Northwind Highlanders

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The Northwind Highlanders are a storied unit, with the roots of their history in the ancient Terran nation of Scotland.[1]


History

Succession Wars

Led by Clan Stuart, a group of Scots that included the last vestiges of Scotland's military, the Highlanders, colonized the planet of Northwind, largely due to its agreeable climate.[1] Throughout the centuries, the Highlanders earned a reputation as an elite unit with high standards and morals that were not for sale. During the Third Succession War, they signed on with the Capellan Confederation in what was essentially an exclusive contract, after the Federated Suns invaded Northwind and destroyed two Highlander regiments. The situation changed, however, when Prince Hanse Davion of the Federated Suns decided to invade the Capellan Confederation in what would become known as the Fourth Succession War.

A turning point in Highlanders history was when Davion contacted them and promised them a home on their ancestral homeworld, Northwind. The vast majority of the Highlanders chose to abandon the Capellan Confederation and took up station on Northwind. Some Highlanders chose to stay, however, creating rifts in some families. The Highlanders ably served the Federated Commonwealth, including service along the Clan front.

Another turning point occurred in 3057, when Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao sent Loren Jaffray, a Death Commando whose father was a Highlander who remained in the Confederation, to Northwind to offer the Highlanders their independence. Coinciding with the Marik-Liao invasion, the Highlanders were tied up as they fought a minor civil war, then debated whether or not to accept the Chancellor's proposal. Colonel William McLeod, the ranking Highlander on planet, was able to reunite his troops, and ultimately they chose to fight for their independence, and with the arrival of Stirling's Fusiliers sent the Lyran 3rd Royal Guards packing. Though Jaffray's mission was supposedly to destroy the Highlanders for their betrayal of Sun-Tzu's grandfather, Liao seemed content to have deprived the Federated Commonwealth of them and accepted the Death Commando's defection to the Highlanders with nary a second thought.

Jaffray soon proved his loyalty to the Highlanders soon enough, in a raid against Clan Smoke Jaguar. In the aftermath of this operation, Jaffray was put in command of the Northwind Hussars, a new unit formed specifically to counter clan tactics.[2] (Interestingly, the same concept had been proposed much earlier to the Highlanders by Jeremiah Rose, who was rebuffed due to the objections of his own father.)[3]

In 3059, the Highlanders contributed forces to Task Force Serpent, a Star League force sent to destroy Clan Smoke Jaguar on their homeworld of Huntress.

In 3066, the Highlanders joined Jaime Wolf and Wolf's Dragoons in the Allied Mercenary Command, an alliance dedicated to stopping Word of Blake expansion in the Chaos March.

Jihad

The sudden, consecutive deaths of a number of Clan Elders forced the Highlanders to activate escape clauses in their contracts to return to Northwind, so they could participate in emergency elections. The Word of Blake seized the opportunity to blockade the system on 15 December, 3067, and keep all of the Highlanders regiments on Northwind.[4][5]

Later in the Jihad, when the Word of Blake debuted a new version of the Crab battlemech, it was speculated by many that the Cosara Weaponries plant on Northwind had been captured by the Blakists. [6]

New emblem of the Northwind Highlanders under The Republic of the Sphere

The Republic of the Sphere

As of 3130, the Highlanders had become a semi-autonomous force within The Republic of the Sphere. Their leader, Countess Tara Campbell, was a media darling and turned down a position as Paladin after her successful defense of Terra. The Highlanders are used within the Republic as a sort of troubleshooting unit, constantly heading to hotspots to help out.


Regimental List

These are the listings for all the Regiments formations that have served or currently serving Highlanders:

Former Units

Gallery

  • Camomercsnorthwindhiglanders.png

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Notes

  • In many of the earlier publications based in the 3025 era, the Highlanders had apparently been serving House Liao for so long they were no longer considered mercenary, but closer to regular House troops. CCAF Regular army recruits and academy graduates were frequently assigned to Highlander regiments, including a young Wayne Waco.[7][8]
  • The Northwind Highlanders appear in the MechWarrior IV: Mercenaries computer game as a possible sponsor. Units sponsored by the Highlanders gain additional C-Bills per mission completed.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Northwind Highlanders, p. 6
  2. ↑ Northwind Highlanders
  3. ↑ Main Event
  4. ↑ Jihad Hot Spots: 3070, p. 11, "Timeline of the Jihad"
  5. ↑ Blake Ascending, p. 171, "Timeline of the Jihad"
  6. ↑ Technical Readout: 3050 Upgrade, p. 198
  7. ↑ Mercenary's Handbook, p. 86
  8. ↑ Succession Wars


Bibliography

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