Editing 278th Division (ComStar)

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	===Rebuilding & Revision===		===Rebuilding & Revision===
−	Despite less than a third of the division surviving the battle, the Precentor Martial ordered the division rebuilt, bolstering the survivors with displaced battle-hardened veterans from divisions destroyed on Tukayyid rather than new recruits to avoid diluting the overall experience level of the unit. Even with these transfers, the 278th only returned to full strength in [[3055]].<ref name=FMC-43>''Field Manual: ComStar'', p. 43: "12th Army V-beta (The Broadsword and Shield)"</ref> Selecting the new nickname of The Khan Killers after that climactic battle, the 278th became the command division of the Twelfth Army, but the loss of Rasalhague during the invasion led to its transfer to Tukayyid.<ref name=CS2>''ComStar'', p. 85: "12th Army V-beta"</ref> The threat of a resumed Clan Invasion meant that the 278th was one of the few divisions to be stationed in its entirety on a single world.	+	Despite less than a third of the division surviving the battle, the Precentor Martial ordered the division rebuilt, bolstering the survivors with displaced battle-hardened veterans from divisions destroyed on Tukayyid rather than new recruits to avoid diluting the overall experience level of the unit. Even with these transfers, the 278th only returned to full strength in [[3055]].<ref name=FMC-43>''Field Manual: ComStar'', p. 43: "12th Army V-beta (The Broadsword and Shield)"</ref> Selecting the new nickname of ''The Khan Killers'' after that climactic battle, the 278th became the command division of the Twelfth Army, but the loss of Rasalhague during the invasion led to its transfer to Tukayyid.<ref name=CS2>''ComStar'', p. 85: "12th Army V-beta"</ref> The threat of a resumed Clan Invasion meant that the 278th was one of the few divisions to be stationed in its entirety on a single world.
	===Idle years and Operation Bulldog===		===Idle years and Operation Bulldog===

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{{infoBoxMilitaryCommand | image = | Designation = 278th Division [[Level IV|IV]]-chi | formed = | Disbanded = | Previous Designation = | Nickname = Clear Courtesy (3050);<br>The Khan Killers (3062) | Affiliation = ComStar | Parent Command = [[12th Army (ComStar)|Twelfth Army]] | Sub-Command = }} One of the most elite units in the [[Com Guards]], the '''278th Division''' suffered heavy losses against [[Clan Wolf]] during the [[Battle of Tukayyid (3052)|Battle of Tukayyid]], before rebuilding to become the vanguard of [[ComStar]]'s defense against a renewed [[Clan Invasion]]. ==History== Prior to the initial Clan Invasion the 278th Division was known by the nickname of ''Clear Courtesy'' and was assigned to the Twelfth Army. Then a IV-nu based formation, the 278th's headquarters world was [[Rasalhague]] in the [[Free Rasalhague Republic]].<ref name=20YU>''20 Year Update'', p. 71: "12th V-nu"</ref> ===Tukayyid=== One of the very few elite ranked divisions within the Com Guards, while the bulk of the 12th Army faced [[Clan Nova Cat]], [[Precentor Martial of ComStar|Precentor Martial]] [[Anastasius Focht]] assigned the 278th to assist the divisions of the [[10th Army (ComStar)|Tenth Army]] defend Clan Wolf's primary target city of Skupo.<ref name=T>''Tukayyid'', p. 90: "Campaign: Clan Wolf"</ref><ref name=CS>''ComStar'', pp. 71–72: "Battle of Tukayyid"</ref><ref name=WC>''Wolf Clan'', pp. 50–51: "Days of Armageddon - Wolf"</ref> Stationed outside of the small hamlet of Forest's End alongside the [[166th Division (ComStar)|166th Division]], 278th was in the direct line of advance of the Wolves [[3rd Battle (Clan Wolf)|Third]] and [[7th Battle (Clan Wolf)|Seventh Battle Clusters]]. While the [[66th Division (ComStar)|66th Division]] harried the Wolves right flank and the inexperienced [[283rd Division (ComStar)|283rd Division]] prevented [[Alpha Galaxy (Clan Wolf-in-Exile)|Alpha Galaxy]]'s [[4th Wolf Guards (Clan Wolf-in-Exile)|Fourth Wolf Guards]] from encircling the 166th and 2787th positions, the Wolf [[Khan]]s focused all their efforts on the primary defensive line, slowly pushing the 266th and 278th Divisions back.<ref name=T/><ref name=CS/><ref name=WC/> While [[Natasha Kerensky]]'s famed [[13th Wolf Guards (Clan Wolf-in-Exile)|Thirteenth Wolf Guards]] tore the [[282nd Division (ComStar)|282nd Division]] apart during a failed attempt to bypass the retreating Com Guard forces, their sacrifice allowed the 278th and the other elements of the Tenth Army to fall back to their defensive positions outside Skupo. However before the 278th and other divisions could dig in, the Wolf forces resumed their attack. Despite the arrival of reinforcements from the [[9th Army (ComStar)|Ninth Army's]] [[198th Division (ComStar)|198th]] and [[247th Division (ComStar)|247th Divisions]], after the Wolf Spiders overcame a brutal ambush by the [[138th Division (ComStar)|138th Division]] and began to tear into the 166th, the 278th was left as the sole Com Guard unit effectively combating the Clan Wolf forces.<ref name=T/><ref name=CS/><ref name=WC/> Unfortunately the division's success attracted the personal attention of [[ilKhan]] [[Ulric Kerensky]], who recognized the vital nature of the elite division to the defense of Skupo and designated the 278th a priority target for elimination. Acting on his orders, the [[11th Wolf Guards (Clan Wolf)|11th Wolf Guards]] launched an all-out attack on the 278th; despite staging a brilliantly coordinated counterattack against the 11th, the Com Guard division then found itself it encircled by another Wolf Cluster. Unable to break the trap, the 278th went down fighting, inflicting heavy losses as they fell. This included [[Khan]] [[Garth Radick]], who was killed from a [[Gauss rifle]] shot to his 'Mech's head. Now lacking the forces to hold Skupo after the loss of the 278th, Precentor Martial Focht ordered the withdrawal of the remaining divisions defending it, virtually surrendering the city to the Wolves.<ref name=T/><ref name=CS/><ref name=WC/><ref name=ER3052-31>''Era Report: 3052'', p. 31: "Factions - ComStar - 278th Division (Clear Courtesy)"</ref><ref name=LD304305-GR-1>''Lost Destiny'', pp. 304–305: Radick's forces engage the Com Guards, he is slain by a ''Highlander''</ref> ===Rebuilding & Revision=== Despite less than a third of the division surviving the battle, the Precentor Martial ordered the division rebuilt, bolstering the survivors with displaced battle-hardened veterans from divisions destroyed on Tukayyid rather than new recruits to avoid diluting the overall experience level of the unit. Even with these transfers, the 278th only returned to full strength in [[3055]].<ref name=FMC-43>''Field Manual: ComStar'', p. 43: "12th Army V-beta (The Broadsword and Shield)"</ref> Selecting the new nickname of ''The Khan Killers'' after that climactic battle, the 278th became the command division of the Twelfth Army, but the loss of Rasalhague during the invasion led to its transfer to Tukayyid.<ref name=CS2>''ComStar'', p. 85: "12th Army V-beta"</ref> The threat of a resumed Clan Invasion meant that the 278th was one of the few divisions to be stationed in its entirety on a single world. ===Idle years and Operation Bulldog=== The idle years of garrison duty on a virtually deserted world threatened to the dull the unit's edge, with the division's CO [[Demi-Precentor]] Richardo Burketon successfully arguing for the 278th to form part of ComStar's contribution to [[Operation Bulldog]].<ref name=FMC-43/> Launching from the [[Draconis Combine]] world of [[Braunton]], the 278th took part in the [[3rd Benjamin Regulars]] led [[SLDF]] task force assigned to retake [[Asgard]] during Bulldog's first wave. As the [[4th Jaguar Dragoons (Clan Smoke Jaguar)|4th Jaguar Dragoons]] withdrew to Odin's Retreat to try and repeat the 3rd Benjamin Regulars' month-long defensive campaign in that region during the initial Clan Invasion, the [[Davion Heavy Guards]] and the 278th sealed the two major routes of escape as the Regulars and [[3rd Proserpina Hussars]] chased down and eliminated every [[Clan Smoke Jaguar]] warrior.<ref name=TDR>''The Dragon Roars'', pp. 11, 19-21</ref> The most significant loss during this assault was not in battle, with Demi-Precentor Burketon badly injured during a cargo-handling accident, later replaced by [[Precentor]] Eduard Karen.<ref name=FMC-43/> ===Pre-Jihad Years=== Initially returning to station on Tukayyid,<ref>''Technical Readout: 3067'', p. 152</ref> with the lessened Clan threat after the [[Great Refusal]] and increasing tensions in [[St. Ives Compact]], the new Precentor Martial [[Victor Steiner-Davion]] transferred the [[321st Division (ComStar)|321st]] and [[403rd Division (ComStar)|403rd Divisions]] to bolster the [[4th Army (ComStar)|Fourth Army]] in [[3061]], with the 278th assigned to cover both Tukayyid and the 403rd's former station on [[Ueda]]. Something of a culture shock after years on the ComStar controlled Tukayyid, 278th were particularly resentful of the increasing Rasalhague disdain for ComStar and restrictions upon them similar to those forced upon [[mercenary unit]]s before the Clan Invasion.<ref name=FMC-43/> However the division continued to develop worst-case scenarios for the Twelfth Army to fend off attacks from the Clans, Combine or [[Lyran Alliance]] against the Republic, testing them against the [[472nd Division (ComStar)|472nd Division]].<ref name=FMU>''Field Manual: Updates'', p. 88: "12th Army V-beta (The Broadsword and Shield)"</ref> ===Jihad=== These plans would be put to the ultimate test when the [[Word of Blake]] launched a [[WarShip]] assault against Tukayyid in January [[3068]]. The [[aerospace fighter]]s of the 278th would join those of the 472nd in assisting the ''[[Sovetskii Soyuz]]''-class ''[[Blake's Vengeance]]'' and the ''[[Essex]]''-class ''[[Hammerstrike]]'' in their unsuccessful counterattack against the ''[[Blake's Sword]]'' and the ''[[Deliverance]]''. While able to inflict heavy damage against the ''Deliverance'' the 278th's forces in orbit were shattered along with the rest of the Com Guard defenders, with the ''Blake's Sword'' then able to unleash orbital bombardments against ground based troops. Caught away from their underground bunkers, the bulk of ground elements of the 278th suffered severe casualties.<ref name=DotJ>''Dawn of the Jihad'', pp. 88–89, and ''Blake Ascending'', pp. 88–89: "Tide of Fire - Tukayyid Hit, Heavy Casualties Reported"</ref> ==Officers== {| class="wikitable" |- ! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Rank ! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Name ! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Command |- | colspan="4" style="background: #efefef;" | '''Commanding Officers of the 278th Division (ComStar)''' |- | [[Precentor]]||[[Byron Koselka]]||[[3049]] - [[3052]]<ref name=20YU/> |- | [[Demi-Precentor]]||[[Richardo Burketon]]||3052 (after the [[Battle of Tukayyid (3052)|Battle of Tukayyid]]) - [[3059]]<ref name=CS2/> |- | Precentor||[[Eduard Karen]]||3059 - [[3067]]<ref name=FMC-43/><ref name=FMU/> |- |} ==Tactics== Unknown. ==Composition History== ===3050=== '''278th Division''' (Division/Elite)<ref name=20yup71>''20 Year Update'', p. 71</ref> : Note: At this point in time the 278th Division was stationed on Rasalhague.<ref name=20yup71/> ===3055=== '''278th Division''' (Division/Elite)<ref name=CSSp85">''ComStar'', p. 85</ref> : Note: At this point in time the 278th Division was stationed on [[Tukayyid]].<ref name=CSSp85"/> ===3062=== * ''The Red Horde'' III-upsilon - Demi-Precentor III [[Joy Krupa]] * ''Cover of Darkness'' III-psi - Demi-Precentor IX [[Vincent Perri]] * ''The Hangmen'' III-chi - Demi-Precentor VII [[Robert Ziel]] * ''Blood Road'' III-phi - Demi-Precentor VI [[Igor Fayer]] * ''Gleaming Lancers'' III-chi - Demi-Precentor X [[Darlene Kramer]] * ''Dangerous Days'' III-omega - Demi-Precentor IV [[Isabelo Primero]] ==Notes== * The insignia of the 278th Division is hooded figure with an ax standing above a bound prisoner.<ref name=FMC-43/> ==References== <references/> ==Bibliography== * ''[[20 Year Update]]'' * ''[[ComStar (sourcebook)|ComStar]]'' * ''[[Era Report: 3052]]'' * ''[[Field Manual: ComStar]]'' * ''[[Field Manual: Updates]]'' * ''[[Technical Readout: 3067]]'' * ''[[Tukayyid (scenario pack)|Tukayyid]]'' * ''[[Wolf Clan Sourcebook]]'' [[Category:ComStar Division Commands|Division, 278th]]

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