Difference between revisions of "Great Gaffa's Ghost"
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| − | In the [[BattleTech]] universe, "'''Great Gaffa's Ghost'''" (or simply "Gaffa's Ghost"; also "by Gaffa's beard"<ref>'' | + | In the [[BattleTech]] universe, "'''Great Gaffa's Ghost'''" (or simply "Gaffa's Ghost"; also "by Gaffa's beard")<ref>''Cranston Snord's Irregulars'', p. 20: sidebar</ref> is an exclamation of fear, awe or wonder. It was created by author [[Blaine Lee Pardoe]] in his works. |
Blaine Pardoe later wrote a combined short story/in-universe treatise titled ''Great Gaffa's Ghost'' that was published online on [[BattleCorps]] on 28 March 2005 as a twelve-page story (dedicating one page to a foreword/introduction), followed by an essay titled '''''"The Legend of Great Gaffa's Ghost"''''' purportedly written by one [[SLDF]] Historian [[Adept]] [[Karl Vosteral]] and published in ''Com Guards Veterans News'', October 10, [[3066]]. | Blaine Pardoe later wrote a combined short story/in-universe treatise titled ''Great Gaffa's Ghost'' that was published online on [[BattleCorps]] on 28 March 2005 as a twelve-page story (dedicating one page to a foreword/introduction), followed by an essay titled '''''"The Legend of Great Gaffa's Ghost"''''' purportedly written by one [[SLDF]] Historian [[Adept]] [[Karl Vosteral]] and published in ''Com Guards Veterans News'', October 10, [[3066]]. | ||
| Line 32: | Line 32: | ||
==Plot summary== | ==Plot summary== | ||
===Story=== | ===Story=== | ||
| − | [[Lieutenant]] David Longstreet from [[Lindon's Battalion]] is patrolling the Jersey Flats | + | [[Lieutenant]] David Longstreet from [[Lindon's Battalion]] is patrolling the Jersey Flats brushland near Sanyo City on [[Caph]] in the [[Chaos March]] on 20 July [[3058]] when his radio contact with the rest of his [[lance]] is jammed and he is jumped by [[Word of Blake]] [[BattleMech]]s. His ''[[Lineholder]]'' downed and essentially taken out of the fight by a [[Death from Above]] attack by an enemy ''[[Raijin (Fujin)|Raijin]]''. The dazed Longstreet helplessly watches how the ''Raijin'' aims its main gun at his cockpit to kill him when it is suddenly destroyed an eerie "museum piece" ''[[Highlander]]'' that appeared out of nowhere and disappears back into the dust clouds. Sergeant Shears, a lancemate in a downed 'Mech nearby, only saw a blur through the dust; when Longstreet tells him a mysterious ''Highlander'' had saved him Shears excitedly exclaims that it must have been Gaffa's Ghost. |
===The Legend of Great Gaffa's Ghost=== | ===The Legend of Great Gaffa's Ghost=== | ||
| − | In his [[3066]] treatise Adept Vosteral explains that the legend of Gaffa's Ghost refers to decorated [[SLDF]] [[General]] [[Stephen James Gaffa]] of the [[364th BattleMech Division]] ("The Zulu Division"). Frequently leading from the front in a green ''[[Highlander]]'' [[BattleMech]] with the numerals "05" and (unusually) bearing three stars where a single star would have indicated a division commander, Gaffa was caught in a separatist ambush in a ravine area over Sander's Creek outside the town of Lyon on [[New | + | In his [[3066]] treatise Adept Vosteral explains that the legend of Gaffa's Ghost refers to decorated [[SLDF]] [[General]] [[Stephen James Gaffa]] of the [[364th BattleMech Division]] ("The Zulu Division"). Frequently leading from the front in a green ''[[Highlander]]'' [[BattleMech]] with the numerals "05" and (unusually) bearing three stars where a single star would have indicated a division commander, Gaffa was caught in a separatist ambush in a ravine area over Sander's Creek outside the town of Lyon on [[New Vandenberg]] on 4 November [[2765]] and supposedly killed, although no witnesses had his 'Mech in sight when it went supposedly down in a barrage of artillery and [[LRM]] fire while a [[company]] of BattleMechs bore down on him. No sign of General Gaffa or his 'Mech was found at the ambush site, though a bright flash indicated his 'Mech's reactor had been breached. An archeological dig in [[3060]] failed to reveal additional information, though it was difficult to identify the historical site after three centuries. |
| − | Three weeks later, one SLDF Lieutenant Sarah Fuller (piloting a ''[[Crab]]'') was ambushed in the same general area while on patrol. Fuller later reported that, after her cockpit had suffered a hit and her 'Mech had effectively been disabled, a ''Highlander'' bearing the 364th BattleMech Division's markings appeared and saved her; she explicitly credited it with destroying an enemy ''[[Phoenix Hawk]]''. However, as it turned out no friendly forces were operating within a twenty-five kilometer radius. Fuller's story reached a reporter who reported it as a ghost sighting, possibly for propaganda purposes, and it was later popularized and exaggerated in several books. Fuller herself became listed as missing in action some three months after the incidents. | + | Three weeks later, one SLDF Lieutenant Sarah Fuller (piloting a ''[[Crab]]'') was ambushed in the same general area while on patrol. Fuller later reported that, after her cockpit had suffered a hit and her 'Mech had effectively been disabled, a ''Highlander'' bearing the 364th BattleMech Division's markings appeared and saved her; she explicitly credited it with destroying an enemy ''[[Phoenix Hawk]]''. However, as it turned out no friendly forces were operating within a twenty-five-kilometer radius. Fuller's story reached a reporter who reported it as a ghost sighting, possibly for propaganda purposes, and it was later popularized and exaggerated in several books. Fuller herself became listed as missing in action some three months after the incidents. |
| − | Since then, numerous sightings of a mysterious green ghost ''Highlander'' with the numeral "05" and/or three stars, described both as an "old model" and a "command unit" (with a [[PPC]] instead of a [[Gauss | + | Since then, numerous sightings of a mysterious green ghost ''Highlander'' with the numeral "05" and/or three stars, described both as an "old model" and a "command unit" (with a [[PPC]] instead of a [[Gauss rifle]]), were reported. All remain unconfirmed and some of these sightings were proven to be fabrications. Others, including the following, could not be disproven. |
| − | During the liberation of [[Terra]] in [[2779]] one [[Nightshade]] [[VTOL]] pilot named Francis Holland | + | During the liberation of [[Terra]] in [[2779]] one [[Nightshade (Combat Vehicle)|Nightshade]] [[VTOL]] pilot named Francis Holland crash-landed his craft in contested territory near Frankfurt, Germany after a technical malfunction. Armed only with a laser pistol and with an open head wound (in his own words to a reporter, his "brains were spilling out") he encountered a [[Rim Worlds Republic|Republican]] patrol. Something from behind him suddenly fired a PPC, lasers, and missiles at the patrol, killing most. The rest surrendered, but suddenly dropped dead for no apparent reason. Looking behind him, Holland saw General Gaffa's ''Highlander''. He lost his footing and when he looked up again the 'Mech was gone. Holland later returned to Terra, purchased the spot where this encounter took place, and erected a shrine. After his death, a church was eventually built in the place of the shrine. |
| − | After [[Aleksandr Kerensky|General Kerensky]]'s [[Exodus]], only two more reported sightings of the ghost 'Mech became known until the [[Fourth Succession War]] when the [[Northwind Highlanders]] returned to [[Northwind]] and battled the [[2nd Sword of Light]] [[regiment]]. Highlander [[MechWarrior (pilot)|MechWarrior]] Matilda Ferguson ejected from her crippled 'Mech during the fighting outside Cromarty City, landing in contested territory. When rescue teams reached the seat much later they found it empty. The comatose Ferguson was found in a field hospital thirty kilometers from the battlefield. Her body had been delivered by a mysterious old-model ''Highlander'' in SLDF paint scheme, though a later investigation established no such 'Mech had been deployed by the Northwind Highlanders on Northwind at the time. Ferguson herself had no recollection of the event beyond being knocked out in her ejection seat by an errant artillery shell. She dropped out of the militia, became a nun in the church and died in [[3062]]. | + | After [[Aleksandr Kerensky|General Kerensky]]'s [[Operation EXODUS|Exodus]], only two more reported sightings of the ghost 'Mech became known until the [[Fourth Succession War]] when the [[Northwind Highlanders]] returned to [[Northwind]] and battled the [[2nd Sword of Light]] [[regiment]]. Highlander [[MechWarrior (pilot)|MechWarrior]] Matilda Ferguson ejected from her crippled 'Mech during the fighting outside Cromarty City, landing in contested territory. When rescue teams reached the seat much later they found it empty. The comatose Ferguson was found in a field hospital thirty kilometers from the battlefield. Her body had been delivered by a mysterious old-model ''Highlander'' in SLDF paint scheme, though a later investigation established no such 'Mech had been deployed by the Northwind Highlanders on Northwind at the time. Ferguson herself had no recollection of the event beyond being knocked out in her ejection seat by an errant artillery shell. She dropped out of the militia, became a nun in the church and died in [[3062]]. |
| − | 19-year-old SLDF MechWarrior Barton Vale, attached to the [[Northwind Highlanders]] during operations against [[Clan Smoke Jaguar]], was attacked by Smoke Jaguar forces in flat open plains on [[Virentofta]] in his first and last battle. His ''[[Bushwacker]]'' quickly had its gyroscope destroyed but then | + | 19-year-old SLDF MechWarrior Barton Vale, attached to the [[Northwind Highlanders]] during operations against [[Clan Smoke Jaguar]], was attacked by Smoke Jaguar forces in flat open plains on [[Virentofta]] in his first and last battle. His ''[[Bushwacker]]'' quickly had its gyroscope destroyed but then an early model ''Highlander'' in original SLDF paint scheme suddenly appeared and destroyed all Clan 'Mechs. Vale, a green recruit whose left arm had been amputated by a cockpit hit and whose right hand and hip had been shattered, was in no condition to fight, much less win, against his opponents and his downed 'Mech still carried almost full ammunition bins. His [[BattleROM]] had been destroyed. Despite his protests, an official investigation credited Vale with killing five Clan 'Mechs after being ambushed by them. He has been hospitalized for severe physical and psychic trauma ever since. |
Vosteral does not provide an ultimate conclusion in his report. | Vosteral does not provide an ultimate conclusion in his report. | ||
| Line 51: | Line 51: | ||
==Featured BattleTech== | ==Featured BattleTech== | ||
===BattleMechs=== | ===BattleMechs=== | ||
| − | *''[[Archer]]'' | + | * ''[[Archer]]'' |
| − | *''[[Bushwacker]]'' | + | * ''[[Bushwacker]]'' |
| − | *''[[Crab]]'' | + | * ''[[Crab]]'' |
| − | *''[[Enfield]]'' | + | * ''[[Enfield]]'' |
| − | *''[[Fire Moth (Dasher)]]'' | + | * ''[[Fire Moth (Dasher)]]'' |
| − | *''[[Highlander]]'' | + | * ''[[Highlander]]'' |
| − | *''[[Lineholder]]'' | + | * ''[[Lineholder]]'' |
| − | *''[[Nexus]]'' | + | * ''[[Nexus (Star Python)|Nexus]]'' |
| − | *''[[Phoenix Hawk]]'' | + | * ''[[Phoenix Hawk]]'' |
| − | *''[[Raijin]]'' | + | * ''[[Raijin (Fujin)|Raijin]]'' |
| − | *''[[Rifleman]]'' (described as a "Clan Rifleman", so possibly a ''[[Rifleman IIC]]'') | + | * ''[[Rifleman]]'' (described as a "Clan Rifleman", so possibly a ''[[Rifleman IIC]]'') |
| + | |||
===Other=== | ===Other=== | ||
| − | *[[Nightshade]] [[VTOL]] | + | * [[Nightshade (Combat Vehicle)|Nightshade]] [[VTOL]] |
== Featured Units == | == Featured Units == | ||
| Line 74: | Line 75: | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
<references/> | <references/> | ||
| + | |||
[[Category:BattleCorps publications]] | [[Category:BattleCorps publications]] | ||
Latest revision as of 23:05, 14 February 2024
| Great Gaffa's Ghost | |
|---|---|
| Product information | |
| Type | Short story |
| Author | Blaine Lee Pardoe |
| Pages | 32 |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | BattleCorps |
| First published | 28 March 2005 |
| Content | |
| Era | Clan Invasion era |
| Timeline | 20 July 3058 (story) 4 November 2765-10 October 3066 (essay) |
In the BattleTech universe, "Great Gaffa's Ghost" (or simply "Gaffa's Ghost"; also "by Gaffa's beard")[1] is an exclamation of fear, awe or wonder. It was created by author Blaine Lee Pardoe in his works.
Blaine Pardoe later wrote a combined short story/in-universe treatise titled Great Gaffa's Ghost that was published online on BattleCorps on 28 March 2005 as a twelve-page story (dedicating one page to a foreword/introduction), followed by an essay titled "The Legend of Great Gaffa's Ghost" purportedly written by one SLDF Historian Adept Karl Vosteral and published in Com Guards Veterans News, October 10, 3066.
Contents
[edit]
| “ | "Great Gaffa's Ghost!" has been heard by many MechWarriors in the heat of battle. Generally it's not associated with something good. But does anyone really know where it came from? Join us to find out... | ” |
Plot summary[edit]
Story[edit]
Lieutenant David Longstreet from Lindon's Battalion is patrolling the Jersey Flats brushland near Sanyo City on Caph in the Chaos March on 20 July 3058 when his radio contact with the rest of his lance is jammed and he is jumped by Word of Blake BattleMechs. His Lineholder downed and essentially taken out of the fight by a Death from Above attack by an enemy Raijin. The dazed Longstreet helplessly watches how the Raijin aims its main gun at his cockpit to kill him when it is suddenly destroyed an eerie "museum piece" Highlander that appeared out of nowhere and disappears back into the dust clouds. Sergeant Shears, a lancemate in a downed 'Mech nearby, only saw a blur through the dust; when Longstreet tells him a mysterious Highlander had saved him Shears excitedly exclaims that it must have been Gaffa's Ghost.
The Legend of Great Gaffa's Ghost[edit]
In his 3066 treatise Adept Vosteral explains that the legend of Gaffa's Ghost refers to decorated SLDF General Stephen James Gaffa of the 364th BattleMech Division ("The Zulu Division"). Frequently leading from the front in a green Highlander BattleMech with the numerals "05" and (unusually) bearing three stars where a single star would have indicated a division commander, Gaffa was caught in a separatist ambush in a ravine area over Sander's Creek outside the town of Lyon on New Vandenberg on 4 November 2765 and supposedly killed, although no witnesses had his 'Mech in sight when it went supposedly down in a barrage of artillery and LRM fire while a company of BattleMechs bore down on him. No sign of General Gaffa or his 'Mech was found at the ambush site, though a bright flash indicated his 'Mech's reactor had been breached. An archeological dig in 3060 failed to reveal additional information, though it was difficult to identify the historical site after three centuries.
Three weeks later, one SLDF Lieutenant Sarah Fuller (piloting a Crab) was ambushed in the same general area while on patrol. Fuller later reported that, after her cockpit had suffered a hit and her 'Mech had effectively been disabled, a Highlander bearing the 364th BattleMech Division's markings appeared and saved her; she explicitly credited it with destroying an enemy Phoenix Hawk. However, as it turned out no friendly forces were operating within a twenty-five-kilometer radius. Fuller's story reached a reporter who reported it as a ghost sighting, possibly for propaganda purposes, and it was later popularized and exaggerated in several books. Fuller herself became listed as missing in action some three months after the incidents.
Since then, numerous sightings of a mysterious green ghost Highlander with the numeral "05" and/or three stars, described both as an "old model" and a "command unit" (with a PPC instead of a Gauss rifle), were reported. All remain unconfirmed and some of these sightings were proven to be fabrications. Others, including the following, could not be disproven.
During the liberation of Terra in 2779 one Nightshade VTOL pilot named Francis Holland crash-landed his craft in contested territory near Frankfurt, Germany after a technical malfunction. Armed only with a laser pistol and with an open head wound (in his own words to a reporter, his "brains were spilling out") he encountered a Republican patrol. Something from behind him suddenly fired a PPC, lasers, and missiles at the patrol, killing most. The rest surrendered, but suddenly dropped dead for no apparent reason. Looking behind him, Holland saw General Gaffa's Highlander. He lost his footing and when he looked up again the 'Mech was gone. Holland later returned to Terra, purchased the spot where this encounter took place, and erected a shrine. After his death, a church was eventually built in the place of the shrine.
After General Kerensky's Exodus, only two more reported sightings of the ghost 'Mech became known until the Fourth Succession War when the Northwind Highlanders returned to Northwind and battled the 2nd Sword of Light regiment. Highlander MechWarrior Matilda Ferguson ejected from her crippled 'Mech during the fighting outside Cromarty City, landing in contested territory. When rescue teams reached the seat much later they found it empty. The comatose Ferguson was found in a field hospital thirty kilometers from the battlefield. Her body had been delivered by a mysterious old-model Highlander in SLDF paint scheme, though a later investigation established no such 'Mech had been deployed by the Northwind Highlanders on Northwind at the time. Ferguson herself had no recollection of the event beyond being knocked out in her ejection seat by an errant artillery shell. She dropped out of the militia, became a nun in the church and died in 3062.
19-year-old SLDF MechWarrior Barton Vale, attached to the Northwind Highlanders during operations against Clan Smoke Jaguar, was attacked by Smoke Jaguar forces in flat open plains on Virentofta in his first and last battle. His Bushwacker quickly had its gyroscope destroyed but then an early model Highlander in original SLDF paint scheme suddenly appeared and destroyed all Clan 'Mechs. Vale, a green recruit whose left arm had been amputated by a cockpit hit and whose right hand and hip had been shattered, was in no condition to fight, much less win, against his opponents and his downed 'Mech still carried almost full ammunition bins. His BattleROM had been destroyed. Despite his protests, an official investigation credited Vale with killing five Clan 'Mechs after being ambushed by them. He has been hospitalized for severe physical and psychic trauma ever since.
Vosteral does not provide an ultimate conclusion in his report.
Featured BattleTech[edit]
BattleMechs[edit]
- Archer
- Bushwacker
- Crab
- Enfield
- Fire Moth (Dasher)
- Highlander
- Lineholder
- Nexus
- Phoenix Hawk
- Raijin
- Rifleman (described as a "Clan Rifleman", so possibly a Rifleman IIC)
Other[edit]
Featured Units[edit]
- Fifth Sword of Light
- 177th Mechanized Infantry Division
- 364th BattleMech Division (the Zulu Division)
- Lindon's Battalion
- Northwind Highlanders
References[edit]
- ↑ Cranston Snord's Irregulars, p. 20: sidebar