Blazing Aces

Overview

The Blazing Aces were Gideon Braver's Lance of BattleMechs in his quest to avenge the murder of his family and retrieve the Chalice of Herne. While working as a mercenary unit, they managed to uncover the truth behind Operation Inroad and eventually tracked down and vanquished the Dark Wing.

Inception

Under the abbreviated name of "Gideon Braver", Gideon Braver Vandenburg left his homeworld of Ander's Moon (Elidere IV) in March 3024 for a nearby world after his family had been killed in an attack by an unknown Lance of BattleMechs (the Dark Wing) and he himself was charged with conspiracy and crimes against the state with forged evidence. A friend provided him with an old Jenner, some money and a safe passage off-world. Upon his arrival at the destination world, Gideon Braver began a mercenary career and created his own unit, the Blazing Aces, in April 3024.

Organisation and equipment

The unit's exact composition is determined by a combination of random events and player choices over the course of the game. Starting out with only Gideon Braver and his Jenner, additional 'Mech pilots and 'Mechs can be obtained to boost the Blazing Aces up to Lance size (4 'Mechs). However, only eight different BattleMech types are available within the game: Locust, Jenner, Phoenix Hawk, Shadow Hawk, Rifleman, Warhammer, Marauder and BattleMaster. It can therefore be said for sure that they fielded no other BattleMech models. While a Scorpion (BattleMech) does also appear in the storyline, thís design is not available for combat.

History

The Blazing Aces took on a multitude of mercenary contracts for numerous clients, usually short-term engagements like objective raids; they had offers from all ruling Houses (again, it is largely up to the player to negotiate contracts and chose employers).

What can be established is that the Blazing Aces travelled to Galedon V and subsequently took part in the hunt for wanted crimelord Grig Griez whom they first contacted through a middle-man on Land's End. Promised information about the Dark Wing as payment, they proceeded to Dustball on a courier mission and, following the information they gained there, sought out Wendall Purina, brother of the notorious smuggler Willard "Kangaroo Jack" Purina, on a world in the Free Worlds League where he served as a Scorpion pilot with Smithson's Chinese Bandits. It had been Kangaroo Jack's JumpShip, the "Stone Arrow", that had brought the Dark Wing to Ander's Moon. The Blazing Aces finally tracked down Kangaroo Jack on a world in Davion space, but arrived only after he had been murdered. However, Gideon Braver received word that the Dark Wing were none other than the Black Widow Company who carried out strike missions for the Draconis Combine. With this information, the Blazing Aces travelled back to Kurita space and met the Black Widows in a bar. Gideon Braver openly accused Natasha Kerensky of having attacked Ander's Moon, which she denied. A barfight broke out and only the intervention of a mysterious woman named Tasha saved Gideon from a severe beating. She revealed that the information about the Black Widows' involvement as false and provided him with datafiles about Operation Inroad that proved Matabushi Incorporated to have ordered the Dark Wing attack.

This all took place between April 3024 and February 3028, i.e. while Wolf's Dragoons (and the Black Widow Company with them) were still serving with House Kurita and had not yet regrouped on Misery.

In an attempt to contact his erstwhile informant, Gideon Braver then went to Albiero where he wound up in a MI6 attack on Matabushi Inc. and finally received detailed information on the whereabouts of the Chalice of Herne. Although it was guarded by the Dark Wing (consisting of 4 BattleMasters and a Warhammer), the Blazing Aces prevailed and retrieved the artefact in less than five years after the Dark Wing had taken it from Castle Vandenburg.

Other Information

• Gideon Braver and the Blazing Aces were introduced in the 1989 Activision computer game Mechwarrior, where the player takes the role of Gideon Braver.