5th FedCom RCT

The Fifth FedCom has never been able to meet the expectation put upon them as “the best soldiers and best equipment of both states”. The Fifth Fedcom in fact is accident prone, has low morale, and generally believe that bad things will happen to them. The Fifth FedCom is made up of primarily Light and Medium BattleMechs, usually older models with a handful of more modern ones. On paper the Fifth FedCom has three battalions, but can field only 80 mechs or so.

History

Formed in 3037, the Fifth FedCom suffered its first bit of bad luck shortly after its formation when during a training accident over a third of its Mechwarriors were killed in a dropship crash. Less than six months later House Marik attacked the RCT’s base on Tsitsang inflicting further losses on the unit. The Fifth FedCom performed well in the beginning of the War of 3039 taking Halstead Station. Shortly after though the Draconis Combine counterattacked using Star League era Battlemechs and equipment and shattered the Fifth FedCom, and forcing them to withdraw, leaving lots of BattleMechs, supplies, and equipment behind. New personnel and Battlemechs were issued to the RCT when they had returned to Tsitsang, but were not considered of the same quality that the unit had been first formed with. This only seemed to reinforce to the Fifth FedComs personnel that the unit was unlucky and they were losers, a mindset the Fifth FedCom would not get over.

At some point between 3050 and 3061 the Fifth FedCom would move from Tsitsang to Chesterton and take up station there. By this point the RCT’s loyalties were firmly in the Katherine Steiner-Davion camp. The Fifth FedComs next campaign would start on a very unlucky note when the RCT was deployed to Axton in August 3063 to convince the First Bell Training Battalion to join the Civil War on Katherine Steiner-Davion side, or disarm the unit. After arriving in system the RCT’s bad luck was once again appernt when two dropships collided and crashed with all personnel lost during entry to the planets atmosphere. The remaing dropships were scattered as well. After a few days various units of the RCT began to rally up under Leftenant General Klaus von Ludendorf. After a few days the First Bell Training Battalion, backed by two militia regiments were deployed to “lend assistance” to the Fifth FedCom, but shots were fired and fighting began between the Fifth FedCom and the First Bell Training Battalion. After three weeks both sides called for reinforcements, with the Fifth FedComs XO Annete Leyland the first to respond. Taking command of the Fifth Fedcom from Leftenant General Klaus von Ludendorf, Leftenant General Annete Leyland pushed the First Bell Training Battalion back to the planets rain forest filled subcontinent. At this point reinforcements arrived for the First Bell Training Battalion in the form of the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers under the command of Major General Robert Koenig which made landing in October. Now the Fifth Fedcoms were the ones on the defensive. For the next few months the various units would play a game of cat and mouse in the planets rainforests until Februry, 3064 when the Fifth Fedcom broke contact during the Monsoon season and escaped over the Keliant Mountains onto the Kei-Den Plateau.

By June of 3064, Leftenant General Annete Leyland had given up on reinforcments from New Avalon and her command had taken heavy damage from the pursuing5th Syrtis Fusiliers. The only aid the Fifth Fedcom would receive was a location of a hidden supply depot. When the Fifth FedCom raided the supply depot they discovered plenty of conventional munitions, as well as fifty atomic weapons, plus their delivery systems. Leftenant General Annete Leyland took the weapons with her and decided to keep them “as a last resort”. On the 17th of June after the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers and First Bell Training Battalion had cut off a large number of her troops, Annete Leyland authorized two of the nuclear weapons to be used. The First Bell Training Battalion was completely destroyed, as were a battalion of armor and a sizeable number of the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers infantry caught in the open. At this point the 5th Syrtis Fusiliers backed off, but soon attacked again, intent on destroyng the Fifth FedCom completely. Leftenant General Annete Leyland would use twelve more of the nuclear weapons over the next two weeks attempting to save her command from annihilation. On July 29th the Fifth FedCom fled the system after ransacking Chestertons capitol and raiding Wangker Aerospace.

On the 24th of November the Fifth FedCom arrived at Marlette and joined the loyalist forces there, though not without controversy, some wanted the RCT arrested to a man and all senior officers executed, calmer minds prevailed and the Fifth FedCom was given a place in the defence, soon after they would take the city of Argentan and later set up a static defence line against the Allied Forces. The Fifth Crucis Lancers received word the 20th Avalon Hussars had arrived in system and launched an attack on the loyalist forces. The 20th Avalon Hussars had not come to take the planet but to attack the Fifth FedCom and as soon as they arrived set themselves opposite of the Fifth FedCom and attacked. After 25 days of fighting the the 20th Avalon Hussars were able to destroy a third of the Fifth FedCom after seperating it from the main group. By day 53 of the fighting the Fifth FedCom were on the verge of collapse so Leftenant General Annete Leyland chose to use one of the nuclear weapons as a warning, but the 20th Avalon Hussars ignored this warning and attacked. At this point Annete Leyland made the decision to use nuclear weapons against the 20th Avalon Hussars who were closing in on her command post. She dispatched her fighter wing to drop the nuclear weapons, one succeded in dropping its payload, but the nuclear weapon failed to function and the 20th Avalon Hussars shot down the rest of the attacking fighters and overran the Fifth FedComs airfield soon after. At this point Leftenant General Annete Leyland and the Fifth Fedcom withdrew on March 11th from Marlette with four Battlemech companys. The remaining Fifth FedCom were absorbed by the Marlette CMM forces. At this point the Fifth FedCom was considered destroyed by the both sides, although elements had escaped and were still at large.

Officers

Hauptmann General James White took command in 3047 after the previous CO committed suicide. He commanded the RCT until 3063 when he was killed in a dropship collision over Axton. After this Leftenant General Annete Leyland assumed command.

Tactics

The Fifth FedCom are generalists, with no special skills, though the has a reputation for retreating if possible or if not possible fighting with everything at their disposable if pushed into a corner.

Composition

In 3067 the unit consisted of:

• 5th FedCom Regiment
• “5th FedCom Armor Brigade
• “5th FedCom Infantry Brigade

Notes

• Like other FedCom RCTs, the Fifth primarily used the FedCom Corps crest, as and for its insignia a black rat on a white disk..
• The parade colors of the Fifth, is the same as other FedCom Corps units, which is navy blue with gold banding on the arms and legs of 'Mechs. Gold is also used to highlight panels on the upper torsos of 'Mechs and turrets of armor units, resulting in a checkerboard pattern. On many occasions its been defaced with a yellow stripe painted on the mechs backs or vehicles turrets by other units who infiltrate the Fifth Fedcoms base’s.