Black Cats
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| |
| Black Cats | |
| Formed | late 2980s |
| Affiliation | Mercenary |
| Parent Command | Independent |
The Black Cats were an all-infantry mercenary unit, specialized in security and urban warfare. Although competent, they became known for a good public relations group and often exaggerated vid-commercials showing them taking down BattleMechs.[1]
Contents
History[edit]
First appearing in the contract archives on Galatea in the late 2980s, the Black Cats existed on and off the official rolls until at least late 3071[1] and implicitly beyond that date.
At one point they managed to defend the city of Lawrence against an attack by a BattleMech company that posed as the Black Widow Company, and took down at least two 'Mechs (one of them apparently a Trebuchet); the exact timeframe of the action remains unspecified.
Following an ambush gone bad and an employer defrauding the unit, the five survivors, including Corporal Hill, put the unit on ice in 3048, but reactivated the unit at battalion strength in early 3050.[1]
The unit's largest asset was a Fury-class DropShip which they acquired in 3067 and lost on the launchpad in the 3068 Harlech bombing on Outreach.
The unit was still active in the Dark Age Era. They were on the Lyran planet Great X when it was taken by Clan Jade Falcon forces, and abandoned by Lyran units, but survived, waging a guerrilla war against them. When a group of Kell Hounds arrived, in early 3152, to free the planet. The Hounds were divided in two units which were rivals, and their division almost cost them the defeat... but the Cats were there. Their commander, Colonel Donatello Lambert had tracked the Falcon paramilitary forces movement, and attacked them, swarming their civilian vehicles, disabling or seizing them, becoming key in liberating the planet. The Hounds company leader, Captain Eldin Mazzaroni, offered the Cats the opportunity to join the Arc-Royal Liberty Coalition, the proto-state recently created in the region. The Cats accepted, becoming part of their military.[2]
Officers[edit]
| Rank | Name | Command | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commanding Officers of the Black Cats | |||
| Major | Lou Lingg | 3071[1] | |
| Colonel | Donatello Lambert | 3152[2] | |
Other Personnel[edit]
Other known unit members include:
Tactics[edit]
Unknown.
Composition History[edit]
Unknown.
Notes[edit]
- The exact time and place of the defense of Lawrence are indeterminate as no dates or epigraphs are provided. The story may initially have been meant to be set sometimes in the late Succession Wars era, i.e. around 3025; it has to be set after 3015 as the Black Widow Company, which has apparently already racked up quite a reputation by the time the story is set in, was created in that year.
However, "Boots" Hill was a corporal in 3048 while she is a sergeant in the story, suggesting it takes place in 3050 or later but before 3071 when then-Major Lou Lingg has risen to the position of unit commander. - The German edition of the Shrapnel anthology has original art going with the story, depicting (presumably) "Boots" Hill and the unit emblem, which notably differs from the canonical emblem that was published in a later product.
References[edit]
Bibliography[edit]
- Black Cats Cross Your Path (in Shrapnel, MechWarrior (2nd Edition) rulebook, and the German edition of the CityTech rulebook)
- Mercenaries Supplemental Update
- Tamar Rising