Battle of Hoff (3023)

Battle of Hoff (3023)
Part of Third Succession War
Start Date 3023 Planet Hoff
Factions
(Attacker) Draconis Combine	(Defender) Federated Suns
Commanders and leaders
Tai-sa Itseo Suribachi Colonel Baxter Arbuthnot
Forces involved
17th Galedon Regulars Epsilon Regiment, Wolf's Dragoons Black Widow Company, Wolf's Dragoons	Eridani Light Horse Dahar Draconis March Militia

Prelude

In 3019 the New Avalon Institute of Science decided to place several research facilities on Hoff, with one particularly at the Friden Aerospace Park. The Friden Aerospace Park, a small spaceport on Hoff's northern continent, had been abandoned for a long time prior to the NAIS restoring and refurbishing the facility. The facility would play a crucial role in the rediscovery of several technologies including Double Heat Sinks and the development of the Super Wasp and Super Griffin BattleMechs into prototype stage. Coordinator Takashi Kurita of the Draconis Combine would learn of these developments and was determined to seize these new technologies. Though the Combine was unsure of the precise location of the facility.

Overview

In 3023, the 17th Galedon Regulars would attack Hoff. Later in April that year, Wolf's Dragoons, now in the employ of the Draconis Combine, would send forces to join the Combine troops. They sent their Epsilon Regiment under the command of Colonel Baxter Arbuthnot and the famous Black Widow Company under the command of Natasha Kerensky. Defending the world were the Eridani Light Horse and the Dahar Draconis March Militia.

The initial fighting on Hoff was characterized by small fights between recon units as the two sides probed each other for weaknesses. The largest example of these fights was when the Black Widows moved to secure the General Circuits manufacturing complex near Belfast Heights on April 9th. While the facility had little strategic value as most of the sites resources had been removed already, Major Pierre Bouchard took elements of his Wolfhounds Company of the Eridani 7th Battalion to defend the site. After a battle where neither side took any losses, the Widows withdrew without taking the site.

From there, the battle began to heat up. The first major engagement occurred at Johnson's Farm in the Clatsop Province. The Farm was the main source of fresh water for the region due to its artesian wells and water purification facility. Jaime Wolf once again assigned the Black Widows to secure the site and they caught the defending Eridani Eighth Battalion's Lightning Company somewhat disorganized and outgunned. However, the Lightning Company had the good fortune to be equipped with several of the experimental Double Heat Sinks. This allowed the defenders to put out a larger volume of fire before risking a shutdown. While the Widows would secure the Farm, the Eridani forces were able to hold out for several hours and deal a large amount of damage to the Dragoon forces.

As the fighting continued, the Dragoons began pushing the Eridani back at the battles of Aram's Ravine and Proud Ridge. In fact, the Dragoons were wondering if the "Pony Soldiers" — the Dragoon nickname for the Eridani Light Horse troops — had lost their edge. Also at this time, the invading forces finally discovered the location of the Friden complex. Things appeared to be going well for the invading forces.

On May 1st, the main body of Dragoon troops with the 17th Galedon met the Eridani Light Horse and the Dahar Draconis March Militia in battle around the mining town of Flint in the Brand Valley Sector. A location not far from the Friden Aerospace Park. The 17th Galedon, led by Tai-sa Itseo Suribachi, would hold a strong position and allow the Dragoons to assault the enemy. However, early the morning of the battle, Suribachi would consult his personal soothsayer who predicted an obscure augury. Suribachi interpreted this as an omen to assault the Davion forces and not hold his position. As the 17th Galedon advanced, it opened up a gap between them and the Dragoons already attacking the enemy. The Eridani commander, Nathan L. Armstrong, would exploit this gap by commanding the 50th Cavalry Battalion, the Bloody-Half Hundred, to attack and the Dragoons were quickly flanked. When the Dragoons reacted to the unexpected attack, the remainder of the Eridani forces launched an assault directly into the Dragoon forces.

The Dragoons began to retreat under heavy fire while Colonel Suribachi in his Marauder was killed when a minefield blast threw him down an open mineshaft. What began as a retreat threatened to become a rout as the Eridani forces continued to advance. Despite the pressure, the Dragoons were trying to form a new position along the Alonzo Mine region fifty kilometers southeast of Flint. On May 11th, the Eridani and Dahar March Militia would launch an assault on this position in hopes that it would be the final battle. However, in advancing on the Dragoons, none other than Natasha Kerensky and her Black Widows moved out to hold up the advance. Fresh members of Epsilon Regiment soon joined them and the Dragoons were able to stabilize their position.

What followed next was a vicious 34-hour 'Mech vs. 'Mech battle between the two forces. Once again, it was the Widows that helped break the stalemate with an attack on the northern flank of the Davion forces. The Eridani forces would fall back and dig in around Friden. Not long thereafter, the Dragoons would drive off the Eridani and March Militia forces and secure the Friden Aerospace Park, but not before facing the project's Super Griffin and Super Wasps in battle. The Super Griffin launched itself at John Clavell's Rifleman, surprising him with the extended range and scoring powerful hits on the Dragoon. But Clavell and Piet Nichols' Phoenix Hawk combined fire and ravage the Super Giffin's right torso, detonating the prototype Improved Jump Jet which in turn ignited the LRM magazine, destroying the ’Mech. The Super Wasps fared better, MechWarrior Annie Blaze disabled Simon Fraser's Stinger but her prototype Supercharger blewout allowing Clavell and Nichols to combine fire. The other Super Wasp pilot, MechWarrior Oscar Meggie, fought on and nearly succeeded in downing Nichols' Phoenix Hawk before Clavell tore into Meggie's left torso and ignited the SRM ammunition. However, much to their dismay, the Dragoons found that the facility and its staff had been evacuated and the site stripped of most of the materials there.

Aftermath

While the Dragoons were not successful, Takashi Kurita was pleased. They had been able to acquire some information from the site and the Federated Suns operations there had been definitely halted which would cause many delays.

At some time in 3023, an excavation team rediscovered the plans for the Devastator BattleMech in an uncovered Star League base built centuries before.

After the Dragoons' raid, Hoff was heavily reinforced by the AFFS, and the Park was reopened again; ComStar believed that Team Banzai were testing a variant of the Hatchetman BattleMech at the facility in 3025.

Bibliography

• House Davion (The Federated Suns)
• Tales of the Black Widow Company
• Technical Readout: Succession Wars
• Wolf's Dragoons (sourcebook)