From the personal journal of Irisz Magyari

All things considered, today didn’t go that badly. If you wanted to be generous, then you could call our first day of operations on Fletcher a success. (My great-grandmother unquestionably would have, but that’s her for you)

AFFS intel had put two main units on Fletcher; the now-Cappelanised Planetary Guard, and the 1^st Liao Guards. The latter had been using the world as a staging ground for attacks into the FedSuns’ Terran corridor, which had left the Fletcher PG shouldering most of the ‘heavy lifting’ of defending the world and the assets we were targeting. As such, we were largely expecting to be facing a mix of vehicles and Battle Armour, with some second-rate ‘Mechs as support.

MI3 communications intercept FLETCHER-8543/21-K

To: Ying-zhang Leon Savage; 1st Liao Guards

From: Si-ben-bing Tu Xiasheng

Subject: Incident at Supply Depot 48-Bravo

I apologise in advance for the delay in presenting this report. As you will understand after reading it, there are reasons for this lack of punctuality.

At 0843 hours this morning, a lance of BattleMechs from an as yet unidentified force dropped onto Supply Depot 48-Bravo. While we had some warning from space traffic control, their use of a pirate jump point and the daring nature of their assault gave us little time to prepare. Rather, the enemy forces brazenly used the very depot we were tasked with defending against us, taking cover behind the buildings only to open fire on them when circumstances favored it.

Major Joseph Peitre, AFFS Quatermaster Command

(After the mess that was Kamenez, I thought it would be wise to know a little more about our liaison officer and where all the loot will be going. The AFFS tends to be good to their mercs, but with the situation they’re in, it’s still wise to be careful – Nikola)

Joseph Peitre

Age: 37 (born 3108)

Homeworld: Exeter

Position/Rank: Major; AFFS Quartermaster Command

Joseph Peitre’s family had served the AFFS for generations, even down to his two older siblings. Despite a childhood of ill health and poor eyesight, he was determined to follow in their footsteps. A keen analytical and a skill for numbers mind aided him, Joseph was able to find a place serving in the AFFS’ quartermaster corps. While not the most glamorous of assignments, Joseph well understood the need for strong logistics chain and enjoyed the challenge of his work.

The Blackout and its aftermath presented its own unique set of challenges as the AFFS was forced to hurriedly rearm. Years of peace and easy relations with the Republic had worn down its preparedness, and skilled men like Joseph were needed in order to help bring the military back into order. The challenge was considerable, but Joseph seemed to thrive on it.

Unfortunately, Caleb Davion’s mismanagement of the AFFS and the Combine invasion of the Federated Suns saw much of that work undone. With the AFFS gutted, the Draconis March all but destroyed and both Robinson and New Sytris fallen, an air of desperation has set in. In response, members of the Quartermaster Command such as Peitre have begun searching for options that could turn the situation around, or, at the very least, slow the enemy. This has seen him take to the field, even if in an advisory or administrative role, looking for anything that could be used against the enemy.

Peitre is no combatant, and he knows it. He has enough training to competently operate an armoured vehicle, but that is less a combat skill and more an option of last resort. However, he is also adept at locating resources and finding ways to use them, be they weapons, ammunition or other less tangible assets. In the field, he best serves as an advisor or administrator, aiding a combat command rather then actually participating in the fighting.

Fletcher Planetary Guard

AFFS Force Brief 01-01-3145

History
Like many other Republic Planetary Militias, the Fletcher Planetary Guard was hard hit by the events of the Blackout and its aftermath. Like many of the Planetary Guard units, its strength and preparedness had waned over the long decades of peace. Located deep in Prefecture III, the world was far from any hostile border and, as such, was lacking in any immediate threat to serve as a motivation. Much of its equipment was mothballed or transferred elsewhere, while the amount of training time dropped considerably.

However, other forces made the situation even worse. Much of the guard’s strength actually came from the Bright Fang Militia Cluster, one raised from the planet’s large Wolf Clan population. With the formation of the Steel Wolves following the Blackout, the cluster simply defected wholesale to the newly formed pseudo-Clan, immediately gutting the Planetary Militia’s strength. To make matters worse, the Wolves then began seizing equipment from the militia, be it by Clan trials or simple assault. When the Wolves left Fletcher for their assaults on Northwind and then Terra, they took that strength with them.

Message Tap File #75298-Rho

Your timing is perfect. The target unit arrived back on world only a couple of days after you left, and they’ve since taken off again. I’m sending you this little message to let you know what happened while they were here.

First things first; they got back from their last contract with relatively light casualties. I did observe Primary Target in the hiring halls shopping around for new recruits. They did pick up one that I tailed a bit to get some info on, but they did seem rather elusive and, more to the point, sharp-eyed. I had to drop back for fear that they might have made me, but I will investigate further.

More importantly, Primary Target also went searching for contracts with very little downtime. They picked up one, which I was able to wrangle some information about. It’s a raiding contract for the AFFS, targeting Fletcher. Apparently, the goal is to get set-up on world and then go to ground, while doing their best to harass the CCAF forces on-world. They want to tie them down, keep them busy and prevent them from being able to attack the FedSuns some more.

The Battle of Fort Sokol and the fall of the Kamenz Archonette

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

The desertion of Carson's Carnivores from the Kamenz Archonette had been a boon to the Lyrans on two fronts. First, and most obviously, it removed a large portion of the Archonette's force from play. The Carnivores' departure cost the Archonette an experienced, well-equipped battalion, drastically reducing their overall capacity at very little cost to the Lyran forces. While the Archonette still could boast several more units under their command, none of them had the capability to match up to Magyari's command.

The second was the intelligence that Major Carson provided as the ransom for his escape. Until this point, one of Landgrave Karl Pelzer's greatest assets had been the security in which he had been able to operate, with his headquarters unknown to Lyran intelligence and the on-world forces. Intelligence provided by Carson indicated that Pelzer was operating out of the ruins of fort Sokol in the largely deserted northern region of the Saxony continent. Pelzer's forces had excavated and renovated portions of the facility, allowing them to shelter their forces from detection.

Updates and stuff

It's been a while between updates due to the slow pace of the game. Real life and stuff gets in the way, unfortunately, but there's still new stuff around. There are updates to both the Irregulars and NPC/OpFor BattleMech galleries, as well as new stuff for MegaMek players.