John Waco

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John Waco
Character Profile
Died 3008
Affiliation Waco Rangers
Rank Lieutenant
Profession MechWarrior
Parents Wayne Waco (father)

John Waco was the only known son of Wayne Waco and a MechWarrior in his father's mercenary command, the Waco Rangers.

History[edit]

John Waco was raised in the Capellan Confederation, receiving a privileged education. Afterward, he would join his father's command, the Waco Rangers, shortly after the unit was established. He would quickly be promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and given command of a Recon lance. He was with the Rangers on the planet New Aragon in 3008, facing Wolf's Dragoons. On April 11th, John was sleeping in a tent when Jopper Delms, one of his subordinates, would wake him up and call him to attend a meeting. Later that day, another subordinate, Haines Keebler, would invite John to coffee and express his concerns about the Dragoons attacking through the nearby "El Diablo Pass". John would agree and point out the Pass' vulnerability, but to no avail, it was deemed impassable and his warnings were ultimately ignored. The following day, John's lance would be defending El Diablo Pass, when his position would be assaulted by a battalion of Dragoons. The attacking unit would turn out to be none other than the infamous Zeta Battalion, the Dragoons' elite assault unit. He then realized that the DropShip landing by the Dragoons in the other part of the front was merely a feint and immediately alerted his father of the impending danger. Wayne, in turn, would order John to retreat and move himself out of harm's way, but he refused, deciding to stay with his men. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, John and his lance did what they could to delay the attackers: they would harass Zeta Battalion with hit-and-fade tactics and set fire to the forest surrounding the Pass to create a smokescreen. These efforts would work, but not for long: the assault lance which led the attack would press forwards through the smoke and rip the Rangers' lance to shreds.[1]

Death[edit]

John's BattleMech was destroyed when two assault 'Mechs focused fire on his Wasp until it was crippled. Fortunately, John was able to eject from his doomed Wasp and hid from the enemy 'Mechs in nearby foliage, but this would not last for long. As Keebler spotted the young MechWarrior, he made a quick dash to pick him up. However, Barum Diaz's Stalker would spot and move to engage the 'Mech trying to save John, and, unable to see the downed pilot, ironically, due to the smoke ignited by John's lance, inadvertently crushed him underfoot, killing the young Waco instantly.[2]

Legacy[edit]

John's death was investigated by ComStar, who cleared the Dragoons of any wrongdoing. The Dragoons' history rarely included cold-blooded killing and his death was almost certainly an accident, but his father refused to accept this and declared a "Death Oath" against the Dragoons, swearing to kill any Dragoon his forces captured. Keebler blamed himself for John's death, but refused to take the oath.[3][4]

Wayne's hatred toward the Dragoons never ceased and he fought his personal war against the group at every opportunity. In 3067, Wayne avenged his son in the First Battle of Harlech, when he fatally wounded Jaime Wolf, but the cost was too high: Wayne also perished, and the Rangers were annihilated in the battle.[5]

BattleMech[edit]

John Waco piloted a Wasp BattleMech at the time of his death.

Gallery[edit]


References[edit]

  1. Making a Name
  2. Wolf's Dragoons, pp. 13, 127
  3. The Battle of Coventry, p. 9
  4. Making a Name
  5. Total Chaos, p. 40

Bibliography[edit]