83rd Division (ComStar)

Eighty-third Division IV-gamma
Nickname	The White Cyclones (3050)
Affiliation	ComStar
Parent Command	Fourth Army

Brutalized by Clan Ghost Bear during the Battle of Tukayyid, the Eighty-third Division was rebuilt to serve as a stabilizing influence in the contested Chaos March.

History

As part of the newly formed Com Guards' humanitarian efforts, a Level III from the Eighty-third Division under the command of Trent Arian successfully mediated unrest sparked by religious hatred on the Federated Commonwealth world of Islamabad. Immediately prior to the Clan Invasion, the regular ranked Eighty-third Division, then a IV-Tau mix referred to by the nickname of The White Cyclones, was assigned to the Fourth Army and was headquartered on the Federated Suns world of New Syrtis.

Along with the rest of the Fourth Army, the Eighty-third was assigned to assist the First Army combat Clan Ghost Bear during the Battle of Tukayyid. Concerned that the relatively green units of the Fourth would break during combat against the Bears, despite protests from the Fourth Army's commander Precentor Aryon Tolliver, the First Army commander Katherine Luarca ordered the Fourth to stay on station around the secondary target city of Luk while the First led the charge against the Bears.

When Luarca's decision weakened the defense of the primary target of Spanac and allowed the Ghost Bears to capture it, two divisions from the Fourth unsuccessfully attempted to pin them down in the city with artillery fire to prevent them moving on their brothers back at Luk. With the Bears' elite Alpha Galaxy shrugging off this assault and tearing into the Fourth Army divisions like the Eighty-third as Luarca had feared, Luk and the divisions of the Fourth were saved when Luarca ordered the 103rd Division along with the remains of the 308th Division to sack Alpha's main supply depot. Guarded only by freebirth warriors in second-line 'Mechs and with Alpha's losses mounting, the Bears pulled back to reinforce and safeguard Spanac, earning a marginal victory against the Com Guards.

Unlike many Com Guard Divisions, the regular-rated Eighty-third Division retained its original nickname after Tukayyid, rebuilt as a BattleMech heavy IV-gamma formation. Becoming the new command division of the Fourth Army, the Eighty-third transferred its headquarters to the Federated Commonwealth world of Bryant, garrisoning sites in the politically sensitive Terran Corridor.

With the collapse of the Sarna March in the wake of Operation Guerrero, the Eighty-third attempted to provide some semblance of law and order in the disputed zone, constantly finding itself at odds with Word of Blake efforts to make inroads in the region. Because of this the Eighty-third was one of the first divisions to receive new designs, most notably the Tessen BattleMech. Though only receiving its first two Tessens in November 3061, the design's high speed, Improved Narc Missile Beacon and Improved C3 Computer allowed the Eighty-third to easily repel a Blakist raid shortly after this.

While the unit's CO was willing to continue fighting Blakist efforts on their headquarters world of Bryant, after that world's admission into the newly formed Word of Blake Protectorate Precentor Martial Pro-Tem Gavin Dow ordered the Eighty-third to withdraw to Tall Trees. (The government of Bryant asked the Eighty-third to leave to minimize further conflicts. The Eighty-third left in order to spare the population further conflict.)

At the outbreak of the Jihad, the Eighty-third Division was forced off of Bryant by the Word of Blake's Third and Fourth Divisions. Initially the Eighty-third thought they could hold off the Blakists on Tall Trees, but the intelligence reports the Eighty-third had underestimated the amount of forces available to the Blakists. The Fourth Division pinned down half the Eighty-third in the city of Helena, while the Third Division sent six Level IIIs against the other half of the Eighty-third at Fa Shura. Only a handful of Com Guard troops survived Fa Shura to evacuate. The elements of the Eighty-third at Helena staged a breakout to join their retreating DropShips, but they also suffered severe losses. The survivors joined with the Seventy-sixth Division at Zurich.

Officers

Rank	Name	Command
Commanding Officers of the 83rd Division (ComStar)
Precentor XV	Allyn Omlid	3049 – 3067

Other Officers

• Demi-Precentor Bletchley Finch, aerospace pilot during the Jihad Era.

Tactic

The Eighty-third Division is known for the use of unorthodox tactics and prefers a mobile combat style.

Composition History

3040

• Unnamed Level III stationed on Islamabad - Adept Trent Arian

3050

Eighty-third Division (Division/Regular)

Note: At this point in time the Eighty-third Division was stationed on New Syrtis.

3055

Eighty-third Division (Division/Regular)

Note: At this point in time the Eighty-third Division was stationed on Bryant.

3062

• Eternal Truths III-epsilon: Demi-Precentor II Sol Kopp
• The Phantoms III-gamma: Demi-Precentor VI Edmond Rydz
• Green Machine III-alpha: Demi-Precentor X Vivian Soballe
• The Longshoremen III-beta: Demi-Precentor VII Richard Pales
• The Lion's Den III-delta: Demi-Precentor III Thomas Kyle
• Power Struggle III-gamma: Demi-Precentor V Tina Hanson

Notes

• The Eighty-third's insignia is a white tornado on a golden disc.

Bibliography

• 20 Year Update
• ComStar
• Dawn of the Jihad
• The Fall of Terra
• Field Manual: ComStar
• Field Manual: Updates
• Imminent Crisis
• Invading Clans
• Technical Readout: 3050 Upgrade
• Technical Readout: 3058 Upgrade
• Tukayyid
• Wolf Clan Sourcebook