Liberty City Royals

MRBC Update 01-01-3145

(This report is a little out of date. I've done some digging and managed to update it where possible - Nikola)

Liberty City Royals Insignia

History

Even by the often strange standards of the Mercenary trade, the Liberty City Royals have an unusual origin. The Royals were originally a gang in Dronane, the capital city of Liberty, who had risen to prominence after a bloody turf war that had decimated their rivals. It also prompted a harsh crackdown by the authorities, one that the Royals managed to evade. As police swooped on their hideouts, the Royals were leaving the world with most of their wealth, having apparently been tipped off and having plenty of time to prepare.

The group vanished before re-emerging several months after the Blackout as a small mercenary unit. Initially composed mostly of IndustrialMechs and light vehicles, the Liberty City Royals (having retained their old name) found employment in the erupting conflicts in Prefectures III and IV. Several early successes (now believed to have been in the employ of Bannson's Raiders) allowed the unit to grow, adding BattleMechs and Battle Armour to its force. By 3136, the Royals had become a professional mercenary force, albeit one that retained its original gang "flavour".

From the personal journal of Irisz Magyari

So it turns out that what we hit on Keystone was deliberately targeted. The branches of the Earthworks factory we hit, as well as the people and stuff they took, were specifically concerned with the production of the Tomahawk II. I can understand why; Earthworks can use it as a way of getting around legal boundaries and boost their capacity to make Clantech. And anything that means there’s less of those monsters stomping around is fine by me.

On the other hand, I have mixed feelings about the newest contract. A part of me doesn’t like it, especially the thought of getting involved in a planetary civil war. They’re really pretty, but at least unlike with Hamilton, the dividing lines are pretty well defined and we have a clear objective. This isn’t an insurgency with potential enemies everywhere, but rather a battle where we’re going to be facing stand-up fights with discernable enemy forces. Really, it’s a planetary assault, just a blue-on-blue one.

Communications Tap File #75228-Rho (extract)

Galatea City, Galatea; 1015 hr

Voice 1 [Male; 40s; no discernable accent, native English speaker]: I’m trailing the Snake [NOTE: Takahashi Oda] now.

Voice 2 [Female; 50s; accent suggests Capellan March or Taurian]: Well keep on him then. I want to know what they’re up to.

Voice 1: Find weaknesses, know your enemies and all that. I know. It’s what you pay me for.

Carson’s Carnivores

MRBC Update 01-01-3145

Carson's Carnivores insignia

History

Carson’s Carnivores grew out of the Jihad, formed from a collection of battered, barely functional mercenary commands that had managed to survive the conflict, some represented by only a single warrior. Drawn together by Claude Carson, himself a mercenary who had fought in the Clan Invasion and nearly every conflict since, he managed to form a coherent whole out of the hodge-podge mess that he’d been presented with.

The resultant unit, dubbed the Carnivores, saw their trial by fire in the early 3080s. Hired by the LCAF, the unit was sent to hunt pirates from the shattered Circrinus Federation that had been threatening border worlds. The low intensity conflicts, oft with groups that were more desperate then they were, served to help bring the Carnivores together as a unit, while netting them salvage that was used to build up their strength.

By the turn of the century, the Carnivores were a solid and coherent unit, a far cry from their origins after a remarkably short period of time. Now under the command of Claude’s daughter, Claire, the Carnivores stability was threatened by a new opponent, in the form of the slow winding down of conflicts that occurred over the next few decades. The Carnivores responded by restructuring, reducing the size of the unit while weeding out older or less capable ‘Mechs. The result was that the unit was almost entirely composed of the most modern designs. Even older ‘Mechs, such as Carson’s Ostol, received upgraded technology.

Isling’s Incinerators

MRBC Update 01-01-3145

Isling’s Incinerators' insignia

History

Initially formed as Tobruk's Torches, the unit first emerged from the seedy underside of the Galatean mercenary community at the turn of the century. Poorly equipped and composed of a dubious mix of cast-offs, unemployed warriors and the seemingly desperate, the Torches chose to play to the few strengths that they possessed.  Billing themselves as a counterinsurgency and 'scorched earth' unit, the Torches managed to land contracts in low-level periphery and minor conflicts that allowed them to survive and grow.

Within a decade, the Torches had managed to grow into a mixed battalion of infantry and armour, focusing on property destruction and intimidation. Field experience and combat attrition had weeded out the worst of the initial crew, leaving a corps of capable and skilled soldiers that also knew the limits of their unit. Despite several brushes with the review boards over potential contract breaches (usually not responding to enemy forces outside of those clearly defined by their contracts) and questionable actions (typically in response to insurgent targets) the Torches built a reputation for being willing and able to take jobs that other units shied away from.

Kamenz Archonette

Planetary crest of Kamenez

Background

Landgrave Karl Pelzer, ruler of Kamenez, was one of the nobles who openly spoke out against Archon Trillian Steiner and her policies. As ruler of a world bordered both by the newly formed Wolf Empire and the resurgent Free Worlds League, he felt that her polices and leadership were putting vulnerable worlds (like his) at further risk of predation. Even after the quelling of a near-rebellion, he remained strongly opposed to her rule, especially after his world was left without any LCAF garrison units.

In response to this, Pelzer opted to take matters into his own hands. Mustering the support of several local guard units, Pelzer staged a coup, taking control of the planet and imprisoning or killing most of the ruling council. From there, he declared himself leader of the Kamenz Archonette, inviting other nearby worlds to join him in forming an independent state within the Commonwealth.

From the personal journal of Mechwarrior Isaak

Keystone city outskirts

I have never been so disgusted at dezgra Spheroids and their lies as I am now! It is not bad enough that they lack honour, but their efforts at twisting our traditions to their own ends show just how truly contemptible and barbarous they are!

Black Fang Binary were on Keystone on the orders of our Star Colonel; however, when a force of spheroid barbarians attacked our factories, we chose to intervene. It proved to be necessary; the inept sibko washouts of the 5^th Garrison Cluster were completely incapable of stopping them, showing just how worthless they truly were. Our star dropped in pursuit of one of the mercenary lances, swiftly catching up with them. My Lobo, the lightest and fastest of us, led the charge.

Mercenary Raid on Keystone

RAF Intel Intetcept 3145-215132-Alpha

To: Galaxy Commander Robert Magnus, Grey Keshik

From: Star Colonel Angela, 5^th Wolf Garrison Cluster

Subject: Mercenary Raid on Keystone

Galaxy Commander, this report is to update you on the status of our forces following the recent mercenary raid on Keystone, specifically targeting the Earthworks Complex.

The mercenary Force is believed to have jumped in-world from a pirate point, its position unknown but likely provided by Earthworks informants who were familiar with the system. The mercenaries proceeded in-system, using Ea (Keystone’s Moon – Editor) to shield their approach. By the time we were in position to properly respond to their approach, they were already making planetfall.

Once landed, the mercenaries divided into lance-sized forces, striking simultaneously at different Earthworks sites. Based on both their movements and their targets, it is apparent that the enemy forces were deliberately targeting specific objectives. The mercenaries, composed of BattleMech forces supported by VTOLs and Battle Armour, engaged elements of Bravo, Charlie (Vehicle Binaries – Editor) and Delta (Conventional Infantry Trinary – Editor) arrayed in defense of the facilities.

5th Wolf Garrison Cluster (Kappa Galaxy)

RAF Intel report; 01-01-3145

Wolf Empire Kappa Galaxy

Much like the rest of the Empire’s Kappa Galaxy, the 5^th Wolf Garrison Cluster has both spent years as a target for the Rasalhauge Dominion while also remaining near the bottom of the Empire’s supply chain. Even after the formation of the Wolf Empire, the Cluster has remained heavy with vehicles and conventional infantry, with very few BattleMechs or Battle Armour to speak of.

The 5^th has the added disadvantage of being at the bottom of Kappa's food chain for new recruits and replacement crews. It only receives the rawest of recruits and those that the other Clusters have allready rejected, leaving it both with poor quality and inexperienced warriors, but also mounting morale and discipline problems. Star Colonel Angela has repeatedly requested new transfers, but the simple fact that the 5th is the closest cluster to full strength in Kappa has undermined her case.

To compound these problems, the 5^th has been assigned to guard the vital factory world of Keystone, making them a prime target for potential raids, or any League efforts to reclaim their lost worlds. Despite the cease-fire between the Empire and the FWL, the result is a feeling of being in the crosshairs, one that has not helped the unit's morale situation any. Keystone’s polluted atmosphere also limits the unit’s effectiveness; its infantry are dependent on life-support equipment to operate outside, effectively tying them to either sealed structures or their transports. Similarly, its vehicles are vulnerable to hull breaches, making their commanders reluctant to commit to action.

Presently, intelligence suggests that the 5^th has been divided into Binary/Trinary-sized units to cover specific parts of the expansive and sprawling Earthworks facilities. Its few BattleMech forces are held as a quick reaction reserve force to bolster defences as needed or deal with the largest possible threats, but it is questionable how effective such a small force would be in the face of a full-scale invasion. For now, the 5^th’s greatest strength lies simply in the lack of an opponent who can readily threaten them.

From the personal journal of Irisz Magyari

Calling the last few days hectic would be an understatement. Between salvage, prisoner roundup, battlefield clean-up, debriefings, negotiations, talking to more suits and analysts then I’ve seen in a long time and an unexpected contract offer that came out of nowhere from a rep that must have been flown in specifically to headhunt us once they knew we were on-world, I’ve had very little time to myself. I can barely keep my eye open as I write this, but there’s a lot I need to say and I might as well do it while I have the chance.

First up, I'll just say that I agree with Roxana Zayros and her assessment of the QLF. The whole thing being a Mask operation makes a lot of sense, and to my eye would explain a lot. Obviously it's out of my hands now, but I think we can call this one closed. They've lost their leadership, their political allies, their base of operations and the better part of two battalions worth of troops and equipment. That's pretty crushed right there and then.

Behind the Scenes - The Battle of Red Sands City

The Battle of Red Sands city was the largest single Battletech battle I’ve ever run in my 26-odd years playing the game. It also had a number of highlights from a gameplay point of view that are definitely worth going into some detail on.

The Battle of Red Sands City

(From Brush Conflicts of the Post Republic Era; Galatean Free Press)

The ruins of Red Sands City

Acting on this Intel, major Irisz Magyari launched an attack on the reported QLF stronghold, seeing an opportunity to not only strike a decisive blow against the terrorist group, but also to eliminate or capture a good portion of their leadership.

That information proved correct, the Irregulars discovering that the QLF had made their home in the ruins of the old Qizilquam capitol. Several of the abandoned buildings had been reconstructed to serve as both headquarters and command facilities, as well as storehouses for their equipment. Additionally, a large area of the capitol had been cleared and reinforced to act as a landing pad for cargo dropships; when the Irregulars arrived, they found a Mule (Later identified as the Hal Warren, a free trader) was present and in the process of unloading

The Irregulars had a company of BattleMechs, supported by a VTOL lance and a platoon of mixed battle armour. Arrayed against them were two companies of QLF Armour, mostly the older Zhukov and Scorpion thanks they preferred. Supplementing this force was an oversized lance of BatleMechs, again mostly older designs save for a Marauder II, as well as several converted IndustrialMechs and conventional infantry.

QLF forces destroyed, leadership captured

(Extracted from the Hamilton Newsweb)

In a daring assault, Mercenaries employed by the Hamilton planetary government launched an attack on the suspected headquarters of the outlawed QLF. In a swift, decisive battle, the Mercenary forces were able to not only defeat the terrorist group, but were able to capture the organization’s apparent leader and a sizable portion of its command structure.

Following information believed to have been provided by a high-ranking QLF captive, the Mercenary forces attacked a meeting of several QLF cell leaders, being held in the ruins of Qizilqum City. Arriving on-scene, the mercenary forces discovered not only a large concentration of QLF troops, including conventional vehicles and BattleMechs, but also a Mule-class Cargo Dropship that was believed to be providing supplies to their forces.