Snakebite 01
Galtor II
An hour later
The space invasion had reached its terminal phase. Despite their willingness to continue, even the ELH fighters were starting to run out of fuel. The Drost IIH DropShips were well out of position to contest the landings - by the time they arrived, the Combine would have landed.
Everything in space combat was about the conservation of time and resources, and the Combine had managed to make the Light Horse pay dearly for it.
The Pocket WarShips turned about to head towards the JumpShips at the L1 point. The Combine's Vengeance-class Carriers had a maximum thrust value of three gravities, while the DroST IIHs maintained their maximum thrust values of up to four gravities. However, due to the angular difference and the momentum they had built up going the wrong way to meet up with the invasion force, they might or might not make it in time.
The SLS JOEL and SLS HEERMAN flipped around and sprinted to intercept, while SLS SAMUEL stayed behind, escorting the wounded SLS JOHNSTON at .25 g towards the ELH JumpShip group.
Their role in this invasion, at least for now, was over.
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#GALTORCOM
BrvG_Armstrong_(ELHc) It is time to go to work.
BrvG_Armstrong_(ELHc) It has been a pleasure, sirs.
Lt.G_Mandella_(33Hussar) God speed you on your way, gentlemen.
Mrgv_Douglass_(12thVega) Stand fast and be victorious!
Gen_Dobson_(Dahar_DMM) Wait, hang on. Are we just going to stop communicating here?
Gen_Dobson_(Dahar_DMM) This is far too useful!
Gen_Dobson_(Dahar_DMM) I am still getting a real-time track of where the dropships are heading.
Mrgv_Douglass_(12thVega) You must prepare for the EMP burst that Kurita uses to precede their landings.
Mrgv_Douglass_(12thVega) I am still in space ready to drop, remember?
BrvG_Armstrong_(ELHc) BROTHER EYE will rebuild comm links soon enough.
BrvG_Armstrong_(ELHc) Once we have fully engaged the enemy, we will then know when or how to send supporting forces.
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Fake Star League Site
Galtor III
No plan ever survives contact with the enemy. Despite everything, the defenders had not really managed to meaningfully thin out the attackers. Their only advantage was the utter decimation of Kurita aero power.
General Armstrong, in his Atlas, looked up at the sky and the distant flares showing DropShips on their final phase of descent.
Of the twelve Overlords assigned to the fleet, three were given over to General Yoriyoshi's 17th (but had a fourth Overlord-like craft). The elite 7th Sword of Light had four. The remaining five were given two each to the 19th Galedon, the 3rd Benjamin, and one to the 6th Benjamin regulars, with the rest made up with more common craft like Triumphs and Unions, and even some Leopard DropShips here and there. Cargo and Infantry carrier DropShips accompanied the landings, ready to receive loot and plunder.
All across the world, people shuddered at the streaks of light passing through the sky. These were no benign wishing stars, no matter how much they twinkled merrily.
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The 17th Benjamin Regulars in advance air-dropped jump-capable mechs to clear the way from the east of the depot and screen the main landing zone. Elazar's Battalion had this job.
The Light Mechs of Amos' Company were the first to drop even as the Overlord was still halfway to its desired Landing Zone. Mainly Panthers with some Phoenix and Shadow Hawks, jump-capable mechs all. They all landed nimbly and safely.
The Panthers of Eleazar's battalion were equipped with Advanced Electronic Probes (AEP), specifically designed to spot mines. Not quite the Beagle Active Probe (BAP), these devices were light enough to be a modular addition to the Targeting and Tracking System of a mech. Short ranged and limited to this one task, it forced fast mechs to slow down and scan the area.
"My scanners are screaming," said Lt. Derek Amos through the radio. Standard radio frequencies worked well enough at relatively close range and low altitude. "Everything from here to there for say ten kilometers around is a blasted minefield. There are berms blocking the view, and trenches for infantry to move through. We could send infantry through this but it would be slow going, sir."
"Do what you can," replied Major Noya Elazar. "We have our orders."
He looked to the horizon, and the depot with its old rusted hulks of dropships still slumped on long abandoned launch pads.
They started to cut a path through the minefields, blasting the ground with lasers and PPCs, and clearing the first band within fifteen minutes.
To counter this move, spotters from the Davion Guards Auxiliary, moving through the trenches, called in artillery strikes against these mechs. The Davion Guard Auxiliary's Snipers howled.
"Kuso! Move back and find cover!" he radioed back to command, "Sho-sa, artillery is covering the approaches. Should we continue? If we keep running back and forth, blasting mines, we could make some headway but it will not be quick."
"That would take too long. No, come back. We will find the General and ask for updated orders. The minefield is far too large for us to be of use splitting the enemy's attention with a flank attack. I will ask for mine clearing bombing runs."
As part of Warlord Yoriyoshi's most beloved regiment, the 17th knew better than to throw their valuable mechs (and lives) in brainless assaults.
The Panthers backed off and consolidated with the rest of their battalion finishing their unloading.
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The 3rd Benjamin made scattered landings due south and east of the depot.
No matter how prepared one was to face the enemy, one could never really be prepared for the enemy to do *the fuckstupid thing* and land *directly on the minefield*. The pilot noticed a navigation error that could have led them to land right on a swamp, but may have overcorrected the other way. Perhaps he was shouted at to get as close as possible to the enemy. Perhaps he was being shouted at for disobeying the General's great plan.
While the Overlord of Gamasy's Battalion of the 3rd Benjamin was able to blow away enough of the mines to land safely, their jump mechs landed directly on the mines and losses were total.
"No! Landing zone is hot! Repeat, landing zone is hot!" one of the MechWarriors screamed from below from a mech amputated from the waist down. "Do not land!"
But it was already too late, the Overlord *needed* to land before it could build up enough thrust for another controlled ascent. Overthrusting at this point would just lead to a loss of control and the Overlord pitching itself down into the dirt.
Gamasy's Battalion was packed with heavy and assault mechs. But their very valuable Overlord was within artillery range. Perhaps it would have been better if they had actually landed in the swamp.
Perhaps the pilot had already been angrily hit in the head for his 'incompetence' and now had to perform pre-flight checklists while bleeding and concussed.
Gamasy's Battalion lacked AEP devices and were effectively trapped inside the minefield. The smoke from burning wrecks attracted notice from aircraft. Now and then attempts at leaving their landing zone were heralded with a quick and often deadly bang.
Or they could run out into the minefield with their heavy and medium mechs and guarantee dying from a minefield and artillery.
Because EMP still blanketed the area, General Naguchido had no idea this was happening.
His command Overlord had landed safely, and a cluster of Unions carried the rest of his regiment many kilometers distant from each other.
A pair of Leopards landed right in the goddamn swamp as was originally planned and already that was two mech lances out of action. They were sucked right in on landing, and they opened bay doors and immediately flooded themselves. Downward-pointing vertical lift drives were sogged through, and igniting would blast their undercarriages. Just because the Wagnall Plains were plains did not mean it was all wide open prairies and good farmland.
He had bigger problems, that being the 91st's 1st and 2nd Battalions personally led by Armstrong, coming up right behind him. The Eridani Light Horse, despite the EMP comms disruption, moved out immediately as BROTHER EYE ballistically calculated the expected landing zones.
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The rest of the 17th Benjamin regulars landed directly east of the Depot. Air power accompanied Warlord Yoriyoshi's DropShip, and as such he was able to gather a scan of the area. His personal DropShip was one of the rare Fortress-class DropShips, slightly smaller than an Overlord at 6000 tons, but capable of carrying a complete combined-arms battalion of a company each of BattleMechs, combat Vehicles, and Infantry.
Air power accompanied Warlord Yoriyoshi's DropShip, and as such he was able to gather a scan of the area. He knew where the depot lay, and the Eridani Light Horse camp slightly north west of it. The Regimental Battlegroup landed along the main road leading to the depot.
Almost immediately his scouting forces were rained upon by artillery.
Warlord Syovo Yoriyoshi, in his Dragon, calmly moved through the scattered barrage. "These are Thumper shells," he correctly surmised, looking at the impact craters.
He ordered the Imperial Artillery Battalion attached to his battlegroup to unlimber and begin to perform counterbattery. Six Long Toms began to suppress the Depot, though Yoriyoshi wondered if this might cause too much damage to his prize.
Davion Recon observers cursed under their breath, as they had all hoped Kurita would not bring artillery. The Long Toms at the 33rd Avalon Hussars' base camp had to beware of an artillery duel, as unlike the Kurita Long Toms they were towed instead of road-mobile artillery pieces. The Fortress itself was a dangerous anchor to the DCMS formation, as it carried a nose-mounted Long Tom that could be pointed all around to secure its own landing zone.
Soon after, Sharon's Battalion reported enemy mechs inbound."The rumors were true. These are some stupid fast Urbanmechs," he noted.
But his was a heavy battalion. Six lances of heavy mechs in two companies, one of medium and two light mechs in the third company. He reported that they were engaging.
Back at the Regimental Battlegroup, Warlord Yoriyoshi licked his lips. The conditioned and filtered air inside the cockpit would not have any difference, but somehow… he tasted a trap.
He looked at the map. The Salt Lick River curved to his east, and the main road passed through a bridge. The river however was narrow enough for mechs to ford.
He radioed the Overlord: "Tell my aerofighters to find Naguchido as they patrol. Once the channels clear, order Eleazar to break off their attack and reform on my battlegroup. We will deal with the Light Horse and press on to the Depot once they arrive. Form up Gonen's Battallion in a defense line along the river. Sharon will continue to shield us from the direction of the Depot. Important. Tell them *do not* give chase. The Eridani Light Horse are well known for baiting enemies into ambushes.
"We must move in great combined mass or not at all. We hold the advantage of attacking whenever we will. Until then, we will just have to hold out."
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The Eridani Light Horse's 91st Cavalry 3rd and 4th Battalions were led by their Regimental Commander, Colonel Edward Stimson. Owing from his previous battalion structure of Stimson's Stealthers, these battalions were still a combined arms company - it was just that all those arms, from artillery to aircraft, were all Urbanmech.
"What, they're not taking the bait?" he asked through URBAC (Unified Regimental Battalion Action Command).
"No, sir. Although since they are mostly heavy mechs, their Archers and Warhammers are content to lay down long-range fire. Our ER PPCs *can* outrange them, but not without us setting up an obvious battle line and acting like heavy mechs."
"Maybe we should have brought in Barbara Mosley to piss them off more."
"We can't all be boiled eggs, sir."
"Bring up the LRM Super Urbies with the Laser AMS. Maximum harassment until they get annoyed enough to chase us to the depot."
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New Wuhan
Galtor III
The 1st Amphigean was not considered a favored DCMS regiment, even if they were highly lauded and elite force. In fact, they were technically not part of the DCMS at all. As such, they lacked sophisticated battalion transport such as Overlords. They had to make do with refitted aerodyne 8,600-ton Triumphs and a spheroid 16,000-ton Excalibur. While their cavernous hulls could more affordably transport a whole Battalion and then some, the price they had to pay was much thinner armor and lackluster firepower.
The Excalibur-class DropShip ATHENA reported"Enemy fighters ahead. We are… taking damage? How? There is…" suddenly the Captain's voice turned frantic. "There is a DropShip hovering above New Wuhan City! Looks like Overlord sized? Losing nose armor integrity very quickly! We are down one-thirds!"
General Olivet Satterthwaite clacked his tongue. The 1st Amphigean had minimal fighter support, relying mainly on Kurita fighters to achieve air superiority. They could brush aside the single squadron supporting the 12th Vegan Rangers, but these DropShips were in no mood to fight against yet another Assault DropShip.
"Land us now," he ordered."We will deal with this on foot."
The Amphigean Light Assault Group(s) were technically a private army owned and managed by Amphigean Agriculture Inc. The DCMS have two of their regiments rented out as high speed shock troops. With a toothy shark maw as their symbol, the 1st Amphigean LAG was a fearsome force despite their corporate roots.
Commanded by General Olivet Satterthwaite, the 1st Amphigean LAG distributed their forces with the Regimental Battlegroup and Ophiucus's Battallion landing east and Pollux's and Themistocles' Battalion landing south and east respectively, boxing in the city.
The Regimental Battlegroup was composed of four Vehicle Lances (1 square company) plus two mech Companies - one assault, and one heavy, effectively pitting four battalions against the two battalions of the 12th Vegan Rangers on New Wuhan. The Excalibur had plenty of room left to secure lostech loot that was supposed to be their payment for this run.
They landed at least three hours away from the city even at best speed by the fastest scout mech, as their converted ships had slower unloading times than other militarized dropships.
For a military sponsored by a farming megacorporation, they were highly professional and were ready to throw off any attempt at disturbing their landing zone.
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New Derry
Galtor III
The same situation was afoot in the space above New Derry, though with the bulk of fighters all pitching over the capital the situation was more in flux. Two regiments were en route to New Derry, and the Fighter Carrier SLS WHITE PLAINS, despite the enthusiasm of its crew, was not allowed to move out and play Assault DropShip on them.
Despite the standard Dictator/BigWig-class hull being stripped bare to accommodate four squadrons of fightercraft, these ships still retained four nose-mounted SCL/1s. Firing in bracketed fire mode, its volleys had extreme levels of accuracy from long range.
With ardent zeal, SLS WHITE PLAINS even managed to damage one Overlord DropShip to the point it broke up on re-entry. It was a Triumph, and a whole battalion of the 19th Galedon burned without ever being able to fire a shot.
But despite their huge success, the tide of battle eventually turned as five Overlords with much thicker armor closed in, and the Carrier dipped down to land at the offshore airport, pointing its nose-mounted Sub-Capital Lasers at the sky for anti-orbital and aerospace defense.
The Light SubCapital Laser had enough angular refinement and refire rate to fire through the space/atmosphere boundary with appreciable accuracy. With the thick atmosphere forcing maximum velocity against aerofighters going in for a strafing run, it was much easier while landed to secure airspace with impunity.
Nevertheless, even with the Davion 22nd SAS dogging the way, most of the 19th Galedon Regulars and the 7th Sword of Light Regiment landed safely well south of the capital.
In theory, the numbers evened out with the Dahar DMM, the Lone Wolves mercenaries, plus the Galtor Irregulars. Two Combine regiments vs roughly two and a half.
In practice…
It took two hours after landing for the bloodbath to start.
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Changlee
Galtor III
The 6th Benjamin Regulars touched down in the plains west of Changlee. The Light Regiment with mainly Green Mechwarriors had a completely uncontested run into the city any time they wanted.
However the Overlord carrying the Regimental Battlegroup broke off one of its supporting pylons on landing and now was tilted over to the side on the verge of falling over. The 6th Benjamin deferred any combat just yet and concentrated on very slowly and very carefully unloading their mechs, vehicles, and supplies.
The starport was clear. This was all too suspicious and Brigadier General Saad Shazli could already feel his ulcer acting up.