Frank Woomack

Frank Woomack
Personal
Died	3029
Affiliation	Wolf's Dragoons
Profile
Rank	Captain
Profession	MechWarrior

Frank Woomack was a Captain in Wolf's Dragoons' Gamma Regiment.

History

As was the case with most of the "original" Dragoons, little is known of Woomack’s early life. It is highly likely he was born on the Clan Homeworlds, almost certainly a freeborn birth. At some point, he was chosen to join Wolf's Dragoons, who were performing reconnaissance for the Clans in the Inner Sphere. By 3025, Woomack had reached the rank of Captain and company commander in Gamma Regiment's Charlie Battalion, a command known as the Black Cats and under the overall command of Major Arthur Dumont. Woomack and his company specialized in small-unit actions, making them well-suited to the raiding era of the later Third Succession War era.

Early in 3027, the Seventh Crucis Lancers raided Misery, where they sparred with the Dragoons. During this engagement, Woomack's Company sparred with McKinnon's Company, the Seventh's famous independent company, for the first time, with the Dragoons reportedly getting the better end of the fight.

The Udibi Campaign

McKinnon's Company fought Woomack and his company on Misery and Udibi

By April 3027, the Dragoons' supply situation had become untenable due to the interference of their DCMS liaison, Jerry Akuma. Colonel Jaime Wolf formed a mixed reinforced battalion composed of lances from all five of his regiments to raid a recently-discovered Dragoon cache on Udibi in the Federated Suns, and Woomack's company was chosen to represent Gamma Regiment. Udibi, at the time, was defended by elements of the Seventh Crucis Lancers, whom the Dragoons had so recently sparred with.

When Woomack's command lance was spotted carrying supply crates by the recon lance from McKinnon's Company, McKinnon realized where the Dragoons were going. In an ambush planned in part by the Raiders' Paul Danton, McKinnon had his 'Mechs bury themselves in the sand around the target oasis, ambushing Woomack and taking possession of a valuable crate full of Neurohelmets and cockpit computers. Attempting to recover the crate, Woomack launched an all-out attack on the Raiders' base camp. This effort ultimately failed and Woomack was captured, though the other Dragoons still escaped with most of the supplies from the depot.

On 22 June, Woomack and two of the Dragoons from his company (Kathy Keegan and Steve Geiger) were still being held prisoner on Udibi at the Kitchuken Barrens AFFS Headquarters, under the command of Major Whitfield. On a visit from Quintus Allard, head of the Ministry of Information, Intelligence, and Operations and top advisor to First Prince Hanse Davion, Woomack once again gave an accounting of the Dragoons' operations on Udibi. Allard then returned Woomack and his MechWarriors to the Dragoons, under the provision that they extend an offer of employment to Colonel Wolf from the Federated Suns when their contract with the Combine expired.

The Battle of Misery and The Fourth Succession War

Main article: Battle of Misery

Main article: Battle of Harrow's Sun (Fourth Succession War)

Upon their return, Woomack and both of his soldiers were reincorporated into Gamma Regiment, with Woomack back in command of his company. Their exploits on Udibi and elsewhere had by now earned them the moniker "The Fox Hunters." Woomack and Keegan had their 'Mechs restored, while Geiger was ultimately issued a Hatchetman the Dragoons had secured through intrigue. During the Battle of Misery in April and May of 3028, the Black Cats and Woomack's Company fought with exceptional skill, and Woomack's company was one the very few to emerge from the fighting on Misery with no significant losses to either the warriors or their machines. After Misery, the Dragoons reorganized their roster into Provisional Companies. Woomack was one of the relatively few Captains who maintained his command, as his company was redesignated into Gamma Regiment's Third Provisional Company.

Gamma and Epsilon Regiments were based on Harrow's Sun at the start of the Fourth Succession War. On 12 September 3028, the Eighth Galedon Regulars attacked Harrow's Sun. In one of the longest campaigns of the war, both Dragoon regiments made the Kuritans pay for every inch of territory before being forced to retreat off-world in July 3029. Woomack was among the Dragoons killed during the fighting, though the details of his death are unclear. In all, of the twelve warriors of Woomack's Company who fought on Harrow's Sun, six were killed. Three more were injured, though they would go on to see action on Crossing.

BattleMechs

Woomack piloted a Warhammer up until his death. According to The Fox's Teeth: Exploits of McKinnon's Raiders, Woomack's 'Mech was in a state of disrepair heading into the Udibi campaign, with a fusion engine producing excessive heat and two malfunctioning small lasers. This is somewhat difficult to reconcile with the status of most Dragoon 'Mechs established in later texts, though assuming that the Udibi raid took place in May 3027 (see Notes below) it should be noted that Wolf's Dragoons had severe supply shortages and maintenance problems at the time which was the very reason for them to raid the Udibi cache in the first place.

Personality and Traits

Woomack was considered a fighter, through and through. This was demonstrated not only through his success in combat, but also his reputation as a boxer and successful bar fighter. Even as a prisoner of the AFFS, Woomack took pleasure in provoking his captors, particularly Kate Nomura of the Raiders. He nevertheless showed great compassion for his troops, taking pains to ensure their well-being. In combat, Woomack relished the independence of small-unit actions and his company excelled in raiding actions. Like most Dragoon officers, Woomack was an Elite-rated MechWarrior.

Notes

• Based on the publication date of The Fox's Teeth: Exploits of McKinnon's Raiders, Woomack was one the earliest named characters not only in Wolf's Dragoons, but in the BattleTech universe in general. Next to Jaime Wolf and Natasha Kerensky, he was one of the earliest Dragoon characters to be described in detail.
• According to The Fox's Teeth: Exploits of McKinnon's Raiders, Woomack was given the nickname "Weasel" by McKinnon's Company.
• Woomack briefly appears as a point-of-view character in the novel Wolves on the Border.
• There are canonical issues regarding the timeline of the events involving Woomack's company in The Fox's Teeth: Exploits of McKinnon's Raiders. The events are depicted as having taken place in May 3029, long after the Dragoons had ceased working for House Kurita, and in fact after Woomack's death. The developers have since retconned the time of those events, indicating they took place in May 3027.

Bibliography

• The Fox's Teeth: Exploits of McKinnon's Raiders
• Starterbook: Sword and Dragon
• Wolf's Dragoons
• Wolves on the Border