Tortuga Fusiliers

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Template:InfoBoxStateUnit Formerly known as Fuchida's Fusiliers, the Tortuga Fusiliers are a former Davion aligned BattleMech mercenary unit that turned to Piracy.

History

War of 3039

As of 3038, Fuchida's Fusiliers were stationed on the Draconis March world of Udibi. Among the many Federated Suns-employed mercenary units selected to assist the War of 3039, the Fusiliers were transferred to Benet III and assigned to retake the lightly defended world of Royal, captured by the Combine during the Fourth Succession War. Seemingly a relatively easy mission, the mercenaries would later learn that things were much more complex behind the scenes.[1] [2]

Though First Prince Hanse Davion forbade Duke Paul Stephenson of New Ivaarsen from using his New Ivaarsen Chasseurs from retaking his lost landhold, Duke Paul ensured a steady volume of supplies and support for an underground movement against the Combine occupation. When he received word that AFFS would send the Fusiliers to retake Royal as his Chasseurs prepared for action elsewhere, the Duke sent his son Leto Stephenson to accompany the mercenaries as their liaison officer. Duke Paul then proceeded to recruit a battalions-worth of MechWarriors from both Chasseur regiments as well a regiment from New Ivaarsen's militia to create the New Ivaarsen Volunteers. Just before the Fusiliers jumped, Leto signalled his father, who immediately dispatched the Volunteers. As soon as they arrived on-world, Colonel Stephenson assumed direct command of the Royal invasion. With word of their duke's son leading the invasion, almost the entire population of Royal rose up against the three Kurita conventional regiments stationed on-world. While suffering heavy losses, the people of Royal played a decisive role in ensuring Colonel Stephenson and his Volunteers ejected the Combine forces in a mere five weeks. [2]

After the war ended, the Fusiliers lodged more than a dozen formal complaints against Colonel Leto Stephenson, alleging that he overstepped his authority in assuming control of the Royal invasion and that he issued orders that forced the Fusiliers to take the brunt of the combat losses, yet assigned the bulk of the salvage taken to his New Ivaarsen Volunteers. When these complaints disappeared in the AFFS bureaucracy, the Fusiliers proceeded to file civil suits against the Stephenson family, and while these too also faded away, several New Ivaarsen-based businesses made a number of large payouts to the mercenary unit in the mid-3040s. [3]

Unfortunately while they eventually received some degree of financial redress, the Fusiliers lost in the court of public opinion in the process. A number of prominent Royal citizens, including the new planetary governor, charged the mercenaries with cowardice, citing seemingly endless examples of the Fusiliers either holding back or outright refusing to follow attack orders given to them by Colonel Leto Stephenson. As word of these claims spread throughout the Draconis March, the Fusiliers soon found themselves persona-non-grata anywhere near Royal, New Ivaarsen or even Robinson, with the AFFS forced to relocate them entirely after no Draconis March world wished anything to do with them. The final blow was the lack of respect given for the Fusiliers' service in the war. Where other mercenary units received a visit from Field Marshal James Sandoval or another member of the AFFS high command in person, the Fusiliers merely received a note of thanks from Field Marshal Ardan Sortek. [3]

From Mercenaries to Pirates

Shuffled about by the AFFS, the Fusiliers eventually returned to Udibi only to find the ill-feeling against them in the Draconis March remained. Remaining in the service of the Federated Commonwealth during the mid-31st Century, as of 3050 the Fusilers were still stationed on Udibi [4]

In 3051 the Fusiliers were ordered by FedCom High Command to deploy to the Lyran half of the Commonwealth to face the Clans, despite not receiving the Star League era upgrades that AFFC front-line units were receiving ahead of such transfers. Already emitted after Royal, the Fusiliers believed this indicated the Federated Commonwealth intended to sacrifice them to slow the Clan juggernaut, breaking contract in the face of this "betrayal". Once going rogue, the unit raided the Precision Weaponry plant on Tancredi IV for their own upgraded equipment. The raid caused significant damage to the weapons plant, motivating the unit to move quickly out of FedCom controlled space. The unit proceeded through the Outworlds Alliance, raiding for only food and water. The Fusiliers continued with minimum stops with a brief stop in the Mica Majority, where the unit acquired supplies and some gold through legal channels.

The unit wandered the barren star systems outside of the Outworlds Alliance for the next few years. With only a brief clash with the Brotherhood of Randis on Antallos, who repulsed their attempt to grab a BattleMech cache. The unit finally found itself in the Tortuga Dominions in 3054, where they decided to set up their own operations.[5]

New Name and Nation Building

The Fusiliers settled in the Dominion, taking over what used to be Lady Death and her Pirate band's base of operations twelve years after their capture by 9th FedCom RCT.[6] The unit setout and began raiding neighboring nations, especially the Federated Commonwealth.

Throughout these raids, Tortuga Prime begun to industrialize and create primitive BattleMech factories, due to the Fusiliers' actions shortly after their arrival in late 3050s. The Fusiliers' industrializing revived the planet's flagging economy and allowed for the Word of Blake to set up a B Class HPG Station on the planet.[7]

The unit adopted the planet's name as its own, as the Tortuga Fusiliers. They beefed up their forces by expanding their Aerospace elements and creating an infantry unit by 3064. Where drawing from people of the Dominion to create a formal infantry regiment trained in crowd control as well as a general battlefield unit. They also moved to rebuild Tortuga Prime's aerospace forces, using up to nineteen Aerospace fighters to form the core of an Assault force planetary assault & interdict trade for Fusiliers.

However, the intervening year had not been kind. The unit had expanded two battalions however, two companies had been outright destroyed when they decided to leave to join the Lady Death's Death's Consorts.[8]

Officers

Between 3058 and 3064, the commanding officer of the unit was Major Twylla Sumeral.[9][10]

Tactics

The Fusiliers, by 3064, had become specialized in Urban Combat. The unit developed devious methods for this area of fighting. They had devised, laying mines in parks and MechWarriors walking their machines through buildings. Also they developed a method of destroying non-jump capable 'Mechs, in a tactic they called the Canyon of Death. Trick & move enemy into tight spot and then have their jump capable 'Mechs jump on to buildings next to them and blast them from above.[11]

Composition History

3025

Fuchida's Fusiliers(Regiment/Regular/Questionable)

Contract:FWLM [12]
  • CO: Major Michael Iverson

3040

Fuchida's Fusiliers (Battalion/Regular/Questionable)

Contract:AFFC[1]

3054

3058

  • Fuchida's Fusiliers (BattleMech Battalion)

3064

  • Tortuga Fusiliers (BattleMech Battalion) - CO: Twyla "The Major" Sumeral
    • The unit consisted of four companies.[13]
  • 1st Tortuga Infantry Regiment (1 Infantry Regiment) - CO: Ryan "Lady Killer" Coleman

Notes

In Master & Minions sourcebook, the unit was destroyed by Death's Consorts during the Jihad, however it is unclear when this exactly happened.[14] They are not listed in Field Manual: Updates, but are mentioned as of 3067 in Handbook: Major Periphery States as a threat.[15]

Game Rules

While using Force Specific Rules in a scenario, when using Urban settings. The Fusiliers can deploy a fourth of their units numbers in hidden positions prior to start of a game. Another rule the Fusiliers possess is the Banking Initiative ability.[16]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Historical: War of 3039 , p. 140
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Historical: War of 3039, p. 50 "Wave One - Royal (March-April)"
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Historical: War of 3039, p. 51 "Wave One - Royal Backlash"
  4. ↑ 20 Year Update, p. 19, "Federated Commonwealth Deployment Table"
  5. ↑ The Periphery (1996) p. 85 - Fuchida's Fusiliers - Origin and Early history from 3050s.
  6. ↑ Field Manual: Periphery pp. 124-125 - Paula Lady Death Trevaline - The Lady Death - Brief description of her early history and capture by the 9th FedCom RCT.
  7. ↑ Masters & Minions: The StarCorps Dossiers pp. 239-240 - Tortuga Prime - Fusiliers' arrival revives Tortuga Prime's economy.
  8. ↑ Field Manual: Periphery p. 130 - Tortuga Fusiliers, how they got their name and their history in early to mid 3060s.
  9. ↑ The Periphery (1996), p. 78 - Periphery Independents - Fuchida's Fusiliers strength and status listed as of 3058, including Commanding Officer.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Objective Raids, p. 49
  11. ↑ Field Manual: Periphery p. 130 - Tortuga Fusiliers - Tactics.
  12. ↑ House Marik (The Free Worlds League), p.109
  13. ↑ Field Manual: Periphery p. 130 - Tortuga Fusiliers re-organized into Four company battalion after infighting.
  14. ↑ Masters & Minions: The StarCorps Dossiers p. 240 - Tortuga Prime - planetary history includes the Fusiliers' take over of the planet and its demise.
  15. ↑ Handbook: Major Periphery States p. 141 - THE CONSTANT ENEMY: PIRATES IN THE OUTWORLDS - Other Threats - Tortuga Fusiliers are noted as threat as of 3067.
  16. ↑ Field Manual: Periphery p. 155 - Tortuga Fusiliers - Force-Specific Abilities.

Bibliography

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