10th Lyran Guards

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Lyranguards10th.png
Tenth Lyran Guards RCT
Nickname Wedell (2765);[1]
Thundering Elephants; (3025)[2]
The Revenants (3062)[2]
Affiliation Lyran Commonwealth
Parent Command Lyran Guards


One of the most prestigious units in both the Lyran Commonwealth and Successor States as a whole, the Tenth Lyran Guards have been commanded by nine future Archons during its history.

History[edit]

One of the most prestigious units in Lyran realm, the near-tradition that any future Archon will cut their teeth in a command position within the Tenth ensures entry into the unit is an extremely difficult process, with extensive background checks and profiling of applicants to ensure the future ruler of the Commonwealth was surrounded by its most loyal troops. While the Tenth Lyran Guards have been on the brink of extinction several times during its existence, the unit has been rebuilt bigger and stronger each time, and is usually first in line for the latest and most advanced equipment.[3]

Star League Era[edit]

During the Star League era the Tenth Lyran Guards was one of ten regiments within the First Lyran Guards Division, one of five Divisions of active regiments within the Lyran Guards brigade in the closing decades of the Star League's existence. By the mid-twenty-eighth century the First Division was the only Division of the Lyran Guards to be at full strength, and while the Lyran Guards were supposed to be loyal to the Lyran Commonwealth first and the Archon second, the various regiments of the First had been used at various points to keep powerful nobles in line.[1]

Like the other regiments of the Guards during this era, the Tenth lacked any particular political ties - either regional or familial - unlike regiments in other brigades; commonly assigned to garrison postings, the Tenth Lyran Guards and their sister regiments were postings of choice for those who wanted to work for the Commonwealth without either regional loyalties or particular ambitions. This led to the Tenth and her sister regiments being manned by soldiers who were professional, but without the close-knit ties found in more parochial regiments. The Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces was intent on generating more camaraderie and esprit de corps among the Tenth and the other Guards regiments, but with little success by 2765.[1]

In 2765 the Tenth was one of the more experienced regiments within the Lyran Guards, and was stationed on the Lyran capital, Tharkad.[1]

Third Succession War[edit]

In 3024 the Tenth Lyran Guards faced an equivalent number of troops from the Federated Suns in wargames on New Earth.[4] The results of these wargames, later known as the Alliance Games, provided Katrina Steiner with the evidence she needed to bring changes to the LCAF.

Fourth Succession War[edit]

During the first wave of Operation GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG, the Tenth Lyran Guards landed on Karbala. There they faced Vandelay's Valkyries and twelve conventional regiments. Though they were heavily damaged in the fighting, the Tenth was successful in forcing the Valkyries off the planet.[5] The Tenth went on to attack Lothan in the followup and exploitation phase of Operation GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG before joining the Twenty-third Arcturan Guards in the battle for Altenmarkt during the final wave of attacks.[6]

Their arguably most notable action in the war came when the Tenth was secretly dispatched on a raid against the recently captured world of Dromini VI,[7] after Commonwealth intelligence learned that the Draconis Combine was using the planet as a staging area for a massive counterattack that posed a significant threat.

The unit's commander, Duke Frederick Steiner, understood that for him the mission was a one-way ticket: A consummate Lyran patriot and one of the nation's most competent generals, he had dabbled in politics – a field he was far less savvy in – and had found himself entangled in Duke Aldo Lestrade's treasonous schemes against Archon Katrina Steiner. As a chance at redemption, she offered him the option of sacrificing himself for the good of the nation, leading his beloved regiment into a near-suicidal but critically important attack and going out in a blaze of glory befitting the soldier he was at heart.

The Tenth struck the Kurita task force's store houses in the city of Kanashimi. Elements of the Tenth fought twice their numbers to reach their targets, taking severe damage. Frederick Steiner surrendered himself in order to have his men safely returned to their JumpShip. What Frederick was not aware of was that in parallel with his attack on the ground LIC agents disabled the enemy task force's JumpShip fleet.[8] Together, these actions doomed the Combine's counteroffensive. (Although Frederick Steiner had not expected to survive, after his supposed death he would go on to become one of the most celebrated leaders of his time and the mastermind behind one of the Inner Sphere's most important military actions ever.)

Post–Succession Wars[edit]

Virtually destroyed on Dromini VI, Katrina Steiner honored the unit's sacrifice during the Fourth war and its storied pedigree by quickly rebuilding it into one of the finest Davion-style Regimental Combat Teams in the LCAF.[2][3]

Stationed on its homeworld of Meachem in 3038, while the rebuilt and veteran rated Tenth Lyran Guards RCT did not take part in the War of 3039, it was transferred to the border world of Alkalurops to reinforce the Skye March in its aftermath.[9]

In 3049 immediately prior to the Clan Invasion, the untested and now green rated Tenth was stationed on Skondia.[10]

Clan Invasion[edit]

During the Clan Invasion, the Tenth was briefly sent to Sudeten as part of Morgan Hasek-Davion's plan to halt the invasion. Victor Ian Steiner-Davion, heir to the throne of the Federated Commonwealth, was appointed to the unit as a battalion commander, and proposed a counterstrike against the Clan Jade Falcon-held world of Twycross. This resulted in the Battle of Twycross, where the Guards' Kai Allard-Liao destroyed the Falcon Guards. The Tenth had the distinction of serving in the first battle the Inner Sphere won against the Clans.[11][3]

During the Year of Peace, a determined Victor rebuilt the Tenth into the premier anti-Clan unit in the Inner Sphere and they would continue to fight at the forefront of the FedCom efforts against the invaders.[3] In 3051, they fought alongside Victor again on Alyina,[12] again against the Falcons. ComStar had leaked to the Clans that Victor and the Tenth were on Alyina, and they attempted to trap him there, eager to deprive the Federated Commonwealth of its heir. Shortly after, Victor would lead elements of the Tenth to rescue Hohiro Kurita trapped by the Clans on Teniente.[13]

Post–Clan Invasion[edit]

As of 3055, the Guards were posted on Fort Loudon, near the tip of the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone.[14][15] They likely relocated to Tharkad when Victor Steiner-Davion became Archon-Prince upon Melissa Steiner-Davion's assassination.[citation needed]

Operation BULLDOG[edit]

Stationed on Wolcott at the start of Operation BULLDOG on 13 May 3059, the Tenth was naturally part of Prince Victor's "Dream Team" to capture the important target of Schuyler.[16] Suffering only light losses, the Tenth accompanied Victor to Huntress as part of the relief force to save Task Force Serpent. After the last-minute rescue of Serpent, the Tenth traveled with Victor to Strana Mechty, providing the bulk of the Federated Commonwealth's representative unit in the Great Refusal. There they successfully defeated the last vestiges of Clan Smoke Jaguar and ensured the end of the Clan Invasion of the Inner Sphere.[17][18]

Upon their return from the Clan Homeworlds and Victor's transfer to ComStar, his sister Katherine Steiner-Davion virtually dumped the fanatically pro-Victor RCT on the Draconis March capital world of Robinson, stripping the Tenth of their JumpShip contingent to strand them there.[19][20][21]

FedCom Civil War[edit]

As of the start of the FedCom Civil War in 3062, the Tenth still remained stranded on Robinson as payback for their continued loyalty to Victor. Duke James Sandoval, ruler of the Draconis March, also refused to assign any JumpShips to the Tenth since they intended to join Prince Victor and thereby leave Robinson undefended. Sandoval also needed the JumpShips for his own private war against his family's longtime enemy, the Draconis Combine.[21][22]

By January of 3065, Marshal James McFarland, the commanding officer of the Tenth, had managed to commandeer enough JumpShips to enable his RCT to leave Robinson in order to assist Prince Victor, who was fighting the Loyalist forces on Tikonov. Two jumps away from Robinson, the Tenth's JumpShips were disabled due to sabotage by DMI agents, ending up at a jump point in the Kentares system.[21]

McFarland quickly discovered that Kentares IV was under siege by the Third Benjamin Regulars of the Combine's DCMS. The Third had been sent to capture Kentares as part of the DCMS Reprisal, the counterattack in retaliation for Sandoval's unauthorized invasion of the Combine. Since Duke Ian Dresari, a fellow supporter of Prince Victor, and his Kentares DMM were clearly outnumbered and outgunned by the Third, and since it would take weeks to repair the Tenth's ships, McFarland ordered his RCT to assist Dresari and his DMM in fighting the Combine invaders.[21]

As soon as the Guards landed on Kentares, the Regulars knew they were doomed, since the Tenth Lyran Guards were considered one of the Lyran Alliance's most elite RCTs. The Third decided to face certain defeat in the spirit of bushido, managing to hold off the Tenth for a week after the engaged. In the final battle between the Allied Tenth/DMM force and the Combine forces, Leftenant General Reinhardt Steiner, commander of the Tenth's BattleMech Regiment, fighting side-by-side with Duke Ian, defeated the Third Benjamin Regulars in a mere four hours. The surviving Regulars were incarcerated in a Kentares prison, where they were treated honorably until the end of the Civil War, when they were repatriated to the Combine.[21]

After their campaign on Kentares, the Tenth left that world and finally met up with Prince Victor. In late May of 3066, Victor, commanding the Allied task force of the Tenth Lyran Guards and Com Guard 244th Division (aka "The Prince's Men"), decided to return to Tikonov to continue his fight against the Loyalist forces there, consisting of the guerrilla Free Tikonov Movement supported by the Fifteenth Deneb Light Cavalry (commanded by Marshal Michael Lipstein) and the Third Republican (commanded by Hauptmann General John Joseph Atherton). Immediately upon landing, the Tenth spearheaded the Allied assault on Tikonov's capital city of Tikograd. On 24 May 3066, the Tenth surrounded the Republican Guards and forced them to surrender three days later after killing Loyalist senior officer Leftenant General Karl Lopiz and his entire command staff. The Allies eventually forced the Loyalists off Tikonov on July 23.[23]

Prince Victor had two infantry regiments from the Tenth remain behind along with members of House Dai Da Chi (who offered their service to Victor), to protect the world from further Loyalist attacks. As soon as Victor and his Allied task force left Tikonov, the personnel from House Dai Da Chi helped the Free Tikonov Movement attack the Tenth's infantry and forced them out of Tikograd. By late March of 3067, Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao of the Capellan Confederation declared Tikonov to be a protectorate of the Confederation.[24]

On 8 November 3066, the Tenth was part of Prince Victor's Allied force that landed on New Avalon to unseat Archon Katherine from the throne. On 20 April 3067, Katherine surrendered to Victor. The battle for New Avalon and the FedCom Civil War were finally over.[25]

Despite being reduced to 35% of their effective combat strength,[26] the Tenth refused to stand down. Instead they pledged to support Yvonne Steiner-Davion.[27]

The Jihad[edit]

The Tenth chose to remain on New Avalon after the Civil War as part of the new Armed Forces of the Federated Suns, pledging their loyalty to Yvonne Steiner-Davion.[28]

In December 3067, the Word of Blake launched its Jihad on the Inner Sphere. While WarShips bombarded New Avalon, the Thirty-first Division landed on-planet and advanced on Avalon City. The Tenth Lyran Guards were the first unit to oppose the Blakists, engaging them at McCarel Farm. Despite still being seriously understrength, they managed to inflict significant damage on the Thirty-first before they were forced to pull back. They bought the defenders enough time to regroup and hold the capital city against the invaders.[28][29][30]

Unfortunately, casualties to the Tenth were too heavy to make them an effective independent fighting force, and by February 3068 they were merged into the First Davion Guards.[28]

Dark Age[edit]

The Tenth was rebuilt after the end of the Jihad, but was destroyed during Clan Wolf's assault upon the Lyran Commonwealth in the early 3140s.[31]

Officers[edit]

Rank Name Command
Commanding Officers of the Tenth Lyran Guards
Hauptmann-General Katrina Steiner 2996-3001[32]
Colonel Frederick Steiner 3025-3029[33]
Marshal Kelly Devers 3050[10]
Leftenant General Milstein September 3050[34]
Archon-Prince Victor Steiner-Davion 3052-3054[35]
Leftenant General Reinhardt Steiner 3062[2]
Marshal James McFarland 3067[2][21][26][28]

Tactics[edit]

Every attack by the Tenth Lyran contains waves of overlaying forces. The enemy will be isolated and destroyed by experienced sub-commands.[2]

Composition History[edit]

2765[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards (Regiment/Veteran/Fanatical)[36]

Note: At this point in time the unit was stationed on Tharkad.[36]

2786 - 2821[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards (Regiment/Veteran/Fanatical)[37]

Note: At this point in time the medium-weight unit was stationed on Tharkad. In 2821 the command was reduced to 33 percent of its strength and was deployed on Tharkad.[37]

2830[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards (Regiment/Veteran/Reliable)[38]

Note: At this point in time the heavy-weight unit was stationed on Tharkad with an operational readiness of 94 percent.[38]

2864[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards (Regiment/Elite/Reliable)[38]

Note: At this point in time the assault-weight unit was stationed on Ramsau with an operational readiness of 35 percent.[38]

3025[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards (Regiment/Veteran/Questionable)[33]

  • CO: Colonel Frederick Steiner
Note: At this point in time the unit was stationed on Meachem.

3040[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards RCT (Regiment/Veteran/Reliable)[39]

Note: At this point in time the command was stationed on Alkalurops.[39]

3050[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards RCT (Regiment/Green/Reliable)[40]

  • CO: Marshal Kelly Devers[40]
  • Alpha Battalion[41]
  • Bravo Battalion[41]
  • Charlie Battalion[41]
Note: At this point in time the command was stationed on Skondia.[40]

3054[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards RCT (Regiment/Veteran/Fanatical)[35]

  • CO: Prince Victor Ian Steiner-Davion[35]
Note: At this point in time the command was stationed on Fort Loudon.[35]

3062[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards (1 Reinforced Regiment/Veteran/Fanatical)[2]

Aide: Leftenant Colonel Cale Eidt

Tenth Lyran Guards Aerospace Brigade (4 Wings)[2]

- 35th Tharkan Attack Wing
- 217th Skye Fighter Wing
- 43rd Donegal Fighter Wing
- 607th Avalon Fighter Wing

Tenth Lyran Guards Armor Brigade (5 Regiments/Veteran/Fanatical)[2]

Aide: Colonel Francis Kalember
- 19th Tharkad Panzer Regiment: Leftenant General Bill Heerey
- 78th Donegal Cavalry Regiment: Colonel Yvgeniy Kotlyarenko
- 339th Donegal Heavy Armor Regiment: Colonel Mara Foreman
- 5th Edasich Panzer Regiment: Leftenant Colonel Jim Beerman
- 10th Guards Artillery Group: Major Melena Tholo

Tenth Lyran Guards Infantry Brigade (6 Regiments/Veteran/Fanatical)[2]

Aide: Leftenant Colonel Tellus Perez
- 199th Lyran Mechanized Infantry: Colonel Jackie Raflik
- 345th Donegal Mechanized Infantry: Colonel Ransford Billig
- 2045th F-C Mechanized Infantry: Colonel Rebecca Pola
- 2046th F-C Mechanized Infantry: Colonel] Bruce Terlecki
- 74th Tharkad Jump Infantry: Colonel Klarissa Rhaines
- 974th F-C Battle Armor Battalion: Leftenant Colonel Jessup Sandoval

3067[edit]

Tenth Lyran Guards (RCT/Veteran/Fanatical)[26]

  • CO: Marshal James McFarland

Tenth Lyran Guards Aerospace Brigade (Veteran/Fanatical)[26]

  • CO: Leutnant Kommodore Lisa Mae Richards

Tenth Lyran Guards Armor Brigade (4 Regiments/Veteran/Fanatical)[26]

  • CO: Leutnant General Thaddeus Frankenheimer

Tenth Lyran Infantry Brigade (6 Regiments/Veteran/Fanatical)[26]

  • CO: Leutnant General Hisa Stavros

Notes[edit]

  • Their nickname the "Thundering Elephants" was inspired by their heavy 'Mech complement and unimaginative tactics.[2]
  • In German "The Revenants" is localized as "Die Untoten", literally "The Undead" instead of the more literal, but archaic "Die Wiedergänger".
  • In The Succession Wars boardgame, the Tenth Lyran Guards is the only unit in the entire game to have a "unit value" (combat strength) of 10; newly constructed 'Mech regiments having a default value of 4. Since an attacking unit must roll equal to or lower than their own value on a d10 to destroy an enemy unit under the game's combat resolution mechanics, the Tenth Lyran Guards is the only unit guaranteed to destroy an enemy unit every combat round (though it can itself be destroyed as easily as any other unit, and is thus most effective in combination with other units that can serve as "padding").

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Field Report 2765: LCAF, pp. 13–14: "Lyran Guards"
  2. 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 Field Manual: Lyran Alliance, p. 78: "Tenth Lyran Guards Unit Profile"
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Era Report: 3052, p. 25: "Federated Commonwealth - Tenth Lyran Guards RCT (The Revenants)"
  4. NAIS The Fourth Succession War Military Atlas Volume 1, p. 8
  5. NAIS The Fourth Succession War Military Atlas Volume 1, p. 50
  6. NAIS The Fourth Succession War Military Atlas Volume 1, pp. 44–45: "Operation GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG"
  7. NAIS The Fourth Succession War Military Atlas Volume 2, p. 79
  8. Warrior: Coupé, pp. 265–272: "Duke Frederick Steiner's Tenth Lyran Guards raid the captured world of Dromini VI and stop Kurita Task force from invading"
  9. Historical: War of 3039, p. 137: "Deployment Table - Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces"
  10. 10.0 10.1 20 Year Update, p. 26: "Armed Forces of the Federated Commonwealth (Deployment as of 3050)"
  11. Era Report: 3052, p. 14: "Small Victories"
  12. ClanTroops, pp. 36–37
  13. Era Report: 3052, p. 24: "Federated Commonwealth"
  14. Objective Raids, p. 23: "Armed Forces of the Federated Commonwealth (Deployment as of 3054)"
  15. Technical Readout: 3055, p. 72: "Rakshasa"
  16. The Dragon Roars, pp. 11, 50
  17. Twilight of the Clans, p. 13
  18. Prince of Havoc, ch. 10
  19. Shattered Sphere, p. 28: "Armed Forces of the Federated Commonwealth (Deployments as of 30 December 3061)"
  20. Field Manual: Lyran Alliance, p. 125: "Lyran Alliance Armed Forces Deployment Tables"
  21. 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 21.4 21.5 FedCom Civil War, p. 137
  22. Patriots and Tyrants, p. 52
  23. FedCom Civil War, pp. 158–159
  24. FedCom Civil War, p. 173
  25. FedCom Civil War, p. 170
  26. 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 26.5 Field Manual: Updates, p. 179: "Lyran Alliance Deployment Table"
  27. Field Manual: Updates, p. 170: "Lyran Guards bio"
  28. 28.0 28.1 28.2 28.3 Jihad Turning Points: New Avalon, p. 6: "Combatants: Tenth Lyran Guards"
  29. Jihad Turning Points: New Avalon, p. 8: "Unwelcome Guests"
  30. Jihad Hot Spots: 3072, p. 102
  31. Field Manual: 3145, p. 126
  32. Historical: War of 3039, p. 17
  33. 33.0 33.1 House Steiner (The Lyran Commonwealth), p. 118 (PDF version): "Unit Deployment Table"
  34. Payback Time, p. 48: "Attacker"
  35. 35.0 35.1 35.2 35.3 Objective Raids, p. 23
  36. 36.0 36.1 Field Report 2765: LCAF, p. 14
  37. 37.0 37.1 First Succession War, p. 139
  38. 38.0 38.1 38.2 38.3 Second Succession War, p. 99
  39. 39.0 39.1 Historical: War of 3039, p. 137
  40. 40.0 40.1 40.2 20 Year Update, p. 26
  41. 41.0 41.1 41.2 Lethal Heritage, ch. 37

Bibliography[edit]