13th Lyran Guards

Brigade Insignia of the Lyran Guards
Thirteenth Lyran Guards
Affiliation Lyran Commonwealth
Parent Command Lyran Guards

History[edit]

The Thirteenth Lyran Guards were formed during the First Succession War.[1]

In 2806, the Thirteenth along with the Twentieth Lyran Regulars successfully captured the planet of Bella I from the defending Thirtieth Marik Militia.[2] They held the planet until 2817 when a massive Marik assault force of three BattleMech regiments escorted by two WarShips forced them to retreat from the planet after several months of fighting.[3]

The Guards were sent to Keid around 3057 to 3058 in response to Duchess Arice Hunsen's rise to power and her declaration of her loyalty to Archon Katherine Steiner-Davion and the newly formed Lyran Alliance.[4]

At some point between 3058 and 3062, the unit went rogue in the Chaos March.[5] The Thirteenth Lyran Guards surrendered after a six-month fight against Clifton's Rangers and Hannibal's Hermits on Keid in 3066. By using the terrain and their superior mobility, the two units outmaneuvered the heavier Lyran unit, ambushed it at every opportunity, and finally captured their base.[6]

Officers[edit]

Rank Name Command
Commanding Officers of the 13th Lyran Guards

Tactics[edit]

Unknown.

Composition History[edit]

2821[edit]

Thirteenth Lyran Guards (Regiment/Green/Reliable) [7]

Note: In 2821, the medium-weight command was reduced to 63 percent of its strength and was deployed on Bella I. [7]

2830[edit]

Thirteenth Lyran Guards (Regiment/Green/Reliable) [8]

Note: At this point in time, the medium-weight unit was stationed on Gypsum with an operational readiness of 0 percent. [8] The unit was destroyed during the war.[8]

Notes[edit]

The Thirteenth Lyran Guards first appeared in Chaos March but that seems to be an error. The writers may have typed the wrong number, the wrong name, or even both, because there is no sign of its formation and no entry in any deployment table. In this case, the unit was likely meant to be the Thirteenth Donegal Guards or the Thirtieth Lyran Guards. The unit's short mentioning in Mercenaries Supplemental seems to be an attempt to correct this error by simply destroying the unit. The novel Double-Blind also mentions the Thirteenth on New Home but that seems to be an error by the author as the Thirtieth Lyran Guards were stationed on New Home not the Thirteenth, who were on Keid. Another mix up occurs in the novel during which the CO of the Lyran unit is mentioned as Dolores Whitman, Chaos March states that after their mutiny the CO is Delores Whitman, the former Second-in-Command of the Thirtieth Lyran Guards. Despite the minor difference in the name, that could be a typo, as they seem to mean one and the same person. A mix-up of the planet names is unlikely as the planetary ruler on New Home is named Shienzè, who isn't the same as Duchess Arice Hunsen, the planetary ruler of Keid. Also the New Home Regulars are mentioned as the enemy, so a mix up of Keid and New Home can be completely excluded. All this leads to the assumption that this is another mix up concerning the numbering.

The Thirteenth was erroneously listed as defending Bella I in 2821 in First Succession War (page 139), but had previously been forced from the planet in 2817. The Eridani Light Horse was defending the planet on behalf of the Free Worlds League at this point.[9]

References[edit]

  1. First Succession War, p. 139: "Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces"
  2. First Succession War, p. 71: "Bolan Thumb Campaign"
  3. First Succession War, p. 75: "Once More, With Feeling"
  4. Chaos March, pp. 42–43
  5. Field Manual: Lyran Alliance, p. 74
  6. Mercenaries Supplemental, p. 28
  7. 7.0 7.1 First Succession War, p. 139
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 Second Succession War, p. 99
  9. First Succession War, p. 138: "Free Worlds League Military"

Bibliography[edit]