Davion's rather than facing them in open combat. However his instructions from Sian leaves no room for discretion. He is to defend the planetary orbit of the Fortress World of Capella to the death. Not a single Davion fighter is to reach the planet. Just in case he has any thoughts to interpret these orders liberally a squad of Maskirovka have been seconded to his crew to "bolster morale".
Shackled by these orders and horrifically outnumbered the end result of the battle in space is never in doubt. The 2 Capellan warships in an act of futile bravery attempt to close the distance with the incoming Davion Task Force Sarna and break through to attack the transports. Their dropships and the various aerospace fighters attempt to screen their suicidal charge but are soon being torn apart by strikes from the massed Davion dropships and fighter wings. Hell's Black Aces were singled out for particular attention and the fighter wings of the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion and the 2nd Davion Guard's were dispatched specifically against them. The under strength aerospace regiment holds it's own for the first stage of the fighter engagement, reaping a fearful toll in Davion fighter's, but then damage begins to mount. Pilots become fatigued. Other less skilled formations are torn apart leaving the Aces isolated... And the seemingly never ending numbers of Davion aerospace fighter's just keep coming...
With the last of their fighter screen and accompanying dropships burning around them the 2 warships continue their charge. As the range closes the corvettes of the 1st Corvette Flotilla move forward to impose themselves between the Capellan warships and the larger Davion ships and begin firing. Against a Feng Hung class cruiser and a Impivado class destroyer no Fox class ship or even Fox II class ship could hope to be successful. The problem is that it isn't just 1 Fox. Or even 2. No less than a dozen Fox's meet the charge head on, forming a gauntlet that the 2 larger ships must charge through. On the other side of this gauntlet a further line of 4 Avalon class cruisers and 2 Davion III class destroyers are waiting to pummel them. However, given the torn and ravaged state of the CCS Elias Jung as it streams bleeding past the Fox corvettes, leaving the CCS Anhui broken in it's wake, it lasts only a handful of volleys from the Davion heavy ships before exploding.
The Task Force Capella takes some time to reorganise. Although the fight had been one sided, the Davion warships had taken some damage. Fully half the ships of the 1st Flotilla had suffered light to heavy damage. Both the 1st and 2nd Division's flaghips - the FSS Galax and FSS Woodstock - in particular had taken heavy damage alongside the FSS Salem and FSS Northfield both having suffered moderate damage and the FSS Kathil and FSS Bryceland both having taken light damage. The damaged ships, alongside the 2 undamaged ships of the 3rd Division were detached to head to Edwards for repairs. It was immediately noticed that the Fox I's had suffered heavier damage than the II's.
At this stage the Task Force detaches a number of embarked marine units and 2 Fox corvettes to take control of the Rashpur-Owens and Ceres Metal's orbiting factories and yards. Heavy fighting, particularly over the warship slips take place, with fanatical Capellan Marines bolstered by conscripted shipyard workers putting up fierce resistance. In a number of cases warship grade weapon's are fired under local control from the almost completed ships in the yards against areas of the shipyards that have fallen to the Davion's. After this the AFFS divert a number of fighter wings to take out any remaining weapon emplacements and batteries upon the ship while more marines are sent in to bolster the attack.
With the Capellan space forces wiped from the skies the invasion troops ready to make planet fall. Leading the way unsurprisingly is the Davion Assault Guards. The full RCT of assault weighted battlemech's and their supporting formations land on the continent of Pociello. Landing far enough away from the Capella War College so as to avoid the garrisoning Warrior House Ijori and cadet formations from sallying forth to contest their landings the Assault Guards only have to contend with a number of Home Guard formations. The War College's combined arms battalion of fully equipped cadets does attempt to rush out to overwhelm the landing Guards, but is beaten off with heavy losses by the 3rd Battalion of the Davion regiment.
As soon as the landing zone is secure (albeit under almost constant low level attacks by suicidal infantry wave attacks by local Home Guard formations) the Davion Assault Guards call in the 2nd Davion Guards as well as a large formation of engineers who begin constructing fortifications, bunkers for ammunition, spare parts, aerospace fighters revetments and runways, etc... The 4th Deneb Light Cavalry for now is left in orbit. By keeping a full RCT in orbit Field Marshal Stephan Cooper (in charge of the first wave) pins the Holdfast Guard, Syn's Hussars and Warrior House Ma-Tsu Kai on the continent of Llagarres guarding the capital of Memorial City and the vital industrial target of Ceres City. This doesn't however stop the 4th from using it's over strength aerospace wings to conduct a relentless bombing campaign across the whole world.
As well as landing the 2nd Guards the Field Marshal sends word for the second wave to be sent. Even as the Davion Assault and 2nd Guard's are closing a tight ring around the Capella War College and beginning the destruction of it's defenders the second wave arrives and begins it's burn for the planet. Leading the way are the 7th Crucis Lancers RCT who's Marshal Zibler has overall command of not only his own RCT but also the accompanying 15th and 26th Avalon Hussars RCT.
With no less than 3 RCT's heading for the planet and with another in orbit waiting to pounce, Sang-shao Anson Quinn can do little but send the defending forces of the Pociello continent his best wishes and divert what few Home Guard formations that remain uncommitted to the fighting already on that continent to aid the defenders of the War College. His own Holdfast Guard remains in place at Memorial City alongside Warrior House Ma-Tsu Kai, while Syn's Hussars guard's Ceres City. The Sang-shao was less than keen to entrust the defence of the vital industrial plant there to the "cowards" of Syn's Hussars, but he has little choice. They are the only regimental sized formation he has except his own Guard. Requests for further reinforcement's have been met with silence.
However at least the local Home Guard have turned out in overwhelming force. Existing infantry regiments have been augmented to full brigades with a mixture of volunteer and conscript formations, bolstered by a large number of penal battalions, while his armour formations have seen similar expansions which have been limited only by the shortage of further armoured vehicles. A number of Home Guard battlemech formations have also been expanded with production of the local factories and now number almost 2 regiment's worth of company and battalion sized formations which are deployed in defensive positions in support of the regular CCAF and Warrior House forces.
As February ends the AFFS continues to reduce the pocket of defence around the War College while in orbit the second wave arrive and begin to prepare for their combat drop alongside the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry. In a nearby system the third wave of AFFS troops is gathering...
Gei-Fu
On the 8th of February the 2nd Confederation Reserve Cavalry's luck runs out. The reformed 3rd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry "hops" using it's dropships and manages to cut off the Reserve Cavalry's line of retreat. The 2nd might be able to fight their way through the blocking force with heavy losses, but not before the pursuing 7th Dragoon's and 1st Chisholm Raiders come up and crush them.
Attempting to cut to the north through heavily broken country in an almost futile attempt to avoid the trap the 2nd is brought to ground and in a 4 day battle effectively wiped out. While avoiding being pinned between the 3rd FSAC and the other 2 regiments this attempted break out stood little real chance of success. When Sang-shao Mei Tee Phyn's Yu Huang finally falls on the fourth day and the last of her regiment finally surrenders they 2nd has been utterly destroyed as a fighting unit. They have however managed to inflict heavy losses on the 3rd FSAC and 7th FedSun's Dragoons in particular.
Ingersoll
The 2nd Confederation Defence Force has watched as the Davion juggernaut has battered and smashed it's way through the entire Liao Commonality. Smashed during the last Davion invasion on Necromo the unit has languished forgotten and almost totally lacking in suitable officers since then in a post that was felt to give them no real chance of failing again. Until the AFFS carved right through the Confederation. Worse even than the lack of suitable officers is the total dearth of replacement personell dispatched to the unit since it's defeat on Necromo. Even now it consists almost entirely of the survivors of that battle and a handful of true screw ups who have been dispatched to join it's ranks. With barely a battalion of ramshackle battlemech's to it's name, the handful of officers are under no illusions as their chances.
When the Davion Old Guard RCT arrives in the Ingersoll system they are immedietly contacted by Sao-shao Rai Harada (demoted following Necromo) who immedietly surrenders. And is then shot by his executive officer who is a Maskirovka plant. Said executive officer is promptly killed by the rest of Harada's command staff - who are then slaughtered by an intervention squad of Zang Shu Ze "Chancellor's Shield" agents...
By the time the Old Guard lands, the 2nd Confederation Defence Force has managed to destroy most of the various Maskirovka formations and safe houses on the planet, but only at the cost of half their remaining strength. They are almost pathetically grateful to surrender to the Old Guard and accept the offer of being merged into Lockhardt's Ironsides new mercenary formation. Which includes being dispatched far from any Liao reprisals.
Cordiagr
The Home Guard of Cordiagr had never thought they would be called to front line service, and when they were called up to resist the hated Davion invaders fully a third of them didn't turn up. As the 3rd FedSun's Dragoons RCT burned in planet another third promptly deserted rather than face a full Davion RCT. When the 3rd landed on the 24th of February the remaining few Home Guard troops melted away or surrendered.
Bandora
The 12th Vegan Ranger's Gamma regiment, until now held in reserve was rushed through to the front and dispatched to take the world of Bandora along with 2 full conventional infantry brigades from the AFFS. The Home Guard formations that are all that the planet has to defend itself with do their best to resist the invaders, but the Ranger's Gamma regiment, newly reinforced with a full company of factory fresh Shadow Hawk's soon routs them and secures the key locations on planet while the infantry brigades fan out to secure the secondary locations and hunt down the few holdouts.
Overton
While the Vegan Ranger's Gamma regiment is securing the world of Bandora, their sister regiment is landing on the world of Overton. The rebuilding Delta regiment lacks the skill of their sister regiments who have already been deployed and still only numbers roughly 2 battalions of battlemechs but is backed up by a veteran conventional armour brigade and 3 brigades of infantry. Facing off against a poorly equipped Home Guard the Delta's inexperience leads to a few initial losses but the result is never in doubt. By the end of February the Overton Home Guard have surrendered on good terms due to their initial small victories.
Bithinia
The local Home Guard are bolstered by the security forces of the Bithinia Ballistics company. This allows them to field a short battalion of battlemech's - most of them equipped with excellent autocannons. Usually this world would have a unit of the regular CCAF to bolster the defences, but the CCAF is collapsing on all fronts and the world is left to it's own defences. The 3rd Ceti Hussars RCT is almost unopposed on the burn in and when it lands finds the Home Guard preparing to defend the city and the huge industrial complexes of Bithinia Ballistics in a series of hastily built fortifications.
As the Ceti Hussar's approach the defensive works the turrets and troops of Bithinia Ballistics turn their guns on roughly half the Home Guard troops - joined in their betrayal by the remaining half of the Home Guard. The executives of the company have no desire to see their factory gutted in the crossfires and have given orders to their own security forces and "friends" in the Home Guard to ensure this doesn't happen.
With a sour taste in their mouth at the aid from the treacherous company and it's minions the 3rd Ceti Hussars take control of the planet. Making a point to disarm the remaining "defenders". Just in case.
Propus
The 1st Capellan Dragoons arrived in orbit of Propus just in time to take the worlds surrender. Less than half the Home Guard were still at their posts and 7 out of the 8 formations that were approaching combat ready strength had announced their intent to surrender when the planetary Duke bowed to reality and surrendered. The Dragoons would spend the next 2 months hunting down the handful of Liao loyalists who had attempted to continue the fight.
Masterson
The 4th Davion Guards RCT didn't expect much of a fight from the Masterson Home Guard formations. They weren't wrong. After a half hour "battle" to resist the Davion Guard's landing's the few Home Guard formations in the field lay down their arms and surrendered.
Purvo
The half strength 9th Sian Dragoons had seemingly been forgot about on the increasingly isolated world of Purvo. This (in the circumstances) fortunate state of affairs came to an end on the 11th February when the mercenary Hansen's Roughriders accompanied the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT to take the system for House Davion. Releasing the Roughrider's to do what they did best - namely hunt down and destroy the enemy forces, the 1st Crucis Lancers swiftly began securing the planet while backing up the mercenary's hunt for the 9th Dragoons in the wilderness in which they had scattered into. This attempt to pursue a guerrilla warfare strategy would ensure that the 9th wasn't immedietly wiped out, but the green unit would slowly be hunted down and either forced to surrender or be destroyed throughout February and March.
Sendalor
St Cyr's Armoured Hussar's 2 battalions of green troops had watched as the CCAF and indeed the Confederation collapsed around them with a growing sense of fatalism. As far as their troops were concerned it was only a matter of time before the Davion's came for them and when they did they knew they stood little chance of repulsing any proper invasion. So it was with a sense of doom that they recieved the news that 2 regiments of the Blue Star Irregular's and a single corvette had jumped into the system and was making their way towards Sendalor.
While the 1894th Light Horse and the 21st Rim Worlds regiments had already seen fighting during Operation Rat III they were combined still able to put between them 5 battalions and 2 command companies of elite or veteran mechwarrior's into the field, in stark contrast to the slightly under strength 2 battalions of green troops that the defender could muster. While the Armoured Hussar's were also able to call upon the support of a large and relatively well equipped force of Home Guard conventional units these were more than matched by the 3 mixed brigades of conventional AFFS troops that New Avalon had attached to them. Which left out the sheer intimidation factor of the Fredessa class corvette which was supporting the Blue Star Irregulars.
St Cyr's Armoured Hussars attempted as best they could to fight a conventional defensive campaign against the Irregulars, trading space for time, fighting delaying engagements before falling back slowly. In the end too slowly. The 21st Rim World's managed to hook a fast battalion of cavalry mech's around their flank during one of these retreats, pinning the Armoured Hussar's 2nd battalion in place for the assault of the rest of the 21st. When the 1st battalion of the Hussar's attempted to come to their companion's aid the 1894th swiftly took advantage of this and surrounded them. After a few more hours fighting the few survivors of the Armoured Hussar's were all prisoners of the Blue Star Irregulars. However their "clean" fighting resulted in the Irregulars treating their prisoners well and indeed at the end of the war absorbing nearly a company's worth of them into their own ranks.
With the destruction of the CCAF regular forces on the planet the Home Guard units which remained soon either disbanded or surrendered.
Housekarle
The Sirdar CMM arrived in the Housekarle system and was promptly contacted by the local authorities to offer their surrender. Having taken one look at the ramshackle nature of the Home Guard forces on the planet the the planetary Duke had realised that any attempt to resist the invaders was doomed to failure, even against a second line formation like the Sirdar CMM. Even if by a miracle they were able to hold out the only end result would be further fighting as the AFFS sent additional troops. Better to avoid the destruction altogether.
Summary
With 11 worlds secured for House Davion and Capella under siege Operation Rat III's Fourth Wave was considered a resounding success for the AFFS. Combined with the total destruction of the Liao Commonality (with the exception of Sarna itself which was under heavy siege) the High Command was extremely satisfied with how the war was going. However cracks were beginning to develop. While Sian was now almost within reach of the victorious AFFS formations, more and more issues were developing with supporting the offensive. Jumpships were beginning to require maintenance. Conventional brigades were tied down in occupation duties and unable to continue to press on, while newly raised formations were struggling to reach the front. Replacement personnel and equipment were beginning to lag behind the front lines advance. So far things were going well, but even with the pause in December and heroic efforts to extend the supply lines to meet the needs of the front things were beginning to fray. Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion was forced to inform the First Prince during February that if he intended to conquer Sian itself then either it must be done soon or a break called in offensive operations to prepare for a final push on to Sian... A break that might require at least 3 months of buildup before offensive operations could resume at the level they were currently at.
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They need to take Capella and Sarna first and then maybe call a halt to offensive operation the way the tempo has been going they need time to move up replacements and supplies to units as well as secure their conquests and root out any mask agents.
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Even the mighty Davion warmachine is going to struggling under the strain of this offensive, and that'll have knock on effects with the econimy. Is it a case of 'one last push' and a decapitation strike or do they call an operational hault.
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Even the mighty Davion warmachine is going to struggling under the strain of this offensive, and that'll have knock on effects with the econimy. Is it a case of 'one last push' and a decapitation strike or do they call an operational hault.
That or blockade Sian with the fleet to keep it isolated from the rest of the sphere.
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Uch, Fire your High Command Victor, this kind of go/no go decision should have been made months ago and logistics prepared accordingly rather than flying by the seat of your pants like a Kurita :P
With that said - especially with the Kuritas border looking increasingly like a war is going to break out, now is the time to call a halt. There isn’t honestly much Liao can do but wait anyway, what with his key units and nodal reaction forces obliterated, his warships dead and his sanity slipping.
3 days or 3 months at this point honestly makes little difference.
But fire his fleet commanders too who decided to bumrush his corvettes at enemy warships rather than throwing carefully constructed combined arms task forces at each while keeping a reserve force handy. Seriously, the ******!? Perhaps some of his naval officers need to train with his RCTs for a while...
Still it probably gives the chance to upgrade those damaged Fox Is to Fox IIs, so silver lining and all that...
I wonder if we’ll see Baxter outright declare independence shortly and invite surviving CCAF units to GTFO to him. Even better, if he’ll then publicly invite Victor to recognise his new nation and sign a formal peace treaty on good terms, just needing him to abandon recognition of the exiled Andurien Government...
Too bad about Hell’s Black Aces really, but they made their choice. Yet another Merc crew who went down and died at the hands of their crazy commanders as much as the enemy :(
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not having enough jumpships comes up and bites someone...again.
And now we know why liberty and victory ships in WW2 was so important. I do have a quiston about the WD. are they looking at an 85ton Mad IIC or would it be a 100ton Mad II with Clan tech. I would go with a 100ton Mad II (maybe call it a Mad IIIC)
a 100ton Mad II is synonymous of the WD.... and every one loves a c-note massed mech. >:D
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The whole Jumpship thing in the 4th Succession War (insomuch as them all starting to break down after a couple of waves of Rat) was really an early adoption weirdness thing. Jumpships are tough SOBs lasting for centuries with minimal maintenance and an operational tempo that is very high (if a Jumpship is sitting still, it aint making money after all and there are few to no jumpship yards available for deep repairs).
RAT's operational tempo between the waves was hardly pushing them to hot load all the time or anything like that, it was perfectly within boundries, but the devs needed a reason to slow things down and open up new strategic possibilities what with the strike on Kathil.
It seems far more dubious that in an age where shipyards are coming online all over the place and routine servicing and spare parts and all that are vastly more available, that the AFFS jumpship fleet would be starting to get 'worn out'.
More likely, its simply that collar demands are spiking well past the ability to sustain as the Combine front starts to heat up and the AFFS is having to start increasing shipments to the Draconis March of munitions, spare parts, new war machines and what not, which is slicing badly into the operational tempo of Rat II and Rat III. So the supplies and fresh forces are just not available to sustain this tempo across a broad front, at least not without waiting for 3 months for them to be built up at a much slower rate. OR, scraping together everything you have now for a single massive strike at Sian...
I mean Victor hasn't done anything like Hanse did in terms of conscripting civilian jumpships, but I can see why he doesn't want to do that as the disruption to his economy probably isn't worth it. A 3 month delay won't really materially change the Capellan front one bit and indeed, given Victors far superior industrial and personnel base, it would even let him rotate some units out and in, reinforce others that have been damaged with FNGs and fresh equipment and give his troops some much appreciated downtime. So that at the end of 3 months, Victors troops hilariously will have strengthened more than Sun Tzus!
As well as letting him talk with Casandra about the future, possibly even look to make diplomatic offensives as there are a whole load of naked Capellan worlds out there...
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Uch, Fire your High Command Victor, this kind of go/no go decision should have been made months ago and logistics prepared accordingly rather than flying by the seat of your pants like a Kurita :P
Maybe they need to set up something like The Perisher for their potential warship commanders.
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So those shipyards that got captured time to pick them up and move them somewhere else. Like closer to the FedSuns territory to keep them safe and away from forces that might want to attack them. Maybe move them into St. Ives to make them a viable industrial power again. Still think that the CC worlds should get their industry and ships stripped and shipped to St Ives. They have been a good ally for decades and this war was started because of the attack on them conquering them after the BS they had to deal with because of super competent cultists is bad form for Victor.
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3069 - February - St Ives - Offer
Even as the AFFS continued to smash through the increasingly faltering CCAF the First Prince made his way to St Ives. With heavy security he landed on the world and immedietly went to the makeshift memorial to the dead of the Thuggee attack at the partially rebuilt spaceport. He then made a much more private visit to the grave of his lifelong friend Kai Allard-Liao and his murdered family before attending upon the single surviving (if one didn't count Quintus who was still missing) member of House Allard-Liao, Cassandra Allard-Liao, who was basing her provisional government from a secondary military command and control facility located in the hills surrounding the still ruined Tian-tan capital city.
Victor Davion and Cassandra Allard-Liao had never exactly been close, but perhaps to honour the memory of their shared "brother" Kai their meeting was by all accounts an extremely cordial and forthright one. Cassandra started by explaining the situation as she and her provisional government saw it in the St Ives Compact. She began by listing the major issues which had crippled the small realm, not least of which was the growing movement on a number of worlds to join the Federated Suns given the huge damage to the basic infrastructure of the state. Victor acknowledged that this was a fundamental threat to the existence of the St Ives Compact as an independent nation, but pointed out that huge problems that refusing said requests to join the FedSun's would have for him not only from the worlds in question but also a number of Federated Suns worlds with strong ties to worlds such as Teng and Texlos. He also pointed out that with the current conquests from the Capellan Confederation (for the first time openly admitting to a non-Davion that his intent was to annex these worlds) St Ives would go from being wedged between the Confederation and the FedSun's to being effectively surrounded by the Federated Suns. Any independence they would have in this situation would be entirely reliant upon the good graces of the FedSuns.
Duchess Allard-Liao had to acknowledge this point, however it's fair to say having it spelled out so openly by the Duke of New Avalon didn't exactly make her happy. She asked then what Victor was proposing moving forward, stating that she would not simply disband the Compact and allow it to be merged unceremoniously into the Federated Suns. Echoes of her mother's refusal to kowtow to Hanse Davion in 3031 were very much in evidence.
Duke Davion however stated clearly that he in no way wished to simply annex the St Ives worlds in such a manner. Instead he proposed a more palatable arrangement. Firstly, instead of the St Ives Compact breaking apart and individual worlds merging or being annexed to the Federated Sun's on an ad-hoc basis he proposed that the St Ives Compact itself should join the Federated Suns in a similar manner to the former United Hindu Collective. The St Ives Compact would remain as a semi-autonomous region within the Federated Sun's while at the same time slowly integrating into the larger realm. Rather than simply being absorbed, the economic and political bonds between the St Ives worlds and the Federated Suns would grow in time and at a pace that allowed mutual respect to be shown. Victor made no bones about the fact that he did foresee that eventually just as with the United Hindu Collective the St Ives Compact would entirely merge into the Federated Suns, but pointed out that this process had taken almost 200 years with the United Hindu Collective. At the same time that the Compact became an associated member of the Federated Suns it's worlds would also form the basis of the St Ives Polymorphous Defence Zone - both entities existing at the same time in the same worlds.
Cassandra Allard Liao listened to his proposals with a degree of resigned acceptance - knowing that to refuse would likely mean her realm splintered and much of it joined the Federated Sun's anyway. She asked if these proposals had the approval of Duke George Hasek who she presumed would be her direct overlord within the Capellan March. This seemed to amuse the First Prince greatly as he informed her that he believed that the Minister in charge of the March that would include the St Ives Compact worlds would almost certainly see things Cassandra's way - as he intended her to be said Minister. At her shocked face he smiled broadly and explained he had no intention of reforming the Sarna March which had now been irredeemably tainted both in the natives of said region's eyes but also within the wider Federated Suns. Instead he intended to use the bulk of his conquests from the Capellan Confederation to form a new League March. This would include the former Sarna March (including the Achernar and Nanking PDZ's, the loss of which the Capellan March would be compensated for with the formation of 2 new PDZ's in the conquests in the Victoria and Sian Commonalities around Grand Base and Victoria) as well as his conquests in the Capellan Commonality as well as most of the worlds taken in the coreward portion of the Sian Commonality. As well as her own worlds if she agreed to his proposal. St Ives would be the capital of the new League March and she would be the Minister for the League March with a permanent seat upon the High Command. Her St Ives Lancers would be rebuilt as the March's home brigade - although the March would also be home to the Tikonov Cossacks and a number of independent regiments/Borderer units.
An agreement on such a far reaching and radical proposal of course wasn't reached during that meeting. Duke Victor and Duchess Cassandra spoke together for days on end, with the First Prince spending nearly 2 weeks on St Ives in protracted negotiations with his old friend's sister. When he left to rejoin his troops near the end of February the agreement still wasn't finalised. But it had been agreed in principal. The St Ives Compact would join the Federated Suns whole, forming a new PDZ within the League March, with Duchess Cassandra ascending to command of said League March and the St Ives Compact Military joining the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns. Even after the First Prince left, Duchess Cassandra continued to discuss and debate the proposals to come to a mutually agreeable arrangement with his personal representative Conrad Davion.
As these discussions were taking place the situation on the ground in the St Ives Compact stabilised with Federated Suns assistance, but simply didn't improve much. With their infrastructure shattered and much of their military devastated along with most of their leadership slain in a treacherous attack the Compact was obviously being propped up on "life support" by the Federated Suns. Even those who were adverse to annexation had to admit the growing dependence of the small nation on their larger neighbour and the mood on most of the worlds swung more and more in favour of the Compact's worlds joining the FedSuns - particularly on those worlds which had already petitioned for membership.
One stand out holdout in this matter were the military formation Roman's Mounted Fusiliers. The unit had no great love for the Capellan Confederation given the recent battles between St Ives and Sian, but also had a long standing aversion to the Federated Suns (having been the only unit to have a price in gold placed upon their head by the First Prince). Their Armoured Infantry Auxiliary acted with brutal tactics to break up pro-Davion marches upon their garrison posting of Nashuar. While nobody was killed a number of demonstrators ended up in hospital with serious injuries. With the growing accord between the St Ives and New Avalon government's the High Command began making some preparations to avoid a bloodbath in the event that Roman's Mounted Fusiliers protested the Compact joining the Federated Suns. Both the 5th FedSun's Dragoons and the 1st Kittery Borderer's were prepared for a move to Nashuar to present the Mounted Fusiliers with an unwinnable battle in the event they went into open rebellion. To back them up and to avoid any optics that this was a Davion invasion the 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers also prepared to join them. Presented with 3:1 odds the Fusiliers were likely to capitulate.
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Nice update!
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That's a pretty good offer by Victor he gets a New March with an decent ally as well as that he also secures a border, shoves a thumb in Sunny and Kali's eye (which I hope hurts).
He has also potentially ended the CC as an entity for all time as well as tripled his economic strength once he invests in the new leauge March.
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The salt from George Hassek that no, Victor is not giving him the Capellan Confederation is going to be incredible. And hilarious :D
In all honesty this is the best outcome Casandra can hope for - and an actually SMART political move by Victor, what are the odds!?!
There isn't really any other option for Saint Ives; the Federated Suns is already propping up everything under a fig-leaf pretense of them simply being an allied power. Now you are simply removing the fig leaf, but you are also offering the Capellan worlds that are being taken there own identity in the Federated Suns with a genuine Liao (and a sane one) at the top. Which is great in terms of face saving to allow the worlds to assimilate. Although I'm going to guess that Casandra may have to look at moving her court from Saint Ives to somewhere more central ...
As for the Mounted Fusiliers, wow, way to put a giant target on your back. I mean, its not like this kind of move could possibly backfire in any way, shape or form, right? :D
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Location wise, St Ives isn't too bad. It's no less central than Sian (which is the furthest of the major capitals from Terra) and it's far enough from the League border to be fairly secure.
George Hasek will remain important as the ruler (hereditary Minister) of a wealthy march (Capellan March is fairly well industrialised) but his other status, Marshal of the Capellan March will be much less important since he won't be assured of 30-40% of the AFFS answering to him - there will be garrisons, but the Haseks won't need that sort of troop strength.
And Victor, very sensibly, is offering Cassandra the post of Minister of the League March... but not Marshal of the League March. He's under no obligation to give her both and no one is really going to question that this leaves the Allard-Liaos as less powerful than the other two March-Lords in the future. And it means the forces garrisoning the former Capellan Confederation will answer directly to New Avalon, which is definitely preferable for Victor.
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3069 - February - Interlude - Sian
Zi-Jin Cheng "Forbidden City"
Sian
Capellan Confederation
Strategic Military Director Talon Zahn sat at the controls of his Yu Huang class battlemech and watched the clock tick down. Grand Master Ion Rush would be meeting with the Chancellor by now. Making one last plea for sanity. However both the Grand Master and the Strategic Military Director had little hope that Sun-Tzu would listen. The Chancellor had been becoming more and more unstable as the news from the military fronts became grimmer and grimmer. By now he was worse even than his infamous grandfather Maximilian Liao. Planning sessions were little more than him ranting at his military officers as to his "divine plans" and threats that if they continued to fail him they would be executed. Indeed it had been the brutal execution of An Shennu that had been the final straw for both Rush and himself. Watching a fine and loyal officer's face turn purple as she dangled kicking on the end of a rope that had deliberately been cut too short to break her neck had made them realise that the Chancellor must be stopped.
Suddenly alarms began going off all over the place and the faint sounds of gunfire came from the palace. On a specially coded communication's channel Zahn heard the Grand Master's pained voice. "It is done."
Even as the implications of those three simple words crashed into the Strategic Military Director the channel was cut off by jamming. But not before the sounds of gunfire came through. If Ion Rush wasn't already dead he soon would be. Still his sacrifice would not be in vain. Talon Zahn keyed his own communications channel on and spoke with grim resolve. "The tyrant is dead! Death to tyrants!"
Pushing his Yu Huang up to full speed he left the armoured revetment he had formed up his forces in (ironically designed to aid in the defence of the Forbidden City) and headed for the palace and it's already alerted defenders. Behind him came the 1st Battalion of the Red Lancers and both under strength battalions of Warrior House Imarra who had been ordered by their now no doubt dead Master to obey him. The company of Death Commando's on patrol at the perimeter knew they stood no chance against nearly nine times their own number, but immedietly rushed to defensive positions and opened fire. Buying time for the rest of their battalion within the Forbidden Palace to deploy...
*****
Hours later Zahn allowed the front lines to push past him as he panted and fell back to have his battlemech rearmed and the heat sink's fluids purged. Which allowed him to look out at the strategic situation he and his fellow rebels found themselves in...
His own task force had managed by now to seize almost two thirds of the Celestial Palace and Forbidden City, but roughly a company of Death Commando's remained as well as elements of Palace Security. The outcome wasn't in doubt, but the butchers bill was still going to be high. Worse they had managed to secure the throne room and there they had found the heavily mutilated body of Ion Rush and the other officers who had confronted and then killed the Chancellor. Although the Chancellor's body itself had been taken by the Death Commando's no doubt.
The rest of the Red Lancers and the 10th Sian Dragoons who had joined them were battling with the 1st Sian Dragoons who had remained loyal to the now dead Chancellor - although it was doubtful if the 1st Dragoons knew that. They were dug in hard at the Hellespoint Industrial's facility and were fighting hard against their foes. Worse they 1st were replacing any damaged or destroyed battlemechs from machines that had been completed but not yet shipped out. Still the fighting there was swinging in favour of the rebels.
The 7th Confederation Reserve Cavalry, although not formally part of the rebel faction to begin with had thrown in their lot with Zahn's conspirators immedietly and had seized the Cere's Metal facility here on Sian that they had been guarding with few casualties. They were now shipping out battlemechs and spare parts to the rest of the rebel factions as quickly as they could.
One final area that was of immense satisfaction was the attack upon the Maskirovka's headquarters in downtown Zi-Jin Cheng. The 11th Sian Dragoons while under strength and extremely green had crashed through the improvised defences and set piece fortifications around the Mask's hated HQ building. Those defences had been designed to resist rioters or infantry, not 2 battlemech battalions with supporting forces and had crumbled swiftly. Soon the 11th would have full control of the HQ building...
Just as Zahn's battlemech stepped up to the makeshift repair facility to begin rearming, there was a flash in the corner of his view screen which darkened automatically. The flash came from the location of the Maskirovka's HQ building and Talon Zahn's horrified glance at the sensors told him everything he needed to know - downtown Zi-Jin Cheng had just been wiped out by a strategic grade nuclear weapon detonation from the exact location of the HQ building. No doubt a suicide charge that not even he had known about. Even as he hunkered his battlemech down as best he could to withstand the blast wave he began to weep furious tears at the loss of life those bastards had just inflicted upon Sian in an act of petty vengeance!
*****
Two weeks after Ion Rush had sacrificed himself to kill the mad Chancellor the former Strategic Military Director of the Capellan Confederation looked at the holo-table map of Sian and the horrendous picture it painted to his trained eyes and almost felt like weeping again. He knew he had seemed to age decades in a few days, but he forced himself to face the assembled leaders of the rebellion with his resolve unbuckled. "It's almost over..."
He pointed to the Forbidden City. "We have now secured the palace and are rooting out the last few hold outs from the Death Commando's. By now they are mostly hiding and trying to ambush infantry patrols, their last battlemech fell to our guns last week. While a few got away in that Leopard class dropship we suspect that was merely an escort for the dead tyrant's body."
"Are we sure he is dead?" Zhong-shao Georgia Shippe asked quietly.
"Certain. We have confirmed security camera footage and witness accounts from servants of the Death Commando's carrying Sun-Tzu's body with them as they fled. The tyrant is dead. We have Ion Rush and his companions to thank for that at least." Talon Zahn ground out before continuing on. "We have secured most of the world, a few hold outs are still fighting us, but after the Murder of Zi-Jin Cheng few of the people of Sian are prepared to side with them. Even elements of the 1st Sian Dragoons have switched sides to support us."
"In orbit the CCS Franco Martel has sided with us and destroyed the CCS Hexare when it tried to bombard us. The CCS Xizang and the CCS Drozan have fled with the tyrant's body." Which had more of the officers looking relieved that at least they wouldn't face orbital bombardment. "However the fires caused by the nuclear detonation in Zi-Jin Cheng are still raging, not only in the city itself but also within the jungles around the city. We must redeploy forces now that active combat operations are winding down to fight those or face and even worse disaster than the one we already face... As well as purging the planets government and Home Guard from Liao-Loyalists..."
The various officers all began nodding and making suggestions as to what they should do next... Although all avoided bringing up the elephant in the room - namely who would be Chancellor or if indeed there would be a new Chancellor...
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A very nice story interlude! A new House could arise from the ashes of old? I wonder what the AFFS will do? No doubt the WoB might try to bring back Sun-Tzu if the Death Commandos bring him his body.
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The only sane decision they could make was to kill the mad man and cast out his followers before they did anymore damage.
But whatever is left of the CC if it survives will never have a Liao sit on any throne ever again.
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And what about Cassie? That would keep the die hard Liaos happy and make the intergration into the Suns smoother (one would hope).
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And what about Cassie? That would keep the die hard Liaos happy and make the intergration into the Suns smoother (one would hope).
I think after everything the mainline Liao family have put her through and done to her family she would turn the Celestial Throne into Sian’s most regal toilet.
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Yeah, I’d think Victors response to whoever ends up in charge on Sian if they demanded a cease fire and peace negotiations instead of offering unconditional surrender, would be the same as his response to Sun Tzu originally.
“Too little, too late.”
They can make the surrender far less bloody for both sides of course, but the only card they really have left to play (not unleashing they WMDs) may now be out of play if the last of the loyalists now follow ‘dead-hand’ instructions and unleash themselves on one way suicide trips against Federated Suns worlds...
Not to mention ****** Kali is still out there somewhere...
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Kali will step up to the plate, with wobbie support of course.
And fine times were had by all. >:D ;)
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Casandra will never accept the Chancellorship and the CC is in no place to continue. Just because Sunny is dead doesn't mean the demands Victor gave will change. They still have two choices surrender completely or be destroyed.
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WOW. that is all I can think of after reading this update.
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By the laws of succession Kali is the next in line, but for some reason I doubt Talon Zahn will want her in charge of what is left of the CC. Surrender or the glorious last stand are the only remeaining options, with killing of Sunny birthing a new ''stab in the back'' myth, fueling the resurgence of nationalism for decades (centuries?) to come.
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3069 - February - General Update
In a clear sign that the war with the Capellan Confederation was entering it's closing stages the Federated Sun's began to actively organise the new territories that it had seized in the previous months. Worlds were hastily assigned to provisional PDZ's throughout the former Sarna March and former Capellan territories. In a clear sign of the growing importance of Isis Davion the First Princes's consort travelled to New Syrtis to discuss with Duke George Hasek the future of the Capellan March. Duke Hasek had of course been made aware of the intent to form a League March from the ruins of the Confederation, however the final nature of this March had yet to be resolved. Isis Marik and George Hasek began by discussing the future borders of the Capellan March itself. Duke Hasek was delighted (although not surprised) to hear that the worlds taken along the border of the Sirdar PDZ were intended to be reorganised into 2 PDZ's - provisionally named the Victoria and Grand Base PDZ. The addition of the key industrial worlds of Victoria, Grand Base and Menke were a welcome addition to his March by any way of looking at things, however he was less than happy at what he was giving up in return. Princess Davion explained that the entirety of the former Sarna March was to be incorporated into the new League March, along with the additional worlds taken to link up St Ives to the rest of it's March.
The loss of the Achernar and Nanking PDZ's to the new League March was a less than pleasant pill for the Duke of New Syrtis to swallow. Losing Tikonov alone would be a major loss to his Marches's military output, without also losing Nanking and Outreach as well! While the 3 industrial worlds he was obtaining in the 2 new PDZ's would somewhat compensate for these losses it was unlikely they would be a match for what he was giving up. Which left aside that he was losing the 2 Tikonov Cossack's regiments, the 1st Sheraton Knights, 1st Woodstock Borderer's and 2 fully formed March Militia's for the gain of only 2 promised new March Militias.
With these points very quickly made the Duke and the Princess settled down to a long and painful "negotiation". Or as Isis later called it to her husband "haggling". Hasek's initial position was that he would perhaps consider giving up the Nanking PDZ and it's "vital factories and units" to the League March as a good will gesture, but that the Achernar PDZ was far too valuable to his March to consider being handed over to the new League March. Which was Isis's exact point, that the 2 already formed and integrated PDZ's would be vital to the formation and success of the new March. They would be the framework around which the rest of the March could be formed. As such New Avalon saw their assignment to the League March to be of vital strategic importance. Which wasn't to say they didn't understand New Syrtis's concerns and would do everything they could to alleviate these.
After weeks of discussion an agreement was finally reached between the First Princes's wife and his key vassal. The Nanking and Achernar PDZ's would indeed be ceded to the League March, but in return the Capellan March would receive a percentage of the production of the factories on Tikonov and Outreach for a further 10 years. Beginning with 50% of the output and reducing at 5% a year until the time was up. The Federated Sun's central government would also foot the bill for returning the facilities on Victoria to full production as well as the proposed buyout of StarCorp's plant on Menke which would be used to form a second facility for SunCorp Industries. New Avalon would also help to create not only the 2 new CMM for the Victoria and Grand Base PDZ's but also at least 1 additional Borderer regiment in the new territories as well as rebuild the Victoria Academy of Arms and Technology into an AFFS Military Academy.
George Hasek remained unhappy at losing the Achernar and Nanking PDZ's, but given that they had only recently been added to his March after 3057 they weren't exactly core territories, while the 2 new PDZ's were permanent additions to his March and would be properly integrated as such. The retained production would be a useful stopgap until the former Capellan factories came online at least. His attempts to have Necromo and Ares also attached to his March had however failed as they had been earmarked for the Randar PDZ. On the whole he was content with the concession's made by New Avalon in return for his support for the League March. If not thrilled.
Isis Davion however was a little frustrated leaving New Syrtis. While she believed the deal she had hashed out with Duke Hasek had been fair and would leave both sides content she had to admit to herself that her upbringing in the FWL had left her much better prepared for these negotiations and that she probably could have pressed Hasek harder had she tried. For instance she probably could have avoided her husband's government having to pay to rebuild the academy on Victoria. However both her husband, his Prince's Champion and the Marshal of the Armies had made it clear they didn't want the best possible deal for New Avalon that left New Syrtis dissatisfied. Better more concessions now and less trouble in the future. Something that the Marik in her had to respect, if not like.
The AFFS continued to prepare for potential war with the Draconis Combine throughout February, with the entire Draconis March now on a full war footing and ready not only to resist any Kurita attack but also ready to counter attack. Plans had been put in place that in the event of war the AFFS would counter attack in order to further expand and strengthen the Galtor Thumb, with the plan calling for worlds in an arc from Fellanin II to Iruzun to Thestria targeting, with secondary strikes to retake Quentin and seize An Ting also planned out. If the Kurita's wanted war, they'd soon be fighting it on their own doorsteps, or in their own damn dining rooms as Field Marshal Gregory Sykes was heard to exclaim at a planning meeting.
On Chesterton the new Dervish-O entered production - although at a limited rate due to a shortage in targeting computers for some of it's variants due to the demands of the Capellan Front. However the unfinished models continued to be stockpiled and new targeting computers were hurriedly rushed to Chesterton to be fitted so that the partially completed omnimech's could be shipped out. This would be done by the end of March. In the meantime work was began on adding a second Argus-O line to the plant which was expected to complete by January 3070.
On New Avalon itself the Lycomb-Davion plant saw the completion of the Reiver aerospace fighter production facility on the 14th of February. The company decided to forgoe any further expansions on New Avalon but did decide to add a Guillotine line to their June plant.
The Jalastar Aerospace flagship plant on Panpour announced the planned expansion of a fourth Javelin-O line and a sixth Sparrowhawk line at a press conference on the 19th of February. Work would begin immedietly.
On Mayetta the Norse Battlemech Works facility see's it's Griffin line go operational, leaving only the Shadow Hawk line to finish next month. Given the solid sales of these workhorse battlemechs to the AFFS and affiliated mercenary formations the company begins considering adding some omnimech lines to this facility.
On Ares the first of the captured facilities begin to actively produce equipment for the AFFS. Locusts and Stingers march from the Bergan Industries battlemech facilities, while the Earthwerk shipyards begin producing Kuan-Ti (soon renamed Cassandra class) class assault dropships, Overlords, Overlord-A3s, Union and Vengeance class dropships. The Quickscell facilities barely miss a beat when they change over to producing for the FedSuns rather than the Capellan Confederation. However they are soon facing lengthly legal battles regarding quality control issues as they are forced to raise their standards to the AFFS mandated levels. All of these facilities had effectively been seized intact and all 3 companies had existing plants within the Federated Sun's so they were amongst the first facilities to begin producing equipment for the AFFS.
Within the Draconis Combine progress continues to be made for Operation Daimyo by Hohiro Kurita. However unknown to the heir one of his staff has leaked the plans to his mother the Warlord of Pesht. Who is on her way to Luthien to bring the matter to the attention of his still invalided father the Coordinator. At the end of February Hohiro becomes aware of this due to a tip off from Shin Yodama, the commander of the Izanagi Warriors. He swiftly heads for Luthien himself.
Within the Free Worlds League there is no longer any real trace of central government. There are now no less than 4 Parliaments in session throughout the League - 1 each on Atreus, Regulus, Oriente (all aligned with their respective factions) and a "non-aligned" Parliament which is sitting on Stewart. The Federated Sun's ambassadors to each of these parliaments/factions during February inform them in the strongest terms that the First Prince demands to know what they intend to do about the invasion of his realm by the "Free Tikonov" Republican Guard terrorist regiments. Atreus (who's Captain General is supported by the Free Tikonov Province) denounces the First Princes demands. Regulus ignores them. Oriente, while explaining that they understand the First Princes's fury, can do little to aid in the matter. While Stewart's Parliament does little but debate the issue with nothing resolved.
What little information is coming out of Sian indicates to the rest of the Inner Sphere that Sun-Tzu's government has been toppled, but little further information is forthcoming. In response Duke Baxter formally declares not only his own, but also his Andurien Commonalities eternal loyalty to the "True and Divine Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao" and calls upon all loyal Capellan son's and daughters to rally to his banner to preserve the Confederation. In support of this he formally (in the name of Sun-Tzu) seizes control of Pella II, Frondas, Westerhand, Palladaine, Shiba and Sax. Although said control is extremely limited. The government-in-exile of the Victoria Commonality on Gunthar refuse to recognise any new government on Sian and similarly declare their loyalty to the "Supreme Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao" - while also decrying Duke Baxter's Andurien Commonality as "Traitors, thieves and scavenging scum".
On Canopus Naomi Centrella visits one of Canopus's famed health clinics and makes her wishes known to the doctors there. They begin preparing her for artificial insemination with carefully stored sperm she had provided to them upon her return from her last visit to Sian...
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I hope to god a FS agent contaminated those sperm samples.
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Replaced is better.
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With Victor's seed? He'd be the first House Lord to screw his kid's way to the First Lord's seat.
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How in that hell Baxter, given that he came with none of the forces and support troops / civilians he needs, is actually ruling over anything but the mother of all interplanetary insurgencies is beyond me...
If Victor can shake a couple of Avalon’s and a Fox flotilla loose for a month, I’d make it a point to go blow up the couple of warships he has, plus every assault ship and fighter you can kill. Leave him utterly naked for any FWL faction to toy with...
Amusing that the FWL are codifying their divisions now with four parliaments going on :D
Less amusing to see that George is being much more Michael than Morgan. In the medium and long term it won’t matter - especially when the AFFS relocate like 3/4 of the Federal garrison units from the Capellan March into the League March. But he’s going to be a bit of a child I think for some time. Still, for now, buying him off with a more generous bit of line redrawing than Victor could have gotten away with (seriously his popularity in the Capellan March given what he’s done to the Confederation AND done for them has to be ****** stratospheric by now)...
Still, an easy enough ending to that problem.
Also hilarious that Hothead Kurita has taken so much time to get ready for his big strike he’s more or less lost the only thing that might have made it even remotely effective; surprise! The AFFS has had plenty of time to stand up units, build up reserves, position supplies and ships ... yet Hohiro wants to charge ahead?!
Less amusing that Shin seems to have forgotten what he owes Theodore and is betraying him for Hohiro - unless of course this was a ‘let him know ... too late to do anything about it’ sort of play, Even more crazy that it took a leak for one of the Warlords if the Combine to find out what was going on while MIIO seem to be fully in the loop!
It doesn’t give me confidence she’ll be able to stop this madness... :(
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How in that hell Baxter, given that he came with none of the forces and support troops / civilians he needs, is actually ruling over anything but the mother of all interplanetary insurgencies is beyond me...
If Victor can shake a couple of Avalon’s and a Fox flotilla loose for a month, I’d make it a point to go blow up the couple of warships he has, plus every assault ship and fighter you can kill. Leave him utterly naked for any FWL faction to toy with...
Amusing that the FWL are codifying their divisions now with four parliaments going on :D
Less amusing to see that George is being much more Michael than Morgan. In the medium and long term it won’t matter - especially when the AFFS relocate like 3/4 of the Federal garrison units from the Capellan March into the League March. But he’s going to be a bit of a child I think for some time. Still, for now, buying him off with a more generous bit of line redrawing than Victor could have gotten away with (seriously his popularity in the Capellan March given what he’s done to the Confederation AND done for them has to be ****** stratospheric by now)...
Still, an easy enough ending to that problem.
Also hilarious that Hothead Kurita has taken so much time to get ready for his big strike he’s more or less lost the only thing that might have made it even remotely effective; surprise! The AFFS has had plenty of time to stand up units, build up reserves, position supplies and ships ... yet Hohiro wants to charge ahead?!
Less amusing that Shin seems to have forgotten what he owes Theodore and is betraying him for Hohiro - unless of course this was a ‘let him know ... too late to do anything about it’ sort of play, Even more crazy that it took a leak for one of the Warlords if the Combine to find out what was going on while MIIO seem to be fully in the loop!
It doesn’t give me confidence she’ll be able to stop this madness... :(
Didn't say that Baxter isn't having insurrections. He is. But so far brutal reprisals and the shock of the defeat is keeping a lid on things. Frankly the main reason Baxter is trying to annex some long term Capellan worlds is to get a source of garrison grade troopers. He needs those more than battlemech regiments right now.
The FWL is really a mess right now. And it's about to get a whole lot worse...
George isn't so much being Michael, as wanting the best deal possible for his March/House. Nothing he is doing is actually weakening the FedSuns as a whole. Indeed he'd see it as anything that strengthens the Cap March helps the FedSuns as a whole. At the end of the day he IS agreeing to hand over 2 pretty industrial and rich PDZ's for 2 newly conquered ones. Hence why Victor is prepared to actually be more generous than he really needs to be. He doesn't want a rift developing down the line. Plus as you say - in the near future a lot of Avalon Hussars, Davion Guards, Crucis Lancers, etc RCT's and regiments are heading from the Capellan March into the League March (and a lot of the ones that will be left will be in the 2 new PDZ's).
Ironically Hohiro is having to put so much effort into masking his activities from Luthien/Pesht that it's easier for MIIO to find out what he's up too. And he has less access to intelligence on the AFFS - if he starts asking a lot of pointed questions about the garrison on X, Y and Z planet of the ISF for instance someone is going to smell a rat.
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Of course someone thinks that having the child of the mad man with a complete family of man men and women is a smart move. No one would back that child especially after the last ****** that happened. The CC will not rise in revolt for this child. Because it will be years before the child can be used and in all that time they are ruled fairly and better by both Cassandra and Victor than the Liao's ever did. Why give up the prosperity and safety that they gain under the FedSuns to support another mad Liao?
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Hohiro is asking for trouble if he goes through with this operation he runs the high risk if he goes through with it.
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If Victor can shake a couple of Avalon’s and a Fox flotilla loose for a month, I’d make it a point to go blow up the couple of warships he has, plus every assault ship and fighter you can kill. Leave him utterly naked for any FWL faction to toy with...
I reckon they will wait with warship action until they have enough RCTs in range for liberation. They don't want a FWL faction to liberate and integrate Andurien, they want to liberate it themselves, so when FWL reforms they will have independent and friendly Andurien on the border, instead of FWL province Andurien.
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I am waiting for the report that the sperm of George Hasek was accidentally mixed with Sun Tzu's on the way to Canopus. >:D :brew:
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I reckon they will wait with warship action until they have enough RCTs in range for liberation. They don't want a FWL faction to liberate and integrate Andurien, they want to liberate it themselves, so when FWL reforms they will have independent and friendly Andurien on the border, instead of FWL province Andurien.
Andurien as the new St Ives League or Free Rasalhague Republic? It might work if you can be more FedSuns to the SIL than DC/LC to FRR in terms of relationship
Of course someone thinks that having the child of the mad man with a complete family of man men and women is a smart move. No one would back that child especially after the last ****** that happened. The CC will not rise in revolt for this child. Because it will be years before the child can be used and in all that time they are ruled fairly and better by both Cassandra and Victor than the Liao's ever did. Why give up the prosperity and safety that they gain under the FedSuns to support another mad Liao?
She might have chosen a different Liao to Sun-Tzu, for example Kai? The idea will be, I guess, to get an heir who could claim some loyalty from at least some of the border worlds that used to be Capellan in the future
On the other hand, there is the rumour that Sun-Tzu is the secret son of Hanse Davion so maybe it isn't such a bad idea...
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Deleted that, getting too deep into the argumentative side of things there!
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It will be interesting to see where this is going. Could we end up with the Confederated Federated Commonwealth of Free League States? Versus the Draconis Decline?
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3069 - March - Operations Rat II and III
Given the fact that Operation Rat II had been almost entirely successful in retaking the former Sarna March (with the only hold out by March being the Capellan forces on Sarna itself) the High Command merged Rat II and Rat III into a single active Operation during March 3069. Given the recent developments on Sian and beyond the High Command was more than aware that they were reaching the end of active operations for the time being. Plus given the issues arising within the Draconis Combine and the First Princes's commitments to their allies regarding Terra they were aware that the AFFS's attentions would soon be needed elsewhere. Which wasn't to say they didn't plan to finish strongly.
Sarna
Sang-shao Garry Weinrib had known that when the second wave of invaders had finished off the Sarna Cadre that his own forces in the city of Sarna itself would soon find their position going from bad to worse, but he had no idea just how right he was. With the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers, 1st Kestrel Grenadiers and the 1st FedSun's Dragoons pressing him on every single front he had effectively no reserve. Which was when the AFFS troops on planet hit him with a triple assault. All along the lines the troops of the first wave surged forward and slammed into his forces, pinning them in place, while the 1st Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry which had reboarded their dropships conducted a combat drop from an insanely low level directly into his rear areas. If that wasn't enough the 2nd Lexington Combat Guards performed a sledgehammer style assault on his 2nd battalion en mass. As soon as the lines were broken they began rolling up the rest of his positions while the 1st Tikonov Cossack's surged through the gap to link up with the 1st FSAC.
Within 24 hours of the second wave having joined the fight against his forces Sang-shao Weinrib's defensive plans were in tatters. His lines were broken and battalion sized formations of enemy battlemech's were rampaging through his rear areas and cutting his troops into isolated pockets which were then being reduced one by one by the follow on AFFS's main forces. His faint hope of holding out had been shattered, and on the 18th of March he formally ordered the surrender of his remaining troops after his last major supply depot had been overrun by 2 companies of Cossack's.
With the surrender of the Sang-shao organised resistance to the AFFS collapsed, with few of his remaining troops or their Home Guard support prepared to continue on in a hopeless last stand. A handful of die hard's attempted to break out and go to ground, but with the huge numerical advantage of the AFFS invasion force the Davion lines were almost rock solid and the few attempts were met with overwhelming firepower. By the end of March Sarna was fully secure for the Federated Suns.
Capella
In orbit over Capella the additional marine formations joined the initial deployments and continued to battle to seize the shipyards, preferably intact. The seizure of the facilities main power plants by the 1st Federated Suns Marine Corp Battle Armour Battalion on the 19th of March spelt the end for continued resistance within the shipyards, although by the time the last holdouts were cleaned out the death toll amongst the FedSun's Marine units had been staggering and the yards themselves had suffered heavy damage.
On the planet itself the AFFS second wave launch their attack. Leading the way 7th Crucis Lancers make a combat drop directly on top of Ceres City. Syn's Hussars, by now reviled by their fellow CCAF units and demoralised by repeated retreats and having had their commanding officer executed for treason, put up a stiff resistance to the landing Lancers for the first 24 hours. However as the 15th and 26th Avalon Hussar's RCT's land around the city and begin launching attacks to link up with the 7th Crucis Lancers and with no support being dispatched from Memorial City except stern instructions to sell their lives dearly they begin to fall apart on the second day. The first surrenders are isolated units that have been cut off and isolated, but soon entire companies are powering down and requesting terms. Which is when the Maskirovka's "suicide charges" installed within their battlemech cockpits go off. During routine maintenance each Syn's Hussar's battlemech's cockpit ejection mechanism had been sabotaged that at a certain signal it would deploy - but only the seat itself. Not the blow out panels within the actual battlemech's head. Given the hurried nature of the sabotage not all of the ejection seats actually deploy, but fully 2/3rds of the remaining Syn's Hussars end up crushed to death within their own cockpits. The Davion troops fighting the Syn's Hussars when they discover this treachery by their enemies security services are disgusted and swiftly cut down any remaining resistance and secure Ceres City. At which point the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry is brought down from orbit and deploys to probe and harass the enemy forces in and around Memorial City while the 7th Lancers and 15th and 26th Hussars refit and repair their equipment.
The Davion Assault Guards and 2nd Davion Guards continue to squeeze the pocket around the War College. In a relentless battle of attrition the 2 much larger Davion formations use their size and experience to grind Warrior House Ijori and it's Home Guard supporting formations into the dust. A favoured tactic is for formations of Assault Guards to attack and cause heavy damage before retreating to refit their own damaged battlemechs and equipment, while the faster 2nd Davion Guards immedietly probe the same part of the line, often catching the Capellan formations still damaged and exhausted. It isn't a subtle tactic and is repeated so many times that the defenders know it is coming - but when outnumbered so heavily there is little they can actually do. Warrior House Ijori, reading the writing on the wall, eventually attempts to break out from the pocket on the 24th but their attack is stopped before it can even properly begin when a full 2 wings of 2nd Davion Guards aerospace fighters pounce on their jump off point and bomb them into the dark ages. With the destruction of the last company of Warrior House troops the remaining Home Guard formations soon begin to surrender or simply desert. By the end of March the War College is in Davion hands.
As March comes to a close the only remaining Capellan territory on Capella is Memorial City and it's defenders know that when the Davion formations mass to attack them they will be horrendously outnumbered by battle hardened enemy forces. Their growing dread is briefly dispelled when news comes of an unexpected jump signature at a nearby pirate point. Hopes are raised throughout the CCAF command bunker that reinforcement's have arrived from Sian... However these false and unrealistic hopes are crushed when it soon becomes evident that the arrivals are none other than the 1st Davion Guards RCT and the 1st Arcadian RCT - accompanying none other than First Prince Victor himself and Khan of the Sun Jaguars along with her Keshik and 1st Sun Jaguar Guards.
Preston
Fresh from the almost bloodless conquest of Cordiagr the 3rd FedSun's Dragoons RCT arrives in the Preston system. Given how close the world was to Sian it was perhaps unsurprising that the local Home Guard formations were mere paper tigers and with the news coming from Sian totally undermining any desire to fight on the Preston Home Guard followed Cordiagr's example and surrendered immedietly.
Ovan
Despite being at only 60% of full strength the elite 7th FedSun's Dragoons RCT headed for Ovan with a well founded optimism. Now considered not only to be one of the premier units within the FedSun's Dragoons but also within the wider AFFS the 7th Dragoons conduct a flawless combat drop in and around the main spaceport of the world of Ovan - only to find they have wasted their time as the planetary government is falling all over themselves to surrender. Preferably yesterday.
Glasgow
The 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT does face some opposition when they hit Glasgow, but this is purely from scattered and isolated Home Guard elements which refuse to acknowledge their own planetary governments surrender. As such the Raiders fall back on their dispersed combat command and begin rooting out the resisting Home Guard formations. With a fully refitted front line RCT at his disposal Leftenant General Ryan Rand-Davion shows once again that the High Command's faith in his command abilities was well justified and conducts a mopping up campaign that swiftly secures the planet for Davion rule. On the 30th March he is formally promoted to Marshal in recognition of his successes.
Harloc
The 1st Kathil Uhlan's arrive on Harloc with something to prove. Carrying a prestigious name and lauded as the successors of the famed "Morgan's Lions" the new unit is keen to impress in their first solo operation. Facing off against the by now elite 6th Harloc's Cavalry Raiders the Uhlan's have a number of advantages. Firstly they are at almost their full allotted strength of a reinforced RCT and are fully equipped with the finest equipment that the Federated Sun's can provide. Additionally while technically only rated as a veteran formation their command staff is again amongst the best the AFFS have. Combined with their large conventional formations they soon have the Raiders on the ropes. However finishing them off proves to be difficult.
Within a few days of the Uhlan's landing the command staff of the Raiders realise that they cannot go toe to toe with the heavier and larger formation. Worse their Home Guard support formations are no match for the Uhlan's conventional forces even if they hadn't already been smashed in the previous fighting and had their best remaining troops culled to help rebuild the Raiders themselves. Therefore they forgo a formal defence of the planet and begin fighting a guerrilla campaign of raid and counter raid against the invading Davion's.
While the Uhlan's could easily call upon other AFFS formations nearby to help run down the Raiders they insist on doing this alone. A sense of needing to prove itself permeates the whole command. Again and again they struggle to pin down the more mobile Raiders and finish the job. Yet slowly something is becoming evident to both sides - the people of Harloc itself are growing tired. The world has been the sight of numerous battles during this war and even the most pro-Liao citizen can see that they aren't winning this fight. Even if the 6th Harloc Cavalry Raiders can drive the Uhlan's from the world, all that means is that the world will face another invasion. Soon. Probably within a few weeks with how things are going. The Home Guard formations still fighting alongside the Raiders are the first to sense this shift in mood, and soldier by soldier begin to lose heart and drift away. None of the citizens are quite ready to turn on the Raiders yet, but they are no longer supporting them.
Under a different leader the Raiders might have responded differently to this development, but Sang-shao W Deng Tang considers himself an honourable warrior and will not condone reprisals against the civilians he's sworn to protect. He is also aware that it isn't just the people of Harloc that are tired. His own regiment is by now a miss match of original Raiders, survivors of the 6th Confederation Reserve Cavalry and bits and pieces of other formations and the local Home Guard forces. While they are still a formed military unit and prepared to continue fighting they are starting to show signs of mental and physical exhaustion while their equipment is almost falling apart after hard battles. On the 27th of March he decides it is best to seek terms while his formation is still a viable threat rather than wait till the people fully turn on them and his command falls apart or suffers a major reversal. A truce is called on the 28th and negotiations begin - they will be completed swiftly during April.
Hexare
The 4th Davion Guards RCT arrives above Hexare and to nobodies surprise at this stage of the campaign the local Home Guard formations refuse to commit suicide by fighting against the elite RCT in a hopeless cause. The world is swiftly brought into compliance with the FedSuns.
Imalda
In an almost twin situation to the 4th's arrival at Hexare the 5th Davion Guards RCT arrive in the Imalda system and immedietly take the surrender of the local garrison of Home Guard troops. The only resistance to the occupation is a near riot when some students attempt to resist the landing of the 5th Guards at the spaceport by occupying the landing pads. So instead the 5th land nearby in a park and send infantry to arrest the protesters with the active help of the local police forces who are desperate to avoid a massacre.
New Westin
The single battlemech battalion of mercenaries from Wilson's Hussars arrive in the New Westin supported by a full mixed conventional brigade of AFFS troops. While the High Command had thought this might be a risk, the collapse of the CCAF and civilian morale with the Confederation had convinced them that the likelihood of resistance would be slim. Just in case 2 companies worth of small mercenary formations (including former General Neece's Green Giants) were attached to the Hussars. Many of these would formally join Wilson's Hussars following this operation and bring the formation up to 5 companies worth of troops. The occupation goes as expected with almost no fighting.
Hustaing
The 6th Robinson Rangers - eager to return to the Draconis March in case the hated Kurita's attacked - hit the world of Hustaing hard and fast. Giving the local Home Guard formations no chance to consider fighting back the 6th's battlemech forces landed in combat drops directly on top of the planetary capital and dictated surrender terms to the captured local commanders and civilian leadership. While this operation was a success the risk of it drew some criticism from the High Command. However both Duke Hasek and Duke Sandoval both commended the 6th Ranger's for their "daring strike". Indeed they would be awarded the Limp Sword Flag by New Syrtis - the first Robinson Ranger's unit to ever receive this award.
Decus
The 8th Syrtis Fusilirs RCT arrived over Decus and unlike many of the other units in this wave found the local Home Guard prepared to fight to resist the invaders. Roughly a combined arms brigade of infantry and armour attempted to resist their landing and fought it out in the planetary capital. Outmatched and outgunned the only thing that the Home Guard achieved was to bring destruction down on most of the industrial areas of the city near the spaceport. While many of the locals blamed the 8th for this destruction many shared the blame with the "fools" of the Home Guard. A dislike of House Hasek and the Capellan March would pervade Decus for several decades after this battle. However when Duchess Cassandra immedietly sent word that the industrial destruction would be rebuilt by her own government in April Decus would soon become a fervent supporter of the League March and it's government on St Ives.
Carmen
The last official world invaded during this wave would be Carmen by the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT. With word coming of Sun-Tzu's death and the fall of his regime the planet was desperate to avoid the chaos and destruction of being drawn into a civil war and happily surrendered to the 1st Crucis Lancers. The only holdouts were the local Maskirovka's headquarters, but after a few volleys of LRM's and autocannon fire the resistance was soon overcome.
Claxton
Officially the world of Claxton was not a target for Operation Rat's Fifth Wave, but it found itself under attack from the Sirdar CMM near the end of March. Leftenant General Ito Russel, long considered a glory hound by his peers and superiors, relying on the faith his troops had in him launched an unsanctioned attack upon the world of Claxton. Despite the aversion many within the upper echelon's of command held for him few could question his skill or bravery. Despite leading a second line formation the General proved his skills as he outmanoeuvred the few Home Guard formations he found himself up against and swiftly forced them to surrender or face annihilation. In a single week he managed to conquer the planet for the Federated Suns. At the end of the day success has a thousand fathers and defeat none, and nobody was prepared to order him to return the planet to Confederation control! Again he and his command were awarded the Limp Sword Flag by a "grateful" Duke Hasek - and the General himself was invited to New Syrtis to receive it - and the private ass chewing that came with it for endangering his command in such an unsanctioned attack.
Summary
With 12 worlds falling to House Davion and Capella clearly not far behind the others the Fifth Wave was considered a resounding success. It was by now apparent that the CCAF was in total collapse and the only real issue with further attacks was the logistical issues and possible insurgencies. As well as reports from the Draconis Combine. A number of High Command officers continued to advocate for a strike on Sian or at least a strike to take the remaining 6 worlds of the Capellan Commonality, while others felt that it was time to halt.
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3069 - March - Dissolution of the Capellan Conderation
With the Battle of Sian finally over Strategic Military Director Talon Zahn makes his move to try and safeguard what he can of the former Capellan Confederation. By now he has accepted that the Confederation he has served his whole life is doomed. Any chance to preserved it had died when the Andurian Commonality and the rump Victoria Commonality had refused to acknowledge his coup against House Liao on Sian. Instead of attempting to preserve a corpse he instead announced the formation of the Sian Republic - with himself as it's Lord Protector. He invites all remaining Capellan Worlds to join the Republic as full members - while at the same time sending out requests for recognition from the various other realms of the Inner Sphere.
He swiftly receives word from Castrovia and Ito, the remaining worlds of the Sian Duchy, that they wish to join his newly declared Sian Republic. Both worlds however make it abundantly clear that they will not continue to fight the AFFS. Should Davion RCT's appear in their skies they will immedietly surrender.
While the world of Pella II has been annexed to the Andurien Commonality the remaining 3 worlds of the Krin Duchy also all agree to join the Sian Republic, as do the remaining "free worlds" of the Altora Duchy - Altora itself and the world of Fronde. This gives the new Sian Republic a grand total of 8 worlds.
The Sian Republic Military is largely built around the Red Lancer's regiment as well as a number of Sian Dragoon regiments - the 1st (having switched sides following the nuclear detonation of the Maskirovka's HQ and having absorbed the few survivors of the 11th), 10th and 12th - and the 7th Confederation Reserve Cavalry. Warrior House Imarra had been folded into the Red Lancers given the heavy losses both sides have suffered. They receive a welcome boost when the 3rd Confederation Reserve Cavalry and 4th Sian Dragoons deployed to the Andurien Commonality defect and turn up at Sian.
Duke Baxter's Andurien Commonality responds to the formation of the Sian republic by sending the 2nd and 4th McCarron's Armoured Cavalry to seize the worlds of Betelgeuse and Sigma Mare from the collapsing Confederation. On Betelgeuse the "invading" "Andurien" forces are in fact joined by Warrior House Kamata who swore eternal loyalty to the "Divine Chancellor".
Niomede, Principia and Andarmax are similarly annexed to the Andurien Commonality - the first 2 by Duke Baxter's diplomatic efforts with Andarmax joining when the Shin Legion arrives to inform the planet that they are indeed joining the Commonality.
Almost as soon as these worlds join the Andurien Commonality their new ruler orders their Home Guards to dispatch at least 1/3rd of their infantry formations to the rest of the Commonality to aid in holding the restive Andurien and other Free Worlds League planets for the Commonality. These formations are provisionally named the "Andurien Rifles" and are ordered to put down the growing insurrections. They vary in quality wildly, with the formations drawn from Betelgeuse and Sigma Mare well equipped and professional while the forces from Andarmax are almost an unformed rabble.
The Andurien Commonality is undoubtedly the major "military" power of the former Capellan realms. It's forces are based around the 5 regiments of McCarron's Armoured Cavalry, but also include the 4th Tau Ceti Rangers, 15th Dracon, Shin Legion, Marshigama’s Legionnaires, Warrior House Kamata, 2nd Liao Guard, 2nd Sian Dragoons and Warrior House Lu Sann. Although the later 3 commands in particular are considered of extremely dubious reliability.
In contrast to the other forming realms diplomacy the Government-in-Exile of the Victoria Commonality declares itself as the single true successor of the Confederation and continues to maintain they are in fact the heirs of Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao while denouncing all others. The 1st Victoria Rangers and the 3rd Sian Dragoons both swear allegiance to the Victoria Commonality. The Government-in-Exile which is based on Gunthar makes a number of bold and aggressive declarations against the Federated Suns, Sian Republic and Andurien Commonality - but does nothing but attempt to shore up it's faltering position - although it does manage to attract the loyalty of the 1st Capellan Chargers on Wright who bring that Sian Commonality world into the fold with them. Although given that they number barely 2 companies of battered battlemech's they add little real military might to the Victoria Commonality.
The remaining worlds of the Capellan Commonality attempt as best they can to take no decision as to which faction to join. Without a single battlemech formation between all 6 worlds they realise that they are effectively at the mercy of the surrounding powers and don't want to formally declare for one side or another. Although most realise that the most likely outcome will be them being annexed to either the FedSuns or joining the Sian Republic. Almost nobody suggests forming a rump Capellan Commonality in exile as that is likely to bring the AFFS down on them hard.
Along with these 6 unaffiliated worlds there are also Capellan troops on Capella itself as well as the 6th Harloc Cavalry Raiders on Harloc and a number of smaller splintered holdouts throughout the FedSun's occupied worlds who haven't declared for one party or another...
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How is the Andurien Commonality going to support it's military strength if memory serves they don't have much in the way of industry on the worlds that have taken.
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How is the Andurien Commonality going to support it's military strength if memory serves they don't have much in the way of industry on the worlds that have taken.
The annexation of Betelgeuse was critical to Andurien for this reason. It isn't much, but it's a core. Plus they plan on forming good relations with Canopus. If they can.
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and you never know what little gifts the WoB might bring. a BA factory or tank plant would be nice to get them under the WoB wing.
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No production facility, just material so they are reliant on WoB for fuhrter deliveries.
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3069 - March - Formation of the League March
With the agreement largely hammered out between Conrad Davion and Duchess Cassandra Allard-Liao, and with further discussions having taken place between Princess Isis Davion and Duke George Hasek, the formal deceleration that the St Ives Compact would join the Federated Sun's and form the basis of the new League March was made on the 28th of March 3069. The League March would only formally come into being on the 1st of January 3070, but in the meantime the integration and establishment of the new March would continue as quickly as was possible. The plans for this have been agreed between the various parties so that they can being laying the framework for the new March.
It had been agreed that as each PDZ became "functional" they would be switched from their current "Military Governments" run directly by the AFFS to the government of the League March on St Ives. The Achernar and Nanking PDZ's are immedietly transferred over to control from St Ives, while the provisional St Ives PDZ is also granted the same status - despite in no way qualifying officially due to the sheer damage to it's infrastructure. However politically it is felt that having the seat of the new March not actually being under the control of the March would be disastrous. The Federated Sun's Government and the AFFS immedietly begin pouring even more resources into the former St Ives Compact in order to prop it up and get it up and running as soon as humanly possible.
The remaining worlds of the former Sarna March are divided into 4 additional PDZ which are to be formed up over the coming months. The Styk PDZ is formed from the worlds coreward of Styk, Tsitsang, St Andre and Hunan - with a conscious decision having been made not to award Liao the honour of naming the PDZ and League March Militia to be based there after the shameful surrender of the original Liao SMM in 3057. The Corey PDZ was effectively reformed from it's former worlds - unlike in the other worlds cases Corey is once again granted the honour of naming the PDZ and March Militia given the hard fight that the original Corey SMM put up in 3057 despite being cut off and eventually forced to surrender. Similar to the Corey PDZ the former Sarna PDZ is reformed from it's former worlds, but this time the PDZ and it's corresponding March Militia is to be granted to the world of Truth. The remaining worlds of the former Sarna March are all allocated to the newly renamed Menkib PDZ with the plan being to raise a Menkib LMM in due course.
St Ives Compact worlds find themselves transitioning into the new St Ives PDZ - although some thought was given to breaking this PDZ up into 2 separate formations it was thought that it was best to leave them former Compact intact. The Capella PDZ is planned to be formed from the world of Capella itself when it finally surrenders and the worlds of Geifer, Aldertaine, No Return, Randar, Relevow, Minacora, New Sagan, Ares, Necromo and Capricorn III. The Hexare PDZ is to be formed from the worlds between the St Ives and Capella PDZ, the border of the Sian Republic down to and including the worlds of Decus and Hustaing. The remaining PDZ of the League March is planned to be formed from the worlds between the Capellan PDZ and the League/Sian Republic border. This is provisionally listed as the Ingersoll PDZ.
The Achernar, Nanking and Styk PDZ are allocated to the Tikonov Operations Area, while the Corey, Truth and Menkib PDZ's are allocated to the newly reformed Palos Operations Area. The St Ives, Capella, Hexare and Ingersoll PDZ are all allocated to the Warlock Operations Area. All in all the plans call for the League March to consist of 3 Operations Areas which will incorporate 10 PDZ's between them. Although all of these borders are for the time being provisional and dependent on further conquests from the fracturing Confederation. Some thought for instance is given to incorporating the Sian Republic as an additional PDZ if peace is not achieved.
At the same time and in discussions with Duke Hasek the new border between the Grand Base and Victoria PDZ of his Capellan March is set with everything coreward of Madras and Menke (including those 2 worlds) being assigned to the Grand Base PDZ, while everything rimward of Decatur and Victoria (including those 2 worlds) being assigned to the Victoria PDZ. The Duke is already pushing for 2 additional Borderer regiments to be formed at Claxton and Bellatrix...
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Okay does that make sense? Have I missed anything?
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Would be cool to see a map of the changes if possible.
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Would be cool to see a map of the changes if possible.
Thats the best I can do I'm afraid.
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Thats the best I can do I'm afraid.
That will do very nicely, thank you
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Honestly, I still really don't buy Baxter being able to hold his position - he simply doesn't have the troops, ground support, civilian support or supply lines. Even trying to reach out and scratch together a little infantry is far too little, too late. I would have expected his troops to be more or less holding up in their bases and/or sleeping in their Mechs if they are outside...
But, pushing past it, we have a curious fragmentation of the Confederation.
You know, hilariously, Victor could use this as an excellent cover for his need to pause and resupply. He needs a break now anyway, but not many people really understand that (or his commitment to hit Terra) so if he announced a ceasefire and holding of any more advancements to open talks with the new splinter states, it would be a great way to buy a little time. Let him pause his troops and resupply them. Might even, with the League March now officially a thing, get the planets around Sian or Sian itself to just decide this is as good as its going to get and request to join the League March and swear allegiance to Casandra (and Victor). Because looking at the maps and OOBs, honestly, this is only ending ONE way. And everyone has to know it.
And for Victor, peacefully picking up a dozen or more worlds would be outstanding and nominally keep the momentum still running while in truth he is standing his troops down to catch a breath ... and shifting more units, jumpships and warships into position to either strike at Terra or defend against the Combine (and as was said earlier, hilariously, he can move troops to do either as the Combine has given him the perfect excuse to shift troops towards the Terran core. Dito Peter for that matter who can make noises about supporting his Brother quietly...
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man I soooo can not wait for the next update!!
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Victor might be better off recognizing the Sian Republic and leaving it alone. They are about to conquer the old and original Capital of the CC with Victor personally showing up to drive the final nail into the coffin. Baxter will never receive recognition both because he has "declared" for the Chancellor but also because Victor and the FedSuns already have obligations to the former leaders/owners of those worlds. The Victoria Commonality depends on what they do but since they also "declared for the Chancellor unless they get smart they will be crushed the only ones that might take them is the MoC but they are also in hot water and if they want to not get hurt they will withdraw from the fighting completely and leave the remaining CC to die.
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Honestly, I still really don't buy Baxter being able to hold his position - he simply doesn't have the troops, ground support, civilian support or supply lines. Even trying to reach out and scratch together a little infantry is far too little, too late. I would have expected his troops to be more or less holding up in their bases and/or sleeping in their Mechs if they are outside...
My guess has been that Baxter is going to be forced to turn to the MoC, swearing to Sun-Tzu's "heir" in Naomi's child, and the Magistracy sending in forces to help pacify and absorb the whole thing.
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In fact I wonder why the MOC are so balls deep with the Capellans. The idiot child being madly in love with Sunny aside, you’d think SOMEONE would be able do some basic math and figure out siding with him against Victor is NOT going to end well. Especially after the sheer casual way he humbled the Bulls next door. Let alone the war crimes their troops are seeing CCAF and aligned forces committing...
Instead they keep providing troops and support. Even if they might have orders to run for it if they get targeted, it doesn’t in any way that they’ve declared as co-belligerents against Victor and the Federated Suns and even a small punitive expeditionary force could cause catastrophic damage to them ... and it’s not like they have a FWL to hide behind right now.
I’m surprised Victor (possibly through his wife who might have a better idea who to talk to) hasn’t pointed this out to them some time ago...
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In fact I wonder why the MOC are so balls deep with the Capellans. The idiot child being madly in love with Sunny aside, you’d think SOMEONE would be able do some basic math and figure out siding with him against Victor is NOT going to end well. Especially after the sheer casual way he humbled the Bulls next door. Let alone the war crimes their troops are seeing CCAF and aligned forces committing...
Instead they keep providing troops and support. Even if they might have orders to run for it if they get targeted, it doesn’t in any way that they’ve declared as co-belligerents against Victor and the Federated Suns and even a small punitive expeditionary force could cause catastrophic damage to them ... and it’s not like they have a FWL to hide behind right now.
I’m surprised Victor (possibly through his wife who might have a better idea who to talk to) hasn’t pointed this out to them some time ago...
From memory, the Big MAC were established more in opposition to the Davions than loyalty to Liao but have then been lauded and given a pride of place in the Capellan Confederation since the Fourth Succession War
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Thats the best I can do I'm afraid.
Thanks! I appreciate it!
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3069 - March - General Update
The announcement of the St Ives Compact joining the Federated Suns and forming the core of a new League March was met with joy across the rest of the Federated Suns as a sign of the realms growing strength and influence, and dread across a number of other realms. The various factions of the Free Worlds League for instance, having seen the swift destruction of the Capellan Confederation were under no illusions that their shattered realm could resist the Davion juggernaut - indeed Oriente sent out feelers to the other splinter factions to see if some sort of compromise could be reached to restore the Leagues shattered unity. While they received some positive feedback from the neutral Parliament on Stewart, they Regulan's and "Legitimate" Parliament on Atreus responded with demands Oriente accept their own legitimacy. The less said about the Draconis Combine's general response to the news that the FedSun's was forming a new large and potentially powerful March out of the majority of the Confederation the better...
Military officers and civilian government officials poured into the new League March from the rest of the Federated Suns, attempting to begin setting up the required governmental and defensive infrastructure, while Davion companies did likewise economically. Princess Isis Davion influenced her husband to make attempts to prevent the wholesale economic takeover by existing Davion companies with some success. Although in the area of the military industrial complex this was less successful...
For instance on both St Ives and Menke the StarCorp executives were presented with compulsory purchase orders. StarCorp had made itself an enemy of House Davion and their continued activity within the realm would not be tolerated. Their facilities would be subsumed into SunCorp and StarCorp paid a "fair" sum for the production lines. The sum was in fact generous when considered that it was not an optional offer, although was still far from what the facilities were considered worth by StarCorp. They were invited to take it up with the courts, but were assured they would be wasting their time.
Similarly Ceres Metals Industries found itself renamed, reforming as St Ives Metals Industries with it's facilities on St Ives itself as well as Indicass, Warlock, Tikonov and presumably Capella itself when that world was finally conquered ending up in the new company. The companies flagship facility on St Ives however was heavily damaged and wouldn't be repaired until December.
Naval officers also rushed to the Capellan, Sarna and Necromo shipyards and began inspecting not only the shipyards themselves but also the ships in them to see what could be salvaged and whether it was better to scrap the existing ships or complete them. One major announcement regarding these that the Aris Memorial Shipyards over Necromo would be renamed the Kai Allard-Liao Shipyards.
Other renaming going on was the Yu Huang and Ti Ts'ang class battlemech's and Kuan-Ti dropship class. All 3 would be continued in production for the AFFS but renamed - the Yu Huang would be renamed the Kai, with the Ti Ts'ang renamed the Halberd and the Kuan-Ti renamed the Cassandra class. All 3 designs would also receive a change in armour mouldings more in keeping with the AFFS than CCAF. In the same vein the huge battle armour complex on Capella in what would become that worlds St Ives Metals Industries plant was earmarked to switch over to producing Cavalier and Infiltrator II class battle armours.
The AFFS also began to properly organise the garrison forces for the new March this month, although the process would take until the end of the year to properly finalise. Examples of this were when the 1st Tikonov Cossacks were ordered to return to Styk to garrison that world, the 1st Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry dispatched to Corey, 39th Avalon Hussars RCT to Gan Singh, 8th Deneb Light Cavalry to Second Try, 1st Kestrel Grenadiers were sent to Elnath although they were ordered to prepare for immediate redeployment and the 1st FedSun's Dragoons being given similar orders when they were moved to Yunnah.
Alongside these redeployment came the beginnings of the integration of the St Ives Compact Military into the AFFS. Provisionally the 1st and 2nd St Ives Lancers were assigned to the new St Ives Armoured Cavalry Brigade was were the 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers although the Cheveau-Legers were being considered for an independent command. Some thought was also being given to disbanding the 2nd St Ives Lancers or folding them into the Cheveau-Legers given the horrendous casualties they had suffered recently. However it was felt that disbanding such a prestigious command as the first order of the new integration would be taken badly by the Lancers. One piece of good news was that the mercenary command Rubinsky's Light Horse, given their commanding officers romantic relationship with the new Duchess of St Ives had agreed to join the St Ives Armoured Cavalry Brigade as their 3rd St Ives Lancers, while their sister regiment Khorsakov's Cossacks also with strong links to the new League and Duchess had agreed to join the Tikonov Cossack's as the 3rd Tikonov Cossack's. Given the shattered nature of the former St Ives commands these 2 additions were more than welcome to help reinforce the League March. It also led to a major upswing in popularity for the transfer to the League March on Tikonov itself given the return of their mercenary brethren and the fact that the Khorsakov's Cossack's had been folded into the Cossack Brigade and not the St Ives Lancers. Alongside these announcements came the news that the Duchess intended to marry Colonel Marco Rubinsky in the new year.
One area where this was not however evident was Roman's Mounted Fusiliers. The unit was now effectively refusing all orders and while not in open rebellion was point blank refusing to acknowledge the integration of the St Ives Compact into the League March. While Duchess Cassandra Allard-Liao was sending repeated messages to the command attempting to defuse the situation she was also getting closer and closer to having to send in military formations to bring order to the rebellious unit. She had even attempted to offer them a personal mercenary contract with her rather than service with the Federated Suns, but none of her messages had been returned.
A final major announcement in March was also that Duchess Isis Davion was returning to New Avalon, where she was expected to give birth to her and First Prince Victor's son sometime in September. If the people of the Federated Sun's had been delighted with the news of the new March, the announcement that the First Prince would soon have an heir was met with almost riotious celebrations across the Capellan, Draconis and Crucis Marches. Even within the League March a number of celebrations were held - for instance on Tikonov and Achernar.
On Bristol the second line for the Fury Command Tank came online at the Julassa-Kumbold plant. The demand for these tanks following the few battles they had taken part in during the recent fighting was far outstripping the production. Already the High Command were considering not only an expansion but a second production facility!
SunCorp as well as it's new facilities on Menke and St Ives also saw it's Crofton plant expand with the new Warhammer line coming operational. This brought the Warhammer production facilities on Crofton up to 3 lines.
The New Damascus based plant for the Federated Suns Defence Industry saw it's final line be assembled. The Thunderbird aerospace fighter line had finally been rebuild on the planet and also upgraded with new technology. There were no current plans to expand production of this fighter given the lukewarm demand for it from the AFFS. Still several mercenary commands were eager to add almost any fighters they could and could be counted on to keep sales coming in.
On Clovis the Sandoval Refit Centre goes operational. Elements of the Kentares DMM begin cycling through the facility to have their battlemechs not only refitted but also rebuilt. The Fighting Urukhai and Northwind Highlander units are also promised access to it as soon as the Kentares DMM is finished.
The Norse Battlemech Works complete their Shadow Hawk line on Mayetta. The company begin considering what omnimech's to begin construction and start discussions with leasing either the Javelin-O, Dervish-O, Argus-O or Templar-O for production at the sight.
On Luthien the entire system goes into a blackout, with the HPG going offline in the last week of March... Warships at the main jump points turn back all attempts to contact the planet "On order of the Coordinator"...
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looks like the DC is in for some trouble. I do like that some of the CC machines will be sticking around. the FS might want to set up a two or three navy support bases in the new area to better support any local needs and to be ready if they are needed on the edges of the new boarder.
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Well looks like we are about to see a good old fashioned family murder fest. That or a civil war starts because of the stupidity of the son and the arrogance of the father to keep important secrets from those that should know.
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Well looks like we are about to see a good old fashioned family murder fest. That or a civil war starts because of the stupidity of the son and the arrogance of the father to keep important secrets from those that should know.
and the Black Dragon could come out to play.
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Huh, my guess is a Black Dragon - WOB alliance, similar to the crazy events in canon, given the HPG has gone offline (as even the Black Dragons are not so crazy as to risk a full scale interdiction of the Combine by doing something stupid there ... I think).
This isn't good for the Combine (although it could be the perfect distraction to allow Victor, Peter and Dow to slam Terra 'on the hop' as it were if the WOB *has* directed its focus away from home even more...
Not sure WTF is going on with Roman's Mounted Fusiliers. I refuse to believe they are just sulking for the sake of sulking as they don't seem to be fanatics to the point of wanting to die for, well, nothing. And if they were, you would have expected them to strike or try to escape or something by now. But they seem determined to either go out in a blaze of glory or ... what?
Curious to see where this goes. As it's pretty clearly reaching the point they either stand down or die.
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3069 - March - Interlude - Luthien
Garden of Tranquillity
Imperial Palace
Luthien
Pesht District
Draconis Combine
Hohiro Kurita strode into the Garden of Tranquillity and attempted to keep the surprise from his face. Given the information he had been provided by his sources within the Imperial Palace the Coordinator was effectively bed ridden. Yet instead of being directed either to the state of the art medical facility within the palace or to his fathers personal chambers he had been guided here. To his father's favourite garden of all the many pleasure gardens within the palace grounds. Either his father was putting up a front or his agents and sources had lied to him. Either way he was unhappy. Still nothing showed on his face as he strode down the carefully laid out path and across the wooden bridge that crossed over a gently flowing river to his father's resting area under his favourite Somei-yoshino. Bowing he awaited his fathers motion to kneel in front of him as the old man slowly prepared the tea they would drink together. While to his son's eyes Theodore Kurita appeared somewhat thin and hints around his eyes that spoke of pain but he looked far from being at deaths door.
Wordlessly the Coordinator finished the tea and passed his son and heir a precious heirloom cup before pouring himself one. Both men sipped the tea and enjoyed the simple pleasures of the ceremony and liquid before finally the Coordinator spoke conversationally. "Are you here to depose me?"
"Bango!" Hohiro exclaimed entirely on instinct and was surprised to realise he spoke the truth. "If you doubt me father, say the word and I shall prove my loyalty with my life's blood!"
Theodore's eyes eased somewhat and he waved his hand in the negative. "That will not be necessary. Seppuku is so permanent. Then what do you wish my son if not my throne?"
Hohiro carefully placed the fragile porcelain cup down as his anger mounted. "Revenge against Victor Davion. He has cost me a sister and you a daughter. He has stolen our rightful worlds and humbled the Dragon. For only one of these crimes he must die!"
"I agree." Theodore laid down his own cup much more calmly.
"You do?" Hohiro couldn't keep the surprise from his voice.
"Of course. I am the Dragon. Do you think my honour less than yours?" Theodore waited making eye contact with his son until the younger Kurita bowed his head in submission before continuing. "I admit, there was a time that I hoped for a different future. One where we gained the allegiance of House Davion through ties of blood and friendship... But those hopes are almost gone now. They reside only in the fragile body of a young boy. Omiko's son."
Hohiro made no sign he was surprised by the revelation his sister had a son by Victor Davion. Good, that spoke well to his intelligence that he had managed to find out this secret. Theodore nodded in approval. "Kitsune Kurita is my grandson. He will not be harmed. He is the son of your beloved sister. I expect you feel the same way...?"
"Of course father." Hohiro wasn't entirely as strong in his feelings towards his nephew, but he didn't hate the child. Better to agree.
"Good. Because there are of course the practical aspects. He has a claim to New Avalon." Theodore nodded approvingly at his son.
"Victor has removed him from the succession. The Davion's will never allow him to take the throne." Hohiro pointed out.
"What the Davion's will agree now is perhaps different from what they will agree when we have a Sword of Light regiment garrisoning Mount Davion..." Theodore smiled slightly. "Still that is for the future... For now... You wish war with the Federated Suns?"
"I do."
"Good. We shall have war. But not yet." Theodore held up a hand to stop his son's outburst. "Soon. Not yet. We need allies. We need to strengthen ourselves. Prepare the Dragon's Claws. Even with the new Regular regiments and the 4th Genyosha and 9th Amphigean Light Assault Group we are still outnumbered by the AFFS. They have greater depths than we. So we need not only new troops, but new allies."
Hohiro paused and forced himself to calm. "What do you have in mind father?"
"I will contact the Black Dragons. They have been our enemies. Now I will make them our friends. I will provide them 5 battlemech regiments worth of equipment and allow them to man them with the true believers that make up their ranks. They will be told that if they wish us to return to the old ways, they must prove the validity of their claims. They shall provide 5 shock regiments to our forces." Theodore spoke softly.
"We do not have 5 regiments worth of battlemechs as you describe father... Unless you have been keeping much greater secrets than I suspected." Hohiro stated.
"We do not. Which is where our new friends will come in. You are to travel to Terra itself. You will come to an accommodation with the Word of Blake fanatics there. They will provide us equipment as did their predecessor's within Comstar. Their troops will join us in fighting our mutual enemy House Davion. In return we will divide the Sphere. They can have the FWL and the Capellan Confederation. We shall take The FedSuns and the Lyran Alliance." Theodore spoke almost casually, but noting his sons glare at the mention of the WOB which had humiliated him. "Who do you hate more my son? Victor Davion or the WOB?"
Hohiro swallowed and finally spoke. "Victor."
"Then we shall use the WOB to bring down the Fox's son. In time perhaps the Dragon will burn the WOB as well. Who knows..." Theodore nodded to his son with such a promise.
The heir to the Dragon nodded at that eagerly before speaking. "Yet such an alliance will not be easy, nor will making the Black Dragon's serve us..."
"True. But the path the Dragon takes is rarely one of ease." The Coordinator pointed out.
"I am not sure the Word of Blake will listen to me father. Our... estrangement has become known to some." Hohiro had to admit.
"You will go as my Kanrei. That will convince them." Theodore gifted his son with the title as though it were a trivial thing but watched as his son visibly swelled with pride at the promotion. "There is one final thing my son... A final point of contention that must be removed before you go to Terra."
"What father?" Hohiro spoke quickly. "Name it."
"Your friend Sho-sa Shin Yodama. You are fond of him?" Theodore asked meeting his son's eyes.
"He is my friend father." Hohiro answered softly.
"Then I shall grant him the Honour of Wakizashi out of respect for your closeness with him." Theodore's voice was now filled with steel.
With words failing him Hohiro stared at his father with a plea in his eyes, but saw no respite there and finally nodded. "I will... Inform him of his honouring."
"Good. Understand this son. I bare him no ill will. Yet a samurai may only serve one master. The Coordinator. And as the Coordinator you may have to one day order your friends to their deaths. If you are to become Coordinator you must learn this lesson. I order his death not out of petty vengeance, but to teach you these lessons. Even in death Sho-sa Yodama will serve you well." Theodore nodded a dismissal to his son. "Inform him he has 24 hours to make the arrangements. You may act as his kaishakunin. When he has atoned you will leave at once for Terra."
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You know, I expected to hear Theodore giving his Son wisdom and telling him that the Combine can not afford this vendetta with Victor. And that if he proceeds along this path, the Federated Suns will destroy them - quite possibly with that help of the Lyran Alloance who hate them just as much and that Peter would gleefully look to snap up what they could from behind his brothers skirts.
And that the time has come for the Dragon to refocus its energy elsewhere. To grow as it should and reclaim the worlds from the Clans first. Or something.
Instead all I heard from him was something like this... (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdCy6MGOVfw&app=desktop&persist_app=1”)...
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Well what do you know I guess someone had to pick up the idiot ball afterall. Theodore has just doomed his nation but the DC does have a history for siding with the bad guys and tyrants. Now the WoB has another pasty for their war all because Theodore couldn't take being wrong and a massive failure.
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Of all the dumb acts you've done teddy this takes the cake.
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the DC is about to become the next power to have a population drop.
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5 regiments aren't gonna be enough, are they?
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5 regiments aren't gonna be enough, are they?
Considering how the AFFS has expanded In comparisons to canon by those idiot in charge of the creative direction in canon it will be no where near enough.
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it is 5 more RGTs that is on top of what he will field. think 3039 all over again.
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it is 5 more RGTs that is on top of what he will field. think 3039 all over again.
Except unlike 3039 Victor has the resources, warships, and troop advantage much greater than that war and the will and backing to keep pushing so no bluff on the side of the DC will be enough to in the war.
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Except unlike 3039 Victor has the resources, warships, and troop advantage much greater than that war and the will and backing to keep pushing so no bluff on the side of the DC will be enough to in the war.
Yeah. 5 Battlemech Regiments of questionable troops honestly don't change the strategic calculus. Victors factories are probably making that many every couple of months by now. Plus armor, battle armor, aerospace units and warships and such...
The bigger thing that Teddy and HotHead haven't thought about with this off the wall plan is COMSTAR.
ComStar still own all the HPGs in the Combine, the ComGuards are still stationed in the Combine and they are still working with the DCMS (as far as I know). ROM has been ever so slowly piecing itself back together and dealing with the double agents the WOB have put into it for some time now. The odds are very good that they will find out that Teddy is going shopping to Terra and pretty much tell him then and there either he calls this off, or ComStar are leaving ... and probably spiking their HPGs on the way out as a '****** you' to the Word of Blake.
Yeah, gonna be hilarious watching you try to defend against the Davions when you're under a permanent interdiction isn't it?
I'm personally just hoping that Hohiro shows up at Terra ... about ten minutes after Victors Battleline. And is promptly taken prisoner. Preferably with all the proof that he was heading to Terra to get Mechs to attack the Davions from the WOB on hand...
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Another difference to the War of '39 is the Clans. This time around the Combine is surrounded by enemies who will be more than happy to bite off nice chunks of territory while Teddy is busy getting his a.... kicked by the Suns. And in the process the Combine's strategic depth will get reduced even further.
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In defence of Theodore Kurita, he has had a significant and disabling health condition - that can change a person (look at King Henry VIII - he reportedly changed dramatically after a jousting injury and turned into a tyrant)
Hohiro K is demonstrating why statecraft is an older man's game
The strategic plans of the DC are going to be a struggle as they haven't appreciated the change in the FedSuns and rest of the Inner Sphere
- WoB may or may not supply 5 regiments of 'Mechs but it certainly won't be a surprise because the ComStar/FedSuns/LC alliance will be keeping a close eye on Terra and such moves, if the WoB do gift the equipment it will weaken them pre-invasion of Terra
- the Black Dragon regiments will likely lack cohesion, I suspect the plan is to throw them in as the first wave of assault troops and let them get ground up in place of more loyal troops and to thin the ranks of the Black Dragons
- I am not sure what the plan will be in terms of the Clans but despite their claims to honour they don't seem to have a problem with taking advantage as predators striking at weak rear areas when attention is turned
The question(s) for me will be whether
- the DC change their plans after realising the errors above
- the timing of any DC invasion pre- or post- alliance invasion of Terra
- to what extent the DC's plans are anticipated (or known) in advance by the FedSuns and what response is made
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3069 - March - Naval Update
(Sticking this in as I actually forgot to include it in the General Update for March and didn't want anyone to miss it if they'd already read the Update. Sorry. My fault.)
The High Command were tempted to retain the Fox corvette that finished at Filtvelt's shipyards for Comstar, however after some discussion it was agreed that the Fox I would indeed be sold to Comstar. Not only would they have to upgrade the vessel if they kept it, but they didn't want to further erode their relationship with the communications order at the present time. On top of which the FedSun's could use the cash from the purchase given the war.
Also at Filtvelt the new Avalon yard came online and began construction of the first of these now combat tested cruisers at the yard there. This was in line with the First Princes's directive that no single facility be the only source for vital equipment for the AFFS. While the bulk of Avalon class cruisers under construction remained at Kathil, there were now Avalon yards at Filtvelt and Galax - meaning that even if Kathil was destroyed not only production but also support of these vital ships would continue elsewhere.
At Galax itself the FSS Dothan, FSS Molino, FSS Evansville, FSS Sonia and FSS Elbar all completed construction. The FSS Dothan, FSS Molino, FSS Evansville and FSS Sonia were all assigned to the 2nd Corvette Flotilla which was based in the New Avalon Combat Region to bring that Flotilla up to reinforced status. The FSS Elbar was assigned to the nascent 7th Corvette Flotilla as it's proposed flagship. The new ships that were laid down at Galax - the FSS St Ives, FSS Warlock, FSS Sarna, FSS Corey, FSS Nanking - sent a clear message to anyone wondering as to how committed the AFFS was to integrating the new League March into the Federated Suns. With the formation of a 3rd Division for the 2nd Corvette the Flotilla's 2nd Division slipped away to be refitted at Verde and Novaya Zemlya - 2 corvettes being refitted at each repair slip, with the ships expected to return to service by September.
The FSS Divine also finished at Galax and was immedietly dispatched to join the 2nd Destroyer Squadron. Indeed the FSS Divine would for the time being be the only combat capable ship in that squadron, given the damage inflicted upon the FSS Daring and FSS Dryad during the recent combat. The FSS Dauphin was laid down in the vacant slip.
Kathil also finished the FSS Dastardly which was dispatched to join the 3rd Destroyer Squadron over Robinson to add additional protection to the March capital. The FSS Davidson was laid down in her place. The 3rd Destroyer Squadron was also joined by the FSS Dragon from the shipyards at New Syrtis bringing the 3rd Destroyer Squadron to full strength. The irony of assigning the FSS Dragon to oppose the "Dragon" was not lost on the Federated Sun's Navy. The empty slip was filled with a fresh destroyer - although this one was destined for the Clan Wolf-in-Exile as per previous treaties. The yards at New Syrtis also saw a new slip go online to build the planet's namesake carrier.
The final ship completed in March was the FSS Courageous, the third of the Congress-D II class frigates to be completed. As such it was immedietly assigned to the 1st Patrol Squadron. The Congress-D II's with their new heavy fighter component and decent weapons and armour had impressed many in the recent battles with the Capellan Confederation and some thought was being to given to expanding producing of them as almost "light carriers" while also having them available for their intended roles of long range patrols in the Outback. As such 2 further slips for this versatile design were ordered - the first at June and the second at Panpour.
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If you want a source for good ship names, Wikipedia has a good resource on Royal Navy ship names used
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ship_names_of_the_Royal_Navy (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ship_names_of_the_Royal_Navy)
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If you want a source for good ship names, Wikipedia has a good resource on Royal Navy ship names used
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ship_names_of_the_Royal_Navy (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ship_names_of_the_Royal_Navy)
Already having to use that! Frankly the corvettes being named for planets is a major headache. Keeping track of which have been used! :D
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Huh.
I honestly don't get why relations with ComStar are considered to be strained - or is it more accurate to say 'relations with Dow?' If so the First Circuit really needs to step in and DO something about him sooner rather than later. Crack the whip and re-asset their authority on him. The Federated Suns is ComStars greatest champion, providing pretty much all their military gear, paying them full service for their facilities and has generally aligned strategic goals. Victor has delayed their attack on Terra, sure. Understandably, you know, because he's fighting a war forced upon him! But we're getting close now to being able to get this whole thing back on track.
But if tensions are so high that the High Command almost held back a warship ComStar had brought and paid for?
Well, that would say either A) Victors High Command are going behind his back to make massive strategic policy decisions and are about to be shot for grossly exceeding their authority or B) It might just be time to do away with ComStar alongside the Word of Blake as two sides of the same coin...
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3069 - April - Ceasefire
As April began the AFFS forces on Capella moved up to the outskirts of Memorial City. By now the skies had been swept clean of the remaining Holdfast Guard fighters and the AFFS had total air superiority and were conducting almost constant harassing air attacks upon the defenders lines. However with an iron ring formed around the city the AFFS suddenly stopped. At which time First Prince Victor Davion personally contacted Sang-shao Anson Quinn and offered terms. Pointing out that the CCAF presence on Capella was now hopeless and with the Confederation falling apart behind them there was no hope of relief so their sacrifice was pointless and would only result in needless deaths. Instead of a pointless and futile last stand he offered instead safe passage to the Sian Republic where they could continue to serve the memory of the Confederation and protect it's capital world. Along with them could go any members of the House of Scion's or other government organs which wished to relocate to the Sian Republic. They could take their battlemechs, equipment and dropships. The First Prince gave them 24 hours to make up their mind.
At the end of the 24 hours the Sang-shao very carefully contacted the First Prince and accepted the offer of relocation from the First Prince on behalf of the Holdfast Guard - however the Sang-shao informed the First Prince that Warrior House Ma-Tsu Kai had refused the offer. The First Prince ordered the Holdfast Guard to stand down, while requesting the exact location of the Warrior House.
Less than 2 hours later a massed air strike hit the CCAF line around where the Warrior House was deployed following which the Clan Sun Jaguar forces smashed into them followed by the 1st Arcadians RCT. With no support from their former allies the exemplary tactical abilities of Shiao-zhang Jasmine Liu counted for very little. With her forces hammered from the air and then with Clantech omnimechs and Elemental's swarming in the Warrior House is forced to give ground to try and reform, but with their predecessors ferocity the Jaguars stay on them, giving them no time to reorganise. By the time the Arcadian's come up there's little to do other than mopping up. Khan Nevversan's personal point of Elemental's finishing off the damaged Emperor class battlemech of Jasmine Liu.
Following this last engagement the Holdfast Guard march out from Memorial City and head for the dropships which will take them back to Sian. As a mark of respect for what must have been an incredibly difficult decision to make the 1st Davion Guards themselves form an honour guard for the Holdfast Guards withdrawal.
At the same time the 6th Harloc Cavalry Raiders on Harloc itself, facing reality agree to terms and begin withdrawing. However instead of heading for the Sian Republic they head for the Victoria Commonality. There they took up their old name of the Harloc Raiders and began to rebuild as best they could. There are hindered in this by the almost total lack of military production in the Victoria Commonality.
With Capella in hand the First Prince sends the 15th and 26th Avalon Hussars on a simple mission. The 2 RCT's divides into combat commands built around a battalion of battlemech's each and head for the 6 unclaimed worlds of the Capellan Commonality that remains between the Davion conquests, the Sian Republic and Free Worlds League border. Seeing them correctly as easy pickings the AFFS snap them up and fold them into the still forming Ingersoll PDZ.
The First Prince also sent word to the Sian Republic. He would accept an immediate cease fire at the current situation. However the Republic would have to earn any trust and there would be conditions to any permanent peace treaty. They were to send a delegation where he would meet with them on St Ives.
Even as the First Prince is resolving the Capellan front the rest of the AFFS continue to not only form the League March but also prepare for any further action that might be required on the Draconis front. For instance the 11th FedSun's Dragoons RCT moving from Defiance to Barlow's End. The 11th Avalon Hussar's began their long trek from the border of the Victoria Commonality towards their new garrison posting on Verde. Other units across the FedSun's began moving to their new postings.
The AFFS was however aware that the sudden flow of Kurita units towards the border had slowed and then stopped. Still they weren't going to stop preparing just in case...
In the meantime Duchess Cassandra Allard-Liao eventually losing patience dispatches the 5th FedSun's Dragoons, 1st Kittery Borderer's and 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers to bring Roman's Mounted Fusiliers to heel. However when they jump in they find the unit has fled in the last few days. With nobody on the planet knowing where they got the jumpships to transport them...
The AFFS also completed their inspection of the Necromo shipyards in April. The single half built Feng Huang cruiser was not felt worth completing for the Federated Sun's Navy however they did after some discussions offer it up to Comstar to buy - at the insistence of the First Prince who had heard of the discussions about keeping the Fox corvette that had been built for the ComGuards and had responded angrily to the High Command. He made it clear to them that his policy of supporting the ComGuard's would be honoured. In this he was supported by not only the Princes's Champion but also the Marshal of Armies. Once this cruiser is completed the shipyard was earmarked to produce a more suitable design - some thought was being given to a Black Lion upgraded battlecruiser. Work continued at the Capella and Sarna shipyards to return them to service.
On Victoria the shattered industrial plant of Shengli Arms is sold to the local Capellan March company of Johnston Industries. The company began rebuilding a single Yu Huang/Kai assault battlemech line while the shattered heavy class lines were slowly rebuilt to put an Axman and a Caesar line into production. The Duan Gung line was rebuilt to produce the Sling class light battlemech that it had originally been based upon.
The McCarron's family remaining industrial facilities were also handed over to GM to upgrade and expand. In return for this effective gift the company agreed to expand the armour production facilities to full battlemech production - with the Stealth class battlemech being the first product to be put into production there. Given the massive upgrades this will take the first production line isn't expected until September 3070.
On Bristol the final Fury Command Tank production line going operational. However given how well the first production run had performed in the recent fighting the High Command immedietly request that Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons not only double production on Bristol but also build at least 2 production lines at a new facility. The company agrees to build a satellite facility on nearby Markesan.
With the growing instability on the FedSuns-Combine border Corsara Weapons decide to add a King Crab and Black Watch line to their secondary production plant on Northfield. Just in case their primary plant is damaged.
On Corey the Hollis Incorporated sign a long term contract to produce Battlemasters, Catapults and Huron Warriors for the AFFS. The Huron Warriors in particular will be diverted to help set up the various League March Militia's and will become a signature battlemech for these formations. From there they will slowly spread throughout other March Militia formations in limited numbers and to mercenary formations - although they will be unpopular with front line AFFS formations. The company also receive support to put the Highlander class battlemech back into production.
The First Prince also ordered that the remains of the Sarna Martial Academy be stripped for anything useful and sent to St Ives to help rebuild the shattered St Ives Academy of Martial Sciences. Sarna had proven how unreliable it could be and would not see investment to rebuild the academy, instead the education of the next generation of League March troops would be prioritised for St Ives. At the same time the Capella War College was to be re-branded as the Capellan Military College and returned to active service, although with an entirely new staff and cadet force. Until the St Ives Academy of Martial Sciences is rebuilt much of the cadet force of the CMC will be drawn from St Ives. He also orders an expansion to the Tikonov Martial Academy to also help fill the ranks of the AFFS units in the League March. Plans call for Tikonov to expand to a full battlemech regiments worth of cadets, with St Ives and Capella planned to field 2 regiments of cadets. This will give the League March a larger than normal graduating class of cadets when it's up and running, but given that the St Ives units require huge rebuilding and an almost entirely new League March Militia Brigade formed this is felt necessary.
Within the Draconis Combine the newly appointed Kanrei heads for Terra with a strong escort of Draconis Combine Admiralty warships. The DCS Siriwan and 4 corvettes escorted him on his journey along with the 1st Genyosha. In the meantime his father sends out feelers to the Black Dragons requesting a parley with their leadership. Various guarantees and assurances are given, but this will be a slow process. The Coordinator also sends word to his Nova Cat vassals demanding that their Khan attend him upon Luthien to discuss the coming military campaign. An emissary is also sent to the Clan Snow Raven forces which have been growing in the Outworlds Alliance, requesting that their leadership agree to meet with him to discuss a matter of mutual advantage...
Within the Free World League further shock waves ripple outwards when the LAAF launch a second wave of "peacekeeping" missions along the border. Alula Borealis, Bella I, Colfax, Cascade and Megrez all see Lyran troops arriving in their skies. Local garrisons are requested to stand down as the LAAF troops are coming in order to preserve order and protect them from the chaos that is descending throughout the League, however when a handful of troops resist they are met with brutal firepower from the LAAF troops who have obviously came loaded for bear.
On Tamarind the 1st and 2nd Tamarind Militia are expanded by a third regiment, while calls for assistance are sent out to the other League states. The only offers of assistance come from the 3rd Brigade of the Oriente Fusiliers which are garrisoning Tamarind still and their sister regiment in the 5th Brigade that although preparing to leave Thermopolis to travel back to their homeland agrees instead to hold position and divert the Kallon plant's production on that world to Tamarind to help them.
Tamarind also manages to negotiate with the worlds of Diamantina and Simpson's Desert to join the Duchy. While these worlds offer little to the Duchy their support and membership adds at least some additional resources and manpower while giving a shot in the arm to the flagging morale of the worlds on the new Lyran border. Archon Peter Steiner also began negotiating with the "famed" mercenary force of Camacho's Caballero's for them to return to their Trinity World homes and claim them as a landhold of the Lyran Alliance...
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I wonder how the NC are going to take "the orders" the FS needs to spend some time rebuilding. the old CC might be a good place to build or use Watchmen and Sentry mechs. it would be a quick and cheap way to rebuild. when they are pulled off the front line they can be sent back to the schools for use for the next gen.
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Already having to use that! Frankly the corvettes being named for planets is a major headache. Keeping track of which have been used! :D
https://www.sarna.net/wiki/Category:Federated_Suns_Planets (https://www.sarna.net/wiki/Category:Federated_Suns_Planets)
You could print a list and tick them off?
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Theodore grasping here reminds me of the French in Henry V.
"Go down upon him - you have power enough! -
And in a captive chariot unto Luthien
bring him our prisoner"
;)
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Huh.
I honestly don't get why relations with ComStar are considered to be strained - or is it more accurate to say 'relations with Dow?' If so the First Circuit really needs to step in and DO something about him sooner rather than later. Crack the whip and re-asset their authority on him. The Federated Suns is ComStars greatest champion, providing pretty much all their military gear, paying them full service for their facilities and has generally aligned strategic goals. Victor has delayed their attack on Terra, sure. Understandably, you know, because he's fighting a war forced upon him! But we're getting close now to being able to get this whole thing back on track.
But if tensions are so high that the High Command almost held back a warship ComStar had brought and paid for?
Well, that would say either A) Victors High Command are going behind his back to make massive strategic policy decisions and are about to be shot for grossly exceeding their authority or B) It might just be time to do away with ComStar alongside the Word of Blake as two sides of the same coin...
Relations are strained because during the last ship completion the FedSun kept the warships for their own fleet. That is why Victor put his foot down that they will honor their agreements because while the war and the attack on Tera can be excused as outside forces changing the parameters the keeping of the warships cannot. And High Command didn't almost hold back warships because of high tensions they held them back because they wanted them for themselves and that caused the tension not the other way around.
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The last chapter said that they were considering holding back the Fix for their own use but decided against it because of tensions with ComStar.
Even ignoring the fact that this was a direct attack on Victors authority (as neither his Prince nor Champion who are the only two people with the right to alter such deals between major powers) and several ministers and Generals need to clearly be made examples of with demotions or outright firings, it suggests there was already some tension between ComStar and the Suns.
If so, after all the working together the two states have done, Victor delaying (not aborting but simply delaying) the agreement between both sides is enough to raise tensions to that level?
Honestly, then to hell with ConStar. Victor should just say ******’ and take Terra HIMSELF and note that ComStar is a redundant organisation (as soon as he has his own HPG network capabilities ready of course)...
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I know some of the major manufactures were causing some issues about selling mechs to ComStar… until someone came down on them. looks like the ship builder or someone in the Navy wanted some attention...… in not a good way.
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The last chapter said that they were considering holding back the Fix for their own use but decided against it because of tensions with ComStar.
Even ignoring the fact that this was a direct attack on Victors authority (as neither his Prince nor Champion who are the only two people with the right to alter such deals between major powers) and several ministers and Generals need to clearly be made examples of with demotions or outright firings, it suggests there was already some tension between ComStar and the Suns.
If so, after all the working together the two states have done, Victor delaying (not aborting but simply delaying) the agreement between both sides is enough to raise tensions to that level?
Honestly, then to hell with ConStar. Victor should just say ******’ and take Terra HIMSELF and note that ComStar is a redundant organisation (as soon as he has his own HPG network capabilities ready of course)...
This update was the second time they were thinking about doing that. The High Command already held back ships that were promised to others before this update. That is why there is tension because the FedSuns changed the deal for the warships. ComStar has every right to be warry and angry at the FedSuns because of the past actions.
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Interesting - when did that happen? I don’t recall it occurring before this time?
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Interesting - when did that happen? I don’t recall it occurring before this time?
The 3068 march update the FSS Remagen was meant to be sold to ComStar instead they kept it and promised to sell the next one that went into the old slip which they tried this turn to keep there is also a pair Davion IIIs that are being built that are meant to be sold to the Lyran Alliance and ComStar from the update being built and they are worried that the FedSuns will keep those as well.
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Wow.
Once again, Victor proves that for all his tactical ability, he is as dense as a Gauss Slug when it comes to anything remotely political or strategically political...
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why this hate for Victor? He is making the right choices.
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3069 - May - Integration and Movement
May began with a major shift of AFFS forces from the now quieting Capellan Front to the potential flash point of the Draconis Front. This was possible due to the shattered nature of the CCAF and the various factions that the Confederation had shattered into. As well as reinforcing the frontier a number of AFFS and Davion loyalist mercenary formations were clearly being used to form task forces at key worlds. For instance an incredibly powerful force was being built up in the Addick's PDZ based around Murchison - with the 2nd and 4th Davion Guards RCT's joining the 5th Robinson Rangers RCT on the planet. This concentration of firepower on a single world near the Combine frontier would be dangerous enough for the DCMS but when you consider that the entire Vegan Rangers mercenary brigade was also stationed in the Addick's PDZ and that the Davion Assault Guards RCT was at nearby Helen while the 2nd Crucis Lancers RCT was on Errai amongst other units the threat was clear. The Addick's PDZ was being built up in preparation for either absorbing any DCMS strike or as a potential base for an overwhelming assault into the Combine around Quentin and Deiron. Or potentially into the WOB Protectorate...
As well as the forces at Addick's the AFFS also built up more forces in the Le Blanc PDZ behind the front lines and an even stronger task force built around the First Princes's 1st Davion Guards RCT on Markesan. With the 1st Kathil Uhlans RCT, 1st Revenant Guards RCT and Davion Old Guards RCT joining the 1st Davion Guards there were few analysts on either side of the border who could come to any conclusion that this build up was to be used as an offensive force wherever the First Prince saw the need! The presence of the 1st Albion Training Cadre on Markesan was almost an after thought, although with so many elite warriors available to act as OpForces for the cadets it was an excellent learning environment for them.
While the Draconis March saw an influx of combat hardened formations the various units remaining within the League and Capellan Marches redeployed to secure the new worlds that were now under the FedSun's flag. Reorganising to make sure the new PDZ's were not only protected against foreign aggression but also any pro-Liao uprisings. To continue this however there is an obvious need for native born troops to the March. With only the Tikonov based academy providing any source for mechwarriors the AFFS High Command orders alternate routes looked into until the rebuilt academies to can come online.
Victor Davion takes this opportunity to return to New Avalon with a small formation drawn from the 1st Davion Guards to spend time with his wife as well as to address some issues which have arisen both within the Federated Sun's civilian government but also within the High Command. During these meetings the Princes Champion informs the First Prince that he would like to retire in the near future - and recommends Galen Cox for his replacement. The First Prince with obvious sincerity attempts to talk Ardan Sortek out of retiring, but reluctantly agrees - with the proviso that he stay on in an advisory role for his successor (a request Cox echoes). Sortek agrees, clearly touched that his First Prince thinks so highly of him. Unknown to the Princes's Champion, the First Prince is already considering him for at least 2 more honours at his retirement.
At the same time the industrial integration of the new worlds continued apace. Large scale deployments of "Davion" standard battlemechs, omnimechs, tanks and aerospace fighters were ordered shipped to the new League March for instance. Atlas's, Templar-O's, Thanatos-O's, Caesers, Argus-O's, Dervish-O, Centurions, Enforcers, Valkyries, Javelin-O's and others were all shipped in by the company rather than by the lance. Indeed one singular order was given to Robinson Standard BattleWorks for roughly 5 regiments worth of Sentry and Watchman class battlemechs to begin outfitting the planned League March Militia's as well as another regiment of Battle Hawks. In itself this was the single biggest contract ever awarded to the Robinson based firm. Given that the existing production lines were already busy producing battlemech's for the existing 3 Marches's Militias and training units as well as various planetary militias Duke James Sandoval announced on the 23rd of May that this order would be met by the construction of an entirely new factory complex. Uniquely this facility would not be based within his own March but instead would be built upon the world of Achernar in conjunction with Achernar Battlemechs. Robinson would put up the funds and the Sentry, Watchman and Battle Hawk designs (with an optional sub-contract to add the Black Knight heavy battlemech design) while Achernar would put up much of the heavy industry while also supplying their Enforcer III battlemech design as well as their Cavalier and Infiltrator II battle armour licenses (with a similar optional subcontract to add the Dervish-O or Argus-O omnimech to the facility). This new facility is intended to produce not only battlemech's which will give the League March Militia's a more Davion flavour but also provide a massive sign of the Federated Sun's investment in the new March.
In a similar attempt to press for further integration the aerospace company Tengo Aerospace is encouraged to seek a license to produce the Sabre class aerospace fighter from Jalastar Aerospace on Panpour to replace the poorly thought of Thrush and Cheetah at their Sarna and St Ives plants. While Jalastar is somewhat loathe to help a competitor the recent issues involving Panpour and veiled references to investigations are enough to have them come around quickly. As well as the appeals to not only their patriotism but also their bank balances with hefty licensing fees. The retooling is expected to be completed between September and August and will convert 4 existing lines to Sabre production at Sarna and an additional 3 at St Ives.
Mujika Aerospace's board of directors, reading the writing on the wall, decide to "jump before they are pushed". Instead of waiting for AFFS demands for them to retool from their existing lines they instead negotiate a quick merger with Wangker Aerospace. Obtaining a 20% share in the combined company and assurances that within the League March the company will trade as Mujika-Wangker Aerospace the company acquire access overnight to some of the most highly sought after aerospace designs within the Federated Suns. Their facility on St Ives sees major investments almost overnight in upgrading and expanding their production facilities to produce the "royal" variant of the Tomahawk class aerospace fighter, while their Capella based facility not only see's it's 2 Transit lines being retooled to produce the Corsair fighter a third line begins construction.
One area where Capellan production continues at full pace in the new League March is that of stealth armoured battlemechs. Every production line for designs incorporating stealth armour see's large scale orders made. Rashpur-Owens Shipyards also see large scale orders placed for dropships, particularly for the Achilles, Avenger and Excalibur class vessels. It goes without saying that jumpship production is also unaffected, indeed Monolith production increases slightly.
The CEO's of Earthwerks on Tikonov are also encouraged to take full control of the Earthwerk's facilities on Ares, Grand Base and Victoria and to come up with a comprehensive integration plan to help integrate these factories into the wider FedSun's and increase their production. From being a marginalised company with facilities on only a single world the company is now one of the major players within the Federated Sun's defence industries, and is keen to capitalise on the possibilities this brings.
New Independence Weaponry attempts during May to buy out Tao Mechworks on Styk, but with the backing of the new Duchess of St Ives the company survives the takeover attempt. A few days later they sign a long term contract to provide Battlemasters, Victors and Crusaders to the St Ives Lancers.
On Brockton the Maltex Corporation has their Highlander production line go operational. The first entire company of the new battlemechs are slated to help upgrade the 1st Brockton Borderer's regiment, giving them a huge boost in firepower and capabilities.
Within the Draconis Combine the Coordinator continues to work on securing the support he needs. While Clan Nova Cat informs him that their Khans will immedietly head for Luthien, the Ravens are far more interested in securing themselves within the Outworld Alliance. Almost daily it seems more jumpships and dropships are arriving in the small periphery nation, with reports from the few SLDF troops in the Homeworlds indicating some sort of civil war breaking out. It's obvious to everyone that the Snow Ravens are attempting to carve a new home for themselves within the Alliance. Given the lack of interest however to his invitation, the Coordinator decides to make use of this information and informs the Snow Ravens that if they come to Luthien to discuss his deal he will offer them 3 months of being able to use his realms jumpstations and planets for their ships to move through - cutting months of the journey time to the Outworlds. The Black Dragon Society however is continuing to demand more and more assurances of safe conduct before agreeing to meet with the Coordinator.
The Tikonov Free Province within the Free Worlds League, it's forces wiped out over Tikonov begins to attempt to rebuild their shattered military by reforming a Tikonov Marshals regiment. The hope that this prestigious named formation will attract recruits is unfortunately in vain, as with the total defeat the Tikonov Republican Guard units suffered the provinces's military is far from well regarded by the natives...
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the DC might have gotten better traction with the SR if he had offered supplies, cargo dropships, a few star lords to carry them until the cargos were used up or moved into other SR ships.
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Well work is being put into the new march. So far so good but things are just starting. What other warships were still around in the shipyards and captured? Sell them all to ComStar to settle relations. Victor might wait on hitting Baxter to have the government-in-exile build up to be apart of the attack.
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why this hate for Victor? He is making the right choices.
If you mean his prior actions? I've gone into that before. If you mean this one?
Holding back a Warship ComStar had brought and paid for and telling them to wait for the next one (and then almost doing it AGAIN) for no clearly rational strategic reason is not 'the right choice'. Its stupid to such a mind blowing level that it's hard to believe. ComStar has poured obscene money into the Federated Suns military industrial complex - to the point of actually PAYING for additional Fox shipyards to build their warships and have increasingly become major allies to the Federated Suns, despite their nominally neutral position in the Inner Sphere. To the point that they are in fact joint owners of huge chunks of the Federated Suns military-industrial complex and financing Davions own buildup. The warship production will be something of an iron clad agreement, with a clear schedule for construction and delivery agreed for and paid in full.
Suddenly declaring for no good reason (seriously, it's not like they had any kind of critical strategic need for the Fox!) that you're holding back the warship and giving them the next one? That's just screwing an ally in bad faith, who had only acted in good faith and paid their bills in full and on time.
I mean, what is Victor going to do if ComStar reach out to Teddy and convince him to break off talks with the Word of Blake? And instead, ComStar will start a new agreement with him for new joint Mech production lines, shipyards and so on? Shifting funding out of the Federated Suns and making it clear they are neutral in any Combine/Suns conflict but are simply hedging their bets? Or if they wanted a less raw rebuke, engaging with Peter and sucking money out of the Suns into the Alliance?
I honestly wouldn't blame them if Victor held back one warship and his people almost held back the next one...
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3069 - June - Military Education
During the month of June the First Prince continued to catch up with not only is wife but also with the responsibilities of is office. Eager to make sure that no further rifts developed between his own government and Comstar he spent a great deal of time with the Precentor New Avalon, discussing what further steps he could take to support the ComGuard's within his realm and in their wider fight with the WOB. After some discussions he agreed to further joint industrial ventures with Comstar to help support the ComGuards. In the short term this allowed the First Prince to expand his industrial base with Comstar footing large portions of the bill - which would continue to expand his realms economy and employment - and in the long term bring in much needed tax revenues on the sales themselves. Plans were discussed about a new Davion-Com facility perhaps to be built at Edwards within the Crucis March.
At the same time the First Prince met with Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion and Field Marshal Angela Kouranth and the newly appointed League March representative to the High Command - the freshly minted Marshal Marko Rubinsky, formerly of Rubinsky's Light Horse (now the 3rd St Ives Lancers under his son's command who was also the fiancee of the Duchess of St Ives) regarding the major issues with military education within the new March. Additional funds were allocated to not only rebuild the military academies on St Ives and Capella but also expand Tikonov's Martial Academy, but even if these projects were completed by the end of the year the new classes would be years away from filtering into the front line formations. As such it was agreed that a number of "Temporary Training Battalions" would be formed as a more basic source of raw recruits. These would be formed up as LCT's in a similar model to the existing Training Battalions and would eventually provide a small trickle of recruits which would primarily be used to bring damaged units back up to strength but also provide a core for the new League March Militias. With this later goal in mind the First Prince ordered that Temporary Training Battalions be formed on Styk, Corey, Menkib, Truth, Capella, Ingersoll, Hexare and St Ives largely using either local production or captured CCAF equipment - for instance the large numbers if Vindicators both still being produced on Capella and also captured from various CCAF units would be pressed into service in these formations. At the same time 2 permanent Training Battalions would be ordered formed at Jasmine and Preston to provide the basis for future Borderer units on those worlds within the League March.
Given these formations, it was only a matter of days until at Duke Hasek's request the First Prince also ordered that as well as the 2 permanent Training Battalions within the League March 2 further formations be created within the Capellan March. These were to be formed at Claxton and Hurik. The First Prince also began to jointly fund the rebuilding and reopening of the former Victoria Academy of Arms and Technology as the new Victoria Military College. In a quite message to Duke Sandoval the First Prince also promised that the Draconis March would also be considered for further Training Battalions and their Borderer successors.
While the permanent Training Battalion's would continue to provide a source of mechwarriors and conventional forces for the formation and maintenance of Borderer units in key systems the temporary training units were supposed to feed directly into the setting up of the League March Militias along with what academy graduates could be found. Indeed the temporary formations were intended once the March Miltia's reached a certain level to simply be folded into them as almost their final battalion. Of course the High Command also knew that the recruits provided could also be siphoned off in small numbers to help rebuild damaged units. The FedSun's Dragoons Brigade for instance had something of a history of doing this with the 3rd FedSun's Dragoons now having a large continent of graduates of the 1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion. It was perhaps not coincidence that the 1st, 3rd,7th and 8th FedSun's Dragoons all happened to be stationed on planets with newly forming either permanent or temporary Training Battalions. Although the 3rd was at least currently at full strength, the others were all badly in need of replacement personal.
Marshal Nebuchadnezzar Talles of the Ceti Hussars was also approached by the First Prince during this month regarding a potential expansion of his brigade. At the end of the year the cadets of the 1st and 2nd Lexington Military Academy Light Combat Team's would be graduating from their respective cadres. While at least 3 companies of these young mechwarriors were earmarked already for the battered Lexington Combat Guard units which had provided such excellent servicing in the recent Capellan conflict, the First Prince was prepared to earmark the other 5 companies of cadets for the formation of a new Ceti Hussars RCT. Or at least the beginnings of one. Given the integrated nature of the LCT's that made up the Lexington cadres as well as the combined arms tactics taught at the Lexington Military Academy Marshal Talles and Prince Davion agreed they would make ideal candidates for a potential 4th Ceti Hussars. He agreed to provide a small cadre from his existing 3 units, with those troops and officers replaced by cadets, and to use this cadre and the bulk of the cadets to form the 4th Ceti Hussars RCT.
The First Prince also meets with the Free Worlds League (who has been driven almost to schizophrenia by having conflicting instructions sent to him by no less than 4 parliament's and 3 Captain-Generals in the last few months) to express his extreme dissatisfaction with the rebuilding of the Tikonov Province's military. Alongside him during this meeting is his wife. The ambassador can do little more than express platitudes.
Fleet Admiral Buchwald spent the month assigning the various new warships completing across the FedSun's to the various flotilla's and squadrons of the Fleet. The FSS Andro, FSS Montcoal, FSS New Rhodes III, FSS Jesup and FSS Hoonaar were all assigned to the 7th Corvette Flotilla, completing it's 1st Division and allowing it to form an under strength 2nd Division of ships. While the FFS Dale alongside the FSS Dagon were assigned to the 1st Carrier Battle Group to protect the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion. The FSS Shensi, FSS Mira, FSS Sauk City, FSS Vicente and FSS Hurik were laid down at Galax while the FSS Dayton was laid down at Filtvelt and the FSS Denver was laid down at New Syrtis.
At the same time the 4th Cruiser Squadron was completed with the additions of the FSS Etien Davion, FSS Marie Davion and FSS William Davion. This brought all 4 Cruiser Squadrons up to full strength with the Federated Sun's now numbered 16 Avalon class cruisers on it's rolls.
The FSS Cahill completed at Panpour and brought the 1st Patrol Squadron to full strength. Although the FSS Churchill remained detached for repairs.
At June the Challenge Systems shipyards completed their battleship construction facility and immedietly began work on laying down the FSS Benbow. The FSS Benbow was to be an Iron Duke class battleship. At Kathil the FSS Benbow's sister ship the FSS Emperor of India was laid down in the newly completed slip there.
At the same time as these ships entered service the 4 Fox class corvettes of the 4th Corvette Flotilla's 2nd Division completed their refits to the II standard. They were replaced in the repair slips at Edwards by the damaged corvettes of the 1st Corvette Flotilla. While the public repair slips began repairing and upgrading these warships, the newly commissioned repair slip at dead Arcadia began repairing the FSS Dryad and FSS Churchill. While at Panpour the FSS Joseph Davion completed repairs and it's place was taken by the FSS Daring. The FSS Daring and FSS Churchill are expected to return to service by December, but the FSS Dryad's damage is so extensive that it will be March 3070 before it's repairs are completed.
The inspection of the heavily damaged Capella Shipyards are finally completed in June. Of the 2 cruiser slips and 6 corvette slips only a single cruiser slip and 2 corvette slips are considered worth repairing - often from cannibalising the more damaged slips that are deemed beyond repair. Within the repairable slips there are a cruiser and 2 corvettes that can be completed with additional work - although their intended completion time had been for this month this has been hopelessly superseded by events. Quitely the AFFS diverts funds to complete all 3 ships, while scavenging what they can from the other damaged hulks within the devastated shipyards. The First Prince in his discussions offers both Feng Huang class cruisers (1 at Necromo and 1 at Capella) for sale to the ComGuards at a discounted price - while making no mention of the Sian class corvettes... Which are identical to the Draconis Combine Inazuma class corvettes.
At Demeter Lycomb-Davion with some prompting from the First Prince (who is a major shareholder) announces that they will be building 3 Stuka aerospace fighter lines at their rebuild factory there. The intent is clear to provide a nearby source of the versatile assault fighter for the newly forming wings of the League March next door. Further consideration is being given to add a Huscarl-O and Hammerhead line.
At the new SunCorp facilities within the League March there is a number of industrial actions. Small scale sabotage and strikes break out as workers protest against the takeover of the former StarCorp facilities. MIIO move in and begin to make investigations, suspicious of how well timed these actions are. Plans to add lines of omnimechs are placed on temporary hold.
Hildco Interplanetary announce a license transfer between themselves and Kallon Industries. They are transferring a license for the ever popular Pillager class assault mech (along with an unspecified c-bill sum) to Kallon in return for a license to produce the Templar-O on St Ives. Behind the scenes this deal has largely been orchestrated by the government of the Federated Sun's who wish to see League March companies producing Davion favourite battlemechs. In what is no doubt a totally unrelated announcement Kallon also announce shortly after this that with a generous loan from the FedSun's Government they will be expanding their Nanking factories to produce Enforcer III and Perpetrator's.
In the Free Worlds League itself more and more revolts are breaking out across the former Andurien Duchy. Reprisals are often heavy handed and brutal which only leads to more unrest. Worse a pro-Sian revolt breaks out on Pella II. Tamarind contacts the Abbey District and makes a plea for support. They also make a large order with Kendall based Kali Yama Alphard Trading Corporation for nearly 2 battalions of their heavy battlemechs to augment their new forces along with an order for twice that number of tanks from Brooks Inc's facility on the same planet.
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Just a comment. You consistently use possessive apostrophes where they are not warranted, typically when you only needed to use a simple plural form. One example being the title of this thread, another being in the 4th paragraph of the post above.
I would encourage you to correct this, as to a bibliophile like myself it is rather like fingernails on chalkboard that greatly detracts from the quality of the rest of your work. Just my .02.
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Just a comment. You consistently use possessive apostrophes where they are not warranted, typically when you only needed to use a simple plural form. One example being the title of this thread, another being in the 4th paragraph of the post above.
I would encourage you to correct this, as to a bibliophile like myself it is rather like fingernails on chalkboard that greatly detracts from the quality of the rest of your work. Just my .02.
Sorry, will try and fix this. usually typing pretty fast with a half dozen sourcebooks around me between doing my paperwork for the day job. So totally get that my grammar and punctuation isn't always up to the best standard. I'll try and fix it.
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A big thing that hasn't been mentioned, I wonder how the transfer of HPG operations (and funds for that matter) from the Word of Blake to ComStar has been going through all this chaos?
You'd think that the WOB would have flatly refused to abandon their HPGs to 'Heretics' (at least not without disabling them or something) but the sheer scale and speed of Victors assault and frankly limited WOB forces at the HPGs thanks to concentrating the Milita into big units...
Be interesting to see how this is going....
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I bet Comstar need to do a lot of repairs - that takes time and cost money - in all the HPG's until now controlled by WoB.
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Of course, that would lead to an economic implosion for the League March as HPG service is shut down across the whole March. Which would be a tiny problem for everyone living there and their defenders. A defecto interdiction is no small thing for a new and fragile state.
ComStar must have built HPG parts factories somewhere (both here and in canon) though as otherwise the network would have started falling into disrepair before even the Jhiad. So perhaps it’s not a problem.
The sudden crash in revenue OTOH might get the Word of Blake’s attention. The Confederation was the last major intact state to recognise them. I’d be stunned if the very anti-WOB factions in the FWL haven’t invited ComStar back in and kicked the WOB out.
You might see the Word more willing to work with the Combine as a result ... or perhaps they might insist on throwing out ComStar and being invited in?
Also; nice and shrewd move offering ComStar the two unfinished Capellan Cruisers. I’d only charge them for the work remaining - or even offer for ComStar to pick them up and take them to a yard ship to finish themselves. So you can free up the yards for upgrades and retrofits. All but giving away two Cruisers (albeit cruisers that need to be completed) is an excellent way to smooth ruffled feathers...
Although it’s bewildering that ComStar are so willing to throw money at Victor like they are again ???
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A big thing that hasn't been mentioned, I wonder how the transfer of HPG operations (and funds for that matter) from the Word of Blake to ComStar has been going through all this chaos?
You'd think that the WOB would have flatly refused to abandon their HPGs to 'Heretics' (at least not without disabling them or something) but the sheer scale and speed of Victors assault and frankly limited WOB forces at the HPGs thanks to concentrating the Milita into big units...
Be interesting to see how this is going....
Considering MIIO and DMI probably have a good idea of what help they have given to the WoB and the movement by the Dracs towards Terra he may given them the same ultimatium he gave the CC.
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It seems you may have overlooked the Lao Hu and Jinggau class heavy mechs. Presuming you don't have plans for them, I suggest restarting production ASAP with the intent of supplying the new March Militias and the rebuilding St Ives Lancers with capable cavalry mechs but also guarantee a percentage of the production runs to the Sun Jaguars as a reward for thier services, since the "up close and personal" and aggressive fighting capabilities of these two designs would appeal to the Jaguars preferred tactical doctrine. After some some appropriate name changes of course.
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Speaking of the Sun Jaugars, are they capable of working on the HPGs?
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It seems you may have overlooked the Lao Hu and Jinggau class heavy mechs. Presuming you don't have plans for them, I suggest restarting production ASAP with the intent of supplying the new March Militias and the rebuilding St Ives Lancers with capable cavalry mechs but also guarantee a percentage of the production runs to the Sun Jaguars as a reward for thier services, since the "up close and personal" and aggressive fighting capabilities of these two designs would appeal to the Jaguars preferred tactical doctrine. After some some appropriate name changes of course.
The Shengli lines that produced them have been totally trashed in the fighting on Victoria. They are being rebuilt as Caeser and Axman lines by Johnston.
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3069 - July - Peace
Leaving New Avalon the First Prince was rushed by a command link to St Ives to meet with the representatives of the new "Sian Republic" to hopefully be able to create a peace. To say that the balance of power strongly favoured the First Prince was an understatement. The Republic consisted of merely 8 worlds and a handful of battlemech regiments most of which were under strength. For such a small power they did have a huge naval asset in the form of the SRS Franco Martel, a Feng Huang class cruiser, but that was about their only major asset. Worse it was almost mandatory that the huge cruiser remain at Sian as a number of other former Capellan warships were still in existence and had presumably sworn themselves to the Andurien and Victoria Commonalities.
An almost pro-forma request that several of the worlds nearest Sian be allowed to take part in referendums as to joining the Republic rather than being absorbed into the Federated Sun's was shut down with an equally pro-forma response of "no". Thereafter both parties settled down to actually craft a permanent peace treaty. While these discussions wouldn't end until August the basics were swiftly hammered out. There would be no massive reparations placed upon the Republic by the Federated Suns, although they would have to make at least some reparations towards the rebuilding of the city of Tian-tan, mostly in the form of raw materials and construction type industrial mech's. When the Republic's negotiators pointed out that Sian had no facility to build these mech's it was pointed out that they could buy a license for the Chaffee Light Industrial Mech or a similar such mech and then retool some light battlemech lines to produce it. Perhaps the Wasp or Stinger lines at the Hellespont Industrial plant on Sian for instance. The intent was clear - not only would these reparations help rebuild St Ives it would also have the effect of reducing the Republic's military output.
No limit was placed upon the military buildup of the Republic, given it's hostile neighbours that would have been absurd, but it was pointed out that if any of their regiment's "strayed" across the border and this was proven the Federated Suns would not be forgiving. The unit in question would be expected to be disbanded and it's entire equipment handed over to the AFFS along with every member who took part in the incursion to be tried as pirates. If the Republic refused to do this, then the AFFS would destroy the unit itself - and annex the world it was based upon. This was explained as non-optional. The Republic would not be allowed to engage in raids and attempts to undermine the new League March. Any attempt to do so would be met with brutal and immediate repercussions. The Republic was also forbidden from any military alliances or military sales to any other nation without the approval of the First Prince. If they joined the (now almost defunct) Second Star League their vote was to be either withheld/abstained or placed at the disposal of the First Prince. They were not to vote against his wishes - although they could just not vote by abstaining.
The Sian Republic was also forced to open up all remaining records from the Capellan Confederation era to the AFFS's military intelligence officers while simultaneously accepting the "guilt" of their former parent state in starting this war. They were allowed to include a clause that specifically disavowed this guilt moving forward for the Republic - but they had to admit the Confederation had caused this war. Given that their new government had already totally denounced the "mad Liaos" in no uncertain terms this wasn't as major an issue as it might have been.
During these discussions the First Prince made a point of including Duchess Cassandra Allard-Liao, who he had agreed with beforehand, would press for harsher terms and demands than would be offered by the First Prince. While the playing of good cop/bad cop was an ancient tactic, this was because it was effective.
One final element of the negotiations was kept secret. The First Prince agreed to look the other way if the Republic launched attacks on either of the other 2 successor states to the Confederation and to have his regiments keep up pressure upon them to help the Republic. While he didn't want the Republic to grow too strong, he found them easily the most reasonable of the 3 states to deal with. Left unspoken was the fact that this clandestine support might change if the Republic took things too far.
No formal peace treaties will be signed between the FedSun's and the Victoria Commonality or the Andurien Commonality, but ceasefires will go into formal effect.
Even as these meetings are taking place the First Prince also meets with his new March Lady and discusses further plans for the League March. In recognition for Wei's attempt to hold back the CCAF and remain part of the FedCom (particularly those of the "servitor" class) the 2 leaders agreed to support a new factory complex there. Given the desire to standardise the equipment of the League March with the rest of the Federated Sun's it was agreed that the First Prince would help fund the construction of a facility from Jalastar Aerospace to build Centurion battlemechs, Javelin-O omnimechs and Sparrowhawk aerospace fighters. While the First Prince would provide funding, the Duchess of St Ives would help the construction with generous tax breaks for local Wei based firms to help in the construction and longer term tax breaks for her people investing in the project. Construction was provisionally planned to start in September.
The First Prince also discusses with the Duchess the possibility of returning Hildco Interplanetary to the jumpship "game". Although this would be a longer term project. The Duchess is very keen for this project to be considered and pushes hard for it.
While the First Prince is on St Ives his wife meets with the Free Worlds League ambassador again. In a frank discussion she explains that the FedSun's will not tolerate a threat on their border from the Free Tikonov Province of the League and in the strongest possible terms suggests he explain to his masters (whoever they are) back in the League that the Free Tikonov's attempt to rebuild a military (when their previous one was destroyed invading the Suns) will not be tolerated. She points out this is the last warning the FedSun's will give the League on this matter. The ambassador assures her he will pass this warning onto the Free Worlds League.
At Firgrove the Firgrove Consortium see's it's Reiver aerospace fighter line go operational. With the continued steady sales of the Ahab and the frankly higher than expected sales of the Vulcan aerospace fighter the company gets loans from a number of banks to add a second Vulcan line which is due to be completed by November 3070.
Jalastar finishes their last Sparrowhawk line on the planet of Baxley this month. This now brings their production on the planet up to 2 Sparrowhawk lines and a Javelin-O, making it one of their smaller facilities. However any plans to expand the facility are shelved when word comes in about the the First Prince's plan to add a facility on Wei.
The flagship New Independence Weaponry plant on Kestrel see's it's new Zeus class assault battlemech line go operational this month. This means there are now 7 assault class lines in operation along with 2 smaller heavy lines making it one of the most prolific suppliers of assault battlemech's in the FedSuns. Plans are put in place to add a Battlemaster line in the next year.
On the Clan Sun Jaguar world of Valois their Jaguar Industries plant see's the first omnimech line go operational on the 19th July. The Mist Lynx class omnimech might not be one of the larger flashier Clantech omnimechs produced in the past on Huntress but it is a massive leap forward in military production for the Sun Jaguars. The Clan begins preparing to add another omnimech facility, with almost universal agreement that they will build upon their current production achievements by adding a Warhawk class line. The Khan makes a point of informing the First Prince that as soon as her own light omnimech needs are filled the Mist Lynx will be offered for sale to the AFFS. A number will soon show up in the Davion Light Guards for instance.
In the Free Worlds League the Lyran "peacekeepers" expand their current scope with the 1st Skye Jaegers, 4th Skye Rangers RCT and 3rd Hesperus Guards RCT moving into the Border Protectorate and the planet of Oliver. For the first time however they are met with stiff resistance from FWLM troops. On Oliver the 6th Free Worlds League Legionnairres put up a fierce fight against the 4th Skye Rangers before finally being driven of planet - leaving the mauled Rangers to take possession of the Brigadier and Quickscell plants there. However on Zosma the 1st Skye Jaegers are attacked while still landing by the returned Steel Guard. Defending their homes the Steel Guard smash the Jaeger's LZ and destroy over a battalion of troops before the Jaegers are forced to withdraw. Similarly on Alula Australis the Iron Guard and the still green Adamantine Guard attack the equally green 3rd Hesperus Guard RCT. The Lyran unit finds itself soon engaged in a large scale "brawl" with the Adamantine Guard when the more experienced Iron Guard shifts and hits them in the flank. After a 3 day battle the Hesperus Guard manages to negotiate a ceasefire to allow it to retreat off world - leaving almost half it's equipment behind on the battlefield, much of it is then salvaged by the Border Guard units to make up their losses.
These reverses call into question the Archon's plan to expand the "peacekeeping" operations his troops have been conducting into the Terran Corridor region. However the seizure of the important industrial world of Oliver quietens most of these questions - although the planet remains isolated due to the fierce defence of the Border Guard. This action will have another unforeseen repercussion in the coming months...
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And that is why Peter was an idiot for trying to do the "peacekeeping" thing. Now he actually has to fight people and it becomes obvious that the whole operation was nothing more than a land grab same as the Liao's invasion of the FWL. That puts him in the company of madmen which considering the discontent in the LA about choosing the wrong brother is something he cannot afford. If he wants to salvage this he needs to stop anymore attempts at expansion and refocus his energy and resources into building up his current holdings. He sees the major benefits Victor has gained from doing just that and Peter has a strong Industrial base and plenty of worlds that could make use of the build up. He should at the very least be increasing his warship production along with Dropship and Jumpship production.
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And that is why Peter was an idiot for trying to do the "peacekeeping" thing. Now he actually has to fight people and it becomes obvious that the whole operation was nothing more than a land grab same as the Liao's invasion of the FWL. That puts him in the company of madmen which considering the discontent in the LA about choosing the wrong brother is something he cannot afford. If he wants to salvage this he needs to stop anymore attempts at expansion and refocus his energy and resources into building up his current holdings. He sees the major benefits Victor has gained from doing just that and Peter has a strong Industrial base and plenty of worlds that could make use of the build up. He should at the very least be increasing his warship production along with Dropship and Jumpship production.
I agree he should be building back up his realm after the damage the clans caused and that mad Kat did to the LA and getting ready for the fight against the Clans and the WoB. He should also be trying to encourage the same growth as Victor did as you said especially if you look at how much industry he already has he is guilty of resting on his laurels.
Also why would anyone want to take a quickcell factory? Their stuff is pretty poor quality.
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I agree he should be building back up his realm after the damage the clans caused and that mad Kat did to the LA and getting ready for the fight against the Clans and the WoB. He should also be trying to encourage the same growth as Victor did as you said especially if you look at how much industry he already has he is guilty of resting on his laurels.
Also why would anyone want to take a quickcell factory? Their stuff is pretty poor quality.
Steal the factory from them and install a new owner to get things up to standard maybe? Or just do what Victor is doing and bitchslap them into quality control standards or else they get ruined.
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it was not just Brigadier Corp old factory (dropships and mechs?)
Quickscell had Condor, LRM Carrier, SRM carriers, Scorpion light tank. that would help with rebuilding
and something called Aerofighter unlimited. so maybe two old fighter lines.
All of this could help LC
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If Peters intention was to try and show he is as much Hanse's Son as Victor, he's really failed badly here.
I mean, Victor clearly didn't WANT war, but was goaded into it by Sun Tzu and his sister pushing One Time Too Many. And when he went to war, he went to war. He has smashed into the Capellan Confederation like his dad, with the cloak of righteousness and made no pretenses about the fact that his goal was to destroy the Capellan Confederation forever as a great power. A power with a history as long as my arm of being a brutal police state getting away with war crimes and being just as ruthless in defense.
Victor however took up the gauntlet and shoved it down Sun Tzu's throat, finishing the job his Father stated in a ruthless, brilliant, brutal campaign.
Peter?
Peter took advantage of the FWL in the middle of a civil war, didn't even have the balls to face up to the fact he is simply engaging in conquest for the sake of conquest by picking on a weak, easy target. And even THEN he can't do it anywhere near as well as Victor can! Took a few weak border worlds and now is starting to face increasingly stiff resistance (and might just start to reunite the FWL, external threats tend to do that!). He has done a small insult to the FWL as a whole by taking a cheap shot at them which means that they'll not forget this. It hasn't materially changed things enough to really be worth the pretty heavy deterioration in the longer term its going to cause. And Peter is just snapping up undefended and minimally defended worlds with massive force under the incredibly transparent label of 'peacekeeping' on worlds that were perfectly peaceful, then finally recoiling when he runs into a *real* fight...
It is not going to do ANYTHING for his internal image compared to Victor really.
I mean anyone who had a brain would have seen that the FWLs internal chaos was the PERFECT time to in fact draw down forces on that border and, after hiring every Mercenary unit you can and sweet talking Khan Kell around, going after the Jade Falcons to try and snap them back from another dozen worlds, focus on destroying as many of their premier units as you could to reduce them as a threat. A REAL fight against a REAL enemy who is squatting on an awful lot of Lyran worlds. Peter could have been The Falcon Slayer!
Or for a less ambitious attack, focused on a single deep strike raid against Clan Wolf; go after Katherine in a massive full scale attack on Tamar. Hit it with over a dozen crack RCTs with warship support from deep space. Kill Ward, capture Katherine, smash the hell out of Alpha Galaxy (with kills on as many of the Clan Council Bloodnamed as possible) then pull back. You can even announce that as Vlad publicly repudiated the Great Refusal, Peter see's absoloutly no reason not to kick the dogs around now...
Hell he could have even just been classic Lyran Military-Industrial Peter and finally snapped out of his idleness and start to copy Victor. Start a massive industrial buildup while everyone else was busy. New shipyards for warships, new ground forces factories, new training cycles for the LAAF so that he has the tools needed when an opportunity came up.
Instead he's 'Vulture Peter' ....
Then again, given Victors (predictable) failures at the negotiating table this time around once again, you know throwing stones in glass houses and all that :p
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The thing is if he had just kept his forces on the first targets from the "peacekeeping" actions he very well could have played it off as just that. Instead, he kept pushing on that front and has gotten slapped down for it. Getting beaten at that as well by green forces at weak border worlds. Peter needs to get off his ass and start actually paying attention if this was his plan he needs to refocus if this was a move by the Dukes or Nobles he needs to come down hard to reassert his position. The LA needs to start building more forces again they are still one of the riches realms in the Inner Sphere and can easily do it. They have just as much information as the FedSuns that they can start building new ships both their current classes and like the FedSuns upgraded Lyran designs from the past. Plus the Clan ships they have would allow them to build updated versions of those as well.
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3069 - August - Shiva
After having brought the Sian Republic-Federated Sun's Peace Treaty to it's final points the First Prince deputised the new March Lady of the League March to sign the treaty on his behalf and left St Ives. Again using a command chain of jumpships and with warships strategically placed along the route to ensure his safety he travelled quickly to first New Syrtis and then on to Islamabad. At New Syrtis he met with Duke Hasek and discussed with him briefly the Duke's plans for improving the defences of his March. Prince Victor agreed to almost all of the proposals - namely the expansion of the independent command of the 1st New Syrtis Hussars LCT to be the basis for a new brigade of LCT class units native to the Capellan March and the 2 planned new Borderer regiment's at Preston and Claxton and promised support for these commands. He also backed plans to rebuild and reopen the destroyed Capellan military academy on Victoria - agreeing with the Duke that the academy should be named simply the Victory Academy.
Leaving New Syrtis the First Prince then moved on to Islamabad where he was greeted with a series of parades by both the Islamabad CrMM and 3rd Avalon Hussars RCT. Also present were elements of the 2nd Avalon Hussars RCT as well as the 1st Davion Guards who were escorting the First Prince. Once the parades had finally came to a conclusion the First Prince began his meetings with the commanding officers of the 3 units which were garrisoning the Islamabad Combat Region as well as a number of civilian leaders. He made 2 proposal's to them. The first was that the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussars RCT's would detach a third of their strength to form the basis of 2 new Avalon Borderer LCT which would take up their garrison postings allowing the Hussar's to be freed up for other deployments. This move was met with a great deal of hostility particularly from the civilian leadership. They had helped to form the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussars on the specific understanding that they would be retained to garrison the Combat Region after all.
The First Prince acknowledged this, but pointed out that the main threat to the region - the Taurian Concordant - had been largely dealt with. Retaining 2 entire front line RCT's in the Combat Region was massive overkill against the few pirate raids that took place. Indeed studies conducted by the High Command on New Avalon indicated that 2-3 LCT sized formations would be much better suited to counter these threats. In light of their fears however he promised to form an additional Avalon Borderer LCT within the Combat Region to act as a more mobile reserve while allowing both Islamabad and Panpour to be garrisoned full time, while also rotating either the 2nd or 3rd Avalon Hussar's back into the region whenever it was possible. Which would give the additional benefit of keeping the ties between the units and the local communities alive.
With his audience (who had started the meeting almost in awe of their First Princes's presence) now lapsed into sullen silence the First Prince brought out the carrot. He informed them that as they knew it was his life's work to strengthen the AFFS and the realm as a whole so that it was safe from any foreign invaders. In the pursuit of this he had formed several new brigades - such as the New Avalon Cavaliers, Avalon Borderer's and Lexington Combat Guards - and reformed others such as the Dragonlords. He had long been impressed by the valour of the Islamabad CrMM who had always carried the banner of the now defunct Messengers of Shiva. It was his intent (if they agreed) to reform the Messengers from the current Islamabad CrMM, breaking the March Militia into 2 LCT sized formations to restore the Messengers of Shiva to the active rolls. The Islamabad CrMM would then be reformed. To support this new formation a small military academy would be founded on Basantapur to provide recruits not only for the Islamabad CrMM but the Messengers of Shiva and indeed the local Avalon Borderer formations.
The sullen acceptance the First Prince had faced from his subjects at the loss of "their" Avalon Hussars RCT's was totally dispelled by this announcement. The officers of the Islamabad CrMM in particular were enthused by the prospects of being converted into front line commands and realising their ancient heritage. While the nobles of the region were aware that such investments would more than make up for the losses of the 2nd and 3rd Hussars in terms of revenue and would potentially lead to more worlds sharing in the military basing of these units. Plus it would be almost a certainty that these new units would largely be equipped with the production of the local Jalastar Aerospace plants. The First Prince did state that the newly reformed Messengers of Shiva LCT would be deployed across the Federated Suns and would not be merely for local defence. They would carry the warrior culture of the people of the Islamabad Combat Region to the stars and help defend the entire Federated Suns.
The month ended with the First Prince still on Islamabad continuing the planning and discussions with the various officers and nobles to ensure their support for his project. While he knew he could merely command their obedience - and with his popularity with the common people of the FedSuns would be successful in quashing any resistance to his project, he intended to bring them onside and actively supporting him rather than trying to frustrate him. For instance one suggestion that was made that he agreed with was that prior to any redeployment the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussars RCT would deploy en-mass and move into the Pirates Haven to run a sweep in an attempt to clean out that long time nest of pirate activities. With support from the 7th Corvette Flotilla perhaps.
On New Avalon a few staff officers raised with Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion the continued support/basing of a number of Borderer units. For instance the Aragon, Bell, Kittery and Mitchel Borderer regiments had seen the border they were to guard pushed long past them. It was suggested that perhaps these units could be disbanded and their personnel and equipment converted either to Avalon Borderer commands or perhaps to FedSun's Dragoons or Avalon Hussars RCT's. Jackson Davion had these proposals written up, but held them back to await the First Princes's views. The First Prince was expected back on New Avalon as a priority next month - given that his son was expected to be born at the end of September! While Victor Davion might be considered by many within the Federated Suns (and no few outside of it) to be perhaps the finest First Prince in centuries given his recent triumphs, everybody knew that if he wasn't there for the birth his wife would never let him live it down!
On Outreach work began on the latest rebuild factory line. Despite some attempts to push for a more flexible medium class battlemech to be produced the Wolf's Dragoons had decided that they wished to return their iconic Marauder II C battlemech to production. Given the complexities of this design and difficulties in building an entirely new plant to build it this project wasn't expected to be completed until the start of January 3071.
The Bergan Industries plant on Andalusia completes it's first battlemech line (it already has 3 Waylander Mobile Base lines operating) with the Locust entering production. While not a flashy battlemech with the expansion of the FedSun's the demand for battlemech's like the Locust remains high, not only to rebuild savaged recon lances but also form up new companies of March and Planetary Militia's.
Johnston Industries announce that they will be adding a new facility on the world of New Hessen to help supply the ComGuards. The initial line will be a Thunderbolt-NAIS production facility. They will also be adding a new battlemech to their stable of designs, the Valiant axe wielding light battlemech. This will be produced on New Hessen and on New Syrtis.
On Tikonov the New Independence Weaponry plant see's it's new Zeus line go operational. This brings the total to 2 lines of Zeus within the Federated Suns, most of their production is currently going to replacing worn out Zeus's leftover from the FedCom era and producing parts to keep them operational. The design isn't exactly popular within the AFFS although the FedSun's Dragoons do have several officers who like the design and request it for their companies.
Within the Free Worlds League a number of provinces, shocked at the open aggression of the Lyran Alliance call for unity. Of the major factions, Oriente stands behind this call, while Atreus demands that the unity be provided by the others acknowledging their position. Regulus merely ignores the issue and continues to put pressure on individual worlds near them to join them. One province however has had enough and at the end of August Zion announces it's secession from the Free Worlds League and demands that the FWLM leave it's borders.
Meanwhile Hohiro Kurita has arrived on Terra and is in deep discussions with the WOB leadership. It's fair to say they are delighted at the prospect of an anti-Davion alliance with the Combine and are already making promises of support...
Within the former Confederation the 1st Sian Dragoons leaves Sian and lands on the world of Pella II. The "defending" 2nd Sian Dragoons when faced with their larger sister regiment and with little desire to continue to suppress "rebels" defects to the Sian Republic. The 1st and 2nd Sian Dragoons swiftly bring order to the world which formally joins the Republic.
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if the FS can have 6 months of peace. they could then take on WoB. They might need to take a page from history and looked at Rabaul Naval Base
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And the Combine signs their death warrant with this action. Now they have to hope they can hold on to their territory when both the FedSuns and the Ghost Bears start their own invasions. Plus they will need to deal with the Nova Cats leaving them out to dry when that Clan decides to run and call in the favor from that other Clan they saved a few years back (it is almost like they knew this would happen).
The FWL while getting the perfect catalyst for reuniting still can't get it together. Plus they have to deal with the coming attack from the FesSuns since they are doing nothing about the warning Victor gave them to stop the rearming of a province that launched an unprovoked invasion of FedSun space.
The Lyrans still have done nothing to salvage the mess they have placed themselves in. They should be studying and refitting the Clan Warships in order to be able to build their own versions. They have the heaviest Corvette that really is more of a Destroyer at over 400,000 tons with the Vincent class. They don't have anything in the Destroyer and range so updating the Vincent to fill.that role is a smart move that way they don't need to buy Davion IIIs from the FedSuns. They also have the Aegis class for a new Cruiser as well. They still need a frigate class but they have a battlecruiser class in service that they should be building more of. They also have both the Black Lion Class, the Potemkin Class, and the Mckenna Class from the Wolves as well.
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if the FS can have 6 months of peace. they could then take on WoB. They might need to take a page from history and looked at Rabaul Naval Base
Honestly they don't need 6 months. The sheer amount of STUFF they are making these days and people they are training means they could start right now if they wanted. As I've said before, the key threat of the WOB is their warship fleet and ability to maintain it/construct it. Otherwise, they only control a handful of planets (and are pretty busy for that matter with the FWL chaos).
Hit Terra out of the blue like a sledgehammer with your warship fleets maximum strength (as much as you can pull together while leaving the Combine squadrons at their best possible strength) to rip through the WOBs warships, shipyards and orbital defenses. THEN invite ComStar in (they simply are too compromised by WOB-ROB to be let in and will get over their annoyance pretty quickly when they realize you've broken the WOB's naval power and laid out a red carpet right back to Terra) to do the hard ground fighting. It'll go even easier if Victor authorizes the use of Nuclear ordinance from the get-go, entirely justifiable given how the WOB has used it from day zero in every fleet engagement they have been in (including against the Federated Suns in a roundaway way with the Bulls fleet filled with WOB 'advisors').
Cripple the main strength of the WOB in Terra and invite ComStar to bring their own 1st fleet and ground armies (rebuilt over some time now with a LOT of state of the art Federated Suns hardware) then redeploy the Federated Suns fleet to leave a squadron at Terra, but the rest of fan out through the WOB Protectorate and jump any isolated WOB warships hanging around.
It's easy to overplan things with the WOB and think you need to build up a sledgehammer to do everything at once ... truth is, given their lack of strategic depth and current preoccupations, Victor could do just as well silently slipping a knife between their shoulder blades and killing them before they realize they are under attack.
And if MIIO or ComStar ROM gets word that the Combine is about to solidify an alliance between themselves and the WOB?
Well the Federated Suns would want to nip that in the bud NOW and ComStar would probably be even more keen, lest they loose the Combine as HPG clients (and destroying the WOB would also send a message to the Dragon in a subtle way saying '****** me? Oh no no no. A-****** YOU!' for trying to stab them in the back like that...
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3069 - September - An Heir
Finishing up on Islamabad the First Prince hurriedly moved through the Crucis March towards New Avalon, arriving on the 10th via a line of command jumpships. While his staff would have preferred him to travel on board the FSS Melissa Davion during this trip the speed at which he had to move if he was to make all of his deadlines had made this impossible, so instead he had travelled on mostly Tramp LF battery equipped jumpships with warships holding guard positions along the route. Which in itself was a testament to the strength of the growing Federated Suns Navy in that it now had sufficient warships to patrol a route stretching from New Avalon-St Ives-New Syrtis-Islamabad-New Avalon.
The First Prince arrived just in time to welcome the birth of his heir who was born somewhat ahead of schedule on the 15th of September. The pregnancy took place at the Royal Maternity Unit of the Nimue General Hospital within Avalon City and goes without complications. To the waiting press and the general public the birth is announced in the early evening of the 15th and with it the name of their future First Prince - Burton Hanse Janos Davion. Almost riotous celebrations broke out across New Avalon and spread as fast as the word did throughout the Federated Suns. The only March that didn't see major celebrations was understandably the League March where outside of the garrison postings of AFFS units (and a few worlds with more pro-Davion sentiments such as Sheraton) the news was met with little reaction from the vast bulk of the population - although a few did hope that this new heir would help transfer the FedSun's to a more civilian footing and aid their integration. One particular world that was noted to see large scale celebrations that were unexpected was the strategic world of Tikonov where the planetary Duke announced a full 7 day celebration of the birth of Burton Davion and ordered fireworks, military parades and large scale donations of food and drink from his personal funds. He also dispatched a full company of assault weighted battlemechs produced on Tikonov (Atlas, Battlemaster, Zeus and Thug class war machines) to the long term garrisoning unit of Tikonov the Davion Assault Guards which were now stationed on nearby Helen as a gift to the young prince again paid for from his own accounts.
Even with the birth of a new Davion however the work of the state had to continue and by the 17th the First Prince was back at Mount Davion (albeit with a huge smile on his face) and working with his Marshal of Armies and Princes's Champion to best defend his son's future inheritance. The first issue he quickly dealt with was the proposed disbandment of several of the Borderer units with their components and personnel being used to help found other more generic units. He refused this proposal and explained to the High Command that in the past the FedSun's had faced invasion on numerous occasions and that invaders had often struck deep into Davion territory. Allowing these Borderer regiments to remain in existence not only gave the AFFS a ready reserve of seasoned troops that could be dispatched if required to the front lines they also provided a defence in depth that augmented the various March Militias. He pointed to the recent revision of the 1st Aragon Borderer's loyalty rating from Reliable to Fanatical in recent months and questioned whether the men and women of the unit would still feel the same if they were told their regiment was to be disbanded. He also pointed out that many of the men and women in the Borderer regiments had joined up with the intent of protecting their own homeworld for House Davion and would be loath to travel hundreds of light years away from it. The Borderer regiments were always available for wartime reassignment, but their troops always knew they would be returning home in short order and so were accepting of these assignments. With that matter dealt with the First Prince then began work on the rest of the day to day work of his position.
Amongst the well wishers who personally attended New Avalon to wish the new baby prince well was the Precentor Martial Anastasius Focht who after meeting with the mother and baby took some time to have a "work" meeting with Victor Davion himself. Present at this meeting was the future Prince's Champion Galen Cox and an old friend of Victor who he had promoted to general rank and reassigned from the 1st Revenant Guards - Renard Sanderlin. During this meeting the eviction of the WOB from Terra was the primary topic - although both sides also discussed the alarming reports that the Kurita's were considering a shift of alignment to support the WOB. The First Prince out of respect for his former mentor explained that while he was still committed to the invasion of Sol, he and his staff both agreed that the AFFS required time to repair and refit from the recent Capellan War and could not immedietly commit to another major offensive. Almost as importantly the Federated Sun's Navy would be an integral part of any invasion force and he had a number of major warships coming of the slips in the near future - and he would not rush them into combat with barely trained crews. He needed time to rebuild his forces and integrate the new construction into his Navy. The FSS Ran Felsner, FSS Aaron Sandoval and FSS Matilda Davion (all fleet carriers) were all finishing in October this year, however his advisers had informed him that they would not be ready for front line combat duties until probably mid 3070 with fully trained crews. Therefore he proposed meeting with the Precentor Martial again in March to discuss a definite date for the retaking of Terra. Focht, with orders to push for a date from Dow, made some token efforts to press for a more concrete answer, but privately and off the record agreed with the Davion position.
Thereafter the discussions turned to Kurita and what this would mean for the invasion and also for the ComGuard troops stationed within the Combine if the Kurita's joined the WOB. Victor promised the ComGuards every support in evacuating the Combine - up to the point of full scale war. While war with the Combine was growing more and more likely he didn't want to be the one to begin what would almost certainly be a repeat of the Succession Wars. Every month the FedSun's was getting stronger and the longer this war could be delayed the better from the Davion's perspective.
The First Prince also offered to help construct a new Davion-Com industrial facility on Marlette in the coming year to help supply and continue to rebuild the ComGuards. Focht left satisfied that the Davion's still stood with Comstar and with assurances of continued support - knowing that Gavin Dow would not see this as enough. Still he resolved to present his views to the entire First Circuit rather than merely the Primus-Pro-Term.
Having heard of the celebrations on Tikonov the First Prince sent word requesting that the Black Horse Squadron of the Wild Geese mercenary regiment make a short trip to Tikonov. While he refused to order the Colonel of the Squadron to meet with his grandfather while there he sent a personal message requesting he at least consider meeting with the Duke.
The First Prince also sent word to nearby Northwind that the losses suffered by the Highlanders in the recent fighting would be made good at cost from the AFFS's own equipment. They were to be allowed to purchase any design of battlemech, aerospace fighter or tank at their own discretion and he had passed stern orders that no attempt was to be made to implement a company store approach to the Highlanders. All equipment would be sold to them at cost and without any mark up or shipping cost. Given that the Northwind Hussars was the most damaged of the 4 regiments this offer would go a long way to mending fences between the Hussars and House Davion, as would the continued care that Colonel Jaffray was receiving on New Avalon for his injuries.
On Sarna Tengo Aerospace finished retooling 4 of their light aerospace lines to produce the upgraded Sabre variant they had purchased the license for. While at the same time their plant on St Ives also finished retooling 3 more lines to produce the Sabre. This would provide a flood of the capable light aerospace fighter for the forming League March troops. Indeed the League March would become the single March within the Federated Suns where the Sparrowhawk was not the most common light fighter design due to this large domestic source of Sabres (bolstered by 3 more Sabre lines at Tikonov), even with the new Jalastar plant on Wei being planned to have 4 Sparrowhawk lines. Indeed Sabre production within the League March would also lead to the March exporting Sabres to the rest of the FedSun's and also to Comstar and the Lyran Alliance.
It was also during September that the High Command began preparing to draw down companies of elite and veteran troops from various full strength units (to be replaced with less experienced troops to work up to the commands original levels) to bring the 2nd and 3rd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry back up to full strength. All 3 FSAC units had proven of valuable service in the recent war and there was even some discussion about adding at least 1 more regiment of these elite troops using the same method of forming them from the best of the AFFS - although bringing the heavily damaged 3rd and moderately damaged 2nd back up to full strength took precedence. While the 1st FSAC was slightly under strength this could be fixed through more regular rebuilding.
Within the Free Worlds League the various Parliaments and Captain Generals refused to acknowledge Zion Provinces secession and all of them made plans to crush this independence movement. However none dared risk sending orders to their reliable troops to suppress the revolt and as such it continued to grow in strength. The few FWLM garrison's within the province were by now almost totally isolated and almost under siege.
On Andurien Duke Baxter had managed to round up a minor member of House Humphreys and proceeded to marry this distant scion of the ruling house to his newely designated heir - Colonel Rhamses McCarron. Colonel Faith McCarron's response to the elevation of her brother to formal heir caused a major rift in the Baxter-McCarron family. At a time when it could be least afforded. Even this effort to mollify the Andurien loyalists failed miserably and the rushed wedding of Rhamses McCarron to his new bride was marred by no less than 3 bombings and 2 attempted assassinations using rifles. By now the "Andurien Commonality" was almost entirely a police state where Capellan troops kept order through massive reprisals whenever they were attacked. Worse the drawing down of forces from the proper "Capellan" worlds of the new Commonalty had to be ceased due to threats of invasion from the Sian Republic.
On Terra the Word of Blake promised the heir to the Draconis Combine no fewer than 10 battlemech regiments - when he had asked for 5. They even immedietly began to ship the first of these regiments of equipment to Deiron in their own hulls as a show of good faith. Factories long dormant upon Terra were now running at full speed and had been doing so now for years. Even with the constant losses in the fighting against Comstar the WOB had managed to amass huge stockpiles and they began to empty entire warehouses to ship to the DCMS. The Confederation had went down into defeat before the Davion giant more quickly than even the worst projections. The Free Worlds League was a splintered mess that instead of providing strength for the Blakists was almost a quagmire for any troops they dispatched into the chaos. The Lyran Alliance was a non-starter and the Federated Sun's was almost the devil. If any state was capable of being counter to the growing Davion threat it was the Combine. Yet the Combine was industrially coming up short - which is where the WOB was prepared to help...
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looks like New Years is going to a mess. I don't think the WoB is going to wait until mid year to kick the bee hive. I wonder if the FS would approve one mech company to be raised on each planet. if they put a medium weight mech co, heavy tank, company of long toms (anyone making these in the FS?) would give them a home guards core (paid by the FS central military). this would only be done on planets that did not have "regular" unit stationed on it. I would make sure any mech would have at least one hand, if not two. that way they could be used in other than combat missions.
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They are sending Ten Regiments of mechs to Derion the one world which the LA and FS watch like a hawk since it's a major garrison and C* probably has a major presence on the world most likely to. It as if the DC is asking to get pimp slapped.
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Wouldn't it be funny if just as the equipment arrived on Dieron a pirate raid appeared and captured it all. >:D
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So the WoB is going to start setting up factories in the Combine now. That is going to turn the Combine into even more of a pariah and a greater target for the Clans that surround them. With the worlds that the FedSuns have gained from the CC and the current build-up in progress, they are far too ahead for the WoB to change anything. With the Combine switching sides that means more forces from ComStar are going to be going to the FedSuns and maybe the Rump FRR in order to build those worlds up and if a war breaks out use it to claim some systems from the Combine in the guise of ComStar/WoB war battles. I have always had a soft spot for the smaller minor powers. With the St. Ives Compact gone it is the FRR that is left of the minor powers. Victor should really look into getting more of the minor powers to join his alliance in order to strengthen and build a greater future for humanity. The MoC is out but if he plays it right he can get the TC, Fronc Reach, Aurigian Coalition (if itis still around), better relations with the Outworlds Alliance/Raven Alliance.
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but in canon wasn't Victor's first born a girl named Jade?
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but in canon wasn't Victor's first born a girl named Jade?
This isn't canon nor if the timeline match up at all so it doesn't matter.
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but in canon wasn't Victor's first born a girl named Jade?
I believe in canon it was Kitsune - the child he and Omi Kurita had. Jade was the 1st with Isis Marik though.
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The conception is always the lottery, in AU if it is not done in exactly the same conditions as in the OTL, then the results may vary.
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So the WoB is going to start setting up factories in the Combine now. That is going to turn the Combine into even more of a pariah and a greater target for the Clans that surround them. With the worlds that the FedSuns have gained from the CC and the current build-up in progress, they are far too ahead for the WoB to change anything. With the Combine switching sides that means more forces from ComStar are going to be going to the FedSuns and maybe the Rump FRR in order to build those worlds up and if a war breaks out use it to claim some systems from the Combine in the guise of ComStar/WoB war battles. I have always had a soft spot for the smaller minor powers. With the St. Ives Compact gone it is the FRR that is left of the minor powers. Victor should really look into getting more of the minor powers to join his alliance in order to strengthen and build a greater future for humanity. The MoC is out but if he plays it right he can get the TC, Fronc Reach, Aurigian Coalition (if itis still around), better relations with the Outworlds Alliance/Raven Alliance.
I don't think the WOB is setting up Factories so much as shipping war material to the Combine. I'm not a big fan of the idea that Terra has gigantic masses of super high tech factories that can outproduce entire star nations, but, that's Battletech. In any event, the WOB are probably increasingly finding that they are hurting for personnel right now. They didn't in this timeline get the second wave of defections from the ComGuards they got with Victor joining them and jumping to Precentor Martial like he did and thanks to the support of the Federated Suns, they have steadily rebuilt themselves and gotten a lot of recruits from across the Inner Sphere. Plus ComStar continuing to attack them rather than just sitting back. And the mess that is the FWL.
While the WOB by going hard and fast like they did have probably cut their new recruit streams heavily back as their true face is much more clear and their allies across the Inner Sphere have started to go silent now. So they are probably building significantly more equipment than they can actually use and so are very happy to throw equipment at either allies (or at least useful patsies) like the Combine who can proxy them against the Suns.
It will be hilarious however if ComStar find out about the shipments and intercept them and seize them for the ComGuards.
Personally, I think Victor is being far too cautious around attacking Terra and overstating the strain the AFFS has been under. There is frankly more to loose in waiting for his forces to build up than seizing the strategic initiative and surprise NOW to take the Word of Blake on the hop. Their actually controlled territory is minimal and you can lance the boil now much easier than you can if you just keep waiting...
But, I suppose the fic can't be TOO easy :)
As for the MOC, honestly, you'd think by now they would start to be getting a tad worried. They've been an open co-belligerent of the Taurians against the Federated Suns, the Capellan Confederation against the Federated Suns, complicit in the Big MACs pretty horrific occupation of Andurien by Baxter, a Federated Suns ally ...
Given that said Federated Suns has in a few short years turned the Bulls into their Bitch and the Crappies into a steadily dying memory ... and with the FWL far too busy to help them even if they wanted to, you'd think they MIGHT want to worry about how Victor will express his displeasure at them continually backing the 'wrong side' against him...
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3069 - October - Planning for 3070
As per usual the plans for the continued expansion and upgrading of the AFFS (which never really stopped) stepped up a gear in October. Already there were myriad voices calling for this or that unit to be prioritised over another. Still with the First Prince once more personally on New Avalon to oversee the discussions the debates were quickly resolved. In most cases any disagreements were decided by the trio of the First Prince, Marshal of Armies and Princes's Champion. All three by now seasoned and veteran officers.
The first thing that was agreed that priority would continue to be given to rebuilding commands that had been damaged in the recent activities. As per the standing guidelines laid down shortly after the First Princes's return from the Clan Homeworld's the flow of replacements into units which were under strength would be managed to avoid swamping the veterans with new recruits and so reducing the overall rating of the regiment. For instance the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers were hovering around 60% of their listed strength due to casualties in the heavy fighting they had received - they would be allocated enough replacements to bring them up to 70% strength this year and a similar increase each year until they were once again at full strength. This would allow them to continue to remain at elite levels of experience as the new recruits would be brought up to the regimental level in training and combat missions. In many cases the replacement troops for elite units such as the Grenadiers would be drawn from other less experienced units (rated at veteran or regular level) and their replacements would in fact by the cadets.
One area this was definitely in use was the planned rebuilding of the Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry Brigade. Consisting of the finest troops, officers and equipment the FedSun's could produce this showcase unit had traditionally been rebuilt as soon as possible when it had suffered damage in the past. The expansion of the unit from a single regiment to 3 regiments in no way reduced the commitment of the High Command to arranging this. The 1st Argyle Lancers, 3rd Crucis Lancers, Davion Assault Guards, Davion Heavy Guards, 1st New Avalon Cavaliers and 6th Syrtis Fusiliers would all be tasked with giving up a company or so of mechwarriors and comparable numbers of conventional support troops to help rebuild the 3rd FSAC, while the 1st Capellan Dragoons, 42nd Avalon Hussars and the 6th and 8th Crucis Lancers would all give up a similar force to help rebuild the 2nd FSAC. Given the wish to form a 4th Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry the 1st and 2nd Ceti Hussars, 8th, 10th and 12th Deneb Light Cavalry, 2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs and 2nd Robinson Rangers would all be tasked with providing a portion of the new unit - allowing the formation of a veteran unit of around 70%. Given the location of most of these units within the Draconis March it was suggested that the new 4th be formed on Robinson itself, where it could take advantage of the Combat Training Centre and garrisoning units to hone it's skills and come together as a unit. All of the above units would see replacement personal make up their "donations" to the Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry.
Along with the personal required to begin making up the losses of the various AFFS units these deployments would consume the vast majority of the graduating class of '69. However enough troops and officers would remain to allow some small expansions. Namely the graduates of the Lexington Military Academy LCT's would be rushed to help rebuild the Lexington Combat Guards but enough graduating cadets would be left to form the core of a new 4th Ceti Hussars RCT. The initial plans were that this new Hussars wouldn't be anywhere near full strength, but the solid core of a RCT could be formed and begin training. However after some discussions it was agreed that the graduating cadets from the Tancredi War College LCT would also be allocated to this unit. This would allow it to form up at almost full strength.
The Islamabad CrMM would also be entirely reformed from graduating cadets as it's current incarnation became the 1st and 2nd Messengers of Shiva LCT's. At the same time the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussar's RCT's would break off a portion of their strength to form a 6th and 7th Avalon Borderer's LCT. An 8th Borderer's would also be assembled from odds and ends - a full company coming from the 1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion for instance.
The Borderer Brigade would also see the activation of the 1st Bell Borderer and 1st Brockton Borderer Cadres. These 2 regiments would now be at around half strength and as such would be considered active combat commands. The remaining 1st Bromhead Borderer Cadre would be joined by the 1st Claxton, 1st Hurik, 1st Jasmine and 1st Preston Borderer Cadres - although the troops assigned to it wouldn't be coming from the newly established Training Battalions but instead a handful of AFFS officers and troops who would be used to form the bare skeleton of the units.
The Duke of New Syrtis was also pushing heavily for his agreement with the First Prince to be kept regarding the formation of the 1st Syrtis Hussars LCT as the basis for a new brigade and this was agreed. A number of graduating cadets from the 1st Warrior's Hall Training Regiment would be allocated to the 2nd Syrtis Hussars LCT.
For the second year no new Dragonlords RCT or Avalon Hussar's RCT is intended to be formed. However given the large scale expansion of the Avalon Hussars and the massive expansions after their initial founding of the Dragonlords it was agreed that the pause could continue. Assurances were given however that as soon as practicable these storied brigades would see additional regiments added to their rolls. The First Prince also privately spoke with Marshal Venger of the FedSun's Dragoons Brigade that his units sterling service in the recent campaign would not go unnoticed or unrewarded. He intended to add additional Dragoon's units in the near future - at the very least returning them to the strength they had enjoyed in their previous incarnation the FedCom Corp.
However the planned expansions of the Regular Army were almost totally overshadowed in October with the commissioning of not 1 but 3 huge New Syrtis class carriers into the Federated Suns Navy. At Galax the FSS Ran Felsner slipped from the yards and immedietly began making it's way on a shakedown cruise to the Novaya Zemlya system. Her place was to be taken by the FSS Kai Allard-Liao which was to be named for the fallen hero of the St Ives Military Command - which had been absorbed into the AFFS and so Duke Allard-Liao was considered (along with his military service during the FedCom era) to fulfil the criteria of being a serving AFFS officer to have a carrier named for him.
The FSS Ran Felsner was to be joined at Novaya Zemlya by the FSS Aaron Sandoval fresh from Kathil's McKenna Shipyards and by the FSS Matilda Davion which had completed at Challenge System's Panpour yards. Both ships were named for heroic military leaders of the AFFS. Kathil immedietly laid down the FSS Peter Davion, named for the famed Marshal of Armies who had led the AFFS during the horrors of the First and Second Succession Wars, while Panpour laid down the FSS John Gordon named for the officer who had saved First Prince Alexander Davion in the Davion Civil War and had fought and died for his prince.
The 2nd, 3rd and 4th Carrier Battle Groups would begin working up and training their crews and aerospace fighter wings in the secure system of Novaya Zemlya. They were protected there not only by their own fighters but also the destroyers of the 1st Destroyer Squadron. Not only had the 1st Destroyer Squadron been chosen due to it's battle hardened crews and heavy guns, but also it was intended that the Carrier Battle Groups would each consist of not only a New Syrtis Carrier but also at least 2 Davion III destroyers to escort them so it was considered a good idea to have the carriers begin training with the destroyers.
Alongside the commissioning of these huge capital ships the 4 Fox I corvettes undergoing refits and upgrades to Fox II which had completed at the end of September returned to active service as the 2nd Division of the 2nd Corvette Flotilla. Their places were taken in the repair and refit yards by the 2nd Corvette Flotilla's 1st Division. When these completed in March of 3070 that would mean all 12 corvettes of the 2nd Flotilla would be upgraded to the new standard.
The First Prince also announced the construction on Marlette of the new Davion-Com industrial complex. Similar to the factory on Defiance this facility was to see it's production divided up between Comstar and the AFFS. With growing concern for their supply lines within the Draconis Combine Comstar was eager to put additional designs into production at safe locations. The flagship battlemech for this new facility was the Inner Sphere omnimech version of the Battle Cobra. Comstar also wished the facility to produce the Spartan class assault battlemech and the Shootist class heavy battlemech. A similar battle armour facility to Defiance was also planned to increase production of the Lorica. As well as these Comstar provided designs the FedSun's also included Griffin and Phoenix Hawk class medium battlemech designs to be put into production there. Construction would begin within the next few months. All of the designs except the Lorica BA are to be divided equally, with Comstar getting all of the BA.
At the same time Comstar also funded Andoran Industries to add an additional Hussar and Mercury line to their Shawnee based plant. Andoran was now one of the largest supplies of light battlemech's to the ComGuards from their 2 facilities on Shawnee and Broken Wheel.
Veridan Dynamics announced a New Avalon backed plan to open a new facility to produce not only Tiger second line tanks but also the much sought after Vali artillery tank within the League March. After a great deal of consideration they had opted to place the new facility on Sarna for a central location. Initial plans were for 2 Tiger lines and a single Vali line. The ComGuards and Lyran Alliance again both expressed an interest in the Vali with this announcement.
Within the shattered Free Worlds League the Atreus based Captain-General Corrine Marik begins plans for a major military operation to retake the lost worlds along the Lyran border. She begins to secretly move commands loyal to her government to the worlds of Zortman and Castor. With what few warships she can spare from ongoing deployments. She ignores the other League Captain-Generals for the time being, not even requesting the support of the Oriente troops near Tamarind that might fight alongside her forces to expel the LAAF. Her attempts to keep these movement's secret are helped by her unofficial alliance with the WOB Protectorate.
On Elgin the Tikonov Marshals are declared officially active - although unofficially they are barely at garrison level quality and consists mostly of various militia forces from across the province which have been drafted into the Marshals. Although officially at 3 full battalions and a command company they consist of only the command company, a 2 company strong 1st Battalion and a single company in each of the other 2 battalions. They are entirely lacking in aerospace assets, dropships and artillery although they do have roughly a regiment's worth of mixed infantry and armour of low quality to support them.
Within the Andurien Commonality Duke Baxter announces the formation of 3 new commands - the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Andurien Hussars, echoing back to the old Commonality troops of Andurien. These are officially drawn from native's of the various Andurien worlds and are destined to be the regular armed forces of his regime - complete with battlemech regiments. However currently they are little more than glorified motorised infantry and are almost entirely drawn from the few Capellan worlds he has managed to bring under his banner - indeed in the case of the 3rd they are largely conscripts from the prison's of Andarmax, Sax and Sigma Mare. He has however begun work on setting up a full battlemech production facility on Betelgeuse. This is intended to produce Firebee class light battlemechs and Vindicator medium battlemechs. Plans for more ambitious schemes are only paper exercises at this point.
At the same time the Victoria Commonality announces that they are reforming the 2nd Victoria Rangers - entirely from imported battlemechs provided to them by unknown third parties although many seem to have been built either in the League or Canopus. This announcement leads the still shattered 1st Capellan Chargers to go into open mutiny as they feel they are being ignored. Given their posting on Wright - which is at the border between the Sian Republic and Federated Suns and the Victoria Commonality the response from the Government-in-Exile on Gunthar is swift and savage. The 1st Victoria Rangers is dispatched from Latice with orders to destroy the rebelling unit. Alongside them comes 2 companies of Taurian exiles which are all that remain of the 1st MacLeod's Regiment. In a pitched battle the 1st Victoria Rangers and the Taurians overpower the more experienced Chargers with numbers and destroy the regiment - executing the few prisoners. In return for joining the Victoria Commonality full time MacLeod's Regiment is allowed to salvage roughly a company of the 1st Chargers equipment and their "leader" Protector Grover Shraplen given a place within the Government-in-Exile.
Archon Peter Steiner announces a new trade arrangement with Comstar and that the facilities on Arc Royal will now be expanded to produce a wide variety of battlemech's for the ComGuards. While the move is popular on Arc Royal more than a few of the Archon's detractors point out that he is again playing the part of a "poor man's Victor"...
Within the Draconis Combine the leadership of the Black Dragons agree to send an emissary to meet with the Coordinator on Luthien. Theodore Kurita has already met with his Nova Cat vassals and informed them that he requires them to dispatch 3 out of their 4 front line galaxies and at least 2 galaxies of second line troops to the Davion border. Along with the Vision Naval Star and Transcendent Naval Star. The Mystic Naval Star and the remaining ground forces are to hold themselves in reserve within the Clan's reservations within the Irece Prefecture. In return he does offer them the concession of 2 cluster's worth of second line battlemechs (1 of the 10 regiments he has been promised via his son from the WOB).
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Anyone else hope that the Nova Cats have seen EXACTLY which way this will all go? And have no desire to be Theodores disposable shock troops or DCMS ablative armour?
And so they pull a bulldog, with a Suns Jaguars rep showing up to flip a coin, they call 'edge' and bang, they are all Sun Jaguars now and obey at once Victors orders to leave the Combine with everything and everyone and set up on in the League March or something near Terra? :D
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And how many warships the Nova Cats have right now ?
If is a decent group / touman that is going to be a good help for Victor and a major disaster for the Combine.
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And how many warships the Nova Cats have right now ?
If is a decent group / touman that is going to be a good help for Victor and a major disaster for the Combine.
Yes and no. They have a number of Aegis class Heavy Cruisers which Theodore no doubt desperately wants to give his naval forces teeth. They are arguably the best Clan Cruiser (despite the fact that its almost the oldest damn warship still in service!!) and although we have not seen (IIRC) the actual stats for the Davion III class, my guess is that they look like an upgunned and slower version of that ship. AKA Avalon Bait.
The rest of those Stars are Carrack class transports and various Corvettes, unless things have changed in this timeline. Which would be great if Victor could refit them as armed freighters and assign them to lead trade convoys through the outback and periphery regions, if he can get his hands on them :)
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I think the Cats had a vision of this happening early on in the timeline though I can't r.remember which post it was. Whatever the case I get the feeling they may begin to descreatly start to move some of their second line warriors and civilians out of the prefecture along with some Iron Wombs and gene vaults.
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Don’t forget though: in this AU they might not have trialed for the Rasalhague Battleship: which means both their and the Ghost Bear’s Navy are stronger than canon. If Theodore is asking for five Galaxies of troops... that’s a big portion of their touman. Plus I doubt that Delta Galaxy ever got training with the SLDF on Kittery.
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Don’t forget though: in this AU they might not have trialed for the Rasalhague Battleship: which means both their and the Ghost Bear’s Navy are stronger than canon. If Theodore is asking for five Galaxies of troops... that’s a big portion of their touman. Plus I doubt that Delta Galaxy ever got training with the SLDF on Kittery.
I'm pretty sure it was Tau Galaxy that was stationed on Kittery during the St. Ives Crisis in canon.
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I hope the NC take the mechs and pull up stakes and leave the DC to fall on its own...….. katana.
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I hope the NC take the mechs and pull up stakes and leave the DC to fall on its own...….. katana.
considering that the whole reason the Nova Cats saved the smoke jaguar prisoners for the explicit purpose of using that debt, later on, to have the Sun Jaguars and their liege save them that is exactly what they plan to do. Maybe put up a token fight then bounce.
So that answers the question about where the TC idiots went. Now Peter has to deal with the fallout from wasting his time and makes himself look lesser. He needs to pump it into overdrive. Get the Naval crash building expansions start new slips and begin updating Lyran designs and Clan ships to make his own navy instead of relying on the FedSuns designs. He has ComStar on his side and even has the same deal for shipyard expansion. Get a couple of destroyer yards up and running. He needs to go big with his build-up he can't afford the steady build-up that Victor went with he is too far behind now. He needs a massive effort all at once right now to catch up somewhat and to show his people that the Lyran Alliance is still a power house. He doesn't nor can he keep it past this first rapid build-up but after that he can do the steady build-up thing now that he is closer to Victor. Plus he should pull his forces back from the FWL and let them kill each other off instead and focus on the clans on his boarders.
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3069 - November - The Combine goes Dark
With the plans in place and approved by not only the Marshal of Armies but the First Prince as well the AFFS's Department of Education and the Quartermaster's Office goes into full operation. Large scale movements of both personnel and equipment begin to make sure that the new units to be formed will be ready, while large scale transfers take place to bring various units up to strength and at the same time the graduating cadets from the academies prepare to move to the training units.
At the same time the Khan of Clan Sun Jaguar travels to New Avalon to meet the First Prince. Star Colonel Inamma of the 1st Fidelis Jaguar Mystics has informed her that she has been contacted by several close friends and sibmates within Clan Nova Cat - all of them carefully informing her that they wish her all the best in the upcoming trials that are sure to take place and hoping that they don't find themselves on opposite sides of said trials. The warning is clear - Clan Nova Cat believes that they will soon be engaged in active combat operations against the Federated Suns and their Sun Jaguar allies. When combined with intelligence reports of troop movements there is little down that the Dragon is stirring for war. Worse some reports are stating that Clan Snow Raven has sent emissaries to Luthien to discuss a potential alliance. While the Federated Sun's Navy has a comfortable lead over to the Draconis Combine Admiralty, if the Nova Cat and Snow Raven fleets deploy en-mass then this could be swiftly overturned.
The the naval units in the Draconis March and the 5th Corvette Flotilla in particular are swiftly ordered to a war footing - with the 5th Flotilla ordered to deploy to dead systems near the Outworld's Alliance in case the Ravens attempt a preemptive strike. Meanwhile the AFFS moves large numbers of aerospace wings and regiments along with combat dropship squadron's to all critical systems. Woodbine in particular see's no less than 3 aerospace regiments (mostly consisting of a mix of Stuka, Corsair and Sparrowhawk class fighters) shifted quickly to bolster the garrisoning 14th Avalon Hussars RCT along with 2 additional squadrons of combat dropships. The orders sent with these units are clear - they are to take every opportunity to bleed any Snow Raven naval invasion force in each system. While they are unlikely to destroy many ships the damage will swiftly mount up and with only the decrepit yards at Quatre Belle to rely on for repairs the Snow Ravens will hopefully have to break off their attack - leaving the Federated Sun's warship fleet to then counter attack once the Combine has been dealt with.
After some discussion with Khan Nevversan in particular First Prince Davion approves the rushing of Star Colonel Inamma and her unit from their garrison post to the Combine border. Although reluctant he agrees to allow the Star Colonel to cross the border to meet with her former Clan and attempt to convince them not to take part in this invasion. Prince's Champion Ardan Sortek personally accompanies her at the First Princes's representative. In the meantime his role is filled by his nominated successor Galen Cox.
Although knowing that things are beginning to spiral out of control the First Prince does make a final effort to preserve the peace. He sends a personal message not only to the Coordinator but also to the Khan of the Snow Ravens, suggesting that war is in nobodies interests. Unknown to the other 2 recipients he also sends a third message with his Champion to be given to the Khans of the Nova Cats.
The 7th Crucis Lancers RCT, 1st Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry and the mercenary Wolf Dragoon's Zeta Battalion are both also given secret orders at this time and at the end of November lift off from their garrison posts and disappear from sight. All 3 units are at or nearly at full strength and are considered amongst the finest units available to the AFFS.
On Menke the new SunCorp facilities declares their intent to add a Longbow line to the plant there. This move proceeds to lead to a slight decrease in the amount of resentment from the former StarCorp employees of the plant. After all an increase in production facilities means more jobs, promotions and greater job security!
On newly conquered Victoria the first of the rebuild production lines enters service. The lightest of the designs being put into service there, the Sling light battlemech, see's it's production line go operational with the other lines not far behind.
GM's Point Barrow facility see's the Blackjack-O line go online. After this construction has completed the facilities battle armour production lines are pushed for expansion at an ever increasing pace to keep up with demand.
Mujika-Wangker's plant on St Ives finally finishes retooling to produce the Tomahawk class aerospace fighter. These are offered for sale both to the AFFS and ComGuards and are snapped up instantly.
Within the Free Worlds League the Atreus Captain-General continued to prepare to counter attack against the Lyrans. She received a huge boost when the WOB offer her no less than 12 Zechetinu II corvettes to help with the counter attack. Against the Federated Sun's Navy these ships probably wouldn't be a major factor, but against the massively under strength Lyran Navy these ships give the Free Worlds Navy loyal to the Atreus Government a major boost in strength.
Over Dieron the WOB's first convoy carrying battlemech's arrives - and is immedietly ambushed at the zenith jump point by ComGuard naval ships. The escorting WoBS Herald of Retribution and 2 Suffren destroyers were attacked by CSV Blake's Strength, CSV Righteous Fury and CSV Swift Justice and 4 Fox class corvettes. The Black Lion and 1 of the Comstar Aegis cruisers hammer volleys into the WOB Aegis cruiser while the other Comstar Aegis cruiser manoeuvred to hold off the 2 Suffren destroyers. While the heavier warships fought it out the 4 Fox's and their dropships and fighters closed with the jumpships and dropships carrying the equipment. Rather than attempting to capture them the ComGuard's ships simply fired full broadsides into the transport dropships and jumpships to deny the equipment to the WOB and their allies.
With the destruction of the target the ComGuard's warships fell back and jumped out as quickly as they came. All 3 heavy ships had taken moderate damage and a number of dropships and fighters had been lost but all the ComGuard's warships jumped out. The Word of Blake ships had all taken heavy damage, with the WoBS Herald of Retribution almost an air bleeding wreck. The DCA warships on guard duty had little to no chance to engage the ComGuards ships - and given that they were unsure as the the current state of affairs between the Dragon and Comstar were unlikely to have done so even if they had the opportunity. More worrying even than the loss of the convoy for the WOB was the fact that the detailed shipping plan had clearly been leaked to Comstar - they had known the dates, times and jump point the convoy was intending to use... Worse Hohiro Kurita who was still on Terra informed them that since the shipment had never been received by the DCMS they would be expected to make up the losses...
Following this battle however the various ComGuard's units and personnel within the Combine began to evacuate. Shutting down HPG's and sabotaging them as they went. Slowly at first but with growing rapidity entire sectors of the Draconis Combine suffered communication blackouts as the WOB rushed into the realm to take over the HPG network. Often then having to send for replacement parts for the sabotaged generators. A number of brief and brutal firefights erupted between ComGuard troops evacuating the planets and either DCMS forces attempting to prevent them shutting down the HPG or WOB forces rushing in... Most of the Dieron District and large chunks of the Benjamin District remained online, but the Galedon and Pesht Districts both suffered major communication disruption.
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Do the WoB even have the numbers needed to man all the HPGs in the DC or the funding to repair, take over and secure them?
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Not even close if ComStar did their interdiction drills exactly as planned. Although I’m a bit bewildered at how exactly they would evacuate all these planets without hundreds of jump ships just waiting around in the Combine for evacuation orders.
In any event, it’ll take months for enough WOB personnel to even get to the Combine to even LOOK at the HPGs! Jumpship travel times being what they are and the sheer number of planets they need to get to! Let alone assessing the damage and getting the HPGs up and running.
ComStar also just shot themselves in the foot in terms of revenue from the Combine (otoh at least in a small way they now have all the League March contracts to partially make up for it) meaning problems there...
But still! I mean holy hell, I never would have expected Dow to act this decisively and viciously- good for him!
With an effective interdiction now in place, the Federated Suns has a golden chance to zip across the border and defang the DCMS. Not so much targeting planets but units. Take out a dozen of the DCMSs best regiments and isolated warship units while they have no idea what is going on, plus one or two choice planets (INDEPENDENCE WEAPONRY MUST BECOME ONE!) with concentrated force hard and fast? And you’ll render the threat of Theodore moot for at least a decade. Then can swing around on the WOB.
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Load up on DropShips and hide in the vastness of the systems while waiting for JumpShip/WarShip pick up
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Not even close if ComStar did their interdiction drills exactly as planned. Although I’m a bit bewildered at how exactly they would evacuate all these planets without hundreds of jump ships just waiting around in the Combine for evacuation orders.
In any event, it’ll take months for enough WOB personnel to even get to the Combine to even LOOK at the HPGs! Jumpship travel times being what they are and the sheer number of planets they need to get to! Let alone assessing the damage and getting the HPGs up and running.
ComStar also just shot themselves in the foot in terms of revenue from the Combine (otoh at least in a small way they now have all the League March contracts to partially make up for it) meaning problems there...
But still! I mean holy hell, I never would have expected Dow to act this decisively and viciously- good for him!
With an effective interdiction now in place, the Federated Suns has a golden chance to zip across the border and defang the DCMS. Not so much targeting planets but units. Take out a dozen of the DCMSs best regiments and isolated warship units while they have no idea what is going on, plus one or two choice planets (INDEPENDENCE WEAPONRY MUST BECOME ONE!) with concentrated force hard and fast? And you’ll render the threat of Theodore moot for at least a decade. Then can swing around on the WOB.
"began to evacuate" - key word "began". :p The ComGuards/Comstar aren't getting out of the Combine anytime soon. But they are heading for the door - and smashing the lights behind them. As far as Comstar is concerned when the Dragon signed on to get WOB battlemechs and help - they aligned with the enemy. Why wait for them to kick them out of the HPG stations? Better to go out on your own terms.
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"began to evacuate" - key word "began". :p The ComGuards/Comstar aren't getting out of the Combine anytime soon. But they are heading for the door - and smashing the lights behind them. As far as Comstar is concerned when the Dragon signed on to get WOB battlemechs and help - they aligned with the enemy. Why wait for them to kick them out of the HPG stations? Better to go out on your own terms.
All done to a badass sound track I imagine but seriously Teddy shot himself in both feet with this move and so did the WoB since they blew away almost all their agents early on in this timeline with their stupid reprisal for Caph. It actually made C* both get their act together and strengthen internal security while crippling the WoB ability to spy on their hated rival.
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man can not wait for the update. to bad the DC just did not keep pumping WoB for weapons. they could get real good at deep space recovery. as long as ComStar did not use nuks? a lot of that cargo could be recovered... not all but I would think that each small craft class ship could recover one mech/tank/aerofighter per 8 hour shift.
looks like comstar needs the Vikings and Beowulfs the FRR should be making for them. it also gives them place to run to from DC military.
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And now the dice is cast. Teddy has no choice but to remain with the WoB now. He will see that he has doomed his Nation to be the tools of madmen and he can do nothing about it.
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Just remembered something, did Brooke Stevens discover Jardine in this timeline?
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I am surprised that the Sian Republic didn't send forces to help out the unit that rebelled? If they had sent forces then the green troops sent to take the world back probably would have failed.
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My biggest surprise is that Victor actually signed a ceasefire with the Andurien Commonality. I honestly am confused as to why?
Signing a treaty with Sian and then a ceasefire with the Victoria Commonality makes sense. The first is willing to concede defeat and on good terms to Victor. The later is too much hassle to finish off right now and could be a pain if it starts raiding at the wrong time. But has a somewhat stable chunk of the CapCon AND knows not to piss off the Federated Suns dragon.
But Baxter?!
To hell with that! It's not like they are any kind of threat to the League March at all - and if Baxter did try to raid or attack he has to know it would just provide Victor all the legitimacy he needs to smile and finish THEM off. It would also make it clear that the Federated Suns does not in any way concede that the 'Andurien Commonality' is in any way a legit state, that Victor still backs the Anduriens in exile, which is a powerful message. That he sees Baxter as simply an overgrown war criminal he'll get around to dealing with sooner rather than later.
There is not really any reason for a ceasefire because Baxter doesn't even have enough forces to hold his worlds by brutal force, let alone go looking for trouble. Baxter not getting a ceasefire would be like Griff in Back to the Future 2 when he drags his dad outside, then pauses, pops his head back in, points at Marty and shouts 'DON'T GO ANYWHERE McFLY, YOU'RE NEXT!' to make it very clear Bad Things are going to happen very soon and that he needs to seriously think about his future.
But, you know, Victor...
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Most likely the cease-fire was only put in place to bring at least one of three to the table. And to allow the redistribution of forces to more important fronts. Baxter is not a threat and neither is Victoria so they can be left alone for now while the FedSuns builds up more and gets ready for the fight with the Combine. Plus the more Baxter and Victoria waste fighting each other and the Sian Republic the easier it will be when the FedSuns come back in force to kick Baxter and his dog into the ground then keep stomping on them. And Victoria as well they simply don't have any way to survive. If Victoria joins the MoC that is their only hope of sticking around but even then it is only a temporary reprieve. Victor will be going after the MoC eventually. Preferably after a few years of building up the other Periphery states in the Rimwards section.
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3069 - December - On the edge
As ever December starts with the AFFS forming it's new regiments, regimental combat teams and light combat teams up from the graduating classes of new cadets while also cycling through the next generation of academy graduates into the various training units and cadres. Meanwhile huge amounts of military equipment already stockpiled for this activation of new units is also broken out of storage and issued to the new forces.
The first and most prestigious of these new formations is the 4th Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry which is formed on Robinson. Formed not from graduating cadets it is instead formed from individual companies drawn from some of the finest units in the AFFS and is rated from it's inception as a veteran unit - although it won't be able to fight in anything over company strength at anything better than regular status until it's various component's have finished integrating into the new command. Like all FSAC formations it's equipment is the finest that the Federated Sun's can provide - with pride of place going to a full battalion of assault battlemech's drawn from Robinson's own factories - 2 companies of the by now renowned Sagittairre and a final company of Battlemasters. This gives the 4th FSAC a heavier weight than it's sister units, particularly when other heavy and assault designs from the rest of the Draconis March are included in its Table of Equipment. While this will make it slower than a traditional Armoured Cavalry unit, it's planned that it will be the assault unit of the brigade moving forward.
The Ceti Hussar's Brigade also see's a fourth unit added to it's rolls with the creation of the 4th Ceti Hussars RCT. Drawn largely from the 2 new academies on Lexington and Tancredi it's almost the polar opposite of the 4th FSAC in that it is a light weighted unit across both it's vehicle and battlemech assets. The various Combat Commands of the RCT are almost organised as semi-LCT's due to the cadets experience with that model of organisation. It is decided to form the new unit on Bremond alongside the Bremond DMM as a reserve formation in the event of war with the Combine.
Within the Islamabad Combat Region a game of almost musical chairs erupts as units are divided, rebuilt and formed. The Islamabad CrMM officially separates into 3 portions - with the largest 2 sections being used to found the 1st and 2nd Messengers of Shiva LCT's, while the remainder along with new cadets is used to rebuild the Islamabad CrMM back up to strength. Both Messengers of Shiva formations are initially deployed to Islamabad, although the 1st is soon dispatched to Panpour. At the same time the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussar's break of part of their formations to form the 6th and 7th Avalon Borderer's LCT's which are deployed to Panpour and Islamabad respectively. The 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussars then deploy to the Pirates Haven Cluster for a concentrated sweep of that nightmarish morass of systems which is the home to dozens of pirate bands. At the same time with odds and ends the AFFS also forms an 8th Avalon Borderer's LCT on Basantapur. As soon as the new units have had time to integrate the plan is for the Messenger's of Shiva to deploy to a more active front along with the 2 Avalon Hussar RCT's while the 3 Avalon Borderer LCT's and the Islamabad CrMM maintain the defence of the Combat Region.
The 1st Bell and 1st Brockton Borderer regiments are also activated during December from their cadre status. Although both units are only at half of their official strength it is felt that they are now sufficiently large enough to form an effective unit while they continue to build up and that they can now participate in patrols against pirates in the case of the Brockton unit or any pro-Capellan insurgencies on the part of the Bell Borderer's. The Borderer Brigade also see's the formation of a number of new cadres - the 1st Claxton, 1st Hurik, 1st Jasmine and 1st Preston Borderer Cadres are all added to the rolls of the Brigade in preparation for their formations. Although each will consist of only 2 companies of battlemechs and similar sized supporting formations until they can begin receiving troops from the training units on their worlds. From 2 individual regiments the Borderer Brigade now includes no less than 14 active or cadre units within it's command structure.
The 1st Syrtis Hussars LCT is joined by a sister unit and the former independent command is now the flagship of a new Capellan March brigade. The 1st Hussars transfers to garrison the key world of Novaya Zemlya while the newly formed 2nd Syrtis Hussars LCT takes it's place on New Syrtis. In this way Duke Hasek is mirroring the High Commands formation of Dragonlords commands.
Another addition to the AFFS was the upgrading of the 36th Avalon Hussars to a reinforced regiment. This is in keeping with the program of slowly building up the entire Avalon Hussars Brigade to reinforced regiments of battlemechs. Only the 14th, 23rd, 26th and 28th remain standard regiments while they rebuild. In a similar policy the 2nd Lexington Combat Guards is also upgraded to a reinforced regiment at this time - giving a clear sign that the entire brigade is likely to be upgraded to a similar level given that the 1st is already a reinforced regiment.
In addition to all of these regular additions to the AFFS a number of additional training units are formed this December. The 4th and 5th NAIS Cadre's are founded with the expanded graduation classes from New Avalon. Similarly the 3rd Albion Cadre is formed from New Avalon's oldest academy. The 4th NAIS Cadre is dispatched to garrison Shawnee, while it's sister regiment is dispatched to Cerulean to free up the 5th Avalon Hussars RCT to deploy to join it's sister 14th Hussars on Woodbine. The 3rd Albion Cadre is controversially deployed to Delos IV as a counter to any Raven adventurism.
The Kilbourne and Point Barrow Academy Training Battalion's are also upgraded to full regiments this month. Much of the equipment for these 2 units is drawn from equipment discarded by more prestigious commands, but even this is often refitted and upgraded equipment and more than a few brand new battlemech's such as the Sentry, Watchman and Battle Hawk class machines are found in the expanded units.
Wolf's Dragoons also reforms their Beta Regiment in December. They have a mix of their own troops and "war orphans" including a large number of CCAF survivors. The unit is immedietly signed on by the FedSun's and assigned to garrison Outreach.
Even as the High Command reinforces damaged units and creating new ones the 7th Crucis Lancers RCT, 1st Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry and Wolf's Dragoon's Zeta Battalion appear over Elgin. Making no efforts to communicate or demand the surrender of the capital of the Free Tikonov Province the 3 commands proceed to land outside of the planetary capital of Sochalladan. In a display of elan and spirit the Tikonov Marshal's attempt to charge from the city to contest the landings. This spirited counter attack is shattered when Zeta Battalion lands directly behind and on top of the charging Marshal's. Their retreat cut off and their lines disrupted the green troops stand absolutely no chance when 2 of the finest regiments in the entire Inner Sphere close in on them and cut them to pieces. With the garrison shattered and the local militia's falling over themselves to surrender the AFFS units and their mercenary allies close in on the palace of the Supreme Leader William Baranov. To nobody's surprise the leader of the Free Provinces has used the massacre of his guard unit to take the opportunity to flee. However the attached air wings of the 7th Crucis Lancers have maintained an iron tight blockade of the planet and so he cannot have gone far.
While the 7th proceeds to garrison the planet, Zeta Battalion begin the search for the hiding Supreme Leader. The first place Zeta look "on a hunch" is the local HPG station which is manned by the WOB. When the Word of Blake garrison of infantry and a few tanks attempts to deny them access the Zeta's kill them all in a few short minutes of brutal fighting. At which time by pure coincidence a contingent of Comstar adepts arrive along with a small force of ComGuards to return the HPG to full service. The 7th Crucis Lancers also rounds up the various local leaders of the Free Tikonov Province and within a few weeks they have all agreed that the entire province should join the Federated Suns. Contingents of the 1st FSAC are shifted to take control of the other worlds of the province quickly.
Even as the hunt continues a number of AFFS specialised infantry formations arrive at the end of the month to arrange the integration of the "Free Province" into the Federated Sun's League March. When the Free Worlds League Ambassador to the Federated Sun's demands an audience with the First Prince it is quickly granted. Half way through his ranting tirade of the invasion of a sovereign nation by the "jackbooted thugs of House Davion" he is told to simply be quite or be ejected not only from the palace but also the planet and realm. In a cold and cutting tone the First Prince informs the ambassador that he and his realm were warned. Multiple times. Their response was meaningless platitudes or pretend the problem didn't even exist. Very well. The First Prince had given them every chance to stop the "Free Tikonov Terrorists" who had launched an invasion of his realm from Free Worlds soil without the slightest action to prevent it or condemn it by the various League leaders. If the League could not police itself then it then forced him to do it for them. He then took the opportunity to inform the ambassador that he had just received a petition to join the Federated Suns by the Zion Province. In front of the ambassador he signed his acceptance of their request and informed the shocked diplomat that the League had 1 week to evacuate their troops and officials from the FedSun's planets of the former League Provinces of Zion and Free Tikonov or the AFFS would be forced to remove them from the Zion PDZ of the League March of the Federated Suns...
By the end of the month the "Free Tikonov Province" and "Zion Province" had been accepted into the FedSuns and the 39th Avalon Hussars RCT was moving from nearby Gan Sing to secure Zion against any FWLM attempt to prevent the secession and absorption into the Federated Suns. The new Zion PDZ was formally placed under the command of the Duchess of St Ives on the 31st of December.
The First Princes's emissaries meet with the Clan Nova Cat leadership in a dead system within the Combine. In a frank (and treasonous to any Kurita who could have listened in) discussion the Nova Cats explain exactly what they have been asked to do. In response Princes's Champion Ardan Sortek informs them that the First Prince accepts that they are caught between a rock and a hard place. He will not hold it against them if they do end up fighting his troops and will order all of his forces to conduct any fights between Clan Nova Cat and AFFS personnel in an honourable fashion. However if war break out then the AFFS will unleash it's full might upon the Combine and any allies it has. He suggests that the Clan consider their position and points out that should they seek aid from the FedSuns in relocating their people this will be given. Clan Sun Jaguar's Star Colonel Inamma speaks out about the honourable way in which the First Prince has treated her own Clan - even while admitting she has no great love for the man following his treatment of Trent. She promises that the Sun Jaguars have not forgotten the aid that the Nova Cats have given them and that they stand ready to help their Clan brethren move as well - offering the services of the Potemkin class CSJ Steve Showers and the locations of a number of virgin colony worlds on the FedSun's Periphery Border... Sortek informs the Nova Cats that his First Prince is prepared to help them settle worlds in this region and to grant them the exact same rights as his current Clan Sun Jaguar allies - up to and including associated membership of the Federated Suns as valued allies...
The FSS Daring finishes it's repairs and rejoins the 2nd Destroyer Squadron as it's flagship just before Christmas. It's place is taken at Panpour by the FSS Ozawa and FSS Lothair, 2 lightly damaged Fox I corvettes which will also be upgraded during their repairs. At Arcadia the FSS Churchill finishes it's repairs and leaves to rejoin the 1st Patrol Squadron. The CSJ Rebirth moves to Arcadia to be not only returned to full functionality and repaired but also upgraded.
At Capella the FSS Trickery and FSS Trickster slip out from the system and head for their rendezvous with the FSS Covenant... The yards behind them begin work on 2 Fox II corvettes officially...
On Novaya Zemlya the new Dagger-O line for Johnston Industries completes. This brings the total of the popular omnifighter lines to 3 on the world. Jalastar Aerospace also adds a line for the Sparrowhawk fighter at their flagship plant on Panpour bringing the total production lines for the light fighter to 6 on Panpour alone.
Ranger Battlemech's on Verde add their second line of battlemech production with the construction of their Warhammer line. Like their existing line of Shadow Hawks these battlemech's will be used to equip the Vegan Rangers first and the sales of excess machines will also go to rebuilding the mercenary troops of the Duke of Verde.
The new facility on Achernar see's the first of its Battle Armour production facilities begin production of the Cavalier suit. This production is currently at a trickle but as more production facilities go online and hit their stride it is expected that the new facility will produce a flood of new Cavalier and Infiltrator II suits for the League March and wider Federated Suns.
Meanwhile on Capella the St Ives Metals Industries rebuilds a single functional line of the Defiance-O omnifighter. Sabotage in the last days of the fighting had destroyed the complex for the top secret pride of the CCAF's aerospace wings and it had taken until now to put it back into even limited production. Plans are to test out the first production models before order large scale production.
On St Ives the new flagship production facility of St Ives Metals is finally repaired and upgraded. For now production is limited to 1 Blackjack-O, 1 Blackjack, 1 Phoenix Hawk battlemech lines and 1 Po line vehicle line. However plans are in place to expand production once the newly rebuild facility hits it's stride.
On Valois the Sun Jaguar's begin construction of their new Warhawk production line. This isn't expected to go into operation until mid 3071 but when it does it will be a huge boost to the Clan's production facilities!
The First Prince enjoyed his first Christmas with his new son and wife on New Avalon, knowing that the clouds of war were forming. His last act of official business before leaving the office to spend some time with his family was to sign an order for Loren Jaffray to be returned to Northwind as he had now recovered sufficiently to travel. It would be up to the Clan Elders what happened to him.
In the Draconis Combine the Warlord of Dieron found his authority usurped when Kanrei Hohiro Kurita and took command of the District - which was the single part of the Combine which was not suffering major communication problems. Warlord Isoroku took the change in as good grace as was possible and placed himself under the young Kanrei's command, effectively raising himself up to the Kanrei's deputy. With the Dieron Military District and elements of the Benjamin Military District under his direct command Hohiro ordered his troops to stand ready to receive new allies in their fight against the hated Davions. He dispatched word to Luthien that he was coordinating with the WOB and that communication would soon be restored...
Even as the word went out to accept their presence the WOB was spreading throughout the Combine. Troops and adepts rushed from world to world to secure the HPG compounds - and often found them shattered wrecks from sabotage. In the few cases where they caught Comstar forces which had not managed to withdraw the fighting was brutal and often destroyed the very HPG stations they were attempting to seize. Replacement parts and entire generators were ordered rushed from Terra but it was soon apparent that not even the worst case projections of the takeover by the WOB were even close to the damage that the ComGuards were inflicting on the HPG network within the Combine...
Within the Free Worlds League word of the Davion "invasion" of the Zion and Tikonov Provinces was met with furious condemnation - and little else. Oriente knew that to antagonise the Davion's was to invite disaster, while the other governments were too far away from the border to do anything but spout fiery rhetoric. Still export sanctions were imposed by almost all of the various provinces and governments on military exports to the FedSuns - which 10 years ago would have been crippling but now did little more than amuse most Davion commentators. A handful of units found themselves short spare parts due to these sanctions for League produced equipment, but most simply traded in the degraded battlemechs, tanks and fighters for "proper Davion" equipment... Attempts to call in the huge debts that the FedSun's still owed the League (which would have been more damaging) floundered when the various government's argued as to whom the debts were due too!
One final thing within the League was that the various intelligence agencies began to notice was the large scale withdrawal of WOB forces from their various deployments throughout the League. Small numbers remained behind to guard key sites and to give the illusion of strength, but the forces were a shadow of their former strength...
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AFFS
31st December 3069
Independent Commands
1st Arcadians RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re)
1st Argyle Lancers – Elite – 100% -
1st Capellan Dragoons – Veteran – 100% -
1st Kathil Uhlans – Veteran – 80% (Re) –
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elite – 70% (Re) –
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
1st Sheraton Knights – Regular – 70% - Sheraton - attached support forces (veteran) at 100%
1st St Ives Jannissaries Brigade – Regular – 100%
Avalon Borderer’s
1st Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - Edwards
2nd Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - forming Torrence
3rd Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - forming Chirikof
4th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% - forming Clovis
5th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100% -
6th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100%
7th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100%
8th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Green – 100%
Avalon Hussars
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) - Abbeyville
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 70% (Re)
3rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 60% (Re)
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) –
5th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) -
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re)
11th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) – Yuris
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 90% (Re) - Cooperland – Periphery
14th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 80% – Woodbine Combat Training Centre
15th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 100% (Re) -
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) - Cassias
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) - Sun Jaguar Enclaves
21st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 60% (Re) - Maram
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) - Talon
23rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% – June
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 90% –
27th Avalon Hussars RCT – Green – 80% (Re) – Ruchbah
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% - Gulkana
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) –
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 80% (Re) - Tortuga Dominions
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 70% (Re) - Lothair
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) -
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Regular – 90% (Re) - Benet III
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Crofton
Borderer Brigade - with armoured regiment, infantry regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st Aragon Borderers – Elite – 70%
1st Bell Borderers Cadre – Green – 50%
1st Brockton Borderers Cadre – Green – 50%
1st Bromhead Borderers Cadre – Green – 30%
1st Claxton Borderers Cadre – Green – 20% - newly formed
1st Conroe Borderers – Green – 50%
1st Galtor Borderers – Green – 40%
1st Hurik Borderers Cadre – Green – 20% - newly formed
1st Jasmine Borderers Cadre – Green – 20% - newly formed
1st Kittery Borderers – Veteran – 100%
1st Mitchel Borderers – Green – 100%
1st Preston Borderers Cadre – Green – 20% - newly formed
1st Tortuga Borderers – Green – 70% - 100% material
1st Woodstock Borderers – Regular – 100%
To be formed:
Chisholm Raiders
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Regular – 90% (Re)
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re)
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Green – 90% (Re)
Ceti Hussars
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Veteran – 100% -
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Regular – 100%
4th Ceti Hussars RCT – Green – 90%
Crucis Lancers
1st Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 90% (Re) -
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) - Errai
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) –
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 80%
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100%
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) –
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) –
Davion Brigade of Guards
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
Davion Light Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
Davion Old Guards RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) -
Davion Young Guards RCT – Green – 100% (Re) –
1st Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 100% (Re) –
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) -
3rd Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) -
4th Davion Guards RCT – Elite – 90% (Re) -
5th Davion Guards RCT – Veteran – 100% (Re) –
Deneb Light Cavalry
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% -
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Green – 90% -
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% -
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100% -
12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Veteran – 100%
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Regular – 100% (Re)
Dragonlords Brigade - officers drawn from Davion Brigades, rest drawn from Cadres – 3rd to go to Caldwell
1st Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 100% (Re) – Bromhead
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Veteran – 80% (Re) – Lindsay
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 70% (Re) –
4th Dragonlords RCT – Veteran – 60% (Re)
5th Dragonlords RCT – Regular – 90% (Re) – Novaya Zemlya Combat Training Centre
6th Dragonlords RCT – Green – 90% (Re) – New Avalon Combat Training Centre
Federated Sun’s Armoured Cavalry – includes an armoured and BA regiment, 2 fighter wings
1st FSAC – Elite – 90% (Re)
2nd FSAC – Veteran – 100% (Re)
3rd FSAC – Elite – 90% (Re)
4th FSAC – Veteran – 90% (Re) – fights as regular until June – heavy/assault cavalry unit
FedSun’s Dragoons Brigade
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 70% - Epsilon Indi
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 60% -
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - Kittery
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 100% - deployed to St Ives
6th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 90% - Paris
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Elite – 70% - Genoa
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Veteran – 60% - Frazer
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Green – 70% - Defiance
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Regular – 80% - Montour
Lexington Combat Guards
1st Lexington Combat Guards – 32nd Recon – Veteran – 70% (Re)
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – 241st Battle – Regular – 70% (Re)
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – 180th Dragoon – Veteran– 70%
Messenger’s of Shiva
1st Messengers of Shiva LCT – Green – 100%
2nd Messengers of Shiva LCT – Green – 100%
New Avalon Cavaliers
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 100% (Re) – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – Elite – 80% (Re) – El Dorado
New Ivaarsen Chasseurs
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Elite – 100% - Tripoli
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Veteran – 100%
Robinson Rangers
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Elite – 80% (Re) - Robinson
2nd Robinson Rangers RCT – Veteran – 100% - heavily upgraded with Omnimechs – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Green – 100%
4th Robinson Rangers RCT – Veteran – 100% - former Fighting Urukhai,
5th Robinson Rangers RCT – Elite – 100% - former Narhal’s Raiders, fanatically anti-Kurita.
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Regular – 100% - Robinson
St Ives Armoured Cavalry
1st St Ives Lancers – Elite – 60%
2nd St Ives Lancers – Veteran – 20%
3rd St Ives Lancers – Veteran – 80% - Former Rubinsky’s Light Horse
1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers – Elite – 70%
Syrtis Fusiliers
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Green – 100% - New Syrtis – earmarked for task force Victor
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 60%
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 70% -
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Veteran – 100%
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Elite – 100% (Re)
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Regular – 100%
Syrtis Hussars
1st Syrtis Hussars LCT – Green –
2nd Syrtis Hussars LCT – Green – New Syrtis
Tancredi Loyalists
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100% - Tancredi
2nd Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100% - Kesai IV
3rd Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Green – 100%
Tikonov Cossacks
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Regular – 100%
2nd Tikonov Cossacks – Green – 60%
3rd Tikonov Cossacks – Veteran – 80%
Capellan March Militias
Achernar CMM – Green – 100%
Alcyone CMM – Regular – 100%
Nanking CMM – Green – 100%
New Syrtis CMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
Ridgebrook CMM – Green – 100%
Sirdar CMM – Regular – 100%
Valexa CMM – Regular – 80%
Warren CMM – Green – 100%
Crucis March Militia
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Regular – 100%
Broken Wheel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Islamabad CrMM – Green – 100%
Kestrel CrMM – Regular – 100%
Malagrotta CrMM – Green – 100%
Marlette CrMM – Regular – 100% (Re)
New Avalon CrMM – Regular – 100%
Point Barrow CrMM – Green – 100%
Remagen CrMM – Regular – 100%
Tsamma CrMM – Regular – 100%
Draconis March Militia
Addicks DMM – Regular – 100%
Bremond DMM – Regular – 100%
Bryceland DMM – Regular – 100% - Niles
Dahar DMM – Regular – 100% - armour brigade formed
Kentares DMM – Veteran – 70%
Kilbourne DMM – Green – 100%
Mayetta DMM – Green – 100% - 2 training companies included
Milligan DMM – Green – 100%
Raman DMM – Green – 100%
Robinson DMM – Green – 100%
Albion Military Academy Training Cadre
1st Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd Albion Training Cadre – Green – 100%
NAIS Cadet Cadre
1st NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
2nd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
3rd NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
4th NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
5th NAIS Cadre – Green – 100%
Lexington Military Academy Light Combat Teams
1st Lexington Military Academy LCT – Green – 100%
2nd Lexington Military Academy LCT – Green – 100%
Academy Training Forces
Filtvelt Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlans – Green – 100%
Kilbourne Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Point Barrow Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Robinson Battle Academy Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Tancredi War College Light Combat Team – Green – 100% - LCT
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Green – 100%
Warrior’s Hall Training Regiment – Green – 100%
Training Battalions – organised as LCT’s
1st Bell Training Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Brockton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Claxton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Galtor Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Hurik Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Jasmine Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Preston Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Sheraton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100%
Temporary Training battalions – Organised as LCT’s
1st Capella Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Corey Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Claxton Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Hexare Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Menkib Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st St Ives Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Styk Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
1st Truth Reinforced Training Battalion – Green – 100% - newly formed
Clan Sun Jaguar Touman
Alpha Galaxy
Gold Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
1st Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 70% - Valois
2nd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 90% - Valois
3rd Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 60% - Valois
Beta Galaxy – Galaxy Commander Russou Howell
1st Sun Jaguar Grenadiers – Elite – 60%
5th Sun Jaguar Guards – Veteran – 80%
6th Sun Jaguar Dragoons – Elite – 80%
Delta Galaxy
Silver Keshik (Trinary) – Elite – 100%
3rd Fidelis Jaguar Cavaliers – Veteran – 70%
1st Fidelis Jaguar Mystics – Veteran – 50% - Star Colonel Inamma formerly a Nova Cat
4th Sun Jaguar Guards – Regular – 70% - entirely freebirth and mostly armour formation
Omega Galaxy
1st Sun Jaguar Militia – Regular – 50% - Fugeres
2nd Sun Jaguar Militia – Green – 50% - Frankson
1st Fidelis Jaguar PGC – Green – 100% - Frankson – mostly infantry and some armour
Clan Sun Jaguar Warships
CSJ Rebirth – Black Lion – repairing and upgrading at Arcadia by June 3070
CSJ Steve Showers – Potemkin
Mercenary Forces
Blue Star Irregulars – Firgrove
- 1894th Light Horse – Elite – 70%
- 21st Rim Worlds – Veteran – 70%
- Avatar’s of Painful Death – Green – 30%
Kerensky’s Blues – Fredessa class corvette – 60% operable
Cunningham Commando’s
- 1st Cunningham Commando’s – Veteran – 70%
1st Federated Arcadians – Veteran – 70%
Fighting Urukhai
- 8th Striker – Veteran – 90% - Galtor
- Demestri’s Sluggers – Veteran – 90% - Cylene
- Roman’s Bar Hounds – Veteran – 80% - Paris
Hansen’s Roughriders – Elite – 70%
Harlock’s Warriors – Green – 90%
Illician Lancers
- 59th Striker – Veteran – 90%
- 1st Rangers – Green – 60%
- 4th Ranger – Veteran – 80%
- 9th Ranger – Regular – 70%
- 21st Ranger – Regular – 80%
Lockhardt’s Ironsides – Regular – 35% - former CCAF troops
Lone Star Regiment – Regular – 110%
Longwood’s Bluecoats – Veteran – 90% - 2 Battalions
Medusan’s – Veteran – 100% - New Syrtis/Firgrove
Northwind Highlanders – All units garrisoning Northwind
- 1st Kearny Highlanders – Elite – 70% -
- Stirling’s Fusiliers – Elite – 100%
- Mulvaney’s Regiment – Elite – 100%
- Northwind Hussars – Elite – 40% -
Regulators – Regular – 80% - Kansu
Screaming Eagles – Veteran – 100% (Re) – Niles
13th Stalking Horse – Veteran – 100% - Alta Vista
12th Vegan Rangers – Addicks and Nanking PDZ
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 90%
- Beta Regiment – Veteran – 100%
- Gamma Regiment – Veteran – 80%
- Delta Regiment – Green – 50%
Wild Geese – Elite – 100% -
Wilson’s Hussars - Veteran – 60% – Bell
Wolf’s Dragoons – garrisoning Outreach
- Alpha Regiment – Elite – 100%
- Beta Regiment – Green – 30%
- Zeta Battalion – Elite – 100%
Naval Forces
Fox Class Corvettes
1st Corvette Flotilla (Re) – Achernar and Nanking PDZ
FSS Dahar – Flotilla Flagship – Fox II
FSS Edwards – Fox II
FSS Galax – 1st Division Flagship – Heavy damage – Upgrading to Fox II by December 3069
FSS Kittery II
FSS Woodstock – 2nd Division Flagship – Heavy damage – Upgrading to Fox II by December 3069
FSS Ridgebrook – Fox II
FSS Kathil - Light Damage – Upgrading to Fox II by December 3069
FSS Bryceland – Fox II – Light Damage – Upgrading to Fox II by December 3069
FSS Fox – 3rd Division Flagship – 3rd Division detached to escort damaed ships to Edwards
FSS Broken Wheel –
FSS Salem – Moderate Damage
FSS Northfield – Moderate Damage
2nd Corvette Flotilla (Re) – New Avalon Combat Region
FSS Indomitable – Flotilla Flagship – Upgrading to Fox II by March 3070
FSS Addicks – 1st Division Flagship – Upgrading to Fox II by March 3070
FSS Intrepid – Upgrading to Fox II by March 3070
FSS Indefatigable – – Upgrading to Fox II by March 3070
FSS Tikonov – 2nd Division Flagship – Fox II
FSS Chesterton – Fox II
FSS Argyle – Fox II
FSS Tortuga – Fox II
FSS Dothan – Fox II – 3rd Division Flagship
FSS Molino – Fox II
FSS Evansville – Fox II
FSS Sonia – Fox II
3rd Corvette Flotilla – Capellan March – 1st Division New Syrtis PDZ, 2nd Division Valexa PDZ
FSS New Sytris – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Benet III – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Clovis
FSS Goshen
FSS Marduk – 2nd Division Flagship – Sarna
FSS Filtvelt –
FSS Sakhara
FSS New Haiti
4th Corvette Flotilla – Draconis March
FSS Robinson – Flotilla Flagship – Fox II
FSS Antrim – 1st Division Flagship – Fox II
FSS Murmansk – Fox II
FSS Brest – Fox II
FSS Kenatres – 2nd Division Flagship – Fox II
FSS Galtor – Fox II
FSS Warren – Fox II
FSS Malarn – Fox II
FSS Benedict – 3rd Division Flagship – Fox II
FSS Hoff – Fox II
FSS Stein’s Folly – Fox II
FSS Redfield – Fox II
5th Corvette Flotilla – Draconis March, Bryceland, Milligan and Kilbourne PDZ
FSS Sherwood – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Tancredi – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Hobbs –
FSS Rowe –
FSS Remagen – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Mirach
FSS Logandale
FSS Weldon
6th Corvette Flotilla – Sirdar PDZ
FSS Markesan – Flotilla Flagship
FSS El Dorado – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Redfield
FSS Talcott
FSS McHenry – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Ulan Bator
FSS Ozawa – light damage – repairing and upgrading by June 3070
FSS Lothair – light damage – repairing and upgrading by June 3070
7th Corvette Flotilla
FSS Elbar – Fox II – Flotilla Flagship
FSS Andro – Fox II – 1st Division Flagship
FSS Montcoal – Fox II
FSS New Rhodes III – Fox II
FSS Jesup – Fox II – 2nd Division Flagship
FSS Hoonaar – Fox II
1st Destroyer Squadron – Novaya Zemlya – protecting carriers
FSS Davion – Squadron Flagship
FSS Defender –
FSS Defiant –
FSS Durban –
2nd Destroyer Squadron – 1st Cruiser Squadron
FSS Daring – Squadron Flagship –
FSS Dryad – heavy damage – at Arcadia – repairing by march 3070
FSS Divine
3rd Destroyer Squadron – Robinson
FSS Diana – Squadron Flagship
FSS Diamond
FSS Dastardly
FSS Dragon
1st Patrol Squadron – Capellan march patrolling
FSS Congress – Squadron Flagship
FSS Churchill –
FSS Courageous
FSS Cahill
1st Cruiser Squadron – Assigned to First Prince – Tikonov
FSS Melissa Davion – First Prince’s Flagship
FSS Hanse Davion –
FSS Ian Davion –
FSS Richard Davion
2nd Cruiser Squadron – Draconis March
FSS Alexander Davion – Squadron Flagship
FSS Lucien Davion –
FSS Simon Davion –
FSS Carl Davion
3rd Cruiser Squadron – Capellan March
FSS Robert Davion – Squadron Flagship – home ported New Syrtis
FSS Andrew Davion –
FSS Joseph Davion
FSS Charles Davion
4th Cruiser Squadron – Tikonov
FSS Reynard Davion –
FSS Etien Davion
FSS Marie Davion
FSS William Davion
Detached Duties
FSS Covenant –
FSS Trickery and Trickster – Inazuma class corvettes
1st Carrier Battle Group – Tikonov
FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion – New Syrtis carrier
FSS Duncan
FSS Dale
2nd Carrier Battle Group
FSS Ran Felsner
3rd Carrier Battle Group
FSS Aaron Sandoval
4th Carrier Battle Group
FSS Matilda Davion
-
AFFS DEPLOYMENT
Draconis March
Addicks PDZ
Addicks DMM – Addicks
4th Deneb Light Cavalry RC – Deneb Kaitos
5th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Deneb Kaitos
2nd Crucis Lancers RCT – Errai
5th Robinson Rangers – Murchison
2nd Davion Guards RCT – Murchison
4th Davion Guards RCT – Murchison
27th Avalon Hussars RCT – Ruchbah
Davion Assault Guards RCT – Helen
12th Vegan Rangers Alpha Regiment – Towne – M
12th Vegan Rangers Beta Regiment – Towne - M
12th Vegan Rangers Gamma Regiment – Ozawa – M
12th Vegan Rangers Delta Regiment – Ruchbah – M
Northwind Highlanders Stirling’s Fusiliers – Northwind – M
Northwind Highlanders Mulvaney’s Regiment – Northwind – M
Northwind Highlanders 1st Kearny – Northwind – M
Northwind Highlanders Northwind Hussars – Northwind – M
Kentares PDZ
Kentares DMM – Kentares
12th Deneb Light Cavalry – Skat
Fighting Urukhai 8th Striker – Markab – M
Fighting Urukhai Demestri’s Sluggers – Cylene – M
2nd NAIS Cadre – Mara
4th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Clovis
Raman PDZ
Raman DMM – Raman
2nd Robinson Rangers – Marduk
3rd Robinson Rangers RCT – Galtor
1st Galtor Reinforced Training Battalion – Galtor
1st Galtor Borderers – Galtor
1st Argyle Lancers – Klathandu IV
3rd Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Klathandu IV
6th Feduns Dragoons RCT – Paris
1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – Tripoli
8th Crucis Lancers RCT – New Mendham
41st Avalon Hussars RCT – Benet III
5th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Benet III
3rd Crucis Lancers RCT – Wapakoneta
Fighting Urukhai Bar Hounds – David – M
Le Blanc PDZ
Robinson DMM – Robinson
Robinson Battle Academy Training Regiment – Robinson
1st Robinson Rangers RCT – Robinson
4th FSAC – Robinson – Forming up
2nd New Ivaarsen Chasseurs – New Ivaarsen
6th Robinson Rangers RCT – Le Blanc
1st Cunningham Commando’s – Le Blanc – M
Dahar PDZ
Dahar DMM – Dahar
Sakhara Academy Training Battalion – Sakhara
4th Robinson Rangers – Cassias
6th Crucis Lancers RCT – Cimeron
9th Avalon Hussars RCT – Glenmora
11th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Barlow’s End
Bremond PDZ
Bremond DMM – Bremond
4th Ceti Hussars RCT – Bremond
2nd Lexington Military Academy LCT – Sun Prairie
Bryceland PDZ
Bryceland DMM – Bryceland
1st Tancredi Loyalist LCT – Tancredi
Tancredi War College Light Combat Team – Tancredi
Davion Heavy Guards RCT – Tancredi
1st Ceti Hussars RCT – Groveld
2nd Ceti Hussars RCT – Delacruz
1st Conroe Reinforced Training Battalion – Conroe
1st Conroe Borderers – Conroe
3rd NAIS Cadre – Kesai IV
2nd Tancredi Loyalists LCT – Kesai IV
Screaming Eagles – Niles – M
Mayetta PDZ
Mayetta DMM – Mayetta
11th Avalon Hussars – Verde
Milligan PDZ
Milligan DMM – Milligan
5th Avalon Hussars RCT – Woodbine
14th Avalon Hussars – Woodbine
13th Stalking Horse – Alta Vista – M
Kilbourne PDZ
Kilbourne DMM – Kilbourne
1st Avalon Hussars RCT – Abbeyville
Kilbourne Academy Training Regiment – Kilbourne
3rd Albion Cadre – Delos IV
Capellan March
Valexa PDZ
Valexa CMM – Valexa
1st Aragon Borderers – New Aragon
1st New Aragon Reinforced Training Battalion – New Aragon
1st Bell Borderers – Bell –
1st Bell Reinforced Training Battalion – Bell
Goshen War College Training Battalion – Goshen
Lone Star Regiment – Axton – M
Kathil PDZ
2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Kathil
1894th Light Horse – Kathil
21st Rim Worlds – Novaya Zemyla
1st Syrtis Hussars LCT – Novaya Zemyla
Alcyone PDZ
Alcyone CMM – Alcyone
1st Kittery Borderers – Kittery
1st Kittery Reinforced Training Battalion – Kittery
New Sytris PDZ
New Syrtis CMM – New Syrtis
Warrior’s Hall Training Regiment – New Syrtis
8th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – New Syrtis
2nd Syrtis Hussars LCT – New Syrtis
22nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Talon/Wernke
Medusan’s – New Syrtis
Sirdar PDZ
Sirdar CMM – Madras – Housekarle
1st Dragonlords RCT – Bromhead
1st Mitchel Borderers – Mitchel
1st Mitchel Reinforced Training Battalion – Mitchel
1st Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion – Bromhead
1st Bromhead Borderers Cadre – Not active
Altair PDZ
Ridgebrook CMM – Ridgebrook
2nd Dragonlords RCT – Lindsay
4th Crucis Lancers RCT – Midale
Avatar’s of Painful Death – Firgrove – M
Warren PDZ
Warren CMM – Warren
10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Hyalite
36th Avalon Hussars RCT – Lothair
12th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Montour
Grand Base PDZ
Illician Lancers 59th Striker – Raphael
Illician Lancers 4th Rangers – Nihal
1st Capellan Dragoons – Grand Base
8th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Claxton
1st Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Housekarle
6th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Menke
1st Claxton Reinforced Training Battalion – Claxton
1st Claxton Borderer’s Cadre – Not active
Victoria PDZ
Illician Lancers 9th Rangers – Decatur
Illician Lancers 21st Rangers – Bellatrix
2nd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Pojos
3rd Dragonlords RCT – Victoria
1st Crucis Lancers – Egress
3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Zanzibar
4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT– Hurik
1st Hurik Reinforced Training Battalion – Hurik
1st Hurik Borderer’s Cadre – Not active
Crucis March
Archemar Combat Region
Marlette CrMM – Marlette
1st Albion Training Cadre – Markesan
1st Davion Guards RCT – Markesan
Davion Old Guard RCT – Markesan
1st Revenant Guards RCT – Markesan
1st Kathil Uhlans RCT – Markesan
1st NAIS Cadre – Johnsondale
Davion Young Guards RCT – Muskegon – 1 Battalion
1st Avalon Borderers LCT – Edwards
Kestrel Combat Region
Kestrel CrMM – Kestrel
Harlock’s Warriors – Kirklin – M
1st Lexington Military Academy LCT – Lexington
New Avalon Combat Region
New Avalon CrMM – New Avalon
3rd Davion Guards RCT – New Avalon
6th Dragonlords RCT – New Avalon
1st New Avalon Cavaliers – New Avalon
2nd New Avalon Cavaliers – El Dorado
15th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Galax
Davion Young Guards RCT – Salem/Talcott/Victoria – 1 battalion each
2nd Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Torrence
Nunivak Combat Region
Remagen CrMM – Remagen
3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT – Colorado
28th Avalon Hussars RCT – Gulkana
2nd Albion Training Cadre – Killarney
3rd Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Chirikof
Islamabad Combat Region
Islamabad CrMM – Islamabad
2nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Pirates Haven Cluster
3rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Pirates Haven Cluster
1st Messengers of Shiva LCT – Panpour
2nd Messengers of Shiva LCT – Islamabad
6th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Panpour
7th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Islamabad
8th Avalon Borderer’s LCT – Basantapur
Malagrotta Combt Region
Malagrotta CrMM – Malagrotta
23rd Avalon Hussars – June
Point Barrow Combat Region
Point Barrow Academy Training Regiment – Point Barrow
Point Barrow CrMM – Point Barrow
Hasek-Davion Martial Academy Uhlan’s – Defiance
Tsamma Combat Region
Tsamma CrMM – Tsamma
5th NAIS Cadre – Cerulean
Anjin Muerto Combat Region
Anjin Muerto CrMM – Anjin Muerto
1st Brockton Reinforced Training Battalion – Brockton
1st Brockton Borderers – Brockton
42nd Avalon Hussars RCT – Crofton
Lockhardt’s Ironsides – Rentz
4th NAIS Cadre – Shawnee
Broken Wheel Combat Region
Broken Wheel CrMM – Broken Wheel
Filtvelt Academy Training Regiment– Filtvelt
21st Avalon Hussars RCT – Maram
1st Illician Rangers – Lackland – m
Periphery Combat Region – To be Tortuga Combat Region when fully integrated
12th Avalon Hussars RCT – Cooperland –
20th Avalon Hussars RCT – Sun Jaguar Enclaves
34th Avalon Hussars RCT – New Haiti –
1st Tortuga Borderers – Tortuga
1st Tortuga Reinforced Training Battalion – Tortuga
League March
Achernar PDZ
Achernar CMM – Achernar
Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group – Tikonov
2nd Tikonov Cossacks – Tikonov
Regulators – Kansu – M
17th Avalon Hussars RCT – Bharat
Nanking PDZ
Nanking CMM – Nanking
33rd Avalon Hussars RCT – Zurich
1st Sheraton Knights – Sheraton
1st Sheraton Reinforced Training Battalion – Sheraton
1st Woodstock Borderers – Woodstock
1st Woodstock Reinforced Training Battalion – Woodstock
Wolf’s Dragoons Alpha Regiment – Outreach – M
1st Wilson’s Hussars – Tera Firma – M
Federated Arcadians – Capolla – M
Zion PDZ
7th Crucis Lancers RCT – Elgin
Wolf’s Dragoons Zeta Battalion – Elgin
1st FSAC – “Tikonov Worlds”
39th Avalon Hussars RCT – Zion
Styk PDZ
1st Tikonov Cossacks – Styk
1st Styk Reinforced Training Battalion – Styk
4th Dragonlords RCT – St Andre
2nd FSAC – Liao
Corey PDZ
1st Corey Reinforced Training Battalion – Corey
8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT – Second Try
1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT – Elnath
Wild Geese – Tsinghai – M
Davion Light Guards RCT – Campertown
Hansen’s Roughriders – Corey – M
Truth
1st Lexington Combat Guards – Sarna
5th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT – Sarna
1st FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Truth
1st Truth Reinforced Training Battalion – Truth
Menkib PDZ
5th Dragonlords RCT – Palos
3rd Lexington Combat Guards – Menkib
1st Menkib Reinforced Training Battalion – Menkib
Ingersoll PDZ
15th Avalon Hussars RCT – Exedor
26th Avalon Hussars RCT – Jasmine
3rd Ceti Hussars RCT – Bithinia
2nd Lexington Combat Guards – Ingersoll
1st Ingersoll Reinforced Training Battalion – Ingersoll
1st Jasmine Reinforced Training Battalion – Jasmine
1st Jasmine Borderer’s Cadre – Not active
Capella PDZ
5th Crucis Lancers RCT – Necromo
4th Avalon Hussars RCT – Geifer
1st Arcadians RCT – Ares
1st Capella Reinforced Training Battalion – Capella
St Ives PDZ
1st St Ives Lancers – St Ives
2nd St Ives Lancers – St Ives
3rd Tikonov Cossacks – St Ives
1st St Ives Reinforced Training Battalion – St Ives
3rd St Ives Lancers – Milos
1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers – Indicass
1st St Ives Jannissaries Brigade – Denbar
5th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Warlock
Hexare PDZ
3rd FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Preston
5th Davion Guards RCT – Imalda
3rd FSAC – Gei-Fu
7th FedSun’s Dragoons RCT – Hexare
1st Hexare Reinforced Training Battalion – Hexare
1st Chisholm Raiders RCT – Harloc
1st Preston Reinforced Training Battalion – Preston
1st Preston Borderer’s Cadre – Not active
Detached Duty
Sun Jaguars
Alpha Galaxy – Markesan
Beta Galaxy – Valois
Delta Galaxy – Fugeres
Omega Galaxy – Frankeson
-
Industrial/Infrastructure Changes
Capellan March
Axton
– Wangker plant: increased to 6 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line.
Bell
- Hasek Refit Centre - Former Bell Repair Yards,
Chesterton
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Line Argus-o, 2 Dervish-O, Phoenix Hawk and Wasps – AFFS and ComGuards 50/50 split but not Argus-O or Dervish-O. Lorica Battle armour plant for ComGuards. 1 Argus-O line being added – January 3070
Demeter
- Lycomb-Davion: 1 Guillotine line for SLDF/ComGuards – 3 Stuka lines under construction – going online in January, April and July 3070
Firgrove
- Clyde Shipyards: Excalibur and Colossus dropships
- Firgrove Consortium – Greenock School and Manufacturing and Clyde Shipyards: 1 Ahab, 1 Reiver and 1 Vulcan line for 50/50 split with AFFS ComGuards –Building a Vulcan fighter line – going operational in November 3070
Grand Base
- Earthwerks: 1 Archer, 2 Cataphract, 1 Griffin, 1 Shadow Hawk, 1 Stinger line
Kathil – expanding naval slips
- GM: 2 extra Blackjack-O lines. Expanding Tunnel Rat lines.
Menke
- SunCorp Industries: 2 Warhammer lines, 1 Emperor line adding a Longbow line by December 3070
- St Ives Metals Industries: 2 Po lines
- GM: Upgrading armour production to full battlemech production – Stealth battlemech line, going online in September 3070
New Syrtis
– Johnston Industries: 4 Dagger-O lines, 1 Caeser line, 1 Thunderbolt, 1 Axman line, 1 Hatchetman line, 1 Nightsky line, 1 Garm line, 2 Goblin tank lines, 3 Glory tank lines – adding a Valiant line – March 3070
- Expanding naval slips and upgrading them
Novoya Zemyla
– Johnston Industries : 3 Dagger-O lines, 1 Nightsky line, 1 Hatchetman line, 1 Axman line, 1 Caesar line.
– Kallon Industries: 1 Templar, Jaggermech III and 2 Enforcer III line. Cavalier battle armour annex.
Outreach
- Blackwell Industries: 1 Imp-C, 1 Gallowglass-WD and 1 Falcon-C line. Adding a Marauder II IIC line by January 3071
Victoria
- Johnston Industries: 1 Sling line - 1 Yu Haung/Kai, 1 Caeser, 1 Axman– all being rebuilt going online in January 3070, March 3070 and April 3070 in reverse order.
- Earthwerks: Flea
Crucis March
Andalusia
- Bergan Industries: 3 Wayland Mobile Base lines, 1 locust line.
Augusta
- Corean Enterprise: 1 Centurion line and a fully automated Musketeer plant
Batavia
- Jalastar Aerospace plant: 2 Sabre and 2 Sparrowhawk – 1 Sabre line for Comstar. 2 Javelin-O lines.
Baxley
- Jalastar Aerospace plant: 2 Sparrowhawk line, 1 Javelin-O line
Belladonna
- Kallon Industries: 1 Hornet line, 1 Wolverine, 1 Griffin, 1 Shadow Hawk, 1 Exterminator, 1 Penetrator, 1 Templar-O, 1 Partisan, 1 Challenger MBT, 1 Demon Tank line also operating. All production split 50/50 between ComGuards and AFFS except Templar-O.
Bristol
- Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons plant: 3 Fury Command Tank line. building 3 lines for Fury command tanks – going online in January, April and June 3070
Brockton
- Maltex Corporation: 1 Highlander, 1 Wyvern line
Broken Wheel
- Andoran Industries Ltd: 2 Clint lines, 2 Hussars and 2 Mercury lines split 50/50 between ComGuards/AFFS
- Quickscell plant expanding to 2 pegasus lines, and adding a Hetzer, Vedette and ACP line – to be split between AFFS/ComGuards 50/50,
Crofton
- SunCorp Industries: 3 Warhammer lines, 1 Longbow, 1 Highlander, 1 Emperor, 1 Black Hawk, 1 Avatar, 1 Sunder and 3 Thanatos-O lines
Defiance
- Davion-Com: 1 Flashman, 1 Warhammer, 1 Crab, 2 Sentinel, 1 Mongoose, 1 Nexus 50/50 split between Comguards and AFFS except the Nexus which is exclusively for the ComGuards.
- GM: A small battle armour facility building “Lorica” variant Cavalier BA
Delavan
- Universal Air – large scale production of Star Lord and Tramp as well as new monolith production in cooperation with Challenge. Ares attack craft being produced in growing numbers.
Edwards
- New Independence Weaponry – 1 Victor and Atlas line split between the AFFS and ComGuards.
El Dorado
- Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative: 1 Battlemaster line, 2 Templar line, 3 Ajax line, 1 Demon line (50/50 ComGuards/AFFS).
Filtvelt
- FedBoeing: A new dropship manufacturing complex being built with plans for a jumpship yard already in the works. Dropship yard entering production in April 3063, jumpship yard August 3064 – to produce Mules, Unions and Merchant jumpships. Cargoking and Cargomaster production being added by July 3068
- Wangker: 4 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line.
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Argus-O, 1 Dervish-O, 1 Enforcer, 1 Osiris lines, as well as a massive industrial mech production facility building a huge industrial mech factory and a battle armour annex – building Cavaliers, Grenadiers and Infiltrator II’s. Considering building a new Argus or Dervish line.
– Outback FarmMechs: 1 Watchman, 1 Locust,1 Stinger line. Industrial mech production – 1 harvester ant line and 1 cattlemaster line
Galax – expanding naval slips and civilian jumpships. Colossus dropships entering production by the end of 3065. Large scale expansion of NAC-30s production. Dropship Cargoking and Cargomaster being added April 3068
Gulkana
- Yeffter’s Weapons now producing major NAC-30 numbers for warships.
Islamabad
- Jalastar Aerospace: 2 Sabre and 1 Sparrowhawk – 1 Sabre line for Comstar. 2 Javelin-O lines
June
– Lycomb-Davion: 3 Stuka, 1 Hellcat, 1 Lightning line and 1 Awesome battlemech line. Adding a Guillotine line – finishing March 3070.
– Corean Enterprises: 3 Centurion lines, 2 Valkyrie, 1 Hammerhead lines as well as an automated plant to produce Musketeers,
- Michaelson: 2 Yellow Jacket and 2 Hawk Moth lines.
Kestrel
– New Independence Weaponry: 1 Atlas, 2 Marauder II, 1 Cyclops, 1 Zeus, 1 Gunslinger, 1 Victor, 1 Marauder and 1 Jaggermech III line. 1 Battlemaster line going operational in September 3070
Killarney
– Arc Royal MechWorks: 3 Wolfhound lines and 2 Arctic Fox-O lines. Looking into increased Arctic Fox-O lines.
Kirklin
– Kallon Industries: 1 Penetrator, 1 Thunderbolt, 1 Crusader, 1 Enforcer III line added to existing plant. A Pillager line being added by January 3070
Layover
- Salvatore Inc: Large scale production of Vengeance and Colossus dropships divided between the AFFS and ComGuards.
- Quickscell: 2 Vedette, 2 Hetzer, 2 Heavy APC, 1 SRM Carrier, 1 LRM Carrier, 1 Laser carrier, 1 Autocannon carrier, 1 Scorpion, 1 ACP and 1 Pegasus line.
Markesan
- New Earth Trading Company facility: 5 existing Alacorn lines, 5 Von luckner lines, 4 Karnov lines, 2 Engineering vehicles, 2 Gabriel lines. Production split between AFFS and ComGuards 50/50
- Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons plant: building 2 lines for Fury command tanks – going online in July and August 3070
Marlette
- Michaelson: 4 Yellow Jacket and 4 Hawk Moth lines building for ComGuards
- Davion-Com: 1 Spartan line, 1 Shootist, 1 Battle Cobra-O and a BA Lorica production facility – going online in December 3070, November 3070, December 3070 and July 3070. Phoenix Hawk and Griffin lines also under construction – August and September 3070 respectively.
New Avalon
- Lycomb-Davion: 6 Stuka lines expansions of Stuka production (4 new lines), 1 Hellcat line, 1 Reiver line, 1 Lightning line, 2 Huscarls lines, 1 Hammerhead line, 1 Awesome line, 2 Guillotine lines, 1 Lancelot line – half of Guillotine and Lancelot production to go to ComGuards.
- Corean Enterprise: 1 Black Hawk KU, 1 Trebuchet line, 6 Centurion lines (2 of them new), 1 fireball line and a fully automated Musketeer plant as well as an automated Valkyrie plant.
- Achernar Battlemechs: 1 Argus-O, 3 Dervish-O, 3 Enforcer III, 1 Phoenix Hawk, 1 Osiris, 1 Wasp, 1 Locust lines
New Damascus
- Federated Suns Defence Industries: 1 Marauder, 1 Phoenix Hawk, 1 Stinger, 1 Locust, 2 Wasp line, 1 Fulcrum line, 1 Vedette, 1 J Edgar line, 1 Light SRM Carrier, 1 Pit Bull, 2 Bull Dog lines, 1 Thunderbird aerospace line
Northfield
- Corean Industries: 1 Devastator, 1 Centurion and 1 Fireball line for AFFS/ComGuards 50/50 split of the Devastator line.
- Corsara Weapons: 1 Crab line – for AFFS/ComGuards adding a King Crab line and Black Watch line – going operational in February 3070 and July 3070
Palmyra
- Jalastar Aerospace: 4 Javelin-O line,
Panpour
- Challenge Systems: large scale production of Monolith jumpships.
- Jalastar Aerospace: 3 Javelin-O lines, 4 Centurion lines, 2 grasshopper lines, 6 sparrowhawk lines, 3 sabre lines, 1 spad and 1 Zero lines. Adding a Javelin-O line by March 3070
Point Barrow
- GM: 1 Victor, 1 Marauder, 1 Flashman, 1 Stealth line, 1 Blackjack-O line along with a Grenadier and Cavalier BA plant. Both being expanded almost constantly and at an increased pace
Salem
- Gm plant added a Blackjack-O line
Shawnee
- Andoran Industries Ltd – 1 Clint line. Adding a Hussar and Mercury line – going online in June and September 3070. Sold to AFFS/Comguards 50/50
Talcott
- Gm plant now producing Grenadiers and Cavaliers in record numbers. Continuing to be expanded continually. Blackjack refit centre upgraded to produce Blackjack-O.
Torrence
- Johnston Industries: 2 Dagger-O lines, 1 Caeser, 1 Thunderbolt-NAIS and 1 Nightsky lines.
- Veridan Dynamics plant reopening to build Tiger medium tanks (starting in March 3067) and a new line for Vali artillery tanks (starting in April 3067). 6 Pitbull truck lines – increased Pitbull production being considered
Vandalia
- Blackstone Industries: 1 Enfield line, 1 Talon line and 1 Ostscout line. 2nd Ostscout line being considered
Victoria
- GM: 1 Nightstar, 1 Maelstrom, 1 Cestus, 1 line of Blacjack-O and 1 line of Wasps – building for AFFS/Comguards 50/50. As well as a Lorica BA annex for Comguards.
Draconis March
Addicks
– Johnson Industries: 2 Dagger-O lines, 1 Hatchetman, 2 Goblin line
Alta Vista
- New Independence Weaponry: 1 Atlas, 1 Gunslinger and 1 Victor
Benet III
– Johnson Industries: 1 Dagger-O line
Clovis
- Sandoval Refit Centre –
Errai
- Maltex: 2 Thug, 1 Wyvern lines – 2nd thug line to sell to the ComGuards.
Kentares
- New Earth Trading Company: 1 Alacorn, 1 Von Luckner 1 Gabriel line.Production split between the AFFS/ComGuards. Considering expanding.
Marduk
- Norse Battlemech Works: 1 Avatar-O, 1 Black Hawk KU, 2 Wolverine, 2 Shadow Hawk, 1 Firestarter-O
Mayetta
- Achernar battle armour plant to build Infiltrators, cavaliers and Grenadiers. Expanding.
- Norse Battlemech Works: 1 Shadow Hawk line, 1 Griffin line, 1 Sling line. To add omnimechs
Northwind
- Corsara weapons: 2 King Crab, 1 Black Watch and 2 Crab lines now being offered for sale to AFFS and Highlanders. Crab and King Crab new lines to be sold to the AFFS and Comguards
Ozawa
- General Dynamics: 1 Ostsol line, 2 Kintaro lines, 1 Sentry line, 50/50 sales between AFFS/Comguards, but not a popular design with AFFS who will sell most of the mechs on to mercenaries.
- Veridan Dynamics: 3 Tiger lines, 1 Vali line– Comguards and LA wanting Vali.
Robinson
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks: 2 Sagittairre, 1 Battlemaster, 2 Black Knights (1 for Comstar), 1 Arus-O, 1 Ostsol, 1 Phoenix Hawk, 1 Sentry, 2 Watchman lines
Sun Prairie
- Wangker Aerospace: 4 Corsair lines and 1 Tomahawk line
- Michaelson: 2 Yellow Jacket, 2 Hawk Moth lines.
Tancredi
- Expanding of Laser production to include ER variants and industrial and medical lasers. New models entering production by June 3064.
- Joint Kallon-Prescision: 2 Rifleman lines, 1 Penetrator line and 1 Phoenix Hawk line.
Verde
- FedBoeing: Colossus, Overlord-A3, Overlord and Union dropships being produced. Cargoking and Cargomaster production being added by December 3068-January 3069.
- GM: 1 Demon tank line
- Ranger Battlemechs: 1 Warhammer and 1 Shadow Hawk line
Woodbine
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks: 1 Sagittairre, 1 Black Knight, 1 Sentry, 1 Watchman and 2 Battle Hawk lines
League March
Achernar
- Robinson Standard BattleWorks-Achernar Battlemechs Coop: Building 2 Watchman, 1 Sentry, 1 Battle hawk and 2 Enforcer III lines – going online in January and February 3070, April 3070, January 3070 and April and May 3070. Also building is a large scale annex to produce Cavalier and Infiltrator II BA – going online in December 3069.
Ares
- Bergan Industries: 2 Locust and 1 Stinger lines.
- Earthwerks shipyards: producing Cassandra (Kuan-Ti), Overlord, Overlord A3, Union and Vengeance dropships
- Quickscell: AC carrier, Arrow IV carrier, Bulldog, Heavy Tracked APC, LB 2X carrier, LRM Carrier, Manticore, Ordinance Transport, Scorpion, SRM Carrier and Tracked APC lines.
Capella
- St Ives Metals Industries: 2 Yu Hung (Kai) lines, 1 Ti Tsang (Halberd) line, 1 Marauder, 2 Thunders, 1 Ostroc, 3 Vindicator, 1 Snake line – huge Cavalier and Infiltrator II plant. 1 Defiance-O fighter line.
- Mujika-Wangker Aerospace: 2 Corsair lines retooling (by July-September) and a third line being built – going online in February 3070
- Rashpur Owens shipyards: Monolith,Invader and Merchant class jumpships, Achilles, Avenger and Excalibur class dropships increased production and Triumph dropships continuing.
Corey
- Hollis Incorporated: 1 Battlemaster, 1 Catapult, 3 Huron Warriors lines adding a Highlander line by July 3070
Indicass
- St Ives Metals Industries: 1 Galleon, 1 Coolant Truck, 1 Heavy Wheeled APC, 1 Hetzer, 1 Mobile Command Tank, 1 Predator Tank Destroyer, 1 Swift Wind, 1 Wheeled APC
Nanking
- Kallon Industries: 1 Exterminator, 1 Rifleman, 1 Shadow Hawk and 1 Wolverine line, 1 Ontos and 4 Partisan lines. Adding a Penatrator and Enforcer line – June 3070 and August 3070.
Necromo
- Kai Allard-Liao Memorial Shipyards: Feng Huang cruiser
New Hessen
- Johnston Industries: 1 Thunderbolt-NAIS and 1 Valiant line under construction – completing in November 3070 and August 3070 respectively
Sarna
- Tengo Aerospace: 2 Lightning, 4 Sabre lines plus shipyards producing Mammoths, Mules and Seekers
- Veridan Dynamics: 2 Tiger lines, 1 Vali line under construction – Tigers both going online in April 3070, Vali in July 3070.
St. Ives
- SunCorp: 1 Emperor, 1 Sunder, 1 Longbow, 2 Warhammer, 1 Avatar, 1 Black Hawk lines,
- St Ives Metals Industries: 1 Blackjack-O, 1 Blackjack, 1 Phoenix Hawk line, 1 Po line – to be expanded
- Hildco Interplanetary: 2 Pillagers, 2 Victors lines – adding a Templar-O line by July 3070
- Mujika-Wangker Aerospace: 3 Tomahawk lines being sold to AFFS and Comstar
- Tengo Aerospace: 2 Lightning, 3 Sabre lines
Styk
- Tao Mechworks: 1 Battlemaster, 1 Victor, 1 Crusader lines.
Texlos
- Hildco Interplanetary: 1 Lightning line
Tikonov
- Earthwerks: 1 Thug, 1 Archer, 3 Cataphract, 1Koschei, 1 Thunderbolt, 1 Quickdraw, 1 Ahab (former Transit), 3 Sabre (former Thrush) lines, Comguards/AFFS
- New Independence Weapony: 1 Atlas, 1 Zeus, 1 Victor and 1 Battlemaster line.
- St Ives Metals Industries: 1 Morningstar, 2 Minion lines
Warlock
- St Ives Metals Industries: 1 Marauder, 1 Ostroc, 1 Helios, 1 Blackjack-O and 1 Cossack line, 1 Morningstar, 1 Minion line
Wei
- Jalastar Aerospace: Building 2 centurion lines (completing August and November 3070), 2 Javelin-O lines (completing September and December 3070) and 4 sparrowhawk lines (completing July, August, October and December 3070).
-
Clan Smoke Jaguar
Valois
- Jaguar Industries – 1 Guillotine IIC, 1 Wyvern IIC, 1 Clint IIC and 1 Mist Lynx line, building a Warhawk line which is expected to finish by June 3071
- Yvonne-Isis Construction Plant – 2 Daedalus lines.
-
Yay! Good to see this back!
So. Victor is gonna Victor I suppose? A retaliation strike against Elgin is both justified and makes perfect sense (and I have no idea who this so-called 'ambassador' was from the FWL, I'm guessing all the real diplomats went home when the FWL broke to pieces and this was an anti-Davion janitor left at the embassy who shrugged and took the hat) but taking over Zion? REALLY? When you're already bitching to ComStar about how stretched you are and how you cannot possibly go against the WOB with the Combine threat ... you start a pissing contest with the FWL by *outright annexing* part of the FWL??!!
Yeah, sounds legit for Victor. He should have let his wife take point on this, she has far more credit to speak to such things after all given who she is and could have spun it as a far more anti-WOB move and Zion getting fed up with being used as a punching bag by her former Fathers pet crazies. Or something. Still, whats done is done. Zion is going to need protection ASAP though - happily, Victor is probably the only House Lord right now who can just shrug and throw a half dozen regiments of free Battlemechs at them to stand up into new units with a snap of his fingers...
Strategically, I'm very surprised that Victor is still cycling Fox's into shipyards for upgrades right now, given that war is about to break out. Seems like very bad timing to have warships out of service rather than massing. Damaged warships of course it makes sense that you might as well do the upgrades if it doesn't really add on any more time, but otherwise...
The 4th FSAC is also ... weird. Because it looks nothing like an armored cavalry regiment. Which is just bizarre because there are now a great many very very effective fast heavies and excellent mediums (including key Omnimechs that could allow maximum tactical flexibility) in production now to build such a unit around. One that would pretty much be the realization of Ian Davions vision of with new technology being able to hit both fast AND hard. Instead of a lot of Assault Mechs, which would be a powerful unit, but you might as well make a 2nd Davion Assault Guards in that case...
Still, I'm sure they'll find some use in the coming war!
I also really hope ComStar and the Federated Suns are making contingency plans to protect their own HPGs. There is literally nothing stopping the Combine from targeting them off the bat to try and even the odds now. And in all honestly, they HAVE to if they are going to have any chance against the Federated Suns going forward. Good to see though that ComStars sabotage was pretty damn complete in most cases to the point that the WOB are going to need years, if not a decade, to try and rebuild the network in the Combine. It's not just the parts, its also the highly skilled labor needed, the time for ships to move them and the stuff around ... the logistics are nightmarish. Although the Combine DOES have Black Boxes so they will retain some level of strategic coordination above pony express ships, its still going to be horrifically bad if the Federated Suns unleashes heavy warship supported raiding forces into the 'black' zones. Going for the Combines half a dozen key industrial nodes...
And the WOB themselves might unleash ROM and the Milita to start raiding and hitting key HPG nodes in the Federated Suns for that matter. I feel that we are tipping over a slippery slope here...
As for the FWL going crazy, well, they are in the short term not really a threat given that there are stuck in a four way stare down, with Peter still squatting on their border to boot. Although Connie might start to get very worried about the WOB withdrawing their forces...
But just for kicks, I'd suggest Victor should keep paying the FWL repayments from the Clan War into an escrow account with ComStar and loudly say as much. Announcing that as soon as the FWL can indeed come to an agreement who the money should go to, he'll be happy to repay it (I find it highly unlikely that the Clan War era repayment loans have any kind of legal 'call in the debt NOW' mechanism, at least not without taking a massive haircut) at once. Get everyone arguing even more and looking greedily at that pot of gold - until they completely forget WHY they are calling in the loan in the first place :D
-
Yay! Good to see this back!
So. Victor is gonna Victor I suppose? A retaliation strike against Elgin is both justified and makes perfect sense (and I have no idea who this so-called 'ambassador' was from the FWL, I'm guessing all the real diplomats went home when the FWL broke to pieces and this was an anti-Davion janitor left at the embassy who shrugged and took the hat) but taking over Zion? REALLY? When you're already bitching to ComStar about how stretched you are and how you cannot possibly go against the WOB with the Combine threat ... you start a pissing contest with the FWL by *outright annexing* part of the FWL??!!
Yeah, sounds legit for Victor. He should have let his wife take point on this, she has far more credit to speak to such things after all given who she is and could have spun it as a far more anti-WOB move and Zion getting fed up with being used as a punching bag by her former Fathers pet crazies. Or something. Still, whats done is done. Zion is going to need protection ASAP though - happily, Victor is probably the only House Lord right now who can just shrug and throw a half dozen regiments of free Battlemechs at them to stand up into new units with a snap of his fingers...
Strategically, I'm very surprised that Victor is still cycling Fox's into shipyards for upgrades right now, given that war is about to break out. Seems like very bad timing to have warships out of service rather than massing. Damaged warships of course it makes sense that you might as well do the upgrades if it doesn't really add on any more time, but otherwise...
The 4th FSAC is also ... weird. Because it looks nothing like an armored cavalry regiment. Which is just bizarre because there are now a great many very very effective fast heavies and excellent mediums (including key Omnimechs that could allow maximum tactical flexibility) in production now to build such a unit around. One that would pretty much be the realization of Ian Davions vision of with new technology being able to hit both fast AND hard. Instead of a lot of Assault Mechs, which would be a powerful unit, but you might as well make a 2nd Davion Assault Guards in that case...
Still, I'm sure they'll find some use in the coming war!
I also really hope ComStar and the Federated Suns are making contingency plans to protect their own HPGs. There is literally nothing stopping the Combine from targeting them off the bat to try and even the odds now. And in all honestly, they HAVE to if they are going to have any chance against the Federated Suns going forward. Good to see though that ComStars sabotage was pretty damn complete in most cases to the point that the WOB are going to need years, if not a decade, to try and rebuild the network in the Combine. It's not just the parts, its also the highly skilled labor needed, the time for ships to move them and the stuff around ... the logistics are nightmarish. Although the Combine DOES have Black Boxes so they will retain some level of strategic coordination above pony express ships, its still going to be horrifically bad if the Federated Suns unleashes heavy warship supported raiding forces into the 'black' zones. Going for the Combines half a dozen key industrial nodes...
And the WOB themselves might unleash ROM and the Milita to start raiding and hitting key HPG nodes in the Federated Suns for that matter. I feel that we are tipping over a slippery slope here...
As for the FWL going crazy, well, they are in the short term not really a threat given that there are stuck in a four way stare down, with Peter still squatting on their border to boot. Although Connie might start to get very worried about the WOB withdrawing their forces...
But just for kicks, I'd suggest Victor should keep paying the FWL repayments from the Clan War into an escrow account with ComStar and loudly say as much. Announcing that as soon as the FWL can indeed come to an agreement who the money should go to, he'll be happy to repay it (I find it highly unlikely that the Clan War era repayment loans have any kind of legal 'call in the debt NOW' mechanism, at least not without taking a massive haircut) at once. Get everyone arguing even more and looking greedily at that pot of gold - until they completely forget WHY they are calling in the loan in the first place :D
In fairness - Victor probably should have turned down Zion's request to join the FedSuns. Still that would have been a hard sell for a man who probably at this stage does see himself as something if a liberator. As well as a hard sell to the AFFS/man on the street who's just seen him curbstomp the entire CCAF. Plus for now he's put a single Avalon Hussar RCT into Zion. A veteran RCT granted with top end equipment but it's not like he doesn't have a fair number of those hanging around...
The Fox thing - I agree and disagree. On the one hand: yes, having those ships available now if war breaks out is a Good Thing. But although he knows war is hovering on the horizon, he can't be sure when it will break out. Squeezing in a few extra upgrades is worth some risk. Plus the PR/morals of sending men and women out to fight in what you KNOW is a flawed design that you could upgrade isn't going to sit well with the Warrior Prince.
The 4th FSAC - was mostly me trying not to make every single FSAC a carbon copy "cavalry" unit. Emphasising the "armoured" part of their name. Although as a small spoiler the unit is quickly going to end up as a heavy cav rather than assault cav unit.
The Combines going to be a bit split in the war. The majority in effective HPG blackout stumbling around using black boxes and jumpships, struggling to respond, with a smaller part under Hohiro's command that will rely on their "allies" and will be much more aggressive/responsive.
Provisionally (VERY) I have the WOB currently at 30-35 Militia Divisions, 5 Shadow Divisions and around 10 Protectorate Divisions that are little more than planetary militia.
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man love the update!!!! I wonder what the WD are going to build next...I would suggest getting with one of the other builders and bringing the Lion or maybe the Confederation back into production. they can get other mechs, tanks, and fighters from other suppliers.
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Would the Wobbies have any portable HPG's like the SL had, or will they just have to rebuild everything from scratch. :thumbsup:
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Would the Wobbies have any portable HPG's like the SL had, or will they just have to rebuild everything from scratch. :thumbsup:
I thought that the portable HPG's were shorter ranged than class A and Class B stations.
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Build more Blackjack-O lines and upgrade all the remaining Blackjack lines to the omni-mech version. Refit the Blackjacks already in service or replace them with the Omni-mech and sell off the normal Blackjacks to the smaller powers that need more Battlemechs. Also more Centurion lines for another well rounded medium mech. Maybe start designing that Omni-mech version they discussed a few years back. Looks like the Black Lion class is getting its upgrade and then the new Battlecruiser can start production to give the FSN a greater amount tactical flexibility.
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Build more Blackjack-O lines and upgrade all the remaining Blackjack lines to the omni-mech version. Refit the Blackjacks already in service or replace them with the Omni-mech and sell off the normal Blackjacks to the smaller powers that need more Battlemechs. Also more Centurion lines for another well rounded medium mech. Maybe start designing that Omni-mech version they discussed a few years back. Looks like the Black Lion class is getting its upgrade and then the new Battlecruiser can start production to give the FSN a greater amount tactical flexibility.
Yes and also generate good will with such battlemech redistribution, it could also be used to cover “merc units” send Davion troops but not called AFFS to fight and learn how others would fight
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Just food for thought: you have like a bajillion (I know over exaggerating) Borderers, Reinforced Training Battalions and Training Cadre’s of the same planets IE: Jasmine, Preston, Hurik. I would maybe cut some of those down: combining them together, accidents, Pirate raids, WoB raids, etc because keeping track of six training units for the same planet is going to be hell. That plus the expanded cadres of the already existing school (NAIS, Albion, Lexington) means you might have more Training Regiments that the WoB has actual regiments (again over exaggerating).
Just my two cents on that part...
Also I forget if this was mentioned but I know some of us wanted to see stats for those new Warships. Their are a couple people on the Fan Creations who could definitely help out there if need be.
Don’t forget in Saint Ives about Kuan-Yin (I forget if she died in this AU), Quintus Allard-Liao (MIA again IIRC), Deidre Lear (I missed what happened to her), Quintus Allard, the Kell Hounds now that I think about it (which have little to do with Saint Ives), and maybe Rubinsky’s Renegades (Captain Maxophilia Rubinsky’s merc unit).
Also a couple years off but if you’re looking for ideas Field Manual and TRO 3085? More two cents.
Keep up the excellent work: I always love the TO&E posts personally, But I’m weird.
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Industrial/Infrastructure Changes
Kathil – expanding naval slips
- GM: 2 extra Blackjack-O lines. Expanding Tunnel Rat lines.
What all is GM producing at this point at Kathil?
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Refresh my memory, is GM building the Falconer heavy mech in this AU like in canon? Also is StarCorps/SunCorps going to build the Manteuffel Attack Tank? Personally I always thought it to be suitable replacement for the Patton/Rommel duo in front line RCTs thanks to its versatility. For example, revise the canon B(typical Lyran)variant to a Davion "Sniper" variant mating a standard Gauss rifle to a targeting computer. The design also has enough room in the turret to create a couple of Artillery variants, one utilizing a Sniper Artillery cannon while the other uses the Arrow IV Missle system, this would be especially useful to the Deneb Light Cavalry whose typical TO&E favors hover tanks would gain heavy firepower that can both keep pace with thier mostly light & medium mech and act as a damage sponge for said mechs but can also rely on integral fire support from the artillery equipped units when such support is assigned elsewhere or not present in the first place. If the name is an issue, you could always rename it to something like Pershing or Abrams.
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In fairness - Victor probably should have turned down Zion's request to join the FedSuns. Still that would have been a hard sell for a man who probably at this stage does see himself as something if a liberator. As well as a hard sell to the AFFS/man on the street who's just seen him curbstomp the entire CCAF. Plus for now he's put a single Avalon Hussar RCT into Zion. A veteran RCT granted with top end equipment but it's not like he doesn't have a fair number of those hanging around...
I'm honestly surprised his wife didn't talk him down. Or his other advisors for the most part, he doesn't seem to have a wide array of trusted people with varied opinions to draw on. Although to be fair that is NOT uncommon in Battletech leaders.
The Fox thing - I agree and disagree. On the one hand: yes, having those ships available now if war breaks out is a Good Thing. But although he knows war is hovering on the horizon, he can't be sure when it will break out. Squeezing in a few extra upgrades is worth some risk. Plus the PR/morals of sending men and women out to fight in what you KNOW is a flawed design that you could upgrade isn't going to sit well with the Warrior Prince.
It's flawed sure, but its hardly bad IMO. I can understand him putting the damaged ships into refit cycles at the same time as they are repaired, that makes sense, but taking more of the otherwise fine ships out?
I'd probably have, instead, reshuffled the Corvette Flotilas to concentrate the Fox IIs on the Combine and Terran fronts and shuffle the Fox Is back out to the now more 'calm' areas in the rear and League March, personally. Victor could really find himself missing those ships very soon...
The 4th FSAC - was mostly me trying not to make every single FSAC a carbon copy "cavalry" unit. Emphasising the "armoured" part of their name. Although as a small spoiler the unit is quickly going to end up as a heavy cav rather than assault cav unit.
I can understand that, although the carbon copy is a thing IMO because its exactly what should be done. These are a very specific unit formation capable of very specific actions. You can build a Dragoons unit or a Hussars unit or a Davion Guards unit if you want that instead...
Personally, I would have looked at augmenting the Mech force in a different way to get more striking power. Something like attaching a heavy VTOL unit of new designs? Or doubling the entire Aerospace complement outright, focused on Stukas and other very heavy attack craft?
But I can certinally dig that you want more flavor!
The Combines going to be a bit split in the war. The majority in effective HPG blackout stumbling around using black boxes and jumpships, struggling to respond, with a smaller part under Hohiro's command that will rely on their "allies" and will be much more aggressive/responsive.
So Hohiro crashes into the massed RCTs alongside the WOB in a bloody stalemate (that the AFFS can probably win through sheer attrition if necessary!), while the FSN with raiding units sweeps into the Combines rear and systematically destroys critical industrial targets, often outpacing the news? All the while ComStar quietly slips around the side, then Jumps Terra?
Sounds legit :D
Provisionally (VERY) I have the WOB currently at 30-35 Militia Divisions, 5 Shadow Divisions and around 10 Protectorate Divisions that are little more than planetary militia.
Sounds like a lot ... but when you think that they'll have to leave some of that on Terra at all times, split up a lot of the rest to at least have a token presence at HPGs, then the FWL mess they can't quite get away from and THEN going to war with the Federated Suns?
Man, the WOB crazies must be pulling their hair out at how one patsy after another KEEPS ON SCREWING UP AND DENYING THEM STUFF! The FWL imploding into a quagmire. The Taurian Concordat blew everything in a temper tantrum under a crazy man. The Liaos wasted their gifts and had a crazy Liao incite the wrath of the Federated Suns by unleashing her inner crazy, eliminating them as an ally...
Even if things are spinning out of control, they must think that Kurita at least isn't ****** around and just wants to hit the same guy THEY want to hit ... and then ComStar cockblocks them by destroying the first shipments of material AND ****** over the entire ComStar HPG network that now THEY have to try and rush massive resources to and fix at ruinous expense ...
Fun for the whole family here :D
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Refresh my memory, is GM building the Falconer heavy mech in this AU like in canon? Also is StarCorps/SunCorps going to build the Manteuffel Attack Tank?
I actually forgot the Falconer was made by GM, thought it was just TharHes Industries. I was curious about the Rakshasa though.
I like the Manteuffell, but seems like with everything that happened to StarCorps here it may not have been developed. Maybe a good bone to throw to the Lyrans here and just say it was developed on the Lyran side of StarCorps at Loburg.
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Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery December 3069
Benjamin Regulars
2nd Benjamin Regulars – Regular – 100%
6th Benjamin Regulars – Regular – 100%
9th Benjamin Regulars – Veteran – 100%
15th Benjamin Regulars – Green – 100%
17th Benjamin Regulars – Veteran – 100%
23rd Benjamin Regulars – Green – 100%
24th Benjamin Regulars – Green – 100%
25th Benjamin Regulars – Green – 100%
26th Benjamin Regulars – Green – 100%
Dieron Regulars
2nd Dieron Regulars – Veteran – 100%
3rd Dieron Regulars – Veteran – 70%
8th Dieron Regulars – Veteran – 100%
12th Dieron Regulars – Regular – 100%
15th Dieron Regulars – Regular – 80%
22nd Dieron Regulars – Elite – 80%
24th Dieron Regulars – Regular – 90%
40th Dieron Regulars – Green – 100%
45th Dieron Regulars – Veteran – 70%
46th Dieron Regulars – Green – 90%
47th Dieron Regulars – Green 90%
48th Dieron Regulars – Green – 70%
49th Dieron Regulars – Green – 100% - WOB equipment
50th Dieron Regulars – Green – 100% - WOB equipment
Galedon Regulars
2nd Galedon Regulars – Green – 100%
5th Galedon Regulars – Regular – 100%
12th Galedon Regulars – Regular – 100%
16th Galedon Regulars – Green – 100%
19th Galedon Regulars – Regular – 100% - Valentina
21st Galedon Regulars – Regular – 100%
32nd Galedon Regulars – Green – 100%
42nd Galedon Regulars – Veteran – 100%
43rd Galedon Regulars – Green – 80% - Waldheim
44th Galedon Regulars – Green – 80% - Capra
45th Galdedon Regulars – Green – 100%
46th Galedon Regulars – Green – 100%
47th Galedon Regulars – Green – 100%
48th Galedon Regulars – Green – 80%
Pesht Regulars
4th Pesht Regulars – Regular – 65%
6th Pesht Regulars – Green – 100%
7th Pesht Regulars – Veteran – 75%
10th Pesht Regulars – Green – 100%
11th Pesht Regulars – Green – 100%
12th Pesht Regulars – Green – 100% - secret
13th Pesht Regulars – Green – 80% - secret
14th Pesht Regulars – Green – 80% - secret
Genyosha
1st Genyosha – Elite – 90%
2nd Genyosha – Elite – 80%
3rd Genyosha – Veteran – 80%
4th Genyosha – Veteran – 80%
5th Genyosha – Veteran – 70%
Otomo and Dragons Claws
Otomo – Elite – 100%
Izanagi Warriors – Veteran – 100%
Sword of Light
1st Sword of Light – Elite – 90% (Re)
2nd Sword of Light – Elite – 60% (Re)
5th Sword of Light – Veteran – 80% (Re)
7th Sword of Light – Veteran – 80% (Re)
8th Sword of Light – Elite – 80% (Re)
Sun Zhang
5th Sun Zhang Cadre – Green – 100%
13th Sun Zhang Cadre – Green – 100%
14th Sun Zhang Cadre – Green – 100%
16th Sun Zhang Cadre – Green – 100%
17th Sun Zhang Cadre – Green – 100%
18th Sun Zhang Cadre – Green – 100%
Amphigean Light Assault Groups
1st Amphigean Light Assault Group – Veteran – 100%
7th Amphigean Light Assault Group – Regular – 90% (Re)
8th Amphigean Light Assault Group – Green – 90% - Barlow’s Folly
9th Amphigean Light Assault Group – Green – 80%
An Ting Legions
2nd An Ting Legion – Veteran – 100%
6th An Ting Legion – Green – 100%
7th An Ting Legion – Green – 60%
Arkab Legions
2nd Arkab Legion – Regular – 100%
4th Arkab Legion – Veteran – 100%
6th Arkab Legion – Regular – 100%
7th Arkab Legion – Green – 60%
Night Stalkers
2nd Night Stalkers – Veteran – 100%
3rd Night Stalkers – Regular – 100%
4th Night Stalkers – Green – 80%
Prosperina Hussars
1st Prosperina Hussars – Elite – 70% (Re)
3rd Prosperina Hussars – Elite – 80%
10th Prosperina Hussars – Green – 70% - Prosperina
Ghost Regiments
1st Ghost – Veteran – 100%
3rd Ghost – Veteran – 100%
5th Ghost – Regular – 100%
6th Ghost – Veteran – 100%
7th Ghost – Elite – 60% -
10th Ghost – Regular – 100%
11th Ghost – Veteran – 60%
12th Ghost – Veteran – 60%
13th Ghost – Green – 70%
14th Ghost – Green – 70%
15th Ghost – Green – 50%
16th Ghost – Green – 50%
Legions of Vega
2nd Legion of Vega – Veteran – 70%
11th Legion of Vega – Veteran – 100%
16th Legion of Vega – Regular – 100%
17th Legion of Vega – Green – 50% – over strength aerospace forces
Ryuken
Ryuken-Ni- Elite – 100%
Ryuken-San – Veteran – 90%
Ryuken-Yon – Veteran – 100%
Ryuken-Go – Elite – 70%
Ryuken-Roku – Veteran – 100%
Ryuken-Nana – Green – 100%
DCNS
Kirishima clas
DCS Urizen II
DCS Takashi
DCS Siriwan
DCS Shiro
Kyusha class frigates
DCS Draconis Rift
DCS Luthien
DCS Victory at Wolcott
DCS Deiron Star
DCS Galedon Explorer
DCS Galedon Warrior
Tatsumaki class destroyer
DCS Lair of Mighty Wyrms
DCS Mountain of Wyrms
New Samarkand II class carrier
DCS Togura
DCS New Samarkand
Inazuma class corvette
DCS Night of Agony
DCS Winds of Heaven
DCS Amber Lotus
DCS Swiping Claw
8 Inazuma corvettes
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Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery Deployment
31st December 3069
Benjamin Military District
Benjamin Prefecture
2nd Benjamin Regulars – Paracale
6th Benjamin Regulars – Minakuchi
25th Benjamin Regulars – Benjamin
6th Ghost – Benjamin
26th Benjamin Regulars – Dover
Buckminster Prefecture
17th Benjamin Regulars – Najha
12th Dieron Regulars – Kiesen
5th Galedon Regulars – Dumaring
7th Amphigean Light Assault Group – Buckminster
2nd Arkab Legion – Camlann
4th Arkab Legion – Pilkhua
6th Arkab Legion – Arkab
7th Arkab Legion – Arkab
5th Ghost – Shirotori
3rd Proserpina Hussars – Kiamba
Iruzun Prefecture
16th Galedon Regulars – Barlow’s Folly
8th Amphigean Light Assault Group – Barlow’s Folly
9th Benjamin Regulars – Donenac
23rd Benjamin Regulars – Reisling’s Planet
24th Benjamin Regulars – Ludwig
Prosperpina Prefecture
1st Sword of Light – Proserpina
10th Proserpina Hussars – Proserpina
4th Genyosha – Proserpina
1st Sword of Light – Proserpina
1st Ghost – Fellanin II
4th Night Stalkers – Scheat
25th Benjamin Regulars – Matar
14th Ghost – Labida
15th Ghost – Labida
Xinyang Prefecture
15th Benjamin Regulars – Xinyang
42nd Galedon Regulars – Kanowit
1st Proserpina Hussars – Xinyang
Dieron Military District
Al Na’ir Prefecture
3rd Dieron Regulars – Dieron
1st Genyosha – Dieron
2nd Genyosha – Dieron
49th Dieron Regulars – Dieron
50th Dieron Regulars – Dieron
15th Dieron Regulars – Al Na’ir
45th Dieron Regulars – Quentin
47th Dieron Regulars – Fomalhaut
24th Dieron Regulars – Nirasaki
13th Ghost – Sadachbia
16th Ghost – Ancha
Algedi Prefecture
48th Dieron Regulars – Algedi
Ashio Prefecture
16th Sun Zhang Cadre – Ashio
46th Dieron Regulars – Halstead Station
Kessel Prefecture
40th Dieron Regulars – Kessel
32nd Galedon Regulars – Imbros III
6th An Ting Legion – Skondia
3rd Night Stalkers – Yorii
13th Sun Zhang Cadre – Lyons
Vega Prefecture
2nd Night Stalkers – Cebalrai
11th Legion of Vega – Vega
Galedon Military District
Kaznejov Prefecture
12th Galedon Regulars – Capra
44th Galedon Regulars – Capra
5th Sword of Light – Huan
1st Amphigean Light Assault Group – Weisau
11th Ghost – Waldheim
43rd Galedon Regulars – Waldheim
19th Galedon Regulars – Valentina
45th Galdedon Regulars – Kaznejov
10th Ghost – Budingen
Matsuida Prefecture
Ryuken-Ni- Elite – Harrow’s Sun
3rd Ghost – Harrow’s Sun
7th Ghost – Harrow’s Sun
7th An Ting – An Ting
12th Ghost – An Ting
Ryuken-yon – Thestria
Ryuken-nana – New Aberdeen
Ryuken-go – Matsuida
2nd Galedon Regulars – Matsuida
9th Amphigean Light Assault Group – Harpster
New Samarkand Prefecture
21st Galedon Regulars – New Samarkand
47th Galedon Regulars – New Samarkand
48th Galedon Regulars – Galedon
5th Genyosha – Galedon
Oshika Prefecture
16th Legion of Vega – Oshika
17th Legion of Vega – Midway
Tabayama Prefecture
46th Galedon Regulars – Tabayama
Pesht Military District
Albiero Prefecture
2nd Dieron Regulars – Albiero
8th Dieron Regulars – Luzerne
22nd Dieron Regulars – Garstedt
7th Pesht Regulars – Byesville
7th Sword of Light – Idlewind
8th Sword of Light – Schuyler
5th Sun Zhang Cadre – Brochii’s Cluster
2nd An Ting – Richmond
2nd Legion of Vega – Savinsville
Ryuken-san – Nykvarn
Bjarred Prefecture
10th Pesht Regulars – Bjarred
Irece Prefecture
Ningxia Prefecture
6th Pesht Regulars – Land’s End
Ryuken-roku – Ningxia
Pesht Prefecture
4th Pesht Regulars – Pesht
3rd Genyosha – Luthien
Izanagi Warriors – Luthien
Otomo – Luthien
2nd Sword of Light – Luthien
14th Sun Zhang Cadre – Luthien
17th Sun Zhang Cadre – Kilmarnock
18th Sun Zhang Cadre – Chatham
Quandahar Prefecture
11th Pesht Regulars – Quandahar
12th Pesht Regulars – Quandahar - secret
13th Pesht Regulars – Chorley - secret
14th Pesht Regulars – Multan - secret
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The 'Cats already packed up and left/defected?
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The 'Cats already packed up and left/defected?
No - I haven't listed them in the DCMS as technically they aren't DCMS troops. I'll be adding the mercenaries and allies soon. Did as much as I could but the migraine today took a toll.
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10 C-Bills that the Black Dragons will drag their feet on meeting Theodore as they see everything about to hit the fan.
Then try to stab him in the back when the DCMS has been mauled.
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10 C-Bills that the Black Dragons will drag their feet on meeting Theodore as they see everything about to hit the fan.
Then try to stab him in the back when the DCMS has been mauled.
more even money, then that
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So even with the aid coming from the WoB the Combine is still outnumbered. The only thing they got going for them is their whole death cult culture that will make any fight a major issue due to them not surrendering when that would be the smart move.
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So even with the aid coming from the WoB the Combine is still outnumbered. The only thing they got going for them is their whole death cult culture that will make any fight a major issue due to them not surrendering when that would be the smart move.
it is called WMD's look what happened to the Snow Ravens.
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So even with the aid coming from the WoB the Combine is still outnumbered. The only thing they got going for them is their whole death cult culture that will make any fight a major issue due to them not surrendering when that would be the smart move.
The key question is how much they can actually throw into the fight. The Ghost Bears for example are generally conservative enough that they are unlikely to leap for Luthien, especially as things seem to be going down in the Clan Homeworlds. Their instinct is always to turtle and wait.
With that said, they are probably going to be awfully tempted to at least nibble down a few worlds if the Dragon pulls its troops back. And they have a LOT of troops who haven't had a good fight in quite a while now, all these worlds without HPGs active anymore to allow any kind of coordinated response just sitting their, ripe for the taking...
Plus of course the slight issue that they MUST defend their rear areas given that Victor has the ships and troops to just drive right up into the blackout and go on the mother of all drive-by-shootings. So they'll need to keep plenty of units defensively in the rear.
Not to mention if Peter gets a midnight visit from the ghost of Katrina Steiner who slaps him around the room and tells him to stop ****** up and start actually ruling like his Brother. Because the Lyrans I'm more than sure would delight in snapping back some more of the worlds, like the Lyons Thumb region, while the Dragon is highly distracted...
Long and short of it, those WOB troops being committed (however many that is) could very well be critical as an offensive force and end up carrying a far bigger load than their numbers might suggest. And could be very effective, especially if they can pull off their involvement mostly as a surprise and curve around into the League March (possibly with Kali??) and then across into the Crucis March...
I still think this is absoloutly the Federated Suns war to loose, but this is going to be a WAR, not an extermination like the fight against the Confederation was.
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The key question is how much they can actually throw into the fight. The Ghost Bears for example are generally conservative enough that they are unlikely to leap for Luthien, especially as things seem to be going down in the Clan Homeworlds. Their instinct is always to turtle and wait.
With that said, they are probably going to be awfully tempted to at least nibble down a few worlds if the Dragon pulls its troops back. And they have a LOT of troops who haven't had a good fight in quite a while now, all these worlds without HPGs active anymore to allow any kind of coordinated response just sitting their, ripe for the taking...
Plus of course the slight issue that they MUST defend their rear areas given that Victor has the ships and troops to just drive right up into the blackout and go on the mother of all drive-by-shootings. So they'll need to keep plenty of units defensively in the rear.
Not to mention if Peter gets a midnight visit from the ghost of Katrina Steiner who slaps him around the room and tells him to stop ****** up and start actually ruling like his Brother. Because the Lyrans I'm more than sure would delight in snapping back some more of the worlds, like the Lyons Thumb region, while the Dragon is highly distracted...
Long and short of it, those WOB troops being committed (however many that is) could very well be critical as an offensive force and end up carrying a far bigger load than their numbers might suggest. And could be very effective, especially if they can pull off their involvement mostly as a surprise and curve around into the League March (possibly with Kali??) and then across into the Crucis March...
I still think this is absoloutly the Federated Suns war to loose, but this is going to be a WAR, not an extermination like the fight against the Confederation was.
Your basically right. The FedSuns enjoys battle hardened troops with top end equipment and has a numerical and industrial advantage. However that isn't to say the Dragon is going to be a pushover. They have an extremely capable military (unlike the CCAF which was fractured and overstretched) along with the interior position. Defensively the DCMS can make the AFFS bleed on a dozen worlds, fall back and do it again. And again. And again. But defensive actions aren't going to win the war. Which is there the WOB come in. They do have troops to commit to offensive actions and if they can help swing the tide even locally the DCMS can then go on the offensive as well.
The single major headache for the DCMS might actually be the very warrior culture that will keep it in the fight - DCMS units under attack who can't get orders to withdraw might stick it out and die where they stand. And the Dragon cant afford that against the numerical advantage of the FedSuns. They need units to fight smart. Not suicidal last stands or banzai charges.
Also if they do pull troops from the Ghost Bear front - they are in serious trouble if the bear wakes up and moves. Like "the AFFS and Ghost Bears racing to Luthien" trouble.
Hence why Theodore is VERY keen to get the Snow Ravens to come in. It extends the front and gives him a flank attack by allies to draw of pressure. If he can get them involved. Still he has one major selling point: "If i go down, your on your own if the Davions come for you..."
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If AFFS get the high orbitals with warship support - any stronghold of the Dragon receive a NL / NPPC gift - if Victor play this smart. No way a planetary force can win against an invader force with orbital support. Unless have plot shields (tm).
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Fedcom drive by
A squadron of ships pulls last Luthien at 2g
A quick blast at Luthien Armor Works and push on out and jump from the other Lagrange point,
Buhbye!
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I would think the Wolf Clan might be interested in taking a bite of the Ghost Bear's. If they pull troops towards Luthien why wouldn't the Wolves take advantage?
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I would think the Wolf Clan might be interested in taking a bite of the Ghost Bear's. If they pull troops towards Luthien why wouldn't the Wolves take advantage?
[/quote
They tried that by using the Hell Horses as proxies once... it really didn’t work well. Vlad might stage a couple of smaller trials but he wouldn’t want to poke the Bear when his goal is still messing with the IS and maybe Terra.
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They tried that by using the Hell Horses as proxies once... it really didn’t work well. Vlad might stage a couple of smaller trials but he wouldn’t want to poke the Bear when his goal is still messing with the IS and maybe Terra.
Has that happened in this timeline?
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That’s a good question, I can’t remember if the Ghost-Bear / Combine was in this timeline ended up with the Hells Horses trying their backstab at Vlads goading.
It makes sense that it would, given the personalities invoked, but who knows ...
In any event I’d bet Vlad would be more focused on the Lyrans. What with Katherine probably nagging him for years now and Peter failing in a way that makes him look weak and indecisive.
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Honestly Victor's best play with the Combine is a limited invasion followed by a massive defensive drive. Combined with his Warships and a Rapid Assualt force launching raids and deep strikes on the rest of the Combine. This way he forces the Combine to spread their forces and leaves them vulnerable to to other factions moving on them. The Lyrans and the FRR can take this opportunity to hit the Combine. With ComStar making a fighting retreat towards allied territory moving the boarders of three Nations that are friendly and with them would be a major help. The Clans need to worry about eachother so they are unlikely to make any moves at first. The Ravens are the only Clan that doesn't have a another Clan near them to threaten them. But if Victor can court them enough they might be able to be removed as a enemy. Maybe even convince them to attack the Combine along side the Outworlds Alliance to increase their own power and territory. The FedSuns cannot afford to take large amounts of the Combine but if several other powers take smaller amounts and the FedSuns raid and destrory enough of the remaining Combine territory then the Combine gets removed as a threat for a long while.
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Vic could win this without ground forces
simply move a bunch of naval folks into nearby systems and wait
as the dracs pop in and commit to a course of action his people get updated
by fax and bang! ambush the force or something similar in each system
he never needs to cross the border, by no dracs go home, and even those that are boarded
and captured the POWs can just be turned over to the Star League
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Indeed - although it would be a huge risk to try that kind of play without perfect intelligence on the Combines offensive.
Victors best bet is to seize the initiative and choke it like a Steel Viper wrapper around its prey. Historically (and in this fic) he’s been very reactive. Often recovering very well mind you, but still reacting to events more than setting them into motion. And it’s probably been noticed too (and his direction of appeals to Theodore to end this madness before it starts has probably played into that).
Here, Victors best bet is to lance the boil before it bursts and seize maximum advantage out of a surprise attack. Especially an attack to destroy as much of the DCA ‘at anchor as he possibly can. If he could knock out a dozen warships in the opening act (and send some of three strike forces into the interior of the Combine past HPG coverage) then he’ll completely derail all the Combines war plans and leave them hideously open to having their spearheads cut off, blockaded and swamped with masses of units for defeat in detail.
And with the Combine Navy, WOB Navy and possibly two Clans babies to think about, he REALLY can’t afford to play it safe.
The Bulls Case Granite was doomed from the start given how pathetic their navy was. The FSN OTOH has a genuine chance to pull off a shocking opening punch if Victor takes off the kid gloves...
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Yes Victor should make the first strike. But he won't both because that is not the kind of person he is but also because he is trying to get more ships and crews trained up to a standard. Hopefully his high command will put all the information on the table and tell him that a first strike is both the most effective and the safest action for the people of the FedSuns. If he has to wait he should start working on the other powers boarding the Combine to get them to pressure the Combine boarders and to make deals to supply the FRR with more equipment so they can attack the Combine. A hard first strike along with the offer the Nova Cats have received from the FedSuns might be enough to get them to just leave the Combine instead of wasting lives and resources in a stupid fight.
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A thought JUST occurred; what about Minoru Kurita?
In the OTL, he joined the Nova Cats and became their Oathmaster. Wonder if that happened in this timeline.
Because if it did, well, he's going to in a very ... interesting ... position.
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3069 - December Interlude - The First Prince and his Marshal
30th December 3069
Fox's Den
Grand Avalon Mountain Range
New Avalon
New Avalon Combat Region
Coreward Combat Theatre (Markessan Operation's Area)
Crucis March
Federated Suns
The First Prince walked into the Fox's Den's office of the Marshal of Armies with his mind somewhere else. Specifically with his wife and newborn son who were back at the palace playing with some of the toys that had been sent by 100s of well wishers for young Prince Burton. Not that he was old enough to really play with them, but the image of Isis sitting on the floor while his son laughed was heavy on the Prince's mind as he returned to the duties of state. He nodded respectfully and waved away the salute of Jackson Davion as he strode into the room. "Forget about it Jackson, this is just you and I... We can dispense with the formalities."
"Thank you my Prince." Jackson nodded waving the First Prince to the chair that his aides had specifically brought into the office for this meeting. His usual working chairs weren't really suitable for Prince Victor to sit across from him in, so a special chair had been moved into the space. As both men sat the Marshal mused ruefully that Victor probably didn't even realise that whenever he had a meeting in a smaller office the entire furniture had to be rearranged - not because the First Prince would demand such treatment, but because the men and women of the AFFS wished to show their First Prince the courtesy of his office.
"So... The Draconis issue..." Victor Davion broached the reason for this meeting without forcing either man to go through the formalities. By now they had worked together long enough to have reached a comfortable respect for each others abilities. "Any updates?"
"They are definitely on a war footing. But we knew that. Due to their turning on Comstar we are getting a LOT of intelligence from ROM - which we've mostly been able to independently verify. They are building up troops around Dieron, Prosperina and all around the Galtor Thumb and our gains near Niles... I'm particularly worried about the formation of battle groups of regiments on Dieron, Prosperina and Harrow's Sun. Those are offensive formations my Prince..." Jackson went straight to the heart of his concerns. "Worse, we know that each of those 3 systems have warships operating in them. I believe those are task forces intended to attack us."
"Recommendations?" Victor asked.
"We hit them first. If we hit those 3 systems alone we can destroy or tie down 11 of their regiments - including no less than 5 Genyosha, Ryuken or Sword of Light regiments. Even if we can't outright destroy them, just removing them as offensive units would be a huge net gain for the Federated Sun's in the event of war." Jackson handed over a print out of the garrisons of those systems estimated forces and strengths. "As you can see we estimate the DCMS has between 90-100 regiments Prince. If we can take out a full tenth of their forces with a preemptive strike, particularly when that tenth includes some of their best units we will have the momentum from day one. We might even be able to force them to the negotiation table. Especially if we manage to take out any of the warships in those systems at the same time."
Victor sat opposite from his Marshal of Armies and flicked through the intelligence reports. Most of them were merely updates on reports he had already memorised so it wasn't long before he looked up at Jackson and asked. "What forces would be required?"
Jackson Davion brought out another 4 slim folders with the attack forces outlines and plans and handed them over. "For the Dieron operation, I'd take the 2nd and 4th Davion Guards RCT as well as the 5th Robinson Rangers RCT from Murchison as the heart of the task force. I'd add the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry, Davion Assault Guards and all 4 regiments of the Vegan Rangers. I'd also add the Fighting Urukhai's 8th Striker and Demestri's Bar Hound regiments. No less than 5 front line RCT's and 6 mercenary regiments of battlemech's gives us a more than 2:1 superiority even if they've formed up any new units from the equipment the WOB is shipping them. More likely 3:1 if they haven't yet. For Prosperina I'd want the 1st and Old Davion Guards along with the 1st Revenant and 1st Kathil Uhlan's from Markessan as the core of the attack force with the 1st Argyle Lancers, 41st Avalon Hussars and the 1st and 6th Robinson Rangers RCT's to back them up. With 8 front line formations we can take on the 2 front line formations they have on Prosperina and also the forming 10th Hussars they have there. For Harrow's Sun the 4th Robinson Rangers RCT and the 6th Crucis Lancers RCT would be the 2 units I'd use to build the force around, with the green 5th Avalon Hussars being added to give them more numbers along with the 1st Avalon Hussars. I'd bring in the Davion Heavy Guards and 1st Ceti Hussar's to add flexibility to the force and place it under the overall command of Jon. I also have a list of attached warship assets... With these forces I believe we can achieve swift victories, crushing any chance the DCMS might have to launch a major offensive against us for at least a year... I've also included a list of "smaller strikes" that can take place at the same time to mop up other nearby formations and secure a very favourable position for us if military operations continue, for instance the 2nd and the new 4th Ceti Hussars moving on Waldheim with the 2nd Tancredi Loyalist to secure the planet as a jumping off point for a further strike against Kaznejoy itself..."
Victor took the folders and looked at them. As with all of Jackson's work they were thorough, comprehensive and despite being only outlines incredibly detailed. He had little doubt that if he gave the go ahead the units in question would be lifting on before the new year... And while you could never be assured of victory he was confident that these plans had been assembled by the finest minds in the AFFS and if at all possible they would lead to victory.
After a few minutes he looked up. "These plans mean war. Full on war. This isn't a minor border dispute like last time. Launching 25 regiments and RCT's against three planets with the aim of wiping out a tenth of the DCMS in a single operation, plus the "smaller" strikes which include roughly a dozen more regiments... More Hohiro is on Dieron according to our reports... It would be war."
"Yes my prince." The Marshal of Armies acknowledged. "But now is the time to strike. Their communications are in a shambles... Luthien probably wouldn't hear about these attacks for weeks..."
"By which time no doubt we'd be launching a second wave..." Victor held up his hand. "Don't pretend to me you don't have plans for a second wave Jackson... I know you."
Both men shared a rueful smile and Jackson shrugged and nodded. "We have plans for operations that would take us right to Luthien..."
"Of course you do." Victor nodded. "And that's what worries me. If we launch these operations that's what it's going to take. Us planting the sword and starburst over Luthien to bring it to an end. This isn't the Confederation, a rotting house ready to be kicked down. The Combine's got a professional military that is committed to the fight..."
For a few seconds the First Prince continued to mull it over before shaking his head. "No. I wont plunge the entire Inner Sphere into war. Not yet. War has to be the option of last resort..."
"With all due respect Prince Victor... Are we not there yet?" Jackson asked frankly.
"No. There is still a chance..." Victor's voice was firming up as he made his decision. Although he admitted softly. "A slim chance..."
"If there is... It's fading with every day." Jackson pointed out and reached out to tap the folders on the table. "And these give us our best chance for a quick victory."
"I don't disagree." Victor shook his head. "But before I ask the men and women of the AFFS to go to war, I need to know that I have given peace every single possible chance..."
The Marshal of the Armies bit his lip for a second and then nodded. "I honestly think we are making a mistake in not striking now... But I understand."
It wasn't lost on Victor that now he had made his decision it was now "we are making a mistake". The Marshal wasn't going to place any blame only upon his First Princes's shoulders, even if that was where it would belong if this was indeed a mistake. That spoke to the loyalty of the man who had saved his throne only 9 years ago. Standing Victor tapped the folders himself. "Keep these updated. If I have made a mistake, I'm going to need you and the rest of the High Command ready to pull my royal posterior out of the fire..."
Jackson couldn't help but smile as he stood and his prince reached over to shake his hand firmly as both men smiled grimly towards each other. "That's our job. You can count on us."
"I always do Jackson. I always do..."
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For the record - I'm with Jackson on this. Now is the time to hit the DCMS. I just can't see Victor pushing the button...
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Victor you poor deluded fool. It is admirable that he doesn't want to start a war but he is stupid if he thinks there is any chance at peace. That chance went away when Teddy had his heart attack during their meeting. I really hope Victor isn't thinking he can offer to take his other "son" as a peace offering. That would only hurt him but would also hurt the FedSuns morale since it would be submitting to the Combine. If he is smart but doesn't want to attack first he at least should work to get the other boarder powers with the Combine to turn on them and either attack with the FedSuns or launch the first strike themselves followed by the FedSuns attacking then. This way a massive blow is given to the DCMS and dozens of worlds are lost to the Combine.
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Oh come on Victor pull the cloth from your ears and the wool from over your eyes you idiot!
The Dracs are about to try to do a smash and grab on a march were your brother and sister are with lunatic wobbies assisting them and have made deals with various other powers. They are not looking for deals they are looking to smash you you can’t wait and surrender the initiative to the dracs! Your inviting another Kentaras at this rate you need to strike now and Jackson you fool should have pushed harder for an offensive!
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Victor was smart to delay more combat. he needs to play for some time. he needs to let his (civilians) time to not think about war. There has "only" been one attack from the DC. He might let them get the first punch in, and then hammer them. civilians get "tired" of being on a war footing. you also do not want to take to many planets. that would choke you. he just took out the CC (more or less) Now if he could get the NC GB, Comstar, SR, and FFR to take their own bites. that would be helpful. He needs something to "break" the focus of the DC military or it will be a years long battle. that only plays into the WoB hands.
WoB wants everyone looking somewhere else while they fort up on Terra, or they might take a bite out of the DC and FWL while the FS is delayed.
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Victor: "I will not risk open war!"
Jackson: "Open war is upon you, whether you would risk it or not-"
Victor "Did I ****** stutter?"
VSD makes appalling bad strategic decisions against all his subordinates advice and thousands of years of strategic thinking.
Sounds legit :D
Okay. So Victor has done a Victor and tossed away the initiative and wants to give the Kuritans one free hit. And give the WOB time to at least patch over the HPG nightmare in the Combine, as well as ship them a few more regiments of high-quality Battlemechs. Fine. Well I hope he can live with himself when his brother or sister gets ganked. Or worse, targeted for a snatch and grab (irrespective of losses) to give House Kurita a valuable piece on the board to trade back or something, in a join WOB-ROM+DEST operation with a Shadow Division landing on Galtor...
In any event, if he can buy even 3 months, he can just about rush through the upgrades and repairs of the warships damaged/slated for upgrades. With the HPG network down, Covenant (especially if she's had a retrofit to make her look again exactly like a Kirishima) and her two sneaky escorts COULD do a lot of damage in the interior of the Combine if they snuck in via deep space jumps. In terms of setting off a little civil war with the right pressure applied to the right places...
Or even just sneaking into the Midway shipyards, with this music playing (http://"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Feb8TnbvyG0") over the speakers, then sucker punch at point blank range with nukes the DCA squadron that had been transporting Hohiro with instant canned sunshine before vanishing into the dark, leaving nothing but glowing wreckage behind...
Hey, I can dream :D
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As much as it pains me to admit: I agree with Victor on this. YES he is an idiot and throwing away the main advantage he has striking before the Combine is ready... but the Inner Sphere does not need ANOTHER war of that magnitude: basically Victor doesn’t want to start the 5th Succession War (despite already having conquered on State). He will certainly finish it, along with smack the WoB around if possible but going against the Combine is a tough call to make.
That being said I am interested to see this play out and once again: love the interludes.
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Of course, he does. I feel he is still holding out to the idea that the Star League is enough to hold the Inner Sphere together. The problem is that Victor cannot understand his opponents in this instance. Honestly, as much as it pains me to say it Victor needs to lose his brother because of this. And he needs to get called out by all his siblings for it. His sister is either at the March Capital which would be too hard of a target to hit or is out in her own domain which would be too far to hit in an opening attack. That leaves only the youngest brother as the one that has to suffer for Victor's mistakes. The only way to salvage this is if Victor orders those forces into a position to attack the moment his peace deal fails because it will fail.
Allowing the Combine to attack first is the stupidest idea possible. They will kill and destroy countless people, industrial plants, and units leaving the FedSuns reeling and Victor with the blood on his hands. It doesn't matter if Victor orders a counter-attack that smashes the Combine forces because the damage is done already. The only reason the war against the CC wasn't damaging to the FedSuns is that the opening attack was against St. Ives Compact and not the FedSuns. If it had been you can bet Victor would be having major domestic issues right now that would make the Combine attack even worse. In war, the worst thing you can do is give up initiative and momentum and that is exactly what some people are suggesting for no good or logical reason.
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As much as it pains me to admit: I agree with Victor on this. YES he is an idiot and throwing away the main advantage he has striking before the Combine is ready... but the Inner Sphere does not need ANOTHER war of that magnitude: basically Victor doesn’t want to start the 5th Succession War (despite already having conquered on State). He will certainly finish it, along with smack the WoB around if possible but going against the Combine is a tough call to make.
The problem with that logic is that ... the war has already started. The Combine have made their intentions crystal clear. Not simply with the massive troop movements. Not simply with their aligning with the Word of Blake and turning on ComStar in a (spectacular) self-inflicted gunshot, SPECIFICALLY to get war machines to fight the AFFS and for no other reason...not simply because Victor has TRIED to send message after message to Theodore to stop this madness before it starts and has gotten no response.
No, lets remember that Victor in his last sitdown before that had Theodore outright, to Victors face, DEMAND that he keep the Capellan Confederation around ... so he would have two enemies to deal with. Not even sugar coating it with mortality or what not, but outright saying to Victor that he needed the Capellans alive and around to have a dagger at Victors back and he's confused as to why Victor is upset about it!
Victor might not want to start a War ... but the problem is that other side already HAS.
He has overwhelming evidence of that fact. Saying that the Inner Sphere doesn't need another major war is ultimately irrelevant because that is no longer Victors choice; the Combine have chosen for him!. Victors desire to have a 'clean conscience' may have a very steep price in blood that will need to be paid in the lives of the AFFS soliders and Federated Suns civilians who will die who didn't need to die. He has the mother of all windows right now with the HPG disruption, to fight this war in a clinical and controlled way that cripples the DCMS, mostly inside Combine space, at (relatively) limited cost to the AFFS.
Where as the DCMS being allowed to repair their strategic communications and take the initiative ...
Do that and he makes the war much MUCH bloodier, long and painful for everyone.
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I agree with Victor, I think the politics of the situation mean that he will have to wait for the Draconis Combine to take the first move or else he will risk being seen as a war-monger
The only other option would be a very limited strike or preparation for a first strike - for example hiding something with an HPG in the three main systems the DC are forming up in with strike forces of WarShips holding in dead space only a jump away so that once the DC is committed to the invasion with their forces all on board DropShips hit those as it can be viewed as a "clean" strike without any planetary invasion or even landings
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I agree with Victor, I think the politics of the situation mean that he will have to wait for the Draconis Combine to take the first move or else he will risk being seen as a war-monger
The only other option would be a very limited strike or preparation for a first strike - for example hiding something with an HPG in the three main systems the DC are forming up in with strike forces of WarShips holding in dead space only a jump away so that once the DC is committed to the invasion with their forces all on board DropShips hit those as it can be viewed as a "clean" strike without any planetary invasion or even landings
That would work... as long as the message gets out after forces board their dropships, and the response reaches the system before the jumpships carrying those dropships can jump out.
Hitting military ships in deep space would be far less of an escalation than invading planets, with all the collateral damage that usually entails.
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I agree with Victor, I think the politics of the situation mean that he will have to wait for the Draconis Combine to take the first move or else he will risk being seen as a war-monger
By ... who?
No seriously, who exactly is going to think that, that actually matters and doesn't already think it? I don't see it.
The Combine think he's the devil already and are, you know, about to launch a war (and will probably tell their people that Victor attacked first and slaughtered a city of innocents anyway or something no matter WHAT happens). The WOB think he's the Anti-Blake. The Confederation is dead and whatever loyalists might still be around ... think he's the Anti-Liao. The Lyrans have belatedly realized they made a REALLY bad choice backing The Bitch over Victor on one hand, but also have a very VERY long history of loathing the Combine on the other. They really don't have any reason to do anything but cheer Victor on (if not outright jumping the border from Skye). The FWL already hate Victor for his attacks on them and annexing chunks of their nation, albeit, with the enthusiastic support from the people annexed. ComStar are in a hot war with the Combine and Victor is their biggest backer - and they are probably going to take the chance to hit WOB, either directly on Terra or indirectly. The Clans in the Combine are fully aware that an unprovoked attack is about to be launched - and the Nova Cats are already looking to GTFO.
And given that the people in the Federated Suns probably think Victor can walk on water? I honestly think the biggest problem would be getting the people in the Draconis March back to work and not partying in the streets if Victor finally turned the full crushing might of the modern AFFS and pointed it at Kurita saying 'sick em'. The rest of the realm might not be quite THAT crazy happy, but I can't see them having any problem or doubts about Victors motives. He's earned more trust than probably his parents combined by this point in time, because he keeps having this nasty habit of being right. Not to mention his attempts over and over to try and negotiate down situations stands him in full credit now.
The only entity that might stand opposed would be the Star League, but the League is a dead corpse and has been since Theodore and Sun-Tzu openly to the public denied either Victor or Peter a chance for First Lordship after the FedSuns/Lyrans patiently allowed their two worst enemies a first turn. Then used it as a political tool to censure Victor for daring to retaliate to a massive unprovoked attack on a key factory world for purely political purposes.
Now, as was said much earlier, this whole refusal to launch the attack is very much Victor as written in this fic. He's tried had to talk down people on pretty much every occasion, both before the war kicked off if possible and in the early stages if not. But this time he's just going a tad too far...
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3070 - January - Fleet reformation
The new year started with the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussars RCT's along with the 7th Corvette Flotilla moving into the Pirates Haven Cluster and beginging a sweep of the myriad systems it contained. While there was little expectations that the 2 Hussar's RCT's or the 6 Fox II class corvettes of the 7th Flotilla would actually cleanse the Cluster for good of pirate activity it was hoped that they would at least curtail the local threat of pirates for a few years. Any pirates they managed to catch and either capture or kill was merely a bonus. The sweep also served a cover for the setting up of a number of hidden listening posts within the Cluster to report on future pirate activities and bases. With all of these objections in mind the operation was expected to last for 2-3 months.
With the start of the new year Fleet Admiral Buchwald began the reformation of the Federated Sun's Navy to better take advantage of the growing number of warships available. While before the ships had been deployed in singletons are squadrons he now began to form the core around which task forces and fleets could be formed. The first of these fleets to be formed was ironically the 4th Fleet at Robinson consisting of the 2nd and 4th Cruiser Squadrons, 3rd Destroyer Squadron and the 4th and 5th Corvette Flotillas - although the 5th Corvette Flotilla was on detached duties along the Outworld's Alliance frontier, the remaining ships were based out of Robinson itself. The 2nd Fleet was formed at New Syrtis to consist of the 3rd Cruiser and 1st Destroyer Squadron as well as the 3rd and 6th Corvette Flotillas. The 3rd Fleet was to be formed within the League March and for now consisted of the 1st Patrol Squadron and the 1st Corvette Flotilla, with the ships based over Tikonov. The Crucis March was to be protected by the Home Fleet which was to be formed around the 2nd and 7th Corvette Flotilla's - home ported at New Avalon/Galax, but with the 7th currently detached and based out of Panpour. A final fleet was to be formed, the 1st Fleet which was built up around the First Princes's own 1st Cruiser Squadron as well as the 1st Carrier Battle Group and 2nd Destroyer Squadron. For the time being the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Carrier Battle Groups were unassigned, at least until they could be provided with some escorting assets for their precious carriers.
The FedSun's Navy also saw a number of ships finish and be commissioned. At Filtvelt the FSS Bastion and FSS Fincastle finish and are dispatched to join the 7th Corvette Flotilla. The FSS Nahoni and FSS Millray are laid down in their place. Meanwhile the FSS Shensi, FSS Mira, FSS Sauk City, FSS Vicente and FSS Hurik all finish at Galax and are used to begin forming the 8th Corvette Flotilla which is scheduled to be assigned to the 3rd Fleet. The FSS De Berry, FSS Diboll, FSS Greely, FSS Adrian and FSS Tarkio are laid down in the now empty shipyard slips. The 8th Corvette Flotilla is also reinforced by the FSS Hickock and FSS Protection, completed at New Sytris. The New Sytris slips are filled with the FSS Elgin and FSS Zion.
The FedSun's shipyards also complete an additional 4 Fox I corvettes for the ComGuards which are immedietly handed over. This brings the total Fox corvettes with Comstar's fleet to 15 ships. With another 4 immedietly begun at Novaya Zemlya.
The Federated Sun's also offered up for sale 2 Fox I corvettes to the Lyran Alliance and Wolves-in-Exile in January. Both the Wolves and the Lyran's buy a single corvette - although both again ask for the specifications to upgrade their corvette fleets to Fox II standards. For the time being they are told no, but the FedSun's government hints that such specifications might be available shortly. As a sign of good faith the shipyards at Filtvelt lay down an additional 2 corvettes which will be offered for sale to the Lyrans and Wolves-in-Exile.
Even as more ships were moving up to join the Navy, the various intelligence agencies kept close watch on the Draconis Combine and the WOB. Working with ROM they also made every effort to make the communication problem's within the Combine worse. In a number of cases hastily repaired HPG stations found themselves targeted for sabotage, while shipments of spare parts to help bring damaged HPG's back online were attacked by small ComGuard's formations en-route to their destination. The various Davion intelligence agents also helped to guide fleeing Comstar and ComGuards personnel to friendly territories.
With the First Princes's views made abundantly clear the Duke of Robinson found his hands tied in launching the preemtive strike that his instincts were screaming at him to make. While he was certain that Victor Davion was making a terrible mistake James Sandoval managed to control his urge to ignore the orders coming from New Avalon. While he had absolutely no doubt that many of the commands within his March would follow his orders to attack in disregard of the orders coming from New Avalon - the 1st, 5th and 6th Robinson Rangers and the Kentares DMM sprung to mind instantly - such an order would break down the trust between the various AFFS units within the Draconis March at a time when they could least afford it between those units which looked to Robinson and those which looked to New Avalon. Worse Duke James knew that not even all of the units which he could traditionally have relied on would follow him against the First Princes's orders - the 8th Crucis Lancers and the 3rd Robinson Rangers were prime examples of this. Not even Hanse Davion had been as popular within the Draconis March as his son Victor and with good cause.
Instead of launching an unsanctioned attack upon the hated Dragon the Duke instead opted for something almost as shocking. He formally placed his son in command of the Draconis March in his absence and took a command jumpline to New Avalon to make his case personally to the First Prince. He would arrive on the 30th January and meet with the First Prince in a series of meetings lasting into February - during which he almost pleaded with his First Prince to allow him to derail the attack he was sure was coming. He found a welcome ally in the returned Ardan Sortek who made a similar case to the First Prince...
While the leadership of the FedSun's argued it's industrial might continued to expand...
On Chesterton the new Argus-O line came online and immedietly began dispatching the much sought after heavy omnimech to the units facing the DCMS. Even as this line completed a third Argus-O line began construction alongside it.
At Demeter the Lycomb-Davion's new aerospace facility see's it's first production line go operation. The first of 3 planned Stuka assault aerospace fighters goes online and begins sending it's products into the nearby League March to provide heavy hitting power to the new formations and existing formations of that March.
Within the huge caverns of Victoria the Axman production line begins to produce the first of this popular design. Meanwhile work continues to return the remaining 2 damaged lines to production...
At Bristol the fourth line of the Fury Command Tank goes operational. A further 2 lines are still under construction but even when these are completed it's not expected they'll be able to keep up with demand. As such the company is encouraged to begin construction on a new facility on Kentares, with plans for 2 lines on that world to help supply the large AFFS presence within the Draconis March.
The new Pillager line on Kirklin finishes work and immedietly dispatches the first of the newly constructed machines to reinforce the 6th and 8th Crucis Lancers nearby. The plant begins work on a new Enforcer III line.
At Achernar the new battlemech production facility sees it's first 2 lines go operational. The rugged Battle Hawk and Watchmen battlemech's produced at this facility are soon being rushed to the various future bases of the League March Militia and the various Borderer units.
Even as new production facilities go online the AFFS is presented with a new battlemech design by Corean Industries and Achernar Battlemechs. A rugged and easily built and maintained battlemech that while not as tactically versatile as many fulfils a useful battlefield role. While Corean had had the initial idea and done much of the early work they had brought Achernar into the deal to solve a few of the issues regarding the advanced targeting computer and to make the battlemech more cost effective and so more attractive to the AFFS. Having reviewed the design and the various recordings of the combat trials of the prototypes the First Prince and Marshal of Armies both agree to authorise it's mass production. The Legionnaire class battlemech will be put into production at Corean's New Avalon and June based factories and at Achernar's Filtvelt and Mayetta based plants. While each facility will only add a single line the easy of manufacture and the fact the battlemech will be built at 4 separate facilities means that it will soon spread throughout the FedSuns. Plans are also discussed to adding a production line for the battlemech within the Capellan and League Marches as well...
Within the Combine the Kanrei Hohiro Kurita is informed by his WOB liason officer that the WOB wishes to launch a full scale assault upon the Federated Sun's in March. When Hohiro raises the issue that such a swift invasion will leave the Combine vulnerable to a counter attack by the LAAF - who are led by Victor's own brother - it is explained to him that this threat will be taken care off. The WOB will watch over the Dragon's back while it attacks the AFFS. Indeed the WOB promise at least 10 of their Divisions and an unknown number of warships to support the DCMS's offensive.
After considering the promises and knowing that the AFFS will grow stronger almost daily Hohiro Kurita agrees. He dispatches word (via HPG, Blackbox and jumpship courier) on the 31st of January to his father on Luthien and to the DCMS units along the FedSun's border that alongside their allies they will attack the hated foe in March...
On Luthien itself the Coordinator spends the month discussing a potential anti-Davion alliance with Clan Snow Raven. While the Ravens refuse to commit to an actual offensive they do request a number of concessions that might convince them to look upon the Coordinator's suggestions more favourably. Most of which involves huge amounts of raw materials, finished goods and food for their growing enclaves within the Alliance. A large quantity of the raw materials and goods are exactly what would be required to refit or build a shipyard complex...
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the DC is going to kick off an attack early.... that is not good for them. supplies will have to be looked at very closely. I bet the WoB got a sniff that the FS was looking at taking Terra away from them.
when the FS is down to the last few Fox I. it might want to look at trading/selling them instead of rebuilding them. this will help the FS with funds and crews for new ships. The LC, ComGuards, WiE, and even the FRR might want to see if they want a few.
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Well looks like Victor is getting the "you are going to get a lot of your people killed" talk from two of his most powerful advisors and friends. Too bad he won't listen and when February ends with him still not attacking and the DCMS launching their attack he will have lost the respect and trust of those two and who knows how many more.
Clan Snow Raven is making their move and are spelling out exactly what they want. If the Combine won't give it to them maybe the FedSuns can along with the territory they can take from the Combine. The Snow Ravens are definitely pragmatic and machiavellian enough to decide that is a better deal.
Honestly, the best bet for the other powers is to take territory from the Combine to increase their power. Then hunker down in their gains and launch raids and deep strikes in order to cripple and stir up rebellions that will break the Combine up into a few rump states each no bigger than a periphery major state. That way the power is broken and the threat is removed without having to occupy large swaths of territory. Then the remains of the Combine can be played off of each other to keep them disunified.
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It's a wonder that the Snow Ravens knowing how powerful the FS is, don't make an offer to Victor.
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It's a wonder that the Snow Ravens knowing how powerful the FS is, don't make an offer to Victor.
They want to see who will give them the most for as little effort on their part. Plus Teddy has one big thing in his favor. If the FedSuns take the Combine they could be next. But if the Snow Ravens know that the only way to win is if all the other forces also join the Combine they might decide it is not in their interest. They also will not be part of any first strike and will simply wait to see the results. Which considering Victor is being a moron and will allow the attack to happen. This will allow the Snow Ravens and the Nova Cats to see the damage and decide this might work and then follow up with their own attacks. This will further hurt the FedSuns and Victor for letting it happen.
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He dispatches word (via HPG, Blackbox and jumpship courier) to his father on Luthien and to the DCMS units along the FedSun's border that alongside their allies they will attack the hated foe in March on the 31st January...
So, March or January?
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So, March or January?
He dispatched word on the 31st of January that the attack will begin in March.
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the DC is going to kick off an attack early.... that is not good for them. supplies will have to be looked at very closely. I bet the WoB got a sniff that the FS was looking at taking Terra away from them.
when the FS is down to the last few Fox I. it might want to look at trading/selling them instead of rebuilding them. this will help the FS with funds and crews for new ships. The LC, ComGuards, WiE, and even the FRR might want to see if they want a few.
They still have 22 Fox I's in service (not including those that are upgrading/repairing). Most of them are concentrated in the 5th and 6th Corvette Flotillas which are both in non-front line deployments, although the 5th could find itself in heavy combat if the Ravens cross the border. The other I's are all in the 3rd Flotilla - on the border with the remaining Capellan states. So again not in a front line posting. The mainline force of the 4th Flotill has 12 Fox II's while the 1st Flotilla and 2nd both have 8 Fox II's and 4 Fox I's upgrading.
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They still have 22 Fox I's in service (not including those that are upgrading/repairing). Most of them are concentrated in the 5th and 6th Corvette Flotillas which are both in non-front line deployments, although the 5th could find itself in heavy combat if the Ravens cross the border. The other I's are all in the 3rd Flotilla - on the border with the remaining Capellan states. So again not in a front line posting. The mainline force of the 4th Flotill has 12 Fox II's while the 1st Flotilla and 2nd both have 8 Fox II's and 4 Fox I's upgrading.
so would the FS think about selling the last few Fox I's instead of rebuilding them? (2 or 3 to the LC, 2-3 to WiE, 2 to FRR, 2 or 3 to ComStar then maybe one to each of the better mercenary units (WD, Blue Stars, etc). that would not be all at once, but it get some friends on your side. >:D
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so would the FS think about selling the last few Fox I's instead of rebuilding them? (2 or 3 to the LC, 2-3 to WiE, 2 to FRR, 2 or 3 to ComStar then maybe one to each of the better mercenary units (WD, Blue Stars, etc). that would not be all at once, but it get some friends on your side. >:D
Considering it will still be a few years before they are through with the current batch and that maintaining and building a warship is extremely expensive and a major investment they are not going to selling their current ships to anyone. They will get the most out of their them for as long as possible.
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Honestly if I was Victor, after this war ends anyway, I'd look at converting four of the Fox Corvettes and two Avalons into dedicated training ships for the Navy. Start working up crews for new ships with REAL warships so that they can be loaded onto ships that finish construction and deployed straight into the front lines as regular crews rather than greenies needing a lot of work who have only worked on simulators.
Plus, if they hang around shipyard systems they can be activated in an emergency as defense ship.
As for the latest chapter, really nicely written. I'm stunned Sandoval (given how crazy he was in his last years in the OTL) actually held off trying to jump off the cliff and give Victor no choice but to jump with him. Although I also think he overstates just how much of the AFFS would actually obey his orders if Victor has sent EXPLICIT orders that there will be no attacks into the Combine without his personal approval. Even the Robinson Rangers I think would balk at crossing Victor (given the sheer support he has given them in expanding their brigade over the years) and certinally the rest of the AFFS would probably flatly tell Sandoval to pound snow if Victor had explicitly told them not to attack.
In any event, I think by the time he gets to New Avalon and talks about things, the window would have probably closed for a preemptive attack. Best bet of the AFFS now is going to trying to play shell games and confound the ISF and WOB-ROM as to exactly where the hell the Federated Suns fleet is. The really good thing here is that the Federated Suns has so many Fox's and Avalon's in service now, they can play very creative games with transponders and hull markings and using L/F jumps to make it looks like their fleet is concentrated here or there ... while leaving plenty of room to quietly mass several flotillas in deep space positions where they can jump in and make mincemeat of the enemy.
The key I think to the Federated Suns being able to win this without a massive war of attrition, will be to leverage their navy and firepower at the first instance to cripple the DCA's task forces right off the bat. If they can get -if not supremacy then at least naval superiority- it will let the AFFS isolate the enemy spearheads by either capturing or scattering their jumpship fleets. Then the AFFS can smash each spearhead in detail with overwhelming force. While also ensuring a strategic reserve will be on hand to counter the WOB.
Of course a lot of that depends on how the WOB fight. If they come in nukes blazing, well, the AFFS ships are far better designed to deal with that threat and if it lets the AFFS go nuclear happy from the outset, the Morgan Hasek Davion could end up as the highest kill-count ship of this war :D
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Okay there is another interlude coming as well as the February update. Each will contain spoilers for the other. Which do you guys want first?
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Interlude please!
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what ever one is done first >:D
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Interlude please!
Agreed.
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Update would be better I think
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Honestly if I was Victor, after this war ends anyway, I'd look at converting four of the Fox Corvettes and two Avalons into dedicated training ships for the Navy. Start working up crews for new ships with REAL warships so that they can be loaded onto ships that finish construction and deployed straight into the front lines as regular crews rather than greenies needing a lot of work who have only worked on simulators.
Plus, if they hang around shipyard systems they can be activated in an emergency as defense ship.
better to use captured ships as to not waste the regular ships from patrol duties, plus most would have larger crew needs....
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Interlude first sure.
I’d agree on the Fox I’d especially if you could convince ComStar to open a Fleet Academy and split training/maintenance costs.
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I'm perfectly happy with either Interlude or Update!
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3070 - February Interlude - Revelations
10th February 3070
Fox's Den
Grand Avalon Mountain Range
New Avalon
New Avalon Combat Region
Coreward Combat Theatre (Markessan Operation's Area)
Crucis March
Federated Suns
To say the meeting had been difficult would be an understatement. The problem with filling a room with strong willed professionals was that when they disagreed the debates could become heated! Still the respect that all of the participants had for each other had at least kept the arguments from descending into personal attacks. So far at least. The First Prince tiredly looked at the faces of his key advisers as they argued the merits of a preemptive strike back and forth. While Galen and Caradoc were defending his own position Victor couldn't help but feel they were doing so more out of a sense that they should play devil's advocate. Jackson, Ardan and James were all making a strong case for hitting the Combine now while their communications were in shambles. In one regard they table had divided into an almost Old Guard and New Guard approach, but Victor knew better than to think this was merely old hatreds that the elder members hadn't let go. Worse he was starting to think they might be right.
At a soft knock on the door the single member of the group that hadn't spoke got up and walked to open it, taking the data pad that was handed to her by a staff member and walking back to give it to Victor. Despite himself and the situation the First Prince couldn't help but smile at his wife as she handed him what was obviously an urgent intelligence report. Giving her hand a squeeze he took the pad and began reading, the smile fading from his face at the few short paragraphs. He snapped at Galen. "Get Field Marshal Day in here. I expect she's outside."
A few seconds later the elderly head of MI1 stepped into the room and saluted. "You sent for me my Prince."
"Has this been verified?" He held up the data pad.
"As best we can. In the circumstances. Yes." She shrugged slightly. "It's an outside source. ROM. But... My intelligence reports are backing it up. They're coming."
Glancing at the men who just minutes before he had been arguing with the First Prince nodded. "You were right gentlemen. Jackson, Ardan, James... You were right. Galen, Caradoc I'm sorry. I've wasted your time. Theodore or Hohiro at least is about to launch a full scale attack on us with the WOB in support. We've received a copy of Hohiro's message to the DCMS ordering them to initiate an attack on us as per previous orders on the 21st of March. A ROM agent working in the Dieron HPG station under the WOB has "accidentally" sent a copy along with the deciphering ciphers to the station on Northwind. Who have forwarded it to us. I was wrong gentlemen and I might have cost us untold casualties with my mistake... Perhaps even the war... But we have a chance to fix my error. I have a chance to fix it. With your help."
Surprisingly it was the old Marshal of the Draconis March who spoke up almost softly. "You were trying to preserve the peace. Avoid the bloodshed of a full scale war Victor. That's nothing to be ashamed off. But now we know war is coming we have to make sure we damn well win it!"
Victor nodded his thanks at the old warhorses words and turned to Jackson. "Initiate Operation Alexander. All 3 sub-operations. Hit them hard Jackson."
Jackson stood nodding firmly back. "We still have time. The entire AFFS is on alert. I can have the first dropships blasting off in 48 hours Prince Victor. Operation Alexander can hit them while they are still loading their dropships to hit us..."
Ardan Sortek stood as well. "This might even work to our favour. As Jackson says we might catch at least some of their units half loaded and with their pants down..."
Victor stood as well making a point of shaking each of the officers hands as they began heading out to launch Operation Alexander. "I'll join you all in the war room shortly gentlemen..."
As they filed out he turned to his wife who smiled at him sadly and took his hand. "You did what you thought was best Victor. There's no shame in that. Come, let's go see Burton and then you can join your generals, they can spare you for a few minutes at least..."
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Victor hopefully now you see the folly in trying to make peace with a power that has proven time and time again that they do not want peace. The Combine wants to dominate the inner sphere even if they have to burn it all down and rule only ashes and death they will do it because only the Combine and the Dragon are the greatest and true ruler of Humanity.
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[Kosh] And so...it begins....
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Congratulations Hohiro.
You've kept pushing and pushing and pushing at Victor since you lost your mind about him back in the day. You wanted a glorious battle? You wanted to try and rouse Victor to a final glorious confrontation between the Federated Suns and Draconis Combine because you have penis compensation issues going on over the sizes of your navies?
Well, congratulations. Mission fu&#ing accomplished. You've just destroyed the very last shreds of restraint Victor may have had lingering from the days he considered you a friend and given him the chance to show you what an out-of-control-runaway-military-industrial-complex can do when it takes off the kid gloves and puts on the knuckle-dusters.
Good news is Comstar at least know this is coming as well and that the WOB is coming out to play too. They can support Victor, but more critically they can also take the opportunity to go on the offensive against the WOB. At the very least, they can launch an extended hit-hold-run operation into Terra itself, IMO, to cripple the Titan yards and stop both new construction AND prevent any crippled WOB ships from this war being able to be repaired for years...
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i can not wait to see what a carrier strike group does to so of those assets in the Terra system. death by a thousand cuts.
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Remember that there are drone ships and fighters waiting for them at Terra, along with concealed capital missile batteries.
And I can imagine Hohiro raging at underhandedness of Victor, for attacking before he could attack him.
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Remember that there are drone ships and fighters waiting for them at Terra, along with concealed capital missile batteries.
And I can imagine Hohiro raging at underhandedness of Victor, for attacking before he could attack him.
Hohiro is an idiot all is fair in war and he needs to learn he dosen’t operate in a vacuum were his enemy dose what he wants.
Hell I’m starting to think he is a poorer commander than John French.
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Yes there are drone ships and the rest of the SDS but unlike in canon here the WoB is working with a vastly reduced amount of resources and manpower. They have also been getting their teeth kicked in by ComStar who decided it was not a smart move to just leave the crazy part of their organization alone with no challenge.
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3070 - February - War
The start of February had the entire AFFS on high alert. Even if war hadn't been declared or offensive operations authorised few on the Draconis Combine border doubted that it was only a matter of time. Although the First Prince had declined to launch a preemptive strike he had no objections to reorganisations to better defend the Draconis March or to set up for any possible counter attack. For instance the 1894th Light Horse and 21st Rim Worlds moved up from the Kathil PDZ to both take up station on the world of David on the Combine border alongside the Fighting Urukhai Bar Hounds regiment. Meanwhile a task force of 5 Avalon Hussar RCT's was built up on the world of Royal - with the 1st Avalon Hussars RCT moving from Abbeyville and the 5th and 14th Hussar's moving from Woodbine. The latter's garrison posting was covered when the 3rd NAIS Cadre moved to Woodbine to secure that key world's defence. Another addition to this task force was the veteran 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT who had to move all the way from Crofton - who's key factories were protected when the still under strength 21st Avalon Hussars RCT moved from Maram to Crofton. A final unit the 20th Avalon Hussars RCT moved from the Clan Sun Jaguar enclaves to join their sister regiments on Royal. Such a collection of Avalon Hussar RCT's had not been since in a single location since the First Succession War and more than a few wondered what it might imply.
Quietly and with little notice Marshal Roger Williams of the Avalon Hussars Brigade quickly moved to Royal and took command of the task force with the permission of the First Prince. Even as the units trickled in to their new posting on Royal he hurriedly informed them as to their objective in the event of war and detached a full reinforced battalion from the 1st and 5th Hussars along with an over strength company from each of the other 3 regiments to form an ad-hoc new formation - the reborn 38th Avalon Hussars RCT which he took direct command off for the time being. He began training the new formation and the other regiments of his task force in mountain warfare tactics and integrating them into a combined force.
However even as Marshal William's was beginning his work events moved on. With the receipt of the deciphered attack instructions the High Command ordered Operation Alexander and it's sub-operations Agamemnon, Achilles and Ajax into full effect. Within hours of those orders being received regiment's and RCT's were moving onto their pre-prepared dropships while in orbit squadrons of assault dropships, pocket warships and even full blown warships prepared to escort them for their attacks. The AFFS and it's mercenary allies were going to war...*
Even as the rest of the AFFS prepared for war a message from Duke James Sandoval ensured that the 38th Avalon Hussars RCT would not be the only unit to rejoin the muster rolls for this campaign. The entire Draconis March Militia Brigade was ordered to detach 1 company of mechwarriors (but not equipment as he would provide this) and dispatch them as quickly as possible to Robinson to be used to reform the 1st Robinson Chevaliers. Traditionally Chevalier units had not been rebuilt, with new units formed in their place, but in the circumstances of centuries since the last Robinson Chevalier unit had been destroyed the Duke felt he could ignore that old rule. He did inform the Kentares DMM that given that they were still rebuilding they could exempt themselves from this levy. Marshal Liam Grey of the Kentares DMM informed the Duke immediately that he would be honoured to dispatch his 12 finest mechwarriors for the good of the Draconis March and the Federated Suns. It would be months before the reborn Chevaliers had even assembled let alone be declared combat ready, however the formation of this historic unit led to a massive upsurge in patriotism throughout the Draconis March...
One final area of major deployment was the First Prince and High Command ordering that the ComGuard's be given almost unlimited access to the AFFS's supply depots and equipment for the duration of the hostilities - at a lower priority than the AFFS's own units but still giving them access. All payment for the equipment that the ComGuard's drew from the AFFS's own supply lines would be billed at generous terms with little to no interest. It was felt that having the ComGuard's at as close to full strength as possible could only be of benefit to the AFFS now they were both engaged in active warfare alongside each other. It was also a massive show of the new industrial strength of the Federated Sun's that not only could it afford to support the entire enlarged AFFS but also it's allies...
With the war starting the need for military equipment was more of a priority than ever. So it was good news that a number of industrial plants saw expansions during February.
At the new Johnston Industries plant on Victoria the refitted and retooled Caesar plant goes operational. This leaves only the Kai/Yu Haung line under rebuilding. However with most of the plant rebuild it is felt that an expansion is merited. The company receives a license to produce the Penetrator class battlemech at Victoria.
On Northfield the new Cosara Weaponries plant's second line goes operational - producing King Crabs which are immedietly shipped mostly to the ComGuards. The company immedietly begins work on expanding the plant with an additional 2 of the versatile Crab lines.
On Palmyra the Javelin-O plant begins work on another 2 lines of this by now iconic light omnimech. When this expansion is complete it will give the plant 6 full lines churning out dozens of omnimechs.
The Mayetta plant of Norse Battlemech Works begins work to add an omnimech facility to the factory. Given the precarious nature of the companies main plant on the Combine border it is felt that expanding their secondary facility on Mayetta is a good idea.
The Robinson-Achernar plant on Achernar completes their second Watchman line on the 11th February. With the desperate need for second line battlemechs to help outfit the new League March Militia's the factory is soon operating at full capacity.
At Capella the Mujika-Wangker plant see's it's third Corsair line finish building and go operational. Not content merely with the retooled lines and this new one the company begins construction of 2 additional Corsair lines as well as a Tomahawk line. These are expected to be finished in the first quarter of 3071.
Even as Operation Alexander kicked off the rest of the Inner Sphere and Clans took notice. Archon Peter Steiner made public speeches in support of his brother's attempt to prevent the invasion that his intelligence agencies had notified him was pending. In private he assured by Comstar and the Federated Sun's that his own regiments would soon be joining them in invading the Combine. He instructed General of the Armies Adam Steiner to liaise with Jackson Davion for a combined squeeze against Dieron.
Within the Free Worlds League the war kicking off between the Federated Suns and the Draconis Combine was a source of major concern. Given the state of the "Capellan Confederation" and the League's own splintered status along with the close family ties between the Lyran Alliance and Federated Suns it was argued by most that should the Combine be defeated the FedSun's would be in a state of unparalleled power and could dictate terms to the remaining nations. This wasn't helped by the recent annexation of no less than 2 provinces of the League by the Federated Suns (even though the more neutral observers did note that these were exceptional cases). Most of the League factions immedietly began offering extremely good terms on the sale of military equipment to the Combine. The only major faction that didn't make these offers was the Duchy of Oriente - which given it's precarious position on the FedSun's border was eager to avoid upsetting it's new giant neighbour.
*((Operation Alexander will be in it's own update))
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nice update!!
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Something tells me the Combine's about to be at the center of a feeding frenzy. The Lyran's are going to get stuck in, the Bear's may well lash out to secure their borders and push the Combine away from their capital and the Ravens will be waiting in the wings as they are huge opportunists.
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Anyone else hearing 'When Johnny Comes Marching Home' (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLr-SQHFuJ8) as all the AFFS's Mechs and Tanks and Soldiers march and roll onto their dropships and boost for orbit?
There is at least a decent chance that the AFFS will take the Combine by surprise here. Especially with ComStar probably in the chaos NOT sending HPG messages routinely onto the Combine, meaning ISF agents on the border are cut off and/or have to send the messages the long way. If the units already have their frag orders for Alexander in place and all they need are the 'execute' codewords (and especially with the AFFS moving units up and around and clearly reinforcing) the movements might well be missed for long enough as simply shuffling units around in expectation of the incoming attack, rather than the AFFS moving to preempt it.
Its going to be interesting to see what ComStar do. I'd almost say that their primary mission should be EXACTLY what they were made for in the first place; guarding their HPGs. You have to assume that if this war goes hot (and given what ComStar did to the Combines HPG network), that the DCMS and WOB will very specifically target ComStar stations to knock out AFFS communications. Although HOPEFULLY if the preemptive strike works well, the Combine will be so far on the back foot that they will be far too busy to lunch much in the way of attacks into the Federated Suns.
I find the idea that the FWL arms manufacturers will sell cheap gear to the Combine pretty hilarious though. It sounds just like a perfect PR move that will never actually get executed given A) The sheer demand from four different Captain Generals in a cold war against each other for every scrap of war material they can build B) The distance to the Combine they will need to ship it (and lack of security to do so, as nothing is stopping the annoyed Federated Suns from blowing the ships into scrap) and C) The Combine actually being willing to pay for the stuff ... and the Federated Suns just saying 'well ****** you too!' and outright defaulting on the repayments for the Clan War era stuff in retaliation. Or even THREATENING to do so. Because its money the Suns has been more than willing to repay (as soon as someone can tell Victor which one of them is the REAL Captain General) despite everything, but if they piss him off...
I'm also curious to see how fierce the bidding is inside the Sun Jaguars if Victor has requested a Galaxy (especially as they watch the 20th Avalon Hussars pack up and ship out while they stay behind). This is the mother of all wars that potentially will make the Clan Invasion look like chump change and the FOMO is going to be absurd in the Warrior Cast. I mean its not just that its a battle that will earn them incredible prestige. It will also (far more than the Capellan contribution) validate them in the eyes of the Federated Suns as part of them. It also helps that its the enemy that the former Jaguars hate the most personally for a LOT of reasons and there nothing more bonding than kicking the crap out of the enemy together. And of course the sheer glory involved. Or even if they can pull another TOP on the Nova Cats, again, with the damn coin still refusing to come up 'Edge'...
Good to see Peter is happily getting in on the fun. Although I'm cynically sure he'll only move to stab the Dragon in the back when they are fully committed to the attack on the Suns. Still, its useful and it will be a bittersweet moment, probably, for the AFFS and LAAF when they manage to team up one more time ...
Or, as Heath Ledger may have put it; 'And here ... we ... go!'
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so Northfield has added a new King crab and will be adding 2 more crab. it would seem that they might want to branch out. I could see were they would need a training mech... maybe the Crockett? or they could go for a tank, or fighter. maybe ComStar could help fund it. They also might want to out side of the box and build a ground base to make small dropships like the Leopard.
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So Victor gave the go ahead this should at least lessen the blow he is going to take from letting the attack happen in the first place. But I still think he needs to lose his baby brother as payment for his idiotic choices that lead to the attack happening at all. If not killed then his brother should at the very least become very injured in the attack.
Now ComStar has access to the FedSuns supply infrastructure it will allow them to go farther and hit faster than before. Plus with the ComGuard fighting alongside the AFFS and the LAAF, it will win them back alot of the prestige and trust they lost over the last few decades.
With this operation in play, they should be able to hit hard and then hunker down in their gains. Then launch spoiling and destruction raids to cripple and stretch the Combine as much as possible. This will allow the other powers the chance to hit them as well and further weaken the Combine.
I still hope that the FRR will get in on the action and grow the number of worlds they have. They should be getting support from ComStar, FedSuns, and Lyran Alliance at least. ComStar especially since they will want the FRR to be producing as much gear as possible since they built them up as a supply nation more or less.
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3070 - February - Operation Achilles I
To nobodies surprise the Davion High Command had constantly updated their war plans for the invasion of the Draconis Combine. Even during the detente during the 3050s the war plans that would send dozen's of regiments and RCT's slicing deep into the Combine had been under continual review and had been updated to take account of the latest intelligence and force reports. Of late these reviews and updates had taken on an entirely new urgency however. Therefore Operation Alexander as the current plans were named was almost daily updated and ready to be launched with almost no notice.
Operation Alexander was divided into 3 distinctive sub-operations. The first, Operation Achilles was those elements of the overall invasion which were directed at the Dieron Military District. The second, Operation Ajax was the parts of Operation Alexander which pertained to the invasion of the Benjamin Military District. While the third, Operation Agamemnon was the invasion plans for the Galedon Military District.
On the 10th of February 3070 all three sub-operations of Operation Alexander were authorised and the kick off date for the attack was made the 12th of February. Although it wasn't expected that the various forces would hit enemy territory until almost the end of the month. Still the original operation plan called for hitting the DCMS with everything they could, as hard and fast as they could and keeping the pressure on. This war was going to be fought on the AFFS's terms if the High Command had anything to say about it and they hoped to force the Dragon to be forced onto the back foot and end up responding to them rather than taking the initiate itself.
Operation Achilles
Dieron
No less than 3 RCT's of the Davion Brigade of Guards (the Assault, 2nd and 4th Guards) led the way against Fortress Dieron. Backing them up were the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and 5th Robinson Rangers RCT as well as all 4 regiments of the Vegan Rangers and 2 of the Fighting Urukhai. No less than a full dozen conventional brigades had been scrambled to add extra weight to the attack, although some of these were not with the invasion forces initial wave just due to the sheer amount of transportation assets this would have required. To escort them came no less than 12 Fox II class corvettes of the 4th Corvette Flotilla and the 4 Avalon class cruisers of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron and a veritable fleet of assault dropships and pocket warships along with multiple wings of independent fleet based aerospace fighters. These fleet elements had also been authorised to use nuclear ordinance if a) the WOB fleet showed itself immediately or 2) if the DCA deployed their own nuclear weapons.
Facing off against this invasion force were the 1st and 2nd Genyosha under the direct command of Kanrei Hohiro Kurita and the 3rd, 49th and 50th Dieron Regulars under Warlord Isoroku Kurita. While the 2 Genyosha regiments and the 3rd Dieron Regulars were battle hardened forces the 49th and 50th Dieron Regulars were scratch formations formed from a mix of retirees, academy graduates and odds and ends that the Warlord had scavenged up to make up the numbers. The conventional forces attached to the 49th and 50th were at least of superior levels of skill having been drawn directly from the regular garrison forces of Dieron. Although this had stripped out the best of these forces. In orbit the Kirishama class cruiser the DCS Siriwan leads the defensive fleet which consists of the additional warships the DCS Dieron Star and 4 Inazuma class corvettes. Outnumbered almost 3:1 the DCA forces are somewhat encouraged when they are informed that their new allies will soon be sending warships to support them.
If and when these reinforcements arrive in time to save the Dragon's sailors is another matter however. Even before the warships close on each other the space between them is filled with the dead and dying as both sides aerospace fighters duel for superiority. The DCA formations are bolstered by the large aerospace assets assigned to defend not only Dieron but it's vital shipyards, however that only gives them equality of numbers. In skill the best of the DCMS and DCA formations can match the battle hardened fighter wings of the AFFS but overall the Davion's level of skill is slightly higher. However in equipment the Kurita fighters find themselves massively outclassed - except for a handful of upgraded designs and similarly sparse Tatsu omnifighters. Compared to the mass numbers of Dagger-O and Huscarl-O's leading the Davion charge which are backed up by even larger numbers of newly produced upgraded Stuka, Ahab, Vulcans, Hammerheads, Corsairs, Tomahawks, Sparrowhawks and Sabres that make up almost the entirety of the Davion aerospace forces. With the benefit of the better equipment and the advantage of marginally more skilled general pilots the Davion fighters begin pushing the Dragon's fighter wings back as the warships advance behind them.
Faced with overwhelming firepower the DCA Admiral in charge from the bridge of the DCS Siriwan orders a general retreat away from Dieron to attempt to preserve his fleet until the arrival of reinforcements allow him to take the fight to the Federated Sun's Navy. Unfortunately for his plan the captain of the DCS Dieron Star and 1 of the attached Inazuma's ignore his orders and instead opt for a more "Bushido" stance of a heroic charge against the invading fleet in the spirit of "true samurai". With much of the fighter cover withdrawing with the main fleet the DCS Dieron Star and it's single escorting corvette are hammered with massed fighter wave attacks with entire wings of Stuka and Hammerhead class aerospace fighters strafing the charging ships until they are both destroyed without coming into range of the Davion task force. Both ships are reduced to wrecks and a handful of pocket warships move in to finish them off while the main task force takes up high orbital positions over Dieron and begins to prepare to land the huge number of troops it's been escorting while keeping an eye on the surviving DCA ships.
As February ended the first of the dropships and drop assault pods began raining down across Dieron while aerospace fighters streaked down to keep the defenders off balance...
Quentin
The veteran 45th Dieron Regulars hadn't forgotten the last time the AFFS had visited and had spent the years since working on the defensive works around the huge Independence Weaponry factory complex. However they were still short nearly a full battalion of mechwarriors but had managed to somewhat allow for this by integrating the defensive security forces of the huge factory directly into their command structure as well as making sure they had the best equipment that Quentin produced within their ranks. They also hadn't only worked with the local security forces but had built up excellent relationships with the local militia forces as well. While on paper they numbered only 7 companies of battlemechs and 2 conventional regiments of troops they had in fact almost 11 companies of battlemech's and a full half dozen conventional regiments of troops at their disposal. One area they couldn't do much about however was the aerospace wings attached to their command. While officially they still numbered 2 wings, they had in fact only a single wing of fighters available. Repeated requests for additional fighters had been either ignored or refused.
Therefore when the first jump signals began to appear Tai-sa Sebastian Iota ordered his troops to fall back on the Steel Valley and into his prepared fortifications. His few fighters were moved to heavily reinforced bunkers for protection and tasked only with contesting air superiority over the Steel Valley itself for as long as possible. While a few of the local politicians decried this lack of proper spirit it was soon proven entirely correct.
Burning in and landing near the end of February were no less than 3 AFFS commands. Led by the 3rd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry the task force also consisted of the 4th and 17th Avalon Hussars RCT's. Their combined fighter wings outnumbered the DCMS fighter pilots almost 4:1 and it was all that the 45th's air wings could do to contest the air space directly over their parent formations lines. Even that would soon be beyond them due to sheer attrition.
Landing the AFFS force immedietly moved up to the defensive works around the Steel Valley and prepare for a siege. Their plan was simple. While their combined air wings wore down the defenders the green troops of the 4th Avalon Hussars would probe and test the defences - wearing down the defenders as well as blooding their troops in real albeit low level combat - while the 17th Avalon Hussars and the 3rd FSAC would hold themselves in readiness to break the enemy lines if the opportunity presented itself...
Saffel
In a surprise move the 1st Sheraton Knights appeared over Saffel using a pirate point and began dropping onto the ill prepared word with almost no notice on the 25th of February. With the Knight's battlemech forces landing and forming up a strong landing zone the armoured regiment that many saw as the heart of the Knights began unloading along with the mechanised infantry regiment. The few militia forces on planet mobilised to attempt to hold them back from the planetary capital of Iwanji as February drew to a close...
Altair
The planetary defence forces fresh from word of the invasion at Dieron (and shaken by the sheer size of the reported invasion force the AFFS was committing to the capital of the District) were further rocked when the 33rd Avalon Hussars RCT appeared in their own system on the 27th. While the invading RCT hadn't made planet fall by the end of the month there was widespread panic on the part of the militia formations who were suddenly facing an experienced and well equipped front line Avalon Hussar command. To make morale worse for the defenders the under strength 33rd Avalon Hussars had brought along their empty dropships so as to give the impression they were at full strength... Indeed they had managed to grab an extra Overlord and a Union class dropship which although empty and almost totally decrepit gave the impression that they had an additional reinforced battalion with them on top of their own 4 battalions and command company of battlemechs...
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looks like they are looking to start kicking in the front door of the DC
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3070 - February - Operation Ajax I
At the same time that Operation Achilles was hitting the Dieron Military District, Operation Ajax had the AFFS throwing troops forward into the Benjamin Military District - specifically the worlds around the Galtor Thumb and the Combine world of Proserpina.
Proserpina
This key world drew the attention of no less than 8 AFFS commands under Operation Ajax. Led by the 1st Davion Guards RCT the invading force consisted of the Davion Old Guards RCT, 1st Revenant Guards RCT, 1st Kathil Uhlans RCT, 1st and 6th Robinson Rangers RCT, 1st Argyle Lancers and 41st Avalon Hussars RCT. More than that the entire 1st Fleet had been assembled and committed to this operation to hunt down any DCA warships in system and also to ensure the safety of the huge collection of some of the most elite units in the AFFS.
The DCS Victory at Wolcott and the DCS New Samarkand were the 2 warships assigned to Proserpina in anticipation of them escorting the troops assembled there to invade the FedSuns. However the Kyusha class frigate and the Samarkand class light carrier found themselves woefully outnumbered and outgunned. Attempting to hit and run using the DCS's New Samarkand's fighters however backfired spectacularly when the 36 fighters assigned to the strike found themselves torn apart by the massed fighter wings of 5 Davion III destroyers and the fighter wings of the various AFFS formations while the full 120 fighters of the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion slammed into the 2 Combine warships. While the DCS Victory at Wolcott survived the attack the smaller carrier didn't and the Kyusha frigate heavily damaged had to flee the system.
This left the 1st Sword of Light, 4th Genyosha and 10th Proserpina Hussars to face the invasion alone. The garrison of the continent of Bragadin and the capital city of Conqueror's Pride was the 1st Sword of Light and the 10th Proserpina Hussars (which numbered only 2 battalions of green troops and a regular skilled command company), while the 4th Genyosha protected Darwan and the vital Bulldog Industries plants there.
With 1 of the defending warships destroyed and the other heavily damaged and driven off the AFFS troops began making planet fall under the air cover of not only their own wings but also that of the 1st Carrier Battle Group. Leading the way was the 1st Argyle Lancers on Darwan. As soon as they hit the ground they immedietly formed a screen for the other landing forces. Following the 1st Argyle's were the Davion Old Guard, 1st Revenant Guard and the 1st Robinson Rangers. Meanwhile the 1st Davion Guards, 1st Kathil Uhlans, 6th Robinson Rangers and 41st Avalon Hussars landed near Conqueror's City.
While Sho-sho Shigeru Yoshida would love to mount a more aggressive defence given the forces against him he has little option but to hold fast and prepare for urban warfare. Indeed for a fraction of a minute he had genuinely considered withdrawing and leaving the AFFS forces to take the world and preserve his troops - but he cannot abandon the huge stores built up here nor the prefecture capital world. To do otherwise would be to invite total dishonour upon not only himself but his regiments. All he can do is dig in and hope for reinforcements.
The Davion forces have the troops to simply overwhelm the defending forces, but instead begin to move slowly and with care towards the dug in DCMS regiments. This is going to be a long war and the last thing that the AFFS needs is a half dozen of it's finest units gutted by over aggressive tactics in the first days of the war. As February draws to a close the various AFFS units begin to slowly tighten their own lines on the dug in DCMS formations.
Scheat
The 4th Night Stalkers were too old and too veteran to not know they couldn't hold out when the invading forces arriving in the system were identified as the 1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs and the 6th FedSun's Dragoons RCT. They immedietly dispersed into the wilderness and began planning for a long campaign of resistance.
As soon as they realised this was the case the invading forces divided up. The 6th FedSuns Dragoons took up garrisoning positions around Scheat while the 1st Chasseurs spread out and began hunting the 4th Night Stalkers. The Chasseurs were helped in this by the fact that combined the 2 Davion forces have 80 fighters compared to the barely 24 which were attached to the Night Stalkers and who are now operating out of hurriedly prepared air fields in the wilderness. In fact the first priority of Marshal Sal Cole is to neutralise these air fields. He is hoping that with the right record of victories in this campaign he can achieve a transfer to a more prestigious unit - such as command of one of the new Avalon Hussars or perhaps even a transfer into the Brigade of Guards.
Fellanin II
The defending 1st Ghost was a veteran unit and at least amongst most of the DCMS well respected unit for it's skill (if not it's members social standing). However when the 3rd Crucis Lancers and both regiments of the Blue Star Irregulars on the Combine border jumped into the system, Tai-sa Kasigi is under no illusions as to the fate of his command if he stands and fights. Without the inbuilt sense of honour that many of his contemporaries have he makes the simple decision to withdraw his command from the system and preserve it for any future counter attack. The total lack of communication from higher up the chain of command just makes the decision easier to implement as far as the practical Tai-sa is concerned. Before blasting off he destroys any military supplies that he can't take with him as well as almost herding most of the formed up militia commands that will fit onto dropships to evacuate alongside him... He heads to Junction to regroup and hopefully counter attack.
When the AFFS forces arrive on planet on the 28th February 3070 the remaining planetary authorities immedietly surrender. With the 1st Ghost fled along with most of the formed up defending militia they had little choice.
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Caught a good number of the DCMS best with their pants down and with their military head on Derion as well as the heir to the realm on the world combined with the smashed HPG network this is going to really screw the DC.
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Good start but unfortunately that comms blackout goes both ways the Combine forces can't talk to each other so they can't get help. The other side of that is that the units not hit don't know they are getting invaded and will still go off to attack the FedSuns when the predetermined date is reached. The FedSuns don't know where every unit is that will invade so some will get through the damage will be lighter than if every unit attacked but it will still be damaging.
Also still hoping that Victor or Peter even (probably a good move on Peter's part) to start supporting the FRR to get them to attack and occupy a few worlds even if only as a distraction this will help out by stretching the Combine even more than they were before. While as a minor nation there is little they can do a victory is still a victory and it will help boost their morale, industrial output and might bring back more of the refugees that fled during the Clan Invasion. With such a different setting than the canon TL the FRR is unlikely to join the Ghost Bear Dominion. Frankly, if Peter works to improve the FRR more and make them a true ally they can be used to hit the clans to help take back worlds. That would be a major boost to both nations' prestige and power something that they desperately need due to their small size and lackluster actions for the FRR and Peter respectively.
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Good start but unfortunately that comms blackout goes both ways the Combine forces can't talk to each other so they can't get help. The other side of that is that the units not hit don't know they are getting invaded and will still go off to attack the FedSuns when the predetermined date is reached. The FedSuns don't know where every unit is that will invade so some will get through the damage will be lighter than if every unit attacked but it will still be damaging.
The problem is that while in the old days that might have been a really big concern, Victor now has SO many units that he can both deploy a NUMBER of concentrated spearheads at the same time as he still retains very strong interior garrisons AND reaction forces. And forces of a generally decent skill level (and forces STILL running top of the line equipment rather than duct tapped held together Banshees or something).
The Combine will surely press the attack both for strategic reasons and cultural reasons its critical they do ... but rather than slicing past the front and going to town on Victors interior, to their horror they'll find they are probably going to drop onto worlds STILL well defended - and with additional forces inbound in a short time to stomp them!
And THEN they get the Fax's finally coming through saying that Victor sent two MORE spearheads through into Benjamin and Galedon ...
Slowly, inch by inch, Hohiro and Theodore might slowly start to get it through their incredibly thick heads that they have finally pushed Victor past a point of no return. That Victor has finally taken off the kid gloves and decided to break them after years of TRYING to live with them, he's finally snapped any last restraint by building up to invade the Federated suns 'just because we can!'
The worst part of all of this for the Combine is that this preemptive attack is the huge loss of face for House Kurita. Oh I'm sure they'll loudly proclaim this is an unprovoked attack and bla bla bla (and pretty much every person across the rest of the Inner Sphere, even those factions in the FWL that don't like Victor will probably roll their eyes at that one) but being smashed back and placed firmly on the back foot as the AFFS steadily advance INTO the Combine like this? Taking Dieron, the equivalent of Robinson or New Sytris? I mean, we already saw on the tactical level that some of the Generals and Captains refused to do the logical thing of retreating and regrouping for a counter attack, but they stood and fought against impossible odds and lost Warships/Commands/Planets that the Combine REALLY couldn't afford to loose! And yet, the loss of face suffered means that they will probably double down into a vicious circle. People like Tai-sa Kasigi who made the smart decision to pull back and regroup are probably going to get shot for daring to not fight to the death against impossible odds!
Theodore might see the risks here, but find he simply isn't in a position to DO anything about it. Especially with the HPG network like it is and the Black Dragons probably going to flip right back around to killing him and his son and taking power as clearly House Kurita has proven for the last time that it must be destroyed and the GLORIOUS Von Rohrs returned to power!!!1111oneone
This is REALLY not going to end well.
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Is any of the decendeants Von Rohrs still alive at this point?
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That is why I said the damage would be lighter than if Victor hadn't launched his attacks. And unless the FedSuns has perfect intel on just where the Combine was planning on hitting they can only place units so well in order to defend general areas. The Combine is going to get a black eye in this early fight but they are far from being beaten. This isn't the CCAF that was barely a standing army and more of a patchwork militia by the time the war started. The DCMS has the power to last and make Victor bleed for every victory. Also WoB still has their attack to keep the Lyran's from getting fully involved to go through as well. This war is going to go on for a long time and the longer it does the more shit is going to happen from all sides.
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3070 - February - Operation Agamemnon I
Almost the entire Galedon Military District had been plunged into total communication darkness. A handful of stations haven't went offline but even when this is the case there is usually no other station within range that they can "talk" too. Communication that is non-military has been forced into using pony express chains of jumpships while the DCMS is relying almost entirely on their "fax" machines. While they have received word of the coming offensive operations there is almost no communication between the various units beyond the most basic level. It is in this environment that the DCMS troops within the Galedon District face the incoming Operation Agamemnon...
Harrow's Sun
The world of Harrow's Sun is of almost no real value in itself, however it's location on the edge of the Galtor Thumb gives it a major strategic value particularly for the offensive minded DCMS. It is the perfect spot to launch an attack from deep into the Federated Sun's to cut off the Galtor Thumb from resupply and make the AFFS positions there totally untenable. It is for this reason that 3 DCMS regiments have been concentrated there - the Ryuken-ni and the 3rd and 7th Ghost regiments - along with the DCS Takashi, DCS Galedon Warrior and DCS Mountain of Wyrms. While the 3rd and 7th are not prestigious units they are both highly skilled formations and while the 7th is under strength still it has still been considered a viable offensive formation.
Unfortunately for these units the AFFS's High Command agrees with that assessment. While the 1st and 5th Avalon Hussars RCT's had been earmarked for other duties at the last minute after a plan had been put forward by Marshal Roger Williams, their place within Operation Agamemnon's strike on Harrows Sun had been taken by the 9th Avalon Hussars RCT. This unit now joined the Davion Heavy Guards RCT, 4th Robinson Rangers RCT, 6th Crucis Lancers RCT and the 1st Ceti Hussars RCT in combining at a dead system and then jumping to Harrow's Sun. Accompanying this ground force were the 4th Cruiser Squadron and the 3rd Destroyer Squadron - giving the Federated Sun's Navy a superiority of 4 cruisers and 4 destroyers against 1 cruiser, 1 frigate and 1 destroyer. To make matters worse for the defending DCA warships the Federated Sun's High Command has also dispatched a strong force of assault dropships, pocket warships and independent naval fighter wings and regiments to bolster this force.
Tai-sa Masayoshi Kitakyusho in command of the Ryuken-ni and the wider garrison is a master tactician and is under no illusions as to the likelihood of his units being successful in an defence of Harrows Sun. He is also aware of the fact that the planet strategic value as a jump off point for the invasion of the Federated Suns is now entirely gone. Indeed he has come to the conclusion that this huge invasion force signifies that the strategic situation has probably "developed not necessarily to the Combine's advantage" as he quotes to Tai-sa Noah Christienson and Tai-sa Tosakira Kaifu of the 3rd and 7th Ghost. His initial thought is to evacuate the entire force of DCMS troops from the planet and preserve them for more vital battles - however he admits to the 2 Ghost officers that such a move would likely disgrace both himself, his regiment and indeed the entire Ryuken brigade as well as the Ghost units in question as well. Something that cannot be borne. Therefore he has decided that 2 units will withdraw with the warships and leave a single regiment to conduct a defensive campaign until such time as the no doubt already pending DCMS counter attack returns to liberate the planet.
At this stage Tai-sa Kaifu of the 7th Ghost can feel a sinking feeling in his stomach, knowing that his unit is particularly skilled in defensive operations. However he is surprised when instead Tai-sa Kitakyusho informs the other 2 officers that he will be personally staying with his own Ryuken-ni regiment and supporting forces to lead the defence. He givens them written orders to such effect and orders them to get their units off world ideally yesterday. Troops, battlemechs and all other military equipment is to be prioritised in that order. He would rather get the troops off planet than delay and end up with half loaded dropships being burned from the skies as they try to flee. He gives them 3 days to get everything they can loaded, anything or anyone not loaded at that stage will remain and join him in the defence.
Exactly 72 hours afterwards the 3rd and 7th Ghost reach orbit and join with the 3 warships which escort them to the nearest jump point that isn't held by Davion forces. While they have managed to extract their entire regiment and support forces (minus a handful of infantry that volunteered to stay behind) and their full battlemech contingents as well as aerospace fighters (including the Ryuken-ni's aerospace contingent) they have been forced to leave behind roughly half their armour and infantry equipment as well as mountains of supplies of ammunition and spare parts. Most of which Tai-sa Kitakyusho is in the process of dispersing or destroying.
Fighter attacks by the attached naval wings harry the retreating DCMS and DCA forces, but do little damage with the long range missions forced upon the Davion pilots. After a few inconclusive engagements Marshal Jon Davion with the agreement of the admirals in charge of the warships agrees to stop wasting fuel and ordinance and instead begins sending the fighter wings under his command to hit the troops which remain on the surface. However as per his regiment's long experience Tai-Sa Kitakyusho has taken to the field and refused to be besieged. Instead his command has broken into company and battalion sized formations and has prepared numerous hastily assembled stockpiles to support them in a war of movement.
Landing his forces across the world Marshal Davion is easily able to take control of every major population centre. However the Ryuken-ni remains a viable threat. With total air superiority the AFFS is soon searching for them from the air while the 1st Ceti Hussars takes the lead in the pursuit with the 9th Avalon Hussars in support. His remaining troops are either engaged in garrison work or acting as beaters/response units for the pursuing forces. Given the huge predominance of AFFS military strength on planet it is only a matter of time before the Ryuken-ni is forced to battle at which time the Davion forces can converge and destroy it with their vast firepower...
Weisau
The defending 1st Amphigean Light Assault Group finds itself facing (to the best of it's knowledge) the 2nd and 4th Ceti Hussar's RCT's when the 2 AFFS formations arrive in system and make a combat burn for the planet. Immediately the 1st Amphigean breaks into 2 components under it's experienced leadership and heads into the bush to fight a guerrilla campaign. Unfortunately for the smaller of these formations the AFFS forces have "hidden" the 2nd Tancredi Loyalist LCT within the 2 larger formations and during the combat drop onto the planet the Loyalists manage to break off and surprise the 3rd battalion of the 1st Amphigean, pinning them in place while the 2nd Ceti Hussars moves up to envelop and destroy them in a 3 day battle between the 24th and 27th of February.
Hearing the calls for help from Tai-sa Two Feather's command of the 3rd Battalion his long term commanding officer Tai-sa Trueffeau attempts to break through with his own 1st and 2nd battalions to relieve his trapped troops. The 4th Ceti Hussars although green use their larger size and heavier battlemech's to good effect to block any breakthrough and buy time for the 2nd Ceti Hussars and 2nd Tancredi Loyalists to destroy the isolated battalion. On the 27th Tai-sa Trueffeau breaks of his attempt to save his 3rd battalion and retreats back into the wilderness - having lost over half of his own command's strength in the attempt. Although he has mauled the 4th Ceti's Alpha and Beta Combat Commands and destroyed nearly a third of the green units fighting strength.
While the 4th was holding off the remainder of the 1st Amphigean the other 2 commands destroy the units 3rd battalion and take the few survivors into custody - where they are immedietly shipped off planet to a facility on Sun Prairie. The 2nd Tancredi Loyalists have taken almost 30% casualties but have proven their worth beyond a shadow of a doubt. The 2nd Ceti Hussars however has suffered almost no damage - losing only a single companies worth of battlemechs. Leaving the 4th Hussars and 2nd Tancredi Loyalists to repair their damaged equipment and salvage what they can the 2nd Ceti Hussars heads off in pursuit of the battered 1st Amphigean Forces almost immedietly not giving them time to melt back into the wilderness entirely or time to stand down to repair their damage...
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Can anyone else hear the screams of rage coming from Derion and Luithen?
Its music to my ears.
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Can't say I like the way these first waves are coming along. Too much common sense and too little "true" bushido on the part of the DCMS. Especially the DCA refusing to stay and fight (who could blame them other than a true samurai) can prove very troublesome down the road.
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Interesting to see that despite the stupid fake Bushido thing the Combine has that the ground fights are not taking months to years to fight with large civilian collateral damage. Almost as if the way war is fought if you aren't a madman is to maintain the planet as intact as possible.
Well the Galtor Thumb is safe for now and it might get expanded a bit from this war as well. The worlds still with forces fighting on them will make it necessary to win them completely before launching the next series of attacks. Well the Carrier has proven its worth in this first campaign.
Will there be expansions to the refit and repair yards any time soon? Victor has kind of pushed to the current limit of what can be supported for new warship construction slips but repair and refit slips should still be able to be expanded. Also speaking of refit centers are any new Battlemech centers planned? Having at least one major center in each of the Marches would go a long way towards increasing the recovery time of units in the AFFS. Having one in the CM, DM, CrM, LM, and since it is expanding with both the Outback and the new colonies and conquests a future Periphery March would benefit as well.
How is the TC doing so far? They have been getting a lot of aid from the FedSuns and their shipyards should have been converted to civilian production by now as well. Plus the infrastructure and support systems that are being rebuilt with the help of the FedSuns. Their military should still be shattered but their economy should at least be recovering well by now. Plus the deal the FedSuns made with the Calderon Protectorate never really was ended so when it merged back with the TC that deal should have transferred as well. That means that the TC should have a steady stream of mechs and equipment being added even if it is all general mechs and nothing too special.
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I wonder when the WoB is going to start showing up with magic mushrooms for everyone. Will the regular DC and WoB units stand and fight or also pull back?
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If the WOB have a shred of sense, they'll send token forces to support the DCMS, but most of their force will be best used in an independent thrust into the Federated Suns. Quite possibly deep raiding forces that jump through deep space behind the border and go for key military-industrial targets using a Shadow Division combined with a couple of warships to hit and run. Try to cause as much chaos and disruption behind the lines as they can and screw the spearheads forward momentum.
It would be very VERY hard to pull off mind you and might just mean the Shadow Divisions get stuck deep inside the Federated Suns without any way out as enraged AFFS units converge on them (because these guys do NOT fight clean) and indeed, open the door for ComStar to take Terra 'on the fly' at it were, but...
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If the WOB have a shred of sense, they'll send token forces to support the DCMS, but most of their force will be best used in an independent thrust into the Federated Suns. Quite possibly deep raiding forces that jump through deep space behind the border and go for key military-industrial targets using a Shadow Division combined with a couple of warships to hit and run. Try to cause as much chaos and disruption behind the lines as they can and screw the spearheads forward momentum.
It would be very VERY hard to pull off mind you and might just mean the Shadow Divisions get stuck deep inside the Federated Suns without any way out as enraged AFFS units converge on them (because these guys do NOT fight clean) and indeed, open the door for ComStar to take Terra 'on the fly' at it were, but...
That would be a crash and burn strategy for the WoB it would literally poking a lion with a spear while wrapped in deer meat. They are no were near canon strength and even with the factories of sol and the five supporting them FedSuns have mass and quality on them as well as an equal and maybe even larger fleet.
If they try a deep strike style raid they are going to get chewing up by the amount of Regiments, RCTs and LCTs that are going to get thrown at the shadow divisions. Hell the New Avalon Borderers were made for this kind of fight.
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In fairness the Avalon Borderer LCT's are ideally suited for tying up a WOB Division or Shadow Division. A reinforced battalion of battlemechs is just enough to hold out, while the support forces give them the numbers to keep the WOB pinned and fighting while say a bigger RCT or battlemech regiment arrives... Or 3.
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In fairness the Avalon Borderer LCT's are ideally suited for tying up a WOB Division or Shadow Division. A reinforced battalion of battlemechs is just enough to hold out, while the support forces give them the numbers to keep the WOB pinned and fighting while say a bigger RCT or battlemech regiment arrives... Or 3.
I mean that was the whole reason the LCTs were created for after all. They are defenses and light raiding units by design. They can force the enemy to stay in one place and hit quickly from their home bases.
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Well that and the fact that LCT is easily transportable on a single Star Lord Jumpship.
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You know it also helps that all of their RCT, LCTS and Regiments except for two notables most likely have all new equipment or means as a knock on the militias are probably getting a lot of their old frontline mechs or maybe even some new builds as well.
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In fairness the Avalon Borderer LCT's are ideally suited for tying up a WOB Division or Shadow Division. A reinforced battalion of battlemechs is just enough to hold out, while the support forces give them the numbers to keep the WOB pinned and fighting while say a bigger RCT or battlemech regiment arrives... Or 3.
True enough, although in such a scenario, the Shadow Divisions (who lets face it, are scary ****** to face off against) will not be playing nice which will even the odds. Use of WMDs and especially their warships coming into low orbit and providing precise tactical ortillary to wipe strong points off the map as the Toaster Worshipers get in, destroy whatever factory or command center or other strategic target they want to hit. Then pack up and get out before reaction forces arrive.
4-5 groups like this crawling through the Crucis March could be a gigantic headache for Victor to deal with. But yes indeed, the much greater militia and LCT coverage means its much more likely a deep strike force will get hung up long enough for a reaction force to jump in.
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3070 - March - The Lyran Front
With the war with the Combine now in full swing the focus of the Federated Suns was almost entirely towards the Draconis March and the AFFS units engaged in active combat. More and more units from the League and Capellan Marches were listed for redeployment to the active war zone - while making every effort to maintain security in the newly conquered territories of the former Capellan Confederation.
For instance the 2nd Syrtis Hussars LCT moved from New Syrtis to Talon/Wernke to take the place of the 22nd Avalon Hussars RCT while this veteran and almost full strength unit moved up to take up a garrison posting on Cylene in preparation for more offensive actions. The 1st Dragonlords RCT left Bromhead and moved to Murchison - leaving the defence of Bromhead in the hands of the Bromhead Reinforced Training Battalion and the 1st Bromhead Borderer's Cadre - which between them had nearly 7 companies of battlemechs and were considered a sufficient deterant to any raiding by the still cowed Taurians. Similarly given the lack of threat from the still shattered TDF the 2nd Dragonlords and 4th Crucis Lancers RCT's were ordered to leave the frontier and converge on David within the Raman PDZ and prepare for actions against the DCMS. They were joined there by the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry and 12th FedSun's Dragoons RCT's, with the 36th Avalon Hussars RCT moving from nearby Lothair to Hyalite to cover this key mining system with the departure of the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry. The 3rd and 4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT's joined the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT and moved up from the Victoria PDZ to Deshler in the Raman PDZ - with command firmly given to Marshal Rand-Davion in preference to the unreliable commander of the 4th Fusiliers in particular. The operation within the Pirates Haven Cluster was immedietly cancelled and the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussars along with the 7th Corvette Flotilla moved up to Benet III.
From the League March the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT, 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and the mercenary Hansen's Roughriders move up to the Dahar PDZ and gather on Cassias. The 1st Lexington Combat Guards RCT and the 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT are moved from Sarna and Truth and ordered to Glenmora. The 2nd Lexington Combat Guards RCT also move up to join the 11th FedSun's Dragoons RCT on Barlow's End. The 5th Davion Guards move from Imalda (with their place taken by the 7th FedSun's Dragoons) to Cimeron where they are joined by the 3rd Tikonov Cossacks. With all of these movements the High Command are putting in place follow on waves to keep hitting the Combine with.
The 1st Division of the 2nd Corvette Flotilla finishes upgrading to the new Fox II standard. While some argue for immedietly beginning work on more upgrades instead the repair facilities are ordered to prepare for damaged ships. The shipyards at Filtvelt finish a Fox I for the ComGuards which is immedietly handed over, while at Galax a Davion III destroyer is finished for both the ComGuards and LAN. While at June the new Congress-D II slip lays down it's first ship as does the new slip at Panpour. Plans are in place for more Congress-D II and Davion III slips but these are temporarily on hold due to the war.
The FSS St Ives, FSS Warlock, FSS Sarna, FSS Corey and FSS Nanking finish at Galax. They are all immedietly assigned to the 8th Corvette Flotilla to finish up it's 2nd Division and form a 3rd Division. The FSS Diomede completes and joins the 2nd Destroyer Squadron alongside the repaired FSS Dryad, which leaves the Arcadia repair slips also open for damaged ships. The FSS Darter is laid down.
At the same time that combat operations are not only continuing but also being planned for the Federated Suns is officially expanded with the creation of 2 further Combat Regions within the Crucis March. The first of these is the Cooperland Combat Region that consists of the worlds of Cooperland, Resurgence, Fox's Den, the 3 worlds of Clan Sun Jaguar - Valois, Fugeres and Frankson, as well as 3 newly colonised worlds - Lucky Find, Jaguar's Gift and New Andurien. The last world's founding colonists are the first wave drawn from the various refugee camps scattered throughout the Federated Suns. At the same time the former Tortuga Dominions form the basis for the Tortuga Combat Region, which also has 2 new colony worlds allocated to it - Madagascar and Barbary Coast. The 5 new colonised worlds are not even at self sufficient level and most have only a few thousand colonists for now (New Andurien is the largest with nearly 12,000 colonists already on the planet). This is in comparison to the initial 2 colonies of Resurgence and Fox's Den which are much more established and now have populations approaching 100,000.
At New Syrtis the Johnson Industries factory see's the brand new Valiant class light battlemech enter production. It then begins expanding the Glory tank lines to add a fourth line for the much in demand tank.
The GM facility on Defiance which builds the Lorica class battle armour variant for the ComGuards receives funding and a commission to triple production of this variant of the Cavalier suit. With the huge increase in funding this expansion is pushed ahead with speed.
On June the Lycomb-Davion plant has it's new Guillotine facility go operational. The product of this is immedietly offered for sale mostly to the ComGuards, although the AFFS snaps up a few of the versatile battlemech and passes them on to several mercenary formations at a discount.
Jalastar Aerospace at their flagship production facility on Panpour finish a new Javelin-O line. The company now has 4 of the omnimech lines in full scale production and is considering whether to add a fifth or another Centurion line.
Robinson Standard Battleworks buys a license in March to produce a number of APC's and Heavy APC's at their Robinson and Woodbine plants. While not exactly flashy this expansion puts them into the vehicle market with a simple and tested design that is always much in demand.
However even as these moves are being made the WOB enters the war. It had long been the concern of the High Command that the WOB might sweep in on their flank and hit them while they were heavily engaged with the DCMS... However the Blakists have taken a different route. At least in part...
A number of worlds within the Addicks, Nanking, Zion and Tikonov PDZ's report unexplained jump activities at pirate points. At Tikonov itself the FSS Kathil catches site of an unknown Zechetinu II corvette in system which flees when challenged. The High Command is forced to assume that the WOB is considering an attack on these worlds in the near future, probably to draw off the weight of the AFFS from the invasion of the Combine...
Even as the Lyran Alliance had moved to a war footing and the Archon and his generals had planned to enter the war alongside the AFFS the WOB struck. Their first blow was that on the 12th of March Archon Peter Steiner was assassinated by one of his own aides while conducting a tour of the Nagelring. Observers report that the Archon's aide's face suddenly went entirely slack and without hesitation he drew a nonstandard needler pistol from his holster and fired at the Archon's back. Although the assassin only got off a single burst before the Archon's bodyguards managed to open fire and kill him the single shot from the needler shredded Peter Steiner's kidneys, liver and intestines while also severing his spine. Despite being rushed to the academies excellent medical facilities within minutes he was pronounced dead almost immedietly.
The cowardly assassination of the Archon throws the entire Lyran Alliance into chaos as he leaves behind only a single child, the young Hanse Steiner who was born in 3069 after a difficult but eventually normal pregnancy. Some call for Hanse to immedietly be named Archon with his mother as Regent, while others call for General of the Armies Adam Steiner to take the throne. More than a few voices are raised suggesting that the throne be offered to the former Archon-Prince Victor Davion(-Steiner). First Prince Davion makes no comment on these suggestions, except to express his sadness at the loss of his brother and support for his nephews claim to the throne.
As the government of the Lyran Alliance is frozen the WOB strike. Over Hesperus the 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th Shadow Divisions appear with the WoBS Invincible (Tharkad) and the WoBS Blake Ascendant a Black Lion battlecruiser along with 2 Essex class destroyers and 6 Zechetinu II corvettes. The LAS Yggdrasil and the LAS Buena and LAS Skye in orbit over the key industrial world feel they must stand and fight. Right from the start the WOB warships unleash nuclear tipped missiles, while fighters carrying the same rush into closer range with the Lyran warships. After the first few volleys of standard missiles the LAS Yggdrasil and her 2 Fox escorts respond in kind but by then the first of the nuclear tipped warheads are hammering home. With both sides firing nuclear missiles the battle is short and brutal - with the WoBS Blake Ascendant, both Essex destroyers and 2 of the Blakist corvettes destroyed or so badly damaged as to be beyond repair in return for the total destruction of the Lyran task force.
With the loss of the naval battle the Lyran garrison - consisting of the 36th Lyran Guards, 1st Hesperus Guards and 6th Alliance Guards RCT's make ready to resist. The 36th is assigned to the vital factory complexes while the 1st Hesperus takes up position in the valleys approaching DefHes's huge factory and the 6th Alliance takes up station in Maria's Elegy and the Morningstar Spaceport. With no warning at all the orbiting Blakist ships orbitally bombard not only the capital city and spaceport but also the approaches to the key factory site. The 6th Alliance Guards is totally wiped out in the firestorm from orbit, while the 1st Hesperus Guards takes losses in excess of 60% and is forced to flee back into the mountain that houses the factory complex. At which time the 4 orbiting Shadow Divisions conduct an orbital combat drop directly on top off the factory and it's gates.
The elite 36th and the remnants of the Hesperus Guards that have fallen back into the factory are unable to hold onto the huge entrance doors which appear to have been sabotaged not to close after being opened to let the fleeing 1st inside, but they do manage to stop the attacking Blakists in the outer areas of the factory. Whether they can hold out however depends largely on how quickly they can be relieved.
At the same time that the Word of Blake is hitting Hesperus no less than 5 other Shadow Divisions deploy throughout the Lyran Alliance. All with warship support. However these are more raids than attempts to seize the planets. Coventry, Skye, Arcturus, Donegal and Son Hoa are all hit. Little actual damage is done except terror raids which leave thousands dead and small numbers of defending troops killed. The spaceports are also looted of any landed dropships which along with any captured in orbit or at the jump points are taken with the fleeing Blakists. On Son Hoa in particular the 10th Shadow Division makes off with over a battalion of completed battlemechs...
Combined with these raids more regular Word of Blake Militia Divisions also attack Rigil Kentares, New Earth and Thorin. The 15th Arcturan Guard RCT on Thorin and the 5th Lyran Regulars on New Earth find themselves heavily pressed by the invading forces which seem to outnumber them 2:1. At the same time the Sirian Holds secedes from the the Free Worlds League (citing the Leagues inability to "protect" Zion and the Tikonov province from the AFFS) and joins the WOB Protectorate.
The Captain-General Corrine Marik however takes no notice of this defection as she launches her much anticipated counter attack against the LAAF as it is still reeling from the loss of the Archon and the attack on Hesperus. She only hits 3 worlds, but she picks them with care. Cavanaugh II, Dixie and Bolan. The Cavanaugh Theatre command world of Cavanaugh II is defended only by the green 11th Lyran Regulars and some conventional forces and finds itself under attack by the 1st Atrean Dragoons and 6th Free Worlds Guard, while Dixie's only defence is the Dixie CTM which finds itself under attack by the 5th Free Worlds Legionnaires and 5th Atrean Dragoons. Bolan as a regional capital world is better defended with the 1st Bolan Jaegers and the 4th Alliance Guard RCT finding themselves arrayed against the 4th and 7th Free Worlds Legionnaires as well as the 30th and 37th Marik Militias. The invasions of Cavanaugh II and Dixie each have 2 Zechetinu II corvettes assigned to them while Bolan rates 4. The fighting on all 3 worlds is soon heavy and bears all the marks of a grudge fight...
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True enough, although in such a scenario, the Shadow Divisions (who lets face it, are scary ****** to face off against) will not be playing nice which will even the odds. Use of WMDs and especially their warships coming into low orbit and providing precise tactical ortillary to wipe strong points off the map as the Toaster Worshipers get in, destroy whatever factory or command center or other strategic target they want to hit. Then pack up and get out before reaction forces arrive.
4-5 groups like this crawling through the Crucis March could be a gigantic headache for Victor to deal with. But yes indeed, the much greater militia and LCT coverage means its much more likely a deep strike force will get hung up long enough for a reaction force to jump in.
You did mention the Shadow Divisions not playing nice...
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....balls....
Seriously the WoB are going after the weakest link in the Anti WoB Alliance the LA but in doing so they may have just woken a very angry giant. Also they may be trying to force victor to offer to deploy AFFS units to support the LAAF not likely but still.
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Hopefully Victor and crew are looking at the assassin methods and working on countering them. Security checks and more checks.
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IIRC something about Curatis being a WoB plant/convert/secret assassin in canon.....
Also ouch.... I honestly think Adam Steiner would make a good regent until the Young Hanse comes to majority, somewhat like canon, but that’s a LONG time off and he didn’t have the extra Jihad bonus to his popularity yet. This will certainly be interesting to say the least.
Also just like the WoB to just sucker punch someone at random... I mean I know it’s not quite random considering their ‘Alliance’ with certain Marik factions but still. Quite funny.
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3070 - March - Operation Achilles II
With the first troops landing on Dieron and several other nearby worlds the AFFS High Command was cautiously optimistic about Operation Achilles. While no world had actually fallen yet the AFFS was in a position of strength on each of the 4 worlds that they had hit in their first wave.
Dieron
The AFFS concentrated their landings in Northern Mataeo. The Davion Assault Guards and 4th Davion Guards led the way, landing just far enough away from Fort Cross to avoid any fast moving counter attack but close enough to tempt the defenders. While the defending 49th Dieron Regulars managed to resist the temptation to attack the Davion troops while they were still landing their attention was concentrated on the 2 columns of AFFS troops converging on their positions. Even as they rushed to their positions around the walls of the fort however the true attack was launched. The 4th Deneb Light Cavalry deployed in a spectacular fashion from dropships which descended right on top of the fortress, with the jump capable battlemechs and battle armoured and jump infantry troops descending into the heart of the fort while most of the defenders were committed to the outer works. Caught between the Deneb Light Cavalry running amok behind their lines and the Davion Assault Guards and 4th Davion Guards battering at their front lines the 49th Dieron collapsed into anarchy. Some elements attempted to break out - but were hunted down swiftly by the follow on waves of the 5th Robinson Rangers and the hover vehicles of the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry's armoured brigade, while others attempted to make a stand and were destroyed piecemeal. With only light losses the Davion forces had destroyed an entire regiment of the defending troops and secured themselves a secure base on the world. This foothold was expanded when a flying column consisting of the 8th Striker and Bar Hound regiments of the Fighting Urukhai seized control of the city of Aldega, while the entire Vegan Rangers brigade pushed south towards the key industrial city of Aldinga and the 2nd Davion Guards swiftly overran Rancagua to the east and continued on. As these forces moved out the troops which had taken part in the initial landing stood down and repaired their equipment in preparation for the next strike - the 4th Deneb had suffered the worst casualties with around 2 companies of battlemechs destroyed or damaged although half of these losses would swiftly rejoin the unit, and a battalion of infantry dead or so badly wounded as to require long term treatment. By comparison the 2 Davion Guards units and the 5th Robinson Rangers had taken even less damage most of which was swiftly repaired.
With the 3rd and 50th Dieron Regulars deployed trying to stymie the growing foothold of the AFFS on Dieron the Kanrei Hohiro Kurita was forced to bolster their lines with his own 2nd Genyosha regiment or face them being simply overrun. While the mountainous nature of Dieron was preventing the Davion aerospace assets from smashing his troops from the air, they did prove a constant niggling threat that forced the Dragon's forces to move with one eye always on the skies.
On the 24th of March the 3rd Dieron Regulars and the 2nd battalion of the 2nd Genyosha attempt to make a stand and stop the slow gradual retreat at the city of San Martin alongside large scale elements of the planetary militia. While the initial probes by the Vegan Rangers Delta Regiment (being used to blood the green troops) are repulsed easily they are soon faced with sterner opponents when Gamma Regiment joins the battle while Alpha and Beta begin working to outflank them. Still with the other 1st battalion of the Genyosha deployed to the eastern flanks of the city and the 3rd on the western flanks the progress even for the veteran troops of the Vegan Rangers is slow. Until on the 28th the Davion Assault Guards move up under cover of night and slam into the 3rd Dieron Regulars while the 4th Davion Guards combine with the Vegan Ranger's Alpha Regiment and the 5th Robinson Rangers combine with the Beta Regiment to overwhelm the dug in positions of the 2 Genyosha battalions guarding the flanks. By evening of the 29th the DCMS forces are in full retreat (with the bulk of what is left of the militia being left in place in a vain attempt to hold the Davion's advance) that is only prevented from breaking into a rout when the green 50th Dieron and what few militia troops managed to fall back are sacrificed holding a secondary defensive line to allow the more experienced troops to break contract and reform. Roughly only a battalion of the 50th manages to fall back itself and the unit is folded into the mauled 3rd Regulars and 2nd Genyosha.
Even as these battles are taking place the highly mobile 4th Deneb Light Cavalry and 2nd Davion Guards supported by both regiments of the Fighting Urukhai are sweeping across the more isolated valleys and seizing control of town after town and several major cities and mines. The DCMS simply lack the reserve to fight both the main thrust of the invasion and also prevent the rest of AFFS units from snapping up undefended areas of the planet.
On the 30th of March Warlord Isoroku Kurita informs the Kanrei that he must evacuate. With only the 1st Genyosha untouched by the fighting and all of the other units either destroyed or badly mauled he cannot ensure the heir to the Dragon's safety if he remains. Hohiro argues that his flight will be a dishonour and will break the spirit of the defenders, but Warlord Kurita explains to his kinsman that the Davion's cannot be allowed to capture him. The Tai-sa's of the 1st and 2nd Genyosha agree in a hurried conference. After nearly 3 hours or argueing it is agreed that the few remaining aerospace fighters will escort a fast dropship carrying the Kanrei and his staff while 3 additional dropships will also act as decoys. The DCA forces remaining in the outer system are ordered to assist in this evacuation and cover Hohiro's retreat. Given the precarious nature of the DCMS position on Dieron the evacuating is scheduled for the start of April.
Quentin
As well as blooding the 4th Avalon Hussars almost 3 full weeks of constant raids, probes and minor assaults on their lines had worn even the veteran warriors of the 45th Dieron down to the bone. Although their own losses had been light in comparison to the nearly battalion of battlemechs that they had cost the 4th Hussars the defenders were operating on too few hours sleep over weeks not days and most of them were taking various stimulants to keep awake.
Which was their state when the 17th Avalon Hussars RCT launched a full scale assault upon their lines at 3am on the 19th of March, with the combined aerospace regiments of the 4th and 17th launching heavy bombing runs all along their lines to add to their confusion. Even with their troops worn down and staggering from air attacks the 45th managed to hold onto their defensive works for nearly 3 hours until the 3rd Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry joined the attack hitting at a quite spot on the line and bursting through.
With their lines finally broken the 45th and their militia allies fell back... To the next line of defences they had created. They were only able to hold the secondary line for a few hours before being forced to retreat once more... To the tertiary line. At which point the AFFS offensive finally stalled.
By the end of March the defending 45th had been mauled and forced back to their final line of defences but they had held out and cost the AFFS dearly in men, machines and material. While the Dieron Regulars material losses could be replaced mechwarriors and troops couldn't be. They were down to around 4 companies of battlemechs of which only 3 were part of the original unit, the rest former militia or security forces. Their conventional forces had suffered even more serious losses.
On the other side the 4th Avalon Hussars RCT had been reduced to around 70% of it's full strength, with the more experienced 17th Avalon Hussars RCT which had started the campaign at around 70% reduced to half strength. The 3rd FSAC was still at 70% of it's strength and refitting it's battlemechs furiously in preparation for one more big push to break the back of the defenders. To aid in this the Armoured Cavalry even drew on battlemech's from the 2 Avalon Hussars units that were in better shape than it's own to speed this up.
Saffel
March on Saffel started with a blitzkrieg style attack by the 1st Sheraton Knights upon the hastily assembled militia who were attempting to prevent them from reaching the capital city. In a 4 day battle of manoeuvre the armoured elements of the Knights continually pinned the militia in place while the battlemech forces swept around and rolled up their flanks. After 4 days and with the suburbs of Iwanji in sight the local government surrendered and ordered the militia to stand down. Saffel had returned to Federated Sun's control.
Altair
With what was obviously an overwhelming force descending upon them the local militia suffered a total breakdown of morale. Retired DCMS officers and NCO's attempted to enforce discipline on panicking militia soldiers and in some cases either shot their own troops or were shot themselves. As the first of the dropships became visible in the sky the planetary government had had enough and began broadcasting their surrender - as well as requests for protection from any overzealous militia who might attempt to execute them and force the world to resist. The 33rd Avalon Hussars made planet fall and swiftly moved to round up any dissidents or overwhelm any resisting militia units while dispatching a strong force of infantry and attached marines to take possession of the systems shipyards.
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If I remember correctly, during the War of 3039 the AFFC was harassed by the Nekekami.
So, when will they strike?
And they have a far reaching network. Putting one of the origami paper birds an the Archons throne without the Royal Guards and the LIC noticing, or putting a paper bird with poisoned needles in it in the baby room of Theodore Kuritas son - I ask myself when they strike and where.
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You did mention the Shadow Divisions not playing nice...
That's putting it mildly.
Well, Peter's gone and apparently died without even bothering to leave a will defining succession until his kid comes of age. Why so many Battletech Lords refuse to do that...
Whoever takes over is going to have a hell of a time pulling the Lyrans out of this one. You have the WOB deep raiding. Heph II is standing on a knifes edge and the Alliance Navy has lost their only real heavy warship in the nuclear exchange (although at least the WOB took some heavy losses in return too). The FWL are aggressively pushing back on Peters ill-thought out adventurism - although if we're lucky, with the WOB now fully committed and Corrine Marik focusing her attacks on the Lyrans, someone is going to try and stab her in the back soon enough. Even so, the Lyrans have to pull back from the FWL, like right the hell now and hope the FWL won't bother to follow, at least for now. Peters land grab is just untenable.
And lets not even get started on what the Clans are going to do. It won't be long before Katherine I'm sure will be pushing Vlad that now is the time for them to strike and carve out a puppet state or something. And I'm sure the Falcons are still smarting at their humiliating backdown at Peters hands that forced them to GTFO all those years ago.
Yeah, the Lyrans only real hope is that ComStar seize the window and slam into Terra like a freight train, forcing the WOB to drop their plans and run home as fast as they can in a desperate attempt to stop the HERETICS!!!!111oneone from reclaiming the homeworld. Otherwise they be ******.
On the other hand, Victors offensive is going very well. He's got the Combine badly on the back foot. So much so that I'm actually curious to see if there are now any historical Federated Suns worlds still under Combine control? He must be VERY close now to having the border back to the Star League era border in terms of FedSuns worlds lost to the Combine over the centuries. That would be a very powerful message and moment for the people of the Federated Suns to seal the deal on Victor; that HE is the First Prince who finally took back the last of the worlds lost to the Dragon...
Also not sure how Hohiro thinks he's going to be able to escape. The numbers do NOT look good for his chances of trying to break past the AFFS naval units and air units in one piece. Unless he's willing to load up his ASF escorts with nukes and order them to go full WW2 Kamikaze into any Corvettes or pocket warships that are in his exit path....
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Well Peter is no dead and he left a f-up mess for his successor. The best move is to make Hanse the Archon and have the General of the armies as his Regent. This is the time when strong military leadership is required.
The Lyrans need to pull back from the FWL that Peter stupidly got them in. And with the death of their leader this will enrage the entire LA. That means they will be more willing to put up with alot more for vengeance. That means the LA can finally put their sleeping Industrial might to work with rapid and massive expansions in all the fields of war making. The costs will be waved off by the people for a time at least. They need more shipyards, factories for Battlemechs, support, and Aerospace fighters. Recruitment will be way up as well.
With the Lyrans occupied with the FWL and keeping the WoB from taking any worlds they can still help the FedSuns by supplying the FRR with a large amount of gear and funds to open up a small second front for the Combine.
Clan Wolf and Jade Falcon are going to be ****** with things. They will smell blood in the water. The only way to keep that from happening is by playing the other clans against them. Find a way to get the Bears to hit the Falcons or the Wolves and that keeps that front busy.
Victor needs to keep up with the victory he has gained. He needs to show the Nova Cats and the Snow Ravens that it is better to jump ship and to attack the Combine instead respectively. That should open up enough forces for Victor and ComStar to raid the WoB and pull pressure off the Lyrans.
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I wonder what would happen if a few LF Tramps with a few escorts jump the border and take out the WoB fleet in Hep. if they can take out the warship, jumpships and any dropships. that would strand a lot of WoB key units on that planet. it would make it hard on the LC units but now they are the ones with high ground fire support.
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the loonies need to drop by
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With the Shadow Divisions in the LC, it would be a good time to raid Terra by Comstar.
Maybe with some warship support by the FS.
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With the chaos with the LC and the ongoing conflict, I have a feeling that the Falcons will try crossing the border too and take a swipe at the Lyrans whilst their backs are turned. The Bear's and Raven's are a wildcard here against the DC whilst the FS offensive seems to be going well.
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3070 - March - Operation Ajax II
The key target for Operation Ajax was of course Proserpina. Capturing this world would be a huge blow to the DCMS and to the wider Combine. Ignoring the industrial potential of the planet itself taking away the homeworld of the elite Proserpina Hussars brigade from the Combine would be a major coup and one that couldn't be downplayed by the Combine. If this was combined with the fall of a Military District capital world to Operation Achilles then this would crush the fighting spirit of the DCMS.
Proserpina
The 4th Genyosha found itself arrayed against no less than 4 of the finest AFFS units, 3 of them RCT's to boot. Given the nature of the opponent it was no surprise when the 1st Robinson Rangers were chosen to lead the assault against the dug in DCMS unit. With no less than a full battalion of Atlas's, King Crabs, Sagittairre's, Battlemasters, Gunslingers and Victors all produced within the Draconis March leading the way the 1st Robinson crunched into the Genyosha lines around the city of Kalida Qan on the 4th March. Which held. If barely. This was the type of the brawling fight that the 1st Robinson's 1st battalion was made for and it showed. Worse from the point of view of the 4th Genyosha Duke Sandoval had understandably prioritised his flagship unit for the Wayland Mobile Bases assigned to his commands and as such no less than a dozen of these were set up just back from the front where they could repair and almost rebuild damaged machines with frightening speed. On the 6th of March the Old Guard joined the battle and while the DCMS troops were holding the Rangers to a grinding slog the Davion Old Guard made swift progress against the mostly militia and damaged battlemech's it faced. This was repeated when the 1st Revenant Guard attacked from the direct opposite angle to the Rangers. With 2 spear thrusts cutting deep into their lines the 4th Genyosha had no option but to withdrawn directly into the Bulldog Industries plant itself to take advantage of it's heavy fortifications. Less than 4 companies of their battlemech forces made it back to their redoubts. Before they could settle into their new fortifications the AFFS unleashed the 1st Argyle Lancers. Totally untouched by the combat this elite cavalry regiment rushed the Bulldog factories defensive works in 3 places while the 4th Genyosha was still rushing to man them. While 2 of the assaults were beaten back by frantic fire from the corporate security forces manning them the third punched through and seized a gate. Through which poured the 1st Revenant's and Old Guard. By the 9th the entire facility was in Davion hands and the 4th Genyosha destroyed. Although the factory had suffered heavy damage in the fighting.
Leaving the damaged 1st Robinson's Rangers RCT to hold Darawan and rebuild their forces the rest of the units shifted over to join the rest of the AFFS forces encircling Conqueror's City. While waiting for these forces to arrive and deploy the AFFS made the offer to Sho-sho Shigeru Yoshida to allow the civilians to evacuate the city. However this was refused largely due to the fact that the Sho-sho had drafted much of the able bodied population into labour battalions to help strengthen his defensive works. When the units originally deployed to Darawan had arrived the AFFS forces began a gradual and sustained assault all along the perimeter on the 24th. The 1st Sword of Light and the 10th Hussars between them numbered 16 companies of battlemech forces, reinforced with roughly a battalion of veteran Hussars who had joined the local militia and another battalion of cadets and officers from the Academy as well as sizeable militia formations. Facing them however were no less than 7 AFFS formations - 6 of them RCT's - and all at or near full strength. To make the numerical disadvantage even worse from the point of view of Sho-sho Yoshida was the fact that 5 of these formations were reinforced battlemech regiments.
By the end of March the Sho-sho Yoshida's forces were still holding out, but his casualties were mounting particularly in the green 10th Hussars and militia. With no working HPG he was forced to send word via his black box that unless help arrived soon his forces would be destroyed. Duty compelled him however to add that unless the relieving force had sizeable aerospace and ideally warship assets to break the Federated Suns Navy blockade they should not make the attempt.
Scheat
When the various Davion fighter wings managed to catch the 4th Night Stalkers remaining fighters on the ground at a small civilian airstrip on the 8th of March and destroy 11 of the remaining 20 fighters before they could take off and then the rest as they clawed for altitude with half empty fuel tanks the writing was on the wall for the Night Stalkers. Now under constant observation from the air and with no fighter cover of their own to prevent harrassing straffing runs the 4th broke into it's constituent companies and tried to disperse.
Marshal Sal Cole, seeing an opportunity to prove that he wasn't limited to merely using his own Chasseurs immedietly called upon the 6th FedSun's Dragoons to dispatch aid to his efforts to hunt down as many of these small bands as possible. While his own 1st Chasseurs broke into 5 task forces of 2 companies each to hunt down 5 of the dispersing 8 companies the 6th FedSun's 3rd battalion combat hopped using their dropships to pursue the remaining 3.
In a series of running battles interspersed with massed air attacks from the various fighter wings of the New Ivaarsen Chasseurs and 6th Dragoons the AFFS hunted the Night Stalkers prairies. By the end of March a handful of isolated lances of Night Stalkers had managed to evade pursuit and go to ground - mostly in old abandoned mines that were abundant on Scheat - but the command as a formed military unit had been wiped out.
Marshal Sal Cole sent word to Robinson and New Avalon that Scheat was effectively under FedSun's control and requested follow on garrison units be sent forward and further instructions for future operations. Marshal Isbella Rahn, of the 6th Dragoons, who had been content to allow Cole to run this operation did send word to Field Marshal Venger of the FedSun's Dragoons Brigade requesting that his unit not be paired with Cole for future operations however...
Barlow's Folly/Cussar
The 8th Amphigean Light Assault Group and the 16th Galedon Regulars had received orders via their black box to hit the world of New Mendham and destroy the 8th Crucis Lancers RCT that was stationed there alongside the 1st Proserpina Hussars which were to deploy from Xinyang and the 25th Benjamin Regualars from Matar. Although 3 of the 4 assigned units were green it was felt that 4:1 odds would allow them to overwhelm the 8th Crucis Lancers and deprive the AFFS of one of their finest RCT's for acceptable losses to the DCMS. The 1st Hussars were being counted on to stiffen the 3 green units.
However this plan fell apart as the 8th Amphigean and 16th Galedon were loading their dropships to make the rendezvous in the New Mendham system when no less than 6 Avalon Hussars RCT's jumped into the system named for one of their former officers. Leading the way came the rebuilt 38th which had once fought so desperately to hold the world of Cussar for the FedSuns. With no less than 6 aerospace fighter regiments each consisting of on paper 3 wings of 20 fighters each the Avalon Hussars streamed towards the planet. The 16th Galedon Regulars CO Tai-sa William Tohiro realising what was coming immedietly ordered his dropships to blast off and make for a rendezvous with their jumpships. Unfortunately this meant that the bulk of his 3rd battalion was left behind as it hadn't loaded yet along with almost his entire attached conventional forces.
The 8th Amphigean Light Assault Group and the stranded 3rd battalion of the 16th Galedon made hurried preparations - but they weren't helped by the fact that most of their supplies had already been loaded onto dropships, dropships which in the remaining 16th Galedon Regular's case were no longer available. The population of the planet, long restive under Kurita control didn't help doing little but maintaining a sullen compliance with orders when forced into labouring and having to be watched constantly.
This state of affairs was brought to a head when Field Marshal Roger Williams, newly promoted, made an impassioned speech from his flagship colossus class dropship as it approached orbit to the people of "Cussar". In it he spoke of the heroic bravery of Major Barlow and the men and women of his command who had fought and died for the world of Cussar to save it from Kurita tyranny. They had failed, but not through lack of effort or bravery but instead due to overwhelming numbers and the fortunes of war, yet their sacrifice had never been forgotten by the men and women of the Avalon Hussars Brigade and the AFFS in general. Now the Avalon Hussars were coming back to Cussar. The 38th was coming back. The liberation of Cussar and the redemption of Major Barlow and the heroes of his battalion was at hand...
With this the sullen silent compliance of the citizen's of Barlow's Folly erupted into outright rebellion across the planet. It was also immedietly obvious that an outside agency had helped organise this rebellion - with Davion special forces helping the rebels openly. Which was timed perfectly perfectly to the first waves of fighter attacks and descending dropships.
Within 24 hours the 38th Avalon Hussars, landing directly on top of the city of Angelius's spaceport,had destroyed the remaining forces of the 16th Galedon Regulars on the ground. Their few survivors who had attempted to flee west through the city had been ambushed and finished off by rebelling Cussar Militia and infantry elements of the 38th detached to reinforce the rebels.
Meanwhile the 1st, 5th, 14th, 20th and 42nd Avalon Hussar's had concentrated their attentions on the 8th Amphigean which had abandoned the city of Solus where they had been loading onto their dropships. Despite the 8th consisting primarily of light battlemechs designed for speed they soon found themselves boxed in and surrounded. Any attempts at breakouts were matched by the equally fast and better equipped and larger 5th Avalon Hussars RCT, while the heavier units closed a noose around them through the mountain valleys. In a series of running fights the 8th Amphigean was ground down until on the 29th of March the surviving elements surrendered after their last attempt to break out of a series of valleys they had been trapped in failed with the death of their CO Tai-sa Karen Snow.
On the 30th of March Field Marshal Roger Williams officially declared the world of Cussar to have returned to the Federated Suns.
Lapida
With the 3rd Tancredi Loyalist LCT moving up to take over garrison duties on Fellanin II the 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT and the Blue Star Irregulars 1894th Light Horse and the 21st Rim Worlds jump to the system of Lapida to attack the newly formed 14th and 15th Ghost regiments stationed there. Neither of the 2 Ghost regiments are exactly considered the most reliable of DCMS formations and the 15th Ghost proves this when at the first report of no less than 3 AFFS formations heading their way (2 of them are mercenary formations but to the yakuza that make up the 15th's rank and file this doesn't matter) they shoot the few officers who attempt to stop them and disperse taking as much of their equipment with them as they can for later resale.
The 14th Ghost in a blatant attempt to prove that they can be trusted opts to fight the invaders as best they can. They sortie out from their positions in an attempt to attack the landing zones of the invading Davion troops, but this attempt is crushed by the fighters of the 3rd Crucis and the smaller attached formations of the Blue Star Irregulars. While they are falling back the 1894th sweeps out from their landing zone and takes them in the flank as the 3rd Lancer's battlemech regiment rushes forward to attack them directly while their conventional forces are still offloading. Pinned in place there is little that the green troops of the 14th Ghost can do when the 21st Rim Worlds take them in the other flank. Caught on 3 sides and in a deadly crossfire the 14th Ghost makes one final attempt to redeem their honour and launches a banzai charge directly at the 3rd Crucis. Less than a company of the 14th Ghost survives to be taken prisoner and all of them are injured to some degree or other.
Lapida is not considered entirely pacified due to the existence of a large body of armed troops which have attempted to melt into the general population and who are in possession of almost 5 full companies of battlemechs. Thankfully such large pieces of military equipment are hard to hide and the hunting infantry of the 3rd Crucis Lancers and 2 brigades of conventional infantry rushed to garrison the world find nearly 3 companies of the hidden battlemechs. They are helped in this by not only the members of the civilian population but also the surviving members of the 14th Ghost both of whom are disgusted with the cowardice shown by the 15th Ghost.
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3070 - March - Operation Agamemnon II
Operation Agamemnon received a massive boost in March when the First Princes's own vassals/allies arrived to join the fight. No less than 3 front line Clan Sun Jaguar Galaxies appeared with almost no notice and struck hard at the defending DCMS troops...
Harrow's Sun
Tai-sa Masayoshi Kitakyusho's decision to conduct a mobile campaign rather than retreat into a prepared position or urban environment has the advantage of reducing civilian casualties, but with the Federated Sun's Navy holding the orbitals and under almost constant air attack and 24 hour observation there's little real chance of he or his regiment managing to break contract or evade battle for long. Worse, the constant air attacks and sweeping of Davion forces slowly force him to coalesce his unit back into a single formation or risk defeat in detail. On the 18th of March the Tai-sa finally makes a wrong move and the AFFS is able to drop a full combat command of the Davion Heavy Guard's across his path cutting him off. At which point the remainder of the Davion Heavy Guards and the 1st Ceti Hussars RCT move up around him while the 9th Avalon Hussars RCT and the 4th Robinson Rangers RCT move in on the flanks. The 6th Crucis Lancers RCT remains tasked with maintaining garrisons across the world.
Surrounded and outnumbered he leaves sacrificial blocking formations to delay his pursuers and with the bulk of his unit attempts to smash through the green 9th Avalon Hussars on his western flank. Unfortunately the cavalry weighted 9th's command staff opt to fall back and delay rather than fight him headlong. Every brief skirmish, every firefight causes him precious minutes that he simply cannot spare as the massed formations of Davion troops crush his rear guards and barrel after him. As night falls on the 18th elements of the 4th Robinson Rangers and 1st Ceti Hussars catch up with his formation and the 9th turns to finally give him the fight that he has been pursuing - but on their own terms and with him trapped between themselves and at least 2 other RCT's. By the time the Davion Heavy Guards arrive the battle is all but over. Marshal Jon Davion in his report to New Avalon highlights the excellent tactics and combat skills of the 9th Avalon Hussars and credits them with the victory.
Over the coming weeks however it soon becomes apparent that at least some members of the Ryuken-ni survived. In particular elements of their infantry regiment. Either in the pursuit or the chaos of the night time engagement at least some of the infantry regiment managed to break away and hide long enough to go to ground until the battle was over. These elements are now conducting a guerrilla war against the Davion invaders. With the 9th Avalon Hussars RCT the most damaged unit of his command Marshal Jon Davion allocates them the job of rooting out these survivors and garrisoning the planet while the other units of his command prepare for their next objectives.
Weisau
The 1st Amphigean Light Assault Group begins March demoralised and on the run, having just lost over two thirds of it's strength in a matter of days. Not only that but the almost undamaged 2nd Ceti Hussars is only a few hours behind them and closing fast. Tai-sa Trueffeau is forced to decide whether to stand and fight with his damaged command or abandon any battlemech's that are suffering from battle damage that might impede their speed. While he is still wrestling with this decision Combat Command Bravo of the 2nd managed to burst ahead of their slower comrades and engage his rear guard while the combined fighters of the 2nd and 4th Ceti Hussars launch a mass bombing and straffing run at the front of his column. With his forces in disarray from the air attack and the damaged battlemech's who make up the rear of his formation swiftly being overrun he chooses to turn around and fight rather than attempt a further almost certainly doomed retreat that will leave more of his command to die alone.
Combat Command Bravo's lead elements find themselves in a tough fight for nearly half an hour but as more and more of the 2nd Ceti Hussar's forces catch up the tide swiftly turns and by the end of the 2nd of March the 1st Amphigean has been destroyed. Marshal Oscar Carlson is forced to grit his teeth at Major General Marquis de Lafayette's insubordination in leading his Combat Command ahead without orders. He does however swear to himself that he will get rid of the "renegade" at the earliest possible opportunity. Much as it galls him to do so he recommends the Major General for promotion to command his own RCT - preferably another Ceti Hussars command.
Huan
The 5th Sword of Light knows that it's sister unit the 1st is under heavy attack at Proserpina and is itching to either rush to their aid or launch a counter attack into the Federated Suns - indeed they are only holding where they are while Tai-sa Hohiro Tatsuma confirms whether or not they should launch their planned attack on Cassias given the changing military situation. Given the communication problems he is being forced to send repeated messages via his black box to try and get a response which has so far not been forthcoming.
This issue however disappears when Alpha, Beta and Delta Galaxies of Clan Smoke Jaguar appear in system alongside the 4th Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry and the 3rd NAIS Cadre. The First Prince had requested that the Sun Jaguars fight alongside his own troops to help build up bonds between the AFFS and Clan Sun Jaguar. In fact for the purposes of this invasion the 3rd NAIS is divided into 3 constituent parts each consisting of a battalion of battlemechs, armour and armoured infantry and directly assigned to support each Galaxy. The Sun Jaguars are informed the Cadre is the equivalent of a training sibco or one of the Jade Falcons "Eyrie Clusters".
Alpha Galaxy and 2 battalions of the 4th FSAC drop near the Sparkling Spirits Incorporated facility on Huan and are soon heavily engaged against the 5th Sword of Light's 1st and 4th battalions. Delta Galaxy and a battalion of the 1st FSAC likewise drop near to the planetary capital and find themselves fighting the 2nd battalion of the 5th Sword, while Delta lands nearby with the remaining battalion of the FSAC at the spaceport and attempts to overrun the 5th's 3rd battalion which is guarding the units dropships.
Tai-sa Tastuma takes personal command of the fighting at the Sparkling Spirits factory complex but is soon forced to admit that the situation is hopeless. He orders the 2nd battalion to break out from the capital and join up with the 3rd battalion and attempt to flee the planet while there is still time. In the meantime he and the 1st and 4th battalion will sell their lives to keep as many AFFS troops and their barbarian allies committed to their destruction as possible. He has worked too hard to rebuild the 5th to see the unit die on a backwater like Huan.
Barely a company of the 2nd battalion manages to breakout and link up with the 3rd battalion which is itself taking heavy losses. Combined the 2 battalions rush onto the various dropships along with most of the technical staff which had been pre-ordered there when the invaders were first sighted approach and blast off. While a number of dropships are shot down by the various fighters of the Clan and the AFFS roughly a fifth of the regiment manages to break orbit.
Even as the survivors are fleeing the Tai-sa is leading the last stand of the troops trapped on the planet. This is made more "honourable" when the various Clan Sun Jaguar forces agree to fight the remainder of the battle in a series of individual duels against individual samurai. While the AFFS officers find this a waste of time and lives given that they could easily swamp the surviving Sword of Light troops they have been counselled as to showing respect for the Clan ways of their allies. Indeed a handful of 4th FSAC officers and battlemech pilots take part in these impromptu duels and trials. Tai-sa Tastuma falls to a Star Captain of the 1st Sun Jaguar Grenadiers. A handful of surviving Sword of Light mechwarriors who survive these trials are even taken as "bondsmen" by the Clan. Although it is stressed to the Clan Warriors that these bondsmen are prisoners and not slaves by AFFS liaison officers as slavery is outlawed in the Federated Suns. A few years ago this might have caused problems, but with the growing liberal attitude of Clan Sun Jaguar towards it's civilian castes back home and the death of most of the hardliners who opposed this in trials it causes little in the way of problems.
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Nom Nom Nom Nom Nom Nom
*burp*
The DCMS is bleeding its best units alarmingly fast. While the AFFS is bringing up fresh units to leapfrog and continue the attacks, plus with their obscene production, they can rebuild and refresh the damaged units fast enough to jump into the next waves after that. Even possibly refilling personnel losses to a degree!
The only long term hope for the DCMS was a massively successful opening strike.
What they got was exactly that ... by the AFFS ... at them!
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the DC better look to give something up to get the FS to stop. if not? the GB are going to smell blood in the water and take a good long drink.
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So all around The FedSuns are winning. But these are only the opening moves once the DCMS gets it bearing it will be able to hit back and make holding their worlds better. The WoB is also still at large and will keep hitting spots they can to keep the war going as long as possible. This wave will likely last another month before the AFFS are fully secured and the next group is ready for wave two. They need to expand their foothold to form a coherent frontline. That way they can fight the DCMS on their own terms and keep them from jumping straight into the heartland of the FedSuns.
With the capture of the Shipyards and factories even in their damaged state, the FedSuns just removed a very big asset from the Combine. They should either push the front beyond Altair as much as possible to make it viable for work to be done there without major risk. That or move the Shipyards to a new location like say the Galtor Thumb or to one of the established yards instead. Though a better location that would keep it safe and provide the FedSun a major boost is moving it to the Outback/future Periphery March. That way the area gets even more investment and the prestige of having warship/Jumpship production.
Clan Galaxies fighting alongside the RCTs will be a major bonding experience. This will help not only the AFFS gain an understanding of the Sun Jaguars but the PR boost the Clan would get from the general public will be the greater achievement. They are still remembered as the Clan that started the Invasion and all the stigma that comes with that. But if they make a good showing in this war added to their participation in the War against the CC they will have earned a lot of goodwill. They need that Goodwill if they are to survive and fully integrate with the FedSuns.
If the next wave is as successful as this one was then that might be the point to offer the Nova Cats a way out. At that point, they may very well take it but in order to sell it, there will need to be some sort of action from the Combine that harms the Clan in some way. Either an attack, insult, or threat from Teddy or his son for them not acting during this wave will be enough justification. That or the Snow Ravens send the same price they asked from the Combine to the FedSuns and Victor to see if they are willing to pay. The Snow Ravens and the OWA have everything to gain from this war if they back the right people. Gaining Territory from the Combine added from the resources and equipment that the FedSuns can offer for their expansion to the Shipyard complex and just general tech to improve their quality of life would allow them to become an even greater Periphery power. With the possibility of surpassing the TC's old strength and replacing the MoC as the new strongest.
Hopefully, someone in ComStar, the FedSuns, or the Lyrans remembers that the FRR is a thing and can be used to draw forces away and to open a new front. ComStar and especially since they have built up several of their worlds with both factories and complexes but also with large training centers for their forces and the FRR forces as well. That means they are well trained and well equipped. With support from any of the three, they can hurt the Combine and make a great ally against the other enemies in the region.
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3070 - March - DCMS Counterattack
The DCMS Counterattack in March was less a counterattack and more the remnants of Kanrei Kurita's planned invasion of the Federated Suns. Far from the sweeping offensive that had been planned instead odds and ends of various units launched attacks into FedSun space. In many cases units that had been scheduled to attack as part of a task forces instead found themselves attacking alone. Often to their cost.
Cylene
The 46th Dieron Regulars is ordered to make a "spoiling raid" upon the world of Cylene with the purposes of destroying what war materials they can and causing as much damage to the defending mercenary Fighting Urukhai regiment on the planet as possible. Unlike most of the raids this one is at least fully ordered - although it is effectively the remnant of a much larger attack that had been planned involving the 2nd Genyosha and 47th Dieron Regulars. The 2nd Genyosha is now heavily engaged on Dieron and the Kanrei is aware that should the 47th leave Fomalhaut then that planet would undoubtedly fall to the Davions. As such the invasion has been changed to a spoiling raid.
The Demestri's Slugger's regiment of the Fighting Urukhai is unable to stop the 46th from landing, however from the moment the Regular's feet touch soil on the 24th the Sluggers hound them from pillar to post, giving them no opportunity to break loose and cause the damage they have been instructed to inflict upon the AFFS's infrastructure on the planet. Whenever they attempt to raid a facility or depot elements of the Sluggers invariably move to block them, often aided in this by the large militia formations on this border world. Indeed the Dieron Regulars are horrified to find that nearly a battalion of battlemechs are present in the militia's ranks, often piloted by veterans. The few depots he is able to hit contain nothing more than rations and similar low value equipment, most of it either past it's use by date or of marginal value.
Just as the commanding officer of the 46th Dieron is preparing to give the mission up as a bad job he receives horrifying news from his jumpships. The 22nd Avalon Hussars RCT has not only arrived in system but has in fact jumped into close proximity to the 46th's own jumpship flotilla. The captains of the ships have just enough time to send word that they are being boarded/threatened with destruction if they attempt to flee before they go off the air. Leaving him trapped and with the knowledge that a veteran AFFS RCT is on the way to reinforce the Fighting Urukhai...
New Mendham
The planned attack on New Mendham was less to seize the world back for the Combine and more to wipe out or at least heavily damage and humiliate the prestigious 8th Crucis Lancers RCT. Hohiro Kurita had assigned no less than 4 regiments to this attack with the hope of a swift and relatively cheap victory. Unfortunately 2 of the regiments (the 16th Galedon Regulars and 8th Amphigean Light Assault Group) assigned to the attack had themselves been attacked while loading in preparation. While the 16th had managed to flee with roughly 70% of it's strength still intact it did not appear at the rendezvous point. Neither did the 1st Proserpina Hussars which had been assigned as not only the premier regiment of the task force but who's commanding officer was to take command of the task force. It turned out later that the unit had been diverted hurriedly to Iruzun to protect that prefecture capital from any invasion. Ironically it would be joined there by the surviving elements of the 16th Galedon Regulars.
This meant that when the invasion "task force" arrived in the New Mendham system on the 17th it consisted only of the 25th Benjamin Regulars and a handful of conventional assets. Under normal circumstances the green 25th should have immedietly withdrawn, but with the whole border on fire behind them and more and more desperate demands for victories coming via the black box the commander decides to attempt to at least blood the nose of the defending 8th Crucis and ideally do some damage before he withdraws.
This plan gets off to a terrible start when Marshal Jeremiah Marshall of the 8th unleashes not only his own 3 aerospace fighter wings but an independent wing assigned to New Mendham to bolster it's defences just as the 25th Regular's dropships enter the atmosphere. With the 25th Benjamin Aerospace's fighters at full strength they still find themselves outnumbered nearly 2:1. Their efforts to prevent the attack on the descending dropships fails when the heavy and assault weighted aerospace fighters of the 8th's wings bulldoze through the mostly light weighted fighters of the 25th. A full squadron of Stuka's supported by 2 additional squadrons consisting of Ahab's and Hammerhead's smash into the 25th's dropships and attack them, concentrating on the mech transports. While they are only able to destroy outright a single Union they do manage to heavily damage the engines of another 2 Union's and 1 Overlord class dropships which lead them to make forced landings scattered across the countryside.
While the 25th is attempting to reorganise and gather themselves the 8th Crucis Lancers RCT appears and begins a general assault on the scattered elements. A damaged Union with only half it's occupants having managed to work their way free is attacked by a full combat command of the 8th and captured. The battlemech's which had managed to get out of the dropship are hunted down and destroyed while the 6 battlemechs inside are seized. The damaged Overlord is also captured although two thirds of it's cargo manages to extract themselves and rejoin the main force while the remaining damaged Union is destroyed in place by it's own crew after the company of Kurita battlemech's unload.
By the 31st the Kurita forces have managed to reassemble themselves. With the losses in the drop and the losses in the running battles that took place as they tried to reassemble their forces the 25th Benjamin is down to around 6 companies of battlemechs along with 4 battalions of mixed armour and 3 regiments of infantry. Against them the 8th Crucis Lancers is almost entirely intact and can call upon the additional services of a company of militia battlemech's as well as 2 battalions of militia armour and 2 regiments of rifle infantry. Despite the weight of numbers and metal against him the commander of the 25th feels that he cannot withdraw - firstly because he no longer has the dropships to evacuate his remaining battlemechs but also because his fighters have by now been almost wiped out and he doubts he can reach orbit without losing more dropships to the patrolling Davion fighters... He is slightly reinforced when a handful of pro-Kurita citizens of the planet who believe that his unit is the first wave of their liberation join him as irregular scouts.
Benet III
The 5th Avalon Borderer's LCT knew they were in trouble when a large scale jump signal was detected on the 20th. Since the 41st Avalon Hussars RCT had left to take part in the invasion of Proserpina the defence of the industrial world of Benet III had been solely in their hands. The arrival in system of the Ryuken-yona and 12th Ghost regiment however made them very much wish that the 41st was still deployed alongside them.
The 5th's attached fighter wing as well as 2 independent fighter wings and a security/test wing from the Johnson Industries plant attempt to at least whittle the enemy numbers down as they reach orbit. Unfortunately while the Davion fighter wings have a slight edge in numbers and equipment only 1 of the independent wings and a handful of test pilots for Johnson approaches the veteran skill level of the 2 DCMS fighter wings attached to the invasion force. They do however manage to force the invading force to land in the Aurora Badlands. The 5th Borderer's have deployed to the south of the Badlands and immedietly begin a game of cat and mouse to delay the DCMS forces from breaking out of this terrain and past Lake Torment towards the Johnston Industries plant at Martine along with the local militia. For over a week the green troops of the 5th and the militia bleed in the toxic air of the Badlands, where their battle armoured formations prove their value again and again. However they can do little as the 12th Ghost deploys to the north and east of the Badlands and seizes the various small cities scattered along the coast. Nor can they prevent a combined arms regiment of the Ryuken-yona from capturing the city of Rohan and threatening to outflank them.
Even as the 5th Borderer's are finally pushed back to the shores of Lake Torment and then past it however word comes that reinforcements have arrived. The 3rd Robinson Rangers RCT has deployed from Galtor and arrives on the 28th and on the 29th they are joined by the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussars RCT's. At this stage however the 5th Avalon Borderer's make their first real mistake. Having seen his troops fighting and dying in the toxic environment of the Badlands for a week and having suffered nearly 50% casualties the commanding officer of the unit knowing that reinforcements are near orders them to retreat past Lake Torment and head for Martine to bolster the security of the Dagger-O plant there. This however allows the Ryuken-yona's main force to leapfrog past him and seize the planetary capital of Donner along with most of the government. As the 3 reinforcing units of the AFFS rush to help the Davion presence on the planet has been reduced to a handful of scattered and isolated cities and towns on the north west and south east coasts, the island chains and the city of Martine.
Niles
The defending Screaming Eagles had little notice when the 19th Galedon Regulars appeared at a pirate point just 2 days out from the planet of Niles, however they reacted like the veteran unit they were. By the time the 19th had reached orbit the Eagles were fully formed up and prepared to contest their invasion of the planet. Alongside them are the mostly infantry formations of the local militia. The 19th was supposed to have been joined by the 1st Amphigean Light Assault Group but the destruction of that unit on Weisau has left the invasion task force at half strength.
The 19th Galedon's commanding officer Tai-sa Bobby Bock attempts to use his heavy weighted regiment to hit the defending Screaming Eagles hard enough to make the mercenaries give up the fight as too costly to continue. However he's thwarted in this by the fact that his regiment is primarily a defensive unit and suffers some difficulties in going on the offensive in this manner and also by the almost fanatical level of loyalty that the Screaming Eagles are prepared to show to their long term employer - and in particular to First Prince Victor. To complicate matters he discovers that the Screaming Eagles have built up to a full 4 battalions and a command company in strength and as such outnumber his command. Not only that but due to their loyalty and long term contracts they have been allowed to buy a great deal of top of the line equipment at discount prices from the AFFS which compares extremely favourably to his own units spotty upgrades.
After a single week of a war of manoeuvre and small scale battles and skirmishing Tai-sa Bock is under no illusions as to the prospect of success for his unit if he pushes the issue. As such he moves to evacuate a small number of pro-Kurita leaders who have came out of hiding to join his forces and withdraw from the system back to Valentina. While the Screaming Eagles launch harassing raids on his withdrawing forces they make no real effort to launch a full scale assault. Neither side has taken more than light damage, although the Eagles have came out the victors in the few battles between the 2 regiments.
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3070 - March - DCMS Counterattack
The DCMS Counterattack in March was less a counterattack and more the remnants of Kanrei Kurita's planned invasion of the Federated Suns. Far from the sweeping offensive that had been planned instead odds and ends of various units launched attacks into FedSun space. In many cases units that had been scheduled to attack as part of a task forces instead found themselves attacking alone. Often to their cost.
And this is the sort of stuff that happens when command and control is horribly disrupted and the HPG network is borked.
Cylene
Yay! Free Jumpships!
New Mendham
And another DCMS Veteran unit has put its head on the block. Even better, the disruptive Kuritan influence has been drawn out to be hanged with them. Excellent!
Benet III
Messy - but the LCT did exactly what it was supposed to do. Hang up the enemy and keep them busy, inflicting losses, until help arrived. Which it has. Also throwing away yet another key spearhead unit.
Niles
If nothing else, the Kuritans have lost the deep cover people they had on planet and come away with nothing.
All in all, a rather pathetic showing that has, on the face of it, been a Davion victory on three of the four worlds already and about to be so on the forth world as well. Glorious, keep throwing those units away guys...
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3070 - March Interlude - Steele's Hard Truths
"This is David Steele and welcome to Steele's Hard Truths, New Avalon's premier Military and Foreign Affairs talk show! As ever I am your host and tonight I have with me once more two of my favourite guests, retired Leftenant General Abraham Zibler, late of the Avalon Hussars and author of the New Avalon Times top 10 best selling book of 3064 "Warrior Prince" and Professor Linda Cartwright of the School of the Written Arts at Gogh-Bukowski who I believe has just released her own book "Walking towards a cliff, the corrupt Davion military-industrial complex"! I'm so glad to have you back on the show, good evening to you both..." David Steele smiled broadly and for once he was being entirely genuine. He truly was delighted to see the retired general and the well known political activist back on his show - primarily because whenever the two tore lumps out of each other live on camera his ratings jumped at least 5 points! Although it had taken some real pressure to get the Professor to agree to come on given that she had known she'd be facing a hostile audience - he'd had to promise to plug her new book in the opening credits. Flashing his trade mark smile to the watching cameras he continued. "Tonight we are discussing the escalating situation with the Draconis Combine..."
"May I interrupt you right there David?" Zibler half barked. "You've got 2 things wrong and you missed one thing out."
Burying the flash of irritation at being interrupted Steele smiled broadly. "Of course general! I'm always happy to stand corrected..."
"Firstly, I'm not Leftenant General Zibler, I'm now Major General Zibler, New Avalon Militia." The old soldier grinned almost fit to burst. "I've been recalled to the colours, well at least the militia hence why I can still appear on your show, for the duration of the current conflict and placed in command of a force of New Avalon Militia. They aren't the Avalon Hussars, but give me time! Give me time!"
David Steele laughed along with his audience while silently swearing that whatever flunky or researcher had dropped the ball and not told him about the fossils reactivation and promotion was going to wish they had never been born. "You said 2 things general and missing something out...?"
Pulled out of his moment of self indulgent triumph the Major General nodded. "Of course... The second thing is that this isn't an escalating situation as you call it. This is a full on war son. It's not a crisis and and it isn't a situation. We are at war with the Combine. You're maybe a little young to remember the War of '39 and before that the Succession Wars, but trust me... Fighting the Dragon isn't something to take lightly..."
"Typical warmongering flunky for the military-industrial complex! Almost boasting at the dreadful situation that he and the neanderthals like him have gotten the rest of us into!" Professor Linda Cartwright almost shrilled. "This is all in my new book, the leadership of the Federated Sun's is walking into a Fifth Succession War and all that entails! Worlds burning and billions dead! All to keep their profits and power intact!"
"Now now Linda, you can't interrupt the general... Major General I mean... It's rude!" David wagged a finger at her to forced chuckles from the audience, but there was a definite frostiness towards the professor coming from the audience. Which she met with a firm glare back.
"Thank you David, as I was saying the final thing you missed is that while you mentioned Professor Cartwright's new book... And how are the sales of that going by the way Linda...?" Zibler smirked knowing her book was already being consigned to the 3 for 10 D-bill bins across the FedSun's but continued on before she could snap back. "You forgot to mention my own new book that's coming out next month, The Phoenix Prince..."
The presenter forced another smile and chuckled. "General Zibler, you really are a shameless self promoter you know that? I can see how you got yourself reinstated! Still fine, you've got your plug and I'm sure it will be another excellent book, but do you wish to actually make a comment on the war with the Draconis Combine..."
"I do... Honestly I think it's the right war at the wrong time... But the timing wasn't up to us. It was hit or be hit and the First Prince made damn sure we hit those rat bastards first!" Zibler barked out to almost cheers from the audience.
"Lies and false news spread by the corporate shills and hacks of the military-industrial companies like Achernar, Johnson, Robinson, Lycomb-Davion and the rest!" This time the professor really did half shriek over the booing crowd. "The same lies that led us into no less than 4 succession wars and led to hundreds of planets across the entire Inner Sphere being left as blasted wastelands!"
"People, people, now give Linda the chance to put her views... Please go on Professor Cartwright..." Steele was starting to suspect that Linda was getting near the end of her rope with the audience, at least the studio audience and perhaps the wider public. With support for the AFFS and the First Prince growing almost daily her rants were becoming less topical and more fringe, worse her growing realisation of this were making her if anything more and more angry and bitter. Perhaps Gogh-Bukowski had a bright new star of a professor he could invite next time...
"Thank you David. As I was saying I have it on good authority from a confidential source..." Cartwright ignored Zibler's scoffing noise at the mention of another confidential source and continued. "That the Coordinator Theodore Kurita himself requested to meet with our First Prince to try and broker a peace... A peace that our warmongering Prince refused outright before storming out of the meeting in an appalling show of disrespect for the Coordinator!"
Steele nodded gravely. "That is a serious charge Linda... Peace of course is what we all want and one would hope our leaders would make every effort to secure it for us!"
The general nodded. "I agree entirely with that sentiment David, I really do. And I can promise you that the vast majority of the men and women wearing the uniform of the AFFS do as well. We know war. We know every inch of it's ugly face and nobody wants to avoid it more than a soldier who's seen action. Trust me on that. But like so many of the good professors sources this one has twisted the facts into a pretzel. The First Prince did indeed meet with the Coordinator prior to the fighting, that much is common knowledge to most of us... What Professor Cartwright is omitting is the terms that the Old Dragon was asking for that peace. He was demanding no less than to be able to dictate the foreign and defence policy of the Federated Suns and insisting that our First Prince kowtowed to his demands to let that mass murdering bastard Sun-Tzu of the hook for his sisters attack on St Ives!"
This time the audience really did roar in fury and outrage, ignoring the Professor's attempts to make any counter point, while the host went through the motions of calming them. With decades of experience he knew that the crowd wouldn't settle down enough for the talk show to continue for at least 2, maybe 3 minutes. Still even as he made soothing gestures and nodded with grim resolve to the audience he could barely contain his glee! What a scoop, life on air! Glancing at Linda who was now screaming back at the crowd Steele decided that yes it defiantly was time for a new younger professor to counter Zibler, younger and ideally prettier one...
Major General Abraham Zibler sat back nodding his head to the crowd after having delivered his bomb shell. Looking every inch the gruff honest soldier. Which was actually what he was...
Far away in Mount Davion Field Marshal Stephanie Day sipped her 20 year Northwind whiskey and smiled over at Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion and Princes's Champion Ardan Sortek. "I told you it would be worth reactivating that old battle axe and slipping him that intel..."
Both men chuckled sipping their own drinks. Davion nodding his head in a salute. "True... It doesn't hurt that the old bastard's will actually make a good CO of the reinforced brigade we gave him..."
Sortek nodded. "The only downside is we'll have to watch him for skimming off the best troops in it and trying to get them assigned to the Avalon Hussars!"
Which set all 3 to chuckling again...
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love the update with the news host. that was some good writing. now it looks like the DC just lost 3 more front line units.
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Hmm DCMS counter attack is going in weak and disorganised due to the lack of coordination and the fact most of their back up has been wiped out or is currently on the run. Hoirro is going to have a lot of his officers maybe starting to wonder if they don’t have Jinjiro on their hands.
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Jinjiro was at least competent, when not in one of his episodes. Hohiro's counterattack on the other hand was a mess, with two regiments lost for no real gain.
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With the war being so new there is always going to be high enthusiasm for victory. That is something the professor would have been fully aware of. She never would have acted the way she did because she would know it would bite her back badly. She really shouldn't have taken the interview until the war had been going on for a bit longer and the damage started coming back. Instead she shot whatever credibility she had left away with this stunt.
It was a smart move on the part of high command though by releasing the information on just what teddy demanded of the FedSuns they cut out the legs from any opposition to the war. Plus with the Combine allied to the WoB and the war crimes that the cultists have committed that were not missed and ignored for a major civil war they are made to look even more like the villains. Plus with the assassination of Peter in the way they did it also hurts the Combine's image.
Victor already said he supports his nephew's right to the Throne. He can send a message to the Lyrans "put my Nephew on the Throne. Make the General of the Armies the regent. Get in the fight now. And I will provide a large amount of materials and funds to get the fight started as a gift to my nephew's realm."
With the Naval Ships the FedSuns captured they might hit the WoB to try and get them to fight each other or he might attack the Ravens and the Outworlds Alliance to get them to fight the Combine. I very much doubt he will attack the Ghost Bears since I doubt he wants that Clan to gain any more territory and power. The Ghost Bears are arguably the most intact and powerful of the IS clans at the moment. While the Raven's are a powerful Naval power they are more limited and could be worked with easier.
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Victor is going to have to be considerably more subtle than sending a message of 'put my nephew on the throne, here is a bribe!' unless he wants to risk being seen as either a puppet master or kingmaker for the Lyran Alliance.
He would do better in fact to reach out to Adam Steiner (who is still general of the armies) in a pseudo-public way to confirm and reinforce the cooperation and teamwork of the Lyrans and Federation in the war. Even see if Victor can scrape up a Corvette flotila and a couple of cruisers, perhaps one of the new carriers (it's time for On The Job training people!) to throw into the battle quickly and snap the WOB back on their heels. Possibly a couple of RCTs if Victor can find them handy. Nothing overwhelming, but powerful. And at the same time, perhaps scraping up a shipment of new Battlemechs for Adam to help replace the losses WOB have inflicted, from AFFS stockpiles.
And the truth is Adam simply cannot be spared to lead the Lyran Alliance right now. The Lyrans have a 3-front war going on right now and they need him directing the defense - he's one of the few competent Generals the Lyrans HAVE right now...
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Aside from the war with the Combine the Lyrans are Victor's greatest headache. Truth is he needs to get involved in their internal affairs. He simply cannot afford the WOB getting a foothold there.
So besides material aid he will at least need to coordinate with them. And also I don't think they can survive all the conflict surrounding them without substantial military aid.
So in the current situation it makes the most sense to send military advisors - without calling them that - to coordinate a joint strategy and joint military operations. Vice versa the Lyrans need to send military staff on their own to the FedSuns - preferably those well connected, unrestive elements that can do the most harm in some power grab.
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Okay I've edited the interview, giving the Professor a few more lines - mostly about how this is turning into a Fifth Succession War, about how many worlds died in the first 2-3 wars, and explained that the presenter had to push her a bit to get her to come on all for his ratings... Hopefully that helps.
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3070 - April - Operation Achilles III
As April began the Kurita position within the Dieron Military District was under severe pressure that was only growing worse. On Dieron and Quentin the military situation was slanted heavily against the DCMS, while the worlds of Saffel and Altair had already fallen. The few remaining units within the District were mostly tied in place due to the threat of Davion invasions leaving little reserves to relieve either Dieron or Quentin.
Dieron
April started on Fortress Dieron with a breakout. No less than 4 flotillas of dropships each identical and with the few remaining aerospace fighters left to the defending forces as escorts split equally between them blasted off on the 2nd of April. Each flotilla of dropships consisted of a number of transport dropships of the various defending units along with a handful of civilian dropships dragooned into service. The Davion warships and fighter wings in orbit saw them coming and attempted to destroy or drive them back, but despite their best efforts 2 of the flotillas of drops managed to break through with only light losses while a third suffered heavy losses but a small number of dropships broke through. The fourth flotilla which largely consisted of dropships from the 1st Genyosha was wiped out entirely.
Even after the breakout however the Federated Sun's Navy and the fighter wings attached to the orbiting forces hadn't given up. The 4 Avalon class cruisers of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron broke off in pursuit hoping to at least catch some of the slower dropships or cripples, while fighters and assault dropships streamed past them to slow their prey. However the DCS Siriwan and her 3 surviving Inazuma class corvettes close with the fleeing dropships to offer them protection. This is a naval battle that neither side ideally wants but has found itself pushed into. Closing at high speed the 2 sides fly almost past each other firing furiously. The DCS Siriwan and the FSS Simon Davion both take heavy damage with the other 3 Avalon's all receiving light damage while 1 of the Inazuma is destroyed outright. However the engagement forces the Davion ships to break of their pursuit of the fleeing dropship flotillas which are now scattering wildly and escort the FSS Simon Davion back to orbit. The DCA warships break off as well and escort the DCS Siriwan out of the system along with the jumpships carrying the transport dropships which have managed to breakout. More importantly they escort the Kanrei himself. The damaged warships and surviving transports would swiftly head for Benjamin - with a small detour to Arkab.
In the breakout and the pursuit roughly half of all the dropships which lifted from Dieron have been destroyed, but the single most important dropship a leopard class carrying the Kanrei has survived without any damage. Putting the heir on such a fragile dropship had been a calculated risk with many arguing that he should have been placed in a larger Overlord class or better protected Excalibur class, but both of those classes had suffered almost two thirds losses in the flight. The lighter ships had suffered fewer losses proportionally, having only been targeted as after thoughts mostly or fired upon as targets of opportunities.
This breakout while successful had left the rest of the DCMS forces on Dieron not only stranded but also with almost no real fighter cover. Recognising this, Warlord Kurita began falling his remaining formations back into Fortress Dieron itself. Between the 1st and 2nd Genyosha and his own 3rd Dieron Regular's the Warlord still possessed nearly 2 regiments worth of elite battlemechs and their supporting forces. Holed up in the huge sprawling fortress he believed that he could hold out for months if not years.
Harrying the retreating Combine troops on their way the 4th Davion Guards and the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry managed to trap a combined battalion of the withdrawing forces from the 2 Genyosha regiment long enough for the Davion Assault Guards and the 8th Striker to come up and aid in their destruction but this was the only real victory of the AFFS in April. With that last field engagement the Davion forces settled in for a siege. Or at least most of them did.
The primary besieging unit of the AFFS would of course be the Davion Assault Guards RCT which was already taking up positions to being reducing the enemy fortifications and wear them down in a war of attrition. Alongside them would be the entire Vegan Rangers Brigade which would deploy into blocking formations all around Mount Shanyu. The 5th Robinson's Rangers RCT would redeploy to cover the rest of the planet and take up garrisoning roles, while the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT would act as a mobile reserve while it's battle armoured troops and fighter wings helped the Davion Assault Guards wear down Fortress Dieron.
At the same time however the 2nd and 4th Davion Guards, accompanied by the 8th Striker and Bar Hound regiments of the Fighting Urukhai boarded their dropships and lifted off to hit their next target. It was felt that the AFFS forces on Dieron were excessive to contain 2 damaged regiments worth of the DCMS even in siege conditions and that 3 full RCT's and 4 mercenary regiments (although they really only numbered around 3 regiments worth of battlemechs) were more than sufficient. As such the 2nd Davion Guards RCT was ordered to retake it's long lost "home" of Fomalhaut with the backing of the 4th Davion Guards and the Fighting Urukhai.
Quentin
The 3rd FSAC after a hurried refit threw itself at the final redoubt of the 45th Dieron Regulars on the 4th of April. Like the FSAC the 45th had hurriedly refitted their shattered battlemechs - in many cases replacing them entirely with fresh machines from Independence Weaponry. However they could do little for their wounded or their exhausted mechwarriors - as while the 3rd refitted the other AFFS units had continued harassing raids on the worn down 45th Dieron Regulars. Within a few hours it was obvious that the AFFS troops were going to break through and at that stage the Regular's began to crumble. Realising that his troops were merely minutes from routing Tai-sa Sebastian Ioto ordered his troops to fall back into the factories themselves and attempt to cause as much destruction while triggering the charges he had had his engineers lay earlier. He and roughly a companies worth of the most heavily damaged machines stayed behind to give them time to break contact and do as much damage as possible before the AFFS can overwhelm them...
It would take the AFFS formations nearly 3 days to run down the last of the surviving DCMS troops that had taken refuge in the factory complex. During which the huge factory suffers heavy damage, not just from the fighting but also a large quantity of explosive charges hidden within it by the 45th Dieron. By the end of April the world of Quentin is in the hands of the AFFS and the Federated Sun's banner flies over it again. However the massive factory that made it such a prize is heavily damaged and will take months if not years to repair. The few survivors of the 45th Dieron Regulars are dispatched to POW camps deep within the Crucis March.
Fomalhaut
The 2nd and 4th Davion Guards RCT's as well as the 8th Striker and Bar Hounds regiments of the Fighting Urukhai arrived within the Fomalhaut system and began making a burn for the planet. The defending 47th Dieron Regulars knew that not only were they massively outnumbered but also facing off against opponents with better equipment than them and greater skill. A final nail in the morale of the unit was the fact that these were at least some of the units which had been sighted on Dieron - which had ominous implications for the state of affairs on the District's capital world. As the AFFS and their mercenary allies burned for the planet the only fighting was light duelling between aerospace assets of both sides. The commanding officer of the 47th sent repeated requests to Dieron and beyond asking what he should do - stand and fight or flee.
Asta
In a surprise move the Wolf's Dragoons Zeta Battalion appeared almost in orbit after a jump into a pirate point near the moon of Eddelle of the world of Asta. Heading straight for the planetary capital of Excaliba they broadcast immediate demands for the surrender of the system to the Federated Suns or they would be forced to launch a full scale assault. With the reputation of Zeta Battalion proceeding them and no regular DCMS troops to protect them the planetary authorities began broadcasting stand down orders to all of the militia forces on planet and announcement of surrender to the incoming troops which were now merely hours out. Zeta Battalion's commanding officer sent to Robinson and New Avalon requesting follow on conventional troops to take up garrison postings...
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So the Dragoons are going to start up their own little vengeance war again it seems. Well the Combine was smart in getting the heir out of the fire this time. Too bad but understandable that this war is going to go on for a long time compared to the other wars they have fought recently. They gained control of all three worlds and put the district capital under their nominal control and the elite formations under siege where they can't do anything for the rest of the Combine. And the forces left to siege them will recover and grow stronger with repairs and refits along with replacement pilots and personnel while the Combine Forces wither and die.
The destruction of the factory on Quentin by the Combine really show the level of petty the Combine is and the fact that they will burn the IS to ash so long as they can rule over the ruins. They and the WoB really are one and the same in that regard. Which is why those two will come to blows eventually all Victor needs to do is keep the pressure upon them to make them turn on each other.
The Cruiser taking the damage is bad but that is why Victor ordered the stop to the upgrades so the yards could be used to repair damage like this in the first place. We are coming close to the deployment of the first Iron Duke as well but it needs to train its crew and raise their skill level before it is of use. Still if the Iron Duke fights the Yamato with all the issues the latter ships has it will lose and be a major blow to the Combine in every way.
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looks like a LongTom BDE is needed on Dieron. a hundred heavy guns and fighters dropping bunker busters would ruin someone's day. dropping 36 round with a T on T (time on target) will crack heavy bunkers like an egg under a sledge hammer.
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Victors gonna have to relieve whoever the hell was in command of his warship and aerospace assets that let a bunch of drop ships make it off the planet like that. Sheer incompetence frankly, nothing less given the glut of assets coming from roughly the same part of the planet and relative firepower (not to mention the lack of any kind of creative thinking in tactics).
They let the key prize slip through their fingers, despite overwhelming force on hand. That just can't be accepted. Whoever was in command needs to be put in command of a desk in a basement on New Avalon.
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Victors gonna have to relieve whoever the hell was in command of his warship and aerospace assets that let a bunch of drop ships make it off the planet like that. Sheer incompetence frankly, nothing less given the glut of assets coming from roughly the same part of the planet and relative firepower (not to mention the lack of any kind of creative thinking in tactics).
They let the key prize slip through their fingers, despite overwhelming force on hand. That just can't be accepted. Whoever was in command needs to be put in command of a desk in a basement on New Avalon.
You are totally right someone screwed up - but they screwed up in an understandable way. They were watching the warships, prepared for WOB or further DCA warships coming in. And any attempt to break out they expected to be en mass - which meant the ground troops would tell them that the DCMS was withdrawing to their dropships. They weren't watching for a handful of officers boarding a single dropship as the "tell" that the evacuation was coming.
Also something to consider this wasn't 4 flotillas of a few ships. We're talking dozens (or more) of military and civilian dropships in each flotilla swarming up with suicidal aerospace fighters clearing the way for them. They nailed half of the dropships and damaged probably half of the survivors. Statistically (for plot reasons) Hohiro got lucky.
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sometimes the other side rolls a natural 20 and they get to have their way. the DC lost a lot of fighters and dropships and those damaged warships. the lose of fighters and dropships is going to affect the battle on that planet. the dammed warships and surviving damaged dropships will affect other battles. it is going to take time to get them ready for another battle and most of the big boys were shot down.
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You are totally right someone screwed up - but they screwed up in an understandable way. They were watching the warships, prepared for WOB or further DCA warships coming in.
Well, most people can pat their head and stomach at the same time :P
Having some people keeping an eye on the jump points and enemy warships tracks doesn't mean they shouldn't be also keeping an absoloutly ironclad orbital net in place to see any Combine asset once its gets more than ten meters off the ground, let alone dropships. Dropships are just too damn fragile (civilian ones even more so) and warship guns have both massive range and the high ground to maneuver in, to say nothing of the 'fleets' of pocket warships and assault ships that would be filling in the gaps in the formations.
In all honesty, some of these thrusts shouldn't even have made it out of the troposphere if they launched with a warship directly overhead...
And any attempt to break out they expected to be en mass - which meant the ground troops would tell them that the DCMS was withdrawing to their dropships. They weren't watching for a handful of officers boarding a single dropship as the "tell" that the evacuation was coming.
That's an incredibly sloppy assumption to make for whichever Admiral is in command - especially given plenty of history of this kind of move in Battletech. Up to and including Theodores father doing pretty much exactly the same thing in the 4th Succession War! Again, why said Admiral needs to be relieved.
Also something to consider this wasn't 4 flotillas of a few ships. We're talking dozens (or more) of military and civilian dropships in each flotilla swarming up with suicidal aerospace fighters clearing the way for them. They nailed half of the dropships and damaged probably half of the survivors. Statistically (for plot reasons) Hohiro got lucky.
Sure but numbers only count for so much when you have enough warships on hand - and civilian dropships are terribly fragile things. I honestly can't buy that they 'screwed up in an understandable way' as a justification, because its not understandable to me. The sheer glut of assets the AFFS has on hand should make it a pure suicide run and with only a limited number of locations on the planet they could have launched from...
Trying to bum-rush through that kind of force just isn't an effective tactic and the only way it could have been pulled off is if the people in command of the AFFS got really, REALLY sloppy.
Hence, relief of command for incompetence. Not shot or anything crazy like that (this is the Federated Suns after all) but classic 'loss of confidence in command ability' being relieved of your position is entirely appropriate for this situation.
But, I mean if you want a plot shield to get Hohiro out? I'd suggest something more ruthless and cunning that plays to the Combines culture.
First, send up all these empty dropships up with skeleton crews and volunteers with assault ships in support and while they loose most of the force, a handful get away heading for the inbound Combine warships. Problem of course, while they hope to shoot through the formation providing cover, the AFFS already are in position to engage the warships and will easily swat down the dropships in passing as they are all converging-
But wait, it was all a trick!
Because suddenly a SECOND formation of dropships take off from a different location, this time a half dozen military transports with the last of the aerospace fighters as escorts, the very finest DC pilots in the best craft that manage to punch through whatever is left. And with the bulk of the AFFS having shifted either to block the first escape attempt or moving to engage the incoming Combine Warships, its takes time for the AFFS to react and peal off warships from much further away to give chase ... and the Combine ride that window perfectly all the way to the pirate point as two Inazuma class Corvettes materialize. Which quickly mulch the picket AFFS assault ships present (or even just a WOB ship that outright nukes the warship on picket duty). And so three Overlords dock with each of the Corvettes which GTFO on their L/F batteries barely minutes ahead of the swarm of AFFS ships in pursuit, that were pulled just far enough out of position.
Or possibly even just fast light fighters including a few two seaters with the Prince shoved in a back seat getting to a single corvette that pops in, relying on their sheer speed now that the AFFS blockade is in tatters. While the incoming warships then show it was all a fakeout as they burn hard away from the planet, past it and eventually will reach the proximity limit and jump out themselves.
OR, if you wanted to be really sneaky, have it that the Combine has secretly have been doing what the WOB did in the original timeline; reactivating Fortress Dieron. That while their desperate attempts to build more warships to counter the AFFS are just not progressing fast enough, they HAVE managed to get production of naval weapons going quite well. And so come upon the idea (at the suggestion of the WOB) of reactivating all the surface to space weapons systems at Fortress Dieron and they had got them partially online by the initial invasion, but were given strict orders not to use them for now, but to keep working to get them fully online.
And they have just managed to do so in time for the breakout!
And so as Hohiro launches - suddenly a completely unexpected barrage of surface to space naval fire lances up and obliterates a Fox directly overhead and pops assault ships and capital warships like the eggs they are as the Combine gunners viciously let loose everything they have. Ripping open a hole in the orbital blockade as everyone runs the ****** away from the barrages of laser and PPC fire. A hole through which Hohiro pushes everything he has. And while he still has to fight his way through fighters and assault ships and long range fire, he has JUST enough of a lead from the cover fire to punch clear and run for the pirate point where, again, a couple of corvettes jump from the distant jump point, pick up his ships and jump clear on their LFBs. Even as the AFFS aerospace fighters swarm by the hundreds in following a barrage of Killer Whales fired from well out of counter-battery range, to turn the entire Fortress into a giant crater...
Or something.
But a straight 'lets bum rush the massive AFFS fleet!' attack...
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The FedSuns also wouldn't know that Hohiro escaped. And they won't for a long time. Unless of course, the Combine is stupid and announces it everyone in an attempt to paint the FedSuns as incompetent. Then they just give up the advantage of the FedSuns thinking the supreme commander of the DCMS is trapped and can't lead the forces. Instead the FedSuns know Hohiro is free and can plan around him instead of being blind to the Combine counters.
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Given the show that DCMS put up, it is safe to assume that Feddies consider Hohiro to be at large and not to be on the surface of the Dieron.
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Given the show that DCMS put up, it is safe to assume that Feddies consider Hohiro to be at large and not to be on the surface of the Dieron.
Why would they? it is more likely the FedSuns think that Hohiro is either still on the surface o0r that he died in one of the bigger dropships. They have no way of knowing that he escaped.
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Why would they? it is more likely the FedSuns think that Hohiro is either still on the surface o0r that he died in one of the bigger dropships. They have no way of knowing that he escaped.
Well, they'll almost certinally assume that this whole breakout was for the express purpose of trying to get him off planet. And with that assumption as quite a number of dropships made it out, they'll have to assume he was on one of those that made it (as it would be hard to see any dropships not willingly giving their lives to protect his) until otherwise proven.
I wouldn't be surprised mind you if they left his Mech behind and put a DEST Mechwarrior or something in it, marching the Daishi around playing back prerecorded messages to at least TRY to sell the illusion of his presence to the AFFS. Enough that they have to honor the possibility.
But I think the people in charge will have to conclude that there is every possibility he made it out.
But I
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I wonder if the FS will bother repairing the mech factory on Quentin.
Too much expense and to vulnerable. Just leave it or transform it into an agromech factory.
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I wonder if the FS will bother repairing the mech factory on Quentin.
Too much expense and to vulnerable. Just leave it or transform it into an agromech factory.
Yes they will because the front is being pushed and the FedSuns needs to get enough out of this war to justify it. And the Factory is one of the biggest factories around that would be a waste not to rebuild it.
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Yes they will because the front is being pushed and the FedSuns needs to get enough out of this war to justify it. And the Factory is one of the biggest factories around that would be a waste not to rebuild it.
Too close to the front-lines. Better to move all the machinery deep into the Davion interior & setup there. If in the future the borders have stabilized with the world far from the front, then they can see about rebuilding it. Better to turn it into a supply depot for now.
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Too close to the front-lines. Better to move all the machinery deep into the Davion interior & setup there. If in the future the borders have stabilized with the world far from the front, then they can see about rebuilding it.
Do you really think that this war is going to be done anytime soon? This is just the start and the war will go on for years at least. And the front will be pushed and this factory will take a long time before it even starts being repaired. So they won't be moving anything while they are just starting.
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Do you really think that this war is going to be done anytime soon? This is just the start and the war will go on for years at least. And the front will be pushed and this factory will take a long time before it even starts being repaired. So they won't be moving anything while they are just starting.
I'm working on the assumption that the lines are going to go back & forth as the war goes on. There's no guarantee that the planet will remain in their hands for a prolonged period or that DC or WoB won't bring out the NBCs to salt the planet. Since there's no way to rebuild while the fighting is going on, the best thing to do is either ignore the factory or move all the machinery to somewhere safer.
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I'm working on the assumption that the lines are going to go back & forth as the war goes on. There's no guarantee that the planet will remain in their hands for a prolonged period or that DC or WoB won't bring out the NBCs to salt the planet. Since there's no way to rebuild while the fighting is going on, the best thing to do is either ignore the factory or move all the machinery to somewhere safer.
And where is the DCMS going to get the men and resources to take back those worlds? The only reason the war will last for years is because the fighting to take worlds deeper in Combine territory would get harder and longer to do. Not because they reconquer worlds. The WoB can't change that they lack the numbers or power to retake the worlds since they are much weaker than they were in canon. As for NBC the WoB might be stupid enough to do that but they still need to make it to the worlds and with the FedSuns having such a massive Industrial and manpower advantage they won't be able to do much. Especially since the AFFS have orders to hit the WoB with nukes the moment they show up in a system. The DCMS would not use those weapons because they aren't insane enough. They literally just saw what happened to the last group that broke that rule. Plus they are going to be spread thin until they pull back to a core defensive region. They have enemies literally on all but one side and that side can still be used to hit them.
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I don't think you realise how stupid the wobbies can be.
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I'm working on the assumption that the lines are going to go back & forth as the war goes on. There's no guarantee that the planet will remain in their hands for a prolonged period or that DC or WoB won't bring out the NBCs to salt the planet. Since there's no way to rebuild while the fighting is going on, the best thing to do is either ignore the factory or move all the machinery to somewhere safer.
Yes this is the smartest and best method to protect that equipment!
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I don't think you realise how stupid the wobbies can be.
Yeah.
I mean, these are the guys who decided to throw a hissy fit and declare war on the Federated Suns, Lyran Commonwealth, most of the FWL and Combine, all of the Clans, ComStar and parts of the Capellan Confederation. All the while throwing WMDs around like firecrackers to encourage their use against THEM, with troops being flung onto deep strikes against enemy capitals that should have failed miserably if not for author fiat. Even with maximum powered plot shields holding for a considerable time, they apparently never quite figured out that declaring war on all of mankind when you only had a very very small chunk of it to work with, is only going to end one way...
So yes, I think its honestly hard to bet against the WOB doing something stupid.
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Yes this is the smartest and best method to protect that equipment!
In Blacknova's The Other Option, where we gamed out the 4th Succession War, one of the first things I did (I was running the FS) was pack up the factories facing the Draconis Combine (Quentin, Ozawa and Marduk) and accept losing a year or more of production while they were shifted into the Crucis March. Because at least the FS didn't lose them entirely.
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In Blacknova's The Other Option, where we gamed out the 4th Succession War, one of the first things I did (I was running the FS) was pack up the factories facing the Draconis Combine (Quentin, Ozawa and Marduk) and accept losing a year or more of production while they were shifted into the Crucis March. Because at least the FS didn't lose them entirely.
I remember reading about that in the Field Report for the AFFS that was produced for that setting (nice work btw), and how the Sandoval's got annoyed by it. Was there ever any sort of planned replacement factories started up? Vehicles maybe?
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In Blacknova's The Other Option, where we gamed out the 4th Succession War, one of the first things I did (I was running the FS) was pack up the factories facing the Draconis Combine (Quentin, Ozawa and Marduk) and accept losing a year or more of production while they were shifted into the Crucis March. Because at least the FS didn't lose them entirely.
I've heard of this mentioned over on another site do you have a link to the thread itself I'd like to read it if possible.
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I've heard of this mentioned over on another site do you have a link to the thread itself I'd like to read it if possible.
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=60667.0
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3070 - April - Operation Ajax III
With Proserpina on the verge of falling and a number of units within the Benjamin Military District already wiped out on the border morale was beginning to fail within the District after just a few short months of war. However the DCMS units within the Benjamin Military District received not 1 but 3 shots in the arm with the arrival of Kanrei Hohiro Kurita, the heir to the Dragon, on their capital world along with a major task force of WOB warships and transports that had linked up with him. Benjamin's HPG which had been one of the first to be knocked off line was almost immedietly repaired (almost entirely replaced from spare parts) and 2 full regiments worth of battlemech's were used to form the 27th and 28th Benjamin Regulars largely from "graduates" of the Osaka Fields Proving Grounds and various veterans recalled to the colours. Also within the district when Hohiro stopped over at Arkab the Arkab Legions had reinforced their 7th Arkab Legion to 80% of it's full strength as well as forming a new 8th Arkab Legion at the same strength level from the regiment of battlemech's that the Kanrei had "gifted" to them. In return for this largess the Arkab Legions had dispatched the 6th Arkab Legion with Hohiro to Benjamin.
Proserpina
Even as the rest of the district rallied with the arrival of the heir the situation on Proserpina continued to worsen for the defenders. The 6th Robinson Rangers RCT, fresh from it's fighting in the Capellan Conquest and eager to prove it's skills against the traditional enemies of the Rangers threw themselves into the fighting around Conqueror's City with a zeal that the more tempered regiments lacked. Finding themselves against a mixed brigade of militia bolstered by roughly 2 companies of cadets from the Proserpina Academy the 6th used their better equipment and coordination to break the enemy lines on the 5th of April. Only a hurried relief column consisting of the last of Sho-sho Yoshida's reserves stabilised the front facing the 6th Rangers.
His situation continued to deteriorate when the AFFS fighter wings which had now achieved almost total air superiority over the city began dropping pamphlets on the Kurita held areas. These contained transcripts of the AFFS's offer to allow civilians to evacuate the city and the Sho-sho's refusal of said offer. Civil disobedience, mass desertions from the conscript labour battalions and even outright mutinies began to break out throughout the city. While most of these were contained to the labour battalions a number of cadets with family in the city and even one veteran lance of retired Proserpina Hussars who had volunteered to defend the city joined in the mutinies. Putting these rebellions down took time and troops that the Yoshida simply didn't have.
With internal revolts breaking out almost hourly and with no reserves left he therefore could do little when the 1st Davion Guards RCT, Davion Old Guards RCT, 1st Kathil Uhlan's and 41st Avalon Hussars RCT all launched a full scale assault on the 12th of April. His own 1st Sword of Light was the only real reliable force that he had left and he rushed companies or even individual lances of them along the perimeter, trying to hold back the tide. For nearly 8 hours the Sword of Light proved once again that they were amongst the finest troops in existence and held off nearly 4 times their numbers of mechs and many more times that in armour and infantry. However when the so far quite sectors facing the Argyle Lancers and the 1st Revenant Guards RCT suddenly came alight with a short brutal artillery barrage followed by these 2 elite formations joining in the attack any hope that the 1st Sword of Light might pull of a miracle died. The few battlemech's facing the Lancers and the Guards had been stripped to stem the tide in active sectors and the 2 AFFS formations found themselves facing only demoralised militia and a handful of 10th Proserpina Hussars - most of whom surrendered rather than fight for a leader they had lost faith in.
Roughly a company of the 1st Sword of Light managed to fall back to Sho-sho Yoshida's command post in order to make a last stand. The rest of the regiment had died somewhere within Conqueror's City - in many cases mechwarriors who had managed to punch out finding themselves lynched by the very Combine citizens of the city itself. Only the Sho-sho's own command lance were in anything close to battle worthy condition and the 1st Davion Guard combat command that was the first to reach the command post over ran them within 10 minutes of hard fighting.
With the death of Shigeru Yoshida and his last warriors the Sword and Sunburst was ran up the flagpole outside the command post and Proserpina declared secure for the Federated Suns...
Lapida
The Blue Star Irregular's mercenary command officially requests to stand down in April, informing the High Command that they intend to bring up 2 companies from their reforming Avatar's of Painful Death regiment to replace losses in their 2 active commands. This request is immedietly granted by the High Command at the First Princes's own order and the Blue Star Irregulars are switched from offensive actions to defensive garrison commands until they can integrate their replacement personnel. They are requested (and agree) to continue hunting the 15th Ghost alongside the conventional brigades which have joined them on Lapida. With barely 2 companies of the 15th Ghost in hiding (barely 1 by the end of April after more of the traitors are betrayed themselves by the population of the planet) and with 2 elite mercenary formations holding the planet Lapida is declared secure. The 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT lifts off for their next target on the 20th.
Tannil
The almost intact (80%) 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT having conquered 2 worlds already for House Davion jumps into the Tannil system on the 27th April and begins a controlled burn towards the planet. The local militia already on alert stand too and prepare to sell their live as dearly as possible for the Dragon...
Donenac
The defending 9th Benjamin Regulars was one of the few veteran units remaining on the front line within the Benjamin Military District and knew that the AFFS would be coming for them. They weren't to be disappointed. Leading the way came the 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT along with their 1st and 5th sister RCT's. While the 1st and 5th Avalon Hussars RCT's were hovering at around 60% of their listed strength they were still reinforced regiments and as such added almost 8 battlemech companies each to the 42nd's veteran and stronger force. Which didn't take into account their fighter wings, armoured and infantry brigades. between the 3 RCT's they were able to muster around 2 and a half times the 9th's battlemech forces.
The 9th Benjamin Regulars fall back on their skills at urban warfare and disperse into Donenac's cities in an attempt to thin the Davion attackers lines and leave them open to counter attacks. However with the sheer weight of numbers available to him Marshal Edwin May deploys the 1st and 5th Avalon Hussars as blocking formations and encircles the various garrisons of the minor cities while concentrating his own more experienced and heavier 42nd on a single city and proceeds to crush the garrison. He then moves on to the next. While this relentless use of his superior firepower and numbers will take time to reduce the DCMS garrisons it has the advantage of keeping his casualties down. By the end of April nearly a third of the 9th Benjamin Regulars have been destroyed and the remaining garrisons have had to listen to the panicked calls from aid from 3 cities who's garrisons have been systematically reduced. Marshal May's tactics wont be fast or flashy... But they are effective.
Reisling's Planet
Even as the 1st, 5th and 42nd Avalon Hussars are burning for Donenac the 14th and 20th Avalon Hussars RCT's are heading for Reisling's Planet. The green 23rd Benjamin Regular's have none of the 9th's skills or confidence and the newly formed unit's CO decides that discretion is the better part of valour and flee's Reisling's Planet along with key government officials and as many of the planet's militia as he can cram into his dropships as he jumps to Iruzun. While this does allow him to add a regiment of armour and nearly 3 regiments of infantry to his formation it does gut the remaining militia on Reisling's Planet which promptly surrender as soon as the AFFS troops begin landing.
Ludwig
The 24th Benjamin Regulars on Ludwig unlike their sister regiment the 23rd decide to make a stand on Ludwig and hope for reinforcements. However when they see that no less than 3 full RCT's are barrelling down on them their CO makes a swift change of mind and instead of attempting a conventional defence orders his unit to scatter into the wilds and conduct a guerrilla campaign until the Dragon can send reinforcements.
When the 2nd Dragonlords RCT, 4th Crucis Lancers RCT and 12th FedSun's Dragoons RCT's all land on the planet they manage to snap up 2 companies of the 24th Regulars who had not managed to break into the wilderness quickly enough, but are then faced with a full blown insurrection with battlemech forces across most of the planet. The 2nd Dragonlord's battle armour forces and the 12th Dragoon's infantry formations secure the various cities while the armour and battlemech's of all 3 forces begin the hunt to run down the 24th Benjamin Regulars.
Matar
With intelligence that the garrisoning 25th Benjamin Regulars has attacked New Mendham (and is unlikely to return) the AFFS High Command dispatches the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT to Matar to secure this planet for the Federated Suns. With it's double strength aerospace forces sweeping the skies clean of the handful of defending DCMS aerospace fighters the 10th lands and within a week has secured the key locations of the planet, rounding up many of the dependent's and support troops of the 25th Benjamin Regulars in the meantime.
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3070 - April - Operation Ajax III
With Proserpina on the verge of falling and a number of units within the Benjamin Military District already wiped out on the border morale was beginning to fail within the District after just a few short months of war. However the DCMS units within the Benjamin Military District received not 1 but 3 shots in the arm with the arrival of Kanrei Hohiro Kurita, the heir to the Dragon, on their capital world along with a major task force of WOB warships and transports that had linked up with him.
Good news for the Combine, bad news for the AFFS. Although given that this news seems to be being broadcast far and wide in a desperate attempt to stop morale from crashing off a cliff, the odds are excellent that ROM/MIIO/DMI have heard the news too. If only there was a way to jump the gathering force with a surprise attack at the jump point ... :D
Proserpina
And as morale started to slowly firm up, it's going to crash when the Combine admits that Proserpina has fallen. The 1st Sword of Light has fallen. Worse, although the fighting looked pretty brutal, it was still 1 elite vs 5 elite meaning the losses shouldn't be that bad. And again, this is the nightmare of where the AFFS's massive military-industrial complex makes things so much harder for the Combine, because if the AFFS troops loose their rides, they'll pretty much always have replacements shipped to them, so long as they are fit for service. And even replacement troops are not a huge problem thanks to the massive expansions of training schools and cadres! At least in the short term.
Lapida
Whatever happened to that Corvette of theirs? I can't remember...if they still have it, I'm going to guess that at the very least, the AFFS have kept it fully operational rather than the half working money sink it was in the OTL? In any event, secure and moving on!
Tannil
Nom nom nom!
Still at 80% and probably going to go down a bit even from a curbstomp, its probably about time to wait for a shipment of new personnel and equipment before proceeding...
Donenac
Given that man an Order of Davion. Man knows EXACTLY how to use his troops and RCTs combined arms to besiege each strong-point with enough tanks and infantry to obliterate any attempt to get out, allowing him to concnetrate his Battlemechs with overwhelming force to systematically eliminate the enemy pockets one at a time. Textbook tactics here, both grinding down the enemy while minimizing the risk and damage his own troops take. It would actually have been the ideal place to send a lot of greenies to the 60% strength mech units, to let them blood themselves with a LOT of backup as safely as you really could.
Reisling's Planet
Well, I'm sure the DCMS High Command will welcome his sensible decision to grab everything he could pull out and run for it, conserving his forces to rejoin with the rest of the DCMS and concentrate for an offensive counter-strike, and not shot when he arrives for cowardice.
*snort*
Only good news being as his family is on a planet now taken by the Federated Suns, at least they won't be sold into slavery as punishment for his 'failings'.
Also seems that, at least so far, the Federated Suns (for the most part) isn't simply popping in warships among the Combine jumpships and politely asking them to strike their colors and prepare to be bordered. Or at the very least, politely asking them to jump out and strand the enemy troops heading for them. That policy might change swiftly if the WOB go as brutal as I suspect they will...
Ludwig
Well I hope they actually planned for this in advance. All these 'scatter and go to ground!' plans have to be predicated on having well established supply dumps hidden all over the planet along with prepared fallback positions and hidden staging grounds and so on. Simply marching out of the base randomly into the wild is going to result in most of these fools getting swept up in a week or two. Oh well!
Matar
Not sure the DLC make a good garrison unit (at least not in a forward position). As opposed to a raiding force looking to sweep through the enemy rear areas and cause sheer chaos.
But if nothing else they can probably hold until follow up troops arrive.
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Good news for the Combine, bad news for the AFFS. Although given that this news seems to be being broadcast far and wide in a desperate attempt to stop morale from crashing off a cliff, the odds are excellent that ROM/MIIO/DMI have heard the news too. If only there was a way to jump the gathering force with a surprise attack at the jump point ... :D
And as morale started to slowly firm up, it's going to crash when the Combine admits that Proserpina has fallen. The 1st Sword of Light has fallen. Worse, although the fighting looked pretty brutal, it was still 1 elite vs 5 elite meaning the losses shouldn't be that bad. And again, this is the nightmare of where the AFFS's massive military-industrial complex makes things so much harder for the Combine, because if the AFFS troops loose their rides, they'll pretty much always have replacements shipped to them, so long as they are fit for service. And even replacement troops are not a huge problem thanks to the massive expansions of training schools and cadres! At least in the short term.
Whatever happened to that Corvette of theirs? I can't remember...if they still have it, I'm going to guess that at the very least, the AFFS have kept it fully operational rather than the half working money sink it was in the OTL? In any event, secure and moving on!
Nom nom nom!
Still at 80% and probably going to go down a bit even from a curbstomp, its probably about time to wait for a shipment of new personnel and equipment before proceeding...
Given that man an Order of Davion. Man knows EXACTLY how to use his troops and RCTs combined arms to besiege each strong-point with enough tanks and infantry to obliterate any attempt to get out, allowing him to concnetrate his Battlemechs with overwhelming force to systematically eliminate the enemy pockets one at a time. Textbook tactics here, both grinding down the enemy while minimizing the risk and damage his own troops take. It would actually have been the ideal place to send a lot of greenies to the 60% strength mech units, to let them blood themselves with a LOT of backup as safely as you really could.
Well, I'm sure the DCMS High Command will welcome his sensible decision to grab everything he could pull out and run for it, conserving his forces to rejoin with the rest of the DCMS and concentrate for an offensive counter-strike, and not shot when he arrives for cowardice.
*snort*
Only good news being as his family is on a planet now taken by the Federated Suns, at least they won't be sold into slavery as punishment for his 'failings'.
Also seems that, at least so far, the Federated Suns (for the most part) isn't simply popping in warships among the Combine jumpships and politely asking them to strike their colors and prepare to be bordered. Or at the very least, politely asking them to jump out and strand the enemy troops heading for them. That policy might change swiftly if the WOB go as brutal as I suspect they will...
Well I hope they actually planned for this in advance. All these 'scatter and go to ground!' plans have to be predicated on having well established supply dumps hidden all over the planet along with prepared fallback positions and hidden staging grounds and so on. Simply marching out of the base randomly into the wild is going to result in most of these fools getting swept up in a week or two. Oh well!
Not sure the DLC make a good garrison unit (at least not in a forward position). As opposed to a raiding force looking to sweep through the enemy rear areas and cause sheer chaos.
But if nothing else they can probably hold until follow up troops arrive.
Given that Hohiro has fled Dieron one step ahead of the fall of that world a few people on Benjamin are probably thinking "we're next".
Losing Proserpina is a huge hit. Losing it and the 1st Sword of Light... That's a tough sell to anyone.
The Kerensky's Blues is still around, assigned to the avatars due to wear and are... but I do have a plan for it.
An elite RCT with the best equipment at 80% strength of a reinforced battlemech regiment... Against some militia.
Donenac is basically the "how you take the world boys and girls" campaign right now. But it's easy to do when you outnumber the enemy so heavily. Plus taking out the 9th is another veteran DCMS unit that's gone.
Yeah the CO at Reisling is getting shot. Unless someone steps in to save him or he has really good connections. Which if he had he wouldn't be in command of a Regular regiment.
Ludwig - plan for defeat? That sort of talk gets you invited to open your belly...
Matar - 120 aerospace fighters... Makes a nice little "welcome home" party for any fleeing troops from New Mendham...
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Looks like the operation are going well so far though Hohiro has the WoB involved more actively now so the scope of the war will expand I have to wonder though if the Snow Ravens and the Bears will side with the FedSuns they both know the WoB hate their guts and with the DCMS reeling from getting their eyes put out they have to see them as an easy opponent as well as a good opportunity to kick out some of the WoB fleet strength if they go for the rip and tear on the clanners as well as take some more Drac worlds while they are distracted.
Though clanners aren’t know for their long term planning.
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looks like the Arkab Legions is about to lose their seed corn. green units... with weak Command and Control..... that could be bad...… for the DC
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looks like the Arkab Legions is about to lose their seed corn. green units... with weak Command and Control..... that could be bad...… for the DC
Without a doubt and if Hohiro treats them like any of the more culturally conventional DCMS units he may loose their respect fast.
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So where is GM's Warlord Assualt Mech it should have been made by now. A easier to build, cheaper and more streamlined version of the Battlemaster seems like the kind of thing the AFFS would jump on. With 2 Heavy PPCs and 6 ER Medium Lasers it has very good firepower and no ammo requirements.
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No need to push new TROs, no Warlord :(
So we probably won't see most of TRO 3075, except perhaps Hauberk or Grenadier (but not both) and WoB omnis.
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In all honesty the Federated Suns has done pretty well in limiting its expansion into 'too many Mechs' compared to the OTL, but even so it really doesn't need anything more and if not for the little war they just stepped into, they should about now be starting to (focusing on their elites) look at doing major work to get back to a far more rational stable of platforms. Especially leveraging Omni-tech to be able to fill multiple roles with one platform, on demand. Starting with re-equipping elite units a few at a time, and working your way down. Handing down the used equipment to militia units to try and finally after centuries of war start imposing some logistical sense on line units.
Problem being that a major war just kicked off and they can't really afford to do that right now, needing every mech on the firing line. But its something to keep in mind as they rebuild units through and after the war none the less. And handing out new contracts for new platforms to seriously ask the question 'why do we need this when we have the X Y Z - why not just build more lines for it?'
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3070 - April - Operation Agamemnon III
As April rolled on Warlord Li Dok To began to realise just how bad the situation was as report after report trickled in via jumpship or black box message. While so far none of his Military District's key worlds had been targeted the border with the Federated Sun's was effectively being "chewed" away. Matsuida and Kaznejoy were both now under threat and even Galedon itself was now dangerously exposed. Unlike his fellows in the Dieron and Benjamin Military Districts he had at least lost few entire veteran commands so far, but he was shocked at the huge losses the 5th Sword of Light had suffered when they turned up at his capital world still reeling from their defeat on Huan. He immedietly sent out orders for "fortress worlds" to be created. While he knew that he couldn't stop the AFFS's attack he hoped to at least slow and bleed them long enough for his communication channels to return to operational and ideally help be sent from Luthien...
Harrow's Sun
The 9th Avalon Hussars RCT dispersed across the planet in an effort to not only provide a stable garrison but also to root out any survivors of the Ryuken-ni's infantry regiment. They were helped in this by the arrival of a full reinforced brigade of conventional infantry and a light armour regiment consisting mostly of VTOL and scout platforms. In the meantime the other AFFS forces on planet boarded their dropships and headed for their next targets.
New Aberdeen
The Davion Heavy Guards, 6th Crucis Lancers and 4th Robinson Rangers RCT's fresh from the conquest of Harrow's Sun arrive in the New Aberdeen system on the 17th of April. Again under the overall command of Marshal Jon Davion these 3 forces head straight for the planet of New Aberdeen and it's defending Ryuken-nana. While hand picked from the finest graduates of the various Combine military academies the troops of the Ryuken-nana lack the Ryuken-ni's cohesion and years of training as a regiment and it shows in their initial efforts to repulse the invasion of the veteran and elite AFFS troops.
The Davion Heavy Guards lead the way this time and land in almost full strength in an overwhelming display of firepower. One of the premier RCT's in the entire AFFS they have been under the command of a man considered to be one of it's finest tactical and strategic minds for over a decade and it shows. The handful of DCMS forces who attempt to contest the landings are reduced to smoking wreckage with almost ease and as soon as the landing zone is secure the follow on 6th Crucis Lancers and 4th Robinson Rangers make planet fall.
With 3 strong RCT's under his command Marshal Davion begins sweeping up the DCMS forces across the planet, forcing the troops of the Ryuken-nana regiment to meet him in the field or face defeat in detail. While individually excellent troops their inexperience shows in the open field battle that they find themselves forced into and particularly when facing the integrated forces of the Heavy Guards the green DCMS troops suffer heavily when forced into simple mistakes. Attempts to use New Aberdeen's freshwater lakes to set ambushes by hiding small battlemech forces at the bottom of them fail when these moves are anticipated and countered - often leading to the destruction or capture of the ambushing forces.
Within a week of landing the invaders have conquered over half the planet and have the Ryuken-nana on the back foot, frantically trying to hold them back. Morale within the DCMS unit is already starting to collapse with the sheer inevitability of their impending defeat obvious to even the most green infantry trooper...
Harpster
The 1st Crucis Lancers and 3rd and 4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT's deploy from their operating base on Deshler in pursuit of the 9th Amphigean Light Assault Group on the world of Harpster. Under the overall command of Marshal Mordecai Rand-Davion of the 1st the AFFS task force catches the 9th Amphigean entirely by surprise when during their landing on the 11th the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers battlemech elements combat drop right onto the 9th's main base. Although taking losses to hurriedly thrown up flak fire the combined aerospace assets of the 3 RCT's manage to suppress most of that and allow Leftenant Chad Dean's former Vanguard Legion assault and heavy battlemechs to land right on top of the base.
The 9th Amphigean consisting almost entirely of light battlemechs with a few fast medium's are totally outclassed in this type of fight, but lose precious time while their green command staff try and decide whether to attempt to try and overwhelm the invading forces or abandon their base and flee. While they are still deciding Leftenant Chad Dean leads his nearly 7 full companies of assault and heavy battlemech's in a brutal spree through the base, firing on ammunition dumps, battlemech's down for repair and half formed enemy formations with reckless abandon. Which manages to keep the attention of the 9th firmly on he and his troops.
Meanwhile Marshal Rand-Davion leads his own 1st Crucis and the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers to the relief of the fully engaged 4th Fusiliers. Breaching the walls with almost no losses they soon link up with the Leftenant General and his rampaging troops, at which point Marshal Rand-Davion reigns in the "impetuous" 4th Fusiliers. By the time dawn breaks on the second day of the battle the 9th Amphigean is entirely broken, isolated formations falling back seemingly at random and under constant air attack.
By the 20th the remaining forces of the 9th Amphigean Light Assault Group, their morale shattered beyond repair in the 2 day battle of the week before surrenders unconditionally. Barely a battalion remain in the field to surrender by this time. The local militia having seen what happened to the regular DCMS forces follow their example. In his report to Robinson and New Avalon Marshal Rand-Davion credits the "heroic volunteers of the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers and their aggressive commanding officer Leftenant General Chad Dead" with the victory. This earns him not only the friendship of the tempestuous officer, but also wins the 4th Fusiliers the honour of being awarded the Robinson Medal of Valour - one of the few Capellan March units to ever receive this decoration. This award does come at the cost of nearly 2 companies worth of destroyed or wrecked assault and heavy battlemech's but these are soon replaced by the arrival of factory fresh replacements straight from Robinson's own production lines. The losses of personnel to the 4th Fusiliers are partially made up by a transfer of some of the most aggressive troops from their sister regiment.
Marlowe's Rift
The 1st Ceti Hussars RCT arrive at the zenith jump point of Marlowe's Rift alongside a conventional combined forces brigade and immedietly begin a combat burn towards the planet. The local defence forces stand too and are joined by a number of local noblemen's retinues. Marlowe's Rift is a rich and prosperous world with the huge cash crop of the Meat Tree providing an extremely comfortable living for the noble families who make this world home. However it has often drawn raiders and pirates and as such many of them have invested in small household guard units - often consisting of a company or armour or lance of battlemechs. Combing these forces proves impossible due to egos of the various nobles and their long standing feuds however it does give the world a massive dispersed extra militia force. Which is exactly why the High Command has assigned a Ceti Hussars RCT to this mission...
Marshal Vance Lamont in a seemingly counter intuitive move lands with his command battalion and the conventional combined arms brigade at the planetary capital and in a hard fought engagement destroys the large majority of the government controlled militia. The various Combat Commands of his RCT however land individually and begin to "sweep" the world. Slowly picking off any remaining government forces and the noble retinues which are supporting them in penny packets. While this operation will take time to clear the world entirely the dispersed command structure of the 1st Ceti Hussars and their combined arms approach to warfare is ideal for the job. While this is ongoing the Marshal with the support of the conventional brigade at the capital and a number of specialist advisers begin setting up a Federated Suns local government...
Capra
With 2 regiments of Galedon Regulars stationed on this border world many were surprised that it hadn't been hit before now. However when the AFFS did launch their attack they did it with overwhelming force. Facing off against the 12th and 44th Galedon Regulars were the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT, 1st and 2nd Lexington Combat Guards, 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCTs all under the command of Marshal Agatha Stromp. The experienced Marshal broke her formation up into two different commands. She detached the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT to harass and pin down the 12th Galedon Regulars along with the 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT in support/as backup given the experienced nature of the 12th Galedon. Meanwhile under her direct command her own 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT along with the 1st and 2nd Lexington Combat Guards would attack the green 44th Galedon Regulars and wipe the inexperienced unit out before turning to join their fellows and do the same on the more dangerous 12th Regulars.
Tai-sa Jerome Wolf-Hunter the senior commander of the garrison forces however decided on a different approach. Almost abandoning the 44th Galedon Regulars as sacrificial goats at the planetary capital he dispersed his own skilled reconnaissance command into the surrounding countryside. While the enemy forces concentrated on smashing the entrenched 44th he would raid and inflict a death of a thousand cuts upon them. Against a less experienced or less overwhelming force his plans very well might have worked.
As soon as the AFFS forces start to land the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry follows the 12th Galedon Regulars into the countryside, beginning a war of raid and counter raid. The 12th Galedon has the advantage of home territory and a marginally more skilled force, while the 8th Deneb has the advantage of better equipment, air superiority, greater experience at working as a combined command and most importantly the presence of a nearby fully formed RCT able to back them up whenever they get into trouble. While the 8th Deneb is unable to force the Regulars to battle, they do however prevent any real attempts to attack the main force of AFFS forces attacking the dug in 44th Galedon Regulars.
With a free hand due to the actions of the 8th Deneb and 1st Dragoons Marshal Stromp's own troops launch a furious assault upon the 44th along 3 separate axis. Having to rely more and more on militia formations to guard their flanks while they hold the key sectors the 44th soon finds it's flanks being turned by the overwhelming numbers of AFFS forces. When their 3rd battalion is caught and pinned against the bulk of the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers by a combined arms combat command consisting of the 4th Battalion, 2nd Armoured Grenadiers and 690th Battle Armour Regiment a huge hole is torn in their lines through which the rest of the Grenadiers march. Their remaining troops fall back as best they can but are either caught and overwhelmed by the Lexington Combat Guards or trapped by the advancing Kestrel Grenadiers. By the end of April the capital city has fallen to the AFFS and the bulk of Marshal Stromp's task force is preparing to join her detached forces in the hunt for the elusive 12th Galedon Regulars.
Waldheim
The 5th Davion Guards RCT alongside the 3rd Tikonov Cossacks and the mercenary Hansen's Roughriders regiment arrive at Waldheim expecting a tough fight against the veteran 11th Ghost and the green 43rd Galedon Regulars but arrive to find their quarry already flown. Unknown to the AFFS Warlord Li Dok To has ordered them to move to Kaznejoy to reinforce the garrison there and prepare to hold the prefecture capital world against the almost inevitable invasion. The Davion task force have little to do except land and take possession of the planet - although a number of clearly pre-prepared partisan bands begin causing trouble the moment they arrive. Marshal Linda Archer sends word for additional conventional forces to be routed to the planet as a priority while preparing her commands for a move on Kaznejoy.
Altdorf
The 2nd and 4th Ceti Hussars RCT's although both under strength prove to be a massive case of overkill for the few remaining defenders of Altdorf. Not only are there no regular DCMS troops on planet but a large number of the better militia forces have also been evacuated to Kaznejoy. The few remaining militia forces are mostly rifle companies of infantry and are soon forced to surrender in the face of overwhelming AFFS firepower.
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3070 - April - DCMS Counterattack
The DCMS counterattack hasn't exactly went according to plan and the situation for the units involved continues to deteriorate throughout April...
Cylene
With the loss of his transportation home the commanding officer of the 46th Dieron Regulars realises that his command is probably doomed. As such he orders his troops to prepare to make a mass assault upon the "foul mercenary scum" of Demestri's Sluggers Fighting Urukhai regiment before the 22nd Avalon Hussars can arrive. On the 6th of April the 46th storm towards the Slugger's lines in an attempt to cause as much damage as possible before the Avalon Hussars tip the balance against them.
The first recipients of this assault aren't in fact the sluggers but a company of battlemech's with the Cylene Planetary Guard. Equipped mostly with AFFS cast offs and a single new Watchman class battlemech the militia are not so much destroyed as torn to pieces. However their sacrifice and swiftly silenced screams for help give the Sluggers enough of a warning that when the 46th Dieron Regulars reach their lines the Fighting Urukhai regiment is ready. With clear fields of fire and safe lines of retreat Demestri's Sluggers begin slowly withdrawing as they bleed their attackers for every step. The Regulars haven't the experience for this sort of fight, but their sheer impetus manages to catch even the prepared mercenary force of guard and carries them into the Sluggers lines to break up the planned fighting withdrawal.
For 3 days the Sluggers fight to throw back the Regulars and disengage, losing nearly 3 companies worth of battlemechs as they do so. They soon discover that unless a mechwarrior is recovered after his battlemech goes down by friendly forces that the warrior is doomed, as the suicidal 46th is not taking prisoners. The 46th is also taking every change to fire on civilian targets - farms, villages or infrastructure. The fighting already bloody only gets worse after this.
On the fourth day however the 22nd's attached fighter regiment is close enough to sweep down and begin giving the Fighting Urukhai forces some air cover and allowing them to properly disengage for the first time since the banzai charge tactics of the Regulars began. A merely day later the 22nd Avalon Hussars full RCT begins arriving and is soon joining them in mopping up the surviving troops of the 46th Regulars. A near fight breaks out when the Demestri's Sluggers regiment refuse to take prisoners, and it takes a personal message from Victor Davion himself to bring the unit back into line.
By the end of the month the Slugger's regiment has been reduced to 2 under strength battalions of bitter and enraged warriors who have sworn to get their revenge upon the Combine and the Kurita's in particular. Medical units are rushed to the world along with replacement equipment, while the 22nd takes over garrisoning Cylene. The few surviving 46th Dieron Regulars are moved to a POW camp for prisoners who are facing war crimes charges.
New Mendham
The planned reconquest of New Mendham for the Combine has not been going well. Not only have most of the invasion forces simply not turned up but the 25th Benjamin Regulars have already taken heavy losses before battle has really even begun. While they have finally managed to recombine their forces they are now isolated in an area of wilderness and have the 8th Crucis Lancers barrelling down on them - although the 25th are not entirely sure where the 8th Lancers are exactly due to many of their supporters having joined them at their landing site and no longer reporting on the location of the 8th. With the total loss of their air wing the Benjamin Regulars are operating almost blind until the local "freedom fighters" resume their scouting rolls.
The local resistance leaders who have joined the 25th Benjamin Regulars are demanding an immediate march upon the capital to return them to power while many of the still shell shocked officers are arguing that the command should load what they can and flee the planet. As this argument goes on and the regular troops of the 25th craft what field entrenchments they can the 8th Crucis Lancers announces it's arrival with a full artillery barrage and massed air strike on the base of the 25th. Even as the shells and bombs are falling on the outer lines of the 25th the Islamabad Lancers launch a full scale attack into the disorganised landing zone.
The heavy and assault weighted battlemech's of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd battalions of the Lancers advance forward firing as they go, while the artillery battlemechs of the 4th battalion provide mobile covering fire even as the guns of the 8th Crucis Lancers Artillery Battalion and 1943rd FedSuns Artillery Battalion reload and advance to provide more close in firepower. Meanwhile the air attack concentrates their efforts on the grounded dropships which are throwing up as much flak as they possible can. Armoured and infantry elements advance alongside their battlemech forces and are soon taking large numbers of prisoners.
With the 8th Crucis Lancers attack underlining the disastrous nature of this doomed counter attack the XO of the 25th Benjamin Regulars, with the command officer injured when a bomb landed on the mobile command vehicle he was in, orders an immediate withdrawal from the planet. All dropships which are able to take off are ordered to load what troops are in the immediate vicinity and make their best possible speed for the waiting jumpships.
This panicked flight actually catches the 8th by surprise and no less than 5 dropships actually manage to get away - a single barely loaded Overlord, 2 half loaded Unions and 2 almost empty Condors. The remaining dropships are crippled on the ground and cannot escape. As are most of the DCMS forces. Barely 2 companies of battlemech's and a single battalion of infantry are hurriedly loaded into the fleeing dropships before they escape. The rest of the 25th Benjamin (including the wounded commanding officer) are left to be captured. One last fatality occurs at the end of the month when the DCMS dropships finally arrive at the jumpships. Knowing he will be executed as a coward for fleeing the XO ritually atones by committing Seppuku, leaving the single remaining captain of the unit in command of the survivors as they flee back to Matar...
Benet III
The 3rd Robinson Rangers RCT lands on Benet on the 6th of April and immedietly takes up defensive positions while it waits for the arrival of the 2nd and 3rd Avalon Hussars on the 8th - they had taken a little more time to burn in knowing that the 3rd would arrive before them to secure the situation. Once all 3 AFFS units have joined the 5th Avalon Borderer's on the planet they begin organising for the planned counter attack to reclaim the world for House Davion.
With reports coming in of defeats across the front Tai-sa Toshimichi Shodaru is conflicted. The Combine desperately needs a "win" to counter the constant stream of defeats that the AFFS if inflicting upon the DCMS however it cannot afford another heavy defeat and loss of vital troops. Or even a Pyrrhic victory. While he was confident that he could defeat the forces arrayed against him due to his regiments higher skill level he couldn't be sure that more AFFS formations weren't inbound or worse warships. And even if he was able to defeat them he would be left with 2 shattered regiments to hold a planet who's very air was toxic and which was falling further and further behind the enemy lines.
As he was attempting to solve this dilemma he received orders via his black box. Warlord Li Dok To orders him to fall back to the prefecture capital of Matsuida and aid in the defence of this vital world. He quickly orders his troops to loot whatever war materials they can from the captured territory and head for their dropships - although the 12th Ghost takes this order to the extreme. All the AFFS forces can do is harass and harry the retreating forces, while their aerospace assets attempt to shoot down the fleeing dropships. They manage to destroy a small number of transports, but the vast bulk of the DCMS forces escape.
Only once they are aware does it become apparent how much looting and destruction the 12th Ghost in particular has conducted in the regions it occupied. Hospital equipment, mining equipment and ores, even stockpiles of the rebreathers and life support equipment from the survival bunkers that the civilians require to survive have all been taken. The AFFS units respond with fury while sending word of an impending humanitarian crisis to both Robinson and New Avalon as well as nearby worlds.
Niles
Having repulsed the invasion of their garrison post the Screaming Eagles request permission to counter attack and continue to take the fight to the 19th Galedon Regulars. After a weeks delay they are not only granted permission but also informed that the 1st Conroe Borderer's will be placed at their disposal for the attack - and that a shipment of battlemech's has been dispatched from Woodbine and Tancredi to bolster their ranks and replace any damaged equipment.
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3070 - April Interlude - Lyran Estates-General
14th April
Great Assembly
Government's House
The Triad
Tharkad City
Tharkad
Donegal Province
Lyran Alliance
"The Chair recognises the Honoured Representative of Bolan..." The Speaker of the Estates-General inclined his head to the Representative from that embattled world who stood with a similar nod of thanks.
"I thank the Speaker for allowing me the opportunity to speak on behalf of my world. The Lyran Alliance stands at a cross roads Honoured Representatives! Our enemies close in on us from all sides!" Representative Anand spoke with obvious earnestness. "Nobody perhaps understands that better than I do! My own world feels the heavy tread of the hated Free Worlds League Military, come to "liberate" us and force us to return to their "benevolent" rule!"
The tall and thin woman dressed in the traditional sari of her home world stopped to pause before pointing to a number of her fellow representatives. "If you do not wish to listen to me, I am sure that the Honoured Representatives of Hesperus, New Earth, Rigil Kenatares, Cavanaugh II, Dixie or Thorin will speak to the threats we face in these dark times! All of them share the same dread upon hearing reports from the front, that we might join the ranks of the "Homeless"... And I ask you fellow honoured representatives... Who do we turn to for leadership? The Archon? The Archon is dead! Slain by a cowardly assassin from behind! The General of the Armies? While I respect General Adam Steiner he is hard pressed merely holding the LAAF together and launching what counter attacks he can! To the heir? Hanse Steiner is a child. A lovely and intelligent child by all accounts but he is hardly the seasoned war leader that we need! Grand Duke Morgan Kell? If Honoured Representative David Kell will forgive me my bluntness but his cousin is not the man to lead us for all his famed skill at war. No."
The dark brown eyes of the former Hauptmann General seemed to flash with fire as she paused dramatically before glaring at a small group of her colleagues who matched her glare for glare. "No... We need a leader... I realise that certain Honoured Representatives have been whispering in the side rooms about another potential leader... So let us drag out the name from the shadows... They would wish us to recall the Traitor Archon... Katherine Steiner-Davion..."
Before Honoured Representative Anand could continue the Great Assembly of the Estates-General of the Lyran Alliance broke into anarchy. The Speaker roared and directed his deputies to bring the Assembly to order but almost totally in vain. From nearly a hundred throats cries of refusal came to the very suggestion of recalling the deposed Archon, while from a smaller but almost as loud group (the very group that Anand had been glaring at) similar cries of approval were roared. Indeed the Honoured Representative of Odessa Leon Fisk jumped to his feat and in breach of protocol roared out. "And why not? Why not return the True Archon to her throne? She is just the sort of strong and intelligent leader this realm is crying out for! Archon Katrina Steiner is the True Archon!"
The Speaker pointed his ceremonial mace at Fisk and roared. "Master at Arms eject the Honoured Representative from the Assembly until such time as he can control himself and is prepared to follow this Assemblies procedures!"
Leon Fisk was finally ejected, roaring the entire time and after nearly 10 minutes order was restored. The Speaker then almost growled. "Continue Representative Anand..."
"Again thank you Mr Speaker... I am merely stating what we all know is being whispered... That the present leadership of the Lyran Alliance is insufficient to the challenge. There are those like the Honoured Representative who has just been removed kicking and screaming who would have us believe that returning the Traitor Archon to the throne will magically fix our problems. I say that is like inviting the fox into the hen house... Or in this case like inviting a wolf in. Do any here doubt that were she to return she would bring with her new "friend" Vlad Ward and his savage Wolves? These would not be the Warden Wolves of our allies on Arc Royal, but their dark twins... No. That can never be allowed to happen. Yet the Honoured Representatives who scheme for the return of Katherine Steiner-Davion have the right idea..." Anand again paused as silence descended on the entire Assembly in shock. "They just have the wrong candidate!"
Before she could be interrupted again she rushed on having to raise her voice as she spoke over the growing response. "I hereby move the following motion and 3 potential sub-motions. The Primary motion: that the Estates-General vote to offer the throne to First Prince Victor Davion, also and previously known as Archon Prince Victor Steiner-Davion. The Secondary sub-motion: that this offer of the throne be with the view to reforming the Federated Commonwealth. The Tertiary sub-motion: that this offer of the throne be purely as a personal union with no such reforming intended. The Quaternary sub-motion: that this offer of the throne be made with the option between the Secondary and Tertiary motions be at the First Princes's own discretion..."
As all hell broke loose within the chambers of the Estates-General the Speaker roared above the anarchy. "Do I hear a second?"
The Honoured Representative of Thorin almost bolted to his feet a mere half second ahead of nearly half a dozen others. "Seconded!"
Which was when all hell ratcheted up a notch or dozen...
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Well that should set the cat amongst the pigeons nicely... >:D
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Well, now Billy your cooking with Napalm.
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FedCom vs. Draconis Combine and WoB and FWL and Wolf Clan... :D
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FedCom vs. Draconis Combine and WoB and FWL and Wolf Clan... :D
If Victor takes the offer he might not he did at the start relinquish his claim as Archon Prince and alter his name back to Victor Davion.
He may offer and send a trusted rep to act as Peters sons regent or offer to select one a neutral party but no more. Also if the estate general invite clan wolf and the bitch in expect a mass uprising and bloodshed on the level of the reunification war and the SL civil war combined.
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If Victor takes the offer he might not he did at the start relinquish his claim as Archon Prince and alter his name back to Victor Davion.
He may offer and send a trusted rep to act as Peters sons regent or offer to select one a neutral party but no more. Also if the estate general invite clan wolf and the bitch in expect a mass uprising and bloodshed on the level of the reunification war and the SL civil war combined.
..what can be done and undone can be reborn again....necessity triumphs.
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WHAT IS DEAD MAY NEVER DIE! BUT RISES AGAIN HARDER AND STRONGER!
*gets self under control*
In political terms, Victors BEST bet here would probably be to refuse the Archonship, BUT, accept a position of Regent for his Nephew. And openly and publicly lay the groundwork for a very strong alliance between the Suns and Lyran Commonwealth (his first act should be renaming it BACK to Commonwealth) with the view that when his nephew comes of age, it will be up to him and his own son to make the decision about if they go back to the Federated Commonwealth, simply stay strong allies with much of the beneifts of the Fedcom but no formal union, or something else entirely...
I'm actually surprised there would be people in public who would actually dare demand the return of Katherine, in the estates Generals. It sounds like they are going to be torn to pieces by the public for daring to do so.
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I'm actually surprised there would be people in public who would actually dare demand the return of Katherine, in the estates Generals. It sounds like they are going to be torn to pieces by the public for daring to do so.
That goes without saying and I hope to god that wasn't televised otherwise there will be a lynch mob forming outside as he was dragged out.
But if he lives his political career is over.
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No need to push new TROs, no Warlord :(
So we probably won't see most of TRO 3075, except perhaps Hauberk or Grenadier (but not both) and WoB omnis.
The Hauberk would definitely be useful since unless I'm mistaken the author has already included the Grenadier BA into the story. Though wouldn't it be a happy coincidence if some techs or engineer stumbled across the design specs of the Atlas II while repairing the systems of Independence Weaponry on Quentin? ^-^
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GOOD GOD!!! I was on the edge of my chair. can not wait to see how this breaks.
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Why not Yvonne? Yes Victor is the eldest and therefore it makes sense, Katherine has been removed from the line for many reasons, but why not Yvonne? Hell I totally forgot in this AU Arthur’s still alive! Not my choice but theirs another option too!
Course again Regent would be best. I think Victor should appoint another regent in his stead of course (like his siblings or Adam) but that’s my opinion.
Either way this will be interesting ramping up.
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Hey Billy Boy Mark II, I was just thinking, this AU has been going on for a little while now and doesn't show signs of ending anytime soon. While I certainly appreciate your efforts, sometimes it gets a little cumbersome to go back through and look at the history here in this thread. Just a suggestion, but could you possibly include a "10 Year Update" at the close of 3070? Looking back at all the various historical events? Marriages, deaths, start/end of wars, etc? Really just some bullet points to recap everything.
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Hey Billy Boy Mark II, I was just thinking, this AU has been going on for a little while now and doesn't show signs of ending anytime soon. While I certainly appreciate your efforts, sometimes it gets a little cumbersome to go back through and look at the history here in this thread. Just a suggestion, but could you possibly include a "10 Year Update" at the close of 3070? Looking back at all the various historical events? Marriages, deaths, start/end of wars, etc? Really just some bullet points to recap everything.
I can certainly try... Trust me if you think its cumbersome for you guys imagine my notes! ;)
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Anyone notice that it was the rep from Odessa who vocally supported bring mad Kat back to the archonship? I find it kind of suspect considering who has a secret base in their system.
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Naaah, I'm sure he is just voicing his opinion, borne from deep political thought and overwhelming Lyran patriotism.
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Naaah, I'm sure he is just voicing his opinion, borne from deep political thought and overwhelming Lyran patriotism.
Yeah and I’m the long lost Cameron heir returned with my legions to create the new star league and bring peace to the galaxy.
:P ;D :P ;D
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Naaah, I'm sure he is just voicing his opinion, borne from deep political thought and overwhelming Lyran patriotism.
..someone and company needs a visit from the Loki fairy..
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I can certainly try... Trust me if you think its cumbersome for you guys imagine my notes! ;)
Hello sir, It has been an awesome read so far, but would it be too much to ask for specs on the Davion III destroyer, Javelin-O, Dervish-O, Thanatos-O, Argus-O omni conversions?
My only thing to note is that certain world's production have been forgotten..ie.in New Valencia, Johnsondale, Cahokia, Ingersoll,and Ruchbach....Sarna.net has info for cross checking what gets produced where but it's your story, so write it as you see fit.
,
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I think the best way for the DC would be to sent out a message requesting peace and accept the consequences.
I dont understand that what right now happens is 1942-1945 revisited and the High Command of the DC does not see it.
What do they teach in their Academies?
Did they not read Sun-Tzu, The Book of 5 Rings, The 36 Strategems and the historybooks of the 20th century?????
Ok, the best way would be after peace to move all factories and shipyards behind Luthien. And then rebuild, rebuilt, rebuilt.
It should be written in their curriculum that no atttack against the FS / LC, FC, Ghost Bears etc may happen unless they have at least 500 capital warships of battlecruiser size (including the supporting elements of Destroyers, Frigates, Carriers etc.). Anybody suggesting attack before that goal is met is automatically condemned to the Order of Wakizashi (the price of disobeying the Coordinater).
Every planet within 2 jumps of the border should be turned into a Fortressworld that would make the Iron Warriors of WH40K proud.
And those planets should be prepared for guerilla warfare from the beginning, including massive tunnelsystems, fortresses inside mountainranges etc.
And the treason of Comstar should be punished. The ISF should find out everything about HPG (how to build, maintain and operate them down to the last bolt) and then built a secret or two HPG on each world in addition to those WOB / Comstar operates on said world (I dont think that the Coordinator would ask Comstar to return but if Victor thinks strategically he should offer the return of some planets / not so much punishment for a shunning / maybe alliance against WOB).
The ISF should also make a complete lookdown of the DC. No HPG of the DC may send a message to a planet of another power. Only three HPGS are allowed to do so: one to the Inner Sphere, one to Ghost Bears and one to the Outworld Alliance. All messages sent through these HPGS will be monitored by the ISF - no exceptions. Any disobidience should be dealt with harshly. And they should write it down in the treaty with the HPG provider.
I fear for the people of Proserpina. If, no, when the Dragon finds out what they did to the warriors of the DCMS then there will be hell to pay. I think the guys of indoctrination on Proserpina will be invited to dine with their ancestors for their failure, if not hauled to Luthien - alongside the killers. Maybe Luthien should demand the return of this planet in return for accepting the loss of more planets BUT the traitors must stay on Proserpina. I think if it comes to this then Victer will either say NO or offer concession for sparing the people.
The DC should look at the planetary systems not colonized (inside the borders of the DC. I think there were 5-10 empty systems for every populated system) and colonize them NOW. They need the manpower and the revenue later.
And the ISF /DCMS should map the not-standard jumppoints of every system of the DC. So, that in the event of another war they can jump into other systems without using the zenith and nadirpoint.
Yes, these are longterm goals. If there are used it should be clear that neither Hohiro nor his grandchildren grandchildren see any movement in the border - but then.
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I think the best way for the DC would be to sent out a message requesting peace and accept the consequences.
I dont understand that what right now happens is 1942-1945 revisited and the High Command of the DC does not see it.
What do they teach in their Academies?
Did they not read Sun-Tzu, The Book of 5 Rings, The 36 Strategems and the historybooks of the 20th century?????
Ok, the best way would be after peace to move all factories and shipyards behind Luthien. And then rebuild, rebuilt, rebuilt.
It should be written in their curriculum that no atttack against the FS / LC, FC, Ghost Bears etc may happen unless they have at least 500 capital warships of battlecruiser size (including the supporting elements of Destroyers, Frigates, Carriers etc.). Anybody suggesting attack before that goal is met is automatically condemned to the Order of Wakizashi (the price of disobeying the Coordinater).
Every planet within 2 jumps of the border should be turned into a Fortressworld that would make the Iron Warriors of WH40K proud.
And those planets should be prepared for guerilla warfare from the beginning, including massive tunnelsystems, fortresses inside mountainranges etc.
And the treason of Comstar should be punished. The ISF should find out everything about HPG (how to build, maintain and operate them down to the last bolt) and then built a secret or two HPG on each world in addition to those WOB / Comstar operates on said world (I dont think that the Coordinator would ask Comstar to return but if Victor thinks strategically he should offer the return of some planets / not so much punishment for a shunning / maybe alliance against WOB).
The ISF should also make a complete lookdown of the DC. No HPG of the DC may send a message to a planet of another power. Only three HPGS are allowed to do so: one to the Inner Sphere, one to Ghost Bears and one to the Outworld Alliance. All messages sent through these HPGS will be monitored by the ISF - no exceptions. Any disobidience should be dealt with harshly. And they should write it down in the treaty with the HPG provider.
I fear for the people of Proserpina. If, no, when the Dragon finds out what they did to the warriors of the DCMS then there will be hell to pay. I think the guys of indoctrination on Proserpina will be invited to dine with their ancestors for their failure, if not hauled to Luthien - alongside the killers. Maybe Luthien should demand the return of this planet in return for accepting the loss of more planets BUT the traitors must stay on Proserpina. I think if it comes to this then Victer will either say NO or offer concession for sparing the people.
The DC should look at the planetary systems not colonized (inside the borders of the DC. I think there were 5-10 empty systems for every populated system) and colonize them NOW. They need the manpower and the revenue later.
And the ISF /DCMS should map the not-standard jumppoints of every system of the DC. So, that in the event of another war they can jump into other systems without using the zenith and nadirpoint.
Yes, these are longterm goals. If there are used it should be clear that neither Hohiro nor his grandchildren grandchildren see any movement in the border - but then.the
Or TPTB of the Combine determines that the current line of Kuritas has drastically failed and need to be invited onwards and be replaced with a suitable Kurita line more in tune with what's needed for national survival..be it peace or prosecution of war..
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Considering the name references to the Trojan War, is the mission the Covenant and its two escort corvettes (all being Combine designs) on a Trojan Horse mission. There are a lot of targets for that kind of mission, like the shipyards at Midway, LAW's factory on the capitol itself or rescuing Victors son( he is still alive isn't he).
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Considering the name references to the Trojan War, is the mission the Covenant and its two escort corvettes (all being Combine designs) on a Trojan Horse mission. There are a lot of targets for that kind of mission, like the shipyards at Midway, LAW's factory on the capitol itself or rescuing Victors son( he is still alive isn't he).
Yes he is but he is of little concern. He will never be acknowledged as Victor's son. It will also be a major waste of time and resources to go get him. The ships are either going to hit deep targets inside Combine space or hit a clan on the boarder of the Combine to open up another front.
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I was thinking more along the lines of preventing Victors enemies using his son as a hostage against him.
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I was thinking more along the lines of preventing Victors enemies using his son as a hostage against him.
The Kurita would need to acknowledge that the kid is a Davion first. Something that would be suicide with all the shit they have going on. The Black Dragon society would stop all talks and start trying to kill them again.
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3070 - April - Reactions
At the start of April the focus of the entire Federated Sun's was of course upon the Draconis Front. The battles had been going well and the AFFS were making gains and proving that despite it's recent expansion it remained a battle ready and efficient force. The High Command was particularly delighted to see the years of work expanding the military-industrial base of the FedSun's paying off with fresh battlemechs, tanks and aerospace fighters standing ready in supply depots to be rushed to the front to replaced destroyed or damaged machines. While there still remained a number of combat effective commands that could be dispatched to the front from the League, Capellan and Crucis Marches it was felt at this time that the AFFS was making good progress and that they should be kept in reserve for now. If the offensive stalled for whatever reason, or the Combine managed to launch a credible counter attack then at that stage these reserves could be diverted towards the front.
It was also felt by many within the High Command that taking too many Kurita planets at the same time might overextend the AFFS and FedSun's ability to absorb them. With the majority of the League March and 2 new PDZ's in the Capellan March consisting of newly conquered territories (albeit that some of them had been under the FedCom banner previously) a huge number of conventional infantry brigades in particular were tied down in garrison duties. This has been somewhat alleviated by the huge upsurge in recruitment across the entire Federated Suns (with some conventional forces even being raised within the League March) which has led to a large number of new infantry regiments and armoured units being formed and equipped and then organised into new conventional brigades. While these formations are still green they are all the product of the excellent training regime that the AFFS maintains for conventional troops across the entire Federated Suns. Many have been diverted to garrison postings throughout the rear areas of the Crucis March or Capellan Marches freeing up more experienced troops for redeployment to the front lines, while similar transfers are occuring on the most integrated and peaceful League March worlds to allow the present garrisons to move up to more active worlds recently conquered from the Dragon.
All of these transfers wouldn't be possible without the huge number of jumpships that are now being produced from the various shipyards throughout the Federated Suns. While the massive Monolith and Star Lord class ships are ideal for such a massive redeployment even the simple and humble Merchant and Invader class vessels play their part - if only to free up the larger ships by taking on lesser duties. Indeed the value of these "lesser" jumpships is so great particularly in maintaining a civilian economy despite the war that the First Prince's government offers substantial tax incentives to FedBoeing not only to build a jumpship shipyard at the Outback world of June but also provide technical help to Hildco Interplanetary to return to the shipbuilding business. Both begin construction of shipyards to produce the Merchant class jumpship. In return for the technical support to Hildco FedBoeing will receive a share of the profits of the yard. Neither of the new facilities will be large, but for the time being it is considered that the additional redundancy and supply of jumpships is worth it. Further expansions can always be funded using the initial work as a seed.
At the same time Duke Roger Sanromea-Davion arrives on New Avalon and begins meeting with not only the First Prince but also a number of members of the High Command including no lesser figure than Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion. Given the Duke's huge wealth and the industrial potential of his world of El Dorado most assume that he is discussing additional expansions to the plant there.
The Federated Sun's entire government is rocked however when word comes that a motion has been proposed within the Lyran Alliances's Estates-General to offer the throne of the Alliance to their prince. While a handful of pro-FedCom voices are raised (largely within the FedSun's Dragoons within the AFFS) they are drowned out by the voices of those who feel that the Lyran Alliance is trying to "steal" the FedSun's prince. It was the Lyran's who broke the Federated Commonwealth in it's hour of need and left the Federated Suns Command to fight alone. It was the Lyran's who supported the Traitor Katherine Steiner-Davion and even attempted to support her in seizing power on New Avalon. Even as the Estates-General debate and counter debate the proposals the public stance within not only the Federated Sun's population but within the AFFS is firmly against First Prince Victor Davion becoming Archon-Prince Victor Steiner-Davion again. While a few suggest that the First Prince might be tempted out of increasing his power or wealth most of those who are against the move are quick to point out that they trust the First Prince to do the right thing - and refuse any Lyran offer. As one guest on Steele's Hard Truths is heard to say "The First Prince is a man of his honour and principle. He won't steal his own nephews throne!" to loud applause. Opinion polling within the Federated Sun's shows a clear majority against reforming the FedCom - 61% against, 17% ambivalent with no firm view and only 22% for the idea. Although these numbers have huge variations depending on the region of the FedSun's the polling is done within - in the worlds nearest the Lyran Alliance such as the Nanking, Achernar and Addick's PDZ support for the reformation of the FedCom is as high as 40%, while almost every poll conducted in the Outback has support for reforming the FedCom struggling to get over 15%.
The furious politicking and arguments about the potential offer of the throne of the Alliance to the First Prince die down somewhat when the motion to offer the throne to the First Prince fails to pass. However it doesn't die down entirely as the motion only fails to pass by the narrowest of margins - 6 votes - with many suggesting that the numerous sub-motions were the reason for this. Already the "pro-Victor/FedCom" faction within the Estates General is publicly calling for another vote, this one with a simple and single motion. Many feel that Honoured Representative Anand of Bolan's motion wasn't in fact a genuine effort to pass her motion but instead merely an attempt to gauge the strength of support for the various options she proposed. If so it is clear that there is a strong body of opinion that supports the return of Victor Davion to the throne. General of the Armies Adam Steiner is remaining neutral - far to busy trying to prevent additional disasters from occurring. Similarly Grand Duke Morgan Kell made no comment on the matter, although his worlds Honoured Representative did vote in favour.
On Demeter the new Stuka line for Lycomb-Davion goes operational doubling the factories output of this design. Despite the needs of the war a large number of the new fighters are dispatched to help build up the aerospace wings in the nearby League March. A third line is still being worked on.
At the rebuilding factory underground on Victoria the Yu Haung/Kai assault mech line goes back into operation. This now returns the facility to it's full pre-war production, although Johnson Industries is also working to add a Penetrator line to the plant.
At Bristol the fifth Fury Command Tank line goes operational for Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons. Even with all 5 operational lines running at full production they are barely keeping up with the demand for the tank from armoured regiments across the entire FedSuns.
Jalaster Aerospace under strong prompting from the Marshal of Armies and the First Prince announce in April that they are going to be restarting Jabberwocky production to their Panpour and Batavia plants. Both facilities will add 2 lines of the engineering industrial mech each under long term contract with the AFFS to outfit their engineering battalions.
At Torrence the Johnston Industries executives announce that they will be adding not only an additional Thunderbolt-NAIS line but also 2 additional Glory tank lines. These increases will largely be funded by grants from the local Duke and his government who are keen to expand production to their world.
On Sarna the Veridan Dynamics plant see's the first 2 of it's production lines go operational. Both are to build the long forgotten Tiger tank for militia formations. While not flashy or ideal for front line work the huge demand for Planetary Guard and March Militia formations within the new League March has the order books for the company filled for the next 10 years before the first tank has even rolled off the production lines. Work continues on their Vali artillery tank line.
New Independence Weaponry's CEO Judith Hotchkiss requests a meeting to discuss the future of her old companies plant on Quentin in April. She is granted an audience with the First Prince and a few of his advisers on the 28th of April. At this she suggests Independence Weaponry's plant on Quentin be handed over to New Independence Weaponry who will then take up the duties of rebuilding it. After some discussions it is agreed that the plant will be turned over to New Independence Weaponry for a nominal fee. However in return the company will not only rebuild it but also commission a new assault omnimech based upon the Victor chassis. While many feel this is a steep cost the huge plant at Quentin has 12 assault battlemech lines, 8 heavy battlemech lines and 4 medium battlemech lines all in repairable condition. Many of these will take years to rebuild and those which were producing designs like the Tai-sho and Tessen will need to be retooled, but the potential gains for the company are staggering. When fully rebuilt and repaired the Quentin plant will have more lines than the rest of the companies factories put together. Of course almost all of the lines are heavily damaged.
The AFFS also during this month began to systematically strip the Dieron District Gymnasium and the University of Proserpina of their advanced training technologies and resources and shipping them deeper into the FedSuns. The University of Proserpina's equipment was dispatched to Deneb Kaitos to set up a combined arms academy on that world which would specialise in providing light cavalry training - the graduates of which would largely serve in the Deneb Light Cavalry RCT's but also other light cavalry units throughout the AFFS. It was to be named the McDennis Academy for the first General of the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry who had led her unit and world to join the FedSuns.
The Dieron District Gymnasium's equipment however had a longer journey. The looted training materials and resources were dispatched to the world of Verde. There they would be used to set up a unique military academy - one specialised in training the children of the "loyal allied mercenary commands" of the AFFS. Under the aegis of the Duke of Verde, the patron of the famed Vegan Rangers mercenary command, this academy would provide those commands which had proven their loyalty to the FedSun's and House Davion a steady supply of high quality military university graduates. The Blue Star Irregulars, Cunningham's Commando's, Federated Arcadians, Fighting Urukhai, Hansen's Roughriders (although this unit was only included after strong discussions), Illician Lancers, Northwind Highlanders (although this was considered a mere formality), Screaming Eagles, Stalking Horse, Vegan Rangers, Wild Geese and Wolf's Dragoon commands were all listed as units that could petition for places at this academy. Places at this new academy would also be open to "allied nations" and even "friendly nations" - such as the Free Rasalhague Republic, Lyran Alliance and most surprisingly the Taurian Concordat. It was to be named simply the Sword Academy.
Meanwhile in the Lyran Alliance the situation continues to get worse...
On Hesperus the 36th Lyran Guards and what's left of the 1st Hesperus Guards fight a brutal war in the tunnels and production lines of the underground factory complex that they are defending. Aiding them is not only the layout of the factory - designed for defensive engagements as well as production, but also the staff and security forces of the complex itself. They rush to the aid of the plant and more than one WOB Shadow Division mechwarrior is slain when turning a corner to find himself facing a freshly constructed assault battlemech operated by a factory worker who fires a brutal alpha strike at knife fighting range. The fact that most of these ambushes almost always end with the factory worker and his battlemech being torn apart by Manei Domini follow on troops does little to stem the tide of losses. In one spectacularly brutal fight in an armour plating rolling plant molten metal is poured from the overhead smelters onto a reinforced company of WOB troops and a few volunteer defenders who have baited the trap. The LAAF troops far from being demoralised realise they are trapped and their only chance of survival is to fight on until relieved. However with orbiting WOB warships the single attempt to run the blockade by a combat command of the 2nd Hesperus Guards RCT is destroyed entirely. If Hesperus is to be relieved the LAN will have to break the blockade.
At New Earth the 5th Lyran Regulars are finally overwhelmed and wiped out. The few survivors are dispatched to reeducation camps within the WOB Protectorate and the planet formally joins said Protectorate.
On Thorin the defending 15th Arcturan Guards is bolstered by a well skilled and motivated militia who rally to them and allow them to continue the fight even as the WOB Militia troops facing them harry them from battle to battle forcing them into the mountains. News leaks to Thorin that the Estates General are considering offering the throne to the First Prince and the low level civil disobedience across the areas of the planet occupied by the WOB rise to the level of active insurrections. Dozens of FedCom banners and even FedSun's banners are shown being flown by the rioting civilians. The WOB respond with customary brutality and open fire on the rioters with mech grade machine guns. Far from cowing the rioters this results in large numbers fleeing into the wilderness to join the 15th Arcturan's resistance.
The Free Worlds League invasion or counter invasion of the Lyran Alliance also gathers steam when both Dixie and Cavanaugh II fall to the League. Elements of the 11th Lyran Regulars manage to evacuate off Cavanaugh II but the Dixie CTM's survivors are forced to surrender. On Bolan the defenders fight valley to valley, falling back slowly on the capital of Bolan City where the local militia are preparing hurried siege defences. The 4 patrolling corvettes of the FWLN prevent reinforcements from slipping in.
Despite being sworn to the Oriente based Captain-General the Falcon regiment of the Silver Hawk Coalition launch their own attack in support of Captain-General Corrine Marik's invasion. They strike out to liberate occupied Nestor which is still held by the 7th Donegal Guards RCT. Against this larger force the Falcon's have little chance of victory, but they are swiftly joined by the Home Guard regiment of the Stewart's Dragoons - a neutral province. Given that the Atreus Captain-General has managed to have not only a neutral unit but also a hostile one follow her orders bodes well for the Free Worlds Leagues reunification...
These hopes are dealt a horrific blow however when the Regular Hussars launch their own attack. The 4th Regulan Hussars strike at the Marik Commonwealth world of Manihika, while the 5th strikes the neutral world of Futuna seizing it almost overnight and imposing a Regulan friendly government that soon petitions to join the Principality. Meanwhile the newly raised 10th and 11th Regular Hussars strike the Atreus loyal independent worlds of Norfolk and Newcastle while a Regulan Zechetinu II bluffs the world of Tuamotu into surrendering to Regulus (or at least everyone hopes they were bluffing with their threat to level the capital city followed by every other city until the world surrendered). These attacks pose a major threat to Captain-General Marik on Atreus and force her to decide whether to recall loyal units to defend the capital or continue operations against the LAAF...
Tamarind negotiates that the independent world of Edmondson joins the Duchy on the 18th of April. They are pushing hard for the Abbey District to join them as well. Along with enough worlds to form a "bridge" between Abbey and Tamarind.
Within the Draconis Combine the Khan and saKhan of the Nova Cats summon their Warrior Council to meet on Irece on the 5th of May. Every bloodnamed warrior is instructed to attend unless engaged in active combat.
Kanrei Hohiro Kurita having used 4 of the 10 regiments of battlemech's that were gifted to the DCMS by the WOB after his deals with them orders that the remaining battlemech's be dispatched to Luthien for his father's disposal of them. Large convoys of WOB jumpships escorted by warships head deeper into the HPG darkness that is the heart of the Combine.
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3070 - April - Reactions
Kanrei Hohiro Kurita having used 4 of the 10 regiments of battlemech's that were gifted to the DCMS by the WOB after his deals with them orders that the remaining battlemech's be dispatched to Luthien for his father's disposal of them. Large convoys of WOB jumpships escorted by warships head deeper into the HPG darkness that is the heart of the Combine.
Why did I suddenly get an image of Hohiro Kurita cosplaying as Arthas Menethil?
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Why did I suddenly get an image of Hohiro Kurita cosplaying as Arthas Menethil?
Each Olympus has a 150,000 repair bay. that is big enough to make a Merchant class jumpship. you can have the "big boy" of jumpship makers ship parts to any station within one jump (30ly) of their yards. the Olympus crews could put the parts together this would give a short term burst of production, before the bays are needed again to repair.
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Well the FedSuns need jumpships huh. And I wonder who has a former military shipyard that got converted into a civilian shipyard for Jumpship and dropship construction. And who would love to make plently of money selling those products for a profit that can be used to speed up their recovery and expansion.
Each Olympus has a 150,000 repair bay. that is big enough to make a Merchant class jumpship. you can have the "big boy" of jumpship makers ship parts to any station within one jump (30ly) of their yards. the Olympus crews could put the parts together this would give a short term burst of production, before the bays are needed again to repair.
What are you talking about? The only Olympus I know of is the class of recharge station. If there another thing with that class name?
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What are you talking about? The only Olympus I know of is the class of recharge station. If there another thing with that class name?
The Olympus class recharging station has three repair bays. 2 are rated at 50ktons and number 3 is rated for 150,000 tons.
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I had a bit of idea, while Victor is a no go for Archon, why not Ardan Sortek as regent? He is a man of inpecable integrity, capable soldier and statesman, not to mention he was friends with both Hanse Davion and Melissa Steiner.
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I had a bit of idea, while Victor is a no go for Archon, why not Ardan Sortek as regent? He is a man of inpecable integrity, capable soldier and statesman, not to mention he was friends with both Hanse Davion and Melissa Steiner.
The only issue I could see with that would be Ardan's age. He's pushing 80 at this point I think, and might just be looking forward to retirement.
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The problem is that Ardan has no claim on the Throne. Victor DID have the claim and was simply deposed by Katherine *spits* and in turn had Peter jump in after her. Victor did renounce his claim, but if he was asked to come back, in all honesty he would have no real question marks about that as he's eldest child of Melissa after all.
Ardan is a nice guy, but he's not a Steiner.
Victor OTOH has, since the Federated Commonwealth broke up, learned some basic political skills on one hand, been proven 100% right about his sister on the other hand and been given the ultimate vindication of Kings for thousands of years; he's f*#king owning everything and anything that comes up against him or his nation, which has thrived like never before.
The Lyran Alliance OTOH has been steadily going backwards. Poor Peter even kept getting called a 'second rate Victor' in the media, IIRC, whenever he managed to do genuinely good things, simply because Victor had already done it and far far better.
He might have taken a while to get there, but to the average person in the Federated Suns and Lyran Alliance, Victor is the ultimate blend and evolution of Katrina+Melissa+Hanse and perhaps the greatest leader a Successor State has ever had.
The fact that its entirely possible a majority of the Estates Generals would have outright voted for Victor to come back and rule them in a straight up/down line despite everything shows that A) They recognize his greatness B) They understand (with the exception of a handful of representatives who are probably not going to make it off Tharkad alive) that he was innocent of all the charges against him and that it was the traitor Katherine all along who betrayed Melissa and destroyed the FedCom and C) That they don't have any tenable leader right now. At all. And their situation is looking increasingly desperate.
Of course, the population of the Federated Suns have a lot of reasons to be highly skeptical. Where as the original Federated Commonwealth arguably was a joining of different strengths (FedSuns competence + Lyran industry) now the Federated Suns have BOTH. They also have the sheer vindication that it was the Steiner side who blindly followed a matricidal bitch and turned their back on the Suns. Who stole the Federated Suns jumpships (and then SOLD THEM BACK TO THEM). Who ranted about how the Federated Suns wasn't pulling its weight against the Clans (despite the fact that AFFS units in the AFFC were actually a plurality or even a majority of the units who fought the Clan invasion!) and whose armed forces, the LCAF/LAAF all turned their back on Victor despite the fact that HE fought his ass off in the Donegal Guards and Lyran Guards against the Clans defending that half of the FedCom, arguably at the cost of the Suns side...
And Victor himself, IIRC earlier in this fic, even admitted to a sense of personal betrayal at how rapidly the Lyran side of the Commonwealth turned on him despite how hard he had worked and fought to protect it.
The idea that the Federated Suns would loose quite arguably the finest First Prince they ever had to Tharkard would probably make a LOT of people nervous.
Victors best bet is probably going to be to take a third path here. Formally reject the idea of him becoming the Archon Prince again. But, support someone competent as a regent for his Nephew everyone can respect - while making it clear that he will be working to increasingly strengthen ties, formally, between their nations. I'd suggest Victor nominate Roman Steiner. Unlike in the OTL, he didn't loose his granddaughter to the 1st Davions last stand on New Avalon fighting for Victor nor almost loosing his other grandkids on Tharkad to Peter, so I'm going to guess he's still a firm supporter of Victor and at least thought well of Peter.
He has the family position and exceptional connections in both states to be an effective regent.
As for the FedCom, again I'd say take a third path. Review the original FedCom treaty and look to revive the useful parts. No union, but see what can be done to once again open up economic, technological and military ties like they did in the 3020s-3030s, re-establish a free trade pact and open up markets, technology transfers, all of that stuff. Formalize a level of alliance quite a bit short of a union, but closer than they have right now, getting the maximum win-win advantages for both sides.
And of course, far closer military cooperation with an exchange of high level staff on both sides to start fighting this new war together.
On a different topic, it looks like the Nova Cats are about ready to jump ship. This is going to get very interesting, very quickly...
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Well it looks like we now know what the WoB are going to do with those mechs and with the Blackout well its a good time for a decapitation strike.
Also if Victor decides to take on the Mantle of regent he needs to help the LA what warships he can spare with Regiments and RCTs need to be sent to support Hep. Hell he needs to do that now before allied if the WoB take Hep they have one of the greatest factory worlds in their pocket or destroyed.
Victor Ideally can’t let that happen.
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I think Victor could organize along with the ComGuards a relief force for Hesperus.
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That would actually work on several levels. Heph has a large concentration of the WOB's most elite troops after all and it would be an excellent opportunity to try and rip them up. It would be politically a great move and strategically if they can recover the planet as damaged, but even partially operational, it would help keep the Lyrans in the fight. Plus, if the AFFS send a couple of warships and an RCT, as well as swinging through Skye and picking up a Lyran unit or two on the way? It would be a very nice combined operation to open the counter-strike with...
Also, I'm banging my head on Victor pushing money to rebuild the Independence Weaponry plant. The locals might be upset (just offer the key workers and technicians relocation packages and they'll probably leap at the chance) but its beyond time to move that plant the ****** away from the border. The Sandovals might grumble, but honestly? They don't have a leg to stand on here as its just too damn vulnerable. Even if the border is going to be pushed back slowly.
You can keep it in the Draconis March, but move to to say ... Mayetta? Its a long way from the border to even try to raid but still well placed to feed units in the DC March - as well as the Periphery regions and Crucis March...
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The problem is that Ardan has no claim on the Throne. Victor DID have the claim and was simply deposed by Katherine *spits* and in turn had Peter jump in after her. Victor did renounce his claim, but if he was asked to come back, in all honesty he would have no real question marks about that as he's eldest child of Melissa after all.
Ardan is a nice guy, but he's not a Steiner.
Those are all points in favor of Ardan as regent.
If Victor becomes regent, there´ll be plenty of people who will consider that as the first step towards taking the the throne for himself. Ardan *CANNOT* take the throne for himself, so that suspicion won´t even form.
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I’m also surprised no one has thought of the Skye Steiners yet....
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I’m also surprised no one has thought of the Skye Steiners yet....
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Lol that would be an idea about on par with taking Katherine back. With the Wobbies and the Dragon knocking at their door, they have diddly squat to secure their own territory, even historically they have done very little for the Lyran nation since Aldo Lestrade was alive and Ryan was worse, now his son and daughter-in law are poised to continue.
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The problem is that Ardan has no claim on the Throne. Victor DID have the claim and was simply deposed by Katherine *spits* and in turn had Peter jump in after her. Victor did renounce his claim, but if he was asked to come back, in all honesty he would have no real question marks about that as he's eldest child of Melissa after all.
Ardan is a nice guy, but he's not a Steiner.
Victor OTOH has, since the Federated Commonwealth broke up, learned some basic political skills on one hand, been proven 100% right about his sister on the other hand and been given the ultimate vindication of Kings for thousands of years; he's f*#king owning everything and anything that comes up against him or his nation, which has thrived like never before.
The Lyran Alliance OTOH has been steadily going backwards. Poor Peter even kept getting called a 'second rate Victor' in the media, IIRC, whenever he managed to do genuinely good things, simply because Victor had already done it and far far better.
He might have taken a while to get there, but to the average person in the Federated Suns and Lyran Alliance, Victor is the ultimate blend and evolution of Katrina+Melissa+Hanse and perhaps the greatest leader a Successor State has ever had.
The fact that its entirely possible a majority of the Estates Generals would have outright voted for Victor to come back and rule them in a straight up/down line despite everything shows that A) They recognize his greatness B) They understand (with the exception of a handful of representatives who are probably not going to make it off Tharkad alive) that he was innocent of all the charges against him and that it was the traitor Katherine all along who betrayed Melissa and destroyed the FedCom and C) That they don't have any tenable leader right now. At all. And their situation is looking increasingly desperate.
Of course, the population of the Federated Suns have a lot of reasons to be highly skeptical. Where as the original Federated Commonwealth arguably was a joining of different strengths (FedSuns competence + Lyran industry) now the Federated Suns have BOTH. They also have the sheer vindication that it was the Steiner side who blindly followed a matricidal bitch and turned their back on the Suns. Who stole the Federated Suns jumpships (and then SOLD THEM BACK TO THEM). Who ranted about how the Federated Suns wasn't pulling its weight against the Clans (despite the fact that AFFS units in the AFFC were actually a plurality or even a majority of the units who fought the Clan invasion!) and whose armed forces, the LCAF/LAAF all turned their back on Victor despite the fact that HE fought his ass off in the Donegal Guards and Lyran Guards against the Clans defending that half of the FedCom, arguably at the cost of the Suns side...
And Victor himself, IIRC earlier in this fic, even admitted to a sense of personal betrayal at how rapidly the Lyran side of the Commonwealth turned on him despite how hard he had worked and fought to protect it.
The idea that the Federated Suns would loose quite arguably the finest First Prince they ever had to Tharkard would probably make a LOT of people nervous.
Victors best bet is probably going to be to take a third path here. Formally reject the idea of him becoming the Archon Prince again. But, support someone competent as a regent for his Nephew everyone can respect - while making it clear that he will be working to increasingly strengthen ties, formally, between their nations. I'd suggest Victor nominate Roman Steiner. Unlike in the OTL, he didn't loose his granddaughter to the 1st Davions last stand on New Avalon fighting for Victor nor almost loosing his other grandkids on Tharkad to Peter, so I'm going to guess he's still a firm supporter of Victor and at least thought well of Peter.
He has the family position and exceptional connections in both states to be an effective regent.
As for the FedCom, again I'd say take a third path. Review the original FedCom treaty and look to revive the useful parts. No union, but see what can be done to once again open up economic, technological and military ties like they did in the 3020s-3030s, re-establish a free trade pact and open up markets, technology transfers, all of that stuff. Formalize a level of alliance quite a bit short of a union, but closer than they have right now, getting the maximum win-win advantages for both sides.
And of course, far closer military cooperation with an exchange of high level staff on both sides to start fighting this new war together.
On a different topic, it looks like the Nova Cats are about ready to jump ship. This is going to get very interesting, very quickly...
Nailed it militarily and politically. On the military side the Lyran center of gravity is that triad of production, Hesperus-Coventry-Tharkad. Historically the greatest vulnerability of the realm and it's greatest political headache has ever been Skye first and the former Tamar now Clan front second.
Caesar Steiner is another possible as per canon after the Fed-Com Civil War.
I have always thought that TPTB as written never really gave Victor a fair shake. Hanse Davion was 43 in 3025, in his early 30's when he took over from Ian after Ian's death. Arguably he ( Hanse) had more time, and seasoning with prior experience in military and politics . Victor wasn't really ready in his early 20's..who the hell is? Sun Tzu? Well he pretty much had too, very much a sink or swim reality in the Sian Snake Pit. This re-telling actually gives time for Victor to leverage his strengths and minimize his weaknesses, he does have great people and a unified realm backing him up, an advantage none of the other Successor powers have. Now with this story the Fed-Suns have that key missing ingredient ,economic and industrial might.
The Wobbies played the best strategic option they could by striking the Lyran Scwerpunkt, at Hesperus in Skye. It also nearly severs the physical link between the Lyrans and the Suns, with the third benefit of giving the Wobbies physical depth to their burgeoning proto- protectorate.
As to the splintered League, reaching out to the Regulans and leveraging the exiled Anduriens is definitely a viable option to neutralize or minimize that front.
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The issue what units and fleet elements can Victor spare to go against the WoB? Securing the worlds in the League March against the WoB and operations against the dragon are taking up much manpower.
He is going to need a fairly heavy fleet element as well as a ground element he could go to the dragoons or C* I imagine they would be willing to help.
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Victor has reserves he can use. The forces away from the fighting have been waiting and training in case they need to move up to a front. The League March has enough forces to make hitting it a difficult prospect. Ships there are more and more ships coming off the line all the time. That means you can transfer crews from older less effective ships to the newer ones coming off the line.
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The Kurita would need to acknowledge that the kid is a Davion first. Something that would be suicide with all the shit they have going on. The Black Dragon society would stop all talks and start trying to kill them again.
I would agree with that, but what about the Word Of Blake?
There is also enemies in the Lyran Alliance/Commonwealth, and his sister Katherine.
There might also be others in the Free Worlds League.
This is all assuming they find out about him.
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I would agree with that, but what about the Word Of Blake?
There is also enemies in the Lyran Alliance/Commonwealth, and his sister Katherine.
There might also be others in the Free Worlds League.
This is all assuming they find out about him.
What would they gain though. The kid is not acknowledged as anything other than a Kurita cousin. All Victor needs to do is deny that he is his child since his child with Omiko died along with the mother. If any of the others kill the kid all they gain is the title child killer nothing else. And to get to him in the first place they would need to attack the Capital of the Combine and the Palace itself since that is where he is. The cost and risk is far too much for anyone to waste time on it.
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The issue what units and fleet elements can Victor spare to go against the WoB? Securing the worlds in the League March against the WoB and operations against the dragon are taking up much manpower.
He is going to need a fairly heavy fleet element as well as a ground element he could go to the dragoons or C* I imagine they would be willing to help.
I think we need an updated list :)
But off the top of my head, he has those two Carriers that have been working up for some time now. I'm guessing their ASF wings were already veterans and were just getting experience in carrier operations alongside their crews, but they should be at least be solid by now. I think they also have a couple of Destroyers as close escorts (and those Davion IIIs frankly are nasty ships to have to face down) and I'm sure ComStar can assign a couple of their own ships to support them.
If they are going in hard and hot with nuclear armed strike wings, they can sweep the WOB naval presence clean from the system in VERY short order and then call in a joint ComGuard/LAAF ground force waiting for the jump signal nearby, to come in at a pirate point. And, under the cover of a massive naval barrage and air support from the carrier wings, smash into the cogboy soldiers from behind (especially with as much Battle Armor as you can scrape together, a Dragoons unit would be ideal for this battle) to wipe em out.
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I think we need an updated list :)
But off the top of my head, he has those two Carriers that have been working up for some time now. I'm guessing their ASF wings were already veterans and were just getting experience in carrier operations alongside their crews, but they should be at least be solid by now. I think they also have a couple of Destroyers as close escorts (and those Davion IIIs frankly are nasty ships to have to face down) and I'm sure ComStar can assign a couple of their own ships to support them.
If they are going in hard and hot with nuclear armed strike wings, they can sweep the WOB naval presence clean from the system in VERY short order and then call in a joint ComGuard/LAAF ground force waiting for the jump signal nearby, to come in at a pirate point. And, under the cover of a massive naval barrage and air support from the carrier wings, smash into the cogboy soldiers from behind (especially with as much Battle Armor as you can scrape together, a Dragoons unit would be ideal for this battle) to wipe em out.
The FedSun's Navy actually has 3 New Syrtis carriers in reserve working up. As you say the wings are all veterans (transferred in as entire wings/regiments), all with the finest equipment and are mostly just learning to operate of a fleet carrier. And they were all picked for experience on warships/vengeance dropships. What they are lacking however in is escorts for now.
And I think you mean Dragonlords not Dragoons - Dragonlords are the heavy BA RCT's Dragoons are "merely" generic RCT's.
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The FedSun's Navy actually has 3 New Syrtis carriers in reserve working up. As you say the wings are all veterans (transferred in as entire wings/regiments), all with the finest equipment and are mostly just learning to operate of a fleet carrier. And they were all picked for experience on warships/vengeance dropships. What they are lacking however in is escorts for now.
The Federated Suns keeps building so many damn ships its hard to keep track of them - the naval intelligence teams in the other powers must have headaches. Especially if the AFFS keeps playing silly buggers and switching around transponders and hull markings as they jump around to confuse the crap out of everyone :P
But that's why I was thinking the ComGuards could supply a flotila of Corvettes and/or the Lyrans. It'd also work politically if it could be presented as a joint operation with everyone in the fight against the Word of f*#king Blake.
And I think you mean Dragonlords not Dragoons - Dragonlords are the heavy BA RCT's Dragoons are "merely" generic RCT's.
Whoops, yes. Sorry, Dragonlords. Heph II is almost the perfect place for them to swarm in behind the enemy and infest the place, rooting out the Cyborg freaks one chamber at a time.
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I figured be meant The Dragoons, the Wolfie's have been to Hesperus before
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I figured be meant The Dragoons, the Wolfie's have been to Hesperus before
Also works - and they can be very pissed that these Toaster Worshipers are breaking their record (as the hostile force that got closest to breaching Defiance Industries) because THEY'RE CHEATING using spies and orbital bombardments! So they need to be obliterated damnit! :D
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AFFS Warplans:
Operation Yellowbird..next stop Luthien and how to tame your Dragon.
Operation Toaster/ Toasted Wobbies..Terra or just slap the Toasster Worship Cult around.
Operation Purple Chicken...slap Marik toaster sympathizers around..KFC style, by the bucket.
Operation Mickey Dees...slap the the MAC's down and support the Andurien exiles.
Operation Hello Kitty...plans to get the Nova Cats out.
Operation Birdy..plans for the Raven Cooperation/Neutrality.
Operation GreenTurkey..plans for dealing with the Jade Falcons.
Operation Bad Doggy..plans for dealing with Dad's Wolves.
Operation Beotch Slap..Loki/ Rabid Fox Joint Special Operation Direct Action mission for Katy aka Marie Sue.
Just remembering Victor's blurb to Jackson Davion on how JD and the AFFS High Command/ General Staff has plans for any contingency.
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If the FedSuns and ComStar send a fleet to take back Heph III then they would also be in a good position to gather a Lyran force to head to the FRR and attack the Combine from the second front. That or they could go and hit the WoB Protectorate worlds to weaken the WoB even more. After all no matter how important Terra and Sol are there is no way it can outproduce the Great Houses.
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3070 - May - Operation Achilles IV
The battles within the Dieron Military District were not going well for the DCMS and the AFFS continued to press it's advantage as May proceeded. With Dieron itself almost entirely fallen and only Fortress Dieron itself holding out there was little that Warlord Kurita could do to reverse the situation either. While he could still call upon a number of uncommitted forces most of these were tied down garrisoning key worlds and holding the border. Throwing them into a counter attack was a huge risk as if it failed the District would have nothing left to fight with...
Dieron
On Dieron itself the Davion Assault Guards and their allies continued to pound and reduce the outer works of Fortress Dieron. Taking few chances they hammered the Kurita lines with huge quantities of artillery and air strikes, before battle armoured troops covered by entire battalion of assault battlemechs would press forward to seize the shattered position, moving the front lines a few hundred yards forward. At which point they would begin the entire process against the next bunker or line of entrenchments. It was a slow and dirty war of artillery and brutal combat but the Assault Guards were in their element. They had secure supply lines, air superiority, numbers and weight of metal on their side. Even better despite the prodigious rate at which the Guards were expending ammunition their supply depots were actually filling faster than they could empty them due to the huge industrial might of the Federated Sun's pouring to support them. Often damaged battlemech's were simply replaced with new ones while the damaged battlemech was shipped back to one of the refit centre to be almost entirely rebuilt before returned to service. Losses in the conventional forces were made up almost as quickly with a steady supply of new recruits flowing in.
Compared to this the DCMS troops penned in within Fortress Dieron were forced to rely entirely on the stocks of the fortress itself. Which were considerable but finite. As a precaution Warlord had all of the omnimech's in his forces outfitted purely as laser boats to reduce the expenditure of ammunition. For now he could replace destroyed battlemechs and repair any damaged battlemech's that were recovered in the huge workshops of the fortress, but again spare parts and armour were limited to what he had in stock as were replacement battlemechs. Most of the replacement battlemechs were older machines placed in storage and it became common to see old Panther 9R's and 10K's in the ranks of the 3rd Dieron Regulars in particular.
Around the rest of the planet conventional AFFS troops began filtering into garrison postings while a civilian government began to be set up - something that Dieron had not experienced in several hundred years as it had always been directly ruled by the DCMS given it's importance and as a Military District capital world. While there was some difficulty in finding suitable candidates, the world itself retained some small local civilian government institutions - often holdovers from the Terran Hegemony.
Fomalhaut
The 47th Dieron Regulars were finally granted orders to withdraw by Dieron on the 4th of May, however it was too late. Admiral Kossack's double strength aerospace wings swept down on the fleeing regiments dropships as they lifted up out of the planet's gravity well and caught them just as they were breaking orbit. The DCMS transport flotilla consisted of 2 Overlords, 4 Unions, 3 Leopard-CV's, 4 Condors and nearly a half dozen assorted civilian dropships mostly Mules. Escorting them are a single Achilles class assault dropship and the 47th's own attached fighter wing which has 29 aerospace fighters within it most of the pilots of which are green - the Achilles's and the 3 Leopard-CV's act as escorts with the fighters to the rest. Against this the 2nd Davion Guards RCT throw's 110 fighters as well as an Overlord-A3, 2 Achilles and no less than 7 Avenger class assault dropships. The 4th Davion Guard's full fighter regiment and the attached fighter wings of the 2 Fighting Urukhai regiments remain in reserve to protect the AFFS incoming dropships.
As the fleeing Kurita ships break orbit the Davion attack force strikes. Fully half of the 2nd Davion's fighters break off and attack the escorting fighters and dropships with support from the 2 Davion Achilles's and 4 Avengers. The remaining fighters and attack dropships streak past the firefight and hit the fleeing transports. The A3 pocket warship holds back and begins medium ranged capital missile strikes at the Kurita Overlord's and Unions in particular.
The infantry transporting Condors in particular are soon taken out by fighter strikes on their almost unprotected rear engines. At which point the fighters leave the crippled ships and swarm the Unions. In the meantime the Overlord A3 FSS Franklin's Fist has destroyed the first of the 2 Kurita Overlord's and is firing capital missiles at the second. Realising the situation the Tai-sa in command of the 47th Dieron orders his transports to make a break back for the planet. Shortly before his command Union blows up under the concentrated fire of squadron of 6 Hammerhead fighters and an Avenger class dropship.
Most of the civilian Mules are still undamaged but surrender or break for the outer system. A single Mule will actually make rendezvous with a Kurita jumpship and leave the system carrying several thousand tons of spare parts and ammunition. The others are all captured. The military dropships that remain try to escape back to the planet with their escape cut off. A single heavily damaged Union manages to make a semi-controlled landing at the world's capital's spaceport. Which "only" kills or injures half the crew and soldiers it was carrying. The remaining ships are either crippled and boarded or destroyed outright.
With the return of only a single crippled Union most of who's passengers are in no fit state to resist the impending invasion what is left of the planetary government surrenders before the first Davion battlemech sets foot on the sub-tropical world. The 2nd Davion Guards RCT takes the honour or landing to accept the surrender and return their old garrison posting to the FedSun's while the 4th Davion Guards and the 2 Fighting Urukhai, with little to do are redeployed to hit Lyon and Imbros III respectively.
Styx
The 1st Sheraton Knights and the 33rd Avalon Hussars RCT arrives in system on the 14th and straight away burn for the planet. The large planetary militia mobilise immedietly and by the time the first AFFS troops begin to land have deployed into strong defensive positions across the planet. While almost entirely infantry they put up a stiff resistance to the advancing Davion troops helped by the fact that the local storms ground most of the 1st Knights and 33rd Hussar's aerospace assets. Realising the slog they are facing the CO's of both units dispatch requests for additional infantry and light armoured formations to be sent to aid in the conquest. As well as at least one engineering battalion. While they wait they shift over to a mostly defensive war, holding onto roughly a third of the planet.
Imbros III
The defending 32nd Galedon Regulars - perhaps with less loyalty to Dieron and knowing their own Military District is hard pressed - don't bother to await permission to withdraw from Imbros III when the Fighting Urukhai's 8th Striker and Bar Hounds regiments arrived in system on the 28th. They immedietly flee the system on their own dropships and leave the planet in the hands of the puppet Combine governor. Who is deposed by the Lyran Loyalist resistance before the 32nd has even reached orbit. The 2 Fighting Urukhai burn for the planet in the name of "First Prince Victor Davion, ally and friend of the Lyran Alliance". It is clear from the start the Imbros III will be returned to the Lyran Alliance.
Lyons
The 13th Sun Zhang Cadre in a display of spirit if not wisdom declare that they will hold the world of Lyon for the Dragon until the last bullet and man when the 4th Davion Guards RCT jumps into the system on the 28th. The 4th Davion Guards head for the planet knowing that they will have a fight to take the world back for the Lyran's. However they are also being fed information from the local resistance and know that the Cadre while motivated are struggling to contain resistance movements across the whole planet. Lyon has never settled under the Dragon's banner and many on the planet wish to return to the Lyran Alliance - although more than a few hope for a return of the Federated Commonwealth.
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Yay nice update! I wonder is those former Lyran worlds will get a chance to vot to join the FedSuns rather than the LC?
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Wonder if people in Lyons will remember that Victor and Katherine both abandoned them to the Combine when the FedCom split, albeit with the Combine troops coming in as 'peacekeepers' and anexing the place in the 3060s. And they were nominally Lyran worlds making them Katherines problem, so its hardly Victors fault she didn't prioritize getting them back...
Still, at least Victor has finally DONE something about it ... but its terribly bad timing from an optics point of view, for all the people who want Victor to retake the Archon-Prince position. Oh look, he just retook a bunch of Lyran worlds instead of focusing entirely on the Federated Suns, taking them back in the name of the Lyran Alliance to boot!
*FedCom Flag Waving Intensifies*
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Wonder if people in Lyons will remember that Victor and Katherine both abandoned them to the Combine when the FedCom split, albeit with the Combine troops coming in as 'peacekeepers' and anexing the place in the 3060s. And they were nominally Lyran worlds making them Katherines problem, so its hardly Victors fault she didn't prioritize getting them back...
Still, at least Victor has finally DONE something about it ... but its terribly bad timing from an optics point of view, for all the people who want Victor to retake the Archon-Prince position. Oh look, he just retook a bunch of Lyran worlds instead of focusing entirely on the Federated Suns, taking them back in the name of the Lyran Alliance to boot!
*FedCom Flag Waving Intensifies*
To be fair to Victor - he has almost overwhelming support in the FedSuns. I mean even the people pissy about him perhaps taking over the Lyran Alliance and reforming the FedCom are more thinking "no, he's ours! get your own military genius!"... The Lyran Alliance also desperately needs a shot in the arm and reclaiming at least some worlds will help them. Although it will also bolster the "let's get Victor back" brigade.
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To be fair to Victor - he has almost overwhelming support in the FedSuns. I mean even the people pissy about him perhaps taking over the Lyran Alliance and reforming the FedCom are more thinking "no, he's ours! get your own military genius!"... The Lyran Alliance also desperately needs a shot in the arm and reclaiming at least some worlds will help them. Although it will also bolster the "let's get Victor back" brigade.
For extra irony, Victor needs to find the PR outfit Katherine was using to manipulate public opinion during her charm offensive back in 3061, with added emphasis on duplicating that insipid "I wish you were our ruler" moment with the little girl, then blasting it across the entire Sphere.
I like to picture Katherine sitting in her love nest on Tamar, going over the latest intercepted broadcasts out of the Alliance and having an aneurysm on the spot.
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To be fair to Victor - he has almost overwhelming support in the FedSuns. I mean even the people pissy about him perhaps taking over the Lyran Alliance and reforming the FedCom are more thinking "no, he's ours! get your own military genius!"...
"You chose ... poorly" </lastcrusadememe>
So not really hostility per se towards the Lyran Alliance (well, for the most part, but I'm sure there is still at least a BIT of salt over them blindly choosing the usurper Katherine over Victor, ****** over the Federated Suns by breaking the FedCom...) but just a 'like hell we're turning over the best House Lord in history!'.
Victor is probably going to have to play the kingmaker though.
The Lyran Alliance also desperately needs a shot in the arm and reclaiming at least some worlds will help them. Although it will also bolster the "let's get Victor back" brigade.
Probably can't help but shake out the shock. Although until they can do something about the WOB warships running around their space, they're going to be strategically paralyzed.
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I'm surprised no one picked up on the fact that Peter's son came out healthy this time. Unlike in canon where he was harmed during the long birthing process and came out mentally handicapped.
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"You chose ... poorly" </lastcrusadememe>
So not really hostility per se towards the Lyran Alliance (well, for the most part, but I'm sure there is still at least a BIT of salt over them blindly choosing the usurper Katherine over Victor, ****** over the Federated Suns by breaking the FedCom...) but just a 'like hell we're turning over the best House Lord in history!'.
Victor is probably going to have to play the kingmaker though.
Probably can't help but shake out the shock. Although until they can do something about the WOB warships running around their space, they're going to be strategically paralyzed.
Oh there is some definite "you screwed us" resentment in a lot of Federated Suns citizens and members of the AFFS but most of the background is merely "You made your bed, lie in it" when it comes to rulers. Success for the FedSuns however has removed a lot of the sting of that - many are even prepared to go so far as to say it was a good thing because if "freed" the FedSuns to take their own path. Now that the Lyrans want Victor back though... Nope. Not a popular idea with the average Feddie.
You are right Victor is going to have to take a hand. It just depends to what extent he gets involved.
I'm surprised no one picked up on the fact that Peter's son came out healthy this time. Unlike in canon where he was harmed during the long birthing process and came out mentally handicapped.
I did wonder if anyone would notice...!
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Well you did make it pretty clear that not only was he not handicapped but that he seemed to be the opposite in fact. Possibly being a genius.
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3070 - May - Operation Ajax IV
The crumbling situation within the Benjamin Military District didn't seem to be improving for the Draconis Combine. With the fall of Proserpina a large number of front line AFFS formations had now been released to attack other worlds and most projections were that they were going to strike out from their initial conquests towards Iruzun and Junction. If those 2 worlds fell it was only a matter of time before Benjamin itself would face attack. Large scale deployments of conventional forces both regular and militia were ordered to Junction and Iruzun. When Junction fell in mid-May almost without a fight the panic caused within the DCMS command posts on Benjamin was almost tangible. Hurried orders were sent out to forces en-route to Junction to redeploy to Umijiri and Hagiwawa. The world of Sadalbari and Homan, by now almost totally indefensible and left in a pocket near the border, in particular were stripped of almost every man and woman who could hold a rifle with any skill and who could be loaded into dropships. This stripping of these border planets of almost their entire militia's led to widespread social unrest and anti-Kurita riots.
Tannil
The 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT landed on the world of Tannil with it's aerospace brigade already hammering the local militia's positions. With almost a full reinforced regiment of battlemech's supported by almost full strength conventional forces facing them and the loss of air superiority the Tannil Militia knew that any defence was likely doomed. Conventional wisdom would have been to simply dig in and hold out for as long as possible in the probably vain hope of reinforcements arriving but instead the old school commanding officer of the militia (who had last been a serving DCMS officer during the reign of the current Coordinator's father) ordered banzai style wave attacks on the Crucis Lancers in the hope of breaking their spirit. After nearly 60% of the mostly infantry regiments had thrown themselves into the meat grinder of the Lancer's superior firepower and equipment while being bombed and strafed from above the morale of the militia broke. With the militia falling back in total disarray the 3rd's 4 battlemech battalions each supported by a full regiment of armour slashed forward to complete the rout. By the end of May the world's remaining military forces had surrendered in disgrace and the civilian government requested terms to join the FedSun's. The disgraced commanding officer of the militia committed suicide to atone for his failure as the 3rd Crucis's 2nd battalion closed in on his command post.
Donenac
Marshal Edwin May continued his grinding down of the 9th Benjamin Regulars throughout the month of May. While a few of the younger officers within the 1st and 5th Avalon Hussars's called for a more aggressive approach to the planetary invasion both New Avalon and Robinson sent not only support and additional supplies to help the conquest but also clear indications of support for his methodical tactics.
Over May the AFFS forces on planet reduce a further 4 cities garrisons. Massed artillery strikes and the massed firepower of nearly 10:1 odds during each battle continues to keep AFFS casualties to a minimum and reduces any chance of a break out by the doomed garrisons. Morale within the remaining 3 companies of 9th Benjamin Regulars plummets to somewhere below that of rock bottom. However the surviving 3 companies can only await their fate as any attempt to break out would face overwhelming AFFS forces deployed around the cities they are garrisoning. On the 29th of May the 3rd company of the 2nd battalion, the garrison of the city of Harper's Gorge, surrenders to the picketing troops of the 1st Avalon Hussars when they begin to see signs of additional AFFS forces arriving and realise they are next. The remaining 2 companies Tai-i's hurriedly assure each other via buried communication lines that they will not follow their traitorous fellow officers example and will hold to the last man!
Ludwig
The 24th Benjamin Regulars start May well, managing to avoid being pinned down and destroyed and even manage to attack a conventional mixed battalion of AFFS troops which had garrisoned one of the world's minor cities before being forced to disengage as more powerful AFFS forces barrel down upon them. However by mid month their CO's lack of forethought in preparing supply depots for a guerrilla campaign begins to tell. Running low on ammunition, spare parts, fuel for their vehicles, medical supplies and even food they are forced to begin raiding the AFFS supply lines and the captured DCMS supply depots to survive. As soon as the AFFS realise this they heavily reinforce the garrisons at these locations and begin setting ambushes around them.
By the end of the month the Regulars are in a bad way. They have lost over half their remaining strength in often fruitless attacks in order to gain basic supplies to continue fighting. Worse with little gain for these raids they are facing constant problems to just keep themselves in the field. Their raids and attacks have additionally given the AFFS solid intelligence as to what areas they are operating out off and now the noose is tightening. To make a bad situation worse they have had to begin "requisitioning" food and medical supplies from the local population in the rural areas and now those people are beginning to turn against them. Local guides are now operating with the AFFS troops to help hunt down the "bandits".
Matar
The returning remnants of the 25th Benjamin Regulars are horrified as they approach their garrison posting to see AFFS assault dropships and dropship carriers in orbit. With almost no fighter cover the Tai-i in command of the remaining 25th Benjamin Regulars realises his unit is doomed when 2 almost full strength AFFS aerospace regiments spill forth from the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry's Vengeance class carriers. He hurriedly orders the commanding officer of the dropship transport flotilla to broadcast their surrender. They land on the planet they once held for the Dragon as prisoners and march out under the massed guns of the 10th Deneb's battlemech and conventional forces. The High Command inform the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT that they are authorised to keep the 2 companies of battlemechs they have captured and use them to begin forming a 4th battalion.
Junction
Even as the DCMS is rapidly sending orders to rush forces to Junction to reinforce the planet in preparation for the impending Davion attack that very attack arrives. Before more than a handful of conventional forces have arrived to bolster the garrison. Leading the way is the 1st Davion Guards RCT which is supported by the 1st Kathil Uhlans, 41st Avalon Hussars RCT and 6th Robinson Rangers RCT along with 2 fresh brigades of mixed conventional troops. The 1st Cruiser Squadron is also acting as escorts. Defending the planet against them is the 1st Ghost. The 1st Ghost had already withdrawn from Fellanin II when faced with 3:1 odds. Now they are facing even worse odds on Junction.
After a great deal of soul searching Tai-sa Kasigi decides he can no sense in throwing away one of the few veteran units left at full strength on the border merely to satisfy "honour". Despite knowing the accusations of cowardice he will face he orders his troops back aboard their dropships and flees the planet with as many of the conventional forces attached to the garrison as he can fit into his dropships. He refuses orders from the local Oyabun to evacuate the leadership of the local Yakuza and prioritises infantry and armour crews over the wealthy and influential both legitimate and criminal. While a handful of his dropships are damaged in the retreat by long range Davion fighter strikes he manages to evacuate his command almost entirely intact. He heads for Hagiwawa with his own regiment as well as nearly a dozen regiments of conventional troops.
The large AFFS task force arrives on Junction to face only minimal resistance from the few conventional troops and militia forces which haven't fled with the 1st Ghost. Within a week the last of the resistance have been mopped up and the world conquered for the Federated Suns. With the fall of Junction the Davion task force begins preparing for their jump towards Benjamin...
Waddesdon
Back from the border the world of Waddesdon is defended by a handful of second line militia units and a small number of nobles personal guards. Which are totally outclassed when the 6th FedSun's Dragoons RCT jumps into the system alongside an over strength brigade of conventional infantry. With no aerospace fighter assets available and only civilian dropships the defending forces can do little to prevent the Davion troops landing. Once landed the 6th Dragoons begin hunting down the organised resistance while the conventional brigade spread out behind them to take up garrisoning positions. By the end of May the locals are still resisting, but unless relieved will have to surrender soon.
Kitalpha
Knowing that the 1st Argyle Lancers and the 1st Revenant Guards RCT were both hovering at around 60% strength the High Command ordered them brigaded together with an additional independent armoured regiment and short brigade of infantry in order to seize Kitalpha. While the world's garrison was as sparse as Waddesdon's the High Command didn't want to take any chances and decided that these 2 elite units even under strength reinforced by conventional troops could handle the conquest as well as holding up any counter attack long enough for additional units to be rushed forward.
The situation for the militia defenders had been made catastrophically worse due to the fact that their single conventional armour regiment and 2 of their best infantry regiments had been ordered sent to Junction just 2 weeks before the AFFS forces arrived (where they would be evacuated by the 1st Ghost having barely set foot on the planet) leaving only the second line formations to face the invasion. With a scratch battalion of armour and 3 militia infantry regiments none of which had any real heavy weapons the planet likely couldn't have resisted the conventional forces the High Command had attached to the 1st Argyle Lancers and 1st Revenant Guards. Let alone 2 elite battlemech equipped formations with their own supporting assets.
The 1st Argyle takes the lead in the conquest, using their famed manoeuvrability to totally outclass and outflank the foot rifle infantry companies of the garrison. With the Lancers breaking deep into their rear and cutting them into easily digestible portions the defending militia are forced to surrender as the heavy and assault battlemech's and tanks of the Revenant Guards attack the isolated pockets they've been broken into. With the defeat of the last of the defenders the planet surrenders to the FedSuns on the 27th of May.
Kurhah
Almost as an afterthought the 21st Rim Worlds regiment of the Blue Star Irregulars were ordered to seize the world of Kurhah to protect the flanks of the drive on Benjamin. Still integrating the troops which had been forwarded to the regiment from the Avatars of Painful Death the unit's Colonel, Hank Hatfield-McCoy, deploys his heavy battlemech forces in a shock and awe campaign that smashes any resistance in battalion sized deployments. Of particular note in these hurried battles is the commendable actions of the 3rd battalion under Major Zachary Busch. While Colonel Hatfield-McCoy doesn't reverse his decision to have his XO be 1st battalion's Major Whitcock he does begin to listen more and more to his 3rd battalion's CO. By the end of the month the militia are still holding out in isolated pockets but the arrival of a veteran mixed conventional brigade from the League March merely swings the odds even more in favour of the Davion sponsored mercenaries...
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Nomming continues, but eventually they will have to stop and consolidate.
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Nomming continues, but eventually they will have to stop and consolidate.
So far almost all the worlds they've taken have been border worlds. But now they are starting to get a bit deeper your right. They are basically hoping to get deep enough that they can seize some key worlds before they have to pause/stop. Few amongst the High Command think they can take Galedon or Benjamin - but if they can get them on the front lines that might be enough to make the Dragon sue for peace rather than risk losing them in a long war.
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Honestly if I was Victor after taking the initial key worlds, I would have reinforced and then sent out seek-and-destroy task forces rather than look to take over planets per se. Find the biggest concentrations of enemy units, fallback points and so on and hit them. Not even bothering to take control of the planets but just looking to obliterate as much of the DCMS as possible over the first half a year of war.
THEN, you can regroup, resupply and rotate units and sweep up entire theaters of worlds at your leisure because there is nothing there to defend them anymore. Rather than trying to take and hold planets in the traditional style.
With that said, Victor probably still see's this as a great crusade against evil and that his primary goal is as much to liberate the Combine as defeat them.
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Honestly if I was Victor after taking the initial key worlds, I would have reinforced and then sent out seek-and-destroy task forces rather than look to take over planets per se. Find the biggest concentrations of enemy units, fallback points and so on and hit them. Not even bothering to take control of the planets but just looking to obliterate as much of the DCMS as possible over the first half a year of war.
THEN, you can regroup, resupply and rotate units and sweep up entire theaters of worlds at your leisure because there is nothing there to defend them anymore. Rather than trying to take and hold planets in the traditional style.
With that said, Victor probably still see's this as a great crusade against evil and that his primary goal is as much to liberate the Combine as defeat them.
Victor needs to take enough systems to make the war worth it to the people of the FedSuns. So he needs to take over a certain amount of worlds. He isn't looking to liberate or take over the Combine since that would shift certain factions against him instead of neutral or against the Combine.
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Billy Boy MkII
Never seen a story quite like this, and that's a good thing! Lots of reports and not whole lot of 'the hammer and thud of an auto-cannon' battle descriptions. definitely an interesting method and story, thank you!
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Wow, the Draconis Combine is in deep trouble.
With it being carved up this way, I can't see the Ghost Bears standing idly by for much longer...
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Victor needs to take enough systems to make the war worth it to the people of the FedSuns. So he needs to take over a certain amount of worlds. He isn't looking to liberate or take over the Combine since that would shift certain factions against him instead of neutral or against the Combine.
Not what I meant; I was saying that he should look at taking planets later. Next year or the year after perhaps. His goal right now is to crush the Combines units as fast as possible as much as possible, meaning he shouldn't marry the ground right now. Once he's eliminated a huge chunk of the DCMS, then he can sweep back at his leisure and put troops down.
But that's not the way Victor is playing it, he seems determined to thrust straight at Galedon and Benjamin, which is a very aggressive choice. But then, it also concentrates his naval forces and simplifies his logistics while exploiting the HPG blackout with maximum agression, so it had definite advantages. But I really wouldn't be surprised if he simply hits them with heavy raids that destroy the defenders utterly, loot anything not tied down then pulls out. Trying to hold multiple deep salients would be a logistics nightmare.
Victors ideal 'win' scenario here (IMO) will be holding Dieron with some degree of depth around it to more firmly link the Lyran Alliance and Federated Suns. Also holding Proserpina and Al Na'ir dito, with a cleaned up border (including every single Federated Suns world EVER lost, naturally) as a 'stop line'. With deeper strikes against key worlds like Galedon and Benjamin in the HPG darkness to hit critical strategic targets and cripple the enemy.
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Billy Boy MkII
Never seen a story quite like this, and that's a good thing! Lots of reports and not whole lot of 'the hammer and thud of an auto-cannon' battle descriptions. definitely an interesting method and story, thank you!
Why thank you! I'm going for the more strategic view!
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3070 - May - Operation Agamemnon IV
The Galedon Military District had began to really suffer during May. Warlord Li Dok To was hurriedly shuffling troops around but struggled due to a lack of functional HPG's available to him. Forced to fall back on the Kurita version of the Black Boxes he was limited in the complexity of orders he could send and the information that could be fed back to him. Jumpship network of "pony express" ships provided greater information and ability to send more complicated orders but were not only expensive to set up but also vulnerable to raiding Davion fighter wings and ships. At the end of the month the Warlord is however in receipt of good news when he is informed that the Ryuken-roku and the 13th and 14th Pesht Regulars have arrived from the Pesht Military District at New Samarkand.
New Aberdeen
At the start of May Marshal Jon Davion unleashed the 4th Robinson Rangers RCT upon the faltering Ryuken-nana. The core of the 4th Rangers were members of the former Fighting Uruk-hai regiments and they had recieved word of the losses inflicted upon the Demestri's Sluggers regiment of their old command at the end of April - and more importantly how the 46th Dieron Regulars had taken no prisoners. Although under stern orders that they would not descend to this level of barbarity both from their own commanding officers and also Marshal Jon Davion himself, they do at least get to unleash their rage upon the by now half strength Ryuken-nana. Catching the 2 remaining companies of the regiment's 3rd battalion isolated they bring the whole weight of their RCT down upon them and crush them in a matter of hours - although they do take a handful of prisoners.
Even as reports are filtering into the rest of the Ryuken-nana of their 3rd battalions total destruction the Davion Heavy Guards conduct a short combat "hop" using their dropships while the 6th Crucis Lancers move up to drive them into the guns of the Heavy Guards. A handful of Ryuken-nana battlemech forces and some conventional troops manage to disengage from the 2 day battle but they are effectively destroyed as a formed military unit. These survivors will form the core of the resistance to Davion rule on New Aberdeen moving forward.
Marlowe's Rift
With a civilian government set up and the 1st Ceti Hussars continuing to reduce the hold outs the world of Marlowe's Rift is formally accepted into the Federated Suns during May. The 1st Ceti Hussars RCT will remain on planet, tasked with finishing off the last of the pockets of resistance and also beginning to train a new Planetary Guard loyal to the Federated Suns.
Capra
With the fall of the capital the AFFS forces on planet concentrate on hunting down the 12th Galedon Regulars. Outnumbered 5:1 and with almost no additional support left beyond their own regiment the 12th Galedon finds itself being harried and driven back deeper and deeper into the wilder parts of Capra. Despite their skill they are now facing overwhelming numbers and equally skilled opponents who have total control of the airspace of the planet. It is a credit to the 12th's officers that they manage to keep the unit fighting throughout May, but the steady losses have reduced them to a little over 4 companies of battlemechs and proportionate conventional forces, while they've managed to inflict only light losses on the AFFS formations.
Marshal Stromp decides at the end of May to leave the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT as well as the 2nd Lexington Combat Guards to finish of the surviving 12th Galedon's troops (leaving effectively 3 and a half times the forces remaining to the 12th Galedon Regulars), while the rest of her task force prepares for their next strike. However just to hedge her bets she arranges for a mixed conventional brigade to be brought up to bolster the 2nd Lexington Combat Guards, effectively "raising" them to a RCT.
Igualada
Leaving the 3rd Syrtis Fusiliers RCT behind to garrison Harpster the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT and the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT jump through a number of dead systems and hit the world of Igualada on the 22nd of May. With all DCMS efforts going to fortifying Matsuida for the no doubt impending Davion invasion the few remaining second or third rate militia formations on the planet stand little chance. After a single conventional mixed battalion that attempts to contest the 4th Fusilier's landing is destroyed almost to the last man the remaining troops decide that discretion is the better part of valour and surrender unconditionally.
An Ting
At the same time that the 1st Crucis Lancers and 4th Syrtis Fusiliers are being dispatched to seize Igualada a larger task force is hitting the heavily defended world of An Ting. The 4th Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry as well as Clan Sun Jaguar's Alpha, Beta and Delta Galaxies lead the way escorted by the 3rd Destroyer Squadron, while just a day behind them are the 2nd and 4th Ceti Hussars RCT's.
Facing off against this force is the 7th An Ting and the 3rd and 7th Ghost regiments. The 7th An Ting is a new formation and is still under strength, counting only 2 battalion's worth of battlemech's for it's troops but for the defence of the planet the local academy's cadets and instructors bring it up to full strength with machines drawn from the academy's training forces. The 3rd Ghost is at full strength but the elite 7th is at roughly the same strength as their numerical twin in the An Ting Legions. These regular formations are also backed up by the An Ting Civilian Guidance Corp. Where the defenders really fall down however is in aerospace assets and as soon as the AFFS formations arrive in orbit they are forced into a defensive battle to at least deny air superiority to the Davion's for as long as possible.
Landing at a safe distance from the cities the 4th FSAC's CO free's the Sun Jaguar Galaxies to do what they do best. Strike hard and fast at the enemy. While Delta manoeuvres and ties up the 3rd Ghost from intervening the Khan herself leads the Alpha and Beta Galaxies directly into combat with the best of the defenders. Well trained in anti-Clan tactics the 7th Ghost still finds itself facing constant attacks from an enemy which refuses to back off or attack along predictable lines of advance. While the Clan units are all massively under strength they make up for this with skill. The 7th Ghost manages to hold it's own but when the Khan's own Alpha Galaxy suddenly and with no warning shift to AFFS tactics and throw massive combined firepower at their lines the 7th's defences crack. At which time Delta Galaxy, disengaging from the 3rd sweeps in and joins their Alpha comrades in driving deep into the 7th's rear areas - while the newly arrived 2nd Ceti Hussars RCT takes over screening the 3rd. By the end of May the 7th Ghost has been shattered as a fighting regiment and although inflicting heavy losses on the Sun Jaguar troops has been effectively wiped out.
While the 2 Ghost regiments are facing off against the Clan troops the 4th FSAC divert's it's attentions to the green 7th An Ting. Equipped with an abundance of heavy and assault class battlemech's the 4th FSAC struggles to use the fast moving cavalry tactics of a traditional Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry formation, but resorts to sledgehammer style attacks on the 7th's lines - although does at least manage to usually strike from unexpected directions. When the 4th Ceti Hussars RCT joins the 4th FSAC the 7th An Ting is forced to fall back into the capital city of Cerant and the An Ting University grounds to make it's stand.
With the mauled 7th An Ting falling back and their sister regiment effectively destroyed the 3rd Ghost makes a break for their dropships, sweeping up the survivors of the 7th Ghost as they fall back. Using both sets of dropships (as well as a number of the 7th An Ting's dropships much to the fury of the trapped An Ting troops) the 3rd Ghost attempts to flee the world. With nearly 3 regiments worth of transports they scatter wildly and run the Davion warship's blockade. The initial burn from the planet is the worst as the Davion Admiral in charge has deployed 2 Davion III destroyers almost directly over the capital's starport. Nearly half of the fleeing ships are destroyed before they can effectively scatter and of the ones who escape that initial phase nearly another half are destroyed before they can rendezvous with jumpships. Even after folding the 7th's survivors and a handful of An Ting militia into their ranks the 3rd escapes with barely half their effective force. They flee to nearby Matsuida to join the garrison there.
With the flight of the Ghost regiments the remaining AFFS troops move in on the besieged 7th An Ting and prepare to finish them off. The Clan Sun Jaguar Galaxies stand down to refit their mostly damaged and crippled battlemechs - with fresh machines arriving through lengthy supply lines back home and from AFFS depots.
Kaznejoy
The desert world of Kaznejoy, once a veritable garden world during the Star League, is a barren desert world with little to offer it now that it's most productive mines have been exhausted. Still as a prefecture capital world it is a key command hub that the AFFS seek to seize. The 5th Davion Guards RCT, 3rd Tikonov Cossack's and the mercenary Hansen's Roughriders are joined in the invasion by a large conventional force of an armoured brigade and 3 infantry brigades along with 2 independent aerospace fighter regiments and the 4th Cruiser Squadron.
To face them the garrison has 2 green units of the Galedon Regulars - the 43rd and 45th and the veteran 11th Ghost regiment as well as strong conventional regular and militia formations. The defenders concentrate their forces in and around Gondovia, but are surprised when the Davion troops instead land at the ruined Fort Darwin. While Hansen Roughriders deploy to the desert's to screen the AFFS positions, the 5th Davion Guards as well as the 3rd Tikonov Cossack's take up strong defensive positions while the engineers attached to the infantry brigades hurriedly begin renovating the fortress and repairing it while also building several large airbases for the attached aerospace assets of the attacking force. By the time the Kurita units realise what is happening and attempt to push across the desert to attack the Davion positions are almost impenetrable and their attack is driven off and harried back to Gondovia by the Roughriders. While the Davion forces continue to raid and patrol while continually building up their base on Kaznejoy it is swiftly obvious that they are awaiting further troops before making their attack...
Valentina
The 19th Galedon Regulars had barely arrived back at their garrison postings when the sensors indicated a large formation of AFFS jumpships arriving at the Nadir jump point. The Screaming Eagles mercenary formation and the 1st Conroe Borderer's have arrived to pay them back for their attack on Niles. The attached fighter wing of the Screaming Eagles and the under strength fighter wings of the Conroe Borderer's are enough to secure their landing zones, but for once the defending DCMS units don't find themselves hammered from the air.
Knowing the skill of the 19th Galedon Regulars at defensive operations the Screaming Eagles deploy in an extended front and begin slowly pushing towards the defensive lines of the Regulars. Using their superior numbers and high end equipment they begin slowly grinding them down, all the while waiting for the "signature" drive of the 19th Galedon. In order to counter this they keep the entire 1st Conroe Borderer's in reserve to rush any breach the 19th makes in the Screaming Eagles lines. The war of attrition on Niles has now been carried to Valentina, but with the sides switched...
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Good to see that the Sun Jaguars are adapting to the new reality. The fact that they won a major battle against a force designed and trained to beat Clan units will be a major morale boost but the fact that they won by using AFFS tactics will be a major reinforcement of the changes that have been implemented. This will also make them much easier to work with by the rest of the FedSuns. Since this shows that the new Jaguars have cast off their old ways for a new and better path with the FedSuns. It will also serve as a good indication to the Nova Cats of just what they could gain by joining the FedSuns instead of dying for the Combine.
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3070 - May - The Wolves gather
With the grinding war on the Draconis Front continuing the High Command was of course largely preoccupied with either managing the active battles or planning for the next wave. In particular The High Command was extremely keen to not only wipe out any DCMS formations it could to avoid giving them time to rebuild or counter attack but now that the initial gains had been secured thought was being given to a more defensible border in the event of victory. Plans were drawn up to secure the Sadalbari and Thestria pockets while also securing additional gains to secure Dieron against any possible counter attack. The more aggressive elements of the Davion High Command were also pushing for attacks on Benjamin and Galedon to as it were drive home the point to Theodore Kurita that his realm was at the mercy of House Davion and that he had to come to the peace table as soon as possible. More than a few however, including the Marshal of Armies Jackson Davion felt that attacking and seizing 2 additional Military District capital worlds would not only dangerously overextend the AFFS but also result in the total dissolution of the Draconis Combine. Losing Dieron was going to be a humiliating enough pill for House Kurita to swallow let alone losing Galedon and Benjamin! If the AFFS managed to seize those 2 worlds it was likely that the Combine would fracture and descend into a civil war or might then become totally obsessed with their return and prove a longer term threat to the Federated Suns. That wasn't to say that the Marshal of Armies was entirely against a strike against those worlds to prove that the AFFS could if it so wished attack so deeply, but he wasn't convinced that occupying them was a good long term solution.
Fleet Admiral Buchwald also obtained permission in May for a plan involving the 4th and 7th Corvette Flotilla's. Labelled as Operation Caesar it would involve the forward deployment of no less than 20 Fox class corvettes - all of them upgraded block II ships. One addition that the rest of the High Command did insist upon was the involvement of the 2nd Destroyer Squadron as backup in case they ran into anything they couldn't handle. He also received word for the long planned Operation Paris to be launched at the same time. Also a large number of warships that are in the League, Capellan and Crucis Marches are tasked with Operation Nightfire.
On the 22nd of May Duke Roger Sanromea-Davion alongside First Prince Victor Davion and Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion announces that he is forming a new unit which he is gifting to the AFFS on behalf of the people of El Dorado. He takes obvious pride in the fact that the unit will be formed from elements of his own Ducal Guard unit, the Planetary Guard of El Dorado and various other odds and ends that he has been able to put together. The 1st El Dorado Tercio is to eventually consist of a full reinforced RCT, however it is to be organised in a rather unique manner. Instead of the usual command company plus 4 battalions of battlemech's and 3-4 armoured regiments and 5-6 infantry formations as well as 3 aerospace wings the 1st Tercio will consist of a command combined arms battalion and 3 LCT style sub commands. Each of the LCT style command swill consist of 4 battlemech companies, 1 aerospace wing, 4 various battalions of armour and a battle armour regiment - as well as a reinforced support battalion combining 2 artillery companies, an engineering company and a VTOL company. These units will be trained to operate as part of a greater whole - the 1st Tercio - or as individual LCT style formations. Allowing the new unit to hit 3 targets at once or combine into an armoured fist as was required. One thing that was not announced at the press conference deliberately at this time was that each of the LCT formations would be functionally identical to the others in equipment, to make it harder for enemies to know which of the formations they were facing - as well as being organised by companies of the same design in the manner of the old SLDF. The 1st El Dorado was also to entirely consist of omnimechs, omnifighters and omnitanks as much as was possible. For instance each of the battlemech formations would consist of 1 company of Templar-O, 1 company of Thanatos-O, 1 company of Dervish-O and a final company of Javelin-O. These were deliberately chosen not only to all be Federated Sun's signature designs but also from 4 separate industrial companies. If this model of organisation is a success it is intended to roll it out to other commands such as the Davion Brigade of Guards, Crucis Lancers and Avalon Hussars to ease supply issues. At the current time roughly 2 LCT commands are being assembled on El Dorado.
A second press announcement followed shortly after the formation of the 1st Tercio on the 24th, this time by Duchess Isis Davion. She informed the various press officials that she and her husband had been reading with great concern the reports from the world of Benet III and the "Death Mists" which had killed or incapacitated so many of it's brave defenders as well as proving a permanent threat to the civilian population. As such she and her husband were directing the various scientific institutions within the Federated Suns to look into some form of terraforming technology or air filtration units that could prevent the steadily worsening situation on that planet becoming untenable. Any technological gains made during this research could hopefully then be rolled out to other "tainted" worlds throughout the Federated Suns.
Knowing that the LAAF's supply lines will be strained by the siege on Hesperus the High Command also begins assembling a number of supply convoys to send to their former comrades - largely with older but still serviceable battlemechs and tanks and a large quantity of spare part. Most of these machines are potentially only useful within the Federated Suns as rear area security militia level equipment but they will at least help keep the LAAF operational if Hesperus falls.
Following the Lyran Alliance Estates-General voting again and this time in favour of inviting "Former Archon-Prince Victor Steiner-Davion" to Tharkad to discuss the succession. The First Prince in a carefully worded reply explains that he cannot do so due to the war, but that he is sending a representative to Tharkad to speak on his behalf. The newly appointed Princes's Champion Galen Cox - a Lyran native no less. Princes's Champion Cox will have full powers to negotiate on the First Princes's behalf.
On Dieron the Osaka Heavy Metric's plant is reformed into the Draconis March Heavy Industrial Mech Company. Government funding and support is rushed through to not only refurbish and expand the plant but also to open a second plant on Deneb Kaitos to produce the extremely useful Kiso construction industrial mech.
Also on Dieron the LAW facility to build Grand Dragons and refit other battlemech's is listed for sale to the existing military-industrial companies of the Federated Suns. Bids will be taken during May and June.
Similarly the Bulldog industrial plant on Proserpina has executives arrive from the Northwind plant and begin to put it back into production - concentrating on the Schiltron omni-artillery tank. They are hoping to return this facility to production by the end of the year. Other lines are also under repair although not to the same level of effort.
Within the Lyran Alliance the fighting on Hesperus drags on. The defenders are heartened with promises of aid being prepared but know they will have to continue to hold out for some time. They are slightly reinforced when the 7th Donegal Guards regiment arriving in system with LAS Carlisle and LAS Hamilton running escorting duties at a pirate point. The 2 Fox class corvettes are massively outclassed by the WoBS Invincible, 2 Suffren class destroyers and 3 Zechetinu II corvettes that are in orbit, but they do manage to hold off the warships from gutting the 7th Donegal Guards as they burn for the planet. The LAS Carlisle dies doing so while the LAS Hamilton limps away heavily damaged. They do manage to destroy a single Zechetinu corvette with nuclear missiles. The 7th lands on Hesperus and through heavily defended back doors rush into the factory to reinforce the defenders. Nearly 70% of the unit make it into the DefHes plant and join in fighting in the tunnels below.
Throughout the rest of the Lyran Alliance raids by WOB forces seem to spread like a rash. However the worst news comes from the Clan border where the Wolf Clan cross the border in strength. Striking out from the former Clan Jade Falcon worlds of La Grave and Orkney they hit Ballymure, Pandora, Crimmond, Tomans, Raselgathi and Fort Loudon. Leading the way is the Tamar Galaxy alongside more traditional Wolf Galaxies.
On Bolan the defending 4th Alliance Guards RCT and 1st Bolan Jaegers find their situation getting worse when the 11th Atrean Dragoons join the invaders. Without the heavily mountainous terrain they would already have been overrun. With FWLN ships in orbit they stand no chance of withdrawing and send word requesting reinforcements urgently.
Invaded now on 3 sides the Lyran Alliance is struggling to respond. While the First Princes's reply to their invitation is disappointing, with how bad the situation is for the LAAF they are forced to accede and welcome the dispatch of the new Princes's Champion. General of the Armies Adam Steiner is forced to privately send word to New Avalon requesting that the Princes's Champion bring with him a task force of AFFS troops...
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Yeah I would think seizing worlds like Galedon and Benjamin would have an affect not unlike Kentares did to the Davions during the 1st Succession War.
The damage to the Kurita pride would just be immense.
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Unit Profile - 1st El Dorado Tercio
1st El Dorado Tercio: Golden Guard
Founded in May 3070 the 1st El Dorado Tercio was something of a trial unit. On paper the unit is to be formed as 3 full LCT's which are deliberately planned to be identical. Each of the LCT that make up the unit will consist of a company each of Templar-O's, Thanatos-O, Dervish-O and Javelin-O's. The armoured units assigned to the LCT's are also designed around omnivehicles as much as possible and again they are designed to be formed from entire battalions of the same design and to be identical to each other. This new table of equipment for the unit is the brainchild of Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion. Based on the old SLDF idea of having entire units of the same battlemech and vehicles to ease supply problems, this new/old idea is to be tested out on the 1st El Dorado Tercio, if it is successful it will be rolled out into the rest of the AFFS as time, funds and material allows. In order to support this intent the finest technical staff and support force is assembled.
The plan also involves the 1st Tercio being effectively a formation that can either be deployed en-mass or instead broken into it's constituent elements and dispatched to hold or attack 3 worlds at a time. In some regards this is an emulation of the Ceti Hussar's formations who can be broken into 3 combat commands if need be, but without the full integration of these formations.
Most of the officers and troops of the new unit are El Dorado natives, with only a handful from other worlds being brought in for key specialist roles. When formed only 2 of the LCT's are actually formed with the 3rd effectively existing only on paper. The 1st LCT of the Tercio is drawn largely from the Sanromea-Davion Ducal Guard, a formerly battalion sized formation of mostly heavy and assault battlemechs, with some transfers in from the regular AFFS. While the 2nd LCT is drawn from the El Dorado Planetary Guard with again a handful of AFFS regulars for leavening. The most obvious example of this is Leftenant Melissa Sanromea-Davion who is assigned to the 2nd LCT's 1st company of the new unit for the time being from the Planetary Guard, at her father's own request with a brand new Templar-O for a ride.
Formed on their homeworld of El Dorado the "Golden Guards" immedietly begins training extensively with their new equipment and comrades. Particularly the members of the Planetary Guard but even those from the Ducal Guard saw a substantial upgrade to their equipment when they find their battlemech's replaced by omnimechs. Even the incredibly rich world of El Dorado and the Sanromea-Davion's who rule it were unable to equip their militia and household troops with omnimechs after all! Each LCT trains not only as an individual unit but also together. Plans are rushed forward that additional troops will be sourced from again the Planetary Guard and local training facilities and also the NAIS and New Albion Academy to form up the 3rd LCT as soon as possible. As soon as the 3rd LCT is formed up the plan is to transfer the unit to a world with a Combat Training Centre as a priority. For now the unit has no specific speciality but the intent from the officers of the unit and the High Command is to specialise in offensive operations - in particular using the flexibility of their omnimechs to overwhelm their opponents.
Officers
Although an incredibly junior officer Leftenant Melissa Sanromea-Davion is probably the most prominent officer in the unit. While she is considered an excellent mechwarrior who performs extremely well in almost every single combat simulation where she is fighting on her own, it is soon noticed that she seems to struggle to command any unit larger than a lance and in particular at personal interactions between herself and subordinates. Major General Vincent Rasmussen (recalled from retirement having previously commanded the 2nd Albion Training Cadre specifically due to his experience at training new units) takes a personal interest in her, knowing that she has a great deal of potential and given her connections is likely to be pushed for promotion, and begins working with her on both weaknesses.
1st El Dorado Tercio Command Battalion
Reinforced Battalion/Green/Reliable
CO: Major General Vincent Rasmussen
Aide: Colonel Keith Davids
Aerospace Brigade: Rear Admiral Georgina Hasek-Zibler
The Command Battalion consists of a full company of omnimech's supported by an armoured company and battle armoured company. Although not in the original plans 2 additional aerospace wings are attached directly to the Command Battalion, the first of which is equipped almost entirely with Dagger-O aerospace fighters and is trained as an interceptor unit while the second is designated as a bomber formation and equipped accordingly. These are designated the 1st El Dorado Interceptors and 1st El Dorado Bombers respectively.
1st El Dorado Tercio LCT
Light Combat Team/Green/Reliable
CO: Leftenant General Dave Sanromea
Formed around the former Davion-Sanromea Ducal Guard unit the core of the 1st El Dorado Tercio LCT consists of a mixture of locally trained troops and veterans of the AFFS who had taken up postings to the Ducal Guard. With the starting point of the former Ducal Guard troops the LCT is soon coming together as a force and integrating it's various sub-units effectively. The battle armour regiment's support staff is largely drawn from the various technical support personnel dispatched by the AFFS to help the new unit get set up. The 1st El Dorado Attack Wing forms the air support of the unit.
2nd El Dorado Tercio LCT
Light Combat Team/Green/Reliable
CO: Leftenant General Joe Zibler
The 2nd Tercio LCT is formed largely from units of the El Dorado Planetary Guard. While the rich world of El Dorado maintains a number of battlemech equipped units as well as sizeable armour formations within it's Planetary Guard the unit's technical staff are really struggling to cope with the upgrade to omnimechs and omnitanks. Similarly the technicians assigned to the unit from the militia are having real difficulties adjusting to the large formations of battle armour troopers assigned to the LCT. With the bulk of the AFFS support troops assigned to the 1st LCT the 2nd is having major technical difficulties, to the point that Major General Vincent Rasmussen has requested aid in this area from the technicians of the Davion-GM-Kallon Cooperative plant on El Dorado at least for the omnimechs and omnitanks of the unit so that the few trained technicians can concentrate on the battle armour and omnifighters maintenance needs. The 2nd El Dorado Attack Wing forms the air support of the unit.
3rd El Dorado Tercio LCT
Light Combat Team/Green/Reliable
CO: Leftenant General Ian Wright
While officially the 3rd LCT exists only on paper Duke Roger Davion-Sanromea has managed to acquire a battalion's worth of armoured vehicles and 2 battalions of battle armour forces for the still forming 3rd LCT. He has also bought the unit a full lance of Wayland Mobile Bases from his own pocket and as a result Major General Rasmussen is cycling a number of El Dorado Planetary Guard technicians through the 3rd before assigning them to the 2 operational LCT's. The armoured battalion in particular rarely uses their omnitank's flexibility and for the time being equips them primarily in an anti-aircraft role which is then used to train the attack wings of the other formations in ground attack. The 3rd El Dorado Attack Wing is an entirely paper force without a single officer, pilot, ground staff crew member or omnifighter currently assigned to it.
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The new unit will be extremely helpful once it is up and running. Plus that will make the new class of RCT extremely robust and flexible. Sad we don't get a Warlord but what ever the El Dorado "Third" make a fine addition to the AFFS.
So we have three Naval Task Forces moving out. The Fox IIs and the Davion IIIs make up a good amount of firepower. Now the question is where are they going? They maybe going deep to hit Combine forces or they might appear near the borders with the OWA and Snow Ravens as a show of what the FedSuns can offer and spare to deal with them without hurting their strategic position.
The Task Force from the League March is obviously getting ready to move on the FWL/Lyran fight to relieve one side of the attacks. That along with task force the Prince's Champion will be bringing will help slow the attacks and those forces can be used to get Heph back under control.
The third operation I have no idea what they will do. Maybe this is the task force that will go to the other side of the Combine to open a new front. They will be useful either in spreading the DCMS even more or as a attack deterrent for the Wolves. Once again they should go to the FRR. That place has been building up and raising troops along with training with the ComGuard this entire time. And unlike in canon where they left the alliance with ComStar here they never did and have continued to get support.
And speaking of the Wolves of course they attack. Kat wouldn't let a moment like this pass. And we have the start of a Rebellion by those stupid or greedy enough to support Kat as well that will start soon. Unless the Lyran forces preemptively crush those worlds. The Arc Royal Defense Corridor will be in full alert now that the clans are attacking. It is time to talk to Ghost Bear about expansion into.the Combine and the Wolves occupation zone. That should keep the Clans busy for a few years fighting on two fronts. And Jade Falcon is still hurt from their last attempt so it should still be awhile before they attack.
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Bears are interested into former Ralshague worlds. I think they hold all that Combine used to control, but Wolves still control a considerable number...
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The Bears don't really have any reason to jump in - nor would it be in their nature to do so. Even in the Jhiad they stayed out of it until more or less tricked into joining up, despite the possibilities. They are conservative to a tee.
As for Victor and the Lyrans, Victors best bet to help them is with a naval sweep. Hopefully one of these operations about to launch includes a powerful strike force sweeping up and along the FWL/Lyran border. First crushing the WOB naval force at Hesperus to allow Lyran reinforcements to finally land and deal with the situation there.
Then continuing on to the Lyran worlds that the FWL have invaded and giving the attackers/occupiers one chance to pack up and pull back, while also repudiating Peters outright land grab at the same time. Given the fragile state of the FWL and the civil war looking like its about to go hot again, you can bet orders will come back to accept the outcome. Make it pointedly clear to Corrine Marik that she's had her fun, recovered the worlds Peters naked land grab took (and have Galen encourage any holdouts to pull back on the grounds that the Alliance needs them on other fronts NOW) ... but she needs to pull her forces and warships back. And if she doesn't, well, don't expect the WOB to replace the warships she is about to loose.
It's very much an offer I think Corrine Marik would not refuse. She still gets her win, she's made and point - and she CANNOT afford to loose her Corvettes and ground troops in a futile fight against a FedSuns carrier group or two as it would destroy all her political gains (and strategic gains for that matter).
Then, Galens troops can turn his attention North to dealing with the WOB raiding parties and Wolf invasion. While stopping to chat with Adam and the Estates Generals as Victor to everyone's surprise (after you know, being the hero in their darkest hour, again) turns down the Archonship in favor of his nephew and nominates Ceaser or Reinheart as regent, while assuring the Estates Generals that the Federated Suns will do what it can to support their family on the other side of the sphere...
ComStar meanwhile are overdue for launching THEIR attack on Terra. Or even just executing high-tempo raiding through the WOB 'protectorate' to systematically knock off as many isolated warships as possible to grind their fleet down. And perhaps even seek to lure out and ambush a reaction force from the WOB by taking a key world close to Terra as an obvious staging ground ... then when the WOB fleet arrives, the ComStar fleet swings around the other side of Endor and a horrified Gregory Zwick shouts 'IT'S A TRAP!' as the FULLY ARMED AND OPERATIONAL SDS SYSTEM opens fire-
...
Okay perhaps I need more sleep :D
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The Bears should remind the Wolves what happens when they divide their attention, as well as probe a couple Trial/Raids across the border into DCMS space. Common sense says don’t but the Bears should consider heading towards Rasalhague Worlds with these probes before the AFFS can get them. Maybe even start talking with ComStar about the rest of the FRR.
Can’t wait to see the chaos of KSD and her Wolf Galaxy tearing into Lyran space and the ‘Katherine’ loyalists that move to support her.
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I don't see why the Bears don't attack the Wolves.
They are clan so keeping up the training of their warriors is so important. >:D
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I don't see why the Bears don't attack the Wolves.
They are clan so keeping up the training of their warriors is so important. >:D
Totally. And keep in mind the Bears are facing a strategic dilemma. While their territory is extensive looking at it from south to north, it is very narrow form east to west. In that the Bears lack strategic depth. With both the Wolves and the Combine currently preoccupied maybe now is the time to address that problem. So a little limited raiding and blooding the cubs can also serve as preliminary recon in force.
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Could be a great time to snatch up any remaining Rasalhague planets the wolves or drags hold
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I am assuming that the long awaited operation Paris is the one undertaken by the FSS Covenant and its two escorting Sian/Inazuma Corvettes.
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I am sorry to break the bad news.
On the one hand the Davions want the Dragon to sue for peace.
On the other hand they are celebrating that Comstar quit working for the Dragon.
Wouldn`t that imply that any message suing for peace will take more time then usual? Just saying.
And as Chris OFarrell and others mentioned Canned Sunshine:
Wasn`t it always said that while the Inner Sphere powers no longer used canned Sunshine casually it was informally known that when a power was threatened substantially that then canned sunshine would be back on the table?
Something like: Ok, we exchange a few planets down the century but if you cross the line at Dieron (for example) then the survival of the DC is threatend and then its sunshine time. And everybody knew about it and thats why certain borders were not crossed.
In the real timelime Comstar used this against the FS when they attacked Sarna during the 4th Succession War to stop them from totally demolishing the CC.
Can you imagine that one high ranking officer in command of a planet snaps after nearly all his forces are destroyed and then he sends out a message that the FS has crossed this informally known border and broken this non-written agreement and then orders his artillery to open fire?
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Could be a great time to snatch up any remaining Rasalhague planets the wolves or drags hold
As long as one does this smartly, aff
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3070 - June - Naval Operations
In June the Federated Sun's Navy had it's turn to show what the billion's of c-bill investment in building it could do. In Operation Caesar 2 full flotilla's of Fox II corvettes and a squadron of Davion III along with every pocket warship, assault dropship, gunship, fighter wing, marine company and LF battery equipped Tramp class jumpship that the Admiral's could scrape together swept into action on the Draconis Front. Meanwhile the FSS Covenant and her 2 escorting corvettes initiated Operation Paris deep behind the enemy lines. At the same time a large number of heavier ships began assembling as part of Operation Nightfire and headed towards the Lyran Alliance.
Operation Caesar
With the 2nd Destroyer Squadron broken into 2 divisions each of 2 ships as backup the 4th and 7th Corvette Flotilla's began operations within the Draconis Combine. Each flotilla effectively scattered, each corvette forming the basis of a raider mini-flotilla of it's own, consisting of the corvette - carrying full fighter wings, a Vengeance class carrier dropship, 2 pocket warships and 2 assault dropships, 2-3 Tramp class jumpships all carrying a mix of marine transports, further assault and pocket warships and enough carrier dropships to add at least 1 more aerospace regiment to the force. Supply flotillas remained with the Davion III destroyers operating as backup, mostly consisting of Monolith and Star Lord class jumpships who would dispatch the remaining handful of Tramp class jumpships to rendezvous and resupply the raiding flotillas as required. It went without saying that in addition to the Davion III's the supply flotillas had large number of assault dropships and fighter wings of their own protecting them.
Each raider force scattered throughout the Combine's space. The 4th Corvette's ships scattered mostly throughout the Benjamin and Dieron Military Districts while the 7th concentrated it's efforts within the mostly still totally HPG-dark Galedon Military District. Their goal was simply - to capture or destroy every Combine registered jumpship and dropship that they possibly good. They were to avoid combat with enemy warships if at all possible, if not they were to summon the Davion III destroyers to hunt and destroy individual warships or summon additional raider flotillas to help as well if they ran into a major DCA presence. To avoid the chance of them being ambushed in turn they were ordered to avoid a number of key worlds.
Even avoiding district and prefecture capital worlds the raider flotilla's were soon cutting a swathe through the Combine. While the lesser worlds would rarely have many jumpships in system at any time the loss of every single hull was something that the Combine simply couldn't afford right now. During June the raider flotilla's managed to each raid on average 3 systems. Meaning that overall 63 systems received the attention of the raider flotillas across a huge range of the Combines rear areas. The Tabayama Prefecture was particularly hard hit with only the prefectures capital world not being raided and swept clean of jumpships.
In each case the Davion's operation was effectively the same. The raider flotilla would jump into a system and immedietly disgorge it's dropships and fighters. Jumpship's and jump stations would be ordered to stand down. Any that resisted or attempted to flee would then be attacked. The Fox corvettes would smash any assault or pocket warship dropship with the aid of their own and fighter wings while other assault dropships and fighters would escort marines with prize crews to take control of jumpships and dropships. When the raider flotilla jumped out they would take with them the captured vessels which would then make their way to the supply rendezvous and from there back into the Federated Suns.
There were of course running battles at many jump points and often these would give the Kurita jumpships time to jump away and escape - if they had a sufficient charge. However even when this happened it caused massive disruption to the Combines lines of supply and even communication - with jumpships assigned to certain routes and worlds now suddenly either gone or having emergency jumped to the wrong system or a dead system and so out of use for at least a week.
Within a week of the first strikes the Draconis Combine Admiralty were under screaming pressure to "do something". Of course given that the entirely Kurita warship fleet consisted of only 24 hulls, half of which were Inazuma class corvettes there was little they could do. The heavier vessels were concentrated at worlds like Pesht, Luthien, Galedon, New Samarkand and Benjamin along with most of the corvettes. The few corvettes not at capital worlds were often stationed at worlds with shipyards to protect them. The DCA knew that to dispatch single ships was to invite defeat in detail and so instead began to slowly strip a warship here, a fighter wing there to assemble a hunter killer group to hunt the raiders - but they knew that this would take time and worse they could only possibly assemble a single group without stripping the defences of key worlds bare.
Meanwhile the Davion raider flotilla's ran rampant...
Operation Paris
The FSS Covenant and the FSS Trickery and FSS Trickster jumped into the Midway system on the 7th of June - masquerading as the DCS Siriwan (which the AFFS knew to be heavily damaged in orbit over Benjamin) and 2 escorting Inazuma class corvettes. Artfully arranged false panels and an engine room that was being run in a way that was driving the ship's chief engineer to almost a mental breakdown gave the impression of a heavily damaged cruiser limping home, while IFF transponder codes stolen by ROM agents and given to the AFFS backed this up. While these codes were somewhat out of date - Midway's HPG had been particularly trashed and it's communication lines to the DCA on Luthien were almost non-existent.
The planet's primary garrison was the 17th Legion of Vega, but it's green fighter wing was planet side rather than at the shipyards. The yards themselves had a heavy assault dropship force (built around 4 Nekohono'o and 2 Excalibur class pocket warships) to protect them, as well as a strong marine contingent and a naval aerospace wing. As well as these forces the DCS Galedon Warrior was home ported in the system and 2 Inazuma class corvettes were completing at the yards and were theoretically available for defensive operations.
The limping FSS Covenant approached the yards with pre-recorded messages being sent of heavy internal damage from fighting at Dieron. This ruse held up almost to extreme range but when the captain of the DCS Galedon Warrior saw the 9 dropships detaching from the incoming "friendlies" he smelt a rat and began a combat burn towards them to intercept them. Perhaps had he known of the existence of a Kirishima class vessel within the Federated Sun's Navy he might have caught on quicker, but that information had been heavily suppressed even within the DCA. The 2 Inazuma class vessels technically under his command were unable to join him, barely able to go to action stations and begin deploying away from the yards. He was however joined by the assault dropship force from the shipyard.
The FSS Covenant and her escort's 6 pocket warships - all Excalibur class - opened the fighting with a series of long range capital missile volleys at the charging DCS Galedon Warrior, while the other 3 dropships - all Vengeance class - began launching fighter wings that were heavily slewed towards anti-ship operations with 80 of the 120 fighters launched heavy weighted and outfitted with capital missiles/bombs on their hard points. The remaining 40 dropship launched fighters and all of the 24 launched from the warships themselves were amongst the finest interceptor designs and pilots the AFFS could produce.
Hit 3 times by missiles the DCS Galedon Warrior swung to port to fire heavier broadsides and was matched in this by the FSS Covenant. The FSS Trickster and FSS Trickery continued to drive forward firing at the DCS Galedon Warrior as best they could but also attempting to reach the shipyard before their 2 sister ships could become fully operational. The pocket warships stayed with the FSS Covenant and continued to pour missiles into the DCA warship as did more than half the fighters, while their DCA counterparts did the same.
The fight between the DCS Galedon Warrior and FSS Covenant was brutal and over much quicker than most naval engagement. By the end of it the DCS Galedon Warrior was destroyed along with all of it's accompanying dropships, while the FSS Covenant had suffered moderate damage and lost all but 1 of it's escorting dropships.
The FSS Trickster and FSS Trickery along with a full aerospace regiment had crashed down on the still working up DCS Divine and Beautiful Wind and DCS Cherry Blossom's Fall along with most of the DCA fighter wing. The 2 Kurita corvettes had stood little chance and been torn apart by the heavy fighters of the FedSun's Navy bomber wings - and then finished off by their Davion counterparts. While the DCS fighter wing survived longer and managed to inflict significant losses upon the 2 bomber wings which had crippled the 2 Kurita corvettes, they lost access to any chance to refuel or rearm when the FSS Trickery closed with the shipyards and began firing into their base station. When the surviving fighters from the FSS Covenant's fight joined their remaining comrades the numbers were simply too much for the Kurita fighters and they were destroyed.
With the enemy naval assets destroyed the 3 Federated Sun's warships made no effort to seize the shipyards or warships being constructed in them, but instead opened fire and with careful volleys crippling the yards over the course of 3 days. Not even the most optimistic plans of the AFFS High Command foresaw Midway joining the Federated Suns and as such it was more important to cripple the yards to prevent further Kurita warships being built. While the yards weren't outright destroyed and would be repairable, it would only be at huge cost and probably take years. Deliberately the shipyard slips capable of producing jumpships were less damaged, with the hope that this would force the Kurita's into prioritising jumpship production over warship production.
The 3 damaged Davion warships jumped out of the Midway system on the 28th of June leaving wreck and ruin in their wake, making the long way back via dead systems to the FedSun's to be refitted and repaired.
Operation Nightfire
The 1st, 2nd and 4th Carrier Battle Groups (albeit with the 2nd and 4th "Battle Groups" consisting only of their New Syrtis class carrier) formed the core of the forces assigned to Operation Nightfire. They were joined by the 1st Destroyer and 3rd Squadron, 1st Patrol Squadron and the 1st and 3rd Corvette Flotilla's. With 3 Carriers, 10 Destroyers, 4 Frigates and 20 Corvette's as well as a large number of jumpships and dropships of all kinds, the assembled fleet dwarfed any deployment of warships by the Federated Sun's since the 1st Succession War's Battle of Cholame. The fact that it was being launched at the same time as Operation Caesar spoke volumes as to the capabilities of the resurgent Federated Sun's Navy.
Using dead systems the massive fleet headed through the League March and into the Lyran Alliance. While Fleet Admiral Buchwald had been tempted to order it to strike at the WOB forces at New Earth, Thorin, etc or even perhaps Terra itself he had given strict orders. The Fleet was to hide it's presence until it could jump into Hesperus and liberate that world. For this purpose the 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers, 1st Arcadians RCT, 1st Aragon Borderer's, 1st Kittery Borderer's, 2nd New Avalon Cavaliers and 5th FedSun's Dragoons RCT along with a substantial number of independent battle armour battalions and marine units had been attached to the Fleet for ground operations. Leading the ground elements was none other than former Princes's Champion Ardan Sortek himself, with the rank of Field Marshal. It was due to arrive in the Hesperus system sometime in July depending on it's progress and any potential delays. Consideration had been given to inform the ComGuards or LAAF so that they could assign units to Task Force Nightfire, but had been rejected as a security risk.
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Seems I was mostly wrong about what the operations were going to be. Only one I got right was that the one being assembled in the League March was going to Lyran space. Just missed the actual targets.
The Raiders are the most important part of this Naval War. By stripping the Combine of its Jumpships and adding them to the FesSuns it tips the logistics' game even more in favor of the FedSuns. Plus with the FedSuns own Jumpship production and the new shipyard in work the supply lines will get more reinforced. To support themselves better and to lower tensions on their border the FedSuns can look to buy more Jumpships from the Taurians and the Outworlds Alliance/Snow Ravens. That makes the FedSuns more profitable to the OWA/SR keeping them from choosing a side and it makes the Taurians more money to recover and expand. The FedSuns can spare several billion pounds to buy the ships easy. They can also provide billions more in funding to both of those periphery states for new shipyard complexes to be started. This way the periphery states make more resources and the SR no longer have a reason to join the Combine in their death spiral.
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wow. if they took 60-100 jumpships out of the DC hands. that would crushing on any supplies going anywhere. can not wait for july's update. But I would have let LC and ComStar know about the fleet building up. I just would have told them that it was going to fight the clan (tell that that to comstar) and I would stay that they were going to New Earth (tell that to the LC). or something along those lines. make a dozen different stories, if you wanted to.
that would send any spies into tail spins. it also would make their higher command not trust any other reports coming from those assets.
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wow. if they took 60-100 jumpships out of the DC hands. that would crushing on any supplies going anywhere. can not wait for july's update. But I would have let LC and ComStar know about the fleet building up. I just would have told them that it was going to fight the clan (tell that that to comstar) and I would stay that they were going to New Earth (tell that to the LC). or something along those lines. make a dozen different stories, if you wanted to.
that would send any spies into tail spins. it also would make their higher command not trust any other reports coming from those assets.
It also would have put the two forces of the Lyrans and ComStar out of place expecting to fight in one area and being left to die. Not something an ally should do and would hurt relations.
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Okay guys I've got a question.
The ComGuards. They started this timeline with 50 Divisions worth of troops. They lost almost 10 full divisions at Caph, more to attacks from sleeper agents, and then lost a fair few more in running battles with the WOB throughout the CapCon and then again in the Combine recently as well as general losses fighting the WOB.
Now on the other hand they've also gained a huge support base for equipment - so they have probably kept up their battlemech/tank/infantry ratios rather than being forced into more infantry heavy formations. But how strong would the ComGuards be right now?
I'm thinking 30-35 divisions worth of troops. But I'm keen on hearing other thoughts.
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I would guess a 20-30 divisions capable of frontline deployment and 10-20 divisons that are currently fit only for garrison posting. I guess some divisions are little more than cadre force, training fresh troops that are picked by more engaged divisions, while heavily wounded and burnt out soldiers are sent there to recouperate.
Consideration had been given to inform the ComGuards or LAAF so that they could assign units to Task Force Nightfire, but had been rejected as a security risk.
Good, fewer in the know means fewer chances for inteligence leaks.
But I would have let LC and ComStar know about the fleet building up. I just would have told them that it was going to fight the clan (tell that that to comstar) and I would stay that they were going to New Earth (tell that to the LC).
That's a terrible idea. First of all, wobies are not completely stupid and would probably realise that hesperus is the target, not to mention that knowledge of the fleet departure could embolden them to launch their raids into FS (there are already WoB ships sneaking there). Secondly, people hate it a lot more if you outright lie to them, rather than if you just keep them in the dark.
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It also would have put the two forces of the Lyrans and ComStar out of place expecting to fight in one area and being left to die. Not something an ally should do and would hurt relations.
good point
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Okay guys I've got a question.
The ComGuards. They started this timeline with 50 Divisions worth of troops. They lost almost 10 full divisions at Caph, more to attacks from sleeper agents, and then lost a fair few more in running battles with the WOB throughout the CapCon and then again in the Combine recently as well as general losses fighting the WOB.
Now on the other hand they've also gained a huge support base for equipment - so they have probably kept up their battlemech/tank/infantry ratios rather than being forced into more infantry heavy formations. But how strong would the ComGuards be right now?
I'm thinking 30-35 divisions worth of troops. But I'm keen on hearing other thoughts.
I'd probably cap it at 30 divisions based on those losses. I think the other point to be considered is where are they recruiting from?
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Okay guys I've got a question.
The ComGuards. They started this timeline with 50 Divisions worth of troops. They lost almost 10 full divisions at Caph, more to attacks from sleeper agents, and then lost a fair few more in running battles with the WOB throughout the CapCon and then again in the Combine recently as well as general losses fighting the WOB.
Now on the other hand they've also gained a huge support base for equipment - so they have probably kept up their battlemech/tank/infantry ratios rather than being forced into more infantry heavy formations. But how strong would the ComGuards be right now?
I'm thinking 30-35 divisions worth of troops. But I'm keen on hearing other thoughts.
I would say at the higher end of that number. It's not like ComStar is not recruiting more replacement units. And it has been years for them so even with the losses they took they should be recovering. They have their enclaves in the FedSuns, Lyrans, and FRR this entire time to draw from. The locations with their shipyards and factories plus up to recently they had recruits from the Combine as well. Even if most of the new units were sent to Garrison positions that still frees up the older and more experienced ComGuard they are replacing to be moved to combat units. The ComGuard like the FedSuns has been growing stronger as time goes on. They may not have the numbers they did at the start of the story but they should have been expanding faster than the losses they are taking. As well as faster than the WoB with all the constant expansion of factories they are funding and getting
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So if I was to say put them at 20 combat capable (60-100% strength), 10 working up/battered units (40-60% strength) and 5 cadres (20-40% strength) would that sound about right?
As for recruits - my "guess" is 0% FWL, 5% CC (before it went under), 5% FRR, 5% Periphery (particularly the Outworlds), 20% LA, 25% Combine (before the recent unpleasantness) and 40% FS.
With the Combine probably falling of to 5%, and the CC states pretty much beat to hell and being 0-5%, FFR and Periphery the same, the new split will be with the LA on 30% and the FS on 50% of new recruits.
Or is that totally off?
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So if I was to say put them at 20 combat capable (60-100% strength), 10 working up/battered units (40-60% strength) and 5 cadres (20-40% strength) would that sound about right?
As for recruits - my "guess" is 0% FWL, 5% CC (before it went under), 5% FRR, 5% Periphery (particularly the Outworlds), 20% LA, 25% Combine (before the recent unpleasantness) and 40% FS.
With the Combine probably falling of to 5%, and the CC states pretty much beat to hell and being 0-5%, FFR and Periphery the same, the new split will be with the LA on 30% and the FS on 50% of new recruits.
Or is that totally off?
I'd say more from the Periphery and les from the Suns, but that is just me.
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So if I was to say put them at 20 combat capable (60-100% strength), 10 working up/battered units (40-60% strength) and 5 cadres (20-40% strength) would that sound about right?
As for recruits - my "guess" is 0% FWL, 5% CC (before it went under), 5% FRR, 5% Periphery (particularly the Outworlds), 20% LA, 25% Combine (before the recent unpleasantness) and 40% FS.
With the Combine probably falling of to 5%, and the CC states pretty much beat to hell and being 0-5%, FFR and Periphery the same, the new split will be with the LA on 30% and the FS on 50% of new recruits.
Or is that totally off?
I dunno about the CC. Joining the ComGuards is - along with turning mercenary - one of the most promising career choices for former CCAF personnel who don´t want to serve under the new management. And unlike mercenary life, as a member of the ComGuards the wouldn´t face the risk of having to fight the AFFS again at some point.
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I'd say more from the Periphery and les from the Suns, but that is just me.
There simply isnt a large scale periphery population base thats pro-comstar. Best is the Outworlds and they are very sparse population wise.
I dunno about the CC. Joining the ComGuards is - along with turning mercenary - one of the most promising career choices for former CCAF personnel who don´t want to serve under the new management. And unlike mercenary life, as a member of the ComGuards the wouldn´t face the risk of having to fight the AFFS again at some point.
That is a good point!
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That is a good point!
The more I think about it, I can even see the FedSuns explicitly making that offer to all CCAF and Home Guard personnel on the worlds they captured - both to reduce the number of potential insurgents with military training, and to make it up to ComStar for delaying the plans to retake Terra. To help with the latter, they might even throw in captured CCAF hardware, or former hardware of AFFS units that refit to more advanced technology. A few divisions´ worth of troops could go a long way towards appeasing ComStar.
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I'd agree that ComStar would probably have 20-30 Divisions at full strength with 10-20 divisions ranging from 'in reserve' to 'paper unit'. Mostly probably being used as HPG guards and cadres to slowly be built around.
I'd also put it that the full strength Divisions would also be somewhat better equipped than the OTL ComGuards. Not simply with Battlemechs, but with a LOT more Battle Armor equipped infantry thanks to the massive investments in the Federated Suns to churn out huge amounts of Battle Armor. Somewhat like the Dragonlords in that sense.
As for new personnel, its an interesting question. I have been expecting for some time now the SLDF to finally just collapse as inertia runs out, with the SLDF splintering and the Star League structures just shutting down completly. Some units heading to the Federated Suns (like the people who were the old Ulhans) but a lot in turn heading for ComStar as the next best thing in terms of their role and position. Giving them a welcome influx of trained and well equipped troops.
I'd actually expect that they would be growing faster than the WOB in absolute personnel too.
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The more I think about it, I can even see the FedSuns explicitly making that offer to all CCAF and Home Guard personnel on the worlds they captured - both to reduce the number of potential insurgents with military training, and to make it up to ComStar for delaying the plans to retake Terra. To help with the latter, they might even throw in captured CCAF hardware, or former hardware of AFFS units that refit to more advanced technology. A few divisions´ worth of troops could go a long way towards appeasing ComStar.
Again that's a good idea. Although a few former CCAF have been picked up by mercenary units or even the new march militias (carefully screened) theres probably a lot that could go to the COmGuards. Will think that over.
I'd agree that ComStar would probably have 20-30 Divisions at full strength with 10-20 divisions ranging from 'in reserve' to 'paper unit'. Mostly probably being used as HPG guards and cadres to slowly be built around.
I'd also put it that the full strength Divisions would also be somewhat better equipped than the OTL ComGuards. Not simply with Battlemechs, but with a LOT more Battle Armor equipped infantry thanks to the massive investments in the Federated Suns to churn out huge amounts of Battle Armor. Somewhat like the Dragonlords in that sense.
As for new personnel, its an interesting question. I have been expecting for some time now the SLDF to finally just collapse as inertia runs out, with the SLDF splintering and the Star League structures just shutting down completly. Some units heading to the Federated Suns (like the people who were the old Ulhans) but a lot in turn heading for ComStar as the next best thing in terms of their role and position. Giving them a welcome influx of trained and well equipped troops.
I'd actually expect that they would be growing faster than the WOB in absolute personnel too.
The ComGuards are DEFINITELY better equipped. High end battlemechs, aerospace fighters, tanks and BA have flooded into their formations. And more and more of their infantry are BA equipped.
As for the SLDF that is planned to be covered soon. The Second Star League is basically dead right now and everyone knows it. Including the SLDF.
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I would go with 30 Comstar Div in the field with 25 to 20 of them at full strength, and 5 div set up as training. do not for get that they might be able to get good supply of space trained pax out of Taurian Concordat to go along with CC troops that want to leave or can not work with the FS.
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For the Periphery there might not be huge population centers when compared to the Inner Sphere but there are still Billions of people out there. The Taurians alone with the straight-up betrayal and manipulation that the WoB did to them would be full of people that want a chance at striking back. Since the TDF is being rebuilt at a slow rate the people are more likely to turn to the ComGuard or mercenary work to fight back on WoB.
Plus the Marian Hegemony while being less than ideal still has a fight with a WoB backed faction. That means they would be willing to look to ComStar for help. Again a way to help with the slaving of the Marian Hegemony is to make slaves less economic by introducing more labor-saving technology and automated systems. That would stop that practice, increase the quality of life for everyone, and increase the legitimacy of the state. Something that the Marian Hegemony would want above all else. Plus with the MoC most likely joining the WoB faction because of their crazy leader that put a second enemy to worry about.
Then you have the many independent worlds and nations that have decent populations with HPGs on them. All of those worlds and nations like the Fronc Reaches and Aurigan Coalition would have the population capable of supporting the ComGuard recruitment drives. And since periphery states and worlds tend to be worse off the people would jump at the chance to join ComStar and the ComGuard.
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Okay so considering things I'd say new recruits are probably divided as follows.
5% Combine
10% CC - mostly former CCAF
15% Minor powers - FRR, Periphery, etc...
30% Lyran
40% FS
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Know there are Trillions of humans in the inner sphere, but what I have never gotten is how the various great houses can let their military aged citizenry become Mercs or Comguards. Seems like they would do more to ensure their formations were filled out first rather then letting soldiers for hire or 'warrior monks' to recruit those who should be loyal to house X. However even now with strong nation-states we have quasi-mercs, real mercs, and swiss guards so it's not as cut and dry as it should be, but it's still one of the things that BT does that leaves me a bit queasy. Thank you.
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It seems about right. With plenty of former military forces of the defeated powers moving to join ComStar as a way to get back at the ones that led to their destruction the WoB even the ones "allied" to the WoB woul.d have people turned on them.
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any update on what the WD are doing or what they have been up to?
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any update on what the WD are doing or what they have been up to?
That already got addressed they started their campaign against the Combine again. They are attacking the worlds near Outreach.
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Also shouldn't the Ice Hellions and the Hell Horses already be launching their invasion of the Jade Falcon Occupation zone? With the Falcons battered from their last invasion, more worlds can be taken from them by the two clans. The Ice Hellions might even stay in the Inner Sphere but are more likely to get kicked out anyway. Plus the War of Reaving should also be starting in the Clan Homeworlds soon. That means that the Falcons definitely don't have the chance to attack the Lyrans again.
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3070 - June - Naval Operations
Meanwhile the Davion raider flotilla's ran rampant...
That is ... dangerous. Very dangerous. A lot of the norms of the 3rd Succession War have fallen by the wayside, but Jumpships were still pretty taboo. An occasional seizure or what not is one thing, but a massive and systematic looting of the entire DCA fleet isn't just an attack on the DCA/DCMS ... but very much attack on the Combines viability as an interstellar state. A massive strategic attack.
I mean I'm all for it ... but its very much the kind of thing that would get Nukes handed out like candy to defend against the Combine as they would have little left to use. For that matter, retaliation attacks against FedSuns civilian planets and soft targets with nukes and bioweapons. Possibly small and a pointed example at first, to make it very clear that a line has been crossed, but if you push the DC into a corner...
You MIGHT want to try hostage negotiations. Announce that the jumpships are being held until hostilities are over and the Federated Suns will give them back, no charge, when the Kuritians are ready to talk.
Operation Paris
Captain jumped the gun by popping the dropships early. But still a good result. Surprising that the yards are actually intact enough that they can be repaired rather than rebuilt after three days of careful shooting the f*#k out of them. But even so, it'll freeze the Combines warship construction for years - and indeed make it incredibly hard to even repair the ships they have! Not a bad outcome.
Operation Nightfire
If you use Black Boxes to the Lyrans you should be secure - especially if have one-time pads exchanged with the Lyrans.
With that said, far better to take no chances given the situation!
I personally also would have tried to send, for political reasons if nothing else, more units that came from the FedCom days. Like the Revenants and more of the Dragoons from the FedCom days. But, obviously, there are practical reasons why thats not going to happen and I fully agree with focusing on speed rather than theatrics.
I am really looking forward to the stalwart, exhausted but utterly implacable defenders on Hesperus getting a strange fax of 'Look to our coming, at first light, on the fifth day. At dawn, look to the East' and nothing else. So with a shrug on the fifth day at dawn some scouts pop out a sally hatch to have a look...
Cue music (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIHFBJGj-yQ#t=2m14s)& avalanche drop preceeded by a f*#koff huge naval weapons barrage that smashes the MD line wide open, followed by the awed Lyran commanders watching the feed muttering comments about how the damn Federated Suns ALWAYS has to make an entrance of things and be the Big Damn Heroes...
In any event, looking forward to FINALLY seeing the showdown between the Toaster Worshipers and the Fleet Carriers strike wings carrying enough Canned Sunshine to make even the Taurians grudgingly nod in appreciation :D
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The Trojan Horse move with the FSS Covenant worked really well !
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any update on what the WD are doing or what they have been up to?
The Zeta Battalion's at the front - Alpha Regiment is protecting Outreach for now.
Also shouldn't the Ice Hellions and the Hell Horses already be launching their invasion of the Jade Falcon Occupation zone? With the Falcons battered from their last invasion, more worlds can be taken from them by the two clans. The Ice Hellions might even stay in the Inner Sphere but are more likely to get kicked out anyway. Plus the War of Reaving should also be starting in the Clan Homeworlds soon. That means that the Falcons definitely don't have the chance to attack the Lyrans again.
I've been a bit vague on what's happening outwith the FedSuns - I'm a full time lawyer, I have a decent social/family life, there's only so much time I can spend on the project. :p
So I'm leaving events off stage to develop. Basically I suspect the Ice Hellions are nosing around but so far no huge invasion. When they do they will probably concentrate on the Jade Falcons who've been hurt by the Wolves.
That is ... dangerous. Very dangerous. A lot of the norms of the 3rd Succession War have fallen by the wayside, but Jumpships were still pretty taboo. An occasional seizure or what not is one thing, but a massive and systematic looting of the entire DCA fleet isn't just an attack on the DCA/DCMS ... but very much attack on the Combines viability as an interstellar state. A massive strategic attack.
I mean I'm all for it ... but its very much the kind of thing that would get Nukes handed out like candy to defend against the Combine as they would have little left to use. For that matter, retaliation attacks against FedSuns civilian planets and soft targets with nukes and bioweapons. Possibly small and a pointed example at first, to make it very clear that a line has been crossed, but if you push the DC into a corner...
You MIGHT want to try hostage negotiations. Announce that the jumpships are being held until hostilities are over and the Federated Suns will give them back, no charge, when the Kuritians are ready to talk.
Captain jumped the gun by popping the dropships early. But still a good result. Surprising that the yards are actually intact enough that they can be repaired rather than rebuilt after three days of careful shooting the f*#k out of them. But even so, it'll freeze the Combines warship construction for years - and indeed make it incredibly hard to even repair the ships they have! Not a bad outcome.
If you use Black Boxes to the Lyrans you should be secure - especially if have one-time pads exchanged with the Lyrans.
With that said, far better to take no chances given the situation!
I personally also would have tried to send, for political reasons if nothing else, more units that came from the FedCom days. Like the Revenants and more of the Dragoons from the FedCom days. But, obviously, there are practical reasons why thats not going to happen and I fully agree with focusing on speed rather than theatrics.
I am really looking forward to the stalwart, exhausted but utterly implacable defenders on Hesperus getting a strange fax of 'Look to our coming, at first light, on the fifth day. At dawn, look to the East' and nothing else. So with a shrug on the fifth day at dawn some scouts pop out a sally hatch to have a look...
Cue music (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIHFBJGj-yQ#t=2m14s)& avalanche drop preceeded by a f*#koff huge naval weapons barrage that smashes the MD line wide open, followed by the awed Lyran commanders watching the feed muttering comments about how the damn Federated Suns ALWAYS has to make an entrance of things and be the Big Damn Heroes...
In any event, looking forward to FINALLY seeing the showdown between the Toaster Worshipers and the Fleet Carriers strike wings carrying enough Canned Sunshine to make even the Taurians grudgingly nod in appreciation :D
The aim is to force the Kurita's to the peace table. It does come with risks and the DCA is going to be pushing to unleash the nukes to try and lower the odds, but they know if they do the FSN will do the same - and they have a LOT more platforms to launch from.
Operation Paris wasn't just to take out the yards, but also do it in a very specific way: we can destroy them, but have only crippled them. If you escalate, we've proven we attack where we want bare that in mind.
Operation Nightfire is basically what units aren't committed and are in decent shape. Frankly the 5th FedSun's Dragoons was a push to include but they had to throw in one former FedCom unit. The rest are deliberately a mix of AFFS units new and old. Hell the fact that 3 out of the 6 didn't exist when the FedCom did should be a message in itself. Look how much stronger we are.
The AFFS plans to sweep Hesperus clean of the WOB and is sending enough ships (and yes they are carrying enough canned sunshine to make even a Taurian go "Damn!") to get the job done.
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The aim is to force the Kurita's to the peace table. It does come with risks and the DCA is going to be pushing to unleash the nukes to try and lower the odds, but they know if they do the FSN will do the same - and they have a LOT more platforms to launch from.
True but at this point the DCMS have frankly less to loose than the Federated Suns does. Especially if the orders come down to not focus on enemy military targets but to make it a point to Victor that the Combine have reached the 'you really want to throw down boy?' level by simply jumping a Corvette into an undefended system in the Draconis March, launching a single missile with the Curse of Galedon at the largest city and then jumping back out and letting the appropriate conclusions be reached (this IS exactly the scenario the bioweapon was developed for after all) as the planet dies horribly. That as powerful as it is, the Federated Suns Navy is nowhere near powerful enough to cover their civilians. And the Combines leadership couldn't give two hoots if the Federated Suns nukes a few cities on its worlds given that they are already targeting critical military-industrial targets (and in return the DCMS might just nuke the next AFFS landing zone)...
Things can spiral out of control FAST when you push people to this level. Just so long as Victor is aware he is really playing with fire by escalating to this level.
Operation Paris wasn't just to take out the yards, but also do it in a very specific way: we can destroy them, but have only crippled them. If you escalate, we've proven we attack where we want bare that in mind.
True, although the different is somewhat marginal in a lot of ways. But even so if nothing other than for face saving reasons, the Combine HAS to strike back at Victors yards now. Even if its Jhiad Bulls Suicide Charge style. Or the WOB starting up their own warships that are lurking in deep space inside the Federated Suns.
Operation Nightfire is basically what units aren't committed and are in decent shape. Frankly the 5th FedSun's Dragoons was a push to include but they had to throw in one former FedCom unit. The rest are deliberately a mix of AFFS units new and old. Hell the fact that 3 out of the 6 didn't exist when the FedCom did should be a message in itself. Look how much stronger we are.
And that is when the LCAF decided to send a Loki team in to kidnap Victor and strap him down to the Archons throne :P
The AFFS plans to sweep Hesperus clean of the WOB and is sending enough ships (and yes they are carrying enough canned sunshine to make even a Taurian go "Damn!") to get the job done.
*Anticipation intensifies*
But its actually a good move. If they pull it off, they smash a huge chunk of the WOB's most elite and well equipped forces in one battle AND knock out a pretty major chunk of their mobile warship firepower to boot.
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3070 - June Interlude - Necessity
Imperial Palace
Luthien
Pesht District
Draconis Combine
Fleet Admiral Hidaka Goro strode into the audience chamber and without a word threw himself down upon the floor before the sitting Coordinator. Abasing himself he finally spoke. "I have failed you my lord."
"You bring grim news then..." The Coordinator spoke softly as was his habit in these dark days.
"I do my lord. Your fleet yards at Midway have been destroyed as has the DCS Galedon Warrior, DCS Divine and Beautiful Wind and DCS Cherry Blossom's Fall." The Admiral kept his face to the floor ashamed beyond bearing at the fact that once again he was here to inform the Coordinator of further losses and disasters. "They destroyed a number of enemy dropships and fighters but all 3 enemy warships escaped albeit damaged."
"Are the yards repairable?" Theodore asked his prostrate Admiral.
"At great expense and with time, yes my lord. The jumpship slips are less damaged." Hidako Goro said frankly and then continued. "Combined with the losses of Dieron's yards and Altair's we have been reduced to the yards at Togura to build warships and those yards only have the Yamato slip and 2 slips for New Samarkand carriers. Although a second Yamato slip is under construction. The Kaga slip at Dover is still trying to rectify the problems there. Our remaining naval infrastructure is limited to the dropship yards at Schuyler and Chatham of Galileo Instruments, the LAW dropship yards here at the capital, Matabushi Incorporated's dropship yard at Avon, Midway Shipyards Scout jumpship yards at Schuyler, Stellar Trek's large jumpship yards at Chatham and their dropship shipyards at Dover and the handful of Tramp's produced at Isesaki by your cousins firm Isesaki Shipping."
Theodore Kurita already knew the perilous state of his naval industries but this stark reminder caused small spasms in his chest that he drove back. The medical team that was now never more than 10 seconds away would rush in if the monitors he wore under his robes caused them any great concern, yet now was not the time for weakness. "What you re saying is that we have been reduced to 2 capital slips 1 of which is still trying to produce it's first viable warship and 2 small warship slips and a handful of jumpship and dropship production sites... Which will cripple us not only militarily but also economically in short order?"
"Yes my lord. Combined with the losses of jumpships and dropships which continue to mount... We cannot maintain not only this war, but soon we will be unable to secure the continued existence of the Draconis Combine." The Fleet Admiral almost whispered the last words.
The Coordinator of the Draconis Combine sat quietly for a long time after that, so long that the Fleet Admiral thought the almost heretical thought that perhaps the Coordinator had fallen asleep. Yet finally he spoke. "Rebuild the yards at Midway. At the highest priority. Inform my cousin Chandrasekhar that I expect investments at his yards at Isesaki to increase Tramp production... Similar messages should be sent to the CEO's of all the companies that produce dropships and jumpships. Stellar Trek is to be informed that a new jumpship yard is to be built at Pesht. We are too vulnerable with only 3 yards producing jumpships and 2 of those minor yards. We must also add Inazuma yards to both Dover and Togura."
The Coordinator's admiral forced himself to speak despite knowing it could mean his death. "The cost my lord... We cannot afford it..."
"We must. Therefore we can." Theodore spoke softly but with iron in his tone. "We cannot afford not to do this Admiral. If you feel you cannot fulfil my wishes I will grant you the Honour of Wakizashi...?"
"I live to serve my lord. Your will shall be made manifest." The Admiral spoke to the floor.
"Good. Inform the guards outside that I wish to see my cousin Chandrasekhar personally, I require his counsel... And have my nephew Kitsune sent to attend upon me. I require his presence to lift my spirits..." Theodore waved a dismissal.
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True but at this point the DCMS have frankly less to loose than the Federated Suns does. Especially if the orders come down to not focus on enemy military targets but to make it a point to Victor that the Combine have reached the 'you really want to throw down boy?' level by simply jumping a Corvette into an undefended system in the Draconis March, launching a single missile with the Curse of Galedon at the largest city and then jumping back out and letting the appropriate conclusions be reached (this IS exactly the scenario the bioweapon was developed for after all) as the planet dies horribly. That as powerful as it is, the Federated Suns Navy is nowhere near powerful enough to cover their civilians. And the Combines leadership couldn't give two hoots if the Federated Suns nukes a few cities on its worlds given that they are already targeting critical military-industrial targets (and in return the DCMS might just nuke the next AFFS landing zone)...
Things can spiral out of control FAST when you push people to this level. Just so long as Victor is aware he is really playing with fire by escalating to this level.
True, although the different is somewhat marginal in a lot of ways. But even so if nothing other than for face saving reasons, the Combine HAS to strike back at Victors yards now. Even if its Jhiad Bulls Suicide Charge style. Or the WOB starting up their own warships that are lurking in deep space inside the Federated Suns.
And that is when the LCAF decided to send a Loki team in to kidnap Victor and strap him down to the Archons throne :P
*Anticipation intensifies*
But its actually a good move. If they pull it off, they smash a huge chunk of the WOB's most elite and well equipped forces in one battle AND knock out a pretty major chunk of their mobile warship firepower to boot.
While the Combine might prepared to risk a nuke to one of their border worlds, they also probably know that if they push victor enough he'll nuke Luthien. Or worse. And there is almost nothing they can do to stop him. Sure they can hit undefended worlds in retaliation, but he can take out ANY Combine world at this stage. Including the ones that House Kurita's members are sitting on.
You are right, the DCA is planning a strike. Although where they find the ships from is the issue. However that will be resolved...
As for Nightfire, yeah the AFFS is going to clean the WOB's clock not going to lie, and take out a lot of their vital units.
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3070 - June Interlude - Response
Governor's Palace
Benjamin
Benjamin District
Draconis Combine
Gunji-no-Kanrei Hohiro Kurita gripped the data pad with the news of the disaster at Midway hard enough that the plastic frame of it buckled and then snapped, sending electrical component's flying in all directions. Calming himself with a great deal of effort he snapped at an aide. "I want to see the WOB's liaison officer. Now."
Waiting had always come hard to the heir of the Dragon, and the recent events had done little to make it easier. Yet he forced himself to calm as he waited until the robed Precentor from the WOB came in. Before the man could begin with all that "peace of Blake" crap he snapped. "Have you seen the reports from Midway?"
The Precentor forgo the usual pleasantries and nodded. "I have honoured Kanrei. It was my own order's holy station on Vanern that we have just returned to glorious functionality through the blessing's of Blake that forwarded the message."
With a short chopping nod the Kanrei nodded. "Good... Then you know we have to strike back! The Davion scum can't be allowed to get away with this...!"
"What does the Kanrei have in mind?" The Precentor sat without being asked, something that usually the Kurita princeling would have objected to but for now he was too focused on his hatred of the Davion Devils.
"They have destroyed one of our yards and launched orbital bombardments against civilian cities on the planet... We must strike back in the same manner!" Hohiro ground out. "We have to make them pay for this...!"
"And you need our help in doing this... Of course. We will stand ready to assist you in this matter, the Sword of Blake in our hands ready to strike out the perpetrator's of this heinous crime..." The Precentor forced his face into a grim faced resolve instead of the triumphant smile that threatened to spread across it. Editing the message from Midway had been child's play, and now it was paying dividends. "Do you have a target in mind?"
At the tip of Hohiro's tongue hung the names of the worlds he wanted to attack... New Avalon, Galax, New Syrtis, Robinson, etc... Yet he knew that the devil Victor wouldn't have left key shipyards and capital worlds unprotected... Best to limit the attack to a minor yet symbolic strike that had a higher chance of success. "Yes... I think that we should hit the world of Verde... The dropship yards there feed not only the AFFS but also the ComGuards and Duke Nelson is a major supporter of the First Prince... More the yards there are part of Victor's new industrial expansions... Destroying them would show the Fedrats that Victor isn't Kerensky come again!"
The Precentor stood and bowed deeply. "The yards and Verde will burn in payment for Midway. You have my word upon the Bones of Blake..."
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Well Hohiro and his WoB assclowns just signed his own death warrant, the smash that world to bedrock he can expect the Rabid foxes and the whole Davion Guards Brigade with Victor at its head to come after him along with a massive battlefleet.
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"They have destroyed one of our yards and launched orbital bombardments against civilian cities on the planet...
I see the wobies have spiced up the report to fuhrterly fire up Hohiro.
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I disagree with you Billy Boy Mark II.
You talk of one nuke or so.
But what if the DC fires more?
Yes, a lot of planets were nuked in the first two Succession Wars, but the DC stands out of killing at least 80% of the entire population of two planets: Helm and Kentares.
And that is the difference between House Davion and House Kurita: Moral Values.
While I have no doubt (according to how Hohiro is described and no doubt at all about WOB) that the side of House Kurita is willing to go Kentares or worse.
But Victor is definitely NOT willing to go Kentares. He may order a surgical strike on Luthien (as you imply. But with nukes such a strike is never surgical) but he would limit (better said try to limit) the damage to the Imperial Palace and industrial sites.
Hohiro and the WOB are willing to go all in without restraint.
Is Victor really willing to go down this path?
Does MIIO have no psychological department that tells Victor that Hohiro is very close to going critical and that the WOB will do their best to push him into this direction?
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I see the wobies have spiced up the report to fuhrterly fire up Hohiro.
To quote Gandalf the Gray: "Every story can benefit from a bit of embellishment."
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While the Combine might prepared to risk a nuke to one of their border worlds, they also probably know that if they push victor enough he'll nuke Luthien. Or worse. And there is almost nothing they can do to stop him.
True but thats already the case given the massive and lopsided matchup between the AFFS and DCA.
What MIGHT stop him is a warning shot that if he pushes any further, the Combine will move into a 'If I'm going down, we're taking you with us' mentality.
Sure they can hit undefended worlds in retaliation, but he can take out ANY Combine world at this stage. Including the ones that House Kurita's members are sitting on.
All of whom will die gloriously for the Dragon! Such is their duty!
And there are a LOT of undefended worlds the Federated Suns can't cover. The idea is to make the point to Victor that 'you've reached a red line, stop before you drive us over it'.
There is actually a strong Russian school of thought of Nuclear De-Escalation where especially after the Cold War ended and the conventional advantage shifted increasingly to NATO, that in the event of a massive invasion of Russia with Russian conventional forces being destroyed, that they would nuke one of the NATO spearheads (on Russian soil) as a pointed message to NATO of 'You need to back the ****** off or we're willing to go all in' - with the idea that NATO would take its victory of crushing their enemies conventional power and retreat rather than press on into a full scale nuclear exchange.
There is similar logic here in that the Combine are going to show Victor that he has stepped over a line and needs to step back. Victor can either retaliate and raise the stakes to the Combine going into 'nothing left to loose, whichever Warlord hits the hundred billion FedRat casualty mark first wins!' mode, or, back off and stop with the shipyard attacks, jump ship seizures and so on. By making the point that Victor simply cannot protect all his vital infrastructure either. If anything I'd release the nukes to the local defenders to try and counter Victors warships and send most of the Combines warships into the Federated Suns to start blowing up an equal number of Federated Suns jumpships sitting at jump points if Victor doesn't take the hint.
The Capellans died with a whimper, divided from within and without and with far less suicidal people and fanatical populations. The Combine ...
You are right, the DCA is planning a strike. Although where they find the ships from is the issue. However that will be resolved...
Burnt Toast for all! Be interesting to see Victors response and if he gets the message that's trying to be sent. Or for that matter if the WOB can be trusted (snickers) not to escalate WAY past a controlled retaliation op.
As for Nightfire, yeah the AFFS is going to clean the WOB's clock not going to lie, and take out a lot of their vital units.
The WOB were dumbassses to go all in on a fortress world that they could never take quickly, placing their very best units and many of their warships a long way from home like that. Sure between the strike and especially the Clans starting up again the Lyrans are out of the war, but its put their best troops in mortal danger with ComStar just waiting in the wings ... it doesn't actually MATTER if the Lyrans are in the war more than at a token level if doing so costs them THIS much!
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Combine and WOB have serious logistical concerns, Nuking planets and dropping biological agents aren't going to fix that. One decisive naval battle and it only gets worse. Victor doesn't have to reciprocate (he likely will at some level to keep the Sandovals off his @ss), he just has to keep scooping up their jumpships, blasting their shipyards and wrecking their jump points. It won't be long before food riots, water shortages and what luxuries they have disappear. Even with the repressive regime and limited exceptions of the populace the combine will fall. A civil war that makes the one in another Fan Fic "Cloverspear" look meek and kindly and all Victor has to do is continue his "letter of Marque" campaign.
Victor can leave the mech, aerospace and conventional production alone with out jumpships and a bottle neck of dropships they can't leave the planet and those worlds are not like New Avalon in which New Avalon can produce all this hardware and still produce more then enough food for the people on it. So while the people and enlisted of the garrison are starving all Victor has to do is send 'relief' supplies to those cities not deemed necessary (with escorts) and liberate via food each major arms producing world.
Thank you.
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I wonder when the Black Dragons are going to be so pissed about the incompetence of the leaders they are going to revolt.
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Good it seems like the next phase of this long war is starting up. Hohiro really is a dumbass isn't he. He won't even question anything that is put in front of him so long as it plays to his Victor hate boner and delusions. Well it is a good thing he isn't the only Kurita around then. Cause if he was the Combine would be completely screwed and fracture into too many pieces which would become a pain for Victor and the rest of the Inner Sphere to deal with.
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Problem is that Theodore has jumped off the cliff too. His response to the news about Midway and the status of the DCA Jumpships fleet wasn’t to look to give strategic guidance on how to regroup. Or even to prepare a strategic attack on the FedSuns population or Jumpships fleet to make a point to Victor that he has pushed the Combine too far in the hope of a negotiated peace. Or order all nuclear weapons released and to be used on all enemy warships in kamikaze runs...
No, it was to tell his Admiral to magically make a new formation of warships fly out of his ass - and if he was not capable of this, then by all means he can stick a sword in his gut...
No idea what Minrou is doing these days. Hopefully it will be quietly looking to jump ship with the Nova Cats.
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3070 - June - Operation Achilles V
June began for Operation Achilles with something of a changing of the guard. Leaving the 3rd Federated Sun's Armoured Cavalry on Quentin to not only hold the world but also begin refitting and rebuilding, the 4th and 17th Avalon Hussars RCT's fell back into the Addicks PDZ to refit and rearm, the 4th heading to Murchison and the 17th to Errai, while Zeta Battalion of Wolf's Dragoons left Asta and headed into the Benjamin Military District. This freed up the 1st Dragonlords RCT and 2nd Crucis Lancers RCT from garrison positions and they joined Operation Achilles V. They were also joined by 2nd, 3rd and 23rd Avalon Hussars RCT's, the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT, 3rd Lexington Combat Guards and most shockingly by Mulvaney's Regiment and Stirling's Fusiliers of the Northwind Highlanders. While the Highlanders had been assured that the agreement that they would garrison Northwind would be honoured they had been asked by the AFFS if 1 or more regiments would consider offensive contracts at extremely generous contract terms. Colonel Mulvaney, always the most pro-Davion of the Colonel's, had immedietly agreed but she had also been joined by Colonel Stirling who wished to keep her unit's skill level up and avoid becoming glorified garrison troops. With these forces the AFFS offensive within the Dieron Military District began to hit it's stride.
Dieron
While the rest of the Dieron Military Distrct was struck by a number of hammer blows during June, Fortress Dieron continued to resist. The outer works of the mountain fortress had now been reduced to ruins, smashed and overrun. However the fortress itself, carved into the very heart of the mountain remained secure. Entire regiments of battle armour troopers under the cover of the guns of the Davion Assault Guards and the combined air power of the AFFS and their mercenary allies on the planet continued to slam into the defences slowly peeling them back, yard by bloody yard.
Losses amongst the defenders were mounting and while the AFFS could funnel a seemingly never ending stream of supplies and manpower into the attack the defenders had no such luxury. The 3rd Dieron Regulars were now hovering around half strength while the Warlord had functionally merged the heavily under strength 2nd Genyosha into the stronger 1st. He had at least ordered that they be concentrated into the units 3rd battalion with a hope of reforming the unit when the siege was lifted. Or at least that was the public version he was giving to keep up morale. By now even the Genyosha troops are beginning to have to use mothballed and borderline obsolete battlemech's as their own machines break down due to accumulating battle damage.
Across the rest of the planet the light handed Davion garrisons and preparations for democratic elections for the local government swing the mood of the planet heavily in favour of the Federated Sun's over any return to the Combine's harsh repressions. Given the positive stance of the locals the AFFS move up the formation of a Dieron Planetary Guard from sometime in 3072 to as soon as possible. Duke Sandoval even begins to make preparation for a personal visit to the world, or perhaps a visit by his son.
Styx
The 1st Sheraton Knights and the 33rd Avalon Hussars are strongly reinforced with 2 brigades of infantry - including 3 regiments drawn from planets with similar weather patterns to Styx. Also a full engineering battalion and a free regiment of light armour is deployed to provide additional scouting - built around a full battalion of the new Musketeer hover tank. With these forces the 2 battlemech formations begin pushing forward again. Using the infantry formations to overrun any dug in positions with support for the battlemech's the AFFS forces take advantage of the hover tanks of the 22nd FedSun's Light Armour Regiment's ability to cross flooded regions and are soon outflanking the Kurita loyal militia.
By the end of June the tide has definitely turned in favour of the AFFS and the DCMS militia have been reduced to a pocket of land around the planetary capital. They have dug in, but with no real armour of their own and under constant attacks it is only a matter of time before their lines are broken and the capital falls. With that in mind the local governor in an attempt to prevent needless bloodshed orders the militia to stand down and surrenders to the AFFS forces on the 30th.
Lyons
The 13th Sun Zhang Cadre's Tai-sa Vincent Foley abandons the handful of conventional DCMS units on the planet to try and keep the planetary population from rebelling while he uses the predemonantly light battlemech's of the 13th Cadre to tie up the incoming Davion Guard unit. Unfortunately the 4th Davion Guards is similary built around fast attack battlemech's and so can match the Kurita troops in speed - and far exceeds them in strength and skill. The 4th's full aerospace regiment swiftly acheive air superority against the green cadets of the 13th Sun Zhang Wing. Again and again the 13th Sun Zhang finds itself on the losing end of running cavalry battles and the green cadet's frustration at being hammered constantly begins to show. Discipline begins to break down and instead of disengaging when the fights turn against them many of them begin to attempt to drive the attacks home in a vain attempt to win. Losses begin to mount faster and faster and by the end of June the 13th has been reduced to a ragged reinforced battalion while the 4th Davion Guards have lost barely 2 companies of battlemech's - half of whom's mechwarriors will return to active duty shortly.
Dyev
With the arrival of LAAF garrison troops on Imbros III the Fighting Urukhai regiments jump to the nearby world of Dyev and land on the 20th of June. Finding themselves facing 2 veteran and well equipped mercenary formations with a reputation for hard fighting and with the planet's population at best passively resisting Combine occupation the 1 conventional regiment of armour and 3 infantry regiments surrender as soon as the mercenaries arrive.
Al Na'ir
The defending 15th Dieron Regulars consisted of mostly assault battlemech's but lacked the usual conventional forces assigned to a regular unit after their disgrace on Towne. Against them the AFFS dispatched the 1st Dragonlords RCT, 2nd Crucis Lancers RCT and the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT. The Light Cavalry's aerospace assets along with their battle armoured infantry as well as the huge battle armour formations of the Dragonlords was considered the ideal force to attack the asteroid rich system of Al Na'ir, while the 2nd Crucis Lancers assault and heavy battlemech's are considered a match for the 15th Dieron's battlemech forces.
The 2nd Crucis Lancers landed on the planet directly with elements of the 1st Dragonlords, while the remaining Dragonlords and the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry began clearing the asteroid belt facilities one by one. Meanwhile Tai-sa Michael Warner has concentrated his battlemech regiment on the planet.
Any thoughts that the Tai-sa might have had of destroying the invading Davion troops using his assault weighted battlemech regiment are swiftly dispelled when his initial attack on the 2nd Crucis Lancer's landing zone is met with overwhelming firepower. Even now his regiment is at the bottom rung of the DCMS's supply chain and contains little in the way of upgrades. By comparison the reinforced regiment of battlemech's of the 2nd Lancers and the 2 battalion's of the 1st Dragonlords are equipped with the finest battlemechs and omnimech's that the Federated Sun's can produce. As he retreats from the initial attack a battalion of the Dragonlord's manages to swing in and hit him in the flank pinning him in place for the 2nd Crucis Lancer's counter attack.
While the 15th Dieron does manage to fight it's way out of the counter attack it leaves almost 4 companies of assault battlemech's behind as little more than twisted wreckage while the remaining 4 companies of the under strength command are all damaged and battered, many running low on ammunition. Marshal Anne Sung has her damaged and combat weary troops fall back - while unleashing the remaining battalion of the 1st Dragonlords as well as her own 4th battalion which has seen only light combat to pursue the damaged 15th along with the fresh 6th Crucis Lancers Armoured Regiment and the 2nd Crucis Lancers Jump Infantry Regiment. Harried and pressed by the fresh Davion troops the 15th Dieron breaks for the capital Homai-Zacki hoping to use their urban warfare skills if they can reach it. However after a 2 day running battle with the pursuing troops Tai-sa Warner's exhausted troops approach the city to find the hastily refitted 1st and 2nd Battalion's of the Crucis Lancers blocking their path, having used their dropships for a "combat hop" to get between the Regular's and their goal.
Deciding that the 15th Dieron has had enough disgraces in recent years the physically and mentally drained Tai-sa orders a "banzai charge" so that his unit might at least die with honour. Outnumbered 2 or even 3:1 and with a similar sized enemy force closing on his rear the Tai-sa leads the charge personally. Caught between the 2 AFFS formations the 15th Dieron Regulars is entirely destroyed. With the destruction of their main garrison in front of their very eyes the local government immedietly surrender.
While Marshal Anne Sung's troops are conquering the planet the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry with elements of the 1st Dragonlords are sweeping the asteroids clean of Kurita troops. In bloody tunnel fighting the Yori Mechworks fall by the 27th and with it the last real organised resistance.
Nirasaki
The defending 24th Dieron Regulars was known as a hard fighting command that used terrain to it's advantage. For that reason the AFFS has dispatched the veteran and superbly equipped 22nd Avalon Hussars RCT to the planet backed up by their less experienced sister regiment the 2nd Avalon Hussars RCT. With the local planet having little in the way of militia's due to it's particular government style the 24th Dieron Regulars shows again that it's reputation for fighting smart is well founded. They immedietly withdraw from the planet upon the arrival of the Davion forces. The collectives that form the planet's civilian government surrender to the AFFS as soon as the 2 RCT's land. The AFFS troops request replacement with some conventional troops in order for them to pursue the 24th Dieron Regulars.
Athenry
The 3rd Avalon Hussars RCT finds itself with almost as little of a fight as it's sister regiments finds on Nirasaki. The defenders, entirely consisting of local militia, and with the memory of the excellent behaviour of the Davion mercenary forces who sought to seize the world in '39 compared to the brutal behaviour of the DCMS find themselves with little incentive to fight and die against a front line Davion RCT. They surrender and the planet peacefully seeks admittance to the Federated Suns.
Deneb Algedi
Mulvaney's Regiment of the Northwind Highlanders jumps into the Deneb Algedi system with the support of a mixed brigade of conventional AFFS formations - the CO of which has been told to take Colonel Mulvaney's orders as though they come from the First Prince himself. Ironically the largest source of problems for the invading troops isn't from the limited DCMS militia but instead from a number of Combine nobles holidaying on the world in order to hunt the local Nayaraptor. Feeling it is their patriotic duty to resist the hated Davion foes they take their high powered hunting rifles and use them as sniper rifles against the invaders. For a number of weeks they cause a small number of constant losses to the invaders, but when their specialised civilian ammunition begins to run low they are forced to attempt to raid the sporting goods stores near the spaceport for more and are swiftly apprehended - ironically by a small force of Military Police from the conventional brigade who turn them over to Colonel Mulvaney to decide what to do with them.
Although technically not military forces, Colonel Mulvaney decides that shooting a dozen or so high level Combine nobles and their entourages as insurgents would cause no end of problems and instead hands them over to the AFFS as "irregular militia". They are interned as such and sent to prisoners of war camps within the Federated Suns - which ironically pleases most of them as being treated with the "honour" of warriors.
Nashira
Unlike Deneb Algedi the resistance that Stirling Fusiliers faced was largely the work of the organised militia. With the example of their fathers and grandfathers fighting in the War of '39 the militia put up a stiff resistance to the Fusiliers and an accompanying brigade of infantry. Colonel Stirling is more than a match for the retired DCMS infantry officers leading the militia, but finds herself having to rely on the AFFS infantry or risk her battlemech's suffering from kneecapping strikes by insurgents. While she is able to crush any militia who are stupid enough to face her in battle, she struggles to deal with those conducting raiding strikes on her forces. She sends word of this to Robinson and is informed that a new infantry brigade will be dispatched to bolster her forces as well as a VTOL battalion.
Pike IV
The 3rd Lexington Combat Guards having been briefed on their target of Pike IV know that the locals have little or no love for the Kurita's but that they tend to react badly to invaders. As such General Marie Stevens divides her command into 2. The first battle group consisting of 4 companies of assault and heavy battlemech's backed up by an armoured and infantry regiment drop at the highlander capital of Stratopolis, while the remainder of her force 3 companies of assault and heavy battlemechs with an armoured and infantry regiment drop at the lowlander capital of Rolfshire. She invites both groups leaders to attend upon her to discuss the future of their planet.
The meeting begins badly and just seems to go down from there. The leaders of both of the factions on Pike IV spend more time shouting at each other rather than negotiating with General Stevens. Which is just what the General intends. She is soon "forced" into the role of mediator and neutral party. All the while the militia standing guard at their posts facing her troops are getting used to the presence of her troops - who are under orders to behave impeccably. They are soon even buying local foodstuffs from the surrounding countryside and helping with any damage that the planets storm brings.
-
So Victor wants to bring Theodore to the negotiating table?
And at the same time he sweettalks the People of the DC into abandoning the DC (what is the correct word: disenfranchise???)
I fear that Victor goes too far with this, because sooner or later some of those planets have to return to DC control.
Or, if he keeps them, the hatred in the DC will make Hohiro`s current hate look tame in comparison.
-
At this point, worrying about the Combine hating the Federated Suns is wasted energy.
Because the Combine have proven now, without any doubts in the eyes of the Suns, that the 3050 truce period was entirely an aberration, not a genuine attempt to change. Just the Combine playing for time with the Clans smashing into them, hoping that Omi could seduce Victor into yet another War Of Davion Succession without any trust that can be worked as a foundation for new relationships.
That for centuries the Combine has been trying to take over the Inner Sphere and destroy the Federated Suns and even the so-called 'liberals' like Theodore when you really scratch under the surface, absoloutly live that dream.
Ergo, they already hate the Federated Suns with the burning fury of a thousand suns and so who cares if they add one more burning sun onto the pile. Especially when there is a very good chance of steadily assimilating these worlds into the Federated Suns as it becomes clear that once the weight of the DCMS and knives of the ISF are taken out of play, a lot of the populations will genuinely start to accept and even like living in the Federated Suns!
---
As for the battles, the continued resistance on Dieron is impressive, but utterly useless. Holding out in the fortress like this might work in the 3rd succession war, but when the AFFS units can (and are) continually resupplying munitions and even spare mechs, rotating out the damaged stuff for repairs and rotating the attackers through so they can get some rest and downtime while the defenders are under 24/7 attack? IF the DCMS troops had a hope of a relief force coming for them and they just had to hang on a little longer, that would be one thing and make sense.
But the officers have to know (and the men too by now) that no relief force is coming. And even that the entire planet which was always restive, is cheerfully embracing the Federated Suns and delighting in the new management. Even for elite units, there has to be a limit at which point they realize its beyond hopeless and either snap in a full scale Banzai charge, choosing to go out on their own terms and hopefully take a few of the enemy with them, or, just throw in the towel.
I wonder when they'll reach that point...
The rest of the attacks are going well. Although it looks like - if my hastily drawn maps are accurate - that its about time for the AFFS to stop, pause, take a breath for a few months to bring up new units, rotate others and consolidate before the next strike. Or even just sit back and watch the Navy sweep through the Combine and relieve them of their Jumpship fleets, patiently waiting for Theodore to scream uncle...
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3070 - June - Operation Ajax V
The defence of the Benjamin Military District was becoming easier as more and more HPG's were brought back online by the WOB. However it was becoming steadily harder as well as more and more DCMS units were either destroyed or chewed up and the AFFS forces pushed deeper towards the District Capital itself. Iruzun continued to be massively reinforced with conventional units and similar deployments were ordered to Umjiri and Hagiwawa. Worlds deeper into the Combine were stripped of conventional regular formations and even militias.
Donenac
The grinding war on Donenac finally came to a conclusion in June. The 2 surviving companies of the 9th Benjamin Regulars were now outnumbered to a ludicrous extent. Indeed the threat they posed had diminished to such an extent that Marshal May of the 42nd Avalon Hussars retired his own unit and assigned the 1st and 5th respectively to each finish of a single company/garrisoned city. While a few members of his unit felt that they should finish what they started the Marshal had effectively taken the view that the 9th Regulars had been reduced to a training exercise for the less experienced 1st and 5th Avalon Hussars. Of course with his own unit in reserve.
The 1st and 5th moved in, copying the successful tactics they had seen the 42nd use so many times to reduce each cities garrison in turn. In a week long battle they each destroyed the remaining companies of the 9th with only light losses. Marshal May then spent the remainder of the month (with permission from the High Command) reorganising the 3 Avalon Hussars commands. With the 5th designated as the planets garrison he transferred a number of now battle hardened troops from that unit into the 1st and his own 42nd to bring those 2 units back up to nearly full strength with further offensive operations in mind. Although this reduced the 5th to just over 40% of it's full strength this still left it with 5 battlemech companies, 2 regiments of armour and 4 full infantry regiments as well as 2 slightly over strength battle armour battalions. This was felt to be more than sufficient to hold the world at least until further reinforcements could be sent.
Ludwig
With the locals turning against them the 24th Benjamin Regulars are more than aware that it is only a matter of time before the AFFS forces on planet hunt them down and destroy them. As such they make a desperate and wholly unexpected decision to flee the world at the start of June. Attacking an isolated AFFS post guarding a small mining complex they manage to overrun it's small spaceport during the night and board the single Mule class transport which had landed to load the ore that was to shipped off world. Abandoning most of their remaining equipment they hurriedly forced the crew to blast off and make for orbit, while broadcasting on their black box in code that they would be making for a particular pirate point.
With AFFS fighters and dropships scrambled to chase them the remaining warriors of the 24th Benjamin barely made it to the pirate point an hour ahead of the pursuit. However just as they did a DCA Tramp jumped in to extract them using it's LF batteries. While Benjamin had been loath to risk the precious jumpship the situation had become so desperate for troops that the 4 remaining companies of the 24th Benjamin were not something to be dismissed out of hand. The jumpship heads for Hagiwawa where some battlemech's are being prepared to rearm the unit.
The AFFS forces on planet leave the 12th FedSun's Dragoon RCT to hold the world as a garrison while the 2nd Dragonlord's RCT and 4th Crucis Lancers RCT board their dropships and prepare to launch further attacks. The 2nd Dragonlords RCT and 4th Crucis Lancers RCT leave the system near the end of June, jumping for Irurzun.
Waddesdon
The scattered remains of the militia and noble forces on Waddesdon last for nearly 2 weeks of June before finally surrendering. Totally outclassed from the start they have done little other than costing the 6th FedSun's Dragoons time, some ammunition and a handful of damaged battlemech's and tanks that are swiftly repaired.
Kurhah
With the veteran conventional brigade of armour and infantry attached to his forces Colonel Hatfield-McCoy swiftly moves to destroy the last holdouts remaining on the planet. By the 14th of June the last battalion of infantry have surrendered rather than face total annihilation. Leaving the conventional brigade to garrison the planet the colonel readies his 21st Rim Worlds for the next attack.
Umijiri
The 6th Ghost regiment is the primary unit rushed to the world of Umjiri with orders to hold and delay the AFFS advance for as long as possible. To aid them the 6th Arkab Legion is also dispatched to the world along with a wide selection off free conventional forces and militia's stripped from other worlds. The 6th Ghost quickly forms up a task force built around itself - with 4 of the best conventional armour regiments and no less than 7 various motorised and mechanised infantry regiments under it's direct command along with an additional fighter wing. The 6th Arkab is bolstered by a single regiment of light armour and a regiment of jump infantry. The less useful armour and infantry formations are then formed into ad-hoc brigades and assigned to the defence of key locations and cities.
The defensive preparations continue at a feverish pace which is only heightened when the AFFS finally arrive. Leading the way is the 1st Davion Guards RCT and the Davion Old Guards RCT. Also present are the 1st Revenant Guards RCT, 1st Kathil Uhlans, 41st Avalon Hussars RCT, 8th Crucis Lancer RCT and 1st Cunningham Commandos. With 5 of the finest RCT's in the AFFS and an additional 2 battlemech regiments with supporting forces it's obvious that the High Command intend to seize this world. To further bolster the formation no less than 2 conventional armoured brigades and 3 infantry brigades are all assigned to the attack. A large number of naval air wings and assault dropships escort the huge flotilla as well as the 1st Cruiser Squadron.
Leaving the defence of the cities and fortifications to the second line formations the DCMS units on the planet fight a combined and integrated defensive campaign that attempts to preserve their units while also denying the AFFS the chance to pin them in place and destroy them. For that purpose the 6th Ghost has requisitioned or outright stolen almost any vehicle with anti-aircraft potential and attached it to their formation. Even with this flak "umbrella" the 2 DCMS formations are soon suffering from heavy attacks from the Davion air wings.
The 1st Davion Guards, Davion Old Guards, 1st Kathil Uhlans and the Cunningham Commando's keep up the pursuit of the 6th Ghost and their Arkab screen, harrying them across the planet in a series of pitched battles and skirmishes, but the veteran Ghost regiment manages to avoid being forced into a battle they know they can't win. However as these running battles are raging the 1st Revenant Guard, 41st Avalon Hussars and 8th Crucis Lancers begin the systematic destruction of the second line garrisons that the DCMS battlemech forces have had to effectively abandon.
By the end of June nearly half the planet has been secured or is in the process of being secured for House Davion. However the 2 DCMS formations have proven elusive and continue to pose a threat. It's soon apparent that both units have an unknown ability to redeploy just the Davion's think they have them trapped and reappear having crossed impossible terrain. Finally on the 30th of June an aerospace fighter from the 1st Davion Guards Air manages to shoot down the cause of this incredible manoeuvrability. A company from the Davion Old Guards quickly secures the wreckage and engineers begin crawling over the superheavy transport VTOL's wreckage.
Hagiwawa
The fighting on Hagiwawa actually starts before the AFFS arrive. The 1st Ghost having fallen back twice now in the face of massive invasion forces feels that their actions have been entirely vindicated by the total destruction of over a dozen units who have tried to stand and fight against hopeless odds. However the command group on Benjamin does not agree. They order Tai-sa Kasigi taken into custody and shot as a coward. Along with his XO and all 3 battalion commanders. The ISF and DEST forces on planet with the support of the 27th and 28th Benjamin Regulars attempt to enforce this command. Unsurprisingly the 1st Ghost resist.
While outnumbered nearly 2:1 the 1st Ghost has the edge in experience and find their cause bolstered when fully two thirds of the units they evacuated from Junction side with them. Declaring their loyalty to the Coordinator and Kanrei they open fire upon those attempting to gut their officer corp and are soon hammering the 28th Benjamin Regular's in particular. The Benjamin Regulars are only saved due to the intervention of nearly 4 mixed brigades of conventional and militia forces assembled from a number of worlds which side with them. The fleeing 24th Benjamin Regulars lands on the planet and swiftly is rearmed and joins their fellow sister regiments in pursuing the arrest/destruction of the 1st Ghost.
When the AFFS task force consisting of the 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT, 1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs, 10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and the 1894th Light Horse arrive in the system they find the garrison tearing itself apart. The arrival of the AFFS troops at least brings a stop to the active fighting, although both sides refuse to cooperate. Swiftly realising this the Davion forces deploy the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry to screen the Benjamin Regular forces and the remaining 3 units begin full scale attacks against the 1st Ghost as the most dangerous enemy formation. They deliberately leave openings in the air cover to allow the 1st Ghost to flee the world at anytime. Which they do on the 29th of June. At the time they break off and flee the 1st Ghost has lost nearly 5 companies of battlemechs, of which the majority were lost in the infighting before the AFFS even arrived. Again they take with them almost every trooper that sided with them.
This leaves the AFFS formations free to turn on the heavily damaged 24th, 27th and 28th Benjamin Regulars with only the 27th at near full strength...
Homam/Sadalbari
The 3rd Robinson Rangers RCT splits into 2 over strength combat commands and lands upon the 2 now almost entirely isolated worlds of Sadalbari and Homam on the 7th and 8th of June respectively. The 2 worlds have been stripped entirely clean of the few conventional units and even militia assigned to them and have little more than a corporal's guard of troops available to put up even a token resistance if they so wished. Which they wisely do not. The only notable point of these invasions are that the Homam combat command is commanded by none other than Colonel Arthur Davion, Duke of Galtor.
Irurzun
The 1st Proserpina Hussars are the linchpin of the defensive forces on the prefecture capital world of Irurzun, supported by the 16th Galedon Regulars and 23rd Benjamin Regulars. Large number of conventional forces had also been assembled and with the 3 battlemech formations concentrated on the continent of South Umbrian - where the capital and largest population centres are.
The 2nd Dragonlords RCT and 4th Crucis Lancers RCT jumps into the system and begins their burn towards the planet along with a large number of free aerospace wings and 3 battalions of attached combat engineers...
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So Victor wants to bring Theodore to the negotiating table?
And at the same time he sweettalks the People of the DC into abandoning the DC (what is the correct word: disenfranchise???)
I fear that Victor goes too far with this, because sooner or later some of those planets have to return to DC control.
Or, if he keeps them, the hatred in the DC will make Hohiro`s current hate look tame in comparison.
Let's be honest... At this stage the FS and DC have been engaged in a Cold War/Hot War for... What? 500 years? Kurita's and Davion's have died with their hands wrapped around the throat of the other side hoping only to take them with them into death. Entire regiments have gleefully slaughtered each other, while the worlds they fight over burn around them. The hatred in the DC towards the FS and vice versa if harnessed would be a source of perpetual energy. The Kurita's had their chance to make peace. Victor was probably the closest thing to a true friend they've had in House Davion (excluding perhaps Mary Davion who was disowned by her own father for her actions). And they lied to him, tried to bully him and threatened him... This was never going to end with smiles and good cheer. War is the natural state of affair on the Kurita-Davion border. Victor even knows that even if he crushes the Kurita's the odds are that in a generation or 2 his son or grandchildren will have to do it all over again.
-
At this point, worrying about the Combine hating the Federated Suns is wasted energy.
Because the Combine have proven now, without any doubts in the eyes of the Suns, that the 3050 truce period was entirely an aberration, not a genuine attempt to change. Just the Combine playing for time with the Clans smashing into them, hoping that Omi could seduce Victor into yet another War Of Davion Succession without any trust that can be worked as a foundation for new relationships.
That for centuries the Combine has been trying to take over the Inner Sphere and destroy the Federated Suns and even the so-called 'liberals' like Theodore when you really scratch under the surface, absoloutly live that dream.
Ergo, they already hate the Federated Suns with the burning fury of a thousand suns and so who cares if they add one more burning sun onto the pile. Especially when there is a very good chance of steadily assimilating these worlds into the Federated Suns as it becomes clear that once the weight of the DCMS and knives of the ISF are taken out of play, a lot of the populations will genuinely start to accept and even like living in the Federated Suns!
---
As for the battles, the continued resistance on Dieron is impressive, but utterly useless. Holding out in the fortress like this might work in the 3rd succession war, but when the AFFS units can (and are) continually resupplying munitions and even spare mechs, rotating out the damaged stuff for repairs and rotating the attackers through so they can get some rest and downtime while the defenders are under 24/7 attack? IF the DCMS troops had a hope of a relief force coming for them and they just had to hang on a little longer, that would be one thing and make sense.
But the officers have to know (and the men too by now) that no relief force is coming. And even that the entire planet which was always restive, is cheerfully embracing the Federated Suns and delighting in the new management. Even for elite units, there has to be a limit at which point they realize its beyond hopeless and either snap in a full scale Banzai charge, choosing to go out on their own terms and hopefully take a few of the enemy with them, or, just throw in the towel.
I wonder when they'll reach that point...
The rest of the attacks are going well. Although it looks like - if my hastily drawn maps are accurate - that its about time for the AFFS to stop, pause, take a breath for a few months to bring up new units, rotate others and consolidate before the next strike. Or even just sit back and watch the Navy sweep through the Combine and relieve them of their Jumpship fleets, patiently waiting for Theodore to scream uncle...
Agree entirely with your post on Davion-Kurita relationship. House Kurita see's its manifest destiny as ruling over the Inner Sphere - and to do that they have to plant the Dragon banner on New Avalon. Which no true Davion will ever tolerate. Ergo it's them or us boys and girls!
The AFFS is definitely reaching a stop line. Right now they are just trying to grab a few more key worlds like Irurzun before they have to stop.
Dieron is going to go down as one of those "heroic" last stands that make great history stories but really suck if you are in them. At this stage there is zero chance of a "rorke's drift style last stand".
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The only notable point of these invasions are that the Homam combat command is commanded by none other than Colonel Arthur Davion, Duke of Galtor.
A good target for Kuritan counterattack.
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A good target for Kuritan counterattack.
Not really they DCMS doesn't have any units near by without hurting their main holdings. And Arthur is in the middle of so many forces getting to him without a suicide attack is next to impossible and even a suicide attack wouldn't have good idea. By the time the Combine has forces to throw away at that planet Arthur would have already moved on.
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Not really they DCMS doesn't have any units near by without hurting their main holdings. And Arthur is in the middle of so many forces getting to him without a suicide attack is next to impossible and even a suicide attack wouldn't have good idea. By the time the Combine has forces to throw away at that planet Arthur would have already moved on.
Suicide attack? *readies the Blakist Overture’s of 1812*
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Suicide attack? *readies the Blakist Overture’s of 1812*
They wouldn't waste their resources on such a minor battle. If it was Victor himself then the WoB would do it but for the youngest brother no they have better targets.
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Eh, Arthur has half an RCT in a forward position. Especially if the WOB loan the Combine a division or go in a joint attack, the Combine can probably scrape together enough troops for at least a hit-hold-run operation to smash the RCT and grab Arthur. Especially if they also commit strategic assets like the Sword of the Void and a couple of their warships to cover the force.
It would be a risk, but the Combine really doesn't have any safe options now. And having Victors kid brother in their hands would at least give Theodore a chip to try and play when the peace negotiations come.
Of course, the problem with all this logic is that Theodore and his insane son don't get that they should be looking for a sharp strike back to make the Davions pull back a little, followed by negotiations to secure a peace with the face saving victory to retire behind and desperately try to piece things together. Instead, they seem to be determined to find a way to WIN the war...
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Arthur if captured would likely be killed, the Combine just can't stop themselves, they may try to 4th Royals him if the situation allows. However it is next to impossible for the Combine to understand prisoners are a resource (at a minimum) and even if you have gotten the confession and all the information out of them, if you kill them, well it ensures that fewer will surrender and that most will fight to the death to take out just one more snake before they go.
Victor isn't going to hold back if his younger brother is captured, he's already lost one brother, his son is being brainwashed and he knows the Combine. The best thing the Combine can do is parole Arthur (and any who are captured with him) to the Suns immediately otherwise someone will drive a katana through his belly or remove his head with it (at best). Thank you.
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To quote Gandalf the Gray: "Every story can benefit from a bit of embellishment."
Who is this Gandalf the Gray?
The quote was obviously by the Blessed White Robed Blake.
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So by my count, the FedSuns have either taken or about to take 47 planets from the Combine.
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My count is 36 worlds in FedSuns hands (I include Dieron in that as basically they hold everything except a single mountain fortress) and 9 worlds under attack (although for instance Capra is about to slide from under attack to in FedSun's hand in the next update as is An Ting). Another 2 Lyran worlds are occupied and 1 under attack.
Operation Achilles has 11 worlds under control and 2 under attack. Plus the 2 Lyran worlds liberated and 1 being liberated.
Operation Ajax has 16 worlds under control and 3 under attack.
Operation Agamemnon (as of May not June like the others) has 9 worlds under control and 4 under attack.
Worse from the point of view of the DCMS is that one Military District capital world has fallen (and 2 are under threat), 2 Prefecture capital worlds have fallen and 2 more are under attack (and 1 more is under imminent threat). Additionally they've lost the "home planet" of the Dieron Regulars, Proserpina Hussars and the An Ting Legions hoemeworld is looking shaky as hell. 3 Academies either lost or about to be lost. Worlds like Quentin, Dieron and Altair's industries gone...
This has not been a good war for the Dragon. Combined with their loss of 11 worlds (1 of which was a major industrial centre and another a hugely symbolic conquest for House Kurita) to the Davions during the early '60s and it's a disaster.
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More than the worlds though, its the myth of Kurtian supremacy. Its been on the back foot for a while to be sure, but they still had their confidence that things would turn around in time.
Not this time though.
Victor has hit the Combine hard enough and taken enough of their key 'spearhead' units out (and the Combine still have to honor the Ghost Bear threat even if its not that great, reduce the troops enough and even the Ghost Bears might decide to start nibbling, if nothing else to rationalize their borders and get some depth) that the Combine are increasingly finding Victor camping like an ****** CS-Go sniper right inside their OODA loop. He just has THAT much in resources and got such effective premptive strikes into play that ... well. The Combines only REAL hope was to seize the initiative in a surprise attack. Meaning Theodore and Hohiro had to pull a WW2 Japan and actually engage with Victor and negotiate and play into Victors desire for peace and hope that the Combine would come to its senses. All the while quietly preparing for war (with sealed orders) to make the first strike both count and be overwhelming.
Instead, they managed to convince Victor to finally stand up and throw the first punch instead of taking it ... and aim said punch right into the throat.
The Combine needed to take some major to try and seize the initiative and make the Federated Suns pause, but doing so (without going strategic weapons) would require things like;
1. A willingness to trade space for time rather than fighting for every inch of space and wasting units.
2. A willingness to risk leaving key worlds uncovered to concentrate mobile strike forces.
3. A willingness to make concessions to the WOB they are not willing to make.
4. A rational brain in the head of either of the Kuritas in charge.
All of which are missing, meaning they are doing EXACTLY what Victor and his High Command want. So much so Victor can bloody spare troops and ships to go running off and pull the Lyrans asses out of the dumpster fire Peter dropped them into!!
There is a good chance this is the start of a Combine death spiral, like the Capellans fell into at the start of the 4th Succession War, had a 'dead cat bounce' with the FWL in 3058, then finally collapsing over the next decade as Victor kept pushing back harder than they could push forward.
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3070 - June - Operation Agamemnon V
With his pony express jumpship lines of communication shredded by the Federated Sun's Navy and with most of his HPG's non-functional Warlord Lo Dok To was forced back unto purely his black boxes. Which while able to give him a relatively good grasp of what was going on made coordination over interstellar distances a nightmare. With responsibility for almost half of the DC-FS border he found his ability to react to the Davion's further hamstrung as the month went on and jumpship after jumpship was seized. He also knew that the WOB repair teams were working their way towards Luthien, not towards him. Which meant that his worlds would be the last ones to see HPG communication resumed. A handful of reports suggested that this was not a problem for the worlds seized by the AFFS who's HPG stations were being not only reoccupied but repaired by Comstar.
Capra
The removal of Marshal Stromp and her 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT, 1st Lexington Combat Guard and 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT at the start of June did nothing to help the faltering 12th Galedon Regulars. With the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT and the 2nd Lexington Combat Guards RCT still in the hunt they were massively outnumbered and knew that it was only a matter of time until they were cornered and defeated. The end came on the 17th of June when Chu-sa Lynette Cole the senior surviving officer finally snapped at the constant harassing air attacks and running battles and ordered what remained of the unit to take up defensive positions for a final stand.
Hurriedly digging into a rocky ridge the 12th Galedon Regulars found the air attacks against them redoubled. Between the 2 formations the AFFS forces on planet had no less than 8 air wings and almost all of them were soon involved in a 36 hour bombardment of the ridge the 12th had dug in on. For the last 6 hours they were joined by the artillery battalion of the 2nd Lexington. On the morning of the 19th the 2nd Lexington Combat Guards moved in to destroy the battered survivors while the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry ensured that the 12th Galedon couldn't attempt any breakout. Within 3 hours the battle was over and the last of the Galedon Regulars on the planet had surrendered. Although a great deal of ordinance (particularly air dropped bombs) had been expended the final stand of the DCMS on Capra had cost the AFFS little more than moderate damage to a number of battlemech's and a few wounded infantry and armour crews. Most of the 3 hours of the battle had simply been the AFFS troops moving up along the ridge to find and take the survivors into custody.
An Ting
The 7th An Ting Legion, abandoned by their DCMS allies and hammered by vastly superior and better equipped AFFS forces are at breaking point as June begins. Dug in as best they can around the An Ting University and Cerant city they can see the AFFS formations assembling for the final push. When the 4th Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry openly prepares it's full weight of battlemech's to crash into the 7th An Ting's lines while the 2nd and 4th Ceti Hussar's deploy to ensure that they can't break out something finally snaps. The 7th asks for terms. Both to save themselves but also the city that many of them call home and have friends and families in.
Swiftly a deal is reached. All An Ting citizens captured by the AFFS and Clan Sun Jaguar will be released or at least held in relative comfort until the end of the hostilities. The government of An Ting will be allowed to continue - subject to said government agreeing to petition to join the Federated Suns. Similarly the An Ting University will NOT be dismembered and distributed to some other world deep within the Federated Suns. Instead it will have it's teaching staff and cadet force overhauled by the MIIO and DMI before being allowed to continue to graduate classes for the AFFS in the future - in a similar manner to the Tikonov Martial Academy. The surviving members of the 7th An Ting will be tested and those found prepared to serve in the AFFS will be used to form the core of a new 1st An Ting Borderer regiment which will only be activated at the end of the current war.
The 4th Ceti Hussars are tasked with overseeing the transition and garrisoning of the planet while the 4th FSAC and 2nd Ceti Hussars refit and resupply. During this period the 4th FSAC trades a number of it's assault and heavy battlemechs and tanks for lighter and more manoeuvrable units. A number of 4th Ceti Hussars are transferred into the 2nd Ceti Hussars to bring that unit up to a stronger combat ready force for future engagements. Similarly the Clan Sun Jaguar forces on the planet continue to refit and rearm.
Kaznejoy
With the completion of the first of the newly built airbases at Fort Darwin the AFFS transfers the bulk of it's fighter strength from dropships in orbit to these facilities. Which they are soon using to launch almost constant air attacks at the DCMS formations dug in around Gondovia. With the rebuilt 5th Davion Guards aerospace forces now back up to the standard 3 wings, the Air Cossacks Wing and the Roughriders aerospace forces combined with the 2 independent fighter wings have a slight numerical advantage over the defending aerospace forces of the DCMS. Where they have a major advantage however is in skill and in equipment.
The 11th Ghost's fighter wing is the strongest DCMS formation in skill but is operating at just over 60% of it's full strength. Plus it's equipment has always been somewhat ramshackle due to the lack of long term supply priority for the Ghost regiments. While the newly formed 43rd and 45th Galedon Air Wings were mostly equipped with light fighters such as the Sabre and a handful of Sai's. Compared to the top of the line equipment in the 5th Davion Guards in particular the comparison is extremley lopsided. The AFFS fighter wings also contain a number of omnifighters such as the Dagger-O and Huscarl-O which give them an even greater advantage.
The air above the deserts between Gondovia and Fort Darwin is crisscrossed with duelling fighters. Both sides send out light battlemechs and vehicles to either rescue or capture any downed pilots, but find these and other patrols the target of straffing runs by the enemy fighters if they are given half a chance. For the first 10 days the battle hangs in the balance, but as the month progresses the tide shifts more and more to the AFFS fighter pilots. With a steady supply of new aerospace fighters and spare parts they are more able to absorb the losses and continue the fight.
With their fighter losses mounting and unable to contest the high desert air the DCMS commanders order their pilots to forget trying to hit the AFFS base but instead to concentrate on maintaining a CAP above Gondovia itself on the 16th. This allows the AFFS fighter wings to sweep the desert clean of any isolated Kurita bases and patrols in a matter of 2 days. After which the Hansen Roughrider's mercenary unit moves out on a long sweep through the deepest parts of the desert.
Valentina
On the 6th of June the 19th Galedon Regulars finally launch their signature attack to break the Screaming Eagles lines. They hit the 2nd battalion of the Screaming Eagles and for nearly 2 hours the Eagles line bends and falls back almost breaking. Just as it looks like the 19th might be successful in breaking the Screaming Eagles into 2 formations the 1st Conroe Borderer's launch their counter attack directly at the advancing Galedon Regulars. At the same time the 3 other Screaming Eagles battalions on the flanks snap forward into a counter attack.
The 1st Conroe suffers nearly 40% casualties in their frenzied counter attack, reducing them from 5 companies to 3, while the 2nd battalion of the Screaming Eagles suffer even higher losses. Yet the 19th Galedon Regulars finds itself caught in a killing zone between the surviving AFFS troops in front of them and the others closing on their flanks. When they finally mange to disengage they have lost over 4 companies of battlemechs and almost the entire destruction of their conventional forces.
Almost as soon as the 19th manages to reach it's dropships it flees the planet and heads for Galedon. The Screaming Eagles and 1st Conroe Borderer's take possession of the planet of Valentina for the Federated Suns.
Matsuida
The first wave of AFFS troops arrive at Matsuida under the command of Marshal Stromp. The 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT, 1st Lexington Combat Guard and the 1st FedSun's Dragoons RCT arrive on the 3rd. Less than a day later Marshal Rand-Davion leads his own 1st Crucis Lancers RCT and the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT to join Marshal Stromp's first wave. A final wave of AFFS troops arrive on the 7th, under the command of Marshal Jon Davion who takes overall command of the invasion bringing with him his own Davion Heavy Guards RCT and the 6th Crucis Lancers RCT. Along with his own task force Jon Davion brings 2 full armoured conventional brigades and 5 infantry brigades.
To counter these the DCMS has the 2nd Galedon Regulars, Ryuken-yon, Ryuken-go and the remanants of the 3rd Ghost as well as a host of conventional forces, a mix of regular and militia. The 2nd Galedon Regulars is at almost full strength, while the 2 Ryuken regiments both are at 70% of their full strength and the 3rd Ghost has roughly 2 battalions of mechwarriors - including survivors from the 7th Ghost.
The Davion task forces each take a different target. Marshal Stromp's forces land slightly in advance of the others under heavy air cover and immedietly begin pressing the defensive lines of the 2 Ryuken regiments who have dug in to the south and west of the capital of Mystique Bay. Meanwhile Marsha Rand-Davion conducts a close assault drop upon the green 2nd Galedon Regulars to the north east. His own 1st Crucis Lancers land and immedietly throw themselves at the enemy lines while the 4th Fusiliers conduct their signature death from above attack upon the Regulars. By the end of the 2nd day of fighting the 2nd Galedon Regulars is beginning to come apart and they have been forced back again and again. While they have inflicted losses on the 2 Davion units their own losses are mounting and their morale is crumbling.
The DCMS commanders on planet still have the 3rd Ghost which is still free and could be redeployed to save the 2nd Regulars. However even as they consider it Jon Davion begins landing his own forces and launching attacks against the 3rd Ghost. However he doesn't bring down most of the conventional forces, instead he lands them in support of Marshal Stromp and Marshal Rand-Davion who use the additional troops to maintain their own attacks.
With the 3rd Ghost now pinned fighting hard against the Davion Heavy Guards and 6th Crucis Lancers to the north and north west of the city, the 2nd Galedon Regulars finally collapses under a full scale attack spearheaded by 4 companies of the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers led by none other than Leftenant General Chad Dean. When the charismatic (and some might say mad) Leftenant General is badly injured when his Templar-O is brought down the 4th go berserk and smash into the Galedon Regulars with a fury that the already shaken green unit cannot match.
With the 2nd Galedon Regulars shattered and streaming back into Mystique City the remaining DCMS forces try and break of contact and retreat into the city as well. They are only partially successful. The AFFS forces keep up the pressure on them and the 3rd Ghost for instance has to leave a sacrificial rearguard consisting of what is left of it's conventional forces and 2 companies of battlemechs in order to reach the city mostly intact. The Ryuken regiments similarly face a hard fight to withdraw.
Unfortunately the city proves little sanctuary as the AFFS units give the DCMS forces little time to reorganise. The heavy battle armour formations of the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers, supported by the assault and heavy battlemechs of the RCT don't give up on the pursuit but crash right into the city on the heels of the fleeing defenders. The Davion Heavy Guards and the 1st Crucis Lancers similarly keep fighting right into the city.
By the end of June the DCMS have lots over half of the capital and the 2nd Galedon Regulars already shattered formation has been merged into the 2 Ryuken regiments in order to keep them at least operational (although even now between them they have less than a single regiments worth of battlemechs and mechwarriors). The 3rd Ghost despite requests to receive some of the surviving Regulars are ordered to recruit from the planets Yakuza if they wish reinforcements.
The AFFS forces have also taken losses - the heaviest hit being the 4th Syrtis Fusiliers which is withdrawn from the lines to repair and refit having lost a full battalion in their mad charge and prior combat drop. Leftenant General Chad Dean is medically evacuated to Robinson. However their RCT's and battlemech regiments continue to push the DCMS lines at every opportunity. In the urban combat the free conventional infantry brigades also begin showing their value, infiltrating and holding territory seized by their battlemech brethren. A handful of mechanised infantry formations and light armour units form into columns and spread out bringing more and more of the world under the banner of the FedSuns.
Bergman's Planet/Thestria/Elidere IV
With reports that these 3 worlds have been abandoned not only by the regular DCMS formations but have also been stripped of most of their militia formations in order to bolster the defences of other key worlds, the AFFS High Command takes a gamble and assigns the 1st Ceti Hussars RCT to dispatch a combat command to each of these worlds to seize them. Alpha takes Bergman's Planet, Bravo takes Thestria and Charlie Elidere IV. For once the reports are right. All 3 worlds fall after only token resistance to the 1st Ceti Hussars RCT. First Prince Victor himself sends the 1st a message of congratulations and makes a point of telling them that they have again vindicated his ancestors faith in their formation.
Misery
The Wolf's Dragoons return to Misery in June. Having suffered nearly 60% fatalities the last time they came to this world and fought the DCMS they had demanded the honour of it's conquest which had been happily granted. The only condition the High Command had imposed was to add some conventional forces to aid them. In the end these reinforcements wouldn't be required as the mere arrival of the infamous unit promoted the few remaining militia on the planet to surrender immedietly. It was an anticlimactic return for Zeta, but one that the High Command was more than satisfied with.
Arlington
The 11th FedSun's Dragoons RCT was released from garrison duty on Barlow's End and ordered to seize the world of Arlington in June. Facing off against only a handful of mostly infantry militia units the green 11th took a week or 2 to find it's stride, but was soon able to report that they were in full control of the planet with only a small number of battlemechs damaged and conventional forces lost.
Gandy's Luck
The newest formation of the Draconis March (if not the AFFS now that the 1st Tercio had been founded) the 1st Robinson Chevaliers were thrown into action on Gandy's Luck. Formed from individual companies from various DMM formations they unit had a wide variety of skills. Deciding to take advantage of this the CO of the unit - Colonel Aristide Sandoval-Lee breaks her regiment into it's component companies and deploys them to destroy the few isolated militia units that resist the AFFS invasion. To the most difficult targets she assigns the 1st battalion's 1st company - the "Kentares Chevaliers". Although doing little to help integrate the unit's diverse companies it does prove an effective tactic and the planet is swiftly pacified.
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im seeing a pac man like effect here :D ;D 8) ::) >:D
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Yes, the AFFS has such poor table manners, just wolfing down everything in sight without pause :P
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i can see a buffer zone being created with most of these worlds if they are hostile to fed sun rule. create a at least non militaristic against them, and they could keep whats left of the DC away.
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99 beers on the wall, take one down. 98 bottles of beer er ah planets on the wall
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I smell desperation in the air...
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I smell desperation in the air...
I smell incoming atrocities.
This is Kurita. When desperate, they default to some show of strength/commitment by way of atrocity. Toss the WOB in the mix and...
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3070 - June Interlude - A Kurita Again
Hall of Warriors
New Barcella
Irece
Irece Prefecture
Pesht Military District
Draconis Combine
Minoru Nova Cat strode into the Hall of Warriors and only years of training at the Imperial Palace presented his step from faltering as he realised that he was not merely being summoned to a small meeting but an entire assembly of what looked like every bloodnamed warrior within the Clan. The ISF and DMCS Liaison Officers following him had no such training however it was unlikely that they realised that this gathering was MUCH larger than it should have been. In blissful ignorance they continued to march behind him. He strode along the marble floor and bowed deeply before the Khan and saKhan of Clan Nova Cat who along with the Oathmaster sat upon a slightly raised dais at the end of the room while banked seats rose on both sides filled with warriors. As far as he had been aware only the Oathmaster and Khan had been present on Irece but saKhan Karl Devalis was supposed to be on Itabaiana with his Delta Galaxy. Then again given that even a quick glance showed that most if not all of the bloodnamed warriors of Delta Galaxy were also here Minoru's information was clearly out of date...
"You summoned myself and these officers my Khan?" Minoru spoke, trying not to look at Oathmaster Winters who at one stage had seemed like a mentor figure to him but had now grown distant and cold towards him.
"I did Minoru Kurita." Khan West spoke with the gruff rumble that seemed to be the only way Elemental's were able to speak.
Despite himself Minoru interrupted his Khan. "Forgive me Khan. I am not Minoru Kurita. I am Minoru Nova Cat."
If the interruption annoyed the Khan he gave no sign of it but shrugged massive shoulders. "No more. We received a courier from Luthien from the Coordinator demanding that we release you and return you to him. After some debate the Council has agreed. In your heart you have always remained Kurita..."
Given the angry glances at him and muttering from the assembled warriors it was clear that many had taken offence at his father's demand. Worse was that very word "demand". If his time within the Clan had taught him anything it was that the Nova Cats were a proud people and did not take kindly to being ordered about as though mere servants. Minoru feared that his fathers actions might have further soured the already tense relationship between the Clan and House Kurita. When the Khan went on this was confirmed. "This order from the Coordinator, which flies in the face of all Clan traditions and laws, however is the last straw. For too long House Kurita has issued orders and edicts upon us, forgetting that we voluntarily joined our strength to theirs. The full Clan Council has just voted overwhelmingly therefore to end our Clan's alliance with House Kurita..."
This time it was the DCMS Liason officer who interrupted, stepping forward and roaring furiously. "You would betray your sworn liege lord when the Davion dog's stand at the very gates?! Cowards! Oathbreakers!"
Before Minoru could attempt to calm the situation the Khan surged from the huge chair on the dais, taking the steps down in a single leap and before the DCMS officer could do anything more than raise his hands in a futile gesture to ward of the West the Elemental Khan silenced him with a backhanded slap that broke his jaw and knocked him unconscious while sent him flying into the lowest rank of seated warriors. Who were less than gentle in pushing the unconscious officer onto the floor in front of them. The worst thing was that Santin West had clearly pulled the blow or he would have done more than knocked the man out and broke his jaw but would likely have killed him. Not even breathing hard from the sudden attack the Khan turned his eyes on the remaining 2 men in front of him. "We were promised fair treatment. A place of honour. Coordinator Kurita has not kept his own vows to us again and again. Treating us as his servants, not as his allies. Enough. And more than enough. Perhaps it is not the Coordinator's fault truly. The Combine has always sought to absorb cultures and force them into its own mould. Yet we will not fall prey to such tactics. We are disolving any bonds between us and House Kurita and the Draconis Combine. Here and now we do so in the presence of the Coordinator's own son. Take our words back to your father Minoru Kurita."
"You are going to join the Federated Suns!" Before he could think Minoru blurted out the almost accusation.
Khan West gave a mirthless smile and nodded slightly. "We are. We have had discourse with our cousins in Clan Sun Jaguar who tell of a VERY different culture within the Federated Suns. A culture that allows difference and embraces people's right to choose their own paths. Not one of slavish obedience to a single ruler's will and to a mono-culture imposed from a single viewpoint. We will leave the Combine and go to the Federated Suns. We have been promised worlds on the periphery border which will be ours and ours alone. Tell your father that we will honour our past allegiance to the Combine and will not fight in this current war for House Davion... Unless he forces our hand. Go now. And take this trash with you."
Minoru Kurita and the ISF officer were forced to reach down and drag/carry the still unconscious DCMS officer from the room under the hostile eyes of the bloodnamed warriors of Clan Nova Cat, while the Khan watched with his arms crossed. Even as they left the Hall the sounds of an evacuation were already starting around them. Until the now he had assumed the large scale preparations and loading of dropships had been to prepare for the coming attack upon the AFFS that his father had ordered the Clan to take part in but now he could see it was much more than that. Clan Nova Cat was preparing a wholesale move to the FedSun's...
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Oh boy..and that takes one of the largest naval fleets out of the hands of the Combines reaches and into the hands of their enemy. And with this insult the Nova Cats might very well be inclined to help the Suns rather than focus on resettling and getting comfy first. That removes the naval threat and the strength of a very powerful Clan from the Suns and indeed gives it to them.
This sudden departure might also be a sign of what way the Ravens are willing to jump as they are always going to be opportunists and now with a large naval force opposing them out the way...
Good to see the Nova Cats are not just holding the idiot ball but sucking on it like a lollypop like they did in canon. Especially when they kept quite deliberately provoking the Ghost Bears and then acting like the wronged party when the Bears did their typical overreaction response to being poked.
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You push and you push and then you push to far and after you've reached the point of no return you sprint off a cliff, Great Job Combine!
Great new chapter for the New Year, thank you!
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Is good to see that in this timeline the Nova Cats take the wise option.
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Good and with his son returned and telling him not to do something stupid like attacking the Nova Cats Teddy should at least be able to keep things from getting worse. With the Nova Cats moving away from the front and to the periphery to settle new worlds they are effectively out of the war. Which is good they don't need to be involved in the fighting. Just them setting up shop and building up will be enough. Plus their Navy can be used to patrol a good sized area and allow the FedSuns Navy to redeploy their own ships instead.
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What's the chance of WoB trying to strike Cats during the move?
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Way bigger than zero, I say.
But, I bet any Nova Cat convoy gets heavy warship/ASF escort.
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Not that likely actually. The Nova Cats like any other Clan do not use ComStar or WoB to run their HPGs. That means that the orders are not known to the WoB and since the message is being hand-delivered they will not find out until it is too late to do anything about it.
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Not that likely actually. The Nova Cats like any other Clan do not use ComStar or WoB to run their HPGs. That means that the orders are not known to the WoB and since the message is being hand-delivered they will not find out until it is too late to do anything about it.
I dunno. It´s a long way from Irece to the DC/FS border. The WoB just might manage to intercept some Nova Cat forces before they leave the DC.
Following which, of course, the Nova Cats will pledge most or all of their touman to fighting the WoB.
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Always good to see the Nova cats being treated as having brains and self respect.
They will have to travel through areas infested by the wobbies, so good chance of attack, unless they travel through the OA.
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Always good to see the Nova cats being treated as having brains and self respect.
They will have to travel through areas infested by the wobbies, so good chance of attack, unless they travel through the OA.
I wouldn´t put it past them to travel through the Occupation Zones and Lyran space, to throw off any attempts at intercepting them.
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Damn.
Theodore really is going crazy. In one fell swoop he insulted his son, insulted badly needed allies and drove them right into Victors arms AND set a clear precedent for exactly how he deals with allies including the Snow Ravens.
*slow clap*
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and just like that the board tilts further to one side. way to go!!! I do see the DC doing something very dumb.
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I dunno. It´s a long way from Irece to the DC/FS border. The WoB just might manage to intercept some Nova Cat forces before they leave the DC.
Following which, of course, the Nova Cats will pledge most or all of their touman to fighting the WoB.
And how will they know to attack or stop them at all. Again the WoB does not have access to the Nova Cats HPGs. That means they will be well on their way long before the WoB or Combine can do anything to them. And when the Combine and WoB do find out they still need to send the orders to gather the forces then chase the Nova Cats. The Nova Cats by acting in this way have made themselves safe. Only author-fiat and bs would allow the Combine and WoB to catch the Nova Cats before they are out of their space.
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I dunno. It´s a long way from Irece to the DC/FS border. The WoB just might manage to intercept some Nova Cat forces before they leave the DC.
Worse. Luthien is closer to the DC/FS border than Irece. Heck it's practically on the way there. Even if they could somehow dodge Luthien entirely, it would be a big gamble because they'd have to skirt the DC/GB border even considering the FC line of advance.
If I were Nova Cat, I'd go coreward and spinward, make for OA space. Try to negotiate safcon with the Snow Ravens lurking there.
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They don't have any reason to jump into inhabited systems. They can keep going safely through empty systems until they are clear.
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They don't have any reason to jump into inhabited systems. They can keep going safely through empty systems until they are clear.
There is danger in that, but if you're talking about Clan ships in good repair traveling in convoys and that the Clans have scouted this route? Then its a pretty small danger compared to dodging Kuritan patrols. Especially if they sent out one or two decoy units in the wrong direction that jump into a system, then jump into deep space and vanish but give a crude idea they are heading 'thataway' to, say, Luthien, making the Kuritans panic that the Nova Cats are coming to hand their 'we quit' notice to Theodore, personally :D
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There is danger in that, but if you're talking about Clan ships in good repair traveling in convoys and that the Clans have scouted this route? Then its a pretty small danger compared to dodging Kuritan patrols. Especially if they sent out one or two decoy units in the wrong direction that jump into a system, then jump into deep space and vanish but give a crude idea they are heading 'thataway' to, say, Luthien, making the Kuritans panic that the Nova Cats are coming to hand their 'we quit' notice to Theodore, personally :D
The Cats don't need to dodge anything. They just move their people, their mechs, their factories etc in a huge convoy. The Combine's not got anywhere near the strength to oppose over a score of WarShips and their fighter escorts. So move the fleet all as one huge unit. The Cats had a huge number of Carrack transports and thats going to come in handy here.
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There is danger in that, but if you're talking about Clan ships in good repair traveling in convoys and that the Clans have scouted this route? Then its a pretty small danger compared to dodging Kuritan patrols. Especially if they sent out one or two decoy units in the wrong direction that jump into a system, then jump into deep space and vanish but give a crude idea they are heading 'thataway' to, say, Luthien, making the Kuritans panic that the Nova Cats are coming to hand their 'we quit' notice to Theodore, personally :D
They straight up told the son of Teddy that they wouldn't attack them at all if they didn't attack them first. And without orders from either of the two leading forces in the Combine no one is going to think they have to "avenge the great dishonor" if they do run into the convoy. The Nova Cats planned this out very well to make it so that the Combine and WoB cannot do anything before it is too late.
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And without orders from either of the two leading forces in the Combine no one is going to think they have to "avenge the great dishonor" if they do run into the convoy.
*cough* Ronin Wars *cough*
All it takes is someone deciding that an attack on the Nova Cats is what the The Dragon really wants.
Or someone - like, say, the Black Dragons - deciding that if they create the facts (by attacking the Nova Cats), Theodore will have no choice but to go along with it, no matter what he said.
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*cough* Ronin Wars *cough*
All it takes is someone deciding that an attack on the Nova Cats is what the The Dragon really wants.
Or someone - like, say, the Black Dragons - deciding that if they create the facts (by attacking the Nova Cats), Theodore will have no choice but to go along with it, no matter what he said.
Except no one knows that the Nova Cats are leaving the service of the Combine. They were ordered to head to the front lines. That is what the people will think and with a way to be told otherwise that will not change.
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Except no one knows that the Nova Cats are leaving the service of the Combine. They were ordered to head to the front lines. That is what the people will think and with a way to be told otherwise that will not change.
That´s true *IF* the Nova Cats head to the DC/FS front (otherwise it is obvious they are NOT going to war as ordered). And *IF* the WoB has not yet established at least rudimentary lines of communication by now.
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The WoB is only going straight to the Capital of the Combine no where else if it isn't in a line to it has their HPG being worked on. And the only direction the Nova Cats can go and be found out as running is towards the Ghost Bears or up into the periphery. Every other direction sends them to the front. So no one would know anything is wrong because they wouldn't get any orders to the contrary for a very long time.
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3070 - June Interlude - Fate of the SLDF
The big news at the beginning of June was the formal dissolution of the Star League Defence Force, although many had been predicting it for some time. Since the failure to pick a new First Lord at the 3067 Whitting Conference the SLDF has limped along with a small supply of recruits and funding from a handful of the member states. When the WOB-Comstar fighting began in earnest this already limited support had been curtailed further - particularly when the ComGuard's stopped offering places at the Focht War College to SLDF applicants in preference to training soldiers for their own forces in 3068. Similar moves were made from those nations which had permitted SLDF cadets to be trained within their own national academies until the only real source of recruits for the struggling SLDF had been the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy, which had continued to reserve fully half of it's places for the SLDF. Due to it's location in the Federated Sun's the majority of the students attending even for those slots reserved for the SLDF had largely went to FedSun's born cadets. This supply of graduating cadets however had allowed the SLDF forces to remain at full strength and even expand slightly - again drawing on logistical support primarily from the Federated Suns, Lyran Alliance and some limited support from the Free Rasalhague Republic.
However with war engulfing the entire Inner Sphere even the most committed of the SLDF's officers were finally forced to accept that the dream that had been the Second Star League was dead. The fact that it was now almost universally named the "Zombie Star League" and hadn't had a leader elected in almost 3 years was just more evidence that it was now time to quit.
The SLDF officially disbanded on the 10th of June 3070 in a small ceremony on Tukayyid attended almost exclusively by senior SLDF officers, along with the "last" First Lord of the Second Star League Christian Mansdottir, Precentor Martial Anastasius Focht and the Davion ambassador to the Free Rasalhague Republic Major General (ret) Duncan Cunningham. As the SLDF flag was taken down it left the various units of the former SLDF orphaned and left to their own devices. These included the 4 regiments of the Eridani Light Horse, the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Royal Battlemech Regiments and the Royal Black Watch Regiment.
It was no nobodies surprise when the vast majority of the 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment "Morgan's Lions" announced that they would be requesting to join (or in the vast majority of the soldiers cases rejoin) the AFFS. Colonel Andrew Redburn who had been in attendance at the disbandment ceremony had right up until the end attempted to save the SLDF but when it was now dead and buried he immedietly contacted Ambassador Cunningham and offered his services along with those of his regiment who chose to follow him. These were immedietly accepted. The only real surprise was the sheer number of the Lion's who chose to enter AFFS service. The unit had been built around a core of the old Kathil Uhlan's, yet a number of non-Uhlan veteran's also chose to follow Colonel Redburn including the vast majority of Lyran and St Ives born personnel and a surprising number of League and Capellan born troops. The only nationality of the Lion's who didn't join their colonel were unsurprisingly the Combine born warriors. Roughly 80% of the unit elected to follow their leader. Colonel Redburn was immedietly informed that he would be returning to service within the AFFS as a full Major General.
The 2nd Royal Battlemech Regiment "Winston's Warriors" had no such large scale preference. A sizeable minority (30%) chose to offer to join the Eridani Light Horse in honour of General Winston and were promptly accepted. A similar proportion of the unit opted to offer their services to the AFFS following the lead of their more senior regiment - mostly consisting of men and women who had been born in the FedSun's and had been trained on Defiance. The remainder of the unit, roughly 4 companies of mechwarriors split mostly along national lines. The largest single remaining contingent (roughly a company) opted to join the ComGuards.
The 3rd Royal Battlemech Regiment "Master's Knights" despite their name was almost exclusively newly graduated warriors from the Hasek-Davion Martial Academy and so it was no surprise when almost two thirds of the unit opted to join the AFFS. The remainder again largely split according to national lines, although a surprising number of the League born personnel refused requests to head home and instead joined their FedSun's comrades in offering their services specifically to Isis "Marik"-Davion.
By the end of the month the AFFS had announced that the 3 groups of troops that would be joining from the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Royal Battlemech Regiments would be used to form the following units: The 1st Royal Battlemech Regiment would be renamed the 1st Davion Lions and be organised as a "free" battlemech regiment - although plans were already in place to expand it to include 3 wings of aerospace fighters. The 2nd and 3rd Royal Battlemech contingents would be used to form the core of a newly reborn Arcadian Cuirassiers Brigade within the AFFS, to be based on Demeter just as their previous incarnation had been. A 1st Arcadian Cuirassiers was to be organised from the Demeter Planetary Guard and the local Ducal Guard to round out the brigade to a full 3 battlemech regiments - again with plans to add at least aerospace supporting forces. Although the 1st and 2nd Cuirassiers were expected to be massively under strength for some time.
The Eridani Light Horse which now consisted of 4 regiments (and an adhoc battalion drawn from the 2nd Royal Battlemech Regiment) unsurprisingly announced on the 12th of June that they would be returning to mercenary service. They were immedietly inundated with offers from every major and most minor powers. However just as another former SLDF unit had done in the past they made a condition to considering any offer - the state that employed them must guarantee the withdrawal of their 21st Striker Regiment from Huntress in the Clan Homeworlds. The 21st Striker had been left stranded since the 3068 and with the situation in the Clan Homeworlds escalating to full out civil war it needed evacuated as soon as possible. Given that such evacuation might require either warship support or the support of a friendly Clan this promptly stumped most of the leaders wishing to recruit the Light Horse. However on the 25th First Prince Davion offered to either negotiate with a Clan within the Homeworlds to help evacuate the 21st Striker or if need be send a convoy with no less than 4 Fox corvettes for protection to extract them if this was unsuccessful. Just as with the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry the Federated Sun's was prepared to meet the demands of the Eridani Light Horse in order to obtain their loyalty.
The final regiment of the SLDF, the Royal Black Watch Regiment (which despite some efforts to expand to a full regiment has only managed to reach reinforced battalion level strength) announced immedietly that they would be returning to Northwind. There they would take up guard duties on their ancestral homeworld until such time as "the leaders of the Inner Sphere grew up and were worthy of their services". Colonel Campbell made a firm point that he and his troops would not be operating as mercenaries or formally part of their brother formation the Northwind Highlanders but would only fight to defend Northwind. It is a mark of the unique nature of the Black Watch that not a single mechwarrior breaks with the regiment to go their own way. Even those not drawn from the Northwind Highlanders will follow their colonel to Northwind and remain within the regiment - including Captain Takashi Inega of the 3rd Company, formerly a member of the 2nd Legion of Vega within the DCMS.
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wow nice update. I hope what is left of the Fleet breaks along those lines.... but the LA could use some help, if they need a push to go one way over another.
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Makes sense the blackwatch would do that and no one would stop them the history and reputation of the unit is such that no one would say no to them.
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Well so ends the SLDF. Went on as long as it could but it was always going to end. With the fall of the second Star League ComStar should be able to acquire the remaining assets without problems. Plus the Great Houses remaining will redirect the funds into their own projects.
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Oh look.
Just what the Federated Suns needs, think their enemies; more Mechwarriors :p
Seriously though the Lions of Davion are a problem because they are fully equipped and trained veterans/elites who can jump right into the fire. Which is a bit unusual for most defections of this kind.
The ELH you’d think might need time to realise that their vaunted dream of a second star league was a complete failure. And they waited for centuries for Kerensky to return (wasn’t THAT a letdown) then hoped that Star League could still be reborn ... and saw it happen ... then saw it torn to pieces in a few years. OTOH they’ve had to known the Star League was dead since Theodore and Sun Tzu openly showed they only cared for it as a lever against Victor and Peter and nothing more. So they might have gotten over it and established a new story (one that throws out all their Star League baggage).
Going to Huntress is a risk - especially given the extreme range and fact that the news of the collapse of the Star League will be there in a week or two, months at the outside.
It’s kinda hilarious that despite the two year round trip, Victor has so many Gods Damned warships that he can spare four Fox IIs (and you would presume at least one Avalon as a flotilla leader) for that long with a shrug. Plus the supporting jump ships. Would be even better if he could get at least some diplomatic support from say that Bears - I’m sure he could get make concessions to make it worthwhile...
Wonder what the ELH will be doing though.
If I was Victor, given their doctrine, skill and excellent equipment, I’d seriously consider sending them in a deep strike against the Wolves. Landing, obliterating garrison clusters and then moving on, targeting worlds on the Jade Falcon border. If they move fast enough they could rip the whole border right open before pulling back into the LA. Leaving Vlad the stark choice of continuing his offensive, or, running back before the Falcons start to consume his OZ. Hopefully running back and right into the Falcons...
Otherwise I’m sure they could move forward to start deeper raiding in the Combine...
Thanks for this chapter! REALLY looking forward to the great battle of Heph II :)
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It would be best to use the ELH to fight the clans instead. The Combine front is stable and they aren't needed but the front with the clans and the Lyrans are not doing well at all.
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Question why not return to Davion service as Kathil Uhlan not 1st Davion Lions?
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Question why not return to Davion service as Kathil Uhlan not 1st Davion Lions?
Because the 1st Kathil Uhlan's have been reformed.
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Because the 1st Kathil Uhlan's have been reformed.
Surprised Georgie Boy didn't immediately request Victor use them to form the 2nd Kathil Uhlan's because you know, the Capellan March is the hot beating core of the Federated Suns that needs all the power before those dastardly Capellans ... oh ... wait ... :p
Of course if I was Jackson Davion I would have just rolled the 1st Royal regiment into the Kathil Uhlans RCT outright. Given it a literal double strength Battlemech spearhead. Turn the whole unit into a specialist planetary assault formation with a lot of new toys to go with the added firepower with Andrew Redburn in command (there wouldn't be any hard feelings about him coming back in command IMHO, he's such a frigen Davion Legend after all and Morgan Hasek-Davions BFF) you could get some very interesting results...
Still there is going to probably be some interesting friction between the two units. The Uhlans always called themselves the Lions of Davion ... and there is a genuine Lions of Davion. Made up of the 'real' Ulhans led by Andy himself. Going take some careful hand holding, perhaps some well chosen personnel swaps and leadership to ensure that its clear the oldschool Lions truly respect the Ulhans as heirs of their legacy and are proud of them...?
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Surprised Georgie Boy didn't immediately request Victor use them to form the 2nd Kathil Uhlan's because you know, the Capellan March is the hot beating core of the Federated Suns that needs all the power before those dastardly Capellans ... oh ... wait ... :p
Of course if I was Jackson Davion I would have just rolled the 1st Royal regiment into the Kathil Uhlans RCT outright. Given it a literal double strength Battlemech spearhead. Turn the whole unit into a specialist planetary assault formation with a lot of new toys to go with the added firepower with Andrew Redburn in command (there wouldn't be any hard feelings about him coming back in command IMHO, he's such a frigen Davion Legend after all and Morgan Hasek-Davions BFF) you could get some very interesting results...
Still there is going to probably be some interesting friction between the two units. The Uhlans always called themselves the Lions of Davion ... and there is a genuine Lions of Davion. Made up of the 'real' Ulhans led by Andy himself. Going take some careful hand holding, perhaps some well chosen personnel swaps and leadership to ensure that its clear the oldschool Lions truly respect the Ulhans as heirs of their legacy and are proud of them...?
I did genuinely think about them becoming the 2nd Kathil Uhlans. But the original first becoming the second regiment just didn't seem right and would almost certainly cause HUGE problems for morale.
I did think about merging the two as well - perhaps with some of the 2nd and 3rd Royals to form an almost SLDF style Division. But it just seemed overpowered. And again would have the problem with the original Uhlans being the second regiment.
My (Jackson's) plan is for the Kathil Uhlans and Davion Lions will have a LOT of officer and troop transfers. Become proper sister regiments. friendly rivals who compete without hatred. Joint inheritors of Morgan's legacy. That's the plan. Joint operations, etc...
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Have to admit I was laughing at the Royal Black Watch cosplayers rage quitting and running back to Northwind.
Honestly not a bad outcome for everyone involved. They can be a permanent garrison for the planet that it really needs (you know, presuming that the Highlander Clans welcome them back) which will give the Highlanders a boost, as they now don't have to always keep figuring in the back of their mind how much of their people they need to leave behind to hold the planet.
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Have to admit I was laughing at the Royal Black Watch cosplayers rage quitting and running back to Northwind.
Honestly not a bad outcome for everyone involved. They can be a permanent garrison for the planet that it really needs (you know, presuming that the Highlander Clans welcome them back) which will give the Highlanders a boost, as they now don't have to always keep figuring in the back of their mind how much of their people they need to leave behind to hold the planet.
Well they might CLAIM they are neutral and not serving a Successor State. But practically they are now the standing garrison of Northwind - a Federated Suns planet.
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The Death of the Star League was a given even before FASA started their 'balance' games and applying enough plot shields and armor to sunny boy liao as to make the the death star look like a M113 if not a yugo... Like the Roman Empire it is loosely based on, once it shattered you couldn't bring it back. The Fedcom being roughly the eastern empire, doesn't quite wash especially since the eastern empire endured and influenced Christendom for centuries where as the Fedcom collapsed in a generation. Comstar being the Catholic church (and of course the 'Bolshevik' state... Blake as Lenin and Toyama as Stalin (maybe York being Khrushchev'ish'??? and Kennedy???)). Enough of the history rhyming once a human empire dies, it never arises the same again, the league was like Rome, or Persia, or China (except China does regenerate but still not quite the same as it was) once dead you can apply some of the ideals (France, Germany, US all have some Roman ideals), but the resulting new empire is different then the 'father' state.
The closest to the League that the Inner Sphere could hope for is the Federated Commonwealth, rather then six states of roughly equal states (the Hegemony of course being the first among equals and House Cameron being the dominate house). The Federated Commonwealth would have State Commands, Marches, ect, but it would be House Steiner-Davion above all, it's check rather then other houses would be the Six Liberties and the Estates General. Both composite houses have a history of at least pretending to protect liberty, if they failed to do so it would be much worst then have House Kurita going after you. The strength of it's people and the stewardship of it's 'royalty' would potentially surpass the league, by leagues :-). Again as with most empires in it's strengths would be the seed of it's downfall, the easiest is the steady failure and fall of House Steiner-Davion and attempts to 'centralize', however the more insidious virus would be it's populace, local-ism like Skye, Petty nobles who's power was lessened such as Michael Hasek-Davion, corporations who wanted carve outs and special treatment.
So, humanity could have a golden age under the Federated Commonwealth, but as all golden ages it would dull and die over time, but peace and prosperity don't sell the tech manuals... :D and a time skip of 300 to 700 years with even the glacial development of tech would be a whole new universe when House Steiner-Davion finally had it's Richard Cameron and there is always a Stefan Amaris out there...
So to the point, the Blackwatch will never have a Star League to serve, will they serve the Suns (possibly Fedcom?) more then passively?
Great story please keep it up, thank you!
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Personally had I been Victor I would have gone for an odd scenario: I would have invited wholesale the entire SLDF to FedSun space and said “Com Star meet SLDF, SLDF ComStar. You want the Star League back: I’m a fan but I’m a bit involved at the moment. Work and train together I’ll add a couple units in to train, ELH and Highlanders, some Dragoon’s to boot and we’ll go retake Terra and you guys can have a new Star League with the crown jewel of humanity. I don’t want the job of First Lord but I’ll support you.’
But that’s my take.
The whole Kathil division will definitely cause tension. I do second Chris’s opinion and the Kathil Uhlans Division would have been better. I think Redburn as leader of the brigade would have made sense and had a lot of support.
Either way interested to see this version play out for sure. The SLDF while not a major faction is still a faction and them going away signals a point in the universe.
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3070 - June - Preparing for Heart Attack
The largest single action undertaken by the AFFS within June (excluding active combat operations) is the shift of the Chisholm Raiders Brigade and reformation. It had long been the plan for the Raiders to be broken down from reinforced regiments to a multitude of LCT style formations and with the growing need for more independent formations at the front this is brought forward by a year. To make up the slight shortfall in troops the 3rd NAIS Cadre which has seen combat on Huan is earmarked to make up the difference and temporarily be deactivated until the graduating class in December. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT are quietly moved to the world of Rochester where they are met not only by the 3rd NAIS Cadre but also a large number of experienced conventional forces. Once they have arrived they begin to break up into their new formations.
The 1st Chisholm Raiders RCT births the 1st, 4th, 5th and 6th Chisholm Raiders LCT's. The 1st LCT consists of the old 1st's command company and 1st battalion along with appropriate conventional forces largely drawn from the RCT. The 4th LCT consists of the 2nd battalion, a company of 3rd Cadre cadets and again the conventional forces are largely drawn from the RCT. The 5th LCT similarly is drawn from the 3rd battalion of the RCT along with a company of cadets although most of it's conventional forces are drawn from the free conventional units. The 6th LCT is drawn from the under strength 4th battalion and 2 companies of cadets and the entirety of the LCT's conventional forces are new to the unit. The 1st, 4th and 5th LCT's are all rated as being of regular skill level, while the 6th LCT with a larger number of new warriors and with their previous incarnation of the 4th battalion being the least skilled soldiers in the old 1st RCT are rated as green.
The 2nd Chisholm Raiders RCT, the most experienced unit in the brigade, gives rise to the 2nd, 7th, 8th and 9th LCT's. Like with the 1st LCT the 2nd LCT consists of the old RCT's command company and the 1st battalion, but the 7th and 8th are drawn from the 2nd and 3rd battalions and their numbers are made up by soldiers drawn from the 4th battalion. This leaves the newly forming 9th LCT consisting of only a single remaining company of the former 4th battalion and the rest of the formation being drawn from the 3rd Cadre. To counter this the High Command organise for the most experienced cadets of the Cadre to be concentrated in the 9th. The 2nd, 7th and 8th LCT's are rated as veteran units maintaining the skill levels of the 2nd RCT but the 9th LCT does see a drop in experience to regular skill level.
The 3rd Chisholm Raiders RCT, the newest and least experienced of the "old" RCT's is used to form the 3rd, 10th, 11th and 12th LCT. The new 3rd consists of the most experienced soldiers in 1st battalion and the RCT's command company. Like with the 2nd RCT's break up the High Command raids the 4th battalion to allow the 2nd and 3rd battalions to form full scale LCT's - the 10th and 11th respectively. Unlike with the 2nd RCT's 4th battalion there are insufficient cadets left in the 3rd Cadre to fill all the gaps, leaving the 12th LCT at only half strength. All of the newly formed LCT's drawn from the old 3rd RCT are rated as green - although in the 12th LCT's case the High Command makes up for this and their short battlemech force by assigning extremely experienced conventional forces.
While the 12 "new" LCT's are on the face of it entirely new formations in preparation for this day the 3 former RCT's have been training in LCT tactics for some time and are expected to settle into their new organisation much quicker than a standard new formation. Particularly given that all 12 LCT's are slated for participation in "Operation Heart Attack" in July.
The Federated Suns also receive word from Clan Nova Cat that they will be leaving the Combine and taking up the First Princes's offer at the end of the month. Orders are flashed to ALL commands that Nova Cat forces and civilians are now allies and are to be treated accordingly. The Nova Cats are invited to pass through FedSun's space en-route to their new homes in the Outback. A number of system's are listed as locations that their convoys can stop at and re-provision and if need be refit in safety - Verde, Defiance and Filtvelt. In preparation large quantities of supplies, food stuffs, etc are stockpiled at these locations. Engineering units are also ordered to the new colony worlds of Clan Nova Cat to begin building temporary housing, water filtration plants, power facilities, landing pads, etc in preparation for their arrival. The First Prince is eager to make a good impression upon the Clan.
Within the Federated Sun's news of the SLDF's disbandment is taken with some sadness but not a great deal of surprise. Many had expected it for some time. The announcement's that a large number of SLDF personnel had opted to offer their services to the AFFS is greeted with a combination of approval and appreciation but with a lack of surprise. For some time the people of the FedSun's have felt that they have been the true supporters of the SLDF and this news is only acknowledging this. The rebirth of the Arcadian Chasseurs and to a larger extent the formation of the Davion Lion's are taken as just another sign by the vast majority of the population that they have the "right leader" in First Prince Victor. A syndicated interview by Major General Zibler of the New Avalon Planetary Guard goes viral and perfectly sums up the mood of the man on the street when he points out that the Arcadian Cuirassiers had been a staple of the AFFS since the Age of War right through the First Star League and into the Third Succession War, before they finally fell victim to that long conflict. Yet First Prince Victor had not only resurrected them, but had in fact expanded upon their previous strength! "The First Prince is not content only with rebuilding but he is in fact building upon previous glories" is a line from the interview that is repeated from the Addicks PDZ to the Periphery Combat Region. On almost every world that the interview is shown or published on the First Prince sees a 2 point jump in his popularity rating - which is already high. The only notable exception is the world of Kathil where the First Princes's approval rating drops by 4 points after the 1st Davion Lions are announced.
On Bristol the sixth and final Fury Command Tank line comes online. While Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons are considering adding additional lines they are being pressured by the High Command to continue to diversify their production to other facilities and perhaps other designs.
At their plant on Shawnee Andoran Industries Limited see their second line go operational. This now means that the facility is producing their flagship design the Clint medium battlemech as well as the Hussar light battlemech. Work continues on the third line which is to produce Mercury mech's.
Kallon Industries plant on Nanking see's it's first real expansion since the FedCom era when the Penetrator class battlemech enters production at the facility. An Enforcer III line is also under construction and the company is considering adding further Enforcer III lines to produce additional variants of the staple Davion battlemech for deployment into the League March. In addition the High Command have suggested that the company might put the Crusader class battlemech into production at the plant or at another one of their facilities.
Within the Lyran Alliance the fighting on Hesperus continues, with the garrison holding out in brutal tunnel fighting while awaiting relief. While the LAAF has the units to reinforce them, they simply lack the naval forces to break the WOB blockade and safely land them. However amongst the tired and desperate defenders there is a growing feeling that while Tharkad might have abandoned them or be unable to send aid, the "Davion's will come!" to save them.
There is no such hope on Bolan where the 4th Alliance Guard are unable to save the 1st Bolan Jaegers when the 11th Atrean Dragoon's manage to cut of their retreat and with the aid of the 30th Marik Militia. Alone now the 4th Guard begins to fall back on the capital in a state little better than a rout.
On the Clan Wolf front the defenders are at least reinforced when the Wolves-in-Exile enter the fray against their brothers and sisters. Khan Kell lead's his own Alpha Galaxy specifically against the Tamar Galaxy and drives it back across the border in a series of brutal and brief engagements. Unfortunately it's Galaxy Commander - Katrina Steiner - manages to escape with over half of her troops. Khan Kell, facing being outflanked by Khan Vlad Ward's own Alpha Galaxy is forced to fall back and not pursue in the the Wolf Occupation Zone.
Within the fractured League the Duchy of Oriente in a surprise move announces that they will come to the aid of "so called Captain-General Corrine Marik" and directs their forces to attack the vulnerable flank of the Principality of Regulus. Hopeful voices are quick to point out that hopefully this mean's that the 2 factions might find more common ground and help reform the League! These hopes are given added incentive when the world of Menkalinan announces that it is intending to secede from the League and "rejoin" the Federated Sun's. There are whispers that Wasat and Berenson are considering the same. If Berenson in particular opts for this action it will be even worse as that water rich world had never been part of the Federated Commonwealth and excluding brief Capellan occupations had been part of the League since the fall of the Terran Hegemony...
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FWL is getting even worse and the Raiders finally go LCT which will be useful for that op that's been planned.
I also hope that the relif for Hep gets there soon.
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The task force is already in-route to the battle. They are being careful not to be seen and are still some distance away.
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The embattled garrison is indeed right... The Davions are riding to the rescue... Look for them coming by the light of exploding WOB warships...
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Have the FedSuns Navy trained in bordering and capture operations? This is a good time to send over marines onto the WoB ships and take them over for use by the allied powers. Either going to the ComGuard or the Lyrans. A fleet the size of the one heading to the fight would have a massive marine complement. And these marines should be equipped with the best infantry kit the FedSuns have recently made. Plus Battlearmor equipped forces would also be a major force available to them given the RCTs assigned to the task force.
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Have the FedSuns Navy trained in bordering and capture operations? This is a good time to send over marines onto the WoB ships and take them over for use by the allied powers. Either going to the ComGuard or the Lyrans. A fleet the size of the one heading to the fight would have a massive marine complement. And these marines should be equipped with the best infantry kit the FedSuns have recently made. Plus Battlearmor equipped forces would also be a major force available to them given the RCTs assigned to the task force.
They have and they have a large BA/Marine contingent with them. Whether that will let them seize any ships or not is debatable. Never been a big fan of "boarding" operations to be fair.
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Especially against WOB fanatics. You'd think that if they having battle armor swarming aboard, they'd sooner blow the ship up than let it be taken. Still one can hope they can get the Tharkad back for the Lyrans :)
Personally, I've always considered boarding actions incredibly risky, not as casually done as they are often done in canon. And that they are best for attacking crippled ships that have had their main drives and so on all knocked out. Less about 'grand theft warship!' and more about 'lets clean this up, we might be able to salvage some useful bits and pieces. But thats just me.
The battle is going to be very interesting to see unfold. The WOB only has a handful of warships left. At last report they had Invicible, 2 Suffren class destroyers and 2 Zechetinu II Corvettes in orbit. Possibly others picketing the jump points. Ardan will have an overwhelming warship advantage, trick will be getting in in clean and fast and close to take full advantage of it and just swarm the enemy, smothering them with oppenheimers glory.
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Wasn't the Arcadian Cuirassiers Brigade rather than Chasseurs?
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Heart Attack is likely a massive raid on Sol. With the WoB deployed the way they are Sold is vulnerable to a raid. Not to capture but a damaging raid on it and all the other worlds in their protectorate. Considering that the LCTs are being prepared for it means raiding is the main objective.
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Wasn't the Arcadian Cuirassiers Brigade rather than Chasseurs?
You are entirely correct. Dammit. Sorry about that. Will edit it and fix it.
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3070 - June - Navy expansions
During June the Federated Suns Navy saw itself expand with several new ships completing including one huge capital vessel (OOC I forgot to include them, my bad). The first two ship however was not bought into the Federated Sun's Fleet but instead was offered to the ComGuards if they wished to buy it (as had been previously discussed) - a Feng Hung cruiser that was completing at Capella and another finished at Necromo. Unsurprisingly the ship hungry ComGuards immediately agreed to buy the huge vessels. A ComGuard crew was hurriedly taken aboard both and the CSV Resilience and CSV Restitution are assigned to the 1st Independent Squadron. Meanwhile both yards begin building a new Black Lion II vessel.
At the huge shipyards at Galax the FSS De Berry, FSS Diboll, FSS Greely, FSS Adrian and FSS Tarkio were all taken into service. They were immedietly assigned to form the core of a new 9th Corvette Flotilla, temporarily assigned to Galax however their officers and crew were ordered to prepare for a long range patrol. At the same time the FSS Roger Davion was completed and used to begin a 5th Cruiser Squadron which for the time being was assigned to New Avalon. All 6 slips began constructing new warships immedietly.
However the singular moment for the Galax shipyards had been the launching on the 12th of June of the FSS Iron Duke (formerly the CJF Falcon's Nest), the first of it's class and first battleship commissioned into the Federated Suns Navy (as the Defender class had been battlecruisers rather than battleships). While offered to the First Prince as his new flagship Prince Victor instead instructed that it be used to form the core of a 1st Battleship Squadron. The FSS Centurion was laid down in the now free slip.
Kathil also completed the FSS Joseph Davion II, an Avalon cruiser. Quitely it was agreed that the FSS Joseph Davion and FSS Joseph Davion II should not be assigned to the same squadron and ideally not the same theatre to avoid complications. As such she is assigned to the newly formed 5th Cruiser Squadron. A new Avalon cruiser is begun at the empty slip.
The final ship completed is the FSS Challenge, a new Congress-D II which is assigned to the 2nd Patrol Squadron. For the time this single ship squadron is assigned to patrol the Outback. The Congress-D II has in the recent Capellan War shown itself to be a versatile ship design capable of acting not only as a patrol craft, but a combat frigate and even light carrier and as such further investments are being considered to expand the numbers under construction.
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Well, that is a good little boost to the Navy. What they should do is all the ships they just completed and the ones that will be coming online soon should be combined into a single Battle Group that works and trains together. That way the Battleship isn't left without an escort and it can form the main spearhead to break and hit any force in the IS with overwhelming firepower.
Good to see that the Congress-D II is getting the praise and recognition it deserves. They would be well off matching the number of frigate slips with destroyer slips to start out with. The Congress-Ds make a good ship to pair with some models of the Blue Star Irregulars' own class of ship to from independent raiding task forces.
The two Black Lion IIs being started along with the one being rebuilt will give the FedSuns navy more flexibility as well. Plus it adds another ship class on the upper end of heavy frontline combat ships that the Navy needs.
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The Joseph Davions should just be called
Big Joe and Little Joe
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The Joseph Davions should just be called
Big Joe and Little Joe
I like that... :D
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Hey didn't you call the new Black Lion the III not the II since the original Black Lion I class was the flagship class of the McKenna, and the more well known Black Lion class was named after that class?
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"Big Joe and Little Joe"- to me that kind of has a "Kelly's Heroes" theme to it, you could name them Crap Game, Moriarty, Odd Ball... >:D
Great build up, when does the Wobbies and Snakes get thrashed? And the Tanker clans get crushed!!!
Thank you!
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yep big joe from Kellys Heroes
and little joe would be from bonanza
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3070 - June - Navy expansions
For every warship you destroy, two more shall take its place. HAIL HYDRA!
Seriously, the depression in the strategic commands of everyone else at how the AFFS Navy just keeps growing ... and growing ... and GROWING must be hilarious :D
Do we have stats on the Black Lion IIs? I'm a little surprised they are already at the keel stage, I thought the Sun Jaguar ships had only come into the FedSuns shipyards for refits recently...
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For every warship you destroy, two more shall take its place. HAIL HYDRA!
Seriously, the depression in the strategic commands of everyone else at how the AFFS Navy just keeps growing ... and growing ... and GROWING must be hilarious :D
Do we have stats on the Black Lion IIs? I'm a little surprised they are already at the keel stage, I thought the Sun Jaguar ships had only come into the FedSuns shipyards for refits recently...
It entered the shipyard for refit recently but work on the design had already started before that and there were no open slips to build it at yet. With the new yards captured it gave them a place to build new ones from. It is the same thing as the New Syrtis II class carrier we had the design in work before we started repairing the old one and then started the building of more before the first one was rebuilt. Plus it should be the Black Lion III.
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It entered the shipyard for refit recently but work on the design had already started before that and there were no open slips to build it at yet. With the new yards captured it gave them a place to build new ones from. It is the same thing as the New Syrtis II class carrier we had the design in work before we started repairing the old one and then started the building of more before the first one was rebuilt. Plus it should be the Black Lion III.
There's a bit of a difference though; the New Sytris II was a Federated Suns design already and they probably had the plans and a lot of construction history still on hand. Plus, could send teams to do a lot of survey work on the future Morgan Hasek Davion.
Even so, there is design work that really wouldn't be able to be done until they had the ship in the yard. Its not impossible for them to start before the design is frozen and finalized, certinally warships HAVE been built using spiral methodologies ... and if you're willing to eat the leadship/ships of the class being major problem children that pay for the lessons of the next generation? That's all good.
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3070 - July - Operation Heart Attack
While Operations Achilles, Agamemnon and Ajax continued to be considered "live" and active operations with their own staffs and planning, the war with the Draconis Combine was largely subverted into a new Operation Heart Attack. Intended to provide the knock out punch that would drive the Combine to it's knees and force it's leadership to accept the growing reality of their defeat, the hope was that if Operation Heart Attack was successful it would allow the AFFS to bring active combat operation's to a conclusion from a position of strength and without any further large scale fighting. As such the AFFS High Command threw almost everything they could into the planned strikes. The first element of the Operation was a massive strike by multiple units across the entire Ashio Prefecture and much of the remaining Al Na'ir Prefecture, combining with elements of Operation Achilles. Actually seizing the worlds attacked while obviously hoped for was less important than merely hitting them. The sheer breadth of the strike and the amount of troops that the AFFS was throwing into the Operation was supposed to drive home the hopelessness of their situation not only to the leadership of the DCMS but also the troops on the ground. They had lost, it was time to quit while they were behind. The second part of Operation Heart Attack was the threat of what would happen if the DCMS didn't wake up and do the smart thing, strikes again vital and key targets that were now on the front lines. These strikes unlike the first element not intended to take these worlds. They were merely to show that if the AFFS so wished they could reach out and hit these targets. For the purposes of Operation Heart Attack, the ships assigned to Operation Caesar were re-tasked.
Halstead Station
The 1st Chisholm Raiders LCT was assigned the conquest of this famous system along with the Fighting Urukhai's Demestri Slugger's regiment. While historically important and strategically located on the Combine/FedSun's border the world had long been stripped of it's garrison in order to mount the doomed counter attack on Cylene. The destroyed 46th Dieron Regulars had never been replaced and the local garrison had been left to it's own devices. The Fighting Urukhai regiment had been included at the last minute to aid overcoming the expected strong local militias and also as a nod to their losses facing the 46th Dieron. They had been promised that whatever remained of the supplies of the 46th Regulars would be handed over to them to help rebuild - but also warned that ANY war crimes or excessive violence directed at the locals would be dealt with severely. While including them was felt to be a risk, it did double the battlemech strength of the invasion force.
In the end it didn't really matter. The world's domed and underground cities while on the face of it united in their defensive preperations had largely concentrated on defending their own regions. This allowed the 1st Chisholm Raiders and their mercenary allies to concentrate on grinding down each city at a time, with help from 2 free battle armour battalions that had been assigned to them for just such fighting. The domed cities largely surrendered early rather than risk explosive damage to the domes that kept the toxic atmosphere out and with these as bases the AFFS forces swiftly moved to secure the rest of the planet. By the end of the month there were still a handful of underground cities and mines that maintained allegiance to the Dragon, but they were increasingly isolated and cut off from each other.
Yance I
The civilian population of Yance was well known for being armed and extremely proficient with said small arms (living on a planet with a carnivore like the Black Reaper was a strong incentive to learn to shoot), however despite the planets agricultural and mineral resources it had been almost 30 years since it had a regular DCMS garrison. The local militias were heavily weighted towards (excellent) rifle companies that would however prove little match for the veteran 7th Chisholm Raiders LCT and 2 brigades of mechanised conventional infantry. Although snipers would be a major problem at least initially there was little or no prospect of the world resisting the AFFS invasion and subsequently the local government surrendered on the 28th.
Shinonoi
The hugely productive agricultural and mining world of Shinonoi was a key target for the AFFS during Operation Heart Attack and as such the 2nd and 12th Chisholm Raiders LCT were both tasked with securing it for the Sword and Starburst. The veteran 2nd took point while the still under strength 12th acted as a mobile reserve for the more experienced unit. The wealth of the planet had allowed a respectable militia force to be formed (subsidised by the DCMS to help protect this key border world), including no less than 3 companies of battlemechs. However the Chisholm Raider forces had all been reequipped with either new machines or totally rebuilt and upgraded older machines and compared to the DCMS cast off's that equipped the militia there was no contest even if the Raiders hadn't outnumbered them 2:1. In a series of battles best labelled as skirmishes the AFFS Regular's routed the local militia and forced their surrender on the 29th. With the surrender of the last company of battlemech equipped locals the government surrendered on the 30th.
Ashio
The prefecture capital was protected not only the almost intact 24th Dieron Regulars but also the 16th Sun Zhang Cadre which had yet to see combat as well as a sizeable conventional force consisting of a mix of regular DCMS troops and militia. Against a force consisting only of Chisholm Raider troops the defenders had every expectation of victory. An expectation that the AFFS High Command and Robinson had shared and as such they had assigned a stronger force than usual for Operation Heart Attack. Joining the 8th Chisholm Raiders were the 2nd Crucis Lancers RCT and the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT as well as the newly formed 1st Davion Lions.
While Marshal Anne Sung is officially in command of the operation she deliberately deputises Major General Andrew Redburn as her primary combat commander. With much to prove the Major General's 1st Davion Lions take the point, with their flanks heavily reinforced by the light and medium battlemech's of the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry, and smash into the defending 24th Dieron Regulars like a hammer.
Even as the 24th finds itself fighting for their lives against one of the finest regiments in the entire Inner Sphere the 8th Chisholm Raiders LCT deploys to contain the 16th Cadre. While ordered to hold the capital of Iscariot while the 24th mounted a more mobile defence the panicked communications of the embattled Regulars leads the 16th Sun Zhang Cadre to attempt to reach their comrades to reinforce them. Sweeping in from the north the 8th Chisholm Raiders LCT along with the overwhelming air power provided by the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry's fighter wings batter the Cadre as they advance. Meanwhile behind them the 2nd Crucis Lancers sweep in on Iscariot and seize the planet in the face of only disheartened conventional forces who had been left behind when the Cadre charged to the aid of the 24th Dieron.
After a three day battle the 24th finally breaks under a mass assault to their centre by the 1st Davion Lions while each of their flanks are attacked by 2 battalions of the 12th Deneb along with a supporting armour and battle armour regiment. Falling back they find their relief column of the 16th Cadre in little better shape after a running battle with the smaller but vastly more experienced 8th Raiders.
Attempting to turn on the Raiders and overwhelm them with the combined strength of both commands the DCMS officers are frustrated when the 8th merely fires a few volleys of "parthian" shots and falls back. Attempts to chase them down and crush them are met by repeated stalling tactics and airstrikes, while the Lion's and the Light Cavalry sweep up behind the frustrated DCMS formations.
On the 26th of July Major General Redburn's pursuing forces catch up with the DCMS task force while at the same time the 8th turns around and for the first time charges the pursuing Combine units. Realising the trap that he is in however Tai-sa Akhito orders his forces to break off and attempt to slide out from between the two Davion formations. His orders are only partially followed. While the bulk of his own remaining Deiron Regulars immedietly follow his orders the 16th Sun Zhang Cadre's remaining officers (Tai-sa Jean Fabier had had his battlemech destroyed by an air strike during the initial days of the battle and is restricted to a MASH unit) hesitate for just a few minutes too long before following the orders.
Disengaging with roughly five companies of his own troops and a single company of Cadre cadets the Tai-sa can do little to save the remaining troops of the Cadre who are cut off and destroyed by the massed AFFS units. Their deaths do at least allow him to break contact with the pursuing units and head for Shigata to join up with the local militia and conventional forces there. This does mean however that at the end of July the entire continent of Rhodesia has fallen to the AFFS and the defending battlemech formations have lost nearly 75% of their strength. In return they have inflicted moderate casualties on the AFFS forces - mostly concentrated in the 1st Davion Lions and 8th Chisholm Raiders.
Chichibu
The 4th Chisholm Raiders LCT landed upon the world and immedietly took the surrender of the local militia formations and government. Settling in to a safe and secure garrison posting they were entirely taken by surprise when a battalion of enemy battlemech's appeared from the mountains of Chichibu and attacked them. Casualties were heavy, particularly amongst the LCT's attached infantry and armour formations, but after a few days of hurried reorganisation the 4th went back on the offensive and soon crushed the unknown battlemech formation which consisted almost exclusively of Panther, Jenner and Dragon battlemechs. After having re-secured the planet (this time after heavy losses) the 4th Raiders arrested the local militia and government officials who had betrayed their surrenders. However a subsequent investigation by the DMI would reveal that the attacking force actually consisted of Black Dragon terrorists and was entirely unknown to the local officials and militia who were then released and compensated for their imprisonment extremely generously - paid for by the diamond mine that was found during the investigation and which had been apparently owned and run by the Black Dragons. The prisoners who had been working the mine were similarly freed and compensated (indeed being offered shares in the new company formed to run the mine). Many of these released prisoners (many of whom had been "disappeared" over the years for subversive actions/politics and then sold to the Black Dragon by corrupt prison officials) would subsequently go on to take up prominent positions in the new FedSun's loyal government formed.
Piedmont
The local government of Piedmont notified that they would surrender to the incoming 3rd Chisholm Raiders LCT as long as the Raiders garunteed the security and continued operation of the Piedmont Institute for Disease Control. The commanding officer of the 3rd immedietly agreed to the first condition and after hurriedly contacting Robinson and New Avalon was able to agree to the second before the first troops landed. Indeed he was able to offer not only that the Institute could continue operating but that it could partner with NAIS if it so wished to help fight diseases. As such Piedmont was almost immedietly accepted into the Federated Suns peacefully.
Albalii
The Azami leadership of the world of Albalii had contacted Arkab in order to request at least one of the Arkab Legions be assigned to the defence of the system. However when the leadership of the Azami on Akrab had requested that the 2nd Arkab Legion be dispatched to protect the planet they had been informed that would be impossible. While this somewhat soured relationships between Arkab and the DCMS it massively soured the relationships with Albalii and the Combine. As such when the 5th Chisholm Raiders arrived in the system the local government ordered all of the Azami militia units to stand down and offered to join the Federated Suns as long as their traditions were respected.
With some foresight the High Command had managed to attach a number of Markab natives to the conventional forces of the 5th prior to the unit being assigned to the invasion of Albalii. These fellow Azami were able to reassure the local leadership of their sect that the Federated Suns would respect their traditions and there was little friction as the world surrendered rather than fight for the Combine which had denied them aid even from their own kin.
Shimonita
Despite the presence of a battlemech manufacturing facility on the planet Shimonita had long been neglected by the Draconis Combine and as such there was little love for the Kurita's amongst the locals. The 9th Chisholm Raiders LCT's officers were optimistic that they would face only limited resistance from the locals, however they were surprised to find out that the executives of Sapphire Metals had not only opted for neutrality but had actually came out in favour of joining the Federated Suns. Although suspicious they received coded messages verifying that Sapphire Metals turn could be counted upon and the 9th was able to land at the industrial facilities own spaceport and use it as a safe base from which to secure the rest of the planet from. While the 9th declined the offer of a sale of a company of Charger assault mechs due to the rather specialised nature of the poorly thought of design, they did accept the support of the locals repair shops to keep themselves fully operational during the few skirmishes that took place between themselves and hold outs.
It would subsequently be revealed that a team of MI4 Stealthy Foxes had been infiltrated in the system and had arranged the defection of Sapphire Metals to the Federated Sun's in the preceding months to Operation Heart Attack. In order to ensure this they had not only promised that Sapphire Metals would not be absorbed into an existing FedSun's company but also would be eligable for the same sort of investments that FedSun's companies had previously received to expand their production. With little interest in the extremely limited Charger House Davion would offer Sapphire Metals the specifications for the Spartan assault mech to be produced and sold to the AFFS and ComGuards as part of this agreement. Plans were also put in place to add further designs to the companies production in order to reinforce the worlds loyalty.
Sadachbia
The 6th Chisholm Raiders LCT was reinforced with the veteran 22nd Avalon Hussars RCT in order to ensure that the 13th Ghost would not be able to resist the invasion force. The defending DCMS unit had concentrated it's forces at the planetary capital of Jalna'ir and had dug in knowing that it was only a matter of time before they were attacked. The 22nd Avalon Hussars along with an extra attached mixed conventional brigade landed in the surrounding area and soon had the city under siege. Meanwhile the 6th Chisholm Raiders landed at the spaceport of Kamalabad and seized the remainder of the continent of Grangi with only minimal resistance. While the bulk of the unit remained to garrison Grangi the 6th did dispatch it's heavy armour units and battle armour battalions to aid the 22nd Avalon Hussars as well as their artillery company. Attempting to avoid losses the 22nd continued a slow grinding campaign against the 13th Ghost, hammering the defenders with air and artillery strikes while probing the defensive lines for weaknesses.
Ancha
With only a small population and little in the way of militia forces or conventional DCMS regiments the newly formed 16th Ghost was the primary garrison of the planet. Heavily under strength (with only 5 battlemech companies and almost no supporting conventional forces) the 16th's officers greatest hope was that the AFFS units wouldn't have been vacinated against the local virus that had killed the initial colony. When this hope was dashed there was little that the 16th Ghost could do when faced with not only the 10th but also the 11th Chisholm Raiders LCT's. Outnumbered in terms of battlemechs and vastly outnumbered in terms of sheer firepower the 16th put up the best resistance they could, but when their 2nd battalion was wiped out they requested terms and surrendered on the 30th.
Biham
The 2nd Davion Guards RCT fresh from their reconquest of their old garrison posting at Fomalhaut arrived in the skies over Biham and were immedietly contacted by the local governor who surrendered. Who was promtly shot by one of his aides who turned out to be an ISF agent. Unfortunately for the agent however the next in line for leadership of the planet immedietly repeated the surrender (after having hired fresh bodyguards). The 2nd Davion Guards landed a force consisting entirely of battlemechs on the planet while sending most of their conventional forces back to Fomalhaut rather than risk contamination from the planets poisoned atmosphere. Specialist infantry units were dispatched to garrison the planet and relieve the 2nd.
Telos IV
The 27th Avalon Hussars RCT arrived on Telos and immedietly began to have to deal with local resistance. However unlike on most worlds this didn't take the form of active military actions but instead passive resistance from the population. Deploying across the world the 27th found little to no actual military attempts to fight them but a slow and steady draining civilian resistance. The population of the world was largely loyal to Theodore Kurita personally. The commanding officer of the 27th requested that additional conventional infantry be routed to the planet along with specialist intelligence units to win the hearts and minds campaign that this world would require.
Kervil
The 33rd Avalon Hussars RCT was joined in the invasion of Kervil by no less than 3 independent aerospace wings. This was deemed a solid descision when the local militia proved to include a full reinforced wing of the locally produced Sabre light aerospace fighter - the Kervil Defence Wing. With the 3 wings of the 33rd along with the independent naval wings the AFFS formation was able to push through the light fighters and land intact. Had they lacked the numbers to do so the AFFS ground forces might have been mauled. In a controversial choice the 33rd's CO decided to launch the invasion by a combat drop directly on top of not only the main spaceport of the world but also the base of the militia fighter wing.
While a number of descending battlemech's were shot from the sky despite the best efforts of the FedSun's aerospace forces the vast majority of the reinforced regiment landed and seized the Iron Spaceport in a short fight. As well as seizing the spaceport, they also managed to capture nearly 80% of the ground support for the enemy fighter wing as well as nearly a dozen fighters that were down for repairs. With their primary base seized the Sabres of the militia were forced to relocate to the Wakazashi plant in order to land. Unfortunately for them the distance involved ended up with several fighters running out of fuel en-route. With combat losses, fighters seized at the iron Spaceport and losses from running out of fuel the reinforced wing had been ground down to only 21 fighters after the 33rd had landed.
Giving the exhausted pilots of the Kervil Defence Wing no time to make any but the most basic repairs with the help of the technicians of the industrial facility the 33rd launched a combined ground and air assault to seize the facility, for the time being ignoring Iron City (although leaving a strong garrison of 2 infantry regiments and an armoured regiment to hold the spaceport). The march on the Wakazashi plant was under constant air attacks, but by the time the 33rd drew in sight of the industrial plant the Defence Wing had been reduced to only 5 serviceable fighters due to air to air combat losses and ground flak fire from the marching 33rd. In a short battle the Hussars secured the plant and deprived the single remaining fighter of any possible landing site - to which he responded by attempting to ram his damaged fighter into a column of the 33rd's armoured support, being killed 30 seconds short of his goal ironically by an AFFS Sabre.
With the fall of both the spaceport and Wakazashi plant and the loss of the primary garrison unit the remaining militia (poorly equipped infantry which had always been overlooked for support in favour of the Defence Wing) refused to fight. With the Tai-sa in charge of the mixed militia brigade (1 battalion of antiquated tanks and 2 regimetns of armour) refusing to fight the governor surrendered his world to the Federated Suns on the 29th.
Benjamin
As Operation Heart Attack subsumed Operation Caesar the ships of the 4th Corvette Flotilla along with the FSS Daring and FSS Dryad jumped into the Benjamin system at the Nadir jump point along with a veritable flotilla of Tramp class jumpships which disgorged a fleet of assault dropships, pocket warships, dropship carriers and marine transports. The DCS Draconis Rift, while individually larger than any of the ships jumping in, found itself woefully outgunned. With more bravery than sense the commanding officer of the Kyusha class frigate attempted to get in amongst the jumpships carrying the various dropships in an initial rush. However this rush unfortunately carried him straight into the broadside firing arcs of the FSS Daring who's fast recovering gun crews proceeded to pour crippling volleys into the Kurita ship. While the return fire managed to cause light damage to the destroyer, the FSS Dyrad used the time to close in from the front and the firepower of the two Davion III ships tore the damaged DCS Draconis Rift apart. Meanwhile the various Fox II corvettes proceeded to demolish any Kurita dropship that even looked like it might be hostile and every jumpship that didn't immedietly disengage their jumpdrive.
With the Nadir jump point's huge jump-station secured by marines and prize crews taking control of the nearly dozen jumpships and three dozen dropships that had surrendered, the AFFS task force began to slowly head in-system. In orbit over Benjamin the DCA Tai-sho on the bridge of the DCS Takashi ordered the two Inazuma corvettes deployed at the Zenith jump point to make best speed to join the DCS Takashi, the heavily damaged DCS Siriwan and the DCS Pesht the latest New Samarkand carrier in the DCA in orbit over Benjamin. He also requested and was granted full control over all assault dropships and pocket warships within the system, although not the fighter wings attached to the garrison units. All other fighters (consisting of two naval wings and an independent wing) were however released to his command.
Heading out slowly to meet the invading (under direct order from Hohiro Kurita) the Tai-sho was joined by the two Inazuma class corvettes after they performed a risky inter-system jump to rendezvous with him. This brought his warship numbers up to five - although the DCS Siriwan was still sporting heavy damage from her fight at Dieron. Outnumbered 14:5 however he felt he had no other option but to bring the damaged cruiser with him. He and his crews could at least console themselves that they numbered two cruisers, a carrier and two corvettes against two destroyers and 12 corvettes. Perhaps the larger ships would give them an advantage in a ship to ship engagement.
As the two formations closed in on each other however it soon became apparent that the Davion Admiral had absolutely zero intentions of engaging in a ship to ship engagement. Instead the attached fighter regiments assigned to each of the Fox II corvettes under his command (20 carried in the warship itself along with 40 carried in a vengeance class dropship) as well as a sizeable number of independent fighter wings launched in a massive attack formation and bore down upon the Kurita formation.
With the fighters integral to his warships - excluding the DCS Pesht numbering just enough to form a single combined wing - the Combine Tai-sho is able to muster almost 200 fighters to defend his ships. This is against over 900 incoming Davion fighters. In order to achieve greater tactical flexibility and control the Davion wings come in in three distinctive waves. The Kurita fighters largely manage to blunt the first wave with the assistance of the warships own guns and the support of the various dropships deployed as an anti-fighter screen. The second wave however smashes the already damaged fighter screen and mauls the dropships deployed around the warships. Which leaves the way free for the massed fighters of the third wave to sweep in almost unopposed against the DCA warships. It is no accident that the third wave largely consists of assault and heavy aerospace fighters specifically configured for anti-warship operations.
The first ship to succumb to the fighter attack is the already damaged DCS Siriwan. Even during the second waves attack the Davion fighters had managed to close and further damage it's already shattered armour and now the third wave closes in and almost immedietly turns the crippled warship into a drifting dead hulk. The DCS Pesht, the next target for the Davion fighters and frantically rearming as many surviving Kurita fighters as it can, barely outlives the DCS Siriwan. Finding itself the target of 2 entire fighter regiments the light carrier is torn apart before it can launch even a handful of fighters for it's own defence.
The remaining strength of the third wave is just enough to launch a number of crippling attacks upon the DCS Takashi before breaking off to head back to refuel and rearm. The two Inazuma class corvettes have suffered almost no damage in the exchange, having been ignored in favour of more important targets.
Even as the DCA officers are frantically trying to reorganise the Davion fighter reserve, roughly 300 fighters held back for their own defence, are launched as a fourth wave. With the destruction of almost every Kurita fighter and the DCS Pesht the Davion Admiral has little to fear of a DCA fighter strike and judges the short window of time between the first and second wave rearming to provide cover worth it.
With a fourth wave bearing down on his still shaken formation the Tai-sho orders both Inazuma class corvettes to break off and attempt to avoid destruction, while his own flagship attempts to buy them time. Both ships Captains have to be ordered twice before they do so. He orders the few remaining dropships to accompany them. Alone his damaged ship faces the incoming Davion fighters. Even though most of them are configured for anti-fighter work their sheer numbers are more than enough to tear the DCS Takashi apart in a single pass.
With the Kurita fleet gutted and it's few survivors attempting to flee the Davion warships proceed to take their time to destroy every piece of orbiting infrastructure. Every dropship that can't avoid them is either destroyed or captured. Every jumpship that doesn't get clear is either seized or destroyed. Both jump point's Olympus class stations are scuttled and destroyed. The Davion's only spared the large orbiting solar sails that kept the planet habitable after making it abundantly clear that had they so chosen they could have destroyed them - proving this by flying a full fighter wing past each orbiting sail at the same time.
Having arrived on the 1st of July the Davion task force jumps out of the Benjamin system on the 31st. Leaving behind them a system in shock. On the planet itself Hohiro Kurita has had to be physically restrained having went berserk following the disastrous naval battle. Even when he has calmed down however he orders that the captains of the DCS Floating Blossom and DCS Light Falling from Heaven (the two corvettes which had managed to evade the Davion warships for nearly 3 weeks of nerve wracking cat and mouse manoeuvres) executed along with their executive officers (for not having executed their captains when they initially displayed their cowardice). He also personally executes Warlord Boris Petroff and his entire staff for clear incompetence in preparing the defences of his District Capital and personally assumes the duties and roles of the Warlord of Benjamin.
Galedon
Just as at Benjamin on the 1st of July a Davion warship task force jumps into the Galedon system. Consisting of the 7th Corvette Flotilla and the FSS Divine and FSS Diomede it "only" consists of 8 Fox II corvettes along with a large number of escorting dropships. Unlike at Benjamin there are no warships at the two jump points and the Davion's quickly seize the Zenith jump-station before scuttling it. Again just as at Benjamin the Davion warships begin heading in system.
The Kirishima cruiser DCS Urizen II and the Kyusha frigate DCS Galedon Explorer along with the Inazuma class DCS Whispering Wind all in high orbit above Galedon itself are immedietly ordered by Warlord Li Dok To to flee the system and retreat to the world of New Samarkand to form the core of a relieving task force if the Davion's attempt to seize the planet. They are to take with them every dropship and fighter wing that can reach them in time.
With the enemy warships fleeing at their approach and having broken orbit well in advance of any Davion fighter strike being able to catch them, the Davion Admiral in charge of the Galedon raid can do little more than take out his frustration on the orbiting infrastructure. Destroying everything outside of the actual atmosphere of Galedon itself the Admiral also contents himself with seizing a number of jumpships which due to the shattered nature of the lines of communication of the Military District continue to arrive at the Nadir and Zenith jump points. On the 31st of July he jumps out, taking with him nearly two dozen jumpships and 53 dropships as well as having caused massive economic and infrastructure damage to the Galedon system. Still the main "prize" the three enemy warships have escaped him.
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I am surprised that Victor had so many of the targets occupied. I would have figured the plan was ty get in deploy wreck everything then withdraw back to established lines for refit and rearming then go again to hit further targets beyond. Keep doing this and taking out targets while increasing the number of units deployed to the operation. Have a larger number of units assigned and every wave add more of them to each. This would play havok on everyone in the Combine. From their perspective the FedSuns are growing so fast that they can build and send more forces every wave while the Combine can't even move the forces they already have. It is all about optics here the truth doesn't matter only what you can make the enemy think does.
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And Hohiro goes deeper into bonkers territory. If Victor wants to bring Combine to negotiating table he will have to take him out.
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Have to say that it's REALLY getting increasingly unbelivable for me that the Kuritans haven't broke out the canned sunshine - and sent deep raiders to start getting into the Crucis March and simply obliterating Davion jumpships, recharge stations and soft civilian targets in retaliation about now.
Doing things like the AFFS is doing are taboo for an incredibly good reason; everyone remembers EXACTLY what happened in the first two Succession Wars and Victor is now directly and brutally attacking the very viability of the Combine as a state. The Combine has never EVER been shy about raising the stakes or about attacking civilian targets. And their complete passive 'sitting around and taking it' is really getting a bit grating. Victor here has actually thrown the first punch with going after Kuritas jumpships and recharge stations, which have always been emphatically off limits in the Inner Sphere in recent times.
I would have expected by now deep raiders forcing Victor to recall a lot of his warships to get reaction forces into play. And if Victor doesn't get the message, an object lesson being made of a planet or two using the Curse of Galedon. Which is something that can be delivered entirely covertly by the ISF if needed.
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Have to say that it's REALLY getting increasingly unbelivable for me that the Kuritans haven't broke out the canned sunshine - and sent deep raiders to start getting into the Crucis March and simply obliterating Davion jumpships, recharge stations and soft civilian targets in retaliation about now.
Doing things like the AFFS is doing are taboo for an incredibly good reason; everyone remembers EXACTLY what happened in the first two Succession Wars and Victor is now directly and brutally attacking the very viability of the Combine as a state. The Combine has never EVER been shy about raising the stakes or about attacking civilian targets. And their complete passive 'sitting around and taking it' is really getting a bit grating. Victor here has actually thrown the first punch with going after Kuritas jumpships and recharge stations, which have always been emphatically off limits in the Inner Sphere in recent times.
I would have expected by now deep raiders forcing Victor to recall a lot of his warships to get reaction forces into play. And if Victor doesn't get the message, an object lesson being made of a planet or two using the Curse of Galedon. Which is something that can be delivered entirely covertly by the ISF if needed.
I have a line in the sand for Theodore (not so much Hohiro in fairness) that the canned sunshine gets unboxed when the first AFFS trooper sets foot on Galedon, Benjamin, Pesht, Luthien, New Samarkand or any other similar world - Dieron would have been on the list but frankly it's so near the frontier it was considered unviable to have it as part of that dividing line.
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3070 - July - Opeartions Achilles, Ajax and Agamemnon VI
With Operation Heart Attack sucking up most of the resources of the AFFS the still active Operations Achilles, Ajax and Agamemnon were by necessity scaled back. Active combat operations were continued, but only a handful of new ones were launched and these were primarily with the intent of securing a more suitable border in the event of a peace settlement or for follow on attacks if Operation Heart Attack failed in it's goal of forcing House Kurita to the peace table.
Dieron
The slow and gradual grinding attacks of the AFFS upon the besieged DCMS troops contained within Fortress Dieron continued throughout July. If anything despite the shift in priority to Operation Heart Attack the pace of operations upon Dieron was moved up. The Davion Assault Guards, assisted by the Vegan Ranger's Alpha, Beta and Gamma Regiments began to launch larger scale attacks on multiple areas of the fortress's perimeter. While the defences continued to hold, casualties on both sides mounted quickly. The difference was that from the AFFS's perspective they could afford these increased losses while the DCMS troops obviously couldn't.
Under the cover of these large scale attacks a number of infiltration attempts are made to open up a route to the heart of the fortress. While one of them is partially successful and results in battle armoured troopers managing to seize one of the major defensive strong points on the north side of the mountain the DCMS is able to thwart any knockout blow from said infiltration's and soon wises up to these efforts.
In total the AFFS and their mercenary allies end up taking losses of nearly seven companies of battlemechs and similar levels of conventional forces over the course of the month (although at least some of these losses will be made good from supplies as soon as the mechwarrior or armour crews have recovered from any injuries). In return they have managed to knockout around five companies of DCMS troops - who largely will not be returning to the lines in a few weeks or months.
Across the rest of the planet support for integration within the Federated Suns continues to rise, particularly when at the end of the month Baron Tancred Sandoval and his wife Duchess Yvonne Davion-Sandoval arrive on the planet with a heavy escort drawn largely from the 2nd Robinson Rangers RCT. They are soon being given a tour of the planet, meeting the proto-local government and the Baron at least tours the front lines of the troops facing Fortress Dieron (although at a safe distance and with a heavy escort).
Lyons
The 13th Sun Zhang Cadre finally admits to themselves that they cannot attempt to face off against the 4th Davion Guards RCT in active warfare and proceeds to scatter into the wilderness of the world. Unfortunately for them the local population is largely hostile and aids the 4th Guards in hunting down many of the cadets and officers of the Cadre over the coming month. Still at least two full companies of battlemech's manage to disperse into lance sized raiding bands across the world by the end of July.
With the dispersal of the 13th Cadre the few conventional units loyal to the DCMS on the planet facing large scale protests soon either attempt to disperse to join the cadets of the 13th or surrender to the now overwhelming superiority of the 4th Davion Guards. The planet see's a massive boost in morale when the Lyon FTM arrives on planet to take up garrison posting on the 30th. With the arrival of the LAAF on planet the AFFS troops prepare to leave the remaining mopping up to the Lyon FTM.
Ko
With the pacification of Dyev going so smoothly the AFFS authorises the 8th Striker regiment of the Fighting Urukhai to move on Ko which intelligence suggests is held by only a single conventional armour regiment and three infantry regiments and is also home to a large pro-Lyran resistance movement. These intelligence reports prove to be correct and at the arrival of the elite mercenary formation in the system the garrison commander promptly packs up his troops as best he can and abandons the system, heading for Kessel. The 8th Striker arrive on the planet and are welcomed by the already forming Lyran government - although there is some awkwardness when they welcome the 8th in the name of the "Archon-Prince Victor Steiner-Davion".
Nashira
With the arrival of an over strength infantry brigade (six regiments strong, although four of them are newly raised units, which brings the AFFS forces to eleven infantry regiments) and a reinforced battalion of attack VTOL's the writing is on the wall for the insurgents on Nashira. Although they wish to fight on with the example of their fathers and uncles in the War of '39 to motivate them the fact that the AFFS is winning the war is clear to even the most fanatically pro-Kurita rifleman. As such the Tai-sa in charge of the militia defenders requests terms from Colonel Stirling. With the permission of the High Command Colonel Stirling offers generous terms, the militia are allowed to stand down and return to private life if they so wish (although handing in their weapons) or if they refuse to submit to House Davion they will be held at a secure location until a prisoner transfer can return them to the Combine. With these terms agreed the locals surrender to the Davion mercenaries and conventional forces.
Pike IV
General Marie Stevens's plan to slowly integrate the two opposing factions of the world into the Federated Suns is clearly paying dividends and by the end of the month while officially still an active front the world is securely in the hands of the Federated Suns. However the High Command are more than aware that this is largely the work of the veteran General and as such quietly inform her that her command will be remaining as the permanent garrison of the planet for the foreseeable future. This news is accompanied by her promotion to Marshal.
Umjiri
With the knowledge that the DCMS formations are using transport heavy VTOL's to move their formations around the AFFS change their tactics. Roving patrols of aerospace fighters are soon sweeping the skies to ensure that the enemies ability to move around at will is drastically curtailed.
The first casualty of this lack of mobility is the 6th Arkab Legion's 2nd battalion which when out manoeuvred on the 12th of July and now without it's ability to magically disappear and reappear is crushed by the Davion Old Guards and the Cunningham Commando's. A similar fate befalls the 6th Ghost's 3rd battalion's 2nd company when it is pounced upon in mid air during an "escape" from an ambush by the 1st Davion Guards on the 14th.
With the net closing around them the two DCMS forces on the planet's officers secretly met and agreed to a plan to evacuate their forces from the planet. Knowing that the AFFS has a full squadron of Avalon class cruisers in orbit the two units agree to a staged break out attempt. On the 27th a large number of dropships blast off from the planet, mostly civilian dropships while following in their wake is a number of military dropships assigned to the two DCMS units. Unsurprisingly the four Avalon cruisers and their escorting dropships concentrate on shooting down or crippling the military flotilla, ignoring the civilian dropships. However almost all of the various military personnel remaining to the 6th Arkab Legion and 6th Ghost are in fact stowed away in the cargo holds of the civilian dropships - along with what military equipment could be hurriedly loaded. While they have had to sacrifice much of their actual equipment the two regiments mechwarriors, armour crews and infantry are able to escape.
With the withdrawal of the regular DCMS forces the few remaining conventional units and militia surrender to the AFFS on the 31st.
Hagiwawa
July opens with the AFFS formations launching a full scale offensive against the DCMS lines. The 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT and the 1st New Ivaarsen Chasseurs launch a coordinated attack upon the 27th Benjamin Regulars, while the 1894th Light Horse attack the massively under strength 24th Benjamin Regular and the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT attacks the similarly under strength 28th.
For three days the green 27th actually manages to hold the line (backed up by three conventional brigades who are fed into the meat grinder) against the AFFS units battering it, taking heavy casaulties but never quite breaking. Later intelligence reports will suggest that the reason for this was simply that the green as grass troops of the 27th simply didn't realise just how bad their situation was. Only when the 24th and 28th Benjamin Regulars on their flanks are crushed (the 24th breaking and falling back in a rout while the 28th is effectively wiped out as a combat command) does the 27th Regulars finally crack. As the survivors of the 24th and 27th attempt to fall back with the remnants of the conventional brigades who had been aiding in holding the Davion's back the light battlemechs of the Light Cavalry and Light Horse regiments sweep down on them and harry them all the way back to
The single remaining conventional brigade of troops that remain uncommitted to the fight are infected by the panic of the few survivors of the 24th and 27th Benjamin Regulars who manage to reach their lines around the capital city. When the light battlemechs and fast tanks of the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry arrive at the city they are able to rush the defenders and break their lines despite not being equipped for this sort of fight. With the Deneb Light Cavalry pouring into the city and the other Davion units not far behind the organised defence of the city collapses.
While holdouts will continue to fight until the end of the month, the matter s now beyond question and when what is left of the 27th Benjamin Regulars surrenders on the 30th of July the world is declared secure for the FedSun's. Although mopping up operations are expected to last for at least another 2-3 weeks.
Iruzun
The 2nd Dragonlords RCT and 4th Crucis Lancers RCT arrive in orbit and proceed to land on Iruzun on the 3rd of July on the North Umbrian continent. With the majority of the defenders deployed to protect the South Umrbian continent and the capital of New Gotham City the AFFS begin to secure their lodgement on the planet.
This plant however goes awry when the 1st Proserpina Hussars combat hops using Tonbo super heavy transports. Furious and filled with hate towards the AFFS for the loss of their homeworld and the destruction of the 10th Hussars, they hit a dispersed combat command of the 2nd Dragonlords and proceed to inflict horrendous casualties on the unit. As further 2nd Dragonlord formations rush to the rescue of their comrades the 1st Proserpina Hussars defeat them in detail, destroying over half of the RCT's remaining strength for only light losses until the massed formation of the 4th Crucis Lancers bearing down on them forces them to withdraw back across to South Umbria. The 1st Hussars even mange to drag back a decent amount of salvage which they hand over to the 16th Galedon Regulars which allows them to form an 2nd company to their 3rd battalion with local volunteers.
With the heavy losses inflicted in this attack upon the 2nd Dragonlords reducing them to minimal combat effectiveness, Major General Andrew Giggins is forced to accept that his command of the 4th Crucis alone can't hope to secure the world. He sends word of the reverse to Robinson and New Avalon while concentrating on building large scale air bases for the various aerospace wings attached to the Davion forces. Soon a heavy combat air patrol is deployed to prevent a similar surprise attack occurring again.
On the 24th of July the 1st and 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT arrive in system from Donenac and begin a burn in to join the dug in 4th Crucis Lancers and surviving 2nd Dragonlords troops. They are joined on the 27th by the 20th Avalon Hussars RCT from Reisling's Planet.
Kaznejoy
With total air superiority over all but the capital of Gondovia and complete control of the orbitals the AFFS has effectively blinded to anything over the horizon from the capital city and it's bases. When the AFFS launch a full scale air assault on the morning of the 12th of July the local fighters swarm up to reinforce their air patrol while the various defensive units are ordered to stand ready in case the enemy fighters break through.
Which leaves them totally unprepared for the arrival of the mercenary regiment Hansen's Roughriders from their long detour. Hitting a lightly defended part of the perimeter (on the opposite side of the defences from the known AFFS positions around Fort Darwin) the Roughriders break through the line with almost no difficulty before running amok within the DCMS lines. By the time they withdraw in the early hours of the morning of the 13th they have effectively destroyed the 43rd Galedon Regulars (with the survivors folded into the 45th Galedon Regulars) and done a huge amount of damage to the supply depots of the defending troops. While the official DCMS after battle reports suggest that nearly half the Roughriders were destroyed during the battle the elite unit suffered slightly less than two companies of casualties in the attack.
Morale within the DCMS units on Kaznejoy takes a major hit and the destruction of much of their supplies soon begins to effect their ability to even contest the air space above Gondovia under constant attacks. Despite the losses caused, the commanding officer feels he has no other option but to resume patrols of the deserts around Gondovia and throw out outposts beyond his air cover. These units immedietly begin to take heavy casualties from Davion aerospace fighter attacks and by the 20th the 45th Galedon Regulars conventional troops are point blank refusing to take part in these "death patrols" - demanding that 11th Ghost perform them. To say this has a toxic effect on inter-unit relations is an understatement.
The commanding officer of the garrison is therefore almost delighted to hear reports that the AFFS formations from Fort Darwin are approaching Gondovia. At least the arrival of a besieging force will hopefully reunify his command. Sallying a handful of spoiling attacks at the encroaching enemy lines the garrison prepares to resist the attack. By the 29th of July the city is fully besieged by the AFFS formations on the planet...
Matsuida
The defensive lines in the capital of Mystique city are beginning to be reminiscent of a child's drawing. However the greater strength of the AFFS formations on the planet allow them to concentrate forces as required. With this ability the AFFS concentrate the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT and 1st FedSun's Dragoons battlemech formation (their conventional forces remaining in the lines) and strike at the areas held by the 3rd Ghost on the 8th. The initial strike severs the narrow connection along the dockyards between the 3rd Ghost and the rest of the DCMS troops. Cut off and surrounded the 3rd Ghost is slowly reduced using overwhelming firepower that almost levels the dockyards and fish canning industrial plants near them. Despite effectively being abandoned by the Ryuken regiments on the planet the 3rd Ghost fights in the best traditions of the DCMS and sell their lives dearly block by block, asking for no quarter and giving none. They manage to hold out until the 10th when their final battlemech falls in the ruins of a fish processing factory. They manage to inflict their own numbers of losses onto the two Davion units before they are destroyed.
However with the destruction of the 3rd the AFFS can now concentrate on the remaining garrison of the Ryuken-yon and Ryuken-go. These two experienced formations put up a strong fight but find their line slowly pushed back and casualties mounting. The civilian population is slowly turning against them as well - given that they blame the DCMS formations for retreating into the city and bringing about this destructive urban warfare. By the end of the month the two formations are shattered but still holding out in the hills overlooking the harbour. Between them they can muster roughly a battalion of damaged battlemechs and maybe twice that in conventional forces. They have however bled the AFFS formations attacking them white.
Beta Mensae V
The 8th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT arrived in the system and with their double strength fighter wings swept forward. The system which had had almost no contact with the rest of the Draconis Combine since it's HPG went dead and the jumpships stopped coming had a small militia force which stood up to resist the AFFS troops. Woefully outnumbered, outgunned and outmanoeuvred the militia force was only able to resist for roughly a week before being crushed. The 8th Deneb Light Cavalry suffered few losses beyond some damaged tanks and battlemechs.
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3070 - July - Operation Nightfire
The WOB warships at Hesperus consist of the WoBS Invincible, the Tharkad class battlecruiser that the Word of Blake had mysteriously came into possession off and refurbished and the WoBS Nantes and WoBS Limoges, both Suffren class destroyers and 3 Zechetinu II corvettes - the WoBS Hare, WoBS Foxhound and WoBS Bunyoro. The WoBS Hare and WoBS Foxhound were deployed at the Zenith and Nadir jump points respectively, with the other ships orbiting the world of Hesperus itself. Their primary role was to safeguard the elite Shadow Divisions deployed upon the planet below and they were considered more than sufficient to defeat any Lyran Alliance effort to break the blockade of the planet.
What they were not sufficient to deal with however was the ships of Operation Nightfire. The AFFS High Command had been paying careful attention to the LAAF's intelligence briefings that were being forwarded to them about the enemy deployments at Hesperus and they knew that the bulk of the warships were in orbit with a single corvette deployed at each jump point as a trip wire. As such Fleet Admiral Buchwald had made every effort to ensure that the Federated Sun's Navy would sweep the skies clear of the WOB ships.
On the 18th of July Task Force Nightfire jumped into the Hesperus system in three flotillas. At the Nadir jump point the 1st Division of the 3rd Corvette Flotilla jumped into the system while at the Zenith jump point the 2nd Division of the 3rd Flotilla jumped in. Consisting of older Fox I vessels they were still considered more than adequate to take care of a single Zechetinu II corvette - particularly as they were all carrying a Vengeance class dropship along with two Achilles class assault dropships and two Overlord-A3 pocket warships attached to their hulls. Just to make sure each ship was carrying nuclear tipped warheads in their missile tubes right from the start. The Word of Blake had proven they were happy to use nuclear ordinance before and as such the FedSun's were more than happy to return the favour.
As soon as the two Divisions of Fox corvettes jumped into the system and had stabilised they were firing missiles at the enemy corvettes and launching their dropships and fighters just as fast as they possibly good. At the Zenith jump point the WoBS Hare was "lucky" enough to only have a single Fox materialse within range and as such managed to launch her own ready fighters (two) and dropship before the first missile was slamming into her. Her own initial volleys were not nuclear tipped and this gave the FSS Sakhara a critical edge in the initial engagement. By the time the WoBS crew were rushing nuclear ordinance to the launchers their ship was already a streaming wreck and not only had the FSS Sakhara's dropships and fighters joined the battle but the FSS Filtvelt had got into range. At the Nadir jump point the WoBS Foxhound was even less lucky in that the FSS Benet III and FSS Goshen appeared in position to bracket her. Even before she could launch her dropship the missiles were streaming in. Neither Zechetinu II corvette survived the initial engagements and only the FSS Sakhara took any damage at all.
The third and final group of Davion warships to jump into the system was also the largest, not only in numbers but in ship classes, size and firepower. Three New Sytris II carriers led the way, with ten Davion III destroyers, four Congress-D II frigates and twelve Fox II corvettes escorting them jumped into the system at a pirate point near Hesperus itself. Every single ship capable of carrying dropships was carrying a mix of Vengeance class fighter carriers and various assault and pocket warship dropships. While the air wings launched by the carriers were the single largest number of aerospace fighters each destroyer, frigate and even corvette when you included their dropships added at least a full aerospace regiment of 60 fighters to the task force.
A few seconds appraisal of the situation made the WOB Naval Precentor realise that any attempt to flee would be doomed. The enemy would simply swarm his ships under with repeated fighter strikes long before could withdraw to any safe pirate point and the regular jump points as well as being even further out were also now in the hands of the Federated Suns Navy! Hurriedly organising his four warships and the large flotilla of dropships he broke orbit and began a full burn towards the ships of Operation Nightfire.
The probably suicidal charge of the WOB ships had been anticipated and the Davion capital ships immedietly turned around and began to "flee" to keep the range open. Although the Davion III destroyers and Fox II corvettes deployed to hold their ground at the jump point along with the huge flotilla of assault dropships and pocket warships. Similar to the battle at Benjamin the Davion fighter wings broke into four separate groups. A ground consisting of 6 full aerospace regiments remained with the "fleeing" carriers and frigates, while another 5 regiments stayed with the blocking destroyers and corvettes. The other 10 regiments broken into two waves of 300 fighters and headed for the enemy in a staggered formation. However the second wave is also accompanied by a large formation of 24 Overlord-A3 pocket warships.
Just as at Benjamin (and as was obviously now Federated Suns Navy doctrine) the first wave of fighters concentrated largely on clearing the way for the next wave, concentrating on destroying enemy fighters and dropships and damaging any screening light warships. The WOB dropships and fighters take the brunt of this wave in a swirling melee and are soon either destroyed or so crippled as to be almost worthless in a fleet engagement. Which leaves the way free for the second wave and it's accompanying capital missile armed pocket warships. Unlike at the jump points however this time both sides have nuclear tipped missiles waiting for the range to close. The initial exchange somewhat favours the Federated Suns dropships however as the range closes the pocket warships begin to take heavier and heavier damage as the non-missile weapons of the WOB ships come into range. Worse a warships is simply able to absorb more damage. Still at the same time as the WOB warships are able to begin firing more and more of their fore mounted weapons at the oncoming dropships the 300 Davion aerospace fighters are also entering range. Both sides commit to a passing engagement that allows little room for tactical flexibility.
By the time the two formations pass through each other the Davion pocket warship flotilla is a mess of heavily damaged and ruined wrecks. No less than 13 ships have been totally destroyed and not one of the other ships has taken anything less than catastrophic damage. However in taking this damage they have managed to destroy the WoBS Nantes outright, and cripple the WoBS Invincible and WoBS Bunyoro. Only the WoBS Limoges comes through in anything approaching combat effective condition.
At this stage the Davion Admiral releases the fighters who have held position with the destroyers and corvettes to launch, giving them orders to concentrate their fire upon the WoBS Limoges. At the same time a number of NL-42 Battle Taxi's, Vampire dropships and Ares gunboats are also launched. They are given specific orders to target the WoBS Invincible. At the same time the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion, FSS Ran Felsner and FSS Matilda Davion begin looping around in order to rendezvous with the first and second waves of fighters, along with their escorting frigates. The destroyers and corvettes at the pirate jump point also begin making their way behind their fighter waves to close the distance with the enemy warships slowly.
What few fighters and dropships remain to the WOB task force are nowhere near sufficient to ward off the incoming third wave which breaks into two contingents when it reaches range. The first, consisting of four whole aerospace regiments bares down on the WoBS Limoges and in a single pass destroys the vessel. No less than a dozen nuclear tipped missiles slam into it at almost the exact same moment. The fighters then sweep down on the heavily damaged WoBS Bunyoro and with on-board weapons strafe the corvette until it begins to break apart. At the same time the second element to the third wave consisting of the rest of the fighters as escorts and the various transports hurtles towards the WoBS Invincible. Within minutes reports are coming in from all over the ship that battle armoured marines are breaking through the hull, forcing dropship docking ports and even forcing their way into the hangers. The few WOB marines and crewmen are soon fighting running gun battles against vastly better equipped and larger forces throughout the ship.
By the time the Davion warships come into range of the WoBS Invincible the ship is largely in the hands of the marine contingents - who's only concern for most of the fighting has been to prevent some fanatical crew member destroying the ship by detonating the missiles and shells in the armouries. A prize crew is swiftly dispatched. At the same time a message is sent via a corvette to the waiting transports of the ground forces who are soon jumping into the system and beginning to head for the planet - under warship escort.
Field Marshal Ardan Sortek from his command post aboard the Conquistador class FSS Hanse's Right Hand oversee's the landing of his troops. The 1st Aragon Borderer's and the 1st Kittery Borderer's land at the ruined spaceport and capital city and begin a mixture of relief, rebuilding and fortification efforts. At the same time the initial landing is conducted by the elite troops of the 2nd New Avalon Cavaliers - who proceed to do a combat drop at the nearest suitable landing site to the huge mountain complex of DefHes. They are almost immedietly attacked by the 2nd Shadow Division and engage in a brutal and often short ranged firefight. The slight under strength reinforced regiment of the 2nd Cavaliers had dropped into the fight with 10 companies and a command lance. By the time they have thrown the 2nd Shadow Division back and secured the landing sites they have been reduced to a single reinforced battalion. The 2nd Shadow Division is in even worse shape, having less been repulsed and more wiped out. As soon as the landing zone is secure Field Marshal Sortek begins pouring the other formations under his command onto the planet. As soon as it has landed the 5th FedSun's Dragoons RCT heads straight for the main gates of the mountain complex and engages the defending 1st Shadow Division heavily. At the same time the 1st Arcadian RCT deploys hurriedly and having contacted the fighting garrison is admitted via some of the back doors and secret access tunnels that they still head. It joins the fight from the inside of the mountain, reinforcing and in many cases replacing the battered troops who have been fighting alone for so long. The 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers is the final unit to land and swiftly heads to reinforce the struggling 5th FedSun's Dragoons.
Sortek himself lands (under strict orders) with the St Ives Cheveau-Legers with a small contingent of bodyguards from no lesser formation as the 1st Davion Guards. Ordering the 2nd New Avalon Cavaliers to stand down and repair as best they can he orders the 1st Aragon Borderer's to deploy from their own landing zone and sweep towards the factory to pick off any roving WOB patrols or formations. Using the 1st Arcadian's and whats left of the LAAF formations within the mountain as an anvil he has the 5th FedSun's Dragoons and 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers act as a hammer, forcing their way slowly inside. The fighting around the main entrance is not only prolonged but also bloody and it isn't until the 28th that the 5th FedSun's finally manages to take and hold the gates. This traps the 1st, 4th and 5th Shadow Divisions within the mountain, between the Arcadian's and LAAF forces and the rest of the AFFS units. The 2nd Shadow Division's survivors by this point have been folded into the 1st which suffered heavy losses trying to hold the gates. With the gate secured the large number of independent battle armoured battalions that were dispatched with the task forces move forward and begin to deploy to take back the facility one fitting out bay, production line and storage depot at a time...
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For the record... the WOB is about to break out the WMD to try and get themselves out of this mess... All personnel please report to your bunkers and don hazmat gear and take your rad pills... I repeat... All personnel please report to your bunkers and don hazmat gear and take your rad pills...
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And both parties get hit hard in July. With the WoB losing even more ships and their ground forces about to commit suicide by nuclear explosion this was a major loss. Granted the suicide should hurt several commands that the FedSuns deployed and wreck a good portion of the industrial complex on the planet so it is a minor win as well.
While the Lyrans have been expanding their Production somewhat this will force them to increase that expansion massively to make up for the loss and to make it harder to get hit like that again. Plus they should be finding the underwater factories soon and getting those up and running as well.
For warships since they are focused on lighter ships at the moment that means that they would only have made plans and designs for new ships but not built any new yards or hulls yet. With the experience from the Fox and the Mjolnir design and development they have all they need to revamp their older designs. They need smaller cruisers so making a Commonwealth III Cruiser with new upgrades and better weapons would have been easy. Same with a Destroyer class they have the clan Vincent class which by size alone is a Destroyer reworking the ship into an actual Destroyer would not be a major problem.
As a way to restore Peter's reputation and standing it can be revealed that he had the work on making the new designs done on his orders in secret. After all the FedSuns did a lot of their work in secret for a long time by hiding it behind other works. There is no reason that the Lyrans couldn't have done the same even if they never got to the building part before he died. This can be seen as Peter's last gift to the Lyran peoples and his son. In death he would have achieved his legacy and place in history as the man that created the new modern Lyran Navy.
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man I so got into this update.... I missed dinner. wife not happy... but I am and she is a good cook.
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high price to pay my friend, high price to pay.
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man I so got into this update.... I missed dinner. wife not happy... but I am and she is a good cook.
well that's a high compliment! :D
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3070 - July - Operation Nightfire
*insert reaction here* (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3ALwKeSEYs)
The WOB warships at Hesperus consist of the WoBS Invincible, the Tharkad class battlecruiser that the Word of Blake had mysteriously came into possession off and refurbished and the WoBS Nantes and WoBS Limoges, both Suffren class destroyers and 3 Zechetinu II corvettes - the WoBS Hare, WoBS Foxhound and WoBS Bunyoro. The WoBS Hare and WoBS Foxhound were deployed at the Zenith and Nadir jump points respectively, with the other ships orbiting the world of Hesperus itself. Their primary role was to safeguard the elite Shadow Divisions deployed upon the planet below and they were considered more than sufficient to defeat any Lyran Alliance effort to break the blockade of the planet.
Eh, depends how desperate they get. But it works!
What they were not sufficient to deal with however was the ships of Operation Nightfire. The AFFS High Command had been paying careful attention to the LAAF's intelligence briefings that were being forwarded to them about the enemy deployments at Hesperus and they knew that the bulk of the warships were in orbit with a single corvette deployed at each jump point as a trip wire. As such Fleet Admiral Buchwald had made every effort to ensure that the Federated Sun's Navy would sweep the skies clear of the WOB ships.
On the 18th of July Task Force Nightfire jumped into the Hesperus system in three flotillas. At the Nadir jump point the 1st Division of the 3rd Corvette Flotilla jumped into the system while at the Zenith jump point the 2nd Division of the 3rd Flotilla jumped in. Consisting of older Fox I vessels they were still considered more than adequate to take care of a single Zechetinu II corvette - particularly as they were all carrying a Vengeance class dropship along with two Achilles class assault dropships and two Overlord-A3 pocket warships attached to their hulls. Just to make sure each ship was carrying nuclear tipped warheads in their missile tubes right from the start. The Word of Blake had proven they were happy to use nuclear ordinance before and as such the FedSun's were more than happy to return the favour.
As soon as the two Divisions of Fox corvettes jumped into the system and had stabilised they were firing missiles at the enemy corvettes and launching their dropships and fighters just as fast as they possibly good. At the Zenith jump point the WoBS Hare was "lucky" enough to only have a single Fox materialse within range and as such managed to launch her own ready fighters (two) and dropship before the first missile was slamming into her. Her own initial volleys were not nuclear tipped and this gave the FSS Sakhara a critical edge in the initial engagement. By the time the WoBS crew were rushing nuclear ordinance to the launchers their ship was already a streaming wreck and not only had the FSS Sakhara's dropships and fighters joined the battle but the FSS Filtvelt had got into range. At the Nadir jump point the WoBS Foxhound was even less lucky in that the FSS Benet III and FSS Goshen appeared in position to bracket her. Even before she could launch her dropship the missiles were streaming in. Neither Zechetinu II corvette survived the initial engagements and only the FSS Sakhara took any damage at all.
Honestly surprised that the Zechetinu IIs survived long enough to even *think* about returning fire with nukes. They are very very lightweight craft that would be hellishly lucky to survive even a single nuke hit. I would have thought the engagement would go something like this... (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHuwnHpZhfw).
Sakhara's Captain is going to have egg on their face for actually getting hit I think. Even if it was barely a scratch.
The third and final group of Davion warships to jump into the system was also the largest, not only in numbers but in ship classes, size and firepower. Three New Sytris II carriers led the way, with ten Davion III destroyers, four Congress-D II frigates and twelve Fox II corvettes escorting them jumped into the system at a pirate point near Hesperus itself. Every single ship capable of carrying dropships was carrying a mix of Vengeance class fighter carriers and various assault and pocket warship dropships. While the air wings launched by the carriers were the single largest number of aerospace fighters each destroyer, frigate and even corvette when you included their dropships added at least a full aerospace regiment of 60 fighters to the task force.
Uh, if they're jumping in at a pirate point, its going to take a very very very long time for the ships to come in given the size of pirate points. That's almost 30 warships. Jumping in at 1 every couple of minutes (which is about as close as you'd want to risk it) it would take almost an hour for the ships to all come in. Plenty of time for the WOB ships to GTFO and simply run like mad for the far side of the solar system or something.
A few seconds appraisal of the situation made the WOB Naval Precentor realise that any attempt to flee would be doomed. The enemy would simply swarm his ships under with repeated fighter strikes long before could withdraw to any safe pirate point and the regular jump points as well as being even further out were also now in the hands of the Federated Suns Navy! Hurriedly organising his four warships and the large flotilla of dropships he broke orbit and began a full burn towards the ships of Operation Nightfire.
You know if the Davion ships were jumping in slowly one at a time as they should have been, it wouldn't be as insane a tactic as it might have sounded. Or if the WOB had mined the jump point for that matter.
Hell of a risk the Davions are taking with this attack and the very aggressive jumping into orbit.
The probably suicidal charge of the WOB ships had been anticipated and the Davion capital ships immediately turned around and began to "flee" to keep the range open. Although the Davion III destroyers and Fox II corvettes deployed to hold their ground at the jump point along with the huge flotilla of assault dropships and pocket warships.
Someone relieve this Admiral. The Corvettes should have stayed mostly with the carriers to screen them (the New Sytris IIs honestly can more or less take care of themselves anyway); the Congress class ships and Davion IIIs should have been the main battle line. With the obscene number of fighters in play on the Davion side, you don't need the Corvettes to screen really. And the warships should have been much more aggressive, moving in with the dropships to both cover them and be covered by them, thickening the nuclear missile salvos to ludicrous levels while adding their own firepower to the engagement.
They would have taken damage, but they would have lost a hell of a lot less dropships and personnel!
Similar to the battle at Benjamin the Davion fighter wings broke into four separate groups. A ground consisting of 6 full aerospace regiments remained with the "fleeing" carriers and frigates, while another 5 regiments stayed with the blocking destroyers and corvettes. The other 10 regiments broken into two waves of 300 fighters and headed for the enemy in a staggered formation. However the second wave is also accompanied by a large formation of 24 Overlord-A3 pocket warships.
Just as at Benjamin (and as was obviously now Federated Suns Navy doctrine) the first wave of fighters concentrated largely on clearing the way for the next wave, concentrating on destroying enemy fighters and dropships and damaging any screening light warships. The WOB dropships and fighters take the brunt of this wave in a swirling melee and are soon either destroyed or so crippled as to be almost worthless in a fleet engagement. Which leaves the way free for the second wave and it's accompanying capital missile armed pocket warships. Unlike at the jump points however this time both sides have nuclear tipped missiles waiting for the range to close. The initial exchange somewhat favours the Federated Suns dropships however as the range closes the pocket warships begin to take heavier and heavier damage as the non-missile weapons of the WOB ships come into range. Worse a warships is simply able to absorb more damage. Still at the same time as the WOB warships are able to begin firing more and more of their fore mounted weapons at the oncoming dropships the 300 Davion aerospace fighters are also entering range. Both sides commit to a passing engagement that allows little room for tactical flexibility.
By the time the two formations pass through each other the Davion pocket warship flotilla is a mess of heavily damaged and ruined wrecks. No less than 13 ships have been totally destroyed and not one of the other ships has taken anything less than catastrophic damage. However in taking this damage they have managed to destroy the WoBS Nantes outright, and cripple the WoBS Invincible and WoBS Bunyoro. Only the WoBS Limoges comes through in anything approaching combat effective condition.
Strike that, don't relieve the Admiral in charge of this fleet, court martial him/her for such incredibly sloppy tactics. Bum-rushing your dropshisp straight at enemy warships already charging straight at you, trying desperate to reach the jump point? When your dropships are faster and more agile and equipped with capital missiles armed with nukes?
Whoever wrote this tactics book needs to be taken out the back and beaten up by Victors elemental bodyguards using said book as a bludgeon.
At this stage the Davion Admiral releases the fighters who have held position with the destroyers and corvettes to launch, giving them orders to concentrate their fire upon the WoBS Limoges. At the same time a number of NL-42 Battle Taxi's, Vampire dropships and Ares gunboats are also launched. They are given specific orders to target the WoBS Invincible. At the same time the FSS Morgan Hasek-Davion, FSS Ran Felsner and FSS Matilda Davion begin looping around in order to rendezvous with the first and second waves of fighters, along with their escorting frigates. The destroyers and corvettes at the pirate jump point also begin making their way behind their fighter waves to close the distance with the enemy warships slowly.
Actually I think at this point the formation should have been moving around back towards the planet and low orbit. The fighters can follow easily enough but there is a limited window to get in touch with the garrison and start laying down massive orbital fire on the WOB field camps and staging grounds.
It's not like anyone is going to notice a few more craters in the surface of THIS planet after all and the more damage you can do now when they're still in shock and reacting, the easier this will go.
And as they did the exact same thing in THEIR invasion, well...
What few fighters and dropships remain to the WOB task force are nowhere near sufficient to ward off the incoming third wave which breaks into two contingents when it reaches range. The first, consisting of four whole aerospace regiments bares down on the WoBS Limoges and in a single pass destroys the vessel. No less than a dozen nuclear tipped missiles slam into it at almost the exact same moment.
Court Martial these pilots too; a couple of hundred aerospace fighters making an attack run land only twelve Nuclear hits on a damaged Suffren? Apparently wasting all their nukes too as they have to fall back onto gun runs for their next target? Yeash! Either the AFFS desperatly needs to design a much better anti-ship nuclear missile for aerospace fighters, or, their pilots need to spend a LOT more time in the simulators.
The fighters then sweep down on the heavily damaged WoBS Bunyoro and with on-board weapons strafe the corvette until it begins to break apart. At the same time the second element to the third wave consisting of the rest of the fighters as escorts and the various transports hurtles towards the WoBS Invincible. Within minutes reports are coming in from all over the ship that battle armoured marines are breaking through the hull, forcing dropship docking ports and even forcing their way into the hangers. The few WOB marines and crewmen are soon fighting running gun battles against vastly better equipped and larger forces throughout the ship.
Yeah, Battle Armor forcing a boarding action with overwhelming numbers is just a GG scenario really. Although it probably also helped that the crew initially just though they were waiting for the Coup de grâce ... right up until the first battle claw suddenly tore through the bulkhead near the horrified crew in Corridor C-II and an armored helmet poked its head through shouting "HHHHEEEERRRRSS JOHNNY!"
By the time the Davion warships come into range of the WoBS Invincible the ship is largely in the hands of the marine contingents - who's only concern for most of the fighting has been to prevent some fanatical crew member destroying the ship by detonating the missiles and shells in the armouries. A prize crew is swiftly dispatched. At the same time a message is sent via a corvette to the waiting transports of the ground forces who are soon jumping into the system and beginning to head for the planet - under warship escort.
That pirate point is REALLY going to be crowded :D
Field Marshal Ardan Sortek from his command post aboard the Conquistador class FSS Hanse's Right Hand
He must HATE that name :D
oversee's the landing of his troops. The 1st Aragon Borderer's and the 1st Kittery Borderer's land at the ruined spaceport and capital city and begin a mixture of relief, rebuilding and fortification efforts.
I'm honestly surprised that there are any civilians left alive. Heph II has a very very low population, deliberately after all. And I can't see the Shadow Divisions being exactly inclined to leave any alive.
At the same time the initial landing is conducted by the elite troops of the 2nd New Avalon Cavaliers - who proceed to do a combat drop at the nearest suitable landing site to the huge mountain complex of DefHes. They are almost immedietly attacked by the 2nd Shadow Division and engage in a brutal and often short ranged firefight.
See people, THIS is why you land with a flotila of Fox IIs skimming the very edge of the atmosphere with forward observers in aerospace fighters circling, smashing a massive defensive laydown barrage right on top of the heads of the WOB as soon as they mass and try to attack. With other units interdicting the main DefInf entrance as anyone tries to fall back to it...
Not like the Lyrans are loosing anything important at this stage on the outside of the plant.
The slight under strength reinforced regiment of the 2nd Cavaliers had dropped into the fight with 10 companies and a command lance. By the time they have thrown the 2nd Shadow Division back and secured the landing sites they have been reduced to a single reinforced battalion. The 2nd Shadow Division is in even worse shape, having less been repulsed and more wiped out.
That's pretty damn brutal - but a Shadow Division getting wiped out is ALWAYS worth a celebration!
As soon as the landing zone is secure Field Marshal Sortek begins pouring the other formations under his command onto the planet. As soon as it has landed the 5th FedSun's Dragoons RCT heads straight for the main gates of the mountain complex and engages the defending 1st Shadow Division heavily.
I'll say it again. Find the grid squares the ****** are hiding in and remove them :p
At the same time the 1st Arcadian RCT deploys hurriedly and having contacted the fighting garrison is admitted via some of the back doors and secret access tunnels that they still held. It joins the fight from the inside of the mountain, reinforcing and in many cases replacing the battered troops who have been fighting alone for so long. The 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers is the final unit to land and swiftly heads to reinforce the struggling 5th FedSun's Dragoons.
"Sam, the Eagles ... err ... the Davions are coming!!" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tgkaV2KUpU) Although you'd think that the bulk of the Battle Armor would have gone in THIS way to help the troops still fighting.
Sortek himself lands (under strict orders) with the St Ives Cheveau-Legers with a small contingent of bodyguards from no lesser formation as the 1st Davion Guards. Ordering the 2nd New Avalon Cavaliers to stand down and repair as best they can he orders the 1st Aragon Borderer's to deploy from their own landing zone and sweep towards the factory to pick off any roving WOB patrols or formations.
Well, the WOB do have some decent Mechs, I'm sure the geeks in the Cavaliers will be interested in dissecting the place.
Using the 1st Arcadian's and whats left of the LAAF formations within the mountain as an anvil he has the 5th FedSun's Dragoons and 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers act as a hammer, forcing their way slowly inside. The fighting around the main entrance is not only prolonged but also bloody and it isn't until the 28th that the 5th FedSun's finally manages to take and hold the gates. This traps the 1st, 4th and 5th Shadow Divisions within the mountain, between the Arcadian's and LAAF forces and the rest of the AFFS units. The 2nd Shadow Division's survivors by this point have been folded into the 1st which suffered heavy losses trying to hold the gates. With the gate secured the large number of independent battle armoured battalions that were dispatched with the task forces move forward and begin to deploy to take back the facility one fitting out bay, production line and storage depot at a time...
Going to be bloody work, but at this point the Shadow Divisions are probably about as banged up as the Lyrans were and with this many fresh troops to throw at the problem, it should be over pretty quickly.
Someone send the Lyrans a fax and tell them the good news. It also would mean that Adam can release the units he's been gathering to relieve the place, except a token unit to go and wave the flag I suppose, to counter attack on the planets the FWL are attacking/have taken. Try to clear up this damn mess and encourage the FWL to come to the table to agree to some kind of settlement - although I'm sure the WOB will not exactly be happy with Connie if she tried that...
Good stuff dude. Keep it coming!
I'm almost tempted to write a bit of an omake, as it were, of the naval battle here ... because it does sound pretty awesome.
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3070 - July Interlude - Bitter Orders
Imperial Palace
Luthien
Pesht District
Draconis Combine
Theodore Kurita, Coordinator of the Draconis Combine and lord of everything he surveyed stared at the reports in front of him from the front lines and felt nothing but despair. This was no longer a mere war between nations, but a fight for the very survival of his realm and dynasty. He had sorely underestimated Victor Davion's resolve to push home this fight and now it could cost House Kurita everything. For a moment he tried to rally his own thoughts, reminding himself that the Pesht District was still untouched, he still commanded the fresh troops based in the Kessel, Vega and Buckminster Prefectures who could be used to counter this invasion... As long as he was prepared to risk Clan Ghost Bear crossing the border and smashing their way to Luthien in a matter of months... The brief hope passed and black despair closed in around him again, tightening it's grip on his heart...
The screams of the medical alarms that were now his constant companions drove home that it wasn't merely despair that was causing the agony in his chest. As he fell backwards he managed to whisper a final command as the darkness closed in around him to the bodyguards and doctors who were rushing to his side. "Bring me my son... Bring me Minoru... And my wife..."
Slowly Theodore awoke, what seemed an eternity later. He was in his bedchambers, that much was obvious. He was also heavily drugged, his mind shackled and slow. Around his bed hovered a half dozen of the finest surgeons and doctors within the Draconis Combine, so clearly he had had another heart attack. Although slow, his mind remained enough capacity to realise this one had been serious given the grave faces of the medical staff. Opening parched lips he rasped and coughed, before finally able to speak. "Water... How long...?"
As a tube of water was hurriedly brought, no doubt pre-tested for any poisons by his bodyguards and by the ISF, a doctor leaned forward and informed him that he had been unconscious for a week following the "incident". A whole week. "How... bad?"
The looks on the doctors faces said it all and before one of them could lie and condemn himself the Coordinator raised a finger to summon one of his guards. The ornately armoured bulk of an Otomo warrior was at his bedside in seconds one hand on the ceremonial and yet totally functional Katana at his waist the other on the butt of his pistol. "Your command lord?"
"If any... of... these... fools utter a single... word... of falseness... kill them. How bad?" Theodore whispered, the water at least having eased his throat.
Glancing at each other, finally the senior surgeon spoke. "It is not good my lord. Your heart has been heavily damaged. Perhaps... perhaps a transplant might be the best option available in the circumstances."
"No." Theodore dismissed the suggestion and glanced at the guard. "Send for my wife and son... and Tai-sa's Meshune and Tachibana."
"They await your word outside my lord."
"Good. Send them in." The Coordinator had expected no less.
A few minutes later both his wife and son entered and bowed deeply followed by Tai-sa Meshune of the Otomo and Tai-sa Tachibana of the Izanagi Warriors. All four were in the uniform of the DCMS. Good. With a hand gesture he summoned them closer and at the same time ordered the medical staff from the room. "Tai-shu Sakade. Tai-sa Kurita. Tai-sa Meshune. Tai-sa Tachibana. Here the words of your lord and obey. I hereby name my son Minoru Kurita as my heir and as Kanrei. I hereby instruct him to seek peace with the Yellow Bird in order to preserve the Dragon. In my name. I order that all loyal officers and men of the DCMS obey his words as my own until I am recovered. I order you Tai-shu Sakade, Tai-sa Meshune and Tai-sa Tachibana to support him unto death against any and all... would be usurpers. Do you hear me? Do you obey?"
Both non-Kurita officers went to their knees and bowed their heads. "We hear you lord. We will obey."
Tai-shu Sakade took her husbands hand within her own and bowed. "Your words will be followed lord."
Minoru Kurita slowly knelt as well. "I will obey father. Though your words bring me no joy."
"I do not expect them too. It is a bitter tea to sip my son. But we have been defeated. If this war continues it will destroy the Combine and our House. That cannot be permitted. You will make peace with Victor Davion. Obtain the best terms possible. Suggest to Davion that if the war continues we will be forced to use more desperate tactics that will only devastate both sides. We must obtain terms however. They will not be pleasant I know. You will do this in my name. So that your own reign is untainted by the peace. I will then... abdicate... and you will rule. You will rebuild the Combine so that one day we might be avenged upon House Davion. Do you understand?" Left unsaid was that Theodore Kurita intended to abdicate no doubt by suicide to cleanse the shame of the peace.
Minoru ignored the kneeling officers, even his own mother, and nodded firmly. "I understand and I swear I will avenge this shame."
"I know you will... If you can, spare Hohiro." Theodore's voice almost broke at the last.
"I will do my best father." Which was all that Minoru was prepared to promise. For all his small stature and bookish ways everyone in the room could see the inner strength that those who knew him had always known was there. If anything his time in Clan Nova Cat had only tempered this strength. "He might... resist."
"He will. If he does, he must be dealt with. Yet temper your resolve with mercy if you can. For your mother's and I's sake." Tomoe Sakade said nothing, still kneeling with her head bent as her husband discussed the potential necessity of executing her eldest child with her youngest.
"If he can be spared he will be father." Minoru promised.
"Good. It is all I can ask. Now go. Arrange a meeting with Davion. Make peace. Before he tears more worlds from the Dragon's Realm. Tai-sa's, leave us. I wish time with my wife..."
All three officers marched from the room and did not look back as Tai-shu Sakade rose and became Tomoe Sakade and leaned over her husbands body to stroke his face as both of them wept for what had been ordered here today... For the Combine, for House Kurita and for their family...
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Well at least Teddy was smart enough to remove his failure of a son for one that is better suited for the role. If Minoru might be able to get decent terms for all that Victor has mauled the Combine he has overstretched his forces at this point. He might be willing to return some of the worlds he has taken or has under siege. Granted they will probably be stripped of value and the people might leave with the FedSuns forces instead as well.
But it looks like some kin slaying is in the future for house Kurita. It is for the best though the older brother would never allow the peace to work. Especially if his attack on Verde happens before the talk start or even worse during the talks. He will need to be handed over or killed for that.
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In his current state of mind, Hohiro just might try to kill Minoru when he learns of negotiations. And WoB will happily facilitate that.
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Alright Victor, I think this time you've made your point :D
Time to wrap it up. The Federated Suns has taken back every world ever lost to the Combine and THEN some. So, awesome there.
The key military-industrial strength of the Combine has been crippled with their best shipyards lost and some of their biggest mech factories taken over. They've lost a district capital and had others raided with impunity.
And the Combines strategic situation is utterly FUBAR. With the Federated Suns on one side and the Ghost Bears on the other? And the Federated Suns growth only seeming to bloody redouble every year or two while the Combines economy is circling the drain somewhere?
The Combine has turned into the new Capellan Confederation :D
I'd expect a Black Dragon coup attempt within 6 months really. Now that House Kurita has shown such stunning weakness and even the more loyal population members are probably all increasingly dubious...
Plus, a ceasefire and then a peace treaty works well for Victor. He can afford to pull a lot of his forces off the border thanks to the absoloute assreaming the DCMS has taken, even as the Davion Military Industrial Complex pours material into the expanded Draconis March to stand up new milita units on the conquered worlds faster than the entire damn DCMS can rebuild!
And then all those troops and ships Victor has freed up can be deployed. Some probably back to duty stations in the Crucis, Capellan and League marches to rebuild to full strength. But others ...
Well between Terra and the Clan front helping the Lyrans, I'm sure there are plenty of new fights to be had...
Although something tells me that Hohiro is going to be quietly fragged by his own officers. Or perhaps those corvettes he sent orders to, demanding their Captain and XO be shot for DARING to not die uselessly in a BANZAI CHARGE IN SPAAAAACCEE will just do the universe a favor and level his HQ with an orbital strike before ****** off to defect to the AFFS, who have plenty of slots open for crews of their impressive skills! :D >:D
With all that said, I DO hope that Victor makes Minoru squirm. With he or his people pointing out that his family started the ****** war for no other reason than they are STILL drinking the damn koolaid of KURTIAN MANIFEST DESSSSTINNNNYYY! So, please Minoru, explain why we shouldn't have 100% confidence that his last instructions from his father were to beg for peace now while secretly planning to rebuild and try AGAIN a generation from now?
Oh - and on that note, Victor should flat out demand as a non-negotiable point, his son being sent to him. Period. I'm sure his wife can be brought around easily enough to accept him as being part of the extended family, albeit one with iron clad legal protections in place to ensure that he has no rights to the Throne of course. But its best to remove the threat of the kid - and as Victor is hardly going to have his own son killed, taking him in and raising him in the Federated Suns (or under an assumed name or something in secret, or in the Lyran Alliance perhaps after calling in a favor?) is the best solution. With a little TLC and love, he might become a valued member of the family, loyal and earning his own place...
Just a thought :)
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Alright Victor, I think this time you've made your point :D
Time to wrap it up. The Federated Suns has taken back every world ever lost to the Combine and THEN some. So, awesome there.
The key military-industrial strength of the Combine has been crippled with their best shipyards lost and some of their biggest mech factories taken over. They've lost a district capital and had others raided with impunity.
And the Combines strategic situation is utterly FUBAR. With the Federated Suns on one side and the Ghost Bears on the other? And the Federated Suns growth only seeming to bloody redouble every year or two while the Combines economy is circling the drain somewhere?
The Combine has turned into the new Capellan Confederation :D
I'd expect a Black Dragon coup attempt within 6 months really. Now that House Kurita has shown such stunning weakness and even the more loyal population members are probably all increasingly dubious...
Plus, a ceasefire and then a peace treaty works well for Victor. He can afford to pull a lot of his forces off the border thanks to the absoloute assreaming the DCMS has taken, even as the Davion Military Industrial Complex pours material into the expanded Draconis March to stand up new milita units on the conquered worlds faster than the entire damn DCMS can rebuild!
And then all those troops and ships Victor has freed up can be deployed. Some probably back to duty stations in the Crucis, Capellan and League marches to rebuild to full strength. But others ...
Well between Terra and the Clan front helping the Lyrans, I'm sure there are plenty of new fights to be had...
Although something tells me that Hohiro is going to be quietly fragged by his own officers. Or perhaps those corvettes he sent orders to, demanding their Captain and XO be shot for DARING to not die uselessly in a BANZAI CHARGE IN SPAAAAACCEE will just do the universe a favor and level his HQ with an orbital strike before ****** off to defect to the AFFS, who have plenty of slots open for crews of their impressive skills! :D >:D
With all that said, I DO hope that Victor makes Minoru squirm. With he or his people pointing out that his family started the ****** war for no other reason than they are STILL drinking the damn koolaid of KURTIAN MANIFEST DESSSSTINNNNYYY! So, please Minoru, explain why we shouldn't have 100% confidence that his last instructions from his father were to beg for peace now while secretly planning to rebuild and try AGAIN a generation from now?
Oh - and on that note, Victor should flat out demand as a non-negotiable point, his son being sent to him. Period. I'm sure his wife can be brought around easily enough to accept him as being part of the extended family, albeit one with iron clad legal protections in place to ensure that he has no rights to the Throne of course. But its best to remove the threat of the kid - and as Victor is hardly going to have his own son killed, taking him in and raising him in the Federated Suns (or under an assumed name or something in secret, or in the Lyran Alliance perhaps after calling in a favor?) is the best solution. With a little TLC and love, he might become a valued member of the family, loyal and earning his own place...
Just a thought :)
In fairness - right now peace works for the AFFS too. A LOT of their best units are now hovering at just barely combat effective. While none of them have been destroyed and they are in a lot better situation than the DCMS the war is starting to take it's toll.
For instance:
1st Kestrel Grenadiers - 40%
1st Argyle Lancers - 60%
4th Ceti Hussars - 40%
1st Crucis Lancers - 50%
3rd Crucis Lancers - 50%
2nd Dragonlords - 40%
3rd FSAC - 50%
4th FSAC - 60%
1st FedSuns Dragoons - 40%
1st Lexington Combat Guards - 30%
4th Syrtis Fusiliers - 40%
etc...
Now all of these commands remain viable. But one more big battle and we're talking having to roll units together to keep them combat effective. As it stands with the intent of maintaining experience levels by slow build up's some of these units will be almost 5-6 years before they are back to full strength. If the war goes on for even another 2-3 months then the AFFS is going to see some of it's best units be reduced to cadre or worse.
And while most of their warships haven't taken a lot of damage - extended operations in a combat zone does tend to add up to a need for more maintenance, crews worn out, etc... The losses amongst the fighter pilots also need to be made up. Doctrines need to be reevaluated - the FedSun's Navy is now THE premier carrier force. but they also know they've made mistakes due to sheer inertia and lack of experience in massive warship deployments. Time to reflect and improve on doctrines is needed.
Plus time to actually build up a network of new DMM units, probably some more Avalon Hussars based in the new conquests and some Borderer regiments will only strengthen the AFFS's hold.
The economy in the FedSuns hasn't really been hit by the war. But it hasn't exactly been growing at it's normal rate. Time to stop, let the economy grow again - and absorb the conquests and turn them into productive worlds? That makes the FedSun's even stronger if the Kurita's get any ideas about reversing the war.
The Combine is heading for a civil war. Right now it's just a coin toss to see whether is a Kurita-Kurita two way or a Kurita-Kurita-Black Dragon three way.
Victor (at least in MY timeline) isn't an idiot. He hasn't drank the magic coolaid. He KNOWS that the Kurita's fundamental viewpoint is "we are destined to rule the stars" and that they tend to never forget a slight. He's pistol whipped them twice now and seized some serious worlds from their realm. He knows they aren't going to forgive and forget and frankly Minoru would be a fool to try and pretend. So the odds of Victor giving back an inch of hard won ground? Minoru can forget it. A major concession might just be letting the commands holding out on say Iruzun fall back unopposed. Minoru will probably argue that any world that is still "fighting" should stay with the Combine, but if Victor says "well let's continue and let it play out..." The DCMS forces on almost all of them are on their last legs. The only world the Kurita's have a favourable balance of forces on right now is Iruzun and that's only until the 3 new Avalon Hussars RCT's arrive. Who are already in system and by the time Minoru can talk with Victor will be on planet.
Kitsune Kurita is a MAJOR issue. He's a headache for Minoru AND Victor. if he stays in the Combine - a potential threat to Minoru but a potential weapon against the Davions. If he is handed over to the Davions, he remains a threat to both houses. There isn't a win here for anyone. Even if he is raised by Victor and loves his father and step mother and siblings... Who's to say his children will feel the same about their cousins? Or who's to say that Burton Davion wont try and set his half brother up as Coordinator in 30 years time?
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i like that idea honestly .
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i like that idea honestly .
Given my current writing speed that mean's I'd still be writing this timeline in about 7 years :D
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Honestly the best thing for the kids is to have his memory altered and him set up to live a normal life in a quiet corner. Bringing him in to either house will never work. He is a bastard so treat him like one set up a decent life but make sure he is never near any kind of connection to you. Of he doesn't know who he is then the threat is removed and any children from his line are also taken care of as a threat.
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Honestly the best thing for the kids is to have his memory altered and him set up to live a normal life in a quiet corner. Bringing him in to either house will never work. He is a bastard so treat him like one set up a decent life but make sure he is never near any kind of connection to you. Of he doesn't know who he is then the threat is removed and any children from his line are also taken care of as a threat.
The ideal situation (dynasticaly speaking) is what the Swedish Royal House did. Wait a generation or two and hope that the "loose end" only has a single heir and marry said heir back into your mainline. So combining the two "claims" into one. But that involves a few generations of risk.
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The ideal situation (dynasticaly speaking) is what the Swedish Royal House did. Wait a generation or two and hope that the "loose end" only has a single heir and marry said heir back into your mainline. So combining the two "claims" into one. But that involves a few generations of risk.
Sort of the official story and the one that has all the documents and records backing it up is that Kitsune is the son of a minor Kurita cousin. And that Victor's bastard with Omi died with the mother. Unless both sides want to reveal the truth which puts both of them at risk that will remain the story. He has as much claim to either throne as any other minor branch of either family. He definitely doesn't know the truth since he is too young for that kind of secret so there is no risk from him telling anyone. Alter his memory of being a Kurita and put him in some quiet corner and the threat disappears since he will never know he has claims to anything and neither will his children know anything either.
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The ideal situation (dynasticaly speaking) is what the Swedish Royal House did. Wait a generation or two and hope that the "loose end" only has a single heir and marry said heir back into your mainline. So combining the two "claims" into one. But that involves a few generations of risk.
Less perfect solution, Victor gets Kitsune back and once he reaches 18 Kitsune joins ComStar and sets a new in universe precedent of minor or inconvenient nobility "taking the white". :P
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Less perfect solution, Victor gets Kitsune back and once he reaches 18 Kitsune joins ComStar and sets a new in universe precedent of minor or inconvenient nobility "taking the white". :P
That won't do anything joining ComStar doesn't mean you give up your claims or titles. It also doesn't stop them from having children that can also cause trouble. ComStar is a secular organization now and nothing in their order will stop Kitsune from being a threat if anything he becomes a bigger threat. He could gain power and influence in the order and use that to push his claim.
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Given my current writing speed that mean's I'd still be writing this timeline in about 7 years :D
Considering the only timeline I recal to have higher writing speed is Davion&Davion (Deceased)...
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Considering the only timeline I recal to have higher writing speed is Davion&Davion (Deceased)...
Well I do my best!!! I have to work sometimes after all! ;)
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Work? Don't tell us you are one of these, LOL.
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Work? Don't tell us you are one of these, LOL.
Yup... Gotta pay for the battlemech books somehow!
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In fairness - right now peace works for the AFFS too. A LOT of their best units are now hovering at just barely combat effective. While none of them have been destroyed and they are in a lot better situation than the DCMS the war is starting to take it's toll.
For instance:
1st Kestrel Grenadiers - 40%
1st Argyle Lancers - 60%
4th Ceti Hussars - 40%
1st Crucis Lancers - 50%
3rd Crucis Lancers - 50%
2nd Dragonlords - 40%
3rd FSAC - 50%
4th FSAC - 60%
1st FedSuns Dragoons - 40%
1st Lexington Combat Guards - 30%
4th Syrtis Fusiliers - 40%
etc...
True, but the DCMS is in a far worse state and Victor has vastly more untapped reserves. A lot of this comes down to Victors operations being too aggressive, looking to take as many planets as possible rather than a more balanced approach of less planets but more raiding. Heart attack honestly was a major strategic risk and only worked BECAUSE the DCMS was shattered. Paid off for him though as it quite literally DID give Theodore a heart attack, but it could have left him in a very bad position if Theodore opened up the Genocide vault or risked bringing fresh troops in to leapfrog his line and smash deeper planets garrisons.
But he didn't and it proved the DCMS has pretty much collapsed unless they want the Ghost Bears to take everything else. Which is the problem. SOME of the AFFS units might be damaged, there are a ****** more that are not.
To quote the Capt; 'I can do this all day...' is the realisation the Coordinator faces here. Especially as the damaged units can probably bounce 10-20% of their strength as soon as replacement Mechs and equipment arrives and transfers from units off the line (which in turn can be made up from deeper down the chain of other line units, milita units and finally cadets in turn) will take care of the rest pretty quickly.
Now all of these commands remain viable. But one more big battle and we're talking having to roll units together to keep them combat effective. As it stands with the intent of maintaining experience levels by slow build up's some of these units will be almost 5-6 years before they are back to full strength. If the war goes on for even another 2-3 months then the AFFS is going to see some of it's best units be reduced to cadre or worse.
*snort* only if the DCMS has any units that can actually attack, any logistics to support any level of attack or even the will to keep on fighting. Victor may not want to take more planets, but the problem is that the DCMS has been effectively broken in being able to sustain any kind of defense above rifle milita level on almost any planet Victor might want to strike. Unless they leave the Ghost Bears border so wide open that even the conservative bears shrug and say 'well, why not?' and start the clusters jumping across.
But beyond that, those units shouldn't be on the line anymore. They should have been pulled back and new units pushed up by now. Then they can fall back and consolidate / rebuild. Victor has multiple wars going on NOW, not 5 years from now. Consolidate units from the same corps - and pull personnel from other units in the same brigade here and there, backfilling with cadets and transfers. The AFFS has enough depth and units now that while you'll probably have a few RCTs reduced entirely to cadres to be rebuilt as green units, thats just life. You need the units now and Victor SHOULD have entire cities of staff officers already prepositioning the personnel, equipment and cutting the orders to make it happen.
Perhaps they drop from Elite to Veteran for a while? That's more than good enough to get back into the fight. That's where the AFFS has the unbeatable advantage; the sheer logistics engine they have operating now, including vastly more cadets graduating and having the war material to send them on their way, plus a whole raft of expanded units you can easily pull off a lance here, a squadron there they can fill in for, while sending the experience troops to rebuild the shock troop formations while the cadets get settled in with units off the line...
You've created an absolute monster of a military industrial complex here ... kudos :)
The DCMS however has just lost a very large chunk of its.
And while most of their warships haven't taken a lot of damage - extended operations in a combat zone does tend to add up to a need for more maintenance, crews worn out, etc...
Truth - although by the same token the threat from Kuritan warships have been pretty much dropped to next to nothing by this point so he SHOULD have been recalling large chunks of his fleet anyway for crew refresh, resupply and repairs as needed, leaving enough units on hand 'just in case'.
But make a note that the AFFS REALLY needs to get around (especially as they now have the Iron Duke and New Sytris II hulls in service which might make a good starting point) to building a major fleet tender design. A hybrid yardship and support ship that can provide major support services in the field...
The losses amongst the fighter pilots also need to be made up. Doctrines need to be reevaluated - the FedSun's Navy is now THE premier carrier force. but they also know they've made mistakes due to sheer inertia and lack of experience in massive warship deployments. Time to reflect and improve on doctrines is needed.
Yeah ... they're in the middle of a war, they don't have time to pull back and play it safe. And really, thats Buchwalds job.
We've seen plenty of times in war throughout history, especially at times of great innovation like WW2, that when something works or doesn't work, doctrine can get thrown out the airlock in favor of new thinking that in peacetime would take years ... but as you don't have years, you learn the lesson and change tactics. And if there are leaders who can't hack the pace of change or are too set in their ways, they get relieved rapidly.
But yes, they probably do need to replenish their air wings, but again, that should be a constantly ongoing process anyway.
Dropships though are much harder to come by (which again is why whoever was in command of Nightfire needs to be fired!)
Plus time to actually build up a network of new DMM units, probably some more Avalon Hussars based in the new conquests and some Borderer regiments will only strengthen the AFFS's hold.
Honestly at this point far better to stick with Borderer LCTs across the new area as a defensive garrison mindset, with some key 'floating' RCTs backing them up. You can both get them up faster and work with the locals, especially on the liberated FedSuns worlds that are delighted to be back to stand them up quickly. There replacement pipeline for the next few years shouldn't be looking at forming any 'new' RCTs, just replenishing feeder units at the bottom of the pyramid as troops are fed up it into the damaged elites at the top.
The economy in the FedSuns hasn't really been hit by the war. But it hasn't exactly been growing at it's normal rate. Time to stop, let the economy grow again - and absorb the conquests and turn them into productive worlds? That makes the FedSun's even stronger if the Kurita's get any ideas about reversing the war.
That's out of scope though, we're talking about the NOW. And here is where Victors absurd popularity and the fact that they are crushing the hated enemy of the Federated Suns more brutally than ever before comes in. Victor can probably take the economy far FAR worse than it is with the right propaganda campaign if there is a clear and ongoing beneift for the Federated Suns, at least in the short and medium term - and he's nowhere near that yet. People LOVE a war that you're winning against a loathed enemy. And even if the economy is growing slower, its still growing - and everyone is STILL absurdly better off to where they were in say 3060 when Victor took over again. Given the sheer loathing of the Combine in the Suns, there are probably going to be more people pissed that Victor accepted the war ending HERE rather than pushing onto total Victory when the Dragon is clearly on the ropes!!! Especially in the Draconis March. And ESPECIALLY if Victor turns his attention to pulling the Lyrans out of the fire and going back, AGAIN, to focus on the Clans :D
(Some constructive counter-atrocities retaliating for Victors murdering of the Combine jump fleet and recharge stations against civilian targets may well have changed this tune mind you!)
In all honesty it'll take a generation for most of the Kuritian conquests to turn into being a net positive for the Federated Suns. And thats presuming the ISF, Yuzuka, Black Dragons, Kuritan loyalists and so on don't take their time to make life miserable.
The Combine is heading for a civil war. Right now it's just a coin toss to see whether is a Kurita-Kurita two way or a Kurita-Kurita-Black Dragon three way.
Victor (at least in MY timeline) isn't an idiot. He hasn't drank the magic coolaid. He KNOWS that the Kurita's fundamental viewpoint is "we are destined to rule the stars" and that they tend to never forget a slight. He's pistol whipped them twice now and seized some serious worlds from their realm. He knows they aren't going to forgive and forget and frankly Minoru would be a fool to try and pretend. So the odds of Victor giving back an inch of hard won ground? Minoru can forget it. A major concession might just be letting the commands holding out on say Iruzun fall back unopposed. Minoru will probably argue that any world that is still "fighting" should stay with the Combine, but if Victor says "well let's continue and let it play out..." The DCMS forces on almost all of them are on their last legs. The only world the Kurita's have a favourable balance of forces on right now is Iruzun and that's only until the 3 new Avalon Hussars RCT's arrive. Who are already in system and by the time Minoru can talk with Victor will be on planet.
Victor shouldn't be cocky - he has to HOLD the worlds against what is probably going to, on a lot of them the further from the border he gets, especially on worlds that have always been Kuritan and will be hotbeds for generations of insurgency helped by the ISF. I'd be interested to see a map; his best bet for conquests this war would have of course been all the old Fedsuns worlds or worlds that have a long period of being part of the Suns, but also any remaining old TH worlds around Dieron...
But its not about taking the planets, its about HOLDING them. And heart attack frankly may have been a step too far here.
Kitsune Kurita is a MAJOR issue. He's a headache for Minoru AND Victor. if he stays in the Combine - a potential threat to Minoru but a potential weapon against the Davions. If he is handed over to the Davions, he remains a threat to both houses. There isn't a win here for anyone. Even if he is raised by Victor and loves his father and step mother and siblings... Who's to say his children will feel the same about their cousins? Or who's to say that Burton Davion wont try and set his half brother up as Coordinator in 30 years time?
This isn't Game of Thrones though - he won't be Kitsune Avalon or something, the UNTRUSTWORTHY BASTARD WHO MUST BE GLARED AT WITH GREAT SUSPICION! All other things being equal, if the kids are part of the Federated Suns and raised correctly as family, then they won't be a problem. Especially given the sheer cultural differences in the Federated Suns. And if Burton Davion wants to setup his half brother as Cooridnator in 30 years time? So much the better :)
Seriously though, historically attempts to play this kind of game don't really work in the Suns. Even Micahel Hasek-Davion only had one hope that everyone knew for any chance at the throne; and that was if Hanse died without issue. And that was as an Archduke who had all but run the Federated Suns for Ian and had the backing of another power. And in total secrecy (or so he thought). And that was with Morgan, his son, being groomed by Hanse as his heir anyway. It was all a long shot.
Victor's popularity OTOH is so rock solid that he can openly and publicly take a principled stand on the matter and be supported by it. Embracing Kitsune as family, not a threat. Albeit with him legally excluded from the Succession...
Anyway. Lets see where we go :)
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So Minoru will try to negotiate peace, which is what Victor wants, at least until Verde is masacred. So Minoru will have to offer Victor his brother's head, which considering the fact that Hohiro (aided by WoB and BDS) will violently oppose any negotiations, is inevitable anyway.
So as DCMS is busy killing itself Victor will need to assemble bulk of his navy and dozen or so RCTs in good condition to attack Terra in concert with Comguards, to cut the heart out of the WoB machine (has Jardine been discovered TTL?) and afterwards AFFS can clear out the Protectorate. Following this, he can negotiate white peace between LC and FWL, by using biggest kid on the block authority.
With time, the Falcons and Wolves can be dealt with by LCAF, giving the new Archon much needed political capital. The equation is simple, LC has warship building capacities and Clans don't. They also can build more ASF and dropships, which means that when they decide to go full Clover Spear on the Turkeys, once the Archon is of age, they can control the space, while droping multiple RCTs per cluster.
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I really want a map now we know how much of the DC territory the fed sun has as well as a sphere wide map.
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3070 - July - Splinter lines
With the launch of Operation Heart Attack even the by now hugely reinforced sinews of the AFFS were strained. Launching such an attack at the start of the war while not easy would have been relatively straightforward. By now however a large number of the closest supply depots and personnel centres had been emptied to support the heavy fighting along the entire border. Still the fact that the AFFS was able to launch such a large scale effort at all at this stage was in itself telling. Despite the heavy combat and large number of commands that had taken heavy damage however in winning the victories of which the people of the FedSun's were so rightly proud, it was noted within Mount Davion that the AFFS still remained a potent force with a large number of combat commands at either full or near full strength. The Avalon Hussar's Brigade for instance had a full nine RCT's that were at 80%+ strength, as was half the Crucis Lancers Brigade, while the Davion Brigade of Guards retained three units at full strength, while the various March Militia formations remained almost untouched, etc... If the war continued the AFFS was more than capable of continuing the fight, although it might require a period of rest and refit as units were transferred between the front lines and rear areas. Just in case Heart Attack proved to be less than a knockout blow plans began to be put in place to arrange this. The Robinson Rangers Brigade in particular was to be tapped to take the place of damaged units - with only the 1st Robinson Rangers heavily damaged so far.
At the same time continued efforts were made to reinforced the Lyran Alliance - from which the news (with the exclusion of Operation Nightfire) seemed to be entirely negative. More and more of the High Command began to consider the "Lyran Front" a potential morass that would suck up resources and units for years if not decades to "prop up" their allies. Initial hopes that the LAAF might be able to throw their weight into an attack on the Kessel and Vega Prefectures to help knock the Dragon out of the war were by now recognised as pipe dreams. Several worse case scenario's began to doubt the survival of the Lyran Alliance with the current wave of disasters unfolding throughout the realm. Quietly a number of staff officers were tasked with operations to stabilise what could be salvaged in the event the state did collapse - and perhaps even more importantly secure certain key worlds either for the Federated Suns or at least friendly successor states. Plans were also begun for the evacuation of Princes's Champion Cox and also the First Princes's nephew from Tharkad if this became necessary.
At the same time Fleet Admiral Buchwald began a group to evaluate critically the performance of the Federated Sun's Navy during active combat operations in an effort to learn what lessons could be taken from this and avoid similar mistakes. Already there were indications that due to the sheer overwhelming superiority of the Federated Sun's Navy in most combat operations a certain degree of tactical inflexibility had began to creep in. This group was also to look at not only how current ships and formations might be better utilised but also what changes could be made to both the ship designs and their tactical formations as well as what ship designs and future squadrons might enhance the Navy. Within a few weeks Jackson Davion set up a similar group of officers for the Regular Army.
The first Clan Nova Cat scouts reached the Davion lines during July, travelling through dead systems these mostly consisted of LF equipped jumpships who had been dispatched immedietly to ensure the route was safe. They jumped into "Barlow's Folly" and much to the delight of the local garrison of the 38th Avalon Hussars referred to it by it's new/old or "correct" name of Cussar. When the Nova Cat Star Commodore became aware of how his initial message had been taken he didn't have the heart to inform the 38th or the world's new government that it was simply because his First Star League era charts for the region had listed the world as Cussar and had not been updated with the Succession War era name. A number of free naval aerospace wings were hurriedly dispatched to Cussar to reinforce the "crossing point" and ensure the safety of the Clan.
At Demeter a third Stuka line goes fully operational on the 18th of July. The plan consists now of a single Guillotine battlemech line and three Stuka aerospace lines. Plans are put in place to diversify the plant particularly given the new security of the reformation of the Arcadian Cuirassiers. A Huscarl-O fighter wing production line and a Lancelot battlemech line are earmarked for immediate construction.
On Markesan the new Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons plant see's it's first line for the Fury Command Tank go operational. Although a specialised design the sheer increased numbers of RCT's within the AFFS and the strong showing of the design in combat at the front had increased demands that the order book is soon full. Most of the Markesan production is earmarked for the Robinson Rangers and DMM Brigades.
Marlette's Davion-Com plant also see's it's first production facility finished - in this case the Lorica battle armour facility which has been completed in advance of the large number of battlemech production lines under construction. These ComGuard specific suits are immedietly shipped out just as fast as they can be completed due to the sheer demand for them within the ComGuards.
At Northfield the Corsara secondary facility see's the Black Watch battlemech enter production. Perhaps due to the disbandment of the SLDF the previous month demand for this battlemech is low and the bulk of the production ends up being sold to either the ComGuards or various mercenary units. The Northwind Highlanders understandably prefer Northwind produced battlemechs and so show little interest in the Northfield produced design. Sales remain high for the Crab and King Crab's produced at the plant however.
On Dieron itself the Draconis March Heavy Industrial Mech Company "opens" it's first two lines for the Kiso construction mech. The first five years production is immedietly bought by the Duchess of Tortuga, Yvonne Davion-Sandoval who uses them to form "Sandoval-Tortuga Construction Ltd". The company will concentrate largely on large scale infrastructure projects within the Draconis March and Outback region of the Crucis March - for the time being most of this work will be to rebuild war damaged planets from the recent fighting.
Within the League March Hollis Incorporated return Highlander production to the world of Corey. At the current time (largely due to doubts about the loyalty of the firm and the planet and it's location on the border) there are no plans for further expansion. Although sales particularly to the forming League March Militia and the St Ives Lancers remain steady.
On Sarna the Veridan Dynamics plant's Vali goes operation and begins producing Vali artillery tank for the units of the League March. Plans are then put in place to massively increase production of the Tiger medium tank for the local militias and March Militias of the League March.
Hildco Interplanetary completes their Templar-O design which they have acquired under license. As per the terms of this license (and the wishes of the Duchess of St Ives) the Templar-O's produced there will only be routed to units native to the League March. The initial production run is unsurprisingly allocated to the St Ives Lancers - in particular the 1st and 2nd which are woefully under strength and have historically be assault weighted units.
The final industrial expansion within the Federated Sun's is the new Wei based Jalastar Aerospace plant. The first production line goes operation, producing Sparrowhawk light aerospace fighters which are soon being dispatched throughout the League March.
The situation in the Lyran Alliance (as well as of course Operation Heart Attack) take up most of the attention of not only the High Command and First Prince Davion but also the people of the Federated Suns during July. A series of hammer blows to the government of Tharkad causes increasing concerns for the Alliance.
The first of these is the surrender of the 4th Alliance Guard on Bolan. Facing overwhelming enemy numbers and with it's morale in tatters the 4th, never a steady formation at the best of times, seeks terms and surrenders the key border world to League control. Or to the Marik Commonwealth's control. Officially Bolan is "returned" to the Free Worlds League on the 11th of July. The remaining equipment of the 4th Alliance is seized and steps are taken to use it to reform the Bolan Defenders. This defeat finally prompts Tharkad to order the remaining units in the occupied League territories (except Oliver) to withdraw back into Lyran space. The abandoned worlds are immedietly offered membership of the Duchy of Tamarind - and over the course of July-September they accept. While massively overstretching the units of the Duchy, these gains suddenly vault them into a major power within the fractured League. An extremely anti-Lyran power. The Duchy is further reinforced when the Abbey District agrees to associate membership with it. Both Tamarind and the Abbey District put pressure upon Maderas to join one or other of the constituent parts of the Duchy of Tamarind-Abbey.
On the 14th of July - citing the failure of the Lyran Alliance to protect the people of Bolan in particular - Duke Robert Kelswa-Steiner openly addresses the issue of the Isle of Skye seceding from the Lyran Alliance and reforming itself as an independent nation. On Skye itself the 3rd and 4th Skye Rangers as well as the 1st Skye Jaegers express support for this idea, while the 3rd Hesperus Guards remains guardedly neutral. For the time being this is merely talk - but riots erupt across the region.
At the same time a second secessionist movement raises it's head on the Periphery border of the realm. Centred on Inarcs and Winter the movement springs up from almost nowhere. Duchess Tamari LaRue immedietly places herself at the head of this movement and plays a delicate shell game of avoiding full on treason while also appealing to as many competing factions within the Periphery border region for support. To some she suggests a rebirth (sans-House Amaris) of the Rim Worlds Republic. To others she suggests that a "Periphery March" could be formed within the Alliance but with greater autonomy. To a handful she even suggests that a new and independent Lyran Rim might even offer said throne to First Prince Victor and form a personal union with the Federated Suns. While so far in the same way as the Skye movement only talk, the growing support from a region long forgotten about by Tharkad for independence or reemergence of the Rim Worlds is shocking and has General of the Armies Adam Steiner frantically trying to find troops to send to the region. With the Duchess of Inarcs now leading the movement it has the backing of the Blackstone Highlanders and the Florida TTM has already had members voice support as well. Production from Inarcs seems to almost immedietly have problems being shipped to the LAAF, although the Blackstone Highlanders are increased to two battalion's in strength and the militia of Inarcs takes shipment of nearly two companies worth of battlemechs.
On the Clan Front, despite the Tamar Galaxy being pushed back by Clan Wolf-in-Exile, the Wolf Clan continues to score victories. On Ballymure, Pandora, Crimmond and Tomans the Wolves have been successful in either destroying the garrison or routing it. The loss of Pandora's factories in particular is galling as the world was defended by the 10th Lyran Guards RCT and 3rd Donegal Guards RCT as well as the planet's local Training Battalion. The 10th Lyran Guards is the only unit to escape the battle, absoring the few survivors of the 3rd Donegal and cadets of the Pandora College Training Battalion. Khan Vlad Ward himself oversaw the almost total annihilation of the 3rd Donegal as it attempted to fall back to it's dropships. Although the situation on Raselgathi and Fort Loudon has been salvaged by the Wolves-in-Exile, they can't remain there or they risk being cut off from Arc Royal. The threat is further emphasised when the worlds of Borghese and Graceland are invaded.
Matters are further complicated when the Duke of Odessa (a known supporter of deposed Archon Katherine Steiner) in the face of the "Wolf threat barrelling down upon him" announces the reformation of the 1st and 2nd Odessa Regulars. The 1st is created from his own personal guard unit - which although officially listed as only a battalion seems to be able to provide nearly 5 companies of battlemechs and an armoured battalion for the new unit, while the 2nd is formed from the local militia units - again which although listed as having few battlemechs appears upon the rolls at nearly 40% strength. He also makes demands that further battlemechs and tanks be shipped to Odessa to aid in the defence of his world should the Wolves attack. Given that his world is in the path between the Clan Wolf invasion and Donegal-Tharkad, it's hard to argue the point that it doesn't need reinforcing. However simply put nobody on Tharkad trusts the Duke. The fact that the world of Odessa's defenders seem to have had roughly double the number of battlemechs anyone thought they did is further cause for alarm to the intelligence agencies! Further alarm is caused when the Duke summarily names his son and heir Luther Fisk "Hauptmann-General" of the new brigade. The officer corp of the new brigade is similarly heavily weighted to supporters of the Duke and the nobility of Odessa.
At the end of July comes a final alarm for Tharkad, when reports begin coming in from the Clan Jade Falcon/Periphery border that a new clan, the Ice Hellions have been sighted at Barcelona, Newton Square and Hood IV. Demands for support and military units from the Periphery go through the roof. Left unsaid in many of these demands is that if they are not met then the worlds may consider aligning with Inarcs.
On the 30th of July Princes's Champion Galen Cox sends a frankly appraisal of the situation to the First Prince. The Lyran Alliance is on it's knees and if the Federated Sun's is going to be able to count upon it as an ally in the future then Operation Nightfire will require to be expanded to give the Alliance time to find it's feet again.
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Another nice update! I wonder what plans can Victor make to save his former half of the realm?
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Honestly I can understand if he and the rest of the Federated Suns feel resentment at the idea that Victor has to go and pull the Lyrans asses out of the fire after how the Alliance, as a whole, turned its back on him and really just went along with whatever Katherine said. And still havn't exactly taken ownership of their mistakes (and hell there are still some ****** people in the very estates generals who think KATRINA DID NOTHING WRONG even as she leads a new Clan Invasion of the Alliance!!!)
But seriously, the Lyrans. Gotta love them. Skye is still high on the 'special' punch it would seem and the Periphery is drinking their own version. I mean its not like they are at war on two possibly three sides and the most basic strategic appraisal of the situation shows that they need to stick together if they are going to have any hope of survival.
So of course, that means the time has come to make it as easy as possible for the Clans to overrun the Alliance one province at a time!
I think its about time for ComStar to start kicking off. With the WOBs Shadow Divisions trapped on Heph II and being ground down and a significant chunk of their fleet destroyed or scattered, it would seem to be time for a full scale offensive against Terra.
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I would argue that the Periphery area might be better off on their own. If they had the manufacturing ability to at least maintain a solid defensive force that would discourage pirates, they're pretty much sitting pretty. Skye on the other hand is serving itself up on a plate considering its location. The only reason the FWL is getting away with it is because everyone else is so thoroughly screwed and involved in their own stuff at the moment. That and plenty of WoB help that borders on the ridiculous, but that's a state of canon anyway.
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I would argue that the Periphery area might be better off on their own. If they had the manufacturing ability to at least maintain a solid defensive force that would discourage pirates, they're pretty much sitting pretty. Skye on the other hand is serving itself up on a plate considering its location. The only reason the FWL is getting away with it is because everyone else is so thoroughly screwed and involved in their own stuff at the moment. That and plenty of WoB help that borders on the ridiculous, but that's a state of canon anyway.
Not Really there is little to no presence of WoB forces in FWL space. Aside from giving them the corvettes, the WoB abandoned the FWL already. They simply don't have the numbers to maintain the Garrison let alone help them fight.
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I would argue that the Periphery area might be better off on their own. If they had the manufacturing ability to at least maintain a solid defensive force that would discourage pirates, they're pretty much sitting pretty.
They have very little industry really though (plus a lot of mixed areas, quite a few places would be much less inclined to break away from the Lyrans after all), no real economic centre and are terribly open to any new Clans looking to rip open an Inner SPhere holding as they evacuate the Kerensky Cluster. OR even the Wolves or Falcons looking for resource raids or anything like that.
Still, less immediate threads to be sure even if long term its a pretty bleak outcome.
Skye on the other hand is serving itself up on a plate considering its location. The only reason the FWL is getting away with it is because everyone else is so thoroughly screwed and involved in their own stuff at the moment. That and plenty of WoB help that borders on the ridiculous, but that's a state of canon anyway.
Free Skye has always been full of itself to an insane level.
Half the time I think Katrina should have let the Kuritans take it (except for Heph II of course) and told Skye that it wanted its independence and was always so confident that it could take care of itself, well, here's their chance!
And when the ISF swarm in right on the heals of the DCMS occupation troops without any kid gloves on and Free Skye rapidly finds out just how much of a soft touch the Lyrans actually used and how much self control they really had compared to the horror that living under Kuritan rule is...
Of course, the average person there doesn't deserve it, but the average person seems to tolerate an awful lot from Free Skye given how long the province has been a restive hotbed for.
Anyway. At this point without an actual Archon or clear central leadership figure and the LAAF badly overstretched and strategic command paralyzed (Adam should have been screaming recall orders to the FWL units before Peters body was cold in brutal honesty), its looking increasingly bleak for the Lyrans. But if Victor can DO anything is probably going to depend if Comstar gets off its royal behind and starts striking back now, to tackle the WOB threat.
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3070 - August - Operations Achilles, Ajax, Agamemnon VII and Heart Attack
Although the Draconis Combine's leadership had finally had the point that the war was lost driven home to them with sufficient force to seek peace by Operation Heart Attack the lack of working HPG network through most of the Pesht and Galedon Military Districts (and the WOB control of the rest) made informing the Federated Suns of this and requesting a ceasefire difficult. Jumpship chains (many of them cut by Operation Caesar) were unable to take up the slack. As such Minoru Kurita rushed towards the Davion border from Luthien, intending to divert to Galedon to ensure that this key Military District would obey his father, so as to arrange a ceasefire. In the meantime the fighting continued. The only "blessing" for the Kurita's is that only a single new world is invaded during August, the AFFS mostly attempting to complete the conquest of existing targets and mop up resistance.
Dieron
With the defensive lines under almost constant pressure Warlord Kurita was faced with the option of surrendering the remaining outworks of the fortress in order to preserve his remaining strength or continuing to fight for every inch of ground. Watching the losses mounted he realised he had little option and gave the withdrawal order. While this bought time and allowed him to consolidate and strengthen the inner lines he had now been forced to abandon almost 40% of the remaining territory he held. Rather than rush to attack his new lines (and fall into the multiple ambushes and traps the DCMS engineers had arranged prior to falling back) the AFFS forces proceeded to advance their lines cautiously and carefully. However by the end of the month they were back to a mix of overwhelming assaults and infiltration tactics against the DCMS's new positions. Even the most delusional fanatical amongst the defenders knew that the end was approaching.
Across the rest of the world Tancred Sandoval and Yvonne Davion-Sandoval's visit continued to cause an upsurge in support for House Davion. Promises of hospitals, better infrastructure and trade with the rest of the FedSun's were made and directly contrasted with the repression of House Kurita. Direct comparison's were soon made between the freedoms of the Federated Suns and the "old days" under the Terran Hegemony. In light of this Baron Sandoval personally attended the formation ceremony for the first units of the Dieron Planetary Guard - for now two infantry regiments with little beyond their rifles. However the donation of enough PAB-27 to equip both units from the large stockpiles assembled on the planet by the Baron at the ceremony goes a long way to raising morale for the assembled infantrymen.
Sadachbia
Facing mounting losses and with absolutely zero confidence that they would be relieved the 13th Ghost sought terms on the 10th of August after a three day artillery barrage that had broken the morale of the locally raised militia who were instrumental in holding most of their perimeter. Although knowing that they could almost walk through the shattered DCMS lines the AFFS commanding officer agreed to generous terms to avoid further loss of life within his own commands and also the civilians of the capital city.
Halstead Station
August largely consisted of mopping up operations for the troops of the 1st Chisholm Raiders and the Fighting Urukhai Slugger's regiment. Often the very threat of the AFFS unleashing the still angry Demestri's Sluggers on any holdouts was more than enough incentive to prompt a surrender. On the 24th the last mine complex which had been holding out for House Kurita refused to surrender and was stormed by elements of both units and a full battalion of battle armoured troopers - more than a match for the single lance of antique vehicles and two companies of militia infantry. Halstead Station is declared secure on the 26th.
Ashio
When the 1st Davion Lions and 8th Chisholm Raiders seem to withdraw from the pursuit the commanding officer of the remaining DCMS troops of the 24th Dieron Regulars (the remaining cadets have been folded in to fill out gaps within the unit) isn't fooled. Which means it comes as no surprise to him when the 12th Deneb Light Cavalry take over primary pursuing duties and continue to harry his ragged formation. Unable to stop and make a stand, knowing that larger and heavier Davion formations are being kept in reserve specifically for that eventuality he is forced to continue his headlong retreat. Losing a steady trickle of already damaged battlemechs and injured soldiers to the pursuing 12th, by the evening of the 20th of August despair has broken the morale of the remaining troops. The Tai-sa is forced to realise that his troops simply can't go any further. He can either make a stand where he is or attempt to seek terms. Looking at the battered battlemechs and equipment of his command and knowing that most of the ammunition bins are empty as well as the sheer number of walking wounded in the ranks he chooses to seek terms.
Andrew Redburn himself meets with the few remaining officers of the DCMS garrison and offers generous terms. They will be transported to prisoners of war camps, alongside the survivors of the earlier battles who have fallen into the AFFS's hands. As a mark of respect for the fight they have put up the AFFS will retain their battlemechs and other equipment, but will return them when they are released upon the cessation of hostilities. All equipment seized prior to the surrender however the AFFS will keep. While generous the simple fact of the matter is that most of the equipment remaining to the 24th Regulars simply isn't worth using by the modern day AFFS and would be relegated to militia formations or scrapped.
Atria
The single new invasion of the month, the 4th Davion Guards RCT having left the mopping up operations on Lyon's to the LAAF jump to the world of Atria and in a two week blitz across it's ice fields smash the few DCMS conventional units garrisoning the planet. Old FedCom banners are soon brought out and are seen flying above every town hall and city hall on the planet.
Iruzun
The arrival of the 1st, 20th and 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT's on the planet drastically shifts the force balance back in favour of the AFFS. Although the 2nd Dragonlords has been reduced to little more than a cadre, the new arrivals give the AFFS four experienced and battle hardened RCT's on the planet against the 1st Proserpina Hussars, 16th Galedon Regulars and 23rd Benjamin Regulars - of which only the 1st Proserpina Hussars is on the level of the AFFS units.
As soon as the three Avalon Hussar units are landed and set up the AFFS goes on a general offence. Taking full advantage of their numerical and skill superority the AFFS formations push forward on a wide front. The 42nd Avalon Hussar's Marshal May soon finds himself in a series of running battles against the elite 1st Proserpina Hussars which prove a major challenge for the more assault and heavy weighted 42nd Hussar's to match. So he doesn't try to. Instead he proceeds to advance relentlessly towards his object, battering off the raids and running battles that the 1st Proserpina Hussars try to engage him in with superior firepower and the sheer size of his command. In the meantime the other AFFS units hammer through the much weaker Regular regiments of the DCMS. The 4th Crucis Lancers RCT still smarting after the damage done to the 2nd Dragonlords smash into the green 23rd Benjamin Regulars and in a two week running battle drive the unit to the point of total destruction. Barely two companies of heavily damaged battlemech's manage to disengage and fall back on New Gotham. Similarly the 1st and 20th Avalon Hussars hammer the 16th Galedon Regulars in a brutal series of battles. Outnumbered by a single RCT the 16th can do little but fall back or face being pinned in place and annihilated. While the 16th Galedon is in better shape than the 23rd Benjamin when it falls back to within New Gotham it's not by much.
With the collapse of their flanks the bitter 1st Proserpina Hussars is forced to fall back itself and finds itself soon pinned within New Gotham as the AFFS formations envelope the city with defensive lines. By the end of August the massed guns and fighters of the various Davion forces are hammering the hurriedly prepared defensive lines of the capital.
Kaznejoy
The heavy weighted 3rd Tikonov Cossack's is soon taking the lead in battering down the defences of the city of Gondovia, while the 5th Davion Guards RCT holds the line and Hansen's Roughriders launch probing attacks. The bad feeling between the 45th Galedon Regulars and the 11th Ghost however is soon exploited and a battalion from the 3rd Cossacks cracks the defensive lines where the two units meet on the 18th. Both sides are soon far to busy blaming each other for the "failure", which does little to stop the Roughriders and 5th Davion Guards pouring in. By the time the situation has been stabilised from the perspective of the Kurita officers over half the city has fallen and the 45th Regulars in particular mauled heavily. The rest of the month passes with both sides probing at the new lines for weak points - and further recriminations between the DCMS units.
Matsuida
The last stand of the DCMS on Matsuida begins on the 4th of August when the 1st Crucis Lancers RCT, 4th Syrtis Fusiliers RCT and 1st Kestrel Grenadiers RCT combine to attack the worn down Ryuken-yon and Ryuken-go regiments. The roughly three companies of remaining DCMS troops attempt to put up the best fight they can, but the Davion attack is led by the massed battle armoured formations of the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers - who remain at a stronger force level than their parent regiment. With damaged battlemech's and tanks being overwhelmed by battle armoured troops the two DCMS formations are swiftly destroyed. The few survivors are marched off to prisoner of war camps, having to be protected from the local population who are now furious at them for the pointless and futile destruction of their city.
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To quickly make contact with Victor, Minoru would probably be best advised to send someone to the Ghost Bears or the FRR - they are closer to Luthien than the front lines, and they have intact HPGs which can relay a message to Victor much more quickly than a jumpship sent to the nearest Draconis March HPG station.
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..I've just remembered something. Those WOB ships are still out there and are going to hit a Davion planet to 'make it burn' IIRC or were they caught or recalled? Because if the Combine goes "Peace!" then a few days later *Nuclear fireballs on a planet* the Davion's won't ever trust them again, if they ever did.
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To quickly make contact with Victor, Minoru would probably be best advised to send someone to the Ghost Bears or the FRR - they are closer to Luthien than the front lines, and they have intact HPGs which can relay a message to Victor much more quickly than a jumpship sent to the nearest Draconis March HPG station.
That would be the quickest way...
..I've just remembered something. Those WOB ships are still out there and are going to hit a Davion planet to 'make it burn' IIRC or were they caught or recalled? Because if the Combine goes "Peace!" then a few days later *Nuclear fireballs on a planet* the Davion's won't ever trust them again, if they ever did.
The WOB are still heading for Verde. As are Clan Nova Cat.
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To quickly make contact with Victor, Minoru would probably be best advised to send someone to the Ghost Bears or the FRR - they are closer to Luthien than the front lines, and they have intact HPGs which can relay a message to Victor much more quickly than a jumpship sent to the nearest Draconis March HPG station.
Wouldn`t it be easier to send a Fax message?
If I remember the real timeline correctly:
When Teddy was informed that Luthien was the next target he send a message by Fax to New Avalon.
But the Fax machine of the DC are very slow.
A Davion listening post picked up the message and sent it with a modern Fax machine to New Avalon.
And this message (modern Fax) arrived one week before the DC Fax message.
So, this should be the fastest way.
To the situation in the LC (and maybe all the other realms before alternate history was written by us Fan people):
Sorry, but if I look at the rulers of the IS I have the impression that they are not feudal rulers but just like normal politicians.
They do not prepare for anything, like destroyed factories.
Only Stefan Amaris did, like Kwangjong Ni (I hope I spelled it correctly.).
The most evil man (or contender) is able to build secret mech factories and not ONE IS ruler does the same.
(OK, I know, Battletech, the post-apocalyptic big stompy robots game).
But still.
The Reunification war showed clearly that factories and jumpship-/warshipyards can and will be blown skyhigh.
And nobody prepares.
Everybody thinks: OK, we have Hesperus, Tharkad, Arc Royal and these factories are enough.
Hello? Where they advised by a certain company of our time? Yes, the one the german Bundeswehr listened to. And now at least 50% of the heavy equipment (tanks, planes, ships etc) are out of order because replacement parts are cheaper when ordered just in time. As if this works especially in wartime.
No, Morgan Kell should take Adam Steiner by his throat, hammer some sense into him and make him follow the lead of his brother Victor. Building factories and shipyards. But there is one big catch: In the 3025 era you fought to achieve a tactical goal but not to kill the enemy, because mechs were expensive. So the number of factories was sufficient.
Now 3070 you fight to eradicate. And that means you need production capacity. And that means a lot of factories.
And build some hidden factories too. To avoid Holy Shroud X and destruction of factories by enemies. So hide them well and dont store the data on which planets they are in the main Computer of the Triad, because then you can send their location directly to Luthien, Atreus etc.
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Wouldn`t it be easier to send a Fax message?
If I remember the real timeline correctly:
When Teddy was informed that Luthien was the next target he send a message by Fax to New Avalon.
But the Fax machine of the DC are very slow.
A Davion listening post picked up the message and sent it with a modern Fax machine to New Avalon.
And this message (modern Fax) arrived one week before the DC Fax message.
So, this should be the fastest way.
To the situation in the LC (and maybe all the other realms before alternate history was written by us Fan people):
Sorry, but if I look at the rulers of the IS I have the impression that they are not feudal rulers but just like normal politicians.
They do not prepare for anything, like destroyed factories.
Only Stefan Amaris did, like Kwangjong Ni (I hope I spelled it correctly.).
The most evil man (or contender) is able to build secret mech factories and not ONE IS ruler does the same.
(OK, I know, Battletech, the post-apocalyptic big stompy robots game).
But still.
The Reunification war showed clearly that factories and jumpship-/warshipyards can and will be blown skyhigh.
And nobody prepares.
Everybody thinks: OK, we have Hesperus, Tharkad, Arc Royal and these factories are enough.
Hello? Where they advised by a certain company of our time? Yes, the one the german Bundeswehr listened to. And now at least 50% of the heavy equipment (tanks, planes, ships etc) are out of order because replacement parts are cheaper when ordered just in time. As if this works especially in wartime.
No, Morgan Kell should take Adam Steiner by his throat, hammer some sense into him and make him follow the lead of his brother Victor. Building factories and shipyards. But there is one big catch: In the 3025 era you fought to achieve a tactical goal but not to kill the enemy, because mechs were expensive. So the number of factories was sufficient.
Now 3070 you fight to eradicate. And that means you need production capacity. And that means a lot of factories.
And build some hidden factories too. To avoid Holy Shroud X and destruction of factories by enemies. So hide them well and dont store the data on which planets they are in the main Computer of the Triad, because then you can send their location directly to Luthien, Atreus etc.
Yes but fax's are omnidirectional. And if Hohiro finds out... All hell will break loose.
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They have very little industry really though (plus a lot of mixed areas, quite a few places would be much less inclined to break away from the Lyrans after all), no real economic centre and are terribly open to any new Clans looking to rip open an Inner SPhere holding as they evacuate the Kerensky Cluster. OR even the Wolves or Falcons looking for resource raids or anything like that.
Still, less immediate threads to be sure even if long term its a pretty bleak outcome.
Free Skye has always been full of itself to an insane level.
Half the time I think Katrina should have let the Kuritans take it (except for Heph II of course) and told Skye that it wanted its independence and was always so confident that it could take care of itself, well, here's their chance!
And when the ISF swarm in right on the heals of the DCMS occupation troops without any kid gloves on and Free Skye rapidly finds out just how much of a soft touch the Lyrans actually used and how much self control they really had compared to the horror that living under Kuritan rule is...
Of course, the average person there doesn't deserve it, but the average person seems to tolerate an awful lot from Free Skye given how long the province has been a restive hotbed for.
Anyway. At this point without an actual Archon or clear central leadership figure and the LAAF badly overstretched and strategic command paralyzed (Adam should have been screaming recall orders to the FWL units before Peters body was cold in brutal honesty), its looking increasingly bleak for the Lyrans. But if Victor can DO anything is probably going to depend if Comstar gets off its royal behind and starts striking back now, to tackle the WOB threat.
ComStar has been fighting the WoB the entire time they never stopped. They just never hit Terra since they need more ships. But they have been hammering the WoB where ever they find them from the start of the story and when they started getting more support they kept going and increased operations.
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ComStar has been fighting the WoB the entire time they never stopped. They just never hit Terra since they need more ships. But they have been hammering the WoB where ever they find them from the start of the story and when they started getting more support they kept going and increased operations.
They're hardly hammering the WOB. They're playing paddy-cake with them really. The BIGGEST operation they launched was a single division supported by a flotila of warships to get in, rip up a WOBM unit and get out quickly. Which was great for what it did, but otherwise the only major operation they launched was the flotila to intercept the first shipment of Mechs to the Combine. They're not operating by any means at a high tempo but seem to just be sitting around, still building up...
If they're hitting the WOB at all, its on a very tiny scale. Its well past time for them to put up or shut up and REALLY get into the fight and stop screwing around. Especially as the WOB are never likely to be this overstretched again.
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They're hardly hammering the WOB. They're playing paddy-cake with them really. The BIGGEST operation they launched was a single division supported by a flotila of warships to get in, rip up a WOBM unit and get out quickly. Which was great for what it did, but otherwise the only major operation they launched was the flotila to intercept the first shipment of Mechs to the Combine. They're not operating by any means at a high tempo but seem to just be sitting around, still building up...
If they're hitting the WOB at all, its on a very tiny scale. Its well past time for them to put up or shut up and REALLY get into the fight and stop screwing around. Especially as the WOB are never likely to be this overstretched again.
No they have not been sitting around again we are mostly seeing things only from the FedSuns side not an omnipresent perspective. And the OP already made it clear that ComStar has been fighting the WoB on other fronts and engaging them. That is what is happening in the background.
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Okay just to say - I've not forgotten about this timeline ladies and gentlemen. I've been pretty ill and given that I lost almost 2 weeks work (I get paid for what I work not salaried) I've had to bust my ass trying to catch back up. But I haven't abandoned this. Promise.
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We'll wait. Get your health and finances back in order. Real life always takes first place.
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Take your time, this is a story well worth waiting for. Thanks for sharing.
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Aye, look after yourself first :)
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Ditto: we can wait. I mean come on we’re Battletech fans after all!
And personally I’m a Game if Thrones Fan, a fan of the series Gentleman Bastards (whose last book was 2013 and then 2007 previously), and a couple other things like that.
No worries man! Get healthy!
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Thank you guys, mostly back to normal health wise just having to catch up with work.
Then I have to reread everything I've done so far and my note so I don't screw up the next update. :D
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Seriously dude, health and wealth first. This is just a hobby which we are all incredibly grateful for you participating in, but it sounds like you more than have your head screwed on straight with your priorities!
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Seriously dude, health and wealth first. This is just a hobby which we are all incredibly grateful for you participating in, but it sounds like you more than have your head screwed on straight with your priorities!
I tend to be pretty committed to my work (you have to be working legal aid :D), which is why getting ill was such a major problem. For one thing totally lost my voice on top of feeling absolutely dreadful. My colleague I work with actually got pretty worried that I was taking time off at all as he knows what I'm like for working through illnesses/weekends/migraines/etc... so called me and nearly had a fit when he heard how bad I sounded.
Anyway health is back to 95% and work is catching back up. So hopefully an update soon.
Mostly my interests in battletech, various other sci fi and fantasy (including writing) tends to be to let me destress after a day of dealing with extremely challenging clients and helps keep me sane. :D
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The purpose of hobbies is to help relief the stress of life and put your thinking back in order. If your life was stress free and in perfect order, would you even need a hobby?
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The purpose of hobbies is to help relief the stress of life and put your thinking back in order. If your life was stress free and in perfect order, would you even need a hobby?
Might not need it, but it would still be fun. :D
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3070 - September - Steel's Winter Warriors
"This is David Steele and welcome to Steele's Hard Truths's Tharkad Special - Winter Warriors! This is New Avalon's premier Military and Foreign Affair's talk show coming to you from Tharkad!" David Steele flashed his trademark and famous welcoming grin while inwardly seething that he wasn't getting paid nearly enough for this nonsense. Whatever idiot in scripts or development or PR had thought this lunacy up was going to pay for shipping him all the way to this freezing ice ball when (not if) he found out it was! While the excellent relations that Hard's Truth maintained with the AFFS had allowed he and his production and filming team to plug into the various jump-lines linking the former FedCom it still had resulted in a horrendous succession of jumps knowing that the WOB or some other lunatic group wouldn't care that a news team was piggy backing on the AFFS or LAAF jumpship! He should be back at home on sunny New Avalon with his new girlfriend, not stuck out here. Still appearances had to be maintained so he grinned at the camera with all his usual enthusiasm. "As every I am your host and I have some two special guests tonight for this very special show of Winter Warriors! Firstly I would like to introduce you to retired Hauptmann-General Isadora Agravaine, former commander of the Alliance Guard Brigade. Alongside her is retired General Geoffrey Berg, former commanding officer of the prestigious Donegal Guards Brigade... Yes General Agravaine?"
The beautiful face of the General was far to young for a women who was a retired general, but then again her links with the former Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion explained not only her swift rise to the rank of Hauptmann-General and also her subsequent "retirement". Now that beautiful face was twisted into a mien of unhappiness. "I prefer my civilian title since the disgraceful behaviour of the current officer corp of the LAAF in not launching a crusade to liberate my good personal friend Archon Katrina from the despotic clutches of her brother the so called First Prince Victor Davion... I do not wish to be associated with the current honour less leadership of the LAAF! I would request that you refer to me as the Grafina von Selby Mr Steele."
Before Steele could think of a suitable reply General Berg snorted. "Oh by all mean's please do ignore the Grafina's military service, those of us who were real soldiers with the AFFC and LAAF would love to ignore it and pretend it never happened!"
"I served my Archon with pride which is more than what you can say traitor!" The Grafina snapped back.
"You served a matricidal maniac and feathered your own nest you mean!" The General snapped back.
"Grafina von Selby, General Berg... Please... let's try and keep things civil... I realise that tempers are running a little high... But let's remember we're all friends here..." Steele almost had to lean forward between the two glaring former AFFC and LAAF officers. It was a little early in the show for a fist fight after all! "Now... Grafina... You were about to get into this evening's topic..."
"The current aid coming from FedRat's to help the LAAF? Yes... It's merely what the Feddie's are due us for the kidnapping and selling of the greatest Archon since her grandmother to the Wolves by the Davion High Command in December 3060! Even if they sent us a thousand times what they currently have done they couldn't even begin to pay us back for their military junta's crime of depriving us of her leadership!" Isadora Agravaine spoke coldly. "Had they seen the wisdom in supporting her perfectly legal assumption of power from her sister Yvonne in 3060 then I have absolutely no doubt's the the Federated Commonwealth would have been reborn and we would be entering a new Golden Age with the FedCom reforging the Star League for all the peoples of the Inner Sphere!"
This time the other guest panellist didn't snort, he stared in almost dumbfounded shock before turning to Steele. "My agent told me that we weren't allowed to drink before we came on the show... But the Grafina is clearly drunk out of her mind!"
"How dare you?!" She drew back to slap him.
"General! Grafina! Now please... no personal attacks, please... And no physical attacks either!" David barely managed to stop them coming to blows. "Now General, that wasn't a very diplomatic way of putting it, but I presume you disagree with the Grafina's points?"
"I couldn't disagree with them more Mr Steele. Frankly the worst mistake that the Lyran people have ever made was to follow the Usurper-Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion into her rebellion in the 3057. Had we stood side by side with our Davion allies and comrades under the leadership of Victor Steiner-Davion I don't doubt we would have prevailed against the Capellan and League invasions. Hell with the full might of the AFFC behind him the Archon-Prince might have done to the Capellan's in 3057 or '58 what he did to them in '68 and '69!" General Berg pointed over at the still enraged aristocrat. "It was due to the Social General's like the Grafina over there that we didn't. I'll even admit that officers like myself have to shoulder some of the blame for the mistakes made in those days, as we were prepared to take General of the Armies Nondi Steiner at her word that we should follow the Usurper-Archon. If we'd known then what we knew now..."
"So you regret the break up of the Federated Commonwealth General? That's something that many within the Federated Sun's will find hard to believe coming from a LAAF officer who was a key player back in '57 I have to say..." Steele saw Berg literally wince as the barb hit home.
Still the General rallied. "I do. Bitterly. We all make mistakes Mr Steele and that one has haunted me. The Grafina goes on about how had the AFFS's officer corp stood by and allowed Katherine Steiner-Davion to usurp control of New Avalon in the same way we stood by and allowed her to usurp Tharkad then the FedCom might have been reborn, but I think she's spent so long skiing that her brains froze. The AFFS's High Command stood by their oaths to the Archon-Prince and proved themselves better men and women than we did in '57..."
"If you love the AFFS so much why don't you join it?!"Hissed Agravaine.
General Berg smiled bitterly at her. "Because I'm too old, they wouldn't have me after my lack of action in '57 and honestly because I'm still a Lyran and love my country. I just refuse to pretend that what we did was right... Which is why I formally support the movement to offer the throne of the Lyran Alliance to the First Prince at his own discretion as per Honoured Representative Anand's motion to the Estates General..."
"Treacherous Quisling!" Agravaine.
"Lunatic!" Berg.
As the two lunged at each other Steele carefully sidestepped back to avoid getting caught up in the scuffle, giving it a good 20 seconds before indicating security to step in... Maybe he was warming to Tharkad's possibilities...
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Of course, the losers of the little coup are angry and grasping at whatever they can get. They know they are done and that they will have to pay the price of their betrayal. They think if they get the bitch back that they will regain power when in fact they are going to be some of the first to be killed in a new set of purges for letting her be taken in the first place.
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You just started writing again and first thing comes out, a mixed catfight.
Good to see you back writing. :beer:
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You just started writing again and first thing comes out, a mixed catfight.
Good to see you back writing. :beer:
It's been a bad few months... ;)
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At least now you can return to the bosom of sympathetic friends and colleagues.
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Good to see your back up and running.
Enjoying this story.
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[Benny Hill theme plays in the background]
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I'm actually surprised that Berg would be willing to go on TV, as it were, and hold to the 'KATRINA DID NOTHING WRONG, ALL HAIL KATRINA!' angle given the situation the Lyran state is in right now.
Then again I'm honestly still surprised that there are people, even in the Estates Generals, who are still insisting Katrina is the true Archon that havn't had the traditional fate for people in a nominal civil war who sided with the wrong person in a backstab happy aristocracy. Even without the optics of Katherines lover in the middle of a major invasion of the Lyran state and, presumably, Peter having done everything he could (even if only to shore up his own position) to release all the data he would now have access to, to show just how bad a person Katrina really was. To the point that it should be pretty much accepted everywhere (if PEter was competent, which is a big question mark...) that Katherine murdered their mother and usurped the throne.
But its probably a damning indictment of how ineffective Peter was as an Archon that you still have crazies like Berg happily able to go on TV and make the absurd statements she has and NOT loose even the slightest shred of political influence and power she has.
With all that said; great to have this back and see the crazy TV interviews back as well :D
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I'm actually surprised that Berg would be willing to go on TV, as it were, and hold to the 'KATRINA DID NOTHING WRONG, ALL HAIL KATRINA!' angle given the situation the Lyran state is in right now.
Then again I'm honestly still surprised that there are people, even in the Estates Generals, who are still insisting Katrina is the true Archon that havn't had the traditional fate for people in a nominal civil war who sided with the wrong person in a backstab happy aristocracy. Even without the optics of Katherines lover in the middle of a major invasion of the Lyran state and, presumably, Peter having done everything he could (even if only to shore up his own position) to release all the data he would now have access to, to show just how bad a person Katrina really was. To the point that it should be pretty much accepted everywhere (if PEter was competent, which is a big question mark...) that Katherine murdered their mother and usurped the throne.
But its probably a damning indictment of how ineffective Peter was as an Archon that you still have crazies like Berg happily able to go on TV and make the absurd statements she has and NOT loose even the slightest shred of political influence and power she has.
With all that said; great to have this back and see the crazy TV interviews back as well :D
Well the fact was that the Grafina wasn't exactly given a slot on TV by the LYRANS. Mr Steele and his producers figured that a pro-Kat voice to hate might sell pretty well in the FedSuns - for instance in the Outback who are NOT keen on "their" First Prince waltzing off to Tharkad. Having the good Grafina there as a lightning rod for the anti-Lyran element sells in the FS at the moment. While the General also covers them if the First Prince does take the throne of the Lyran Alliance and it works out well - they gave a balanced view...
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Nice to see the story updated!! :thumbsup: Looking forward to the next update!
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Nice reference to ‘Illusions of Victory’ style interview. Nicely done and welcome back
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Great interview!
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On New Avalon Steele has Gogh-Bukowsky for easily accessible pool of loonies, while on Tharkad he still has to establish the connections to enable steady stream of interesting guests, so he can continue to be as successful as wit the first interview.
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3070 - August - Catching Breath
With the huge efforts of not only launching Operation Heart Attack and also continuing to engage the DCMS across the entire border the AFFS spent most of August catching it's breath. On top of it's commitments to the Draconis Front more and more resources were being earmarked for the Lyran Front. The huge military supply depots throughout the Addicks and Nanking PDZ's were already dangerously empty and jumpships were now ferrying supplies from deeper within the Federated Suns to not only refill them but also continue onward to both support operations within the Lyran Alliance but also prop up the faltering supply lines of the LAAF.
Within the Draconis March Duke Sandoval also began to work on assembling personnel and material to begin forming new Draconis March Militia's to garrison the newly conquered territories. While they were still all under military rule he had began to take steps to form at least provisional PDZ's within the occupied worlds. The first one of these was now considered marginally secure - given that the front lines had extended past it by some distance and so Duke James began the first steps to establishing the Proserpina PDZ and Proserpina DMM - although the latter was entirely a paper exercise for now. From Halstead Station-Yance I through Shinonoi-Kurah-Tannil-Homan-Matar and down to Scheat the new PDZ began to take form. The other proposed potential PDZ's were not even ready for this level of preparatory work given that they were still active war zones.
The Nova Cat convoys continued to arrive at Cussar and began preparing to move deeper into the Federated Suns. The first of their jumpships with a small warship escort moved towards Verde to prepare the way for the follow on waves which were assembling over Cussar. A small number of Sun Jaguar members arrive on Verde to help prepare them for the trip across the Suns and as advisers on how to deal with the local population/rulers.
Some small protests are heard regarding the AFFS's involvement in the Lyran Alliance, mostly in the Outback, but the scope of the victories obtained at Hesperus quietens these down quickly. Most local rulers take the line with any unhappiness that better the AFFS fights the WOB on Lyran worlds than Davion worlds after all. Left unspoken even within the more pro-FedCom/Lyran groups is that the Lyrans will "owe" the FedSuns for this.
First Prince Victor also announces at the exact same time that Baron Sandoval and his sister does on Dieron that a new Duke has been selected for this world - Duke Ardan Sortek. It is spun as a way to honour the former Prince's Champion while also providing the people of Dieron with an experienced and well regarded leader who's words carry weight at the highest echelon's of both the AFFS and First Princes's Government. While a few on Dieron would have preferred to pick their own leader most take the view that having such a close friend of House Davion as their Duke can only be good for the world. The fact that they are told by the First Princes's sister and brother-in-law at the same time he announces it goes some way to also having the people accept this.
On Markesan the second Fury line for Jolassa-Kumbold Armoured Weapons comes online. While on nearby Marlette the first battlemech production line of the Davion-Com plant goes online - the Phoenix Hawk line. This production is split as per the agreement between the ComGuards and AFFS with the AFFS offering at least some of the production up to trusted mercenary commands. Work continues on the other large number of lines under construction.
At Nanking a new Enforcer III line enters production. While initially earmarked to help build up the various League March Militias the production of this front line machine is diverted to support operations both within the Lyran Alliance and the Dieron front. Kallon immedietly begins work on adding a Crusader line at Nanking. A further two Enforcer lines are also begun.
Johnston Industries new facility on New Hessen see's the axe weilding Valiant class battlemech enter production. Every battlemech produced is immedietly shipped to Dieron where they are felt to be particularly useful in close engagements in the tunnels.
Veridan Dynamics begins considering further expansions of their Tiger lines at Sarna. They have two lines already working full shifts and another three building, however they are already swamped with orders for the various second line formations of the League March and the growing number of Planetary Guard's that are being formed. The five lines built or building will not be able to keep pace and a doubling of the plant is under consideration.
Within the Lyran Alliance discontent for the "toothless" provisional government of Adam Steiner continues to mount. Peter Steiner's legacy is by now thoroughly discredited with even the fractured Free Worlds League managing to invade the Lyran Alliance. The fact that the LAAF has had to rely upon the AFFS to rescue the situation at Hesperus has not went unnoticed by the wider public and morale already low drops further. Particularly as the news of Bolan's fall spreads. As LAAF units are moved from the Periphery border the discontent there continues to grow.
On the Wolf Front the LAAF's Kelenfold PTM finds itself facing the entirety of Delta Galaxy of Clan Wolf. While the Theatre Militia puts up a valiant fight they stand no real chance and are swiftly destroyed. With the abandonment of Rasalgethi and Fort Louden by the Wolves-in-Exile in order not to be caught off it's only a matter of time before their dark brethren return and seize them. At which point Arcturus is under serious threat of invasion. Work begins on heavily fortifying this vital strategic and cultural world. The Arcturan Guard units throughout the Alliance request assignment to their homeworld to defend it.
Behind closed doors the government's of Thorin and Murphid begin considering seeking annexation by the Federated Suns. Long considered pro-Victor loyalists these two worlds which have faced WOB attacks feel they would be better placed under the security of the Sword and Starburst than the Fist. More than a few of the provisional governments of the liberated Lyon Thumb worlds are also considering the same request.
Within the League fighting heats up between the forces of the Principality of Regulus and the rest of the League. Heavy raiding by Oriente and Marik Commonwealth forces stretch to almost every world except Regulus itself.
While the rest of the League is distracted by this Menkalinan formally rejoins the Federated Suns. Elements of the 7th Crucis Lancers move to this world to help protect it against any reprisals. Wasat's government contacts the FedSun's Government to ask what terms would be considered for it too joining the Zion PDZ. Bereson's government remains split as to whether to request the same and arguments continue.
This however isn't the only loss the League faces during August. Citing some vague public support for joining the WOB Protectorate elements of the WOB Militia arrive in orbit over both worlds of the Borderer Protectorate and proceed to land. Both the Steel and Adamantine Guard immedietly declare for the WOB, however the Iron Guard resists on Zosma. In a bloody week long battle the unit fights the WOB forces to a standstill and almost drives them off world before their former compatriots within the Adamantine Guard attack them in the rear. Routed by this treachery the Iron Guard withdraw to nearby Shiloh to attempt to rebuild. With the fall of the Border Protectorate the WOB also announce the annexation of Castor and Devil's Rock.
The Sian Republic formally declares war upon the Victoria Commonality during August. Although this war at the current time entirely consists of probes and raids by small formations from both sides. Neither side can afford to strip their other frontiers of troops to launch a full scale attack. The Victoria Commonality refuses diplomatically to accept that a state of war exists, as it refuses to accept that the Sian Republic exists - instead labelling them rebels against the Capellan Confederation. Many within the diplomatic corp of various realms consider this another attempt by the Sian Republic to distance itself from it's status as a successor state of the Confederation.
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Okay maybe because I've not done a full update for a while that felt a little "clunky" to me... Let me know if it was please people or just my rustiness...!!!
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Looks good to me.
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It didn't work the same as the last updates and the format was a bit clunky. But it wasn't that bad.
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I thought the update was good. I would suggest to Veridan Dynamics to not hang their hat on one design. maybe they need to look a second 2nd line tank (J Edgar or Zhukov). they might want something for BA like a zoomer to go to top line units.
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I thought the update was good. I would suggest to Veridan Dynamics to not hang their hat on one design. maybe they need to look a second 2nd line tank (J Edgar or Zhukov). they might want something for BA like a zoomer to go to top line units.
good idea!!
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You've been gone awhile. It will take time to get back in rhythm.
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Love it!
It's becoming clear that while the AFFS still has a lot in the tank to keep going, they would really like to be able to at least wind things back on some fronts to start replenishing their forward stockpiles, rotate units for leave and all that stuff. Which probably makes it more likely than not that Victor will accept a peace with the Combine (clearly on his terms and quite strongly so, but not to point of walking his Omnimech up the steps of the Palace of Unity and dictating a peace).
The good news being that Victor has built up such an absurd military-industrial complex that it (to the horror of every hostile force around) probably won't take him very long at all to refill both frontline units AND the forward supply depots with replacement ammo, spare parts and even bloody Battlemechs...
The bad news being that the scope of the war has expanded greatly. IF Victor makes the decision to save the Lyran Alliance, then its going to be needing the Federated Suns to go on a genuinely full-scale war footing now with its economy, if he wants to be able to both stare down the Combine into submission and be ready to swing around and finally start slapping the WOB (****** ComStar needs to get off their ass; I still see no evidence they are doing anything worthy of note). Because it looks increasingly clear that the LAAF is right on the verge of flying apart. As is the Commonwealth in general. Especially with the damage the WOB has done to its key military-industrial planets with their shadow division raids, which I think are still ongoing, even if the LAAF/AFFS are grinding the biggest concentration into dogmeat right now...
The FWL chaos is very interesting. The WOB now is actively annexing FWL planets into their little co-prosperity sphere; at least two of the FWL major factions are not going to be at all happy about that. And even Connie is probably going to be feeling in an awkward spot...
Let the good times roll! Glad to have you back with us Billy!
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;D
Loving that some, as I, believe the FS was to good to go out with a whimper 'stead of a roar.
Please keep on. It's worth it. Thank you. I'm surprised by the turns and twists and I look forward to reading what "should have been"
Arise you loyal sons and daughters of the Federated Suns! :thumbsup:
Long live the Davions.
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;D
Loving that some, as I, believe the FS was to good to go out with a whimper 'stead of a roar.
Please keep on. It's worth it. Thank you. I'm surprised by the turns and twists and I look forward to reading what "should have been"
Arise you loyal sons and daughters of the Federated Suns! :thumbsup:
Long live the Davions.
Well not gonna lie I might be a touch biased... :p
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Well not gonna lie I might be a touch biased... :p
Says the man with DavionHighlander as their other user name. :V
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Says the man with DavionHighlander as their other user name. :V
Well at least I'm open about it... ;)
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3070 - September - Combat Operations within the Draconis Combine
Even as the fighting continued Minoru Kurita rushed via jumpship - first to Galedon and then onward's to the Federated Suns Occupied Territories. At Galedon he stayed for only a few hours, long enough to receive promises of support and fealty from the practical Warlord of that District, who had seen for himself the devastating consequences of fighting the AFFS at the current time. At Galedon Prince Minoru picked up his escort - the 5th Sword of Light regiment. Which sounded a lot more impressive than the barely two companies of battlemechs and handful of infantry and armour companies that were all that remained of this proud regiment. Jumping to Capra his small squadron of jumpships was immedietly challenged by the aerospace fighters of the 2nd Lexington Combat Guards and 8th Deneb Light Cavalry along with a squadron of assault dropships. Explaining his purpose, the Kurita Prince and his formation were taken into custody - with the history of sneak attacks between the two powers throughout the Succession Wars in the minds of everyone. Still after his providence was verified he was informed that he would be escorted by a full combat command of the 8th Deneb Light Cavalry to Robinson to meet the First Prince, along with a Division of Fox II corvettes.
As Minoru Kurita is rushed to Robinson the fighting continues...
Dieron
Under constant pressure the 3rd Dieron Regulars suffered a defeat when two battalions of the Davion Assault Guards slammed into their lines while the Vegan Rangers probed all along the rest of the line to keep the Genyosha too busy to relieve them. Faced with twice their number of cutting edge assault class battlemech's hitting them hard the 3rd Dieron barely managed to avoid being crushed. Instead they were forced to abandon first one defensive line and then another before finally stabilising their lines after having given up nearly a quarter of the DCMS held territory. The last of the stocks of obsolete battlemechs were issued to the 3rd Dieron to keep them functional. Holding barely 30% of the vast Fortress Dieron Warlord Kurita knew that he had no more ground to give and the AFFS were poised to sweep his forces from the board.
Tancred Sandoval and Yvonne Davion-Sandoval left Dieron midway through September and headed back to Robinson. Behind them the organisation of the Dieron Government continued and given the work being conducted it was clear that the world was being prepared to be the headquarters of at least a PDZ and perhaps an Operational Area/Combat Theatre.
Lambrecht
Fresh from their conquest of Atria the 4th Davion Guards landed on Lambrecht and almost immedietly received the surrender of the small militia force that was all that was left of the garrison. The small militia handed over their DCMS appointed officers to the small military police unit attached to the 4th Davion and proceeded to turn their weapons over and dissolve for the current time. Some thought was given to dispatching the 4th Davion Guards from Lambrecht to take the world of Skondia and "round off" the Lyon Thumb, but for now they are left to refit themselves.
Sabik
With the situation on Dieron now under control the 4th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT was freed up to seize the Lyon Thumb world of Sabik in September. Although almost worthless in and of itself the world was considered of some prestige value in order to try and reclaim as much of the Lyon Thumb as possible for the Lyran Alliance. Given how little value the world had the only local garrison were a semi-militarised police force who surrendered immedietly upon the arrival of the 4th Deneb.
Moore
The reclamation of the final world of the Lyon Thumbs still under Kurita occupation was conducted by the 4th Avalon Hussars RCT. While hovering at just over half strength it was felt that this unit was still more than sufficient to retake the swampy world of Moore. Facing only a single mechanised infantry regiment and two battalions of hovercraft equipped light armour the 4th Avalon was able to use it's aerospace assets to pin these light forces in place and attack them, forcing their surrender after a two weeks.
Iruzun
The various AFFS units begin to close the net on the trapped troops within the city of New Gotham during September. Eager to avoid losses that can be avoided Marshal May who has taken command of the overall task force begins to hammer the hastily prepared enemy lines with artillery and air strikes. While these are ongoing the 4th Crucis Lancer's RCT launch constant probing attacks against the line, often against those very sections shattered by artillery and air strikes, seizing a number of key locations for follow on attacks.
With only the the 1st Proserpina Hussars combat effective (albeit at only half strength) the defending DCMS officers use the 16th Galedon Regulars and 23rd Benjamin Regulars as little more than meat shields to try and absorb as much of the damage as possible while preserving the Hussars remaining combat strength. After three weeks of this the 23rd Benjamin Regulars are so worn down by attrition that the survivors are simply folded into the 16th Galedon. Which leaves the 16th hovering at around half strength but with morale so low that it is no longer considered combat effective.
As September comes to a close the 1st, 20th and 42nd Avalon Hussars launch a combined general assault all along the perimeter, using the very staging points the 4th Crucis Lancers have fought to seize, who move up in support. Facing two almost full strength elite and veteran RCT's and with two more veteran units at 60% strength augmenting them the DCMS lines crack wide open. Only the 1st Proserpina Hussars manage to put up anything beyond a token defence. As of the 30th of September the Hussars are holding on for grim life to around half the city while the merged 16th Galedon is falling back in total chaos.
Kaznejoy
The already precarious position of the defending forces became worse when the Davion Heavy Guards RCT transferred from newly secured Matsuida. This news was the final straw for the 11th Ghost. Never the most reliable of units the 11th Ghost, locked in a feud with the 45th Galedon Regulars and having suffered heavy losses and now facing the arrival of one of the finest RCT's in the AFFS, decides that they have had enough. They quietly contact the AFFS units encircling them and proceed to surrender with no advance notice to the 45th. With the surrender/defection of the 11th Ghost the AFFS's 3rd Tikonov Cossack's pour through the now wide open lines and catch the 45th between their own hammer and the anvil of the Hansen's Roughriders regiment. The 5th Davion Guards, a more lightweight unit moves up to support the attack as well as taking the 11th Ghost into custody.
Attacked from the rear and front the 45th Galedon Regulars hold out for less than 9 hours before collapsing and falling apart. The few survivors are taken into custody but have to be kept separate from the "traitor" 11th for fear or reprisals. The Davion units begin securing the planet in case of any further DCMS counter attacks.
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3070 - August-September - Operation Nightfire
With the 1st, 4th and 5th Shadow Divisions trapped within the huge underground factory complex of Defiance Industries the battle between them and the LAAF/AFFS formations had turned into a brutal war of attrition throughout much of August and into September. With the actions of the WOB troops since their arrival upon Hesperus they were under no illusions that they would be able to negotiate terms with the defending Lyrans or relieving Davions, nor did they have any realistic prospect of escaping the trap they found themselves in. Therefore they settled down to do as much damage as possible not only to their enemies but also to the infrastructure of the factory they were battling in.
They are hampered in this by the huge number of AFFS battlesuit armoured troopers which are flooding into the complex, both from the back door that the 1st Arcadian's used to join the Lyran defenders but also the shattered main doors. Not only the battle armoured troopers attached to the various AFFS commands under Field Marshal Sortek's command but also a large number of independent battalions which had been sent along just in case this very scenario arose. Able to use access tunnels and other means of transport that battlemechs cannot, the battle armoured troopers continually infiltrate and move around WOB blocking forces to pin them in place. While the WOB Shadow Divisions have their own battle armoured troopers attached to them they have taken heavy losses in the fighting so far and in addition find themselves massively outnumbered. Stretched thin their lines are soon broken.
Finding the residential areas of the huge factory complex the greatest threat from infiltration the WOB commanders take a very direct approach to close this avenue of attack. They detonate a tactical nuclear device within the residential region of the facility. Just as a mass attack by two AFFS battle armoured battalions is surging forward. Wiping out the attacking and infiltrating forces the detonation also results in the total destruction of a large chunk of the area, while leaving even more of the residences cut off and isolated. The WOB use the chaos of the various tunnel and cavern collapses that happen throughout the facility in the wake of this nuclear explosion to launch a full scale attack upon the LAAF and 1st Arcadian RCT in particular. When the Arcadian's manage to hold their line and repulse the attacking 5th Shadow Division with heavy losses despite the confusion resulting from the nuclear bomb, the Shadow Division responds by detonating another device into the face of the Arcadian's. The AFFS unit takes heavy losses and the survivors are driven back by the few surviving WOB troops who then attack the 36th Lyran Guards. Clearly on a suicide mission the handful of attacking WOB troops charge into the lines of the 36th Guards and proceed to detonate a third nuclear bomb. While this attack destroys the rest of the 5th Shadow Division it reduces the 36th Lyran Guards to a shell of a unit - having already done so to the 1st Arcadian RCT.
While the 5th Shadow Division is launching their suicidal attacks the remaining 1st and 4th Shadow Divisions throw themselves at the AFFS formations fighting their way into the factory from the main gates. Forewarned by the detonation within the residential areas the 5th FedSun's Dragoons preemptively take measures to avoid any nuclear attack upon their lines. Their troops fall back rapidly while engineers hastily lay detonation charges throughout the tunnels and caverns they are falling back through. As the 1st Shadow Divisions push forward these are exploded and the vast majority of the WOB troops are buried in a huge cave in - which unfortunately destroys two vehicle and one battlemech production lines at the same time. When the slaughtered troops are dug out no fewer than three nuclear warheads are recovered from the Shadow Division's crushed troops.
The 4th Shadow Division runs headlong into the 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers. Also forewarned the St Ives unit uses it's speed to keep their distance and avoid large scale deployments. Dispersing throughout the vast warehouse and supply depot complexes near the gates they continue to ensure that no worthwhile target is presented to the 4th Shadow Division. Realising this ploy and having been made aware of the destruction of their fellow units the 4th Shadow Division themselves attempt to disperse as much as possible, before deploying both the nuclear warheads they control. While the damage to the Cheveau-Legers is light, the damage to Defiance Industries complex is catastrophic. When combined with the other nuclear detonations and the resulting cave ins as well as the previous damage the factory is almost two thirds wrecked, with the remaining facilities heavily damaged.
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Well that went the way I figured. The FedSuns are cleaning up the front with the Combine hopefully they are going to stop their expansion because their front line units are getting mauled through attrition and they need those formation to take the fight to others fronts.
And the WoB did exactly what I said they would blow themselves up to try and kill the FedSuns and Lyrans.
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I wonder if the WOB fanatics are just going to start to try to burn it all down now that they are directly being targeted by the FS.
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BB - I think you cut a chunk at the start of the Nightfire part?
Okay Victor, time to execute contingency plan 'burned toast' and make it VERY clear to the WOB that if they pull out the WMDs, the AFFS are *not* going to take it on the chin, but make it abundantly clear that they will f*#k you up.
Because this just cannot be allowed to stand, as is.
And say goodbye to the Lyran state. With Heph II and with the WOB still hitting the other sites? That's pretty much GG for industrial capacity given how overstretched the LAAF is right now...
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Victor has to step in and either reform the FC or become regent for his nephew. He does not have a choice anymore.
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Hopefully AFFS will learn the lesson and when facing Shadow Divisions either nuke them or ortillery them, right away
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I think the abrupt start to the Nightfire section is because it was originally picking up seamlessly from the July section of that. But as divided, it's lacking some context at the start. The second and third sentences of the third paragraph also look as if they should be a single sentence, divided by a comma or a ...
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BB - I think you cut a chunk at the start of the Nightfire part?
Okay Victor, time to execute contingency plan 'burned toast' and make it VERY clear to the WOB that if they pull out the WMDs, the AFFS are *not* going to take it on the chin, but make it abundantly clear that they will f*#k you up.
Because this just cannot be allowed to stand, as is.
And say goodbye to the Lyran state. With Heph II and with the WOB still hitting the other sites? That's pretty much GG for industrial capacity given how overstretched the LAAF is right now...
I did and thanks for catching that... Damn copy and paste. Fixed now.
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3070 - September - Preparing
With the confirmation that Minoru Kurita has arrived at the Davion lines in order to negotiate First Prince Victor rushes forward to Robinson in order to meet him there along with a large contingent from the 3rd Davion Guards to bolster his small bodyguard detail from the 1st Davion Guards - who are still on Umjiri. Meeting hurriedly with the Duke of Robinson he and the old Duke make preparations for the negotiation of a new border with the Combine. While Victor is eager to avoid terms which are so harsh that the Combine will refuse and continue the fight he is very much swayed by the arguments of Duke Sandoval that this is an opportunity to hold House Kurita to account. With a District capital world and no less than six Prefecture capital worlds either conquered or with Davion troops poised to seize them - and with two more Military District capitals in range of follow on waves, the Kurita position is the weakest it has ever been. If House Kurita wishes to stop further losses then they will be forced to make painful concessions. Duke Sandoval argues that Victor had tried to be reasonable in the past and this had only led to irredentism from the Kurita's. Force was the only thing they seemed to respect or be able to learn from. Given the history of the two realms it's a hard argument to counter.
As well as preparing for the summit with Minoru the AFFS is also busy preparing for further combat operations against the WOB. Operation Nightfire has been a major victory, but at heavy loss. Of the ground troops committed to the fighting on Hesperus only the two Borderer regiments are combat effective - although a generous assessment would also include the 5th FedSun's Dragoons in the list of units which can still conduct military operations. The 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers, 1st Arcadian's RCT and 2nd New Avalon Cavaliers are all effectively reduced to cadres and are ordered to ship back to the Federated Sun's as soon as possible to take up interior garrison postings where they can be rebuilt. Given the policy of gradual rebuilding to maintain combat effectiveness and experience this might be the work of years. While the 5th FedSun's Dragoons are ordered to remain to bolster the shattered LAAF garrison on Hesperus itself. Field Marshal Sortek is promised that his losses will be replaced with fresh commands as soon as practical so that he can continue to conduct operations within the Lyran Alliance, both against the WOB and also against Clan Wolf and "any other enemies that he and General of the Armies Steiner agree upon". These reinforcements would be much easier to scrape together if active combat operations ends on the Combine Front.
For now however the 1st Capellan Dragoons, 3rd Ceti Hussars RCT and 26th Avalon Hussars RCT, all stationed in the League March are ordered to prepare for rapid redeployment if necessary. The 1st and 6th Syrtis Fusiliers are also being considered for redeployment. While the High Command would prefer the elite 6th to the green 1st they are aware that New Syrtis might object to losing one of it's finest units when it is still integrating the two new PDZ's and had committed two Fusilier RCT's to the Draconis Front both of which were heavily mauled. The Robinson Rangers Brigade is also under consideration as a source of troops - but again Robinson would no doubt be reluctant to commit these troops with ongoing combat on their doorstep.
The first large scale convoys of Clan Nova Cat leave Cussar and head for Verde under escort from their warships. Most of those being sent are technicians and labourers who are to help prepare the way for the rest of the Clan. Although due to the eagerness of the Clan's leadership to preserve their future a number of sibco's are also dispatched with the first wave.
On Menke the upgrade of the former armour production facility now being operated by GM see's the Stealth battlemech enter production. Menke for all it's recent addition to the Federated Sun's is already proving a key industrial world and GM is already considering adding either another battlemech line or a battle armour producing facility.
Kestrel see's the vast New Independence Weaponry plant grow even further with another assault weighted design marching of the production lines. In this case it is a Battlemaster production line. This brings the total of assault production lines at the plant to eight with another two heavy lines. Further expansions are put on hold as the company continues to pour funding into rebuilding and upgrading Quentin.
Davion-Com see's it's Marlette facility add a Griffin battlemech line in September. Three further battlemech lines are still under construction but the addition of the Griffin to the plant is a welcome one, with the ComGuards in particular hungry for every battlemech they can buy. The AFFS diverts many of it's "share" of the production to rebuilding the FedSun's Dragoons Brigade.
New Avalon itself see's it's factory production expanding when Corean opens it's Legionnaire production line. Back orders for the medium class battlemech are already tying up production for at least five years and so Corean take the opportunity of the opening ceremony for the new line to announce they intend to triple Legionnaire production on New Avalon in the next year.
The Andoran Industries plant on Shawnee see's it's Mercury plant go online in September. At the current time the company doesn't have any plans to expand this facility - although the ComGuard's would be happy to buy more Clints, Hussars and now Mercuries from the facility.
On Wei the new Jalastar Aerospace facility see's it's first production line start up. Although plagued with some technical difficulties and requiring some finishing work to avoid quality control issues becoming a problem the first Javelin-O marches of the lines and enters service with the 2nd Tikonov Cossacks. Planned production is set to increase massively as other lines for the Javelin-O omnimech, Centurion battlemech and Sparrowhawk aerospace fighter finish construction.
Within the Lyran Alliance the LAAF continue to rapidly reinforce Arcturus in anticipation of a Clan Wolf attack on this vital world. Swiftly the LAAF learns not to route any supply convoys through Odessa as any that do so are immedietly seized by the Odessa Regulars to expand and refit their own troops, rather than continuing onto Arcturus. Orders to stop these practises go entirely ignored. In the meantime the two regiments of the Odessa Regulars manage to expand by a full battalion of assault weighted battlemechs between them.
The 20th and 23rd Arcturus Guards are reinforced by the 4th Donegal Guards and 6th Lyran Guards on Arcturus itself. All four units are RCT's and a number of independent infantry and armour formations are also rushed to reinforce them. While other units could be sent, the LAAF High Command is loathe to strip the rest of the border entirely bare.
On the FWL-Lyran front the LAAF continues to hurriedly redeploy. General of the Armies Adam Steiner publicly continues to support retaking Bolan, however in private he knows that unless he can secure the orbitals any counter attack is doomed. Even with their shipyards shattered behind them the various FWLN elements are still too strong for him to retake Bolan without unacceptable risks. With the LAS Yggdrasil destroyed and the LAS Fylgja still damaged the only heavy ship he has left is the LAS Mjolnir and he needs that to secure Tharkad. While the destroyer LAS Peter Steiner is available he has it guarding Alarion's vital shipyards for now. With reports that at least one Thera is perhaps in system filtering in he cannot risk the attack.
Interim-Primus Dow summons the Precentor Martial to a top secret meeting on the 30th of September regarding the ComGuards launching a major offensive against the WOB. Dow has had enough of waiting on the Davion's to live up to their promises and wishes to show the rest of the Inner Sphere that Comstar is still capable of acting independently of the Federated Suns...
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At least someone in High Command didn’t drink the Kool-Aid in the Robinson and Syrtis deployments. Ultimately a green unit might not work out the best but you can’t weaken the rear units or all he’ll will break loose with a single deep raid.
Question though: where is Odessa getting all these Mechs? I know you’ve mentioned it somewhere but I assume it’s not all thru raids and capturing convoys
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At least someone in High Command didn’t drink the Kool-Aid in the Robinson and Syrtis deployments. Ultimately a green unit might not work out the best but you can’t weaken the rear units or all he’ll will break loose with a single deep raid.
Question though: where is Odessa getting all these Mechs? I know you’ve mentioned it somewhere but I assume it’s not all thru raids and capturing convoys
From "friends"...
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Things proceed apace.
With all the new mech lines coming online, why are not more of them omnimechs?
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At least someone in High Command didn’t drink the Kool-Aid in the Robinson and Syrtis deployments. Ultimately a green unit might not work out the best but you can’t weaken the rear units or all he’ll will break loose with a single deep raid.
Question though: where is Odessa getting all these Mechs? I know you’ve mentioned it somewhere but I assume it’s not all thru raids and capturing convoys
They were lying about output and keeping alot more for themselves. And the WoB at least still has access to the Hidden World in the system.
Things proceed apace.
With all the new mech lines coming online, why are not more of them omnimechs?
Because they are more expensive and difficult to make. That means slower to roll out. Normal mechs are still very much more than capable of doing the job and doing it well. Omnimechs aren't the end all be all.
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3070 - September - Preparing
With the confirmation that Minoru Kurita has arrived at the Davion lines in order to negotiate First Prince Victor rushes forward to Robinson in order to meet him there along with a large contingent from the 3rd Davion Guards to bolster his small bodyguard detail from the 1st Davion Guards - who are still on Umjiri. Meeting hurriedly with the Duke of Robinson he and the old Duke make preparations for the negotiation of a new border with the Combine. While Victor is eager to avoid terms which are so harsh that the Combine will refuse and continue the fight he is very much swayed by the arguments of Duke Sandoval that this is an opportunity to hold House Kurita to account. With a District capital world and no less than six Prefecture capital worlds either conquered or with Davion troops poised to seize them - and with two more Military District capitals in range of follow on waves, the Kurita position is the weakest it has ever been. If House Kurita wishes to stop further losses then they will be forced to make painful concessions. Duke Sandoval argues that Victor had tried to be reasonable in the past and this had only led to irredentism from the Kurita's. Force was the only thing they seemed to respect or be able to learn from. Given the history of the two realms it's a hard argument to counter.
Honestly, while I am normally in Battletech all about avoiding punitive stuff ... this time I for once agree with Sandoval.
He (Victor) has bent over backwards trying to keep the peace with the Combine over and over again and been rewarded over and over again with anything from two-faced betrayal to utter contempt of him and his nation. House Kurita hid the very existence of his son for him for a specific dynastic bomb to be directed at the Federated Suns at a time of their choosing. House Kurita repaid Victor putting Theodore on the Throne of the Star League by rage quitting after it became clear that he could no longer keep Victor off it. House Kurita let the Black Dragons raid Robinson and almost kill his sister and then refused to suffer the loss of face it would mean to actually take ownership and blame them, instead going into a loosing war and sulking about it. House Kurita backed House Liao to the hilt to the point that Theodore demanded Victor leave them alive, even having the gaul to say, to Victors FACE, that the only reason they wanted them alive was to have a weapon to use against the Federated Suns. Theodore let his son go and ally with the Word of Blake, who are ****** insane, using them specifically against the Federated Suns (and Lyran Alliance for that matter) for the single purpose of attacking the Suns.
And even when Victor found out about their attack plans, sent personal messages to Theodore and Hohiro to NOT let it end in fire ... they simply ignored the messages, eager for Glory and convinced that they totally could win this war.
No. ******. More. Ever. Again.
They clearly do not want peace so when they come asking for it, what they are REALLY asking for is to survive so that they can one day rebuild and try again!.
Granted there is a point Victor can't push them to because they'll see thye have nothing to loose and go on a nuclear death ride or something into the heart of the Federated SUns, but even so, Minoru is going to have to be prepared to make some very painful concessions that will forever diminish the Combine IF he wants it to survive.
As well as preparing for the summit with Minoru the AFFS is also busy preparing for further combat operations against the WOB. Operation Nightfire has been a major victory, but at heavy loss. Of the ground troops committed to the fighting on Hesperus only the two Borderer regiments are combat effective - although a generous assessment would also include the 5th FedSun's Dragoons in the list of units which can still conduct military operations. The 1st St Ives Cheveau-Legers, 1st Arcadian's RCT and 2nd New Avalon Cavaliers are all effectively reduced to cadres and are ordered to ship back to the Federated Sun's as soon as possible to take up interior garrison postings where they can be rebuilt. Given the policy of gradual rebuilding to maintain combat effectiveness and experience this might be the work of years. While the 5th FedSun's Dragoons are ordered to remain to bolster the shattered LAAF garrison on Hesperus itself. Field Marshal Sortek is promised that his losses will be replaced with fresh commands as soon as practical so that he can continue to conduct operations within the Lyran Alliance, both against the WOB and also against Clan Wolf and "any other enemies that he and General of the Armies Steiner agree upon". These reinforcements would be much easier to scrape together if active combat operations ends on the Combine Front.
Send in the Light Horse! They need a good workout, been too long since they're really been in a scrap and all through the Clan War and then the Lyran successession they were stationed on the Clan border, make to the old stomping grounds ... just gotta shoot a bunch of Ferrel dogs first. :D
For now however the 1st Capellan Dragoons, 3rd Ceti Hussars RCT and 26th Avalon Hussars RCT, all stationed in the League March are ordered to prepare for rapid redeployment if necessary. The 1st and 6th Syrtis Fusiliers are also being considered for redeployment. While the High Command would prefer the elite 6th to the green 1st they are aware that New Syrtis might object to losing one of it's finest units when it is still integrating the two new PDZ's and had committed two Fusilier RCT's to the Draconis Front both of which were heavily mauled. The Robinson Rangers Brigade is also under consideration as a source of troops - but again Robinson would no doubt be reluctant to commit these troops with ongoing combat on their doorstep.
Yeah its more than time to start blooding green units. So long a they are buddies with an elite or Veteran unit or two, they should be able to hold the line. And you still need a solid core of internal garrison elites...
The first large scale convoys of Clan Nova Cat leave Cussar and head for Verde under escort from their warships. Most of those being sent are technicians and labourers who are to help prepare the way for the rest of the Clan. Although due to the eagerness of the Clan's leadership to preserve their future a number of sibco's are also dispatched with the first wave.
Its going to be very interesting to see if the Nova Cats embrace the new reality the way the Sun Jaguars have. I'm going to guess that it was explained to them that if they DO want to live in the Suns, they're going to have to make some significant compromises with things like basic freedoms and personal liberties and rights...
*snip expansions*
I half wonder if by now the intelligence agencies of the other Inner Sphere powers have a pool going for 'how many new military production lines Prince Victor ****** Davion will bring online this month?' :D :D
Within the Lyran Alliance the LAAF continue to rapidly reinforce Arcturus in anticipation of a Clan Wolf attack on this vital world. Swiftly the LAAF learns not to route any supply convoys through Odessa as any that do so are immedietly seized by the Odessa Regulars to expand and refit their own troops, rather than continuing onto Arcturus. Orders to stop these practises go entirely ignored. In the meantime the two regiments of the Odessa Regulars manage to expand by a full battalion of assault weighted battlemechs between them.
Welp Its pretty clear that Gabriel is very much the WOBs refitting and repair station for their raiding forces and warships still in Lyran space. Wonder if anyone will find out anytime soon.
The length of rope the rest of the Alliance is going to want to hang the nobles in charge is going to be incredible though, to make sure when they drop him, he gets decapited at the same time, such will be their rage at the betryal they'll feel towards these toaster worshiping f*#ks...
The 20th and 23rd Arcturus Guards are reinforced by the 4th Donegal Guards and 6th Lyran Guards on Arcturus itself. All four units are RCT's and a number of independent infantry and armour formations are also rushed to reinforce them. While other units could be sent, the LAAF High Command is loathe to strip the rest of the border entirely bare.
Damned if you do, damned if you don't. The Wolves MIGHT try to smash into Arcturus ... or they might just try to put it under a moderate naval blockade ... then go running and hitting OTHER worlds now stripped bare.
*starts praying for Iron Duke class intervention with appropriately awesome soundtrack*
On the FWL-Lyran front the LAAF continues to hurriedly redeploy. General of the Armies Adam Steiner publicly continues to support retaking Bolan, however in private he knows that unless he can secure the orbitals any counter attack is doomed. Even with their shipyards shattered behind them the various FWLN elements are still too strong for him to retake Bolan without unacceptable risks. With the LAS Yggdrasil destroyed and the LAS Fylgja still damaged the only heavy ship he has left is the LAS Mjolnir and he needs that to secure Tharkad. While the destroyer LAS Peter Steiner is available he has it guarding Alarion's vital shipyards for now. With reports that at least one Thera is perhaps in system filtering in he cannot risk the attack.
Only thing he can hope for is that Victor can negotiate a return to status-quo antebellum before Peters stupidity. Its not impossible; with an appropriate show of naval force to scare away the FWL who still have terribly few warships compared to him thanks to the ****** that set off all of this and most of those left busy glaring in strategic reserve, he MIGHT be able to negotiate Connie down to it in exchange for some face saving concessions - and allowing her to save ships and forces she REALLY cannot afford to loose.
But thats only if Victor cares enough I suppose. POor poor Adam :(
On the plus side the LAAF should have what, a dozen Fox Is? Can't do too much against the Clan fleets with them, but deployed carefully you could bag a half dozen of her WOB corvettes and entice Connie to the negotiating table....
Interim-Primus Dow summons the Precentor Martial to a top secret meeting on the 30th of September regarding the ComGuards launching a major offensive against the WOB. Dow has had enough of waiting on the Davion's to live up to their promises and wishes to show the rest of the Inner Sphere that Comstar is still capable of acting independently of the Federated Suns...
::)
No-one was stopping you from acting Dow you insufferable prick! Just be a man and admit you wanted to hide behind Victor Steiner-Davions fleet because you're too afraid of loosing your own ships and wanted him to do your dirty work for you already!
Things proceed apace.
With all the new mech lines coming online, why are not more of them omnimechs?
There are several schools of thought on Omnimech production really.
I for one very much think that the extra cost is absoloutly worth it (given that each platform is viable for centuries) and you should build all new mechs and make all new lines omnitech.
Victor and the AFFS seem to have come a long way from their 'not interested' original position and have gone with a mix. The idea being (still a long way off completed but getting there) to have key designs go Omnimech so that they can provide at specific weight/movement classes, a great deal of operational flexability on the battalion/Regiment level. So rather than making things flexible to the lance level, you at the RCT level have the ability for a commander to have say a company in each battalion or there about able to rapidly reconfigure to provide specialized capabilities as situations and the phase of battle changes, but otherwise work off your baseline units.
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3070 - October Interlude - "Peace Talks"
Castle Sandoval
Robinson
Le Blanc PDZ
Draconis March
Federated Suns
First Prince Victor Davion sat softly talking with the two figures on either side of him as they awaited their "guests" arrival at a large table. To his right sat the ageing but still sharp Duke James Sandoval while newly promoted Leftenant General Caradoc Trevana sat on his left. Amongst such company there was no such thing as small talk, but the three men made ever effort to keep things as light as possible. After all everything they planned to say had been worked out well in advance of the arrival of their guest.
Minoru Kurita strode into the room clad in the uniform of the Kanrei of the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery and advanced across the room towards the three men who rose in respect to his arrival - although the Duke of Robinson was perhaps half a second slower in rising than the two other men, perhaps due to his age or perhaps another reason. Following Lord Kurita was Tai-sa Jarvek Dolmassay, who had accompanied him from Galedon. Lord Kurita gave a formal half bow which was returned with a head nod from the ruler of the Federated Suns and salutes from the two AFFS officers and Tai-sa Dolmassay. Victor waved the younger man and his aide to chairs on the opposite side of the table. "I thought it best to discuss matters in a more informal setting. I trust you don't mind...?"
The heir to the Draconis Combine sat and inclined his head with a slight twist to his smile. "I am prepared to discuss matters for the time being between us. My own staff and yours can finalise any details that we can agree."
"Excellent. Well firstly I am prepared to grant a full ceasefire. As the troops stand. Nobodies troops withdraw from their current positions. As of today if you will agree." First Prince Victor made the first gesture. Ignoring the slightly sour look on Duke Sandoval's face.
"I can certainly agree to that." Both Minoru and his aide smiled with almost relief at that agreement. After all it prevented any further losses to the Combine.
"I thought you might... Now that I've made the first gesture... I think it's time you tell us what you want Minoru..." Victor said levelly.
"Well peace of course... Surely that's what we all want?" Minoru attempted to smile in a friendly manner which was somewhat difficult as Aaron Sandoval snorted.
Ignoring the glaring Tai-sa the Duke of Robinson spoke up. "Peace? Or a ceasefire?"
"Peace... We want a peace which allows both sides to move on with honour..." Minoru ground out.
"I want to believe you Minoru, but I have to admit that Aaron makes a damn good point." The First Prince spoke. "So... Convince me. What would be your "peace with honour" that wouldn't merely be a ceasefire?"
"My father believes that a return to the pre-war borders would..." Before Minoru could continue or Sandoval could interrupt angrily the First Prince silenced them both by laughing. A slow bitter laugh that filled the room. Both Caradoc and Aaron were soon smiling with dark humour as the two Kurita officers turned red in anger.
Finally the First Prince stopped laughing and raised a hand as the Kurita prince began to speak again. "No. I won't hear any more of that nonsense Lord Kurita. If you genuinely think that can be the basis of peace, with me giving up all the worlds my soldiers have fought and died to take... Get. Out."
The last words were spoke with utter ruthlessness and seemed to hang in the air. Tai-sa Dolmassey furiously went to stand up but froze as Minoru stone faced placed a hand on his arm and pushed him back into his chair. Staring at the First Prince the Kanrei slowly nodded his head, all pretence of warmth gone. "Very well Prince Davion. We are prepared to cede to you the worlds of the Fomalhaut, Saffel, Nirasaki, Deneb Algedi, Al Na'ir, Biham, Halstead Station, Lapida, Tannil, Barlow's Folley, New Aberdeen, Misery, Huan, Capra and all worlds "behind" them in the lines. No less than twenty seven worlds, including key factory worlds such as Quentin and Al Na'ir and two Prefecture capital worlds..."
"Try again." Victor sighed and made an upward gesture.
"What? That isn't... That isn't how things are done. You should tell me your own terms... Then we attempt to compromise..." Minoru looked confused for a second.
"That's where your wrong Lord Kurita. This is exactly how it's done here and now. Because you are working under a misapprehension even now. We aren't discussing or negotiating the terms. You are going to meet my bare minimum conditions or House Kurita will join House Cameron and House Amaris in the history books..." Victor didn't raise his voice but he might as well have slapped the two Kurita officers. While Aaron Sandoval's smile would have done a dire wolf proud. Again Victor made the upward gesture. "Try again..."
Tai-sa Jarvek Dolmassay snarled. "You are trying to humiliate us!"
"YES!" Victor half stood over the table and roared back. "Finally one of you is GETTING IT. I have TRIED to be House Kurita's friend. I have TRIED to be your ally. I fought for your worlds. I fought alongside your House. I led your troops into battles. I LOVED your sister. And what did I get in return? My child withheld from me. My worlds raided. My honour insulted. My realm threatened. Your father and brother intended to invade my realm. I just hit you before you could hit me. I have tried the hand of friendship with House Kurita. You simply don't get it. You are too lost in your megalomaniacal dream of a Kurita Empire dominating the entire Inner Sphere to understand. So now I will talk in a language you DO understand. Force. Might. The mailed fist. Let us be very clear with each other Kurita. I have my foot on your ****** House's neck and if I so choose I can finish the job here and now. Put an end to centuries of warfare and hate. At some cost I will grant you. But I can finish this. Finish you. All of you. So... Give me a reason not too. Give me sufficient reason not to drive my sword home in your "Dragon"'s guts! Pay the Danegeld. Because Duke Sandoval is right... This is unlikely to be a peace. This will almost certainly be a ceasefire until you and yours think you can try again. So if it's to be a ceasefire I intend to make it almost impossible for you to threaten my realm again. I intend to geld your entire damn realm for decades. If the only peace that your House understands is one enforced upon it by a superior foe... Then so be it. If you don't like it, then fine... Lets see how many more worlds I'll carve from your crumbling realm before you are incentivised to bow your proud necks and admit you have lost. What will it take? Benjamin? Galedon? New Samarkand... How many more worlds can you lose Kurita before you lose it all? So I say again... TRY. AGAIN..."
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Hardball. I approve.
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Hardball. I approve.
I think if the Kurita's are hoping to try and get Victor to give them back any worlds... They will have a damn hard time selling him on that idea.
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*standing ovation*
Wow, just ... wow.
Its a good thing Victor is married because after that kind of display, Aaron might have changed orientations and proposed on the spot. Interesting that he's still alive; thematic I suppose. In the OTL, he died after the complete failure of his personal (and idiotic) invasion of the Combine during the FedCom civil war era. I suppose hate and winning war after war keeps a man alive :D
So, now both sides understand how the lines are drawn. That Victor has officially had enough of this shit and is going to break the Combine like a Kit-Kat bar. That not even what Victor has taken will be enough to stay his hand; that's simply conquest. That if the Combine WANT to have peace, they are NOW going to have to sacrifice from what they have left.
Of course Minorus logical counter that unlike the Confederation, the Combine won't go down like a bitch and will pull instead the 'If I'm going down, I'm taking you to hell with me' of a Banzai charge into the Federated Suns to destroy as many of its population centres as possible before they can be exterminated will probably make Victor pause slightly, but only by degrees. Now Minoru knows that Victor and the Suns are NOT going to tolerate some bullshit 'peace so we can rebuild and try again' like his Father was muttering about to Minoru. That this is IT, the endgame and all the indignities and insults to Victors intelligence and nation are finally crashing back at them in one horrible snowball.
At the same time, Minoru really doesn't feel anything like Minoru. Granted, in canon, we've pretty much never seen him in a political point of view, he was always the mystic. And that was all ripped away from him and he's been thrust into this role, so I can't be too surprised really that he's seemingly just reading like a sane version of his brother (and indeed he might be defaulting to that behavior simply because he doesn't have anything else to fall back on) but its still hard to see the character. Things like him getting so angry and confused at Victors tactics, going red in the face ... it really isn't him IMHO.
With that said, its a small quibble because frankly, watching the illusions fall away as Victor lays out just how little he gives a ****** about their pride and that he intends to finally eliminate the Combine as a threat to the Inner Sphere. Thanks BB!
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*standing ovation*
Wow, just ... wow.
Its a good thing Victor is married because after that kind of display, Aaron might have changed orientations and proposed on the spot. Interesting that he's still alive; thematic I suppose. In the OTL, he died after the complete failure of his personal (and idiotic) invasion of the Combine during the FedCom civil war era. I suppose hate and winning war after war keeps a man alive :D
So, now both sides understand how the lines are drawn. That Victor has officially had enough of this shit and is going to break the Combine like a Kit-Kat bar. That not even what Victor has taken will be enough to stay his hand; that's simply conquest. That if the Combine WANT to have peace, they are NOW going to have to sacrifice from what they have left.
Of course Minorus logical counter that unlike the Confederation, the Combine won't go down like a bitch and will pull instead the 'If I'm going down, I'm taking you to hell with me' of a Banzai charge into the Federated Suns to destroy as many of its population centres as possible before they can be exterminated will probably make Victor pause slightly, but only by degrees. Now Minoru knows that Victor and the Suns are NOT going to tolerate some bullshit 'peace so we can rebuild and try again' like his Father was muttering about to Minoru. That this is IT, the endgame and all the indignities and insults to Victors intelligence and nation are finally crashing back at them in one horrible snowball.
At the same time, Minoru really doesn't feel anything like Minoru. Granted, in canon, we've pretty much never seen him in a political point of view, he was always the mystic. And that was all ripped away from him and he's been thrust into this role, so I can't be too surprised really that he's seemingly just reading like a sane version of his brother (and indeed he might be defaulting to that behavior simply because he doesn't have anything else to fall back on) but its still hard to see the character. Things like him getting so angry and confused at Victors tactics, going red in the face ... it really isn't him IMHO.
With that said, its a small quibble because frankly, watching the illusions fall away as Victor lays out just how little he gives a ****** about their pride and that he intends to finally eliminate the Combine as a threat to the Inner Sphere. Thanks BB!
Okay I have to say you have a point about Minoru. I have been writing him as the "sane" Kurita. Hmmm... Might try and inject a bit more mysticism. Particularly once he's Coordinator. That might work. Say he's being the "good dutiful son/soldier" for his father right now because right now House Kurita REALLY doesn't need a "the spirits told me to launch an attack on the left" oddball. But he might indulge himself a bit more when he's Coordinator. After all who's going to say "no"?
As for Aaron still being alive - I figure losing the war in canon took a LOT out of the man. Broke him. So he gave up on life. Now? He has a First Prince who is crushing the Combine, a dutiful son married to said First Princes sister and dozens of new worlds and regiments to play with... Keeps a man young!
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Nice phrase with House Kurita joining the other two.
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The Liaos don't technically count because that family just switched to being an Archduchess of a new March in the Suns I suppose, but hey, leave the possibility open for a sane Kurita (if such a thing exists) to become the Archduke of the Suns 'Bear March' :D
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Bear March.. lol
While I love my Bears I don’t think in this AU they’d stand a chance and that makes me a bit sad. Leviathans will put a smack down on any individual ships or even formations of ships... but Victor has a true Navy and can afford to hunt them. Ghost Bear Galaxies are strong... but Victor has a huge military....
I hope if that does happen no one pokes the Bear.
Although now that I think about it... the mostly reduced DCMS accidentally pokes the Bear and they respond by finishing them off... that would be hilarious ... time to write an AU of an AU lol
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Bear March.. lol
While I love my Bears I don’t think in this AU they’d stand a chance and that makes me a bit sad. Leviathans will put a smack down on any individual ships or even formations of ships... but Victor has a true Navy and can afford to hunt them. Ghost Bear Galaxies are strong... but Victor has a huge military....
I hope if that does happen no one pokes the Bear.
Although now that I think about it... the mostly reduced DCMS accidentally pokes the Bear and they respond by finishing them off... that would be hilarious ... time to write an AU of an AU lol
I do not recall hearing anything which could lead to that thought, if I lead seeing such a build up would lead me to try the same, after all with more worlds to protect you need more then 14 warships.
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It was in response to Chris’s reply: the idea that the peace doesn’t work and the FedSuns conquer up to the Bear Border
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3070 - October Interlude - "Peace Talks" Part 2
Castle Sandoval
Robinson
Le Blanc PDZ
Draconis March
Federated Suns
"No!" Tai-sa Dolmassay almost screamed. "Marlowe's Rift is MY world! I am Earl of that planet and I say you cannot have it!"
Victor looked up at the interruption of Minoru Kurita's latest "offer". It was now the third day of talks between him and the new heir of the Draconis Combine and the mood had went from poor to terrible. Minoru looked like he hadn't slept and his Tai-sa aide was worse. It had only been a matter of time until Dolmassay snapped. Still he couldn't find it in himself to feel pity for the man. "No. It was your world. Now it's my world. Occupied by my forces. With a forming civilian government which has denounced you and requested admission to the Federated Suns..."
"I will not allow you to steal my world!" Dolmassay half stood before freezing as the elemental bodyguard in the corner merely shifted slightly. The bodyguard had joined the group after lunch on the first day.
"I didn't steal it Tai-sa... I conquered it. Or rather my 1st Ceti Hussars did." Victor explained slowly. "It will be incorporated into my realm. No bold declarations or temper tantrums will prevent that."
"Perhaps if you wanted to keep it so badly you should have defended it better... Earl." Duke Sandoval spoke with almost relish in his voice. As the meetings had ground onward he had taken an almost delight in rubbing the noses of the Kurita's in their defeat and repeated concessions. Which was exactly why he was here after all.
"My guard died defending my holdings! Overcome by a vastly superior foe!" Dolmassay snapped, hands clenched on the table.
"And that my good earl is exactly the point... Your world was overcome by a vastly superior foe. As were dozens of other worlds. A vastly superior foe. Me. My AFFS." Victor spoke coldly. "Which is why we are here. You've lost. To a vastly superior foe... Now Minoru you were saying what other worlds you are prepared to sign away... I do hope the list is a lot longer because otherwise you know what I am going to say..."
Minoru gritted his teeth at the thought of the bastard saying "Try again" to him. He had come to hate those words more than any other in any language over the last three days. Try again. Try again. Try again. It seemed to be the new motto of House Davion... He motioned to Tai-sa Jarvik Dolmassay to sit, but the older officer remained half standing staring at the Davion's with hate and horror written all across his face.
Glancing at the man Victor sighed. "Tai-sa. Sit down and allow your Lord to continue or leave. If you do leave you will not be readmitted. If you find the shame of losing your world too much... I will grant a brief adjournment for your Lord to grant you the Honor of Wakizashi... I believe the Kanrei can grant that... award."
Tai-sa Dolmassay recoiled from the table as though struck and staggered almost as though he was blind from the room. Minoru Kurita stood and glared at the First Prince. "I will see to my aide... The day my father taught you our ways and culture was a dark one Victor Davion, one that I will curse forever..."
Victor stood, followed by his two officers, and inclined his head. "Take as long as you require Minoru. If the Tai-sa wishes to commit Seppuku I will allow you the rest of the day to compose yourself before you Try Again."
Wheeling the Kurita followed his aide to the door before being stopped at the door as the Davion spoke after him. "Don't curse the day your father taught me the ways and honour of the samurai Minoru Kurita. Curse the day he showed me that he did not honour those ways in his own heart..."
As the door slammed shut behind Minoru, James Sandoval glanced at his Prince and admitted. "I always thought your learning the Kurita's culture was a mistake. That it would dilute your Davion heritage and make you less of Hanse Davion's son... I was wrong. I can admit it. You've learned the ways of our enemy and how best to beat them..."
Victor sat back down with a sigh. "Perhaps... But I wish it hadn't had to happen this way..."
The old Duke took the liberty of putting a hand on his liege lords shoulder. "I know you do. It's part of what makes you better than they are... Better than me if I'm honest Victor."
Victor Davion who had once dreamed of marrying Omi Kurita closed his eyes for a second to hide the pain. "Perhaps... But damn them for forcing my hand... Damn them."
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Bitter fruit for the dracs to eat but bastards started this shit they should expect to get hit in the face when they loose.
But yeah this will be a great shame that the dragon will desire to avenge as long as they still exist the FS should always guard that border heavily. Also Victor must be imagining his son by Omi will hate him and that Omi must be cursing him from her grave sucks to him.
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So did they conquer the entire Dieron district? If not they should be close I would think - seems that Minoru would offer whatever is left and the "bottom" two prefectures of Benjamin and Galedon districts. Plus whatever warships they have left.
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or carte blanc peace agreement stating the DCMS renounces forever any claims to the lost worlds and a DMZ spanning the length of the Combine/Suns border with the DMZ on the Combine side, and any troop entering said DMZ other than appointed by agreement by Minoru and Victor would be an open declaration of war by the Combine.
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or carte blanc peace agreement stating the DCMS renounces forever any claims to the lost worlds and a DMZ spanning the length of the Combine/Suns border with the DMZ on the Combine side, and any troop entering said DMZ other than appointed by agreement by Minoru and Victor would be an open declaration of war by the Combine.
Any agreement like that is not worth the paper its written on. The Successor State warlords have signed things like that before, at least as the lore generally indicates. And they spent several centuries turning humanities achievements into rubble.
Honestly Victor is better off ending the DC, if he could, but the LC is falling apart, which is a drain on his resources.
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When? The 1st succession war raged until they were exhausted, same 2nd, 3rd was low lvl raids as their forces were mightily reduced, 4th ran out of gas thinking the Liao had been punished enough. As far as the combine/suns during the clan invasion it becam a gentleman’s agreement between Hanse and Theodore. No treaty in the 300 years of the wars has ever been signed.
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It does not have to be a treaty. There were lulls in the continuous warfare where various agreements would have been tried. In every conflict in human history where the nations had diplomats, while war was going on, so were negotiations. If you think these sorts of things did not go in in several hundred years of warfare, if for no other reason than to buy time to reload the missile slots while they lied through their teeth to one another, then you might as well assume that they did not take time to use the toilet bowl too.
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It will be interesting to see how much Minoru does cede.
Now Billy Boy , why do i get the feeling you are enjoying humiliating the DC. >:D
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I have a dreadful feeling I know what's going to happen. As far as we know the Combine asked the Word to attack a Suns system and to attack it with warships with nuclear weapons and orbital bombardment. Whilst that was done under the ailing Kurita, not the fellow Victors talking with, its still a request that came from House Kurita.
I can't remember what world they were going to attack, but if they do, if they get in system, and start throwing nukes and the like at it, these peace talks will be seen as a sham, something to buy time for this kind of attack. And the Combine will die for it.
But seriously superb updates :D
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Don't curse the day your father taught me the ways and honour of the samurai Minoru Kurita. Curse the day he showed me that he did not honour those ways in his own heart...
And this is what Dracs failed to understand, that Victor went from idealist to realist.
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One correction:
Aaron Sandoval died in 3048.
While I'm sure his ghost is very pleased, the Duke of Robinson here should be James Sandoval.
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I have a dreadful feeling I know what's going to happen. As far as we know the Combine asked the Word to attack a Suns system and to attack it with warships with nuclear weapons and orbital bombardment. Whilst that was done under the ailing Kurita, not the fellow Victors talking with, its still a request that came from House Kurita.
I can't remember what world they were going to attack, but if they do, if they get in system, and start throwing nukes and the like at it, these peace talks will be seen as a sham, something to buy time for this kind of attack. And the Combine will die for it.
But seriously superb updates :D
No it wasn't ordered by the Coordinator. The Word of Blake tricked his former heir and insane son into thinking that Davion forces attacked and destroyed both the military shipyards and the civilian and population centers of the world they orbited. It isn't just WoB units it is DCMS units as well and they are attacking the world that the Nova Cats are entering. Because it is an important shipyard as well but not one that is as difficult to hit as the more major shipyards.
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No it wasn't ordered by the Coordinator. The Word of Blake tricked his former heir and insane son into thinking that Davion forces attacked and destroyed both the military shipyards and the civilian and population centers of the world they orbited. It isn't just WoB units it is DCMS units as well and they are attacking the world that the Nova Cats are entering. Because it is an important shipyard as well but not one that is as difficult to hit as the more major shipyards.
yeah, that's going to turn into not only a "remember the Alamo" type moment or a pearl harbor type moment (which are different things) but into almost a jihad. Basically Victor offered the Cats a safe home and harbor and the DC will seemingly not only violate Victor's protections, which will put him in a position where he has to wipe them out, but possibly violate the few nonos in both Clan and IS rules. You may see other Clans side with Victor in wiping out the DC.
Of course, its possible somehow to play in the other way, but I don't think that WOB has enough ability left to control the propaganda.
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yeah, that's going to turn into not only a "remember the Alamo" type moment or a pearl harbor type moment (which are different things) but into almost a jihad. Basically Victor offered the Cats a safe home and harbor and the DC will seemingly not only violate Victor's protections, which will put him in a position where he has to wipe them out, but possibly violate the few nonos in both Clan and IS rules. You may see other Clans side with Victor in wiping out the DC.
Of course, its possible somehow to play in the other way, but I don't think that WOB has enough ability left to control the propaganda.
Not really. The planet now has even more warships and Aerospace assets at it than was expected. While the attacking fleet is expecting a lightly defended system they can hit then care back to the Combine lines. Instead they are going to face a actual fight they weren't ready for against forces trained and prepared for a fight. Also no attacking the Nova Cats will not force Victor to wipe out anything. The Nova Cats knew they were likely to get attacked because they turned on the Combine fighting doesn't change that anymore than any other unit in the AFFS fighting or getting attacked.
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Not really. The planet now has even more warships and Aerospace assets at it than was expected. While the attacking fleet is expecting a lightly defended system they can hit then care back to the Combine lines. Instead they are going to face a actual fight they weren't ready for against forces trained and prepared for a fight. Also no attacking the Nova Cats will not force Victor to wipe out anything. The Nova Cats knew they were likely to get attacked because they turned on the Combine fighting doesn't change that anymore than any other unit in the AFFS fighting or getting attacked.
yeah but my thinking is that the DC is going in, thinking to just start with the atrocities ie launch nukes at everything.
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So did they conquer the entire Dieron district? If not they should be close I would think - seems that Minoru would offer whatever is left and the "bottom" two prefectures of Benjamin and Galedon districts. Plus whatever warships they have left.
The Kessel, Vega and Algedi Prefectures are still intact with a few worlds left of the Al na'ir prefecture. Not much of a district. Particularly with most of the key worlds torn away.
One correction:
Aaron Sandoval died in 3048.
While I'm sure his ghost is very pleased, the Duke of Robinson here should be James Sandoval.
Good catch. Sorry. I shouldn't write late at night :D
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It will be interesting to see how much Minoru does cede.
Now Billy Boy , why do i get the feeling you are enjoying humiliating the DC. >:D
Who me???
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And don't forget that if the Nova Cats are there, they've got a seriously large fleet escorting their civilians. MANY Aegis class ships as well as a fair number of Sovetski Soyuz class and smaller vessels.
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yeah but my thinking is that the DC is going in, thinking to just start with the atrocities ie launch nukes at everything.
No they won't because they aren't stupid enough to do that knowing that if they break that taboo first they will get destroyed by retaliation WMD and the FedSuns will have way more of those. Not even the WoB would do that because they need the DC in the fight to keep the FedSuns occupied. Using Nuclear tipped weapons in space is one thing hitting planets with WMDs is a completely other thing.
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No they won't because they aren't stupid enough to do that knowing that if they break that taboo first they will get destroyed by retaliation WMD and the FedSuns will have way more of those. Not even the WoB would do that because they need the DC in the fight to keep the FedSuns occupied. Using Nuclear tipped weapons in space is one thing hitting planets with WMDs is a completely other thing.
I am pretty sure that the DC is stupid enough to do this.
And my impression is that WOB wants to burn the whole system down. They want all out war so that they can fulfill the prophecy and restore civilization.
Edit...
but we shall see. No point in arguing round and round anymore, just let the story happen.
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3070 - October Interlude - "Peace Talks" Part 3
Castle Sandoval
Robinson
Le Blanc PDZ
Draconis March
Federated Suns
Minoru scowled across the table at the Davion's. He had just had to agree to ceding every world that the AFFS had taken, as well as the contested worlds of Iruzun and most painfully Dieron. The last he knew would be the thing that traditionalists across the Combine decried and lamented. The fact that Fortress Dieron still hung on and maintained a DCMS presence of the world had given some slim hope to negotiate for the world to remain under the Dragon's aegis but he had known from the start it was a forlorn hope at best. Victor had been very clear however when he had tried to offer even a condominium. Dieron was not remaining under the rule of House Kurita. He had given up every world that the AFFS had taken and the two worlds on which the DCMS had held on for grim life until the armistice. That had to be enough!
Victor stared back at Minoru for a long pause and then made that infuriating hand gesture. "Try again."
"What more do you want?!" Minoru snarled. "I've offered to sign over every world you have troops on!"
"You are "giving" me everything I already have or will have in hours if I order my troops to launch full scale attacks... And you think that's some sort of concession?" Victor shook his head. "You aren't giving me anything that I don't already own already. If you want peace you have to actually give me a reason to stop."
"Beyond the threat of what will happen if you push our backs to the wall...?" Chu-sa Takamori snapped, until now the junior officer had been quite.
At some unspoken signal Leftenant-General Caradoc Trevana answered the Kanrei's new aide in a tone usually reserved for slightly slow cadets. "So far you have shown a much greater level of intelligence than your predecessor by keeping your mouth shut Chu-sa. You've blown that record by making such an obvious and ****** threat. If the DCMS breaks out the WMD... So will we. And at this stage our troops and warships are a LOT closer to your key worlds than yours are to ours. Worse your defences are in tatters. There isn't a single world, including Luthien that could resist a major naval attack by the Federated Sun's Navy. So... If you break out the bioweapons, chemical agents and canned sunshine Chu-sa prepare to watch the Black Pearl burn... We don't want this, but make no mistake, if the DCMS resorts to these sorts of weapons then we will respond."
Minoru Kurita inwardly recoiled in horror at the very idea that the FSN would attack and destroy Luthien, looking at Victor who stared back at him and then spoke slowly but with obvious care for every word spoken. "'Doc might have put it a little bluntly, but your aide started this conversation Minoru. I won't stand by and let the DCMS inflict another Kentares Massacre on my people. If you think threatening to resort to Ares Convention violation will get you off this hook, you are sorely mistaken. All it will get you is the entire Combine burning in flames. You might cripple us before you go into the Dark, but trust me... I will make sure every single DCMS formation burns and I will personally give the order to hunt down every single member of House Kurita to the last distant scion... None of us want to see a return to the warfare of the 1st and 2nd Succession Wars. Dead worlds. Devastated ecosystems. Billions dead. We can surely agree on that if nothing else. So do yourself and your realm a favour and never threaten me with that again..."
It wasn't however the word choice that convinced the Kurita prince that his counterpart across the table wasn't bluffing. It was the entirely calm and even tone the words were spoken in. Victor Davion spoke as a man who took no pleasure in what he was saying but was merely stating a simple fact. Such a man wasn't bluffing. Minoru forced himself to nod and get out the next words. "I understand and agree. Neither side wishes to let that particular devil out of containment. Chu-sa Takamori spoke in haste."
"Of course." Victor nodded at Minoru before glancing at both James Sandoval and 'Doc Trevana. "However I will make a few points. In order to avoid further mistakes and poorly chosen words that could be threats. You ask what more I want... For a start you will disband the Dieron Regulars, An Ting Legion and Proserpina Hussars brigades. Given that their homeworlds will now fly the Sword and Starburst such brigades will only be a source of irredentism in your realm in the same way the Alshain Avengers were..."
"You want us to disband twelve regiments?!" Minoru blurted out in fury.
"You aren't listening. I am not saying you have to disband the regiments. But the brigades will be disbanded. Reassign the Dieron Regulars to the Benjamin or Pesht Regulars, the same with the An Ting and Proserpina brigades. But Minoru, I expect those brigades to really disband. Not merely have a new paint job and a wink as everyone knows that the xth regiment of the Pesht Regulars is really the renumbered and painted xth Dieron Regulars. You will disband and reassign the units and prove it to me." Victor explained. "Or else I will see the units as threats and act accordingly."
"Prove it to you how?" The Chu-sa asked.
"Simple. When the units are reassigned all of their old insignia will be handed over to the AFFS for safekeeping. Battle flags, honour rolls, etc... All of it. I will give assurances that they won't be destroyed and treated with honour... But those units histories will be wiped." Victor raised a hand to postpone the outbursts from the two Kurita officers. "You destroy their heritages... To save the Combine they serve. Your samurai are always so willing to lay down their lives for the Combine, fine... Let them lay down their personal honour instead. Prove you want peace."
"You cannot ask this!" Minoru exploded.
James Sandoval answered for his prince. "He isn't asking Kurita... That's the point."
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Honestly, don't buy the horrified reactions from the Combine side or their flinching like that.
The nuclear/bio/chem card isn't a card to pull out lightly and it isn't one Victor should just sneer at and lecture them until they back away like a scolded puppy.
The implicit response to Victor is Minoru finally taking a stand and saying 'Fine, you can keep all the worlds you've taken plus, these ones and we'll also turn over your kid' or whatever. But understand, this is the limit we can be pushed to, the limit to which I will be able to keep and enforce this agreement. Because any more and you can except I'll probably be deposed and shot by hardliners and people who WANT to go out on a death ride. That yes, you and I fully understand that it will be the death of the combine - and so would those people but if they can bury the Combine next to the Federated Suns, in their mind that is the perfect way to end this because there are some people who would be happy to go to hell so long as they can drag the Suns with them'.
Because for all Victors boasting about having more warships, you don't need a warship to deliver WMDs to thousands of soft civilian targets. You just need one fanatic ISF agent with a vial of the Curse of Galedon to quietly pour it into the air conditiong system of some stadium on New Avalon for the Grand Final of some massive sporting event and two weeks later the entire planet dies. You only need the few surviving warships the DC has going through deep space points into the Periphery and Crucis Marches on worlds that have minimal garrisons to simply exterminate as much life as they can. And they could do a LOT.
To say nothing of the Word of Blake of course taking full advantage of the situation. Or the Lyran state collapsing because with the Federated Suns crippled and dying, the Clans will come pouring through there as well!
In short; this was the point for Minoru to throw back at Victor, with just as much (if not more) icy self assurance that if the Combine DOES go for the WMD card, it won't be a warning shot. It won't be a defensive option. It will be the 'If one flies, they all fly' all out attack to destroy the Federated Suns. So, lets cut the bullshit out with this stupid time wasting crap saying 'Try again' over and over, lay out your terms, and start negotiating like adults? Or we can just skip right ahead to armageddon and finishing the 1st Succession War together...
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While its true that singular ISF agents can do something like that, in terms of space superiority, Victor, as each basically month passes is gaining more and more of a massive advantage. The key problem for Battletech is that they don't deploy planetary defenses.
And if he takes out the DC nobility, the masses will mass slaughter the ISF.
Also, how much is the OP extrapolating from what we can do in the real world? We have detectors that detect bioagents deployed at stadiums and ports and public buildings. Presumably in the Battletech future they would have more advanced versions of those.
Whatever happens now, Victor has to make plans to take out the DC before too many more years pass because there is nothing they can do to ensure that they won't start shit again.,
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Damn....
That hard regiments live and die by their battle honour, traditions and their colours to demand that will really by the death knell for the DCMS & the image they built up for themselves.
Any DCMS officer who goes against a Davion unit will be half defeated in their own mind from now to the end of time.
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While its true that singular ISF agents can do something like that, in terms of space superiority, Victor, as each basically month passes is gaining more and more of a massive advantage. The key problem for Battletech is that they don't deploy planetary defenses.
That's my point. Victor has a massive advantage on the front lines, but 95% of the Federated Suns worlds are essentially naked in terms of being able to stop a warship doing a drive-by with WMD delivery orders. Especially if bioweapons are broken out.
Victor needs to understand that if the Combine decides that it would rather go down swinging then not, while its likely the Combine would die completely as a result, the Federated Suns ... honestly, it wouldn't be much better off. Even getting off 'lightly' by 'only' having to write off 100 worlds would be a complete breakdown of the nation worse than the 1st and 2nd Succession Wars combined for example. And the way he and his crew are smugly dismissing the catastrophe it would be ...
And if he takes out the DC nobility, the masses will mass slaughter the ISF.
Eh, doubtful. The masses generally are far too programed and beaten down and still control all the media into and out of their worlds after all.
Also, how much is the OP extrapolating from what we can do in the real world? We have detectors that detect bioagents deployed at stadiums and ports and public buildings. Presumably in the Battletech future they would have more advanced versions of those.
Actually you're thinking too much science fiction now. 'Sensors' that can detect biological agents in a sealed container are mostly a fiction. It generally requires sample collection and testing to actually identify a bioweapon. And as long as the delivery container is properly sealed and steralized, its undetectable.
Chemical weapons are a lot easier to detect mind you and there are indeed technology that can sample the air and detect them, but they are far less of a risk than nukes or bioweapons. There is a reason that bioweapons are the unholy holy of the WMD trinity that makes everyone freak out in the WMD game. Nukes are childs playthings compared to them, only the fact that they are incredibly hard to make compared to nukes or chemical weapons limits their spread.
Have a look at what is happening in the world, right now, to see what damage they can do and how hard they are to deal with. The Curse of Galedon was expliclty designed by House Kurita for the exact scenario the Combine is currently in - but its such a horrible 'civilization destroyer' level of weapon even the rabid people in House Kurita are terrified of the idea of unleashing it. But its honestly not a stupid defensive option. Send a Warship to drop a missile with the weapon on a mid-sized Davion world in the outback. Let them call for help, but systematically destroy every dropship that tries to leave the planet. Then when Davion units start arriving, broadcast a message that this is a warning to Victor of what will be unleashed across the entire Federated Suns if he pushes the Combine any further. And yes we know the retaliation will be just as total, so yes, this is the 'MAD' scenario the Combine is putting on the table.
Then as the Federated Suns watches in horror, a world dies without them able to do anything about it. And understand that if they try to retaliate (although back channel communications may even allow Victor to carpet nuke one Combine world of roughly equal importance for him to save face) then the Combine will make it a mission to unleash their WMD store on every Davion world they can reach in a death ride, accepting the Federated Suns will retaliate in kind, to the death then!
The Capellan Confederation ultimately went out softly as it fragmented. The Combine are both FAR more likely and FAR better equipped to make the Federated Suns STOP by saying that you've pushed us to the limit, this is the line and we'll accept a peace at this price, horrible as we may feel it to be. But otherwise, we feel we have nothing to loose as you are destroying us either way, so we're going to take you to hell with us.
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Victors "Try again" is childish.
Yes, he wants to neuter the DCMS but if his teachers would have taught him history, especially GERMAN history, he should have known that if you kick someone hard enough sooner or later you gonna overreach and go past the breaking point.
I know that till today they are debating at alternate history sites and also REAL historians if the Versailles treaty was either too harsh or too lenient. And Victor (and here I dont envy him) is in the same position just like the Allies 1918.
And Victor should not forget that it was the betrayal of Comstar that gave him the early warning.
And I wouldnt be surprised if the DC will not take their revenge at Comstar. Accept every dishonoring and then when everything is concluded, and the Comstar people are back in place and the FS is occupied with WOB, then all Comstar people are arrested, shipped to Luthien and take a very unhealthy vacation there. And if Minoru tells then Dow, that this is the price for betrayal and that Victor did not care one second about Comstar then he will put the doubt in the alliance between FS and Comstar. And frankly right now I have the impression that the FS has not a high opinion of Comstar, like "They are not pulling their weight."
And, Chris OFarrell, you are right with the WMDs. They were always thought as a weapon of last resort and now, that Victor has backed the DC into a corner he should have expected that threat. I must say I was surprised that the CC went down without firing their WMDs. Or when Victor started those rebellions on CC planets that Sun Tzu did not level one planet as a message to MIIO and Victor.
And besides, I had the impression of Battletech, that there was an unspoken agreement, that you do not wipe out a Successor State.
And now that Victor has opened that can of worms I would find it sweet if Minoru would tell him, that maybe one day the FS will be subjected to the same dishonoring treatment.
And what if the DC decides to develop a biological WMD, but keep the antidote. They could make the DC planets inhospitable to the FS.
I am surprised that the ISF did not supply Minoru and his aide with a deadman switch and a poison gas sprayer. Would have liked to see Victors face if the aide would threaten to spray the area and only Minoru has the antidote. Not even Elemental armor would save Victor. Because if Victor threatens to wipe out the ruling family of another house he should expect the same in return.
And Billy Boy Mark II would you please tell us, where the Nekekami are? Taking a nap?
In every war the Nekekami did things, like in the War of 3039 they killed every Davion officer at the staff meeting of Nondi Steiner, but Nondi and the ineffectual Steiner commanders were left alive (OK, Nondi was in a coma). So, why do they not kill and blow things up?
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And Billy Boy Mark II would you please tell us, where the Nekekami are? Taking a nap?
In every war the Nekekami did things, like in the War of 3039 they killed every Davion officer at the staff meeting of Nondi Steiner, but Nondi and the ineffectual Steiner commanders were left alive (OK, Nondi was in a coma). So, why do they not kill and blow things up?
Could be wrong but I thought they were basically a for hire basis?
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Okay have I messed up the negotiations? The last scene was mostly (in my mind) about Victor wishing the disbandment of the 3 brigades to set the scene for the next scene.
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Okay have I messed up the negotiations? The last scene was mostly (in my mind) about Victor wishing the disbandment of the 3 brigades to set the scene for the next scene.
As far as I'm concerned, no. It's your story, your characters and your AU, write it as you want. Aside from the occasional typo, I've been enjoying it tremendously.
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Yup I agree with him. My points are just general points of discussion expanding on events in the story and also thinking about what might happen.
Keep on keepin on,l.
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Okay have I messed up the negotiations? The last scene was mostly (in my mind) about Victor wishing the disbandment of the 3 brigades to set the scene for the next scene.
I had no problem with it. its your AU. write it the way you want. that is the nice thing about an AU. you do not have to worry about book and game sells.
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If you want, let the Duke act as a wiser voice, and give Vic a tiny bit of room to back off, just a little
Wise heads on Robinson???
What the hell am I thinking?
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I'm with cawest, if you're going to rewrite the canon story, take it anywhere you want. Much of the canon makes little sense to me, so let your imagination run and make a good story of it. I never liked the Combine anyway. If Victor really wanted to do it right, tell them he'll end the war in place if they agree to help him against the WOB.
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Will have to start a new post at 50 now ^-^
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Oh we are in agreement here. I said in the other forum that Victor should be deploying planetary defenses and so forth but ultimately it was determined that was beyond the settings tone so to speak. But like I said over there, Battletech was designed in a time when they thought access to space made things more scarce, whereas shortly thereafter we learned that casual access to space is going to basically usher in post scarcity society.
Planetary defenses are not cheap - especially defenses capable of protecting a 360x360 area space around a planet. Even the Terran Hegemony's SDS grid was far from perfect and the sheer resources that were pushed into that were staggering, to put it mildly. Victor can barely support a hundred or so warships so far, he would need to put thousands of times comparable resources into building even minimal defenses around all his worlds, which even with the extremely generous assumptions this fic makes, is just impossible to achieve.
I agree with most Battletech has a certain tone to it, in terms of scarcity and so forth, but honestly, I wish they would do a redesign of the game, like a lot of us did back when I played and we decided to stop following them as they circled the drain over and over again just resetting the storylines and introducing more of the same as far as enemies go.
I don't know that the DC has resources left to hit that many FC worlds.
When all you need is to drop a bioweapon into a biosphere, you don't need more than a jumpship and a suicide dropship if you want to be overt. An agent with fanatic loyalty if you want to be covert. Hell, even just a modified capital missile you can kick out an airlock that stays cold until a programmed point and then airbursts will do it.
Again, Victors Warships simply cannot be on the front line AND protecting all his worlds against raids at the same time. Critical nodes perhaps, like the capitals and one or two key infrastructure worlds, but that's only a single digit percentage of the Federated Suns worlds.
I'm not saying its necessarily EASY or that everything would of course go according to plan, but if the Combine genuinely decided that this is the essential threat to their existence, so lets slaughter he Federated Suns first/at the same time... they could absoloutly do it. And as Victor has already pretty casually crossed several 'war crimes' by Inner Sphere standards (destroying jumpships, recharge stations and jumpship yards) its not even like Victor can claim he didn't define this as a 'to the knife' war at that point...
I only have a disagreement from semi personal experience here. I used to work directly with a lot of korean immigrants, both from north and south, though the ones from the north had been here a while. And they would describe their homeland to me. North Korean um I guess I will call them the North Korean version of the ISF, since I don't recall the real name at the moment, literally would disappear, as in be killed by the population on a semi routine basis. They, the agents knew never to be alone in certain settings. So I factor stuff like that in when I think about these situations. I think the ISF only does not have stuff like that happen on a regular basis because the DC rulers keep the population in check.
We don't really see any hint of that in the Combine though, where the ISF and OP5 seem to be extremely competent at keeping the lower levels in line and following orders. Not saying it might not happen, but I think expecting a collapse is perhaps a reach, especially if the loyal Government remains in charge and control, with their hands on the information flows.
But I can understand your point of view.
Tech has advance quite a bit
Theres this
https://www.flir.com/threat-detection/biological/
Which I understand has cousins that are installed in a lot of buildings now.
And there is this, which has been developing for a long time
https://www.grants-gov.net/cfda.php?CFDANumber=97.091
As I said, they don't actually protect against a properly sealed and sterilized bio weapon that is going to be deployed. In fact the second link explicitly notes that its designed to detect a RELEASE of a weapon and sound the alarm - and even then its far from a perfect system with a LOT of environmental factors in play that make them more useful to reaction teams in full biochem gear to detect exactly what has been released on contaminated sensors more than detect it when its released. Its not a preemptive system, but a 'shit has hit the fan' system.
And really, its a 'make people feel safer' move more than anything, like fallout shelters. Logistically they don't stack up, but people THINK they are there so, feel good about it!
With that said, I'm not exactly sure where Battletech is with these systems in public spaces. Although I'd find it highly dubious that anything but critical infrastructure is covered.
Depends upon your definition of hard. Mind you my "expertise" is more in the computer/electronics area, but I understood fundamentally, how to build a nuclear bomb by the time I was 10 or 11. Its just access to materials that stops us. Not that I would have really built a nuclear bomb even if I had access to materials, but I did make some parts in terms of circuits and smaller explosives. Do people like I and some of my friends were who know as much about biological stuff? It reads to me as easier in some sense, because you can hunt in the wild and get some of these disease off of animals and homeless people. You can get most of the stuff to make a biolab in your house, its just expensive.
Building a 'WTF level' bioweapon is the single most incredibly hard type of weapon system you can think of. It requires incredibly specialized machines, training and knowledge orders of magnitude greater than fission or fusion weapons or making nasty chemical weapons with a very select skill set found generally these days only in the very top pharmaceutical companies. A major bioweapon is quite literally building a living organism robust enough to survive in the evolutionary tar pit that the human immune system is unable to take on, that can be spread WITHOUT killing its host too quickly and if at all possible, without the host having any symptoms to give it away while still being able to spread it. While also being stable enough to not mutate itself to death or away from what you want it to be.
Nuclear physics is kindergarten stuff in comparison.
This is all a very good thing of course as it means that generally only the very greatest of state powers can build, in any given generation, these kinds of weapons that are beyond our ability to fight. And while other states might be able to weaponize other things like say anthrax much more easily, so too can we easily counter them. As a rule, pretty much everyone in a nation state stays the ****** away from them because while a nuke is over quickly and chem weapons generally are too, but otherwise have a very limited area, bioweapons once unleashed are entirely up in the air as to if it wipes out mankind of not.
The counter to this is that Victor can get space superiority really easily. As each month passes, not only do his naval projection powers increase, but his ability to grow even more naval power increases.
Irrelevant if the Combine simply want to kill hundreds of billions of Federated Suns citizens and ruin worlds. Simply load up a half dozen of their remaining warships with the goods and have them jump via deep space and uninhabited systems into the Crucis March and three or four months later, go on a killing spree without Victor able to do a damn thing about it.
I agree, that's on the table for the Combine. But that has to predicate on Victor or his heir deciding to just sit there forever and let the Combine, what's left of it, just rearm.
No, they can go now. Again, you don't need more than a couple of hundred jumpships and dropships and the fanatics to crew them, easily scraped up. Victor cannot protect his civilian population, its just not possible. And when you push a state to the level of 'we are going to destroy you', this is EXACTLY what that weapon existed for, explicitly.
Hell, Victor can say sure...and then tell the Clans that neither the Lyrans, nor the FC nor Comstar will intervene with anything they do against the remains of the Combine.
What's the DC going to do then? Threaten to use bioweapons if Victor does not help them?
At this point the Combine has few easy options, no doubt. But in such a scenario if the Combine have made it abundantly clear they are going to go to extreme lengths? Do you want to risk it?
There is in fact a Soviet/Russian school of thought called Nuclear deescalation. On the assumption that NATO launches a war against the Russians, the Russians conventional forces buckle and soon the NATO spearheads are streaming towards Moscow with little left to stop them.
Then - on Russian soil - the Russians would pick one of the NATO field armies and vaporize it with nukes while announcing that you either pull your forces back to pre-war lines and start peace talks, or, the Russians will nuke the rest of the NATO armies. With the thought that as a 'warning' shot to make everyone look over the ledge to the point you have pushed them, it'll make everyone stop and think very carefully. And that any nuclear retaliation (against the Russians for nuking their own country) will simply lead to a nuclear exchange as they have proven they are willing to even nuke their own lands. But you can take this as a warning to stop this before it goes too far.
It might still lead to a nuclear exchange, but the theory is at that point the Russians have little to loose anyway.
Victor is a rather superior position. Which is still rather sad. Theodore literally could have had it all. He could have been the grandfather of the first Lord of the reborn Star League. All he had to do was tell his father to go ****** himself, I am in control now after all the damage that you did to the DC, arrange Victor and Omi's marriage and set off the uniting of the FC and the DC.
Yeah but the state that the DC is in now, even if Victor were not being so hard on the settlement, makes them now on the long road to death that the CC was in.
The DC has to try to rearm to go to war against the FS again, because in its diminished state, the Clans are going to crush them.
Oh, the DC is ****** in the long run, no worries there at all. But this is about the here and now, Victor IMO has pushed too far with his childish behavior showing off for the Sandovals.
Okay have I messed up the negotiations? The last scene was mostly (in my mind) about Victor wishing the disbandment of the 3 brigades to set the scene for the next scene.
Oh no its your story, and Victors disbanding the brigades is a fitting punishment in addition to loosing all the worlds Victor has taken.
I just think he's being FAR too glib and Minrou FAR too skittish over putting the WMD card on the table.
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Disbanding the brigades is absolutely reasonable as a demand by Victor.
I would agree that the WMD issue is being handled too dismissively. Not necessarily by BillyBob but possibly by Victor.
The fundamental question hanging over the negotiations is: can there be a mid-point between what Victor can (and must) demand in exchange for peace and what House Kurita must receive to save face and remain in power*. Because if there isn't, then from House Kurita's view better to take the chance of being the 'lesser loser' in a WMD exchange than to take the certainty of losing 'everything'.
Victor mis-reading that and subconsciously assuming that because he knows (and at one time liked and admired) Theodore and Hohiro, that they at least share his values on that point would be plausible. At which point, having someone telling him privately that he's getting towards the point that Minoru will have to say that he cannot accept a demand and that the horrific cost of a WMD exchange is actually preferable in Theodore's eyes would work out.
Whether that's James, Caradoc or Minoru himself, someone telling Victor that it's time to say 'no more' and accept that this is all that can be done - at least for now - is probably wise. And would underscore that Victor has people to rein him in.
* While House Kurita would likely retain ostensible rulership, de facto power devolving to a shogun or the individual warlords. i.e. the situation of Shogunate Japan
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Okay... What I think I'll do is look over the scene and maybe make a few tweets to the WMD bit. Not change the outcome... Maybe also do a small interlude where 'Doc warns him against further pushing the DC contingent.
Of course any deal is subject to a certain amount of revision when the attack on Verde happens... Because the AFFS/FS is going to be FURIOUS - and will be able to make the point that Minoru has been negotiating in bad faith. He hasn't but it will look like that or can be made to look like that very very easily.
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and start it as a new thread
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Could be wrong but I thought they were basically a for hire basis?
This: where are they? IIRC their were several clans of them and someone should have ‘authorized’ there use by now.
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They might have had one look at the Jugernaught of the AFFS charging in and slicing off chunks of the Combine and decided 'Nope!'
Thinking that even if they could get away with assassinations against the people they would have to kill to make a difference, it would just invite massive Federated Suns retaliation against their people and culture. With DMI and MIIO doing whatever it takes to capture, interrogate and from anyone in the know, follow the chains back to the clans involved and wipe them out.
Or, they might just be sitting by the phone in annoyance waiting for a phone call that will never come because the only people who have their phone number are dead or insane :D
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NOTE. PLEASE READ FIRST TO ANYONE READING Chris and I's discussion.
Chris I think understands and has a similar approach on this sort of discussion. My comments should not be taken as any heavy criticism of the story or complaint. I enjoy discussing the possible ramifications and all the various alternative outcomes that events can unfold into. I grew up in an era where fantasy in general and science fiction in particular was supposed to make you have all these side discussions.
I enjoy and accept Battletech for what it is/was. Though, if I ever have the time to get back into RPGs regularly, I would not mind finding a sort of updated Battletech with the scarcity nonsense removed.
Planetary defenses are not cheap - especially defenses capable of protecting a 360x360 area space around a planet. Even the Terran Hegemony's SDS grid was far from perfect and the sheer resources that were pushed into that were staggering, to put it mildly. Victor can barely support a hundred or so warships so far, he would need to put thousands of times comparable resources into building even minimal defenses around all his worlds, which even with the extremely generous assumptions this fic makes, is just impossible to achieve.
Cheap is relative. A planetary defense is basically a capital ship without jump engines or regular engines, just maneuvering thrusters. OR small asteroids towed into place and say hollowed out and then have weapons installed.
The real issue to put planetary defenses in place is developed the mobile shipyard to build them in place or tow them in place.
Mind you, as I said in the other thread, I think we are stretching into areas outside of the tone of Battletech because resources are cheap when you have access to space. Out own solar system literally has millions or billions more in terms of order of magnitude, of resources just floating in space, versus the max we would ever be able to get out of our planet. But Battletech was codified before we knew that.
When all you need is to drop a bioweapon into a biosphere, you don't need more than a jumpship and a suicide dropship if you want to be overt. An agent with fanatic loyalty if you want to be covert. Hell, even just a modified capital missile you can kick out an airlock that stays cold until a programmed point and then airbursts will do it.
I get what you are saying though I don't necessarily agree. We know from real world events that these sort of attacks are inhibited or prevented quite often and easily by our real world covert services. They don't publicize this stuff but if you read around over the years, you will find references to stuff like..."french commandos raid new terrorist training camps in northern Libyan desert" in the newspaper and if you are lucky you happen the catch the newsreport that French police intelligence (I don't recall the name for that unit, it has one, this thing I am paraphrasing from memory is for an event in the 1990s) recently wrapped up a serious investigating into a terror plot successfully...
I think deliver of bioweapons, in a nonmilitary context, ie not fired by missile from a ship that can make its own way to the place, and this extends to scifi and eventual real world space travel, is something that will be exceedingly difficult.
I also think species annihilator bioweapons are more of a scifi thing both in terms of development and deployment. I think parties who consider bioweapons are going to look at Coronavirus and see how, what is basically (though not scientifically) a new strain of the flu that is highly contagious and to which we have not yet developed natural immunity, is wrecking the world economy far more thoroughly that say dropped some super Ebola on a city and killing 100,000 people or even a million people would and begin to work their psychopathic minds in different directions
I mean for purposes of the the Kuritas could do as their retaliation for the death blow, dropping space coronavirus on like several hundred worlds and destroying the IS economy would be a far more effective revenge as it would open them up to attacks by the Clans and various weaker, but more predatory Periphery powers and pirates.
Again, Victors Warships simply cannot be on the front line AND protecting all his worlds against raids at the same time. Critical nodes perhaps, like the capitals and one or two key infrastructure worlds, but that's only a single digit percentage of the Federated Suns worlds.
Not yet. But Victor is basically at the beginning of an Honorverse like scale up in terms of space superiority and ship presence and volume. He keeps expanding both number of slips and variety of ship in construction. This is creating a huge workforce and supporting infrastructure. This is one of those things where say 5 to 10 years from now, he's going to be able to do both. And this industry will also support a vast increase in private space vessels as well.
Essentially Victor, under SI control, has executed the beginnings of a vast paradigm shift. I am not sure that the Star League as depicted had as strong a naval and civilian ship presense as the FS and the IS in general will have 25 years down the line as the ramifications of what Victor has begun flows.
I'm not saying its necessarily EASY or that everything would of course go according to plan, but if the Combine genuinely decided that this is the essential threat to their existence, so lets slaughter he Federated Suns first/at the same time... they could absoloutly do it. And as Victor has already pretty casually crossed several 'war crimes' by Inner Sphere standards (destroying jumpships, recharge stations and jumpship yards) its not even like Victor can claim he didn't define this as a 'to the knife' war at that point...
I am not sure that they could slaughter the whole of the FS. But I also point out that Victor is going to be faced with this over and over again so long as the DC exists, continues to rebuild and start war after war...and the alternative to not wiping them out is that they have more of a chance to create more superWMDS and hide them in dead solar systems..and have more of this sort of threat.
I mean, honestly Victor's best option.. if he does not want to risk the WMDs..
As part of the settlement, House Kurita and their immediate supporters also all have to commit seppuku. Basically create a political vacuum at the head of the DC, what remains of it.
We don't really see any hint of that in the Combine though, where the ISF and OP5 seem to be extremely competent at keeping the lower levels in line and following orders. Not saying it might not happen, but I think expecting a collapse is perhaps a reach, especially if the loyal Government remains in charge and control, with their hands on the information flows.
We have seen hints in this story though, as liberated worlds act mostly like liberated populations and mostly don't help the DC armies and ISF who try to go underground or become guerrilla fighters. Of course I could be cross referencing some of what happened with the CC on this issue.
As I said, they don't actually protect against a properly sealed and sterilized bio weapon that is going to be deployed. In fact the second link explicitly notes that its designed to detect a RELEASE of a weapon and sound the alarm - and even then its far from a perfect system with a LOT of environmental factors in play that make them more useful to reaction teams in full biochem gear to detect exactly what has been released on contaminated sensors more than detect it when its released. Its not a preemptive system, but a 'shit has hit the fan' system.
And really, its a 'make people feel safer' move more than anything, like fallout shelters. Logistically they don't stack up, but people THINK they are there so, feel good about it!
With that said, I'm not exactly sure where Battletech is with these systems in public spaces. Although I'd find it highly dubious that anything but critical infrastructure is covered.
But you would have to assume that their tech in this regard is at least somewhat more advanced than our own. And that they have like 1000 years of experiences (meaning not continuous but particular events) to use as a database in terms of how to deploy this stuff.
Building a 'WTF level' bioweapon is the single most incredibly hard type of weapon system you can think of. It requires incredibly specialized machines, training and knowledge orders of magnitude greater than fission or fusion weapons or making nasty chemical weapons with a very select skill set found generally these days only in the very top pharmaceutical companies. A major bioweapon is quite literally building a living organism robust enough to survive in the evolutionary tar pit that the human immune system is unable to take on, that can be spread WITHOUT killing its host too quickly and if at all possible, without the host having any symptoms to give it away while still being able to spread it. While also being stable enough to not mutate itself to death or away from what you want it to be.
Nuclear physics is kindergarten stuff in comparison.
This is all a very good thing of course as it means that generally only the very greatest of state powers can build, in any given generation, these kinds of weapons that are beyond our ability to fight. And while other states might be able to weaponize other things like say anthrax much more easily, so too can we easily counter them. As a rule, pretty much everyone in a nation state stays the ****** away from them because while a nuke is over quickly and chem weapons generally are too, but otherwise have a very limited area, bioweapons once unleashed are entirely up in the air as to if it wipes out mankind of not.
I am going to be vague here on purpose, only because I really don't want to even think that something I typed in a fan forum inspired a psychopath 20 years from now. But I think with the advent of several technologies, bioweapons are going to go from like you say, to easier than nukes. 3D printing is going to change every single type of manufacture, and that eventually includes bacteria.
In research now are 3d printers to literally print food and drugs. Printing bacteria is just one step above that.
Let's just say that if we live long enough (I am turning 47 this year), the whole host of potential new horrors that the wonders of science and engineering create as a side effect are going to be a terror to behold.
Irrelevant if the Combine simply want to kill hundreds of billions of Federated Suns citizens and ruin worlds. Simply load up a half dozen of their remaining warships with the goods and have them jump via deep space and uninhabited systems into the Crucis March and three or four months later, go on a killing spree without Victor able to do a damn thing about it.
Maybe. But as Victors naval capabilities increase and become more flexible if say he were to wipe out the DC, those would be something that could be countered to some extent. I mean, what is Victor supposed to do? Just as Minoru can use the WMD threat to stop Victor, he could also use it to say, if you don't protect us from the Clans, we will do the same thing. If you don't restore the prewar borders, we will do the same, if you don't surrender the entire FS to us, we will deploy the WMDs...
Victor has to have considered this and have plans in place to counter the WMDs as much as possible.
It would be an interesting story to read.
No, they can go now. Again, you don't need more than a couple of hundred jumpships and dropships and the fanatics to crew them, easily scraped up. Victor cannot protect his civilian population, its just not possible. And when you push a state to the level of 'we are going to destroy you', this is EXACTLY what that weapon existed for, explicitly.
He would have difficulty protecting his civilian population now, unless he has a secret plan in place already. But after the paradigm shift occurs? Once that huge space infrastructure begins growing on its own industrial capacity?
At this point the Combine has few easy options, no doubt. But in such a scenario if the Combine have made it abundantly clear they are going to go to extreme lengths? Do you want to risk it?
Its a calculated risk...how much damage could the DC do, if I went all in and wiped them out completely now, versus how much could they do in 10 years if I let them rearm?
I agree its not an easy choice.
There is in fact a Soviet/Russian school of thought called Nuclear deescalation. On the assumption that NATO launches a war against the Russians, the Russians conventional forces buckle and soon the NATO spearheads are streaming towards Moscow with little left to stop them.
Then - on Russian soil - the Russians would pick one of the NATO field armies and vaporize it with nukes while announcing that you either pull your forces back to pre-war lines and start peace talks, or, the Russians will nuke the rest of the NATO armies. With the thought that as a 'warning' shot to make everyone look over the ledge to the point you have pushed them, it'll make everyone stop and think very carefully. And that any nuclear retaliation (against the Russians for nuking their own country) will simply lead to a nuclear exchange as they have proven they are willing to even nuke their own lands. But you can take this as a warning to stop this before it goes too far.
It might still lead to a nuclear exchange, but the theory is at that point the Russians have little to loose anyway.
Interesting side story. One of my college teachers on the second stint, was an old Soviet defector who served in the military as a minor officer. He taught business math, which I took because i thought at the time of trying to get IT business degree, even though I was taking Calc 3 at the time trying to get a different degree. It was a confusing time...anyway. I would talk to him after class, because I was like "holy shit this guy must have lived through some cool shit".
At one point he described what was in the Soviet battle plans. One of the options if Nato were to make to actual Russian soul (remember the whole point of the USSR was basically to create a combination military buffer between Russia and its perceived enemies as well as a economic resource area that the Politiburo can use to prop Russia up at the expense of its communist partners/slave states), anyway, one of the actual options was to carpet bomb the armies, including the USSR's own just outside the Russia border to create a basically nuclear wasteland border that no following forces could pass.
The old Soviet mindset was pretty ruthless in the practical sense.
591774#msg1591774 date=1584771280]Oh, the DC is ****** in the long run, no worries there at all. But this is about the here and now, Victor IMO has pushed too far with his childish behavior showing off for the Sandovals.[/QUOTE]
As I said above, I think the DC can use this threat against Victor in the long run as well. Its a cost benefit analysis as to when the FS would have to take the hit. Unless Victor can basically convince, without it being known, the Bears and other clans to finish the DC off.
And of course that depends on what happens in that raid the DC is heading out on.
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Deleted post - on reflection its a pretty blatant thread hijack.
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They might have had one look at the Jugernaught of the AFFS charging in and slicing off chunks of the Combine and decided 'Nope!'
Thinking that even if they could get away with assassinations against the people they would have to kill to make a difference, it would just invite massive Federated Suns retaliation against their people and culture. With DMI and MIIO doing whatever it takes to capture, interrogate and from anyone in the know, follow the chains back to the clans involved and wipe them out.
Or, they might just be sitting by the phone in annoyance waiting for a phone call that will never come because the only people who have their phone number are dead or insane :D
I disagree.
If the Nekekami do it right, then there is no difference to a headhunting attack of Special Forces.
And this is accepted by all warfighting nations / states etc.
And besides: Every soldier knows that he has the duty to take lives but that also means that there is a bullet with his / her name on it existing on the other side of the fence.
Or, as a military guy once said (during the cold war): You have the right to kill Ivan, but Ivan has the same right to kill you.
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There is another reason why Victor is playing a very dangerous game here: If he forces Minoru to give too many concessions, "conservative forces" (i.e. the ones who think they know what the Dragon *really* wants, or the ones who pretend to do so in order to further their own interests) within the DC will go apeshit. Well, more apeshit than they would anyway.
For starters, the disbanded brigades (or really anyone wishing to delete the stain on the DCMS´ honor that this peace treaty represents) could launch their own re-run of the Ronin War, only this time with the WoB happily supplying them with nukes and other mass destruction goodness.
And of course, there´s always the classic "Let´s kill the Coordinator and put a puppet on the throne so we can play The Man Behind The Man".
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