2nd Freemen (Free Rasalhague Republic)
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| Second Freemen | |
| Formed | 3034[1] |
| Nickname | Valhalla-Bunden (3050)[2] Strength Through Growth (3062)[3] |
| Affiliation | Free Rasalhague Republic |
| Parent Command | Freemen |
The Second Freemen was a combat unit that served the Free Rasalhague Republic.
History[edit]
Formation and the Ronin War[edit]
Like the First Freemen, the Second's origin can be traced to smaller infantry units from border worlds, but they saw no fighting during the Ronin War. During the Ronin War, the unit operated as a garrison force. It was providentially used as a garrison force starting in July 3034 when it was sent to Engadin. The Second was there to relieve the Second Genyosha just after they had completed their extermination of survivors of the Ninth Rasalhague Regulars after shattering the unit during its attack in June.[4]
In 3036, the unit was rebuilt into a BattleMech regiment with conventional attached units, along with the First Freemen. The Second Freemen were noted for their attrition and skill level that stagnated as able warriors were killed attempting too much.[2]
The Clan Invasion[edit]
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During Operation REVIVAL, the regiment was stationed on Hainfeld. The world was defended by a large garrison force, which lacked sufficient air defense capabilities. The assaulting Wolf Clan task force of the Green Keshik, Nega, and Dorbeng Garrison Clusters made a night combat drop at the capital. The Freemen retreated off-world to avoid damage to the civilian infrastructure.[5]
Both sides met again on Carse in February 3052. The invaders (namely the Red Keshik, Eleventh Wolf Guards, Thirty-seventh Striker Cluster) landed far away from all important objectives. The CO of the Freemen used his scouts and set a series of engagements. The bad weather conditions hampered the Clan, preventing the use of aerospace fighters.[6] Also on Carse was approximately a quarter of the Twenty-third Arcturan Guards RCT, who had refused orders to redeploy; these forces fought alongside the Second Freemen, but where the Freemen managed to inflict serious damage on several Wolf Clan units before withdrawing to Ueda with approximately half their forces, only a handful of personnel from the Guards escaped; included among the casualties and captured prisoners were two regiments from the Guards infantry brigade, most notably the Seventy-third Guards Jump Regiment.[7]
Clan Invasion Era and Raiding the Ghost Bear Dominion[edit]
After the Truce of Tukayyid, the KungsArmé shipped a great deal of equipment to the Second Freemen, hoping to put more effective weapons in the hands of soldiers who could use them. Once the unit was rebuilt, it became a symbol of Rasalhague's determination to resist the Clans, the largest combat unit in the KungsArmé, expanding into a Regimental Combat Team by 3062.[3]
In 3065, the Second Freemen were assigned to probe the territory claimed by Clan Ghost Bear. During this expedition, they met the First Rasalhague Bears, a Cluster commanded by Ragnar Magnusson. Rather than engage their Elected Prince in combat, the Second withdrew. During this campaign, the regiment acquired a Ghost Bearcub which they named Snuggle and adopted as the regimental mascot.[8][9]
Known Unit Members[edit]
Officers[edit]
| Rank | Name | Command |
|---|---|---|
| Commanding Officers of the 2nd Freemen | ||
| Överste | Rhett Weaver | 3050 – 3067[10][3][11] |
Tactics[edit]
At the opening of the Clan Invasion, the Second Freemen were the shock troops of the KungsArmé, able to be used for pirate raids, hostage captures, or reprisals. The Second was particularly vulnerable at maneuvers larger than besättning (company).[2]
By 3062, the Second Freemen specialized in anti-Clan tactics. They were experts at ambushes, concentrated artillery strikes, and concentrating their fire on individual Clan warriors.[3]
Composition History[edit]
3034[edit]
Second Freemen (Infantry Regiment)
- Unit Notes: Little information about the unit is known other than it was a regiment of infantry.
3050[edit]
Second Freemen (medium BattleMech Regiment/Regular/[2]Fanatical)[10]
- 3rd Bataljon
- Major Helga Almstedt[12]
- Note: At this point in time the unit was stationed on Hainfeld[10] and support units included two medium aerospace fighter flights, a combat vehicle regiment, mostly heavy hovercraft and a conventional motorized infantry regiment.[2]
3054[edit]
Second Freemen (Two Battalions/Regular/Fanatical)[13]
- CO: Överste Rhett Weaver
- Note: At this point in time the unit was stationed on Dehgolan.
3062–3067[edit]
Second Freemen (BattleMech Regiment/Veteran/Fanatical)[3][11]
- CO: First Battalion - Överste Rhett Weaver
- XO: Second Battalion - Överste-Löjtnant Hiroshi Hosokawa
- Third Battalion - Överste-Löjtnant Barbara Drabek
Headhunters (Wing/Veteran/Fanatical)[3][11]
- Wing Commander - Överste-Löjtnant Pamela Kirch
Second Dehgolan Light Armor (Regiment)-(Regular skilled, Reliable loyalty)[3][11]
- Armor Commander - Överste Philip Jopa
Seventh Dehgolan Militia (Regiment) (Regular/Reliable)[3][11]
- Troop Commander - Överste Pierre Chassin
- Unit Note: - After their probe of Ghost Bear-held territory in 3067, the Freemen returned to Rasalhague space with a Tyr armored hovercraft. They also received a Level I of Purifier Adaptive battle armor from ComStar.[8]
Color Scheme and Insignia[edit]
Like most other KungsArmé regiments save the First Tyr, the Second used the KungsArmé's standard light blue paint scheme, highlighted by grays and reds when on parade, adopting appropriate camouflage as required.[14] The Second Freemen preferred a drab green scheme with upper torsos painted to resemble a wooded skyline at dusk. In arctic environments, a white, tan, and gray camo was used instead. In either case, the upper arms were painted silver and highlighted with red Nordic runes.[15]
While they previously used that of the Freemen brigade,[2] the insignia of the Second Freemen was a set of manacles with a broken connecting chain by 3062.[3]
Gallery[edit]
Original 2nd Freemen Crest ca. 3039
Notes[edit]
- Special Command Rules for the Second Freemen can be found on page 69 of Combat Manual: Kurita[2] and page 142 of Field Manual: ComStar.[16]
References[edit]
- ↑ Historical: Brush Wars, pp. 106, 120: The Ronin War/The Drakøn's Bite & Free Rasalhague Forces (March-June 3034) - Unit shown to be operational as of 3034
- ↑ a b c d e f g Combat Manual: Kurita, p. 69: "Second Freemen"
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i Field Manual: ComStar, p. 70: Second Freemen - Strength through Growth - Armed force report, noting Second Freemen's activities, noting that the Elected-Prince expanded the unit into a Combat Team
- ↑ Historical: Brush Wars, pp. 106, 111, 120–121: Unit's origin as an Infantry Regiment, and its brief history during the war being used as a garrison unit after being formally formed as a frontline command
- ↑ Wolf Clan Sourcebook, p. 66
- ↑ Wolf Clan Sourcebook, p. 69
- ↑ Field Manual: Lyran Alliance, p. 60: "23rd Arcturan Guards RCT: The Frost Giants"
- ↑ a b Field Manual: Updates, p. 92
- ↑ Technical Readout: Jihad, p. 70
- ↑ a b c 20 Year Update, p. 51
- ↑ a b c d e Field Manual: Updates, p. 99
- ↑ Combat Manual: Kurita, p. 69: "Major Helga Almstedt"
- ↑ Objective Raids, p. 44: "Rasalhague KungsArmé"
- ↑ Field Manual: ComStar, p. 67: "Color Schemes"
- ↑ "2nd Freemen". CamoSpecs Online. Retrieved 2025-02-19.
Canonized by Hauptmann Fanjoy on 3/31/2006.
- ↑ Field Manual: ComStar, p. 142: "2nd Freemen"