NYW Savoy Artillery

As you can see, I've clearly managed to get a lot of painting done since the last NYW update... I've finished one single solitary light gun and crew.

Savoy's artillery performed in a somewhat lacklustre fashion for much of the Nine Years War. Crewed by civilians rather than a permanent corps, the army lost near enough it's entire artillery train (30 guns) in a single battle at the beginning of the war.

Given the mountainous terrain, it's perhaps unsurprising that (like the cavalry) Savoy-Piedont's artillery arm often seems more like an afterthought than an important part of the Duchy's military.

Total Chaos Solo Campaign

Now that I've finally got myself enough Mechs and other miniatures painted white to represent Word of Blake forces, I'm just about ready to begin my "solo" Battletech campaign. Not that it will be a true solo campaign as such, I'll be drafting in other people to play the OpFor in all the scenarios and tracks I generate.

For the most part, I'll be using the updated Chaos Campaign rules in the Total Chaos campaign book, with a few exceptions (mostly drawn from Doug's Succession Wars era Chaos Campaign). I'll also be generating my own Mercenary unit using the rules in Field Manual: Mercenaries (Revised) rather than picking one of the three pre-generated Merc units provided in the Total Chaos book.

Although I can't go into too much detail about Doug's House Rules without first obtaining his permission, here's a quick list of the Dougal's House rules that I'll be using:

• Pilots, Crews and Infantry improve their skill ratings by spending experience points rather than by spending support points. 4XP buys a pilot increase, 8XP buys a gunnery increase. Specialist talents (such as Marksman) can be purchased XP points as well.
• To compensate for this, new pilots and crews (but not infantry) are purchased using War Chest Points rather than support points, making new pilots ten times more expensive.
• Rather than simply spending a few Support Points to completely re-arm a Mech, specific types of ammunition stockpiles must be purchased individually using War Chest Points.
• I'll be using Doug's repair costs table, which takes into account such things as replacing new limbs, armour points, internal structure points and so on. Weapons and equipment that take up critical-hit slots have to be paid for and stockpiled separately..

Battletech: The Steel Legion Issues an Official Statement

+++++++++STEEL LEGION RESPONDS TO ACCUSATIONS+++++++++

A press conference was called today by the Steel Legion mercenary company. Spokesman Tiberius Valentino addressed recent accusations of their participation in the recent urban devastation on Galtor III.

The camera cuts to a podium bearing the Steel Legion crest as a Mercenary in a immaculately pressed uniform addresses the assembled reporters.

“My name is Tiberius Valentino and on behalf of my fellow members of the Legion and myself I would like to read the following prepared statement.

Tiberius of the Steel Legion

We in the Legion would like to express our deepest regret for any civilians who may have suffered a loss of property during the recent actions on Galtor III and in the city of New Derry in particular. While we will not comment on the actions of the DCMS withdrawal from the region, the Legion's stance is that such damage should be avoided wherever possible but that it is an unfortunate fact of life that this is not always the case. There are those who would seek to glamorize warfare through poorly made, voyeuristic and quite frankly, gaudy holo-dramas, who would have you believe otherwise. However, the conflict on Galtor III was a very real and serious affair. To present it as otherwise is not only disrespectful to those who have fought but also dishonors the memory of those who have fallen on both sides.

That being said, the damage inflicted upon the New Derry University was wholly unacceptable. Responsibility for these actions can be laid squarely at the feet of one Barrabas Hideyoshi, formerly a Sho-Sa in the DCMS. His unwarranted and cowardly actions led to this wanton destruction. Hideyoshi is now a wanted fugitive and has chosen to flee rather than face punishment for his crimes.

It is also important to note that although significant property damage was sustained, the area had been evacuated and that there were no civilian casualties. Any attempts by other parties to claim otherwise or to accuse the Steel Legion of complicity in Hideyoshi's actions are nothing more than a blatantly slanderous attempt to discredit the Legion. Rest assured that the Steel Legion will be fully cooperating with the ISF and any other intelligence or security organisation in their attempts to apprehend Hideyoshi and see that he faces justice for his actions.

That's all for now. Thank you for listening, ladies and gentlemen.”

Brians Notes:

• I very much enjoyed the little dig at the Fox Hounds and their Battle-Rom documentary. Describing it as a holo "drama", a work of fiction, was an especially nice touch.
• No civilian casualties eh? When the DCMS was carrying out a scorched earth policy, the took the time to evacuate civilians did they? Hmmm. Well, either the Fox Hounds or the Steel Legion are lying about that. I wonder which ones....
• I believe this rebuttal was written by William, who plays Tiberius in the campaifn.

Inner Sphere News: 3025 in Summary

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Fox Hounds: Award Ceremony on Galtor III

Shortly after news of the duel in New Derry makes it's away across Galtor III, the Fox Hounds are presented with the Dragon Slayer Robbon by Prince's Champion Arden Sortek in the city of Cheng Lee.

After accepting the Dragon Slayer flag,  Lishka (the Fox Hound's tactician) had this to say to the people of Galtor III:

Lishka, photo-captured outside a Cheng Lee Nightclub.

  

"People of the Federated Suns, I had come here planning to make some flippant remark that you need not fear any of the FoxHounds challenging the Prince's Champion or his staff to a duel." Her face darkens. "Obviously, that would no longer be appropriate. Let it be known that we, the Fox Hounds, would never countenance such hideous acts of barbarity as have been perpetrated by the Steel Legion on the good people of Galtor III. Instead, I make this promise: When next our paths cross, the Fox Hounds will stop at nothing, save to obey the limits of honourable warfare imposed by the Ares Conventions, to bring the Steel Legion to heel!" She punches her first in the air and shouts "JUSTICE FOR GALTOR III!"

************** 

A few days later on Galatea, the award ceremony and Lishka's speech are broadcast on Merc News....

Introducing Dom, Kraken of the Black Barracuda's

It was a hot sticky day. Dom was lazing in the shade with a beer and a TV hooked up to a little generator. News this, drama that. On screen comes a fine looking woman calling herself Lishka of the Fox Hounds Merc Unit. Dom recognised the name and turned up the volume...

After the ceremony finishes, he stands up, stretches, downs the rest of his beer and smiles the kind of smiles that only a man like Dom can pull off. 

"This just got interesting..."

 Brians Notes:

• Lishka (my character) is talking a good fight, but how much of it is a simple PR exercise and how much of it does she really mean?
• Dom in a member of the campaigns third merc lance, played by Tim. They've recently completed their training scenarios and just completed their first mission, so they'll be getting a page on this blog to themselves very soon.
• There's also an interesting facebook chat happening between George's character, Vick (of the Fox Hounds) and John's character Striker (of the Steel Legion). Unfortunately, it's not happened yet in campaign time, since the chat takes place in the Grease Pit on Galatea. The two characters established themselves as drinking buddies early on, and are blithely chatting about which of them might end up having to kill the other as absently as anyone else might talk about the weather.
• The campaign now also has it's first elite pilot. Mark decided to upgrade the gunnery score of his character, Fox (of the Steel Legion) earlier today.

Steel Legion: War Crimes and Honour Duels

Our Battletech campaign is going from strength to strength, with a fourth Merc unit (the proposed name for the unit is Gunboat Diplomacy) joining the campaign. 

Following on from Hoida's challenging of Hideyoshi to a duel at the awards ceremony (link) the Steel Legion got together to play out the duel. Here, in the words of theDougal, the DM, is how things went down:

Steel Legion

Hoida's Vindicator jetted above the buildings of the University district. Hideyoshi had opted to duel in the city of New Derry before the DCMS withdrew from it. Combat began in earnest as Hoida's Vindicator,  "Vengeance",  seared armour from Barrabas Hideyoshi's Quickdraw. 

Predictably Hideyoshi had not come alone and with two Dragons and a Whitworth in support, attempted  to obliterate the Vindicator. However, the Steel Legion had kept their 'mechs nearby and stormed onto the battlefield. After a heavy exchange of fire, Fawlkes managed to perform a Death From Above on a Dragon that had been knocked onto its back and smashed through the cockpit with the feet of his mech, crushing the pilot! The Steel Legion capitalised on the advantage and hammered the enemy mechs with blue PPC lightning despite weathering combined LRM barrages.

 During the firefight, Fawlkes lost control of his mech on a particularly reckless turn and smashed through a University campus building, collapsing it around him. This didn't deter him and he emerged from the rubble, lasers blazing. Eventually Hideyoshi's mech was brought down and thrashed on the ground, unable to rise due to damaged actuators. The Dragon and the Whitworth withdrew from the field, deciding that their commander would only have shown them the same loyalty. 

Original Steel Legion Mech Line-up

As Hideyoshi stirred back into consciousness, Hoida's mech stood above him. "I give you one chance to surrender, dog. Seppuku is your only chance for honour now." The Quickdraw sat up and Hideyoshi growled back over the comm. "Curse you and your master, Hoida. You have not heard the last of me." With a detonation of explosive bolts, the Quickdraw's canopy blasted outward and the pilot's command chair jetted off over the city. 

Sneering at the Kuritan's cowardice, the Steel Legion moved to salvage the two downed mechs. It seemed Hideyoshi had a final card to play however, as the fusion reactor of the Quickdraw went critical and seared armour from two of the Legion's mechs. Dragging the wrecked Dragon with them, the Steel Legion quit the field victorious. Behind them, fires blazed beyond the rubble of the campus building as New Derry University burned. Vengeance would have to wait for another day.

Brian's Thoughts:

• Although it was Hideyoshi's idea to fight in the city itself, the Fox Hounds are culpable for agreeing to it in the first place. This constitutes a war crime under Article V of the Ares conventions, compounded by the destruction of the university, the multiple civilian deaths, damage to property and, most damning, the fact there was no need to stage the fight in the city at all. 
• The Steel Legions popularity rating with the Federated Suns has taken a major hit. Worse, a certain other Mech unit who already bears the Steel Legion a grudge (the Fox Hounds) now has added incentive to go after them for giving Mercs a bad-name and, incidentally, undoing much of the good PR work the 'Hounds have accomplished in the Federated Suns by giving Merc units bad press.
• Mark  (Fawlke's player) really, really needs to stop running his Mechs on tarmac. The last time he skidded on tarmac, he tore both arms of his Mech. This time, he was lucky.

BATTLETECH OPERATION SIEGFRIED MISSION IV

MISSION IV: TWICE THE BOUNTY

With the majority of the Fox Hounds' Mechs badly damaged during their campaign behind enemy lines, only three Mechs were assigned to participate in combat operations during the raid. The Operational Lance consisted of: A Raven piloted by Scarlett, Vik in his Valkyrie and Ranger piloting the Assassin. The artillery park was commanded by Domino in her Panther. Her command included the entire rear-echelon group: the captured Thumper artillery piece, three infantry platoons, the techs and the remaining AFV's, The remaining pilots, operating the badly damaged Clint, Firestarter and both Javelins, formed a relay chain for the purposes of transmitting laser coded messages from Lishka's Raven back to the Thumper unit.

Operating within the Raven's ECM envelope, the operational lance approached the base under cover of the Mangrove swamps, taking up an over-watch position atop a hill. From here, they could call down artillery fire on the fuel tanks of the DCMS Forward Operating Base. Unphased by the presence of a strong garrison augmented by Warlord's Samsenov and Yoshi with their Assault Lance, the Fox Hounds began calling down artillery. Ranger directed the fire, beaming coordinates back to Lishka via tight beam Laser. She in turn passed these coordinates back to the Thumper via the laser relay.

Replica of the Bounty Hunter's Marauder

However, no sooner had the first salvo been called in than a 75 ton Mech was detected  powering up only 180 metres from the Fox Hounds position. Transmitting orders via laser for the relay team to fall back to the artillery position, the operational lance led the Bounty Hunter's Marauder away from the remainder of the company. The Operational Lance performed well in a long retorgrade engagement in which the Bounty Hunters Marauder would be joined by a Jenner, a Spider and a Dragon. Skilled evasive manouvres through the Mangrove Swamps allowed the Fox Hound mechs to remain operational despite having begun the mission lightly  damaged. While Ranger dueled with a Jenner and Vik harassed the Bounty Hunter with rear attacks, the enemy Mechs concentrated on bringing down the Raven.
 

Vike's single-handed and down-right heroic assault on the Marauder combined with re-directed artillery failed to destroy the Bounty Hunter's Marauder and resulted in the near dismemberment of his Mech. Vike finally broke off his attack only when his LRM ammo bins were empty and his right torso destroyed by PPC fire, taking his medium laser (his last weapon) with it Even so, it's likely he would have continued to fight with melee attacks had he not been ordered to withdraw by Scarlett. She dropped her ECM to broadcast a coded message instructing the rest of the Fox Hounds to retreat back to Davion lines. She herself would concentrate on drawing the DCMS forces away from the Hounds in a long chase. Thus far, the majority of attacks had been directed against her and her night irreplaceable "stealth mech".

Recovered Battle-Rom of Scarlett''s Raven directing artillery fire

Mere moments later, the "Bounty Hunter's" mech exploded, destroyed by a single salvo from yet another green-painted Marauder!. A broad-cast in the clear announced that the real Bounty Hunter had arrived on the field -and that he didn't appreciate cheap imitations. Hastily positioning herself (and her Mech's recording equipment) to best effect, Lishka quickly negotiated a new contract with the Bounty Hunter. Shortly thereafter, the Combine forces were driven from the field in an impressive display of gunnery skills from the Marauder pilot. While the Assassin and the Valkyrie were able to leave the field under their own power, Lishka's Raven was loaded aboard the Bounty Hunter's drop-ship for evacuation. A cock-pit hit had destroyed the Mechs controls in the last seconds of the pursuit, forcing it's pilot to eject, Battle ROM in hand, from her Mech.

The destruction of the DCMS Fuel Supply and the successful extraction of all remaining Fox Hounds and attached AFFS assets to Davion Lines sealed the file on Operation Siegfried.