Crescent Hawks

Overview

The Crescent Hawks were a small unit loyal to the Lyran Commonwealth, originally created by Katrina Steiner as an elite group for covert operations. They reformed as a guerilla force following a Kurita invasion on Pacifica and went on to become an independent unit aligned with House Steiner, working with the Kell Hounds.

History

Although the unit was concieved sometime between 3007 (when Katrina Steiner became Archon) and 3028, its history prior to 3028 remains clouded. It is only revealed that Jeremiah Youngblood, a LAM pilot and father of Jason Youngblood, commanded the unit which included Commando pilot Rex Pearce.

In 3028, cadet Jason Youngblood was in the middle of a BattleMech training mission at the Pacifica Training School when House Kurita invaded the planet. Youngblood escaped the destruction of the Citadel in his training 'Mech and later met Rex Pearce, a a member of the Crescent Hawks like Jason's father, Jeremiah. Together, Jason and Rex managed to form a small 'Mech unit to resist the Kurita invaders and eventually beat them to their intended target, a Star League cache hidden on the planet. The depot held Jeremiah Youngblood's Phoenix Hawk LAM and a supply of invaluable spare parts. When they contacted Katrina Steiner from within the cache bunker, a heavily armed DropShip was sent and the Kurita attack faltered. Following this successful venture, Katrina Steiner offered Jason Youngblood the rank of Lieutenant in the LCAF, but he turned it down in order to search for his father. For this, he was given full permission, allowing his party to act independently as the Crescent Hawks.

They immediately travelled from Pacifica to the Kell Hounds base on Lyons, where the Leopard class dropship carrying the Crescent Hawks arrived in the middle of a Kurita attack and was shot down. Only three 'Mechs escaped from the crashlanding.

The Crescent Hawks and Kell Hounds together drove off the attackers eventually, and the Crescent Hawks became part of the Kell Hounds. When the Hounds were ordered to defend Luthien against the Clans, the Crescent Hawks fought alongside with them.

Based on the permission from the Archon to act independently, and on their cooperation with the Kell Hounds, the Crescent Hawks can arbitrarily be classed as a mercenary unit. They could also be regarded as an irregular House Unit instead.

The exact strength and configuration of the Crescent Hawks depends on a combination of player's choices and randomized events throughout the game. In the first game, the unit is essentially only a single lance of almost exclusively light 'Mechs. The player has the chance to obtain a Chameleon to start with, Rex Pearce has a Commando and at one point in the game an UrbanMech can be stolen. Other than that, the player can only acquire Locusts, Wasps and Stingers through salvaging defeated enemy 'Mechs.

At the beginning of the second game the player gets to choose different, heavier 'Mechs; the opening screen of the game depicts a Griffin, a Shadow Hawk, an Enforcer and a Wasp which may be the canonical lance, but the player can chose to begin with different 'Mechs if he wishes.

Other Information

• The Crescent Hawks were introduced in the 1988 computer game, Crescent Hawks Inception. A 1989 sequel game, Crescent Hawks Revenge, picks up the story immediately from where the first game ended (set in 3028 or 3029) and continues up until the Clan Invasion.
• The world of Pacifica and the Pacifica Training School are not mentioned elsewhere in the BattleTech universe.
• The Crescent Hawks, and Jason Youngblood, are only once mentioned in passing in the novels otherwise.
• Jeremiah Youngblood's Phoenix Hawk LAM features in the background story of the Crescent Hawks Inception and is seen in a picture shown when the player enters the Star Leage Cache. Even though it cannot be used in the game (it is only recovered during the end sequence), this is one of the rare canonical appearances of a LAM in the BattleTech universe.
• Similarly, the Crescent Hawks Inception is the only canon source besides the boardgame rulebook to feature the Chameleon training 'Mech. During his academy training as Jason Youngblood, the player can choose between three training 'Mechs: A Locust, a Wasp and a Chameleon. If the latter is selected for the last training mission (when House Kurita attacks) then the player takes it with him in the escape and can use it as a proper BattleMech throughout the game. It also happens to be the heaviest and strongest 'Mech available in the game.