Regional Defense Force 4

Regional Defense Force 4
Affiliation	Hanseatic League
Parent Command	Hanseatic Security Force

Regional Defense Force 4 was a regiment sized unit of the Hanseatic League.

History

Regional Defense Force 4 (RDF 4) was formed as a part of the creation of the Hanseatic Security Force following attempts by a number of colonies to throw off the influences of the Hanseatic League Council of Merchants in or around 2920.

After attempting to enforce a period of isolation from external influences across the League, the Council of Merchants changed tack in 3011 and decided to declare three worlds to be open worlds, accessible to all.

By the mid-3060s RDF 4 was under the command of Captain-General Lars Muldoon and well-known for a robustly proactive approach to pirate hunting; rather than waiting passively for attacks from hostile forces, RDF 4 regularly dispatched hunter-killer task forces to conduct raids against targets believed to be supporting or harboring pirates. These raids often included conducting "object lessons" against settlements believed to be harboring bandits, and RDF 4's tactics were acknowledged as being brutal.

Unbeknownst to Captain-General Muldoon, his Aide, Major Hohiro Watanabe, and a number of elements within RDF 4 were in league with a number of major Hansa trading houses at this point in time; these elements would "accidentally" damage facilities belonging to rival trading houses during their pirate-hunting raids. While Watanabe was responsible for drawing up a number of hit-lists for these rogue elements, by 3064 he was beginning to have qualms about some of the tactics being used by these elements.

Despite the disruption other RDFs suffered between 3064 and 3067 RDF 4 were largely unaffected by events within the Hanseatic League, continuing their anti-pirate activities throughout the period. from their home base on Gateway.

During the Jihad RDF 4 continued to fight against bandits and pirates, and the successes enjoyed by the RDF led to very high morale, despite the fact that most of the engagements involved pitting elements of the RDF against outnumbered opponents who were using inferior technology.

Dark Age

In January 3140, the Escorpión Imperio assaulted the Hanseatic League. In 3139, RDF 4 was split up and stationed on Tomalov, Goslar, and Stralsund. By the time of the Escorpión assault, they had rejoined into one unit and were stationed on Antwerp. They remained there for the first three waves of the Escorpións' attack. By wave 4 however they had redeployed to Tomalov. They just missed Mu Galaxy, and quickly dispatched the small Imperio force left behind. After that they joined Regional Defense Force 1, Regional Defense Force 3, and Convoy Defense Force 1 at Bremen. RDF 4 was held in place by Tau Galaxy, which left Hellion Galaxy free to flank the RDF. The Hellion Galaxy attacked RDF 4 from the side and, unable to disengage from Tau's heavy units, the RDF was destroyed in a pincer movement.

Officers

Rank	Name	Command
Commanding Officers of the Regional Defense Force 4
Captain-General	Lars Muldoon	3064 - beginning of Jihad
Captain-General	Lena Markwardt	3140

Tactics

Unknown.

Composition History

In common with all of the RDF brigades RDF 4 was a combined arms force, and standard deployments for sub-units drawn from RDF 3 typically consisted of a 'Mech company reinforced by one or two battalions of armor and infantry.

3064

Regional Defense Force 4 (Veteran/Reliable)

• 1 BattleMech Regiment
• 4 Conventional Regiments

• CO: Captain-General Lars Muldoon
• Aide: Major Hohiro Watanabe

3067

Regional Defense Force 4 (Veteran/Reliable)

• 1 BattleMech Regiment

• CO: Captain-General Lars Muldoon

- At this point in time RDF 4 was at full strength; fifteen percent of the RDF were using advanced equipment, and the RDF was based on the world of Riga. - Conventional forces are not listed within Field Manual: Updates, leaving the strength of the RDF 4 conventional forces unknown.

3079

Regional Defense Force 4 (Veteran/Reliable)

• 1 BattleMech Regiment

- At this point in time RDF 4 was at full strength and approximately fifteen percent of the RDF was using upgraded equipment. - Conventional forces are not listed within Field Report: Periphery, leaving the strength of the RDF 4 conventional forces unknown.

3140

Regional Defense Force 4 (Veteran/Reliable)

• Two heavy 'Mech battalions
• Two assault vehicle battalions
• One Jump Infantry regiment

Note: At this point each company of the regiment consists of two 'Mech lances and two tank platoons.

Color Scheme

Regional Defense Force 4 used a color scheme of dark blue with gold and red trim.

Bibliography

• Field Manual: Periphery
• Field Manual: Updates
• Field Report: Periphery
• Mutual Advantage (in: Total Warfare)
• Operational Turning Points: Hanseatic Crusade