Grey Watch Regiment
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| Grey Watch | |
| Formed | 3145[1] |
| Affiliation | Republic of the Sphere |
| Parent Command | Northwind Highlanders |
The Grey Watch was a secret reserve 'Mech Regiment, formed in 3135 by the Northwind clan elders to protect the people of Northwind against a new attack.
Contents
History
After the end of the Jihad, Devlin Stone's Military Materiel Redemption Program was launched in 3083, but the plan to demilitarize all the Inner Sphere posed a dilemma to Northwind Highlanders clan elders: they were willing to let almost all their regiments be absorbed by the Republic of the Sphere armed forces, but most highlanders owned a family BattleMech or had purchased one, and did not want to surrender their private property. Besides, too much people viewed the Highlanders as suspected Blakists, after the liberation of Northwind. Refuse to give their weapons could gave them problems. Luckily, one of their own, Andrea Stirling was Paladin Exemplar, and understood thew Highlanders independence well.[2] So Andrea help to redirect MMRP's Materiel Oversight Division, and the clan elders instructed 'Mech owners to stash their machines in little groups. The 'Mechs stayed hidden until the Steel Wolves invasions of Northwind in 3133 and 3134. After Fortress Republic was established, Northwind's countess Tara Campbell and their Highlanders were outside The Wall, and since the First Kearny Highlanders had been absorbed into the RAF armed forces, the clan elders took measures to ensure Northwind's security against another possible invader: they funneled technicians and resources to reactivate the aging 'Mechs. Along the next decade and half, local instructors and cadets from the Northwind Military Academy secretly trained in 'Mech operations. The leader of the new unit was Colonel Michael Griffith, retired from active service after the Steel Wolves attack on 3135.[1]
Activation
The Grey Watch was activated when the feared attack materialized: After Devlin Stone's Wall fell, Republic space was invaded by four attackers. After successfully taking thirteen worlds surprisingly easily, the Capellan Confederation turned their eyes to their next target: Northwind. The Capellans were determined to erase the stain of the Northwind Highlanders defection to the Federated Suns in the Fourth Succession War and also take Northwind's operational HPG.[3] In 3150, the Capellans launched the attack, Operation CLARITY, and the Battle of Northwind (3150) began. The Capellan forces, three CCAF regiments lead by Warrior House Imarra outnumbered the defenders, as they only had the Twelfth Hastati Sentinels, the Northwind Military Academy's training cadre, and a smattering of local militia volunteers. The Republic forces were so stretched than Stone did not dare to send more troops: Northwind, and the other worlds, had to resist with what they had.[4] On 19 November, the assault began, with the Capellan invaders splitting to neutralize all the key targets: Tara, the capital, Fort Barrett, the Twelfth's base, the Castle, old Star League's fortress, the HPG station and the Northwind Military Academy.[5] The Capellan forces progressed quickly, but on 23 November, when the Capellans were attacked by their backs on Tara, Kearny and Fort Barrett, by the Watch units, wreaking havoc between the invader forces, causing the Capellans to stumble and even the odds, it wasn't enough to turn the tide: in 25 November, the Capellans controlled Tara, the HPG compound and Fort Barret. Only The Castle was still in the defenders hands. Worse still, the Watch had suffered casualties, forcing them to retreat to the hills and regroup.[6] The timely arrival of countess Tara Campbell and the main Highlander forces evened the odds... until the Draconis Combine unit of the Hikage arrived. However, the defenders managed to made Combine and Capellan forces, theoretically allied, to engage the other. The Grey Watch fight the Hikage forces too. When the battle between Republican, Capellan and Combine forces moved to the HPG compound, Grey Watch infiltrators laced the complex with explosives and made it blow, forcing the Hikage, and later the Capellan forces, to retreat, ignoring than only the upper par of the complex had been destroyed.[7] It is unknown how much forces of the Grey Watch survived the campaign.
Officers
| Rank | Name | Command | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commanding Officers of the Grey Watch | |||
| Colonel | Michael Griffin | 3145[1] | |
Tactics
Unknown. The Grey Watch is said to operate using classic Highlander tactics.
Composition History
3149
1 medium mech regiment[1]
Notes
- Though the grey Watch members possess a reasonable talent as pilots, prior to the Battle of Northwind have never drilled together, and lack any experience in formations larger than a lance.
- The Watch XO was Lt.Col Cadha Jaffray, from a long-standing Highlander pedigree.[1]
- The name chosen for the watch may have been inspired in the Royal Black Watch, which survived centuries inside the Higlander's regiments as a secret order.