Editing 17th Recon Regiment

{{Cleanup|reason=review needed|date=September 2023}}
{{infoBoxMilitaryCommand
| image = [[File:Camachos Caballeros logo.png|150px|Insignia of Camacho's Caballeros]]
| Designation = Seventeenth Recon Regiment
| Formed = 
| Disbanded = 
| Previous Designation = 
| Nickname = Camacho's Caballeros
| Affiliation = [[Mercenary]]
| Parent Command = Independent
| Sub-Command = 
}}

Widely known by their nickname '''Camacho's Caballeros''', the '''Seventeenth Recon Regiment''' (sometimes abbreviated "17th Recon") is a [[mercenary unit]] featured in the BattleTech novels ''[[Close Quarters]]'', ''[[Hearts of Chaos]]'', and ''[[Black Dragon (novel)|Black Dragon]]'', all written by [[Victor Milán]]. Their unit strength at the beginning of ''Close Quarters'' (circa [[3057]]) is roughly a regiment in size, with three full battalions of 'Mechs and an unspecified number of infantry.

Notable members of Camacho's Caballeros include [[Cassie Suthorn]] (the main character of ''Close Quarters'' and who has a hobby of defeating BattleMechs whilst she is on foot) and Colonel [[Carlos Camacho]]. The unit appeared to be composed of older 'Mechs, such as the ''[[Phoenix Hawk]]'', ''[[Shadow Hawk]]'', and ''[[Wasp]]'', though they are mentioned as being upgraded with [[double heat sink]]s and at least one [[C3 computer]] system.

No unifying color scheme or insignia is referred to in the novels. The 'Mechs seem to be custom painted and decorated by each pilot.

==Unit History==
In the [[War of 3039]], the Seventeenth was assigned to [[Battle of Vega (3039)|the assault]] on [[Vega]]. They supported the [[First Grave Walkers]] in their task to keep the spaceport clear to allow the [[AFFC]] units an uninterrupted resupply chain.<ref name="tp39p7">''Turning Points War of 3039: Vega'', p. 7: "Seventeenth Recon Regiment"</ref> Assigned to Task Force Blizzard, the mercenaries faced off against elements of the [[Fifth Amphigean Light Assault Group]]. The mercenaries quickly seized the spaceport of Nasew and kept the [[DCMS]] forces out of the city. In response the Fifth Amphigean split into two battalions: First Battalion pinned the mercenaries in the city while the Third Battalion struck at various [[FedCom]] targets from the Great Desert of Tears. These ongoing assaults were only stopped by [[Snord's Irregulars]] and the advanced [[Star League]] electronics they possessed. The Seventeenth and the Grave Walkers were able to drive the First Battalion off world, followed shortly by the Third Battalion leaving the world.<ref>''Turning Points War of 3039: Vega'', p. 13: "Task Force Blizzard"</ref>

In [[3050]], they were assigned to hunt down the [[Red Lion]] pirate band by the [[Federated Commonwealth]].<ref name=cmm61>''Combat Manual: Mercenaries'', p. 61: "17th Recon Regiment"</ref>

''Close Quarters'' describes the unit as being composed of [[Free Worlds League]] natives, and having a diverse mix of different ethnicities. Many of the members hail from the three impoverished worlds of [[Cerillos]], [[Galisteo]], and [[Sierra]], the so-called "[[Southwest Trinity worlds|Trinity of Southwestern Worlds]]" on the League edge of the [[Periphery]] that are composed primarily of individuals of Hispanic descent. The novel also states the unit as being involved in battle against the [[Clans]], Colonel Carlos Camacho most notably piloting a captured [[Clan Smoke Jaguar]] ''[[Mad Cat]]''. They are employed by the people of Crotch (in a flashback) and, for the main part of the story, [[Chandrasekhar Kurita]], the CEO of [[Hachiman Taro Electronics]], which is based out of [[Hachiman (system)|Hachiman]].

The Caballeros have been key in foiling the plots of the ''[[Kokuryu-kai]]'', as they did when the rebels attempted to conquer [[Towne]] from the [[Federated Commonwealth]]. The Caballeros defeated the [[Fifteenth Dieron Regulars]] and their support [[1st Dragons Joy Infantry]] there, earning the [[Draconis Combine]] a bruised ego as a line unit was defeated by corporate mercenaries. The Regiment gained a fourth Battalion in wake of the fighting on Towne in [[3058]].  Many of the 'Mechs and equipment that would make up their new battalion came from the decimated Black Dragon-aligned forces which included the Fifteenth Dieron Regulars and its task force of supporting regiments. Prior to June, the unit received a mixed group of new recruits from the Southwest Trinity of worlds, which would incorporate some survivors of the fighting on Towne. Robert "Navajo Wolf" Begay was promoted to [[Force Commander]] and became its commanding officer.  However many within the regiment were ill at ease with the new Battalion due to the nature of its creation and personnel.<ref>''Black Dragon'', pp. 72–73</ref>

The Caballeros were again on hand at [[Coordinator]] [[Theodore Kurita]]'s birthday celebration, which they were invited to as a thanks for their involvement in the Towne debacle. There, they were able to escort both Theodore and Chandrasekhar to safety when the [[Otomo]], the Coordinator's bodyguard, attempted to assassinate him.

The Caballeros deployed after [[Operation BULLDOG]] on some liberated worlds to protect Tanadi assets, and were attacked by forces from [[Clan Ghost Bear]].<ref>''Field Manual: Mercenaries: Revised'', p. 54: "The Caballeros deployed after Operation BULLDOG on liberated worlds to protect Tanadi"</ref> The regiment survived the fighting, but lost Force Commander Bar-Kochba and many others of the battalion on [[Luzerne]]. Several of the Caballeros used ''[[Hitman]]'' scout 'Mechs to call in artillery strikes on the Ghost Bears.<ref>''Technical Readout: 3055 Upgrade'', p. 18</ref>

While in service to the Draconis Combine, the performance of [[Lieutenant]] [[Rosita Ramirez|Rosita Gavila “La Wolverine” Guadalupe Ramirez's]] [[Tarantula|ZPH-4A ''Tarantula'']] convinced the [[DCMS]] Procurement Department to start using the 'Mech.<ref>''Technical Readout: 3055 Upgrade'', p. 12</ref>

Remaining with HTE, upon hearing of the imminent disintegration of order in the Free Worlds League and the heavy-handed treatment of rioters in the Southwestern Trinity by the federally employed mercenary unit [[Swann's Cavaliers]] resulting in the "Bad Rock Massacre", the Caballeros returned home to defeat the Cavaliers and defend their homeworlds against all possible threats. The arrival of the Caballeros on Galisteo turned the tide against the Cavaliers. The Caballeros destroyed most of the Cavaliers' aerospace equipment and the Cavaliers' Charlie Battalion was quickly eliminated. The Caballeros then traveled to Sierra and Cerillos to liberate those worlds but found that the Cavaliers had withdrawn from both systems. With the Free Worlds League destroyed and the Trinity Worlds on their own, Carlos Camacho assumed the office of President of Galisteo.<ref name=MSUp39>''Mercenaries Supplemental Update'', p. 39</ref>

In [[3071]] rumors suggested that the Caballeros would be working for the [[Lyran Alliance]] and be placed at the [[Clan Jade Falcon]] border.<ref name=MSUp39 /> The rumors were overtaken by the maelstrom of the [[Jihad]]; the Caballeros spent the remainder of the conflict defending worlds across the [[Duchy of Tamarind-Abbey]]. When the Lyran Alliance began annexing worlds from the former Free Worlds League in [[3079]] the Caballeros found themselves placed in an invidious position, as one of the worlds annexed was Galisteo.<ref name="FM:3145p179">''Field Manual: 3145'', pp. 179–180: "Camacho's Caballeros"</ref>

Unwilling to see the Trinity Worlds subjected to further turmoil and conflict, the Caballeros negotiated a surrender to the Alliance that saw the Caballeros signing an eight-year employment contract. Consequently, the Caballeros were back in combat in [[3080]], when they spent nine months defending various worlds against raids and attacks originating from the worlds of the former [[Circinus Federation]].<ref name="FM:3145p179"/>

=== The Dark Age ===
The Caballeros were less successful in the face of a Marian Hegemony attack on [[Merton]] in [[3092]], and the Marians conquered and held that world for the next two years. However, after the battle for Merton the Caballeros enjoyed a relatively quiet two decades. The next major action the Caballeros saw was when they had the opportunity to work alongside [[Wolf's Dragoons]] during the Dragoons' first combat operations of the thirty-second century;<ref name="FM:3145p179"/> raiding worlds within the Duchy of Tamarind-Abbey in [[3113]],<ref name="FM:3145p179"/> the Caballeros fought alongside [[Gamma Regiment (Wolf's Dragoons)|Gamma Regiment]] on [[Labouchere]] and the [[Spider's Web Battalion]] on [[Saltillo]]<ref name="FM:3145p178">''Field Manual: 3145'', p. 178: "Draconis Combine"</ref> clashing with the [[2nd Tamarind Regulars|Second Tamarind Regulars]] on both worlds. The Caballeros fought the Second to a draw on Saltillo, but were forced to retreat from Labouchere.<ref name="FM:3145p179"/>

In [[3106]] the commanding officer of the Caballeros, [[Jesus Camacho]] - son of former commander Gavilán Camacho - died; command of the Caballeros was taken up by his wife, [[Anjelah Camacho]]. Anjelah "Itehtah'o" Camacho was the daughter of famed Caballeros scout Cassie Suthorn, and she was quick to reaffirm the Caballeros' commitment to defending the Trinity Worlds; as such the Caballeros restricted themselves to only accepting contracts from the Bolan Province of the [[Lyran Commonwealth]] and those contracts had to be defensive contracts that wouldn't violate the Caballeros' commitment to the peoples of the Trinity Worlds.<ref name="FM:3145p179"/>

Thirty years later the Caballeros captured the planet [[Simpson Desert]] for the Commonwealth after a fierce campaign against the [[3rd Tamarind Regulars|Third Tamarind Regulars]]. Having taken Simpson's Desert in [[3137]] the Caballeros were able to join in the attack on [[Tamarind]] in [[3139]], where the Caballeros Fourth Battalion broke through the defenders lines at the Havison Flats, a decisive action that allowed the allied forces to push forward and capture Zanzibar. The Caballeros' actions on Simpson Desert and Tamarind cost them a battalion of 'Mechs, and the Commonwealth chose to release the Caballeros from combat actions at that point, giving the regiment a chance to return to the Trinity Worlds to rest and recuperate.<ref name="FM:3145p179"/>

Following the reconstitution of the Free Worlds League the re-formed Tamarind-Abbey District began a campaign to recapture lost worlds, leading to battles between the Caballeros and League forces on both [[Cerillos]] and Galisteo. Both battles saw the Tamarind forces draw up overwhelming forces against the Caballeros, forcing the mercenaries to surrender; the Caballeros negotiated similar terms to those under which they had surrendered the Lyran Alliance in 3079. Once again, the Caballeros insisted on defending the Trinity Worlds, with their loyalty to the Free Worlds League being simply a secondary extension of their fanatical dedication to their homeworlds.<ref name="FM:3145p179"/>

In April [[3147]], a battalion of the Caballeros were assigned to help defend [[Gibraltar]] from the [[Marian Hegemony]] legions. They were unable to do so as the world was firmly in Marian hands. Instead they joined the [[7th Tamarind Regulars]] elsewhere.<ref>''Shattered Fortress'', p. 38</ref> In mid-[[3148]] the Caballeros hit the world [[Maximillian]], destroying the newly formed [[V Legio]].<ref>''Shattered Fortress'', p. 71: "The Sword of Damocles"</ref> Later on [[Lahti]] the Caballeros performed a nighttime combat drop and captured two companies of the Head Hunters mercenary command.<ref>''Shattered Fortress'', p. 89: "Let Freedom Ring"</ref>

In November [[3150]], the Caballeros joined with the [[1st Tamarind Regulars|First]], Seventh, and [[Eighth Tamarind Regulars]] to assault the Marian Hegemony province capital of [[Illyria]]. They had assumed complete control of the system by the end of the year.<ref>''Shattered Fortress'', p. 90</ref>

==Officers==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Rank
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Name
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Command
|-
| colspan="4" style="background: #efefef;" | '''Commanding Officers of the 17th Recon Regiment'''
|-
| [[Colonel]]||[[Carlos Camacho]]||[[3057]] - [[3067]]
|-
| Colonel||[[Gavilán Camacho]]||[[3085]]<ref name=FM3085p160>''Field Manual: 3085'', p. 160: "Mercenary Forces Deployment Table - 3085"</ref>
|-
| Colonel||[[Jesus Camacho]]||[[3106]]<ref name="FM:3145p179"/>
|-
| Colonel||[[Anjelah Camacho]]||3106 - [[3145]]<ref name="FM:3145p179"/><ref name=FM:3145p182>''Field Manual: 3145'', p. 182: "Notable Mercenary Forces - Free Worlds League"</ref>
|}

==Tactics==
Unknown.

==Support==
Unknown.

==Dragoon Ratings==
===3067===
'''Dragoon Rating: B-'''

=== 3145 ===
'''Rating: B'''<ref name=FM:3145p182/>

==Composition History==
===3040===
''' Camacho's Caballeros''' (Regiment/Regular/Reliable)<ref name=HWo3039p140/>
:Note: At this point in time the command was stationed on [[Marfik]].<ref name=HWo3039p140>''Historical: War of 3039'', p. 140</ref>

===3056===
*17th Recon Regiment '''(Camacho's Caballeros)''' (BattleMech [[Regiment]])
* CO: Colonel Carlos "Tiburón" Camacho<br/> XO/[[Lt. Colonel]] [[Marisol Cabrera|Marisol "La Dama Muerte" Cabrera]]
**1st Battalion - CO: [[Force Commander]] [[Gavilán Camacho|Gavilán "Gabby" Camacho]]
*** Adelante Company - CO: Captain [[Juan Pedro O'Rourke|Juan Pedro "Don Coyote" O'Rourke]]
*** Bronco Company - CO: Captain [[Kali MacDougall|Kali "Lady K" MacDougall]]
*** Cochise Company - CO: Captain [[Bobby Begay|Bobby "Bobby the Wolf" Begay]]
**2nd Battalion - CO: Force Commander Rabbi "Maccabee" Bar-Kochba
*** Deadeye Company - CO: Captain [[Lee Morales]]
*** Eskiminzin Company
*** Frontera Company - CO: Captain [[Angela Torres|Angela "Vanity" Torres]]
**3rd Battalion - CO: Force Commander [[Peter White Nose Pony|Peter "Singer" White Nose Pony]]
*** Geronimo Company - CO: Lieutenant Senior Grade [[James Kicking Bird]]
***
*** Infante Company - CO: Captain Santos
-Unit was noted to have 90+ BattleMechs. Colonel Camacho piloted a [[Clan]] ''[[Timber Wolf]]'' named ''Great White'', with shark teeth painted on its nose-like cockpit.<ref>''Close Quarters'', pp. 40, 60, 73, 79, 112: Unit details and commanders as related in the novel</ref>

*Infantry (1 Scout Platoon) - Infantry Commander: Captain "Badlands" Powell

===3059===
'''Camacho's Caballeros''' (2 Battalions/Elite/Reliable)<ref name=FMMercsp113/>
:* CO: Colonel Carlos Camacho<ref name=FMMercsp113/>
: Note: At this point in time the unit was stationed on [[Hachiman]].<ref name=FMMercsp113>''Field Manual: Mercenaries'', p. 113</ref>

===3067===
17th Recon Regiment '''(Camacho's Caballeros)''' (2 [[Battalion]]s/Elite/Reliable)<ref>17th Recon Regiment and composition</ref>
* CO/Colonel: Carlos "Tiburón" Camacho
: XO/Lt. Colonel: Gavilán "Falcon" Camacho
* 1st Battalion: [[Force Commander]] Kali "Dark Lady" MacDougall
* 4th Battalion: Force Commander Bobby "Navajo Wolf" Begay

Infantry (1 Scout Company)
* Infantry Commander: Lt. Senior Grade Daniel "Rooster" Morgan

Heavy Aerospace Squadron
* Wing Commander: [[Captain]] Sharon "Dragon" Omizuki

===3085===
'''Camacho's Caballeros''' (Veteran/Fanatical)<ref name=FM3085p160/>
* CO: Colonel Gavilán Camacho

===3145===
'''Camacho's Caballeros''' (Veteran/Fanatical)<ref name=FM:3145p182/>
* CO: Colonel Anjelah Camacho<ref name=FM:3145p182/>
:- At this point the Caballeros were operating at eighty percent of full strength and were stationed across all three Trinity worlds.<ref name=FM:3145p182/>

== Notes ==
When asked about the origin of the "17th Recon Regiment" designation on the [[CBT Forum]], the official answer was that it was presumably an oversight based on a unit patch depicted in the old [[Mercenary's Handbook]] for the Seventeenth Recon Regiment; however this patch referred to a sub-unit of the [[Eridani Light Horse]], a distinctly different mercenary unit.<ref>In [http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:VpRks_YajLoJ:www.classicbattletech.com/forums/index.php%3Ftopic%3D69208.0+site:classicbattletech.com+recon+regiment&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us this thread] (dead link) ("17th Recon Regiment - also known as Camacho's Caballeros") on the CBT Forum</ref>

==Gallery==

<gallery>
Image:Camomercscamachoscaballeros.png|A ''[[Tarantula]]'' in Camacho's Caballeros colors.
</gallery> ‎

==References==
<references />

==Bibliography==
* ''[[Black Dragon (novel)|Black Dragon]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Callie's Call]]'' (short story)
* ''[[Close Quarters]]''
* ''[[Combat Manual: Mercenaries]]''
* ''[[Dawn of the Jihad]]''
* ''[[Field Manual: 3085]]''
* ''[[Field Manual: 3145]]''
* ''[[Field Manual: Mercenaries, Revised]]''
* ''[[Hearts of Chaos]]''
* ''[[Historical: War of 3039]]''
* ''[[Jihad Hot Spots: 3070]]''
* ''[[Objective Raids]]''
* ''[[Ozymandias]]'' (in: ''[[BattleTech: 25 Years of Art & Fiction]]'')
* ''[[Mercenaries Supplemental Update]]''
* ''[[Shattered Fortress]]''
* ''[[Technical Readout: 3055 Upgrade]]''
* ''[[Turning Points War of 3039: Vega]]''


[[Category:Mercenary Commands|Recon Regiment, 17th]]