The Northern Guard 19th Heavy Gear Regiment

The Cursed

Steve Hilberg

The Northern Guard's 19th Heavy Gear Regiment is one with a long but irregular history. The regiment has been created and disbanded no less than six times in the history of the CNCS; one of those times, during the St. Vincent's War, the regiment was completely wiped out by a vicious Southern assault. The other five times, the unit dwindled to nothing, weakened by more distinguished units pulling pilots from its ranks, combat losses, and one company was even lost in a tempest that swept through the Great White Desert during their maneuvers in TN 1876.

The most recent incarnation of the 19th was created in TN 1914. With Terran troops making dramatic gains against both the North and South, the Northern Guard's Special Warfare Operations Command (SWOC) asked for the creation of a light strike/guerilla operations unit for use against rear Terran positions and to assist the South against Terran forces there, at the same time gaining pilots valuable experience in environments most Northern pilots were not used to fighting in. Many of SWOC's officers were convinced that victory over the CEF would only buy a short period of peace between the North and South, and wanted to have pilots who were experienced operating in Southern territory to make up the first part of an invasion force.

The 19th, with SWOC's backing, was able to draw many of the most promising pilots from the Northern Guard's swelling ranks, along with some veteran officers from some of the most distinguished units in the Norlight and Protectorate armies. The unit's first deployment was in the Winter of TN 1916, where the scattered forces of the 19th were dropped in to raid CEF supply lines in occupied areas of the UMF, in an operation codenamed VULTURE.

Unfortunately, planning for VULTURE had not been as thorough as it should have been, and a series of logistical and strategic mistakes ended up with many of the 19th's pilots being trapped behind enemy lines without vital supplies, such as fuel, food, and ammunition, for days on end. While actual pilot casualties were low, many of the regiment's Gears and other equipment was abandoned as CEF units overran their positions and pilots were forced to flee on foot, their Gears unable to escape without fuel. It is believed that many of the Gears that the CEF captured and later used against the Terranovans at the end of the war and then used for their own humanoid walker research were formerly part of the 19th, many captured almost totally intact when pilots were unable to destroy them properly.

Operation VULTURE was followed by FLYTRAP, an expedition to the South to aid Southern forces in the Mekong and ESE against CEF forces. This operation began in Spring of TN 1917, with many of the lost Gears of the 19th being replaced with older, less capable models. Many of the unit's Jaguar Gears were replaced with Hunter or Tiger Gears, and even models like the Razorback, Bobcat, and Mad Dog were frequent sights in the ranks of the 19th. Because of this, the 19th was often the butt of Southern derision, despite a fairly successful record during this time, with a few exceptions, such as the Battle of New Manila, where the regiment's third company jumped the gun on an attack on a CEF outpost before proper intelligence could be compiled, leaving most of the company destroyed when a CEF headquarters unit unexpectedly arrived on the scene with nine hovertanks in escort. The few survivors only escaped with the timely arrival of elements from the 2nd Legion Noire Regiment (many of the survivors claim that the Legion stayed out of the battle until the company had almost been wiped out, stepping in at the end to save the day and take all the credit).

Despite the Battle of New Manila and other setbacks, many in the ranks of the Guard commended the 19th for being as successful as they were, especially with such outdated hardware. As a result, the unit got a reputation for doing more with less, which unfortunately led to a decrease in the number of advanced combat units being sent to replace the older Gears in the 19th. Many of the regiment's best pilots were also plucked from its ranks to fill vacancies in the officer corps of other units, leading to a brain drain of sorts which lasted until the late 20s. It was not until tensions between the North and South began to return in the late 20s and early 30s that the 19th began to be rebuilt by SWOC for use against a reemerging Southern threat.

As war looms between the North and South, SWOC has began to shape the 19th as a jungle combat unit, for use in supporting the rebels of the Free Emirates against Patriarchal and MILICIA troops. The members of the unit are trained to fight in small combat teams, usually in the squadron and section level, using hit-and-fade tactics against enemy positions and supply lines. When war finally breaks out between the North and South, the 19th will likely be one of the first units into the fray, despite the fact that many of their units are still outdated with respect to their more illustrious colleagues in other special operations units.

Command and Unit Structure

The regiment is currently under the command of Colonel Aleizander Marris, a War of the Alliance veteran who has served in the ranks of the 19th since the ill-fated VULTURE operation. Under Marris, commanding Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, and Delta companies respectively, are Major Sylvie Winters (Marris' XO), Captain Reynald Vargis, Captain Ean Nohm, and Lieutenant Gennady Orlov. The regiment's duelist, Sergeant Erynn Voss, is one of the more enigmatic personalities in the Northern Guard; her past is rather murky, and rumors persist that she was once employed by the Kolson cartel of Wounded Knee. Voss commands Bravo 2's Raider III squadron.

As a further note, many of the 19th's squadrons use older Gear designs, such as the Tiger, Razorback, Mad Dog, and Bobcat in place of Jaguar, Grizzly, and Cheetah Gears. Many of their Hunter Gears are also replaced with variants or upgraded with various field refit kits.

Paint Schemes and Logos

The 19th's Gears are usually painted a dull olive drab with brown trim; the unit has a reputation for disliking more formal paint schemes, especially since their Gears are usually in the field instead of on display most of the time. In the field, this paint job is replaced with whatever is appropriate. The section emblem is painted on the right shoulder, while the regiment's logo, a pair of dice rolling snakeeyes, is painted on the left shoulder.

Unique Squadrons

Many of the 19th's tactics are built around squadrons made from older Gears and fast, highly mobile units that can still pack a heavy punch. Somewhere between a strike squadron and a commando squadron, the regiment has created Raider squadrons, the most experienced of which is under the command of Duelist Erynn Voss herself. Raider I squadrons are generally composed entirely of older light and medium Gears, (Tiger, Hunter, and Bobcat designs) with young crews. Raider II squadrons are also mostly older Gears, but include some heavier ones such as Razorback and Mad Dog Gears with more experienced crews. Raider III squadrons are composed of some of the best pilots in the regiment and get access to newer equipment, such as the unit's Jaguar and Cheetah variants.

Raider Squadron Composition Rules

Raider Squadron Composition List

Personalities of Note

Colonel Aleizander Marris

Aleizander Marris was born to a pair of factory workers in the city of Kenema in TN 1878. Marris' family was rather poor, and with his parents working most of the time, he grew up mostly unsupervised and suffered bout of depression and listlessness throughout his early years. Despite being relatively intelligent, his grades slowly began to decline and in his later teenage years he began to act out, finally ending up in trouble with the law in TN 1900. Given that the North and the South were embroiled in the Sandstorm Strikes during that time, the magistrate gave him the choice of either entering the Northern Guard or going to jail. He chose the Guard, mostly due to encouragement from his parents.

Military Record

Military discipline turned Marris from a troubled teenager into a hardened soldier quickly. By the time the Sandstorm Strikes ended in TN 1905, Marris had made the rank of ranger. After the Strikes, Marris participated in several anti-rover campaigns and was finally recommended for OCS in TN 1913. He accepted the invitation and graduated as a young lieutenant just as the CEF invasion was beginning.

When SWOC was looking for new officers for the 19th, Marris' success in using unconventional tactics against Southern units in the Sandstorm Strikes and against rovers in the years since made him a promising choice. He was placed as the executive officer of Bravo company shortly after the regiment's formation. During the unit's VULTURE operation, almost all of Bravo company's Gears were lost to CEF resistance and inadequate supplies, forcing Marris and the rest of his unit to escape to friendly lines on foot. During the grueling 17 day ordeal, Marris managed to save over two thirds of the unit's pilots, even after his CO was wounded in combat and the others had to carry him on a stretcher until they were able to return to Northern lines. During the more successful Operation FLYTRAP, Marris performed well again, managing to defeat CEF forces several times and study the operations of the Southern units he was working with, including the Legion Noire. This made him one of the most capable commanders in the regiment, and he was placed in charge of Bravo company shortly after the war ended in TN 1919 after his CO retired. When Colonel Renata Hofstaeder retired in TN 1929 just as SWOC was once again attempting to rebuild the unit, she recommended Marris for promotion and he took charge of the regiment.

Attitudes

Aleizander Marris is a loyal soldier and is grateful to the army for giving him a focus in life. Despite the fact that he has seen some of the most gruesome effects of war over the past 35 cycles, he still remains convinced that what he is doing is in the best interests of Terra Nova as a whole. While he does not entirely go along with the religious fervor that has swept his homeland these days, he knows the enemy and knows that the North cannot give in to Southern aggression. Without a family of his own, he considers the 19th and its pilots to be his sons and daughters, and he has high hopes that they will excel in the service of the Guard as he did.

Vital Statistics

Attributes

Skills

Major Sylvie Winters

Sylvie Winters was born outside of Fort Henry in TN 1890. Her mother was a Gear pilot in the WFPA and her father was a local merchant (who met her mother during his 5 year stint in the WFPA). As might be expected from such a family, Winters was encouraged to follow a military career from an early age. She did well in school and was attending Fort William Military Academy when the War of the Alliance broke out. She enlisted almost right away, joining the Northern Guard in TN 1914.

Military Record

Winters was placed in the 7th Gear Regiment as soon as she finished her training, a young pilot under the now-famous Stacy Diggs. She participated in some of the 7th's most daring missions during the War, including Black Bunker Beach, and when the war ended, she was placed in OCS to finish the education she had started in Fort William. Unfortunately, this also cost her the position she had in the 7th, and when she graduated she was placed in the 19th as Marris' XO in Bravo company.

At first, Winters was unhappy about the situation she had been placed in. Far from being one of SWOC's prize units, like the 7th had been, the 19th's ranks were filled with aging models and unorthodox pilots, many of which had a great deal of antipathy towards the Guard's command staff for the fiasco of Operation VULTURE. However, under the command of Marris, she quickly learned he had similar loyalties to the Guard as she did, and the two worked well together during the years after she joined the unit. Eventually, as many of the War of the Alliance veterans left the regiment and new blood was brought in, the feelings of resentment up the chain of command from the lower ranks began to dwindle and Winters found herself becoming much more at ease with the unit's culture. Marris recommended her for promotion in TN 1927 and she became the commander of Alpha company soon thereafter. When Marris was promoted, she became his XO once more. She was promoted again in TN 1934 to the rank of major.

Attitudes

Winters is a hardened professional soldier. Her time in the Cat's Paws has made her a very no-nonsense commander, although she has softened somewhat since joining the 19th. She is still a disciplinarian, often tossing pilots in the brig for what other more lenient commanders may consider "blowing off steam." While this often means she has a long talk with Marris from time to time, he knows that it is good to have someone keeping a rein on the troops and is content to let Winters have that role.

Vital Statistics

Attributes

Skills

Sergeant Erryn Voss

Erryn Voss keeps her past in the shadows, not wanting her skeletons dragged out of the closet. Voss was born in Wounded Knee and grew up mostly alone on the streets. She remembers little about her real parents, instead considering the group of pickpockets and vagabonds she grew up with to be her "real" family. From a young age, Erryn began working for the Kolson cartel, running errands and other small jobs for the smugglers. In TN 1909, around the age of 20 cycles, she became a Gear pilot for the cartel, escorting shipments to and from the cartel's various dealers. However, in TN 1913 she left cartel and signed on with the Northern Guard, realizing that there would be very little job security for her if the CEF crushed the polar leagues.

Military Record

Voss already had a great deal of experience as a Gear pilot, skirmishing with rovers and evading polar forces for the Kolson cartel for four cycles, when she joined the Guard. She was assigned to the 19th shortly after basic training and was part of the ill-fated Operation VULTURE. However, Voss was part of one of the few battlegroups that escaped the CEF dragnet almost unscathed, keeping most of their Heavy Gears. During Operation FLYTRAP, she had a personal kill record that included 3 HT-68 hovertanks and at least a dozen other enemy vehicles. Her Strike Jaguar is still painted with the small black tank markers that signify her kills.

After the War, she progressed slowly through the ranks, eventually reaching the rank of Senior Ranger in TN 1928. When the regiment's old duelist, Viktor Freewell, was killed in a battle with Southern forces in the Badlands in TN 1933, Voss was nominated by several of her men for the position; she emerged on top of the other three contenders, winning the duelists' spot and receiving a promotion to the rank of Sergeant.

Attitudes

Erryn Voss leads by example, taking heart of the old motto "he who dares, wins." She can be extremely unpredictable, something that only encourages more terror in those who face her in battle, although her skills as a tactician are not as developed as her piloting abilities. Off the field, she is usually relaxed, unless the subject of her past comes up, at which point she usually becomes extremely reclusive and quiet.

Vital Statistics

Attributes

Skills

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