Dedrickson's Devils

Dedrickson's Devils
Affiliation	Mercenary
Parent Command	Independent

History

Beginnings

Dedrickson's Devils began their mercenary career as a reputable unit, and would continue to be so for several decades. That began to change following a dispute in 3041 between the Devils and their employer at the time, the Armed Forces of the Federated Commonwealth. After several years of shorted pay, the Devils broke their long-term garrison contract and set off for the Taurian Concordat in search of better opportunities.

The Devils reached the border of Taurian space but were refused passage through by the Taurian border forces at Pinard; the Devils retaliated by raiding the planet and fleeing into the Deep Periphery, beginning their active degeneration into a full-fledged pirate band.

With no safe haven to call home, the Devils survived the next two decades by raiding worlds in both the Federated Commonwealth (and later, Federated Suns) and the Concordat, striking at lightly defended worlds to obtain the supplies they needed to survive. The Devils resorted to deliberate false-flag operations to make their raids a success and to try and avoid detection, deliberately painting their 'Mechs in the color schemes of one nation while raiding the other - using Federated Suns colors when raiding the Concordat, and vice versa.

Not only was this tactic successful, it was responsible for setting off multiple retaliatory raids by both the Concordat and the Commonwealth/Suns, each convinced that the raids were the work of the other. The Devils' tactics became even more successful after the Taurian Concordat launched its invasion of the Pleiades Cluster in the 3060s.

Piracy

The first major blow against the Devils was during a raid against Midale in the late 3060s. Disguised as the Taurian Guard and intent on raiding the border world, the Devils ran into Hansen's Roughriders; the Roughriders had only recently had many of their dependents massacred by Taurian forces and had taken heavy losses in battle against the Concordat, and as a result the sight of what appeared to be more Taurian forces drove the Roughriders into a berserk fury as they sought brutal and bloody vengeance. The resulting battle lasted several hours and cost the Devils two companies of BattleMechs before they could break contact with the Roughriders and flee.

In the wake of the disaster on Midale the Devils lost another half-dozen MechWarriors through desertion, and an increasingly reluctant James Dedrickson, Jr - son of the man who led the Devils out of AFFC employment almost thirty years before - was finding it more and more difficult to accept the Devils' pirate lifestyle and to keep the Devils together.

Jihad Era

Between 3067 and 3071 the Devils continued their campaign against both the Federated Suns and the Taurian Concordat, with lethal consequences; having raided the world of Brinton, home to a deadly and incurable plague that kept Brinton a largely closed world, the Devils then raided Aea, one of the Concordat's outlying colonies. The Devils brought the plague with them from Brinton, spreading the deadly disease across Aea. The Devils also destroyed the HPG on Aea during their raid, as well as the main water purification plants, making matters even worse for the population and the Concordat.

Criminal Charges

As a result of the Devils' actions on Brinton and Aea and as a reflection of their status as carriers of the incurable Brinton Plague, the Devils were listed as one of the units on the MRBC most wanted list in 3071. The Devils were officially charged with the following crimes:

• Crimes Against Humanity (2 counts)
• Attacks Against civilians (8 counts)
• War Crimes (12 counts)
• Acts of Piracy (10 counts)

Such was the threat posed by the Plague that the MRBC listed the Devils as an imminent threat to human life and directed that any units hunting the Devils should shoot on sight and take no salvage or prisoners, with a bounty of one hundred thousand C-bills on the head of every member of the unit. In late 3071 the Devils were still being reported as having last been seen on Aea, operating at just over half strength.

Officers

Rank	Name	Command
Commanding Officers of Dedrickson's Devils
Major	James Dedrickson	3037
Major	James Dedrickson, Jr	3067

Tactics

The Devils trained in using tactics common to the Taurian Defense Force and the AFFC/Armed Forces of the Federated Suns to further enhance their false-flag tactics when raiding worlds.

Composition

3067

• Dedrickson's Devils (1 battalion/Regular/Questionable)

• CO: Major James Dedrickson, Jr
• XO: Lieutenant Anthony Bertoni

- Only a single company of 'Mechs were battleworthy at this point in time - The battleworthy component of the Devils consisted largely of jump-capable light and medium weight machines.

• Dedrickson's Angels (2 Squadrons/Regular/Questionable)

• CO: Captain Danielle Daly
• XO: Lieutenant Eddie Peto

- The Angels were equipped with older medium aerospace fighters. - The Angels were most commonly used to clear drop zones for the Devils.

In addition to their combat forces, the Devils also operated enough DropShips to transport their combat troops via their single Invader-class JumpShip, the Devil's Chauffer.

Color Schemes

Dedrickson's Devils prefer to use schemes of other units for their false-flag operations. However, when the Devils are not in false-flag colors, they use forest green with silver highlights.

Rules

3067

• Before each game, the Devils may opt to use the special rules of any unit from the Federated Suns or Taurian Concordat, provided that they are not fighting a force of the same affiliation as that they choose to mimic.

Bibliography

• Mercenaries Supplemental II
• Mercenaries Supplemental Update