DefHes Demo Company circa 3058

[Colt Ward]

DefHes sees a huge new opportunity with the Chaos March being a open market for their products.  Each individual planet is outside the usual AFFC (or now LAAF) requisition networks they have worked (bribed) with over the last centuries, and so its time to make a impression so they can become loyal DefHes clients.  The newly empowered board who operate in Daniel's name also see it as a opportunity to get a few folks off Hesperus so . . .

If you were to be the company gear tasked with setting up a DefHes demo team, operating DefHes equipment, training the indigs to operate the gear, and most importantly selling its virtures by pounding Capellan or League gear to scrap- what would you send?  Its also nice that it is close to Northwind and Outreach to maybe show off to the merc markets on those planets.  They would operate as mercs sort of like Storm's Metal Thunder demos some Norse-Storm stuff.

Pick a 3 or 4 lances of mechs, roughly the same of vehicles, and determine how much IS Std BA you send along- all of course of DefHes or Defiance Motors production.

[DOC_Agren]

2 Wasps
2 Chameleons
2 Nightsky
1 Griffins
1 Archer
1 Gunslinger
1 Zues
1 Banshee
1 Atlas

4 Hunters
4 Manticore
4 Patton
4 Rommel

16 Suits Inner Sphere BA Standard
along with a Inf Company
1 SRM Platoon
1 Laser Platoon - Jump
1 MG Platoon

1 Union and 2 fighters - Eagles from Lockheed-CBM Corporation
1 modified Seeker to transport the Vehicles and Inf and 2 fighters - Sabres  from Lockheed-CBM Corporation

[snewsom2997]

Assault Lance
1 Atlas 7s
1 Berserker
1 Gunslinger
1 Zeus 9s
Fire Support Lance
1 Salamander
1 Archer 5s
2 Griffin 1DS
Battle Lance
1 Hatchetman 5s
1 Night Sky
2 Battle Hawk

[Colt Ward]

Interesting options, my opinion was that they would use some of the simpler and faster machines- since they are unlikely to face a 3/5 assault unit, or as much heavily dug in opposition they could not roll over it.

I planned a four mech lance company, standard armor company, and a IS Std BA company to create a combined arms battalion.  So everything is going to be 4/6 at the slowest so they should be able to keep up or catch some of the older SMM equipment and whatever dregs local nobles fielded.  The armor company's lances may be split between the more advanced & more simple models- so instead of 4 Patton (Ultra) perhaps just 2 and the other 2 would be 3025 models dug up.  But since I am not sure they are still making that 3025 model, it might just be the Ultras.  Such a company would, IMO, be decisive for what we see the different Chaos March factions fielding.

Mech Company
Command Lance
Zeus 9S2
Zeus 9S
Archer 5S
Axman 1N

Assault Lance
Berserker A3
Axman 3S
Hatchetman 5S
Hatchetman 5S

Support Lance
Salamander 5S
Archer 5S
Axman 2N
Griffin 1DS

Scout Lance
Griffin 1DS
Valkyrie
Battle Hawk K305
Wasp 1S

Strike Lance
Nightsky 4S
Nightsky 5T
Nightsky 4T
Uziel 3S

Armor company
Manticore x4
Patton (Ultra) x4
Rommel (Gauss) x4

BA company
10 Squads IS Std BA

It does make me wonder if DefHes put such a group into the Chaos March, would Earthwerks, Irian or Star Corps send their own representative unit?

[truetanker]

Well for I'm better at vehicles...

I'd take the then experimental Hunter Amphibious Tanks, the Manticore 3055 upgrades, the Patton Ultras and the Rommel Gauss.

The Standard IS BA is more Militia than anything, a couple Squads of each type, of which I'd bring 36 to sell. Now I'll also send another full Platoon of Infantry, Foot Ballistic Rifle in this case.

I'd run an Axman-3S with a pair of Hatchetman-5S and a Gunslinger-1ERD. Together with a Lance of Defiance-3S to showcase the raw firepower, I'd even send in a pair of Salamander-5T, both with an Assassin-30 for protection.

TT

[Arkansas Warrior]

So, a company-sized version of The Thumpers?  Interesting idea.  I’ll be back when I have a force sketched out.

[Colt Ward]

In '58 the IS Std is still frontline- it only gets phased out in the FS & DC for the Cavalier/Raiden respectively later in the '60s.  Gray Death Technologies is not part of DefHes by this time either- takes the GDL getting wiped out during the FCCW Skye rebellion that leaves the DefHes CEO in command.

[truetanker]

You are correct...

My bad.

TT

[Arkansas Warrior]

Command Lance
Atlas-S
Gunslinger-1ERD
Gunslinger-1ERD
Berzerker-A3

Battle Lance
Banshee-5S
Zeus-9S
Zeus-9S
Salamander-5S

Battle Lance
Banshee-5S
Zeus-9S
Zeus-9S
Salamander-5S

Scout Lance
Griffin-1DS
Nightsky-4S
Battle Hawk-K305
Battle Hawk-K305


Vehicles and infantry to come later, but probably along the same paradigm, a reinforced company of each.  Maybe bump Command up to be the battalion command lance and add in another lance of mechs.  That’s also all Hesperus II products, so any additional lance might look to feature Furillo-built mechs.

[Colt Ward]

Lol, 3 lances of assaults- very Lyran . . . hard to catch other folks in the Chaos March, but unlikely to suffer a defeat without being heavily outnumbered.

[Arkansas Warrior]

Hesperus doesn’t actually build much between medium and assault at that time.  The Archer-5S seems to be the only heavy on their menu in the late ‘50s, and I figured that, as firesupport mechs go, the Salamander needed more showcasing right about then.  Had I been thinking of Furillo as well I’d have definitely thrown in an Axman or two.  Besides, the Zeus is really just an overweight heavy.

[Frabby]

Side tangent, wouldn't such a unit be part of the DSPF (Defiance Self-Protection Force), aka the Force of Last Resort ("What, me worry?")?

[Arkansas Warrior]

Side tangent, wouldn't such a unit be part of the DSPF (Defiance Self-Protection Force), aka the Force of Last Resort ("What, me worry?")?

The concept strikes me as being very similar to the origin story of the Thumpers, and AFAIK they were never fluffed as being part of, associated with, or in any other way connected to the DSPF.

[dgorsman]

In '58 the IS Std is still frontline- it only gets phased out in the FS & DC for the Cavalier/Raiden respectively later in the '60s.  Gray Death Technologies is not part of DefHes by this time either- takes the GDL getting wiped out during the FCCW Skye rebellion that leaves the DefHes CEO in command.

That would make a decent business model.  As the STD suits are replaced with Cavalier production, they can be refurbished at a fraction of the cost of building new.

[Colt Ward]

Nah, the DSPF would be part of the DefHes security division . . . a demo company would be part of Marketing & Public Relations division.  Imagine the pissing matches that causes in the company cafeterias.

The other thing to consider is what DefHes would be competing against in the area- Kressley producing tanks and starting on mechs (Lineholder, Chimera, Banders as time goes on); Styk's Tao  Mechworks building Victors, Nanking puts out a Wolverine, Tikonov's lines, what the Dragoons allow to be exported from Outreach (Gallowglas, Firefly?).

Its a pretty full & broad market locally, just a question of accessing some of the production.

Hmm, a Defiance prototype for combat testing would be a interesting inclusion in the mix.