Northwind Highlanders

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

History

These Scots colonized the planet of Northwind, largely due to its agreeable climate. 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. This changed, however, when Prince Hanse Davion of the Federated Suns decided to invade.

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 occured 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. Ultimately, they chose to fight for their independence, and sent the Lyran 3rd Royals RCT 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.

In 3059, the Highlanders contributed forces to Task Force Serpent. Task Force Serpent was 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. The sudden, continous death of a few 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 in 3067 and keep all of the Highlanders regiments on Northwind.

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