4th Benjamin Regulars

4th Benjamin Regulars.png
Fourth Benjamin Regulars
Formed pre-2583
Affiliation Draconis Combine
Parent Command Benjamin Regulars


The Fourth Benjamin Regulars was a BattleMech regiment within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery.

History[edit]

The Fourth Benjamin were active during the Reunification War, acting as one of several DCMS BattleMech regiments assigned to an ad hoc corps in support of the Star League Defense Force task force responsible for invading the Outworlds Alliance. This invasion, named Operation UNION HOLD, saw the Fourth Benjamin tasked with the conquest of the Alliance world of Budingen.[1]

The invasion of Budingen began in mid-2582; the Fourth Benjamin had arrived in theater later than the other DCMS forces assigned to the task force, as a result of equipment malfunction and transport delays.[2] When the 4th Benjamin landed, Tai-sa Elliot Keita discovered that the Second Pitcairn Legion was already on Budingen, and as the Fourth Benjamin attempted to conduct spoiling attacks against the Legion, the Legion used the cover of the heavy autumn storms common to Budingen to fade out of contact.[3]

Determined to conquer Budingen, Keita ordered the Fourth Benjamin to attack the civilian populace, leading to the settlements of Brenda, Montezuma and Saratoga being raised, displacing hundreds of refugees. This drew a third of the Legion forces out and into combat with the Fourth Benjamin in the area known as Ruby Valley, but the Legion forces managed to keep the bulk of the Fourth Benjamin pinned in the Ruby Valley while two regiments of Legion 'Mechs reinforced with armor and infantry attacked the Fourth Benjamin base camp. The Fourth Benjamin and the Legion forces wreaked havoc on each other, but the Fourth Benjamin couldn't prevent their base camp being reduced to a shambles; Keita responded to this latest setback by leading the Fourth Benjamin into the heart of the planetary capital of New Jordan and ejecting hundreds more Alliance citizens from their homes and businesses to create an enclave just for the Combine forces. This left the Legion troops frantically constructing shelter for the thousands of Alliance refugees as winter approached before the rapidly approaching winter forced the Legion to retreat from Budingen.[3]

Keita took advantage of an early thaw in the fierce winter to break the resistance of the local population by burning villages, cities and herds of cattle, killing hundreds of people and removing any will to resist. When the Second Pitcairn Legion returned to Budingen in early 2583 they were unable to remove the entrenched Fourth Benjamin forces, but made retaliatory strikes against the Fourth Benjamin HQ and the new base outside New Jordan; despite the damage inflicted, Budingen remained firmly under the control of the Fourth Benjamin, who garrisoned the world until the end of the war.[4]

Star League Era[edit]

Of the various brigades of Regulars active within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery during the Star League era, the regiments of the Benjamin Regulars - including the Fourth Benjamin Regulars - were considered to be the most flexible. This was a reflection of the reality that the Regulars could at any point be called on to fight against the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns, the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces or the Star League Defense Force, as a result of the Benjamin Military District bordering the Federated Suns, Lyran Commonwealth and Terran Hegemony. This was even acknowledged by the Internal Security Force, who gave the Fourth and the other regiments of the Regulars more leeway than the average DCMS unit - an attitude the Benjamin Regulars repaid by limiting complaints and criticism to supply issues and local concerns, rather than anything to do with politics.[5]

In or around 2765 the ISF lowered the reliability rating of the Fourth to "Questionable"; this was not a reflection of a lack of loyalty, but rather that the Fourth had a new commanding officer still settling into post. The new commanding officer was a Sun Zhang graduate, and integration between the Fourth's conventional units and the BattleMech regiment had decreased following their arrival.[5]

Officers[edit]

Rank Name Command
Commanding Officers of the 4th Benjamin Regulars
Tai-sa Elliot Keita 2582[3]

Tactics[edit]

Star League Era[edit]

The Fourth Benjamin Regulars favored a strong combined-arms approach, but otherwise were a generalist unit, and deliberately fielded a wide range of BattleMech classes to encourage adaptation to changing circumstances.[5]

Composition History[edit]

2765[edit]

Fourth Benjamin Regulars (Regiment/Green/Questionable)[5]

Note: At this point in time the Regulars were stationed on Benjamin; attached to the Regulars were a wing of aerospace fighters, an artillery regiment, four infantry regiments and four armored regiments.[5]

2786 - 2821[edit]

Fourth Benjamin Regulars (Regiment/Green/Questionable)[6]

Note: At this point in time the Regulars were a medium-weight regiment, operating at full strength and stationed on Benjamin.[6]In 2821 the unit was operating at just above one-third of full strength and stationed on Buckminster.[6]

2830[edit]

4th Benjamin Regulars (Regiment/Green/Reliable)[7]

Note: At this point in time the medium-weight unit was stationed on Buckminster with an operational readiness of 69 percent.[7]

2864[edit]

4th Benjamin Regulars (Regiment/Green/Reliable)[7]

Note: At this point in time the heavy-weight unit was stationed on Tukayyid with an operational readiness of 50 percent.[7]

Game Rules[edit]

Reunification War[edit]

  • The Fourth Benjamin Regulars receive a +1 bonus to all morale checks.[8]
  • If a Fourth Benjamin Regulars force is outnumbered by 2-to-1 or greater at any point, the 4th Benjamin forces receive a +1 Initiative bonus.[8]
  • The Fourth Benjamin Regulars receive a -2 penalty to any roll made to determine the availability of advanced components, replacement equipment or supplies.[8]

References[edit]

  1. Historical: Reunification War, p. 141, "Outworlds Alliance Front"
  2. Historical: Reunification War, p. 36, "Fourth Benjamin Regulars"
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Historical: Reunification War, p. 120-121, "Budingen"
  4. Historical: Reunification War, p. 121-122, "...And Military"
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Field Report 2765: DCMS, p. 10, "Benjamin Regulars"
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 First Succession War, p. 136, "Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery (DCMS)"
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Second Succession War, p. 96
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 Historical: Reunification War, p. 182, "Benjamin Regulars"

Bibliography[edit]