Barber's Marauder IIs

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Barber's Marauder IIs were one of the premier mercenary units of the Clan Invasion Era. They were known for being composed entirely of Marauder IIs and Marauders. They were previously known as Miller's Marauders.

History

Formation

There are no reports on exactly when Miller's Marauders were formed. What is known is that in 3016 they were hired by the Lyran Commonwealth to help make up for the loss of the 12th Star Guards. [1] After eight years they went to work for the Federated Suns, and the two battalion strong unit distinguished themselves in the assault on Galtor III.[2] By 3025 they were commanded by Major Grissom Miller. At that time, all of their BattleMechs were Marauders with a skill level that was considered Veteran.[3] They were based on the planet Layover in the Draconis March. [4]

Fourth Succession War

During the Fourth Succession War, the Marauders were still based on Layover. As part of the third wave of Operation Rat they and the Addicks March Militia assaulted Ronel.[5] Despite personality conflicts between the commanders of the militia and the Marauders, the defending Kerr's Intruders were captured or destroyed.[6]

Hearing the civilian families of the famed Wolf's Dragoons were recuperating on Robinson, the Marauders provided assistance and comfort to the dependents. During the penultimate battle between the Draconis Combine and the Dragoons on Crossing, the Marauders lent their DropShips to Zeta Battalion so the rebuilt Dragoon unit could arrive on Crossing and turn the tide against House Kurita. [7] This loan was kept secret, however, and the official report was the DropShips had been rented by Zeta commander J. Elliot Jamison from a shipping company. [8]


War of 3039

Miller's Marauders were still under the employ of the Federated Suns when Hanse Davion started the War of 3039. They were sent to invade Harrow's Sun, taken from House Davion during the Fourth Succession War. They were supported by AFFS special forces and numerous civilian "freedom fighters" hoping for a return to the Suns. Unfortunately, they were unprepared for the presence of the elite Ryuken-yon BattleMech regiment that had just been deployed to Harrow's Sun. Not only were the Marauders badly out-numbered, the Kuritan force was able to drive off the Marauders' transports, temporarily stranding them. [9] Miller managed to rally his forces and broke through the Ryuken lines, though it cost them half their number. The rest of the unit was able to retreat off-world to rebuild. [10]

Reformation

At some point prior to 3050 Grissom Miller retired, turning the battalion over to Major Susan Barber. Barber took notice of the Marauder IIs serving in Wolf's Dragoons, and out of gratitude for the Marauders' assistance to the Dragoons during the Fourth Succession War, Colonel Jaime Wolf authorized Blackwell Corporation to sell the machines to Barber's unit in large quantities. They thus became the first unit outside of the Dragoons to field the Marauder II through means other than salvage. It was at this time the unit was renamed "Barber's Marauder IIs". [7][11] They were reorganized as a reinforced battalion composed of four companies.

As of early 3050, the Marauders were stationed on Rentz in the Federated Commonwealth's Crucis March. [12]

Clan Invasion

In 3052, the AFFC relocated the Marauders to Tomans on the Jade Falcon border to discourage Clan adventurism in the aftermath of the Clan Invasion. While on Tomans, they had the opportunity to serve alongside the famous Kell Hounds, the beginning of a relationship that would have major effects for the next decade. [13] The Jade Falcons frequently sent younger warriors to raid Tomans, finding the Marauders excellent opponents for training purposes. The Marauders, however, continued to inflict heavy losses on the Falcons and this practice soon tapered off. These raids increased the skill and equipment of the Marauders considerably and by the conclusion they were considered an Elite unit with some Clan technology. [14]

Arc-Royal Defense Cordon

In the aftermath of the War of 3057 and the creation of the Lyran Alliance, Major Barber remained loyal to Victor Ian Steiner-Davion and House Davion. She relocated her unit to the newly formed Arc-Royal Defense Cordon, which was under the overall command of Morgan Kell. Kell had made clear his opposition to Katherine Steiner-Davion. Welcomed into the ARDC, they were stationed on Koniz. [14]

FedCom Civil War

When the FedCom Civil War finally broke out, the Marauders remained on Koniz. In 3064 Clan Jade Falcon once again decided to sharpen its claws with an invasion of Lyran space. When the Falcon's Rho Galaxy hit Koniz, they found it defended by the Marauders and the Koniz Pandora Theater Militia. An entire Cluster composed of Elementals were combat dropped directly on top of the Marauders and completely destroyed them. Survivors were taken as bondsmen to serve in the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone. [15]

Officers

As of 3025, the unit was commanded by Major Grissom Miller.[16]

Tactics

The vehicles of the units are the bait which lure the opponent into a trap, where the 'Mechs wait to deliver the final strike.

Composition History

3025

Miller's Marauders (2 Battalion/Veteran/Reliable)

  • CO: Major Grissom Miller [17]

3040

Miller's Marauders (2 Battalion/Veteran/Reliable)[18]

3054

Barber's Marauder II's (Battalion/Elite/Reliable)[19]

  • CO: Major Susan Barber

3059

Barber's Marauder IIs (One reinforced BattleMech Battalion/Elite/Reliable) [14]

  • CO/1st Company: Major Susan Barber
  • XO/2nd Company: Captain Teresa Larsen
  • 3rd Company: Captain Ulysses Rhodos
  • 4th Company: Captain Phillipe "Philly D" Devereux

- 38 of the unit's 48 mechs are Marauder IIs. The remainder are Marauders. All are equipped with advanced technology and some are armed with Clan weapons.

Marauder AeroSpace (Two Aerospace Squadrons/Regular/Reliable) [14]

  • Wing Commander: Captain Jonathan Brisby
    • 2nd Squadron: Captain Jenni Ross-Michaels
  • The 16 fighters of the unit are the eyes and ears for the entire command. The 16 fighters are split between 2 squadrons with one command lance to each. Should the ground units need to retreat, the fighters provide covering fire.

Marauder Armor (2 Companies/Regular/Reliable) [14]

  • Armor Commander: Captain Ciarin A. Samhain
  • The armor contingent of the command is used in a scouting role. Two thirds of the company is always deployed as the remaining lance is held in reserve to relieve belaguered comrades when needed.

Notes

  • Technical Readout: 3050 states that the Marauders were expanded to regiment size after the reformation. Other sources, however, make no mention of this taking place, nor do they make mention of any losses the Marauders may have suffered that might have reduced them back to battalion level.
  • During the peak years of the Unseen issue, Barber's Marauder IIs received very little mention in publications, likely due to the unit's composition with the Marauder and the Marauder II.
  • The unit's insignia is a Roman numeral II over an inverted, dark-green triangle. [14]

References

  1. ↑ House Steiner (The Lyran Commonwealth) p. 82
  2. ↑ MechWarrior: The BattleTech Role Playing Game, p. 114
  3. ↑ House Davion (The Federated Suns) p. 148
  4. ↑ House Davion (The Federated Suns), p. 138 (pdf version), "Unit Deployment Table"
  5. ↑ NAIS The Fourth Succession War Military Atlas Volume 1, pp. 13, 33
  6. ↑ NAIS The Fourth Succession War Military Atlas Volume 1, p. 33
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Technical Readout: 3050 p. 212
  8. ↑ NAIS The Fourth Succession War Military Atlas Volume 2 p. 34
  9. ↑ Historical: War of 3039 p. 49
  10. ↑ Historical: War of 3039 p. 100
  11. ↑ Technical Readout: 3039 p. 302
  12. ↑ 20 Year Update p. 23
  13. ↑ Objective Raids p. 23
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 Field Manual: Mercenaries p. 36
  15. ↑ FedCom Civil War (sourcebook) p. 115
  16. ↑ House Davion (The Federated Suns), p. 138 (pdf version), "The Crucis March"
  17. ↑ House Davion p.138
  18. ↑ Historical: War of 3039 , p. 141
  19. ↑ Objective Raids, p. 23

Bibliography

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