Hwang's Hwachas, a Mercenary Fire Support Lance
Chan-Yeol Hwang was a former subcommander in the CCAF. Like his father and grandfather before him, he distinguished himself well during his limited time in House Liao service. Unlike his forebearers he didn't want to die young on the battlefield. He wanted to live the nice comfortable retirement of a country gentleman. His wants, naturally conflicting with the expendable nature of CCAF personnel, were difficult to achieve, but not all together impossible.
The balance between finding a combat role involving opportunities to acquit himself while finding a high probability of actual survival was a delicate one. It's why he specialized in artillery and long-range engagements, preferring fire support mechs over all else.
Five years in House Liao service and he qualified for his inheritance, enough credits to finance a lance of mechs strike out on his own as a pro-Capellan mercenary.
(As pro-Capellan as his government could let him get away with. Mostly meaning he avoided contracts against his fellow Capellans... most times.)
The challenge of running a fire support lance as a mercenary is the materiel costs. Missiles are by far the biggest expense. If a mercenary isn't careful they could end up going broke every time they engage. So what's a lance to do?
Hwang added ammunition clauses to every one of his contracts. Most mercenary lance's in his position did the same thing, but where he set himself apart was his ammunition clauses were slightly cheaper than the competition. While one normally worried about a razor thin margin made thinner, Hwang's networking with the CCAF and Capellan ammunition manufacturers brought costs down considerably.
That, and he ordered fire missions whenever possible, and boy did he find plenty of excuses to do so! Scout mechs sniffing around the perimeter? A missile will eventually hit them. Seeing platoon and company sized enemy concentrations? Break them up with overwhelming firepower. Rumors of insurgent activity in a particular grid coordinate? Bring the rain! No need to worry, the Hwachas carry plenty of fireworks, and their employers pay by the missile!
It's a business model that gave Hwang moderate success, and even earned him a few other Mechs along the way when his employers ended up being a few credits short. A few have been given up willingly. Others salvaged or collected after some withering long range fire.
In the ilClan era, it's founder is long dead, earning the retirement he wanted. His granddaughter, Sook-Yin Hwang, carries on the fine tradition of distant killing for money. Only now she's considering expanding the operation to include a battle line to protect their artillery and scouting elements so they can actually find what they're trying to hit.
Nonetheless, the heart and soul of Hwang's Hwachas is in their fire support team. To spot their mechs, painted to resemble medieval siege machinery, is to expect plenty of destruction in the immediate future.
