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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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History: The Tote Männer ("Dead Men") mercenary unit was formed by twin brothers, Markus and
Jakob Vandarr. Originally members of the LAAF, they grew more and more frustrated with the "social
generals" that held so much power and influence in the LAAF. The final straw was a raid into Clan Jade
Falcon space that saw them and three others as the only survivors.
Having inherited a significant amount of C-Bills from their grandparents, they decided to form their own
unit. Starting with the other three survivors of the raid, they began doing their research and making
inquiries. They soon found that while having money was helpful, not having the right contacts hurt
them badly.
They decided to go to Arc-Royal to begin recruiting. Though it would cost them some of their initial
funds, they felt certain they could avoid the truly undesirable pilots. After half a year of interviews and
long talks on the phone, they formed their basic company of 'Mechs. Managing to score some sub-
contracts through the Kell Hounds, they were successful in their first three raids; through these successes,
both with salvage and payment, they have been able to keep themselves afloat, financially, as well as
expanding their unit. A recent addition of minor aerospace support (primarily for JumpShip defense and
DropShip escort), as well as some infantry has rounded them out, and expanded their contract options.
Through shrewd money management, they are able to provide support for all of their equipment and
personnel, though their administration side of the house is over-tasked. This is offset somewhat by the
twins and their lance commanders sharing some of the paperwork.
Their paint scheme is black, white and various shades of gray. The unit insignia is a leering skull.
Dragoon's Rating: A
Tote Männer Company
Gravewalkers
Company/Regular/Reliable
CO: Colonel Markus Vandarr
XO: Lt Colonel Jakob Vandarr
Still a relatively new unit, they have yet to begin specialization in any particular terrain or tactics. They do
maneuver well together and can coordinate fire well, though. Each 'Mech lance has its own C3 network,
and are fairly adept at utilizing it to its fullest. All of their 'Mechs have some sort of advance equipment;
while most are designs that are easily recognizable, none are standard variants. It is believed that the
MechWarriors in the unit brought their machines with them. They boast two Inner Sphere OmniMechs,
an Arctic Fox, and an Avatar.
Wraiths
Squadron/Regular/Reliable
CO: Captain Grigg "Hot Mic" Sandoval
XO: Captain Claire Larue
The two Aero lances that comprise the short squadron are recent additions to the unit. They are primarily
tasked with CAP missions or DropShip/JumpShip escort. Captain Sandoval, "Wraith 1", flies a TR-10
Transit, while his wingman flies a SYD-Z2A Seydlitz. Captain Claire Larue, "Wraith 2," flies a F-100
Riever, and her wingman flies a SPR-6D Sparrowhawk. The two lances rotate assignments between
the "Flying Dutchman" and the "Crypt."
Zombies
Company/Regular/Reliable
CO/1st Platoon: Captain Steven Hicks
CO/2nd Platoon: Lieutenant Kevin Hewett
Another recent addition to the unit's TO&E, these two platoons of foot infantry are primarily for crowd
control duties, basic security, as well as battlefield mop-up. Both the 1st and 2nd Platoon commanders
have voiced an interest in getting themselves trained in Anti-BattleMech tactics. |
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Tote Männer Composite Battalion
(Current as of 26 Jan 3069)
Vampire Aerospace Group
Transportation Command
Invader-class JumpShip Green "Flying Dutchman"
Union-class DropShip Elite "Crypt"
Condor-class DropShip Veteran "Vulture"
Wraith Squadron
Nightmare Lance
Captain Grigg "Hot Mic" Sandoval TR-10 Transit P3 / G3
Lieutenant Jacques Pardeaux SYD-Z2A Seydlitz P4 / G3
Witch Lance
Captain Claire "Banshee" Larue F-100 Riever P4 / G3
Lieutenant Stefan Toshay SPR-6D Sparrowhawk P4 / G4
Gravewalker BattleMech Company
Command Lance ("Spectre")
Colonel Markus Vandarr, Pilot P2 / G5
Lt Colonel Jakob Vandarr, Gunner BLR-6TH Battlemaster P5 / G2
Major Shigeru Mayazaki AXM-6TH Axman P4 / G4
Field Officer Blane Harkers STK-6TH Stalker P4 / G5
Field Officer Vince Klorto BEO-12TH Beowulf P3 / G3
Strike Lance ("Banshee")
Captain Sam MacKenzie MAD-5R Marauder P3 / G3
Lieutenant Blair Fostwick AV1-0TH Avatar P4 / G4
Field Officer Janice Soto CDA-6TH Cicada P3 / G3
Field Officer Aram Tasiji HCT-6TH Hatchetman P3 / G3
Recon Lance ("Ghost")
Captain Drake Harcourt PXH-6TH Phoenix Hawk P4 / G3
Lieutenant Adrian Fleming HM-6TH Hitman P2 / G2
Field Officer Otomi Nusa AF-1TH Arctic Fox P3 / G3
Field Officer Isabel Luna RVN-6TH Raven P3 / G3
Zombie Infantry Company
1st Platoon Regular Foot
2nd Platoon Regular Foot Details on non-canon 'mech variants can be found in this thread. |
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Lieutenant
Posts: 1333
Ice Dragons: Cold Hearted
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one thing, on here it says the CO/XO ride a Cyclops whie lthe mech detail thread says its a Battlemaster.
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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one thing, on here it says the CO/XO ride a Cyclops whie lthe mech detail thread says its a Battlemaster.
Forgot to fix the TOnE; thanks! |
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Captain
Posts: 2639
The Warhammer, For when U need to Headcap!!!
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The brother use a Battlemaster with 1 as gunner, and other as pilot...
yet i didn't see a Dual cockpit Mech (was in MW2 mechwarrior companion)
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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The brother use a Battlemaster with 1 as gunner, and other as pilot...
yet i didn't see a Dual cockpit Mech (was in MW2 mechwarrior companion)
Look at the BLR-6TH; the Dual Cockpit is listed there; in fact, it's the only thing that makes the design level 3. |
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Captain
Posts: 2639
The Warhammer, For when U need to Headcap!!!
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Missed that my bad
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Missed that my bad
Not a problem; it doesn't exactly stick out. |
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Major
Posts: 3768
OVERKILL is just common sense
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Those are not bad at all.
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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If you're referring to the rank insignia, thanks. I could probably do a better version now if I ever got motivated enough to do it.
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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"Brief but Brutal"
Kalidasa (INN) - Days after the initial report broke about the alleged capture of the leaders of the "Quickcell Bunch," some details have finally come to light. Through means both public and private, we're able to shed the light on some of what happened. Here are some excerpts from an interview with one of the lance commanders, a Captain Drake Harcourt.
"So, Captain Harcourt, can you tell us how the confrontation played out? Was it one massive assault?"
"Well, we first encountered the enemy-"
"You mean your opposition?"
"No, as I was saying, our first encounter with the enemy was between our Fire Lance and their heavier units. If it weren't for the skill of our pilots, as well as some of the best gear Lyran Kroner can buy, their 4 'mechs wouldn't have stood a chance against the Manticores, Bulldogs and Vedettes of 1st Company. Fortunately, Capt MacKenzie and his crew cleaned house; of course, they've got some wounds to lick and repairs to make.
"After we'd found that portion of their force, we wanted to find out where everyone else was...and that job fell to my lance. We'd been out for most of the morning when Field Officer Luna's enhanced sensors started getting readings off the scale on the MAD. We hadn't intended on taking the Colonel so literally on his directive to find the rest of the forces...but there they were. A full company of Scorpion light tanks, a mixed company of SRM crawlers and LRM carriers. Guarding them was a mess of PB, *coughs* infantry. I like to think I'm a pretty good judge of what my lance and I can handle, and this one was a no-brainer. I called in my CO and his lance, but it was going to take them a bit to hoof it to where we were.
"We tangled with them for a few minutes, and lost a lot of armor and things beneath. If it had been just us, I'd have ordered a withdrawal; none of them could have caught us. As it was, even with two Assault-class machines, a heavy and another medium-class, we all got pretty well dinged and dented. I heard my CO's ride even had a gaping hole in the front torso from a lot of LRMs. There was so many missiles flying between SRMs and LRMs, you'd think we were in a fog bank.
"So, this so-called 'Quickcell Bunch' are destroyed as a viable unit. All of their machines are wrecks; those that weren't outright destroyed are barely good for parts. Even if we go a little in the red for this op, it was still worth it."
"Why's that?"
"Because we took another tool out of the toaster lovers' toolchest. You can quote me on that one."
As you can see, there's no love lost between Capt Harcourt and the Word of Blake. When asked for their take on the mercenary captain's comments, the Blake representative simply said, "Blake's Will be done, as always."
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Arc-Royal
7 Feb 3069
"Also, let me get this straight. Your company, Defiance Industries, wants the Tote Männer to make a raid on the Kali Yama plant on Kendall, targeting the ERPPC production facilities?"
"Correct. The facility is to be damaged, but not destroyed."
Markus Vandarr, CO of the small merc unit, didn't change his upright posture one bit as he considered the offer on the table. His XO and twin brother, Jakob, was a little more relaxed in his posture, though it wouldn't seem so to a casual observer.
"In the midst of all this confusion, you wish to add to it?" This was Jakob, though Markus had been thinking the same.
"Confusion is always good for the war-materiel business, gentlemen. Though small, your unit's reputation and capabilities are quite impressive. That's why we're offering you this opportunity first."
The twins conferred for a moment then turned to face the Defiance negotiator. "Very well, but here are our terms...."
An hour later, after the contract terms had been hammered out, the Tote Männer had a new contract. Not quite what they had hoped to be doing, which was fighting the Word of Blake forces, but in the mercenary business, you didn't always get the jobs you hoped for.
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Employer: Defiance Industries
Length of Contract: 3 months
Command Rights: Independent
Overhead Compensation: Full
Salvage Rights: 80%
Support Rights: 80%/80%
Transport Rights: Full
Signing Bonus: 33%
Total Payment Due: 4,027,598 C-Bills
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Arc-Royal
9 Feb 3069
The mottled gray Union lifted off from the main spaceport as scheduled, followed shortly by an even older Condor in similar colors. On each was a white, leering skull, denoting ownership by the Tote Männer. They both had several days travel to rendezvous with their waiting JumpShip, the "Flying Dutchman," parked at the nadir jump point.
Onboard each DropShip, combatants checked and re-checked their equipmenthoping to find any problems and fix them long before their arrival in the Kendall system. The Vandarr twins had briefed their men and women on their assignment, and like the professionals they were, they started getting themselves ready, as much as their machines. They viewed what little intel they had on their opposition, a merc unit known as The Bad Dream. The most recent known strength put them over a battalion; the only real thing in the Tote Männer's favor was that the factory complex was large and all of it had to be protected. It would be up to the twins to work out their battle plan.
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Warrant Officer
Posts: 573
Death Rides a Darkhorse
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Interesting Unit
I have one that I will have to post that was fopunded by Twins just on the Fed Suns side, one is a MW the other a Tanker.
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Warrant Officer
Posts: 689
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Good to see you bringing back this unit. Looking forward to more.  |
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Thanks; this one's a bit more of a challenge, since they don't have pockets even remotely as deep as the Musei Yuuchi. I'm going to use the Merc Supp to generate how many contract offers they have, the details of those offers, etc. Then I'll use the single-player rules for Bragaining Points (BP) in modifying the contract. I'm going to *try* and not abuse it, but with 127 BP to throw around, they can potentially get a lot of say.  |
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Kendall
14 Sep 3069
"Ghost-1, Spectre-1"
[Go ahead, sir]
"What do you have for us?"
[I spot 8 'mechs so far. Warbook has them as an AV1-0 Prime, CTS-6Z, GAL-1GLS, ON1-E, BJ2-0 Charlie, B1-HND, CBR-02 and something it's calling a DRK-0 Bravo.]
"Keep your eyes open and call in the coords for Harkers."
[Affirm. Spectre-3, Ghost-1.]
[Spec-3] Field Officer Harkers often shortened the lance name to a single syllable. It was tolerated due to the impressive support fire his heavily modified Stalker brought to the small unit.
[Roger, Spectre-3, so far looks like the pre-des coords should work. It'd be hard to miss a building here, anyway.]
[Confirmed, coords locked in. Spec-1, Spec-3, first salvo?]
"As discussed, Spectre-3. Let's damage the larger warehouses first."
Two gouts of flame and smoke heralded the launch of two, non-homing Arrow IV rounds from behind their Battlemaster. They quickly arced up and pitched over towards the locations affixed in their simple, electronic brains.
[Spectre-1, Ghost-1, we're engaging the lighter lance.]
[Spectre-1, Banshee-1, we've got the others.]
"Roger, keep them busy."
Each side maneuvered and shot, with the veteran pilots on both sides melting and blasting armor from each others' machines. The initial exchanged went in the attackers' favor, especially as a nearly-ruined left leg on the BJ2 sent in crashing to the ground. Captain MacKenzie, piloting the MAD-5R, noted a telltale heat bloom from the chest of the DRK from one of his RAC/5 bursts.
Large explosions amongst the factory buildings sent a huge shower of debris and sparks skyward as the first Arrow IV missiles impacted. The weapons fire intensified as more of them came into effective ranges. The overall lighter 'mechs of the Tote Männer had to be careful, as any of the heavy weapons borne by the other side could put serious rents in their armor. The BJ2, which had righted itself, fell again as the destruction of its left leg was completed. The GAL also lost a significant amount of armor to combined fire from Jakob in the Battlemaster, Shigeru in the Axman, Vince in the Beowulf and Sam in the Marauder. The BJ2 pilot opted to eject from his 'mech, rather than sit in it and be destroyed. The B!-HND fell, after a full burst from Aram's RAC/5 in the Hatchetman capitalized on earlier damage to the center torso; later it would be discovered the gyro was damaged, along with the engine and Beagle Probe. That pilot would also choose to eject due to the extreme damage to his 'mech.
More Arrow IV rounds struck the factory buildings, and there was a pall of smoke both near the Stalker and over the factory complex as a whole. The ON1-E was taken out of the fight by a combined ERPPC shot from Sam and an LRM missile cluster from Blair in her Avatar that destroyed the head and pilot within.
Even as the Arrow IV barrage continued, the rest of the company began to appear from the far side of the complex. A BHKU-0 Prime unleashed a fusillade of energy at Vince, scoring quite a few hits, but nothing vital. Jakob would also score an ER Large Laser hit on the sloped "forehead" of the CTS.
A large pulse laser blast from Shigeru damaged the CTS' gyro, but the pilot displayed commendable skill in keeping it upright. Between its continued energy fire and missile clusters from the enemy Cobra, the MAD's left torso was breached, suffering an engine hit. Worrying, but in the hands of an experienced operator like Sam, the extra heat was manageable. Vince danced with the BHKU, keeping its attention, trading laser fire with it, catching a medium pulse laser blast to the head of his machine. A brief curse was heard from Aram as the RAC in his 'mech's breast jammed; he would manage to get it cleared quickly, however.
The Fire Lance, or "Banshees," earned their pay, shattering the CBR badly enough that the pilot opted to eject. Shigeru completed ruining the gyro of the CTS with a burst of cluster shots from his LB-X Class 10 cannon. It was in the midst of this confusion that Janice, piloting the Cicada, suffered a complete structural failure of her left torso after receiving brutal combined fire from the AV1 and CTS. After submitting to the inevitable tug of gravity, the CTS pilot ejected from his stricken machine.
From the smoke that was filling the avenues between the warehouses and factory buildings, two massive 'mechs appeared: a HGN-734 Highlander and an AWS-9Q Awesome. Bounding over in support of them was a PTR-6S Penetrator. Jakob called for Blane to prepare homing rounds now; the assault-class machines needed to be dealt with, and in a hurry.
It's still unknown whether Blane, in the excitement, forgot to arm the missiles, or if their seeker heads were faulty. Jakob had a confirmed lock on the HGN, but 2 of the 3 inbounds missiles failed to track. Between it and the BHKU, which had closed on Blair, her AV1 was battered and beaten, but she remained upright and unbowed. Vince had kept pace with the heavier machine, and a mighty kick on its damage right leg damaged an actuator and sent it unceremoniously to the ground.
Otomi, previously ignored for the most part in her Arctic Fox, crossed in front of the AWS. With tremendous accuracy, 3 of the 4 lightning bolts coursed between the two machines and connected. The sturdy little machine took it, and the veteran pilot kept it upright. The HGN and BHKU kept at Blair in her AV1, but she kept giving back as much as she could. "Banshee's" C3 net went down when the BHKU struck the computer with one of its many lasers. With her own laser, she melted what remained of the BHKU's right leg, and it fell. Sam punished the HGN for forgetting about him, an extended burst from his RAC/5 separating the right leg at its hip, prompting the assault machine to join its companion on a downward journey. As fine a pilot as he is, Vince could not keep his own 'mech upright when one of the many pulse lasers from the Penetrator ruined his left leg.
At this point, Markus was surprised to get a request from the Penetrator pilot, evidently the company commander, for them to be allowed to leave the field with their ejected pilots. While they certainly could have taken a few more of our machines out, I think it was evident to them that barring any major luck or help, none of which seemed close at hand, they would not carry the day.
"Spectre-1 to all units, cease fire. I repeat, cease fire. Begin salvage and recovery operations. The Bad Dream are retreating."
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OOC: Ugly fight all around. The early headcap on the ON1 helped a bit, obviously, but missing two 4+ rolls to nail the HGN with Arrow IV rounds kinda compensates for that.
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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4 Apr 3070
Arc-Royal
"So, there is the evidence of the damage, and our report of salvage, repair costs and other information." Markus was handling the post-mission affairs with the Defiance representatives.
"Impressive work, and nice bit of salvage. Our 20% is...?"
Jakob slid over a small noteputer and called up a display. "This HGN-734 Highlander. It's a little worse for wear, but nothing too bad. It's just about 20% of the total salvage value."
The Defiance negotiators looked over the 'mech's file, looked at each other and nodded. "Acceptable. The balance of the payment will be sent to your account."
The twins stood as the other men left. "Let's go see how the modifications are coming along, shall we, bruder?"
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Toten Männer Composite Battalion
(Current as of 4 Apr 3070)
Vampire Aerospace Group
Transportation Command
Invader-class JumpShip Green "Flying Dutchman"
Union-class DropShip Elite "Crypt"
Condor-class DropShip Veteran "Vulture"
Wraith Squadron
Nightmare Lance
Captain Grigg "Hot Mic" Sandoval TR-10 Transit P3 / G3
Lieutenant Jacques Pardeaux SYD-Z2A Seydlitz P4 / G3
Witch Lance
Captain Claire "Banshee" Larue F-100 Riever P4 / G3
Lieutenant Stefan Toshay SPR-6D Sparrowhawk P4 / G4
Gravewalker BattleMech Company
Command Lance ("Spectre")
Colonel Markus Vandarr, Pilot P2 / G5
Lt Colonel Jakob Vandarr, Gunner BLR-6TH Battlemaster P5 / G2
Major Shigeru Mayazaki AXM-6TH Axman P4 / G4
Field Officer Blane Harkers STK-6TH Stalker P4 / G5
Field Officer Vince Klorto BHKU-0TH Black Hawk-Ku P3 / G3
Strike Lance ("Banshee")
Captain Sam MacKenzie MAD-5R Marauder P3 / G3
Lieutenant Blair Fostwick AV1-0TH Avatar P4 / G4
Field Officer Janice Soto GAL-6TH Gallowglas P3 / G3
Field Officer Aram Tasiji ON-6TH Orion P3 / G3
Recon Lance ("Ghost")
Captain Drake Harcourt PXH-6TH Phoenix Hawk P4 / G3
Lieutenant Adrian Fleming HM-6TH Hitman P2 / G2
Field Officer Otomi Nusa AF-1TH Arctic Fox P3 / G3
Field Officer Isabel Luna RVN-6TH Raven P3 / G3
Zombie Infantry Company
1st Platoon Regular Foot
2nd Platoon Regular Foot |
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Warrant Officer
Posts: 689
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So who is the lucky pilot who gets the Highlander.  |
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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The company that hired them gets it as their 20% of the salvage. The Cicada and Hatchetman are repaired, but they've been shelved for now. While the CDA is nice and speedy, all it takes is a couple good hits and it's hurting. The HCT is mobile enough, but its main firepower comes from the RAC/5 - not one of my favorite weapons. Fire Lance needed some beefing up, and I was fortunate enough to get some nice heavies to do so with.
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Warrant Officer
Posts: 689
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I'd agree with the Hatchetman. With your unit it would not be a good fit. As a spare it is alright. The Cicada is not a favourite but can be useful for it's speed. Another adequate spare.  |
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Captain
Posts: 2301
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I'd agree with the Hatchetman. With your unit it would not be a good fit. As a spare it is alright. The Cicada is not a favourite but can be useful for it's speed. Another adequate spare. and puts you half way to a new lance |
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Arc-Royal
7 Apr 3070
"We have reviewed your offer, gentlemen. For the most part, we like what we see, though as with these things, there remain some minor details to be worked out."
The young-looking man in the uniform of a Captain of the AFFS looked both unsure and perturbed that the contract hadn't been accepted as-is. He was only recently assigned to the liasion program, and hadn't been given proper training or preparation.
"What details would those be, gentlemen?" It also wasn't helping him that the two men he was dealing with were both Lyrans, and his nation had only recently finished a very bloody Civil War against the Lyran half of their former great nation. His resentment bled into his voice - he couldn't help it.
"You will find them outlined, very concisely, on these documents," replied Markus as he slid a manila folder across the table.
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Employer: Federated Suns
Contract type: Garrison
Length of Contract: 23 months
Location: Addicks
Command Rights: Independent
Overhead Compensation: Full
Salvage Rights: 90%
Support Rights: 80% Straight / 25% Battle Loss
Transport Rights: 0
Signing Bonus: 2,792,910 C-Bills
Total Payment Due: 26,067,162 C-Bills
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Captain
Posts: 1633
Centurion Gabriel McCray, VI Legio
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Nice cushy garrison contract on a rather major world. My, what on Earth could go wrong? |
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Nice cushy garrison contract on a rather major world. My, what on Earth could go wrong? They're gonna be busy, methinks.  |
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Captain
Posts: 2513
100% DEST Baby!!!
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Does the proverbial shit hit the fan on day one?
TT
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Nope! |
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Captain
Posts: 2513
100% DEST Baby!!!
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 TT
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Major
Posts: 5759
Swooping Talons Lance Cdr
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Addicks
11 Aug 3070
The humid air remained still, creating a bit of a dampening effect on noise. For the moment, the only noise to be heard was the buzzing of lots of insect wings. Markus paid little attention as he stretched out on his towel, clad in an immodest swimsuit. Were he home on a Lyran planet, he'd most likely have foregone the suit, but he didn't want to offend anyone just yet. Their arrival had been as uneventful as expected, though there were some protesters around on a daily basis. They didn't care for the "Lyran" merc group being hired to protect them. It didn't seem to matter that only he and his twin brother were the only Lyrans in the bunch. As much as he tried, Markus was unable to clear his mind of information and relax.
"Verdammte Sunners!" he spat as he stood up and walked towards his room to get a quick shower and change.
16 Sep 3070
0246L
[Any IFF codes yet, Witch-Alpha?] She had chosen "Alpha" over "One" to try and avoid the inevitable confusion such a designation would cause.
"Negative, though they are sporting Drac colors. They have a couple fighters, but they're keeping them in close for escort."
She ran a quick system check once again to be sure nothing had changed on her Riever in the past 10 minutes.
[Any specific unit colors, Alpha?] She punched up the magnification on her viewscreen.
"Looks like white with pale, blue, wispy smoke and a dark gray chain motif."
[A Ghost regiment. Interesting. Very well, keep an eye on them and see if you can't encourage them to shift their landing zone over to the East some.]
"Copy. Not sure how much we can do, but we'll give it a shot." She switched to her lance frequency. "Okay, Lieutenant, keep your Sparrowhawk a few thousand meters off my tailfin and watch my back. Command wants us to see if we can get these Dracs to adjust their landing site to the East."
Two clicks of the mic in rapid succession signalled his acknowledgement of the order.
1822L
[We're supposed to fight in this mess?]
"Yes, we are, Field Officer Harkers. Besides, it's not like these winds and the rain are going to affect your Arrow IV missiles all that much. It will also make it harder for them to find you."
A steady rain had been falling since daybreak and had yet to show any sign of abating. A stiff wind from the West was driving the rain at them from their right. Their force was arrayed at the top of a gentle slope that overlooked a mostly open but occasionally broken plain. Glowing red triangles on their map displays indicated the rough positions of the raiders. Twelve of them were closing the distance even as their force slogged across the muddy ground.
"Watch your footing, folks, and mind the wind; it's going to play hell with ballistics and missiles."
[I'm glad I'm in an energy boat, then, Colonel.]
"Which we can easily assign to someone else, Spectre-4, so I wouldn't gloat too much if I were you."
Field Officer Klorto was pretty sure the twin brothers in the Battlemaster were not serious in their threat, but he kept quiet just to be sure. Even after a couple years with the unit, he still had trouble reading them.
[Contact, reading a DMO-1K, still not squawking friendly IFF.]
"Roger, Ghost-2; fire at will. Spectre-1, Ghost-1, engaging hostile DMO-1K."
A bust of static in the BLR's comm channel heralded a PPC discharge.
[Ja, gut. We just found a BL-6. Be advised, FASCAM rounds headed downrange.]
"Copy, will advise. All Ghosts, watch for FASCAM dispersal in approximately 10 seconds."
"Spectre and Banshee lances, engage that No-Dachi on Mayazaki's Six!"
Whether overly confident in his machine, or simply a fanatical pilot, a NDA-1K had maneuvered to behind Shigeru's Axman. A bold move, for it certainly threatened the close-combat machine, but the move had put the sword-bearing 'mech within range of a lot of weaponry. All of the pilots targeting the enemy 'mech had noted an increase in speed and that it was running a little warm. That was enough to tell them that the 'mech's Triple-Strength Myomer was at peak efficiency, and a sword strike would be particularly deadly.
Man-made lightning bolts and a hail of autocannon slugs from the RAC/5 in Captain Mackenzie's Marauder melted and blasted armor, while a couple of extended range medium laser beams from Klorto's Black Hawk-Ku also melted some armor. Jakob's deft hand on the trigger sent energy blasts from the BLR's PPC, medium lasers and SRM6 rack pouring into the hapless Kurtian 'mech. Following shortly behind those were the lasers, SRM4 and cluster munitions from Field Officer Tariji in his Orion. All of those attacks had exposed the machine's left torso, and one of Lieutenant Fostwick's pulse lasers completed the ruin. Having suffered too much damage, the fusion engine shut itself down. Though a skilled pilot, Shigeru was unable to keep his machine standing between the loss of so much armor, the slippery footing, and a gyro that had been damaged a little earlier in the fight. It crashed to the ground, and Shigeru grunted as the seat harnesses pulled tight against his chest. He thought he heard a "snap" from somewhere in that vicinity but didn't have long to dwell on it as he found himself fighting off tunnel vision.
Markus and Jakob watched the mostly white Guillotine with a dark grey chain across its chest rush in close to their damaged machine. So far, nothing had penetrated the BLR's thick armor, but it appeared as if the GLT pilot was going to have a go at it. Its large laser and 3 of the 4 mediums melted armor off of various spots, and its SRM6 went wide, surprisingly enough. Jakob wasn't going to give that DCMS MechWarrior another shot at him and his brother. The two forward firing mediums struck the GLT's left arm, causing it to flinch, and as it did so, it brought the head right into the path of both large lasers. The GLT remained standing, decapitated.
A few hundred meters ahead of that fight, Mackenzie in his MAD and Soto in her Gallowglas combined fire to wreck the DCMS Champion. Unfortunately, there would be very little of use left to salvage.
"Give me two Copperheads, ASAP!" commanded the Canopian MechWarrior in the Raven. "I've got a pissed off Archer gunning for me!"
[Roger, two Homing rounds inbound to your grid. Be ready to paint him....now.]
A lucky hit from some LRMs had managed to knock a foot actuator out, so she'd sought shelter in a small depression behind a low hill. The ARC pilot, perhaps hoping to kill or disable her, had run to stand right in front of her. Her lancemate, Fleming, in the Hitman used her sensor data to give him a clearer feed for his TAG. Isabel watched in morbid fascination as the two large missiles arced in, blowing the fire support 'mech's right arm almost off, and obliterating the head.
"That's a definite kill!"
The DCMS Crusader pilot regained consciousness no more than 10 seconds after an SRM from the merc Orion had caromed off his 'mech's sloped head. It was amazing to him what could happen in 10 seconds. The company commander in the Archer was dead. The Bishamon and Champion were gone. The Black Knight might as well have been gone; its gyro was completely shot and it was missing its right arm. His CRD, the DAI and DRG were in decent shape, but they just didn't have the throw weight or armor to face these mercs, especially not with Arrow IV on their side. He requested and was granted permission to leave the field with his living pilots and those machines that could walk off under their own power. He eyed his left hand, and was sure once he returned to Combine space, he'd be giving up another portion of the pinky on that hand.
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Captain
Posts: 2513
100% DEST Baby!!!
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