Difference between revisions of "Silver Hawk Irregulars"
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===Operation GUERRERO===
 
===Operation GUERRERO===
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The Falcons were mobilized during Operation Guerrero, retaking the traditional Silver Hawks world of Callison in 3057. Though the [[Eleventh Lyran Guards]] retreated before the Falcon advance, multiple pro-FedCom militia commands held their ground until their eventual defeat.<ref name=FMFWLp89/>
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The Falcons were mobilized during Operation Guerrero, retaking the traditional Silver Hawks world of Callison in 3057. Though the [[Eleventh Lyran Guards]] retreated before the Falcon advance, multiple pro-FedCom militia commands held their ground until their eventual defeat.<ref name=FMFWLp89/> The recapture of the planet did much to improve relations between the brigade and the larger Free Worlds League Military, while General [[Martha Zuritas]]'s substantial equipment, training, and procedural reforms greatly increased the overall quality of the Silver Hawks.
  
 
===Jihad===
 
===Jihad===

Revision as of 13:28, 15 October 2022

Silver Hawk Irregulars logo.png
Silver Hawk Irregulars
Formed c. 2966[1]

3135 (reformed)[2][3]

Disbanded 3081[4]
Affiliation Free Worlds League, Silver Hawks Coalition
Parent Command FWLM
Sub-Command(s) Falcons

Gryphons

Drawing from the planetary defense forces of the five member provinces of the Silver Hawks Coalition, the two regiments of the Silver Hawk Irregulars vary wildly in training, equipment, and experience. The Coalition's proximity to the border of the Free Worlds League has ensured that the brigade has seen a great deal of combat, though its performance relies entirely on how well its commanders can get their troops to cooperate with one another.

History

Formation

The Silver Hawk Irregulars were formed after the signing of the Concord of Danais in 2966 by the five future provinces of the Silver Hawks Coalition: Kalidasa, Callison, Danais, Amity, and Shiloh. Though their cooperation was based on much earlier mutual defense agreements already in existence between these states, the formation of this joint military force solidified those connections. The Coalition's invocation of the Free Worlds League's Home Defense Act brought the brigade into being, and it drew its initial members from the militaries and militias of these worlds, taking whatever they could provide.[1] This resulted in a rather disparate group of units from each province, as each viewed the combined peacekeeping force with different perspectives and cultural expectations. For example, while the people of Kalidasa and New Hope viewed their tithe to the Irregulars as a solemn responsibility and contributed the best 'Mechs and troops, Shiloh viewed the levies as a chance to be rid of the worst elements of their society, sending convicts, paupers, and other societal rejects with shoddy equipment to do their fighting.[5]

The Coalition staunchly resisted the use of their Irregulars by House Marik during several military operations by invoking the Home Defense Act time after time. This refusal to contribute towards shared efforts earned the brigade very few friends in the larger League, though it still saw a great deal of action thanks to the Coalition's proximity to the Capellan and Lyran borders.[1][5]

Fourth Succession War

In 3029, Cranston Snord's Irregulars faced the Gryphons regiment on the world of Connaught.[6]

Andurien Succession

Though the Silver Hawk Irregulars did not face Andurien in combat, their deployment along the Lyran border gave them many opportunities to skirmish with Steiner forces. Raids performed by the Gryphons culminated in two strikes on Cor Caroli and Ailoth in August 3039.

Interim

The Gryphons were stationed on Kalidasa in 3047, where they defended its Kali Yama factories from a raid by Harlock's Warriors. This defense would ultimately fail, and Federated Commonwealth special forces would leave the planet with multiple Free Worlds designs in hand. [7]The Falcons faced their own setback on Dubhe, where they were struck by the Seventeenth Arcturan Guards in 3049. Though the planet remained in Free Worlds hands, the Falcons were devastated by the larger RCT, emerging from the fighting with barely a battalion's worth of troops.[7]

Operation GUERRERO

The Falcons were mobilized during Operation Guerrero, retaking the traditional Silver Hawks world of Callison in 3057. Though the Eleventh Lyran Guards retreated before the Falcon advance, multiple pro-FedCom militia commands held their ground until their eventual defeat.[7] The recapture of the planet did much to improve relations between the brigade and the larger Free Worlds League Military, while General Martha Zuritas's substantial equipment, training, and procedural reforms greatly increased the overall quality of the Silver Hawks.

Jihad

Dark Age

Both Silver Hawk Irregulars regiments were destroyed while fighting the Republic of the Sphere during Operation Golden Dawn in 3081. Though the Silver Hawks Coalition refused to sign an official peace with the Republic, the Republic declared that any reformation of the brigade would be treated as an act of war and responded to accordingly.[2]

Reformation and ilClan Era

The Silver Hawk Irregulars were officially reformed in 3135 by Anson Marik. The Captain-General hoped the historically provincial regiment would fanatically defend traditional Silver Hawks worlds[8], while its guerrilla actions would inspire the people of the Marik-Stewart Commonwealth to resist an eventual Lyran invasion.[9] Elements of the brigade squared off against the Lyran and Clan Wolf forces of Duke Vedet Brewer, Roderick Frost, and Alaric Wolf on Helm in 3138, but were soundly defeated after fierce fighting. Their attempt to surrender to the Duke was ignored by Alaric's forces, who refused to acknowledge the surrender as valid and began slaughtering the remaining Irregulars, leaving few survivors. The few Irregulars that managed to flee the planet brought news of the massacre to the rest of the brigade, creating a long-lasting grudge against Clan Wolf in the ranks.[2] Though initially re-founded as just one regiment of troops, the Gryphons, by 3146 the unit had begun to return to its historical size thanks to the efforts of its commanding officer, Colonel Lucas Cameron-Witherspoon.[10] Through his petitioning for resources, the brigade was able to plant seeds for further expansion, christening a new battalion that they anticipated would grow to become a regiment. This battalion was of course named the Falcons.[2]

Breaking the Truce

After the formation of the Wolf Empire was declared by Seth Ward, the remnants of the Free Worlds League, now united under Captain-General Jessica Marik, were forced to maintain an uneasy truce along the newfound border, though many of its member states chafed at the loss of their worlds to the nascent Empire. This all changed on 16 April, 3151, when Count Gavin Stewart led the Silver Hawk Irregulars' Gryphons in an invasion of Stewart, seeking to recapture his ancestral home from the Clan solahma forces stationed there.[10] The Gryphons quickly triumphed over the Clan troops, hunting them down to the last man as Count Stewart reclaimed the world for his House.[11] When Trenton Marik, grandson of Anson Marik, heard of the involvement of the Gryphons in this dangerous and unauthorized aggression against Clan Wolf he received authorization from now-Captain-General Nikol Marik to cross the border and convince Stewart and the Gryphons to leave the planet to avoid angering the Wolves. Gavin refused, claiming that Stewart had been held for too long by outside forces and that it belonged by right and ancestry to House Stewart. To make matters worse for Trenton, Gavin had made sweeping promises to the Irregulars that he would lead them in reclaiming their lost Silver Hawks Coalition worlds and restore them to their rightful place in the league.[11]

On 18 June, just as Trenton was about to give up and return to the League empty-handed, two Clusters of Clan warriors the Clan Protectorate arrived in the system and made landfall. They immediately engaged the Stewart and Silver Hawk forces, and Trenton joined Gavin in the world's defense. The two combatants were evenly matched, clashing back and forth until the conflict came to a head on 26 June, outside Stewart's Corean Enterprises factory. Though Gavin was seriously wounded after his BattleMaster was brought down, he had tricked the Clan forces into claiming a stripped facility. Enraged, they retaliated emotionally and without forethought, allowing Trenton, who was now at the head of the Gryphons, to rout them from the planet.[11]

Reclamation Campaign

Even though Gavin Stewart was now incapacitated, he had confided in Lucas Cameron-Witherspoon before his assault on Stewart that recapturing his ancestral homeworld was merely the first step in a grand campaign to restore the Silver Hawks Coalition to power. Gavin envisioned the reborn Coalition would serve once again as a barrier against outside invasion, this time against the predation of the ilClan. Colonel Cameron-Witherspoon decided that he would continue in the pursuit of this grand dream, targeting Amity as the next world to be reclaimed. News of the Gryphons' success on Stewart had reached the former Coalition worlds of Alkes and New Hope, who were now members of the Covenant Worlds, and they sent support in the form of mercenaries, materiel, and money.

Officers

Rank Name Command
Commanding Officers of the Silver Hawks Irregulars
Colonel Michael Cameron-Witherspoon[12] 3025[12]
General Martha Zuritas[5] 3047[5] - 3067
Force Commander, later Colonel Ian Cameron-Witherspoon 3137[13] - fl. 3139[14]
Colonel Lucas Cameron-Witherspoon fl. 3145[15] - 3152[16]

Tactics

Tactics vary per unit, but most often boil down to simple, practical methods that are common across the wide variety of military experience and training on display in the Irregulars. While advanced tactics were more common after the reforms of 3047 implemented by General Martha Zuritas, most early engagements relied on lowest common denominator stratagems that emphasized individual initiative.[1][5]

Units

Color Scheme and Insignia

While from disparate backgrounds, cultures, and militaries, the Irregulars all use the same insignia: a silver falcon with its wings and claws extended, set upon a dark blue disc. The individual provincial units each retain the specific markings and colors of their home province but display the unit crest on the left torso of their 'Mechs.[5]

Each province maintains the following parade color schemes:

  • Amity Province (Amity, Concord)[17]: Gold, with orange highlight panels.[18]
  • Callison Province (Callison, Marcus)[17]: Half purple, half silver, with purple on the left side.[18]
  • Danais Province (Danais, Bondurant)[17]: Silver and green, with silver on the top half.[18]
  • Kalidasa Province (Kalidasa, New Hope, Alkes)[17]: Black with a gold torso, fuselage, or turret.[18]
  • Shiloh Province (Shiloh)[17]: Quartered tan and orange.[18]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 House Marik: The Free Worlds League, p. 99, "Silver Hawk Irregulars"
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Empire Alone, p. 86, "Gryphons"
  3. ↑ Field Manual: 3145, p. 108, "Silverhawk Irregulars/Atrean Dragoons/Protectorate Guards"
  4. ↑ Field Manual: 3085, pp. 16-17, "Operation Golden Dawn"
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Field Manual: Free Worlds League, p. 88, "Silver Hawks Irregulars: Disorganized Chaos"
  6. ↑ Field Manual: Free Worlds League, p. 89, "Gryphons"
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Field Manual: Free Worlds League, p. 89, "Falcons"
  8. ↑ Pandora's Gambit, Ch. 3
  9. ↑ Fire at Will, Ch. 10
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Empire Alone, p. 28, "Precautionary Measures"
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Empire Alone, pp. 36 - 38, "A Testament of Loyalty"
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 House Marik: The Free Worlds League, p. 108, "'Mech Unit Deployment Table"
  13. ↑ Pandora's Gambit, Ch. 3
  14. ↑ To Ride the Chimera
  15. ↑ Field Manual: 3145, p. 116
  16. ↑ Empire Alone, pp. 39 - 41, "A New Coalition"
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 Empire Alone, p. 44, "Threat Assessment: Silver Hawks"
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 CamoSpecs Online, Silver Hawk Irregulars, https://camospecs.com/unit/2nd-silver-hawk-irregulars/

Bibliography

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