Difference between revisions of "Ronin!"

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Ronin! (title suffix: Szenarioband - 3034 A.D.) is an original German publication by Fantasy Productions, the publisher of the German line of BattleTech products. It was never translated or published in another language.

The cover re-uses the picture previously used for the Wolf Pack novel, but the Wolf's Dragoons crest on the left leg of the Archer in the foreground was removed. The rich interior artwork is original art by Hartwig Nieder-Gassel and depicts scenes from the scenarios for the greater part. Many of these pictures include unseen BattleMechs (as does the cover artwork).

Canonicity

Although an official product and created under a valid license, the book does not meet the criteria for Canon sources because it was never published in english. As a consequence, it does not contribute canon. However, it was used as a basis for the much shorter coverage of the Ronin Wars in the (canonical) subsequent Historical: Brush Wars sourcebook which canonized some of the original information from Ronin!, namely the general events and locations described in the campaigns, the pre-fabricated Kiudo garrison base and the Camerons Legion mercenary unit. The canonicity status of the many details that were not explicitly repeated in Brush Wars (such as many trivia about the Ronin Wars, maps of the worlds involved, names and numbers of participating military units or the exact layout of a Kiudo fortress) remains unclear.

Content

Ronin! is a scenario book set in and expanding on the Ronin Wars. An introductory section details campaign rules and how to play through the book's scenarios, and a history section explains the reasons behind the Ronin Wars, the motivations for certain units to refuse orders and also the historical course of the conflicts.

For certain installations, units or terrain features used in the scenarios, black-and-white counters are printed on the last page. Players are encouraged to photocopy that page and cut out the counters. The page contains wall elements and gun towers for the Kiudo fortress, four "power assembly" counters, four "damaged power assembly" counters, and one counter each for representing "rubble", "fusion reactor", "breakthrough" and "turret locked". In addition, a loose cardboard sheet was included in the book that had colored cut-out counters for six "Lichen-trees" type wood hexes (German: "Flechtenbäume", supposedly a native growth from Predlitz), six AA gun/flak emplacements, a two-hex HPG station (notable for being a two-hex building with different height levels - elevation 1 in one hex and elevation 2 in the other) and a seven-hex Union-class DropShip.

Three campaigns consisting of interconnected scenarios are presented, with the results of each scenario affecting subsequent scenarios. Players have the option to play the historic forces that fought these battles, but are encouraged to use their own company-sized BattleMech unit instead for a campaign game.

Each campaign has a detailed introduction explaining the role of this particular world within the Ronin Wars and the nature of the local conflict (written from an omniscient perspective), and each scenario has an additional background section, introductory piece of fiction and after-action report on the historical outcome.

First campaign: Bruben

On Bruben, Chu-sa Miato Kekkonen announced that the local DCMS garrison, consisting of the the 937th tank regiment and the 3592nd infantry regiment, would be disbanded and moved off-world with the formation of the Free Rasalhague Republic. Erik Davidson, the new military governor of Bruben (and previously the local Tyr resistance leader for many years) hires the Camerons Legion mercenary unit to provide security and oversee the removal of the old garrison.

Scenario 1: Banzai!

Bruben, 2 May 3034
Background information: The old Chu-sa of the DCMS garrison on Bruben died seven days before the approaching DCMS DropShip makes planetfall to pick up the last garrison troops. His successor assured the government that all will proceed as planned, but ComStar Demi-Precentor Corvin Mantyrius has asked Erik Davidson to divert some troops to guard the HPG compound. Following suit, the inexperienced new military governor issues orders to dispatch the mercenary unit's light lance to guard the HPG, together with some militia.
Fiction: As he approaches the HPG compound from the lakeside in his hovercraft, Tai-i Marcus Hirimatsu ponders his treachery and how he and the other officers killed Chu-sa Kekkonen to become Ronin. His emotions equally dampened and elated by TekkRokk music, he again experiences death-wish feelings at the beginning of the battle reminiscent of those he had when he survived the destruction of his unit by Lyran Aerospace Fighters on Kirchbach.
Scenario: Ronin hovertanks (four Condors and Maxims each), carrying two laser rifle platoons, try to occupy the HPG compound without damaging it. Camerons Legion's light lance, consisting of a Valkyrie, two Jenners and a Stinger supported by a militia Ontos and three Bulldog tanks, defend the compound. ComStar has one assault rifle platoon's worth of guards.
Outcome: An after-action report from Demi-Precentor Mantyrius reveals that a warning by Precentor Zilya Armanowitscha of Rasalhague had allowed Mantyrius to prepare for a possible Ronin attack. He stresses that the guards platoon was insufficient and that only the presence of the mercenaries prevented the desecration of the station by unbelievers.

Scenario 2: Drache im Schafspelz

(Dragon in Sheep's Clothing) - Bruben, 2 May 3034
Background: Ronin leader Marcus Kurita was fully aware of the role that ComStar had played in the formation of the Free Rasalhague Republic and did not hesitate to declare their installations military targets with the intention to capture them intact. This would allow the rebels to maintain communication even against ComStar's wishes, and they also hoped it would disrupt the cordial relationship between ComStar and Theodore Kurita. Hence the first attacks on many planets were aimed at the HPGs, and most were successfully seized. While this led to surprsingly few casualties and no installation was damaged, Primus Waterly later used these events to justify a re-arming of ComStar against internal resistance.
Sho-sa Ito Hanaka, successor of the late Chu-sa Kekkonen, requested and was granted permission to parade his withdrawing DCMS garrison forces through the center of the planetary capital, Nystaad, on their way to the starport. It is obviously a bad idea (to be blamed on the military governor's lack of experience) to allow heavily armed troops to parade through a city full of hostile civilians, and worst of all the remaining elements of Camerons Legion minus the light lance sent to the outlying HPG station are ordered to escort the parade.
Fiction: A decidedly unhappy Colonel Thomas Cameron watches the parade from the cockpit of his Warhammer; he can see the DropShip waiting to pick up the garrison troops at the starport. Just as the protests begin to turn into a riot Cameron receives a scrambled message from his troops at the HPG, half drowned in ECM noise. Realizing that his worst suspicions are coming true, he orders his troops to power up for a fight while a Demolisher's twin guns swing in on him.
Scenario: In a concerted action, and simultaneously with the attack on the HPG (scenario 1), the parading garrison troops open fire on the mercenaries and militia troops. The parade train consists of four Devastators, four Schreks, and altogether six platoons of motorized infantry, half of them with MGs and the other half with SRMs. The Union-class DropShip deploys a 'Mech lance in support of the Ronin attack, consisting of a Shadow Hawk, a Wolverine, a Hunchback and a Whitworth. Camerons Legion is present with their Alpha (Warhammer, Marauder, Grasshopper, Zeus) and Beta (Hunchback, Assassin, Griffin, Wolverine lances, and the Bruben milita supports them with two Rommel tanks and four platoons of motorized rifle infantry.
Outcome: The fighting amid the amassed protesters in the middle of Nystaad caused massive damage, but had no clear winner. The DropShip withdrew into space at some point with what remained of its 'Mech lance. 493 civilians were killed, including more than 100 children who died when the defending mercenary Marauder piloted by Ron Dexter destroyed a school building during combat. May 2 became a memorial day on Bruben.

Optional RPG scenario: Der Schwarze Mann geht um

(Bogeyman on the loose)

In preparation for the attacks of May 2, the Ronin DEST assassin who killed Chu-sa Kekkonen attempts to kill the mercenary unit's leader at their HQ in the militia barracks. If the assassin is captured alive, the players might uncover and solve the murder case of Sho-sa Kekkonen. In any case, they might uncover a plot to assassinate Erik Davidson during a reception at the city hall on May 4 and possibly even thwart the plan. Davidson survives in any case, as he continues to issue orders to the mercenaries.

Possible additional scenario: ComStar HPG-Station, Die Zweite

(ComStar HPG Station, Take two)

If the Ronin forces managed to occupy the HPG compound in the first scenario, the players can try to retake the compound. Both sides may commit any and all of their forces, but any lost units will obviously not be available in the next scenario. The players may commit the four motorized infantry platoons here already which they are given for scenario 3, but these platoons, too, will not replenish losses between scenarios.

Scenario 3: Aufräumkommando

(Mop-up squad) - Bruben, 15 June 3034
Background: The Ronin forces have retreated into a Kiudo fortress 20 kilometers south of Nystaad. They claim that their continued presence on Bruben is neccessary to protect the asian population from transgressions by the population of scandinavian descent, and by now such transgressions are in fact taking place. In fact, many civilians with asian features had to flee to the relative safety of the Ronin fort. The damage incurred from the fighting in Nystaad's city center has soured relations between the mercenaries and the government, and the mercenaries now must take the fortress while under strict orders to avoid civilian casualties at all cost.
Fiction: In preparation for the upcoming assault on a heavily fortified enemy position, Löjtnant Sven Gunnarson examines the Kiudo fortress through his binoculars, then mounts his Yamaha Milcountry to ride into battle...
Scenario: The entire mercenary company (minus losses from the previous scenarios), reinforced with four motorized laser platoons, attacks the Ronin Kiudo fortress that is defended by four Galleons and four rifle platoons; the defenders may have additional forces from previous scenarios. Unless they could be convinced to leave, four "platoons" of civilians are also present in the fortress (following special rules) and must not be harmed.
Outcome: In a first-semester lecture at the Nagelring Academy in 3038 the teacher tells his class about how a mixed unit of mercenaries and milita had to storm a weakly defended Kiudo fortress on Bruben during the Ronin Wars, hampered by civilians who were to be spared. In the end, the attackers succeeded without hurting a single civilian, but it cost them all but four of their 'Mechs.

Optional RPG scenario: Verhandlungsbasis

(Basis for negotiation)

If the mercenaries seek to negotiate with the Ronin dug in at the Kiudo fort, Chu-sa Hanaka will arrange a meeting but insist that Mejin Watanabe, Spokeswoman for the civilians, is included in the talks as well. Hanaka is basically prepared to bring the civilians out of the line of fire, but he demands guarantees that the asian population will be protected - something the mercenaries cannot possibly guarantee. Watanabe, on the other hand, does not want to abandon the fortress as it is the last refuge of her people on a hostile world. Ultimately, the players might be able to convince the civilians to leave the fortress before it comes under attack.

Possible additional scenario: Wir kommen wieder!

(We'll be back!)

If the players fail to overcome the fortress, they may try again as often as they wish, until the defenders are subdued. Depending on the outcome of the previous scenarios, the repair rules may favour one side or the other in-between such attacks. The Ronin can repair armor damage, but cannot replenish ammunition or personnell.

Second campaign: Predlitz

After the surprising fall of Radstadt to the Tyr Regiment in the Fourth Succession War the regional administration center had been moved to the city of Stalholm on Predlitz, in part because of the world's unwavering loyalty to the Draconis Combine. The creation of the Free Rasalhague Republic was a shock to the loyal citizens of Predlitz, amplified by the arrival of the rebellious old district administration who had fled Rasalhague following the murder of Warlord Ivan Sorenson before the Free Rasalhague Republic had even been declared. Then Marcus Kurita appeared to fill the power vacuum in the rebel ranks, but he too was murdered. The weak Ronin hold over the planetary administration eroded away, and on June 2 the notorious Tyr Regiment landed on Predlitz to eradicate this center of resistance against the new republic. War had come to Predlitz for the first time. A stalemate evolved that was finally tilted against the Ronin when a new 'Mech company (3rd Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Sword of Light Regiment - The Steel Dragon) arrived in late July 3034. Once planetside, they were put under the command of General Christian Mansdottir of the Tyr regiment.

Scenario 4 (AstroTech): Ein heisser Empfang I

(A hot welcoming) - Predlitz, 28 July 3034
Background: The Draconis Combine maintained a fighter base at the mining colony on the moon of Predlitz, Krakau, which reportedly joined the Ronin traitors. They have now established aerospace superiority in the system and loyalist reinforcements have to break through.
Fiction: A specialist operating the long-range sensors reports to Chu-i Tanaka that the Combine has sent House troops to deal with the Ronin. Tanaka, realizing that he will have to fight his own former brothers-in-arms when the ship arrives in two days, wonders if he did the right thing in joining the Ronin.
Scenario: In order to make planetfall on Predlitz, the Union-class DropShip Osaka, escorted by its two Transit aerospace fighters, must push past the (former) 628th Fighter Group which consists of two Sholagars, two Shilones and two Killers, and deploy its company of 'Mechs.
Outcome: In his 3036 book "The Ronin Wars", Dr. B. Banzai recounts how the approaching DropShip destroyed both Sholagars, cowing the other fighters enough to achieve a breakthrough to the surface of Predlitz.

Scenario 5: Ein heisser Empfang II

Predlitz, 28 July 3034
Background: Two heavy Ronin lances have broken through the starport's defenses to intercept the newly arrived reinforcements. Bent on destroying the DropShip, they attack the Osaka as it is unloading its 'Mechs. Opposing them is the Osaka with her fighters and 'Mechs.
Fiction: Tai-i Sokura anxiously awaits the moment when the DropShip will finally release his 'Mech. It turns out to be a bumpy ride. In the Fourth Succession War, Sokura had fought (and lost) on Kirchbach and Liezen with Tanaka and his fighter squadron but now and here, Tanaka has obviousy not done a very good job.
Scenario: Two Thunderbolts, a Catapult, a Dragon, a Marauder, a Crusader, a BattleMaster and an Atlas (all with combat damage from their breakthrough), together with fighter support from two Shilones and two Killers, face off against the DropShip, its fighter complement (two Transit) and the Sword of Light company (Locust, two Stingers, Jenner, Griffin, Shadow Hawk, Hunchback, Whitworth, Warhammer, Rifleman, Thunderbolt, Victor).
Outcome: Dr. Banzai's book continues to recount how bombing runs from the Ronin fighers heavily damaged the Osaka on the ground, destroying the bridge in the doomed DropShip's upper pole cap. General Mansdottir then ordered the 'Mechs to withdraw from the starport.

Scenario 6: Heimlich, still und leise

(On the quiet) - Predlitz, 5 August 3034
Background: The rebels have been pushed back into their fortified positions in the Shiro mountains. While the heavy and assault class 'Mechs of the Tyr regiment prepare to storm the enemy position, the Steel Dragon unit and especially its light elements are used to encircle the enemy position to take out their artillery positions concurrently with the main attack.
Fiction: "Späher-5", a Warrior H-7 helicopter in the blue and yellow camo pattern for Predlitz, sweeps the outskirts of the Shiro mountains. It spots two metallic masses and moves in to investigate.
Scenario: This scenario is a mini-campaign. The attacking forces must search a strategic map to find the artillery positions. Strategic movement yields random encounters with defending Ronin forces (including Guardian aircraft, Packrats, Swift Winds, Darters, Warrior helicopters, Tracked APCs or Wasps). Many small skirmishes of forward scout forces can occur.
Outcome: A recon report from the 8th Rasalhague Regiment from 14:35 hours local time (25 minutes before the attack on the Ronin forces) reports the loss of Späher-5. No rescue operation can be started as all forces are committed elsewhere, but the Ronin forces deem the encounter inconsequential because an attack is expected shortly anyways.

Optional scenario: Die Pfadfinder

(The boy scouts)

(Optional rules for the mini-campaign where the players may use forward scout elements.)

Scenario 7: Alte Bekannte

(Old Acquaintances) - Predlitz, 5 August 3034
Background: Being declared 'Ronin' caused many renegade troops to stand down immmediately, many more surrendered without a shot being fired when military forces were brought in to confront them. Only 19 units had to be vanquished in the field, where they fought until they were utterly obliterated as they had nowhere left to go and fought with their backs against the wall.
Four Ronin Long Tom guns have been pinpointed and marked for destruction on Predlitz as part of the final push against the rebel position. It is hoped that the loss of artillery support will demoralize the defenders and perhaps cut short their last stand.
Fiction: (The train of thoughts of a MechWarrior as he finds a Mobile Long Tom unit and destroys it with his AC/20, only to suddenly face a defending Atlas and finding himself on the defensive...
Scenario: The remaining units of the Steel Dragon company have to destroy four Mobile Long Tom units which are guarded by two Thunderbolts, a Marauder, a Crusader, a BattleMaster and an Atlas.
Outcome: Dr. Banzai's book furter recounts how the Steel Dragon company successfully destroyed the artillery and how the Ronin were overrun in a 3-hour battle. Some lead elements under Sho-sho Sven Johannsen, however, managed to withdraw deeper into the Shiro mountains.

Possible additional scenario: Die Schlacht in den Shiro-Hügeln

(The battle in the Shiro Hills)

Fresh from the previous battle the Steel Dragon company squares off against the light company of the Sun Zhang Academy Cadre as described in Scenario 8. This gives the players an additional opportunity to damage the enemy 'Mechs before encountering them again in Scenario 8.

Scenario 8: Old McDonald had a farm

Predlitz, 7 August 3034
Background: The Ronin Wars were not considered true civil wars, because the civilian population hardly took part in the conflicts. Still, the civilian population had to suffer the consequences of the fighting among the split military.
With orders to pursue the retreating Ronin officers deeper into the Shiro mountains, the Steel Dragon company and elements of the Tyr regiment clash with Ronin forces near a farmstead.
Fiction: Farmer Gregory McDonald is relieved that the twenty-thee passing 'Mechs have ignored his farm building and only devastated his fields of Skandia-Wheat. His eight-year-old daughter fires a rifle at a Stinger, and the 'Mech just prepares to respond when it is suddenly driven off by low-flying jets.
Scenario: The remaining elements of the Steel Dragon company (having lost a Locust, Stinger, Whitworth, Shadow Hawk and Warhammer), together with a detachment from the Tyr regiment (two Hunchbacks, two Trebuchets, a Catapult, two Thunderbolts, an Orion, two Riflemans, a Dragon and a Charger supported by a Transit aerospace fighter and a rifle platoon of workers from McDonald's farm face off against the remaining elements of former 8th Rasalhague Regiment (two Griffins, Hunchback, Trebuchet, Rifleman, Thunderbolt, Crusader, Ostroc, BattleMaster, Cyclops, Stalker, Zeus) and the 12th Sun Zhang Academy Cadre (two Locusts, Wasp, Stinger, two Jenners, two Panthers, Vulcan, Wolverine, Scorpion, Trebuchet; Sholagar, Killer).
Outcome: Överste-Löjtnant Malte Norköpping reports after the battle that the rebels sacrificed their lighter units in order to allow their heaviest units to escape the battlefield, pursued by the Steel Dragon company.

Optional RPG scenario: Gipfelstürmer

(Mountaineers)

While their 'Mechs are being repaired for the next scenario in the aftermath of the battle in the Shiro mountains, an assignment to reconnoiter the retreating enemy brings the players in close contact with the local alien flora and fauna as well as enemy infantry.

Scenario 9: Flüchtlinge

(Fugitives) - Predlitz, 7 August 3034
Background: Without a chance to repair or rearm after the previous battle, the Steel Dragon company must pursue the retreating Ronin who are suspected to be heading towards a DropShip hidden in the mountains.
Fiction: Tai-i Sokura, bitter an exhausted, reflects on how the "old ones" who fought with him in the last war are now fighting each other in this uprising. While he destroys an enemy Vulcan with his Victor, he sees the enemy DropShip depart and begins to weep in frustration.
Scenario
Outcome

Third campaign: Krakau

Scenario 10: Neumond

(New Moon) - Predlitz, 30 August 3034
Background
Fiction
Scenario
Outcome

Scenario 11: Vollmond

(Full Moon) - Predlitz, 30 August 3034
Background
Fiction
Scenario
Outcome

Scenario 12: Mondfinsternis

(Lunar Eclipse) - Predlitz, 30 August 3034
Background
Fiction
Scenario
Outcome

@@ Line 21: / Line 21: @@
 ==Canonicity==
-Although an official product and created under a valid license, the book does not meet the criteria for [[Canon]] sources because it was never published in english. As a consequence, it does not contribute canon. However, it was used as a basis for the much shorter coverage of the Ronin Wars in the (canonical) subsequent [[Historical: Brush Wars]] sourcebook. Said book canonized some of the original information from ''Ronin!'', namely the general events and locations described in the campaigns, the pre-fabricated ''[[Kiudo]]'' garrison base and the [[Camerons Legion]] [[mercenary unit]]; however, the canonicity status of the many details that were not explicitly repeated in ''Brush Wars'' (such as many trivia about the Ronin Wars, maps of the worlds involved, names and numbers of participating military units or the exact layout of a ''Kiudo'' fortress) remains ambigous.
+Although an official product and created under a valid license, the book does not meet the criteria for [[Canon]] sources because it was never published in english. As a consequence, it does not contribute canon. However, it was used as a basis for the much shorter coverage of the Ronin Wars in the (canonical) subsequent [[Historical: Brush Wars]] sourcebook which canonized some of the original information from ''Ronin!'', namely the general events and locations described in the campaigns, the pre-fabricated ''[[Kiudo]]'' garrison base and the [[Camerons Legion]] [[mercenary unit]]. The canonicity status of the many details that were not explicitly repeated in ''Brush Wars'' (such as many trivia about the Ronin Wars, maps of the worlds involved, names and numbers of participating military units or the exact layout of a ''Kiudo'' fortress) remains unclear.
 ==Content==
 ''Ronin!'' is a scenario book set in and expanding on the [[Ronin Wars]]. An introductory section details campaign rules and how to play through the book's scenarios, and a history section explains the reasons behind the Ronin Wars, the motivations for certain units to refuse orders and also the historical course of the conflicts.
-For certain installations, units or terrain features used in the scenarios, black-and-white counters are printed on the last page. The book encourages players to make six photocopies of that page and cut out the counters. The page contains wall elements and gun towers for the ''Kiudo'' fortress, four "power assembly" counters, four "damaged power assembly" counters, and one counter each for representing "rubble", "fusion reactor", "breakthrough" and "turret locked". In addition, a loose cardboard sheet was included in the book that had colored cut-out counters for six "''Lichen-trees''" type wood hexes (German: ''"Flechtenbäume"'', supposedly a native growth from Predlitz), six AA gun/flak emplacements, a two-hex [[HPG]] station (notable for being a two-hex building with different height levels - elevation 1 in one hex and elevation 2 in the other) and a seven-hex [[Union]]-class [[DropShip]].
+For certain installations, units or terrain features used in the scenarios, black-and-white counters are printed on the last page. Players are encouraged to photocopy that page and cut out the counters. The page contains wall elements and gun towers for the ''Kiudo'' fortress, four "power assembly" counters, four "damaged power assembly" counters, and one counter each for representing "rubble", "fusion reactor", "breakthrough" and "turret locked". In addition, a loose cardboard sheet was included in the book that had colored cut-out counters for six "''Lichen-trees''" type wood hexes (German: ''"Flechtenbäume"'', supposedly a native growth from Predlitz), six AA gun/flak emplacements, a two-hex [[HPG]] station (notable for being a two-hex building with different height levels - elevation 1 in one hex and elevation 2 in the other) and a seven-hex [[Union]]-class [[DropShip]].
 Three campaigns consisting of interconnected scenarios are presented, with the results of each scenario affecting subsequent scenarios. Players have the option to play the historic forces that fought these battles, but are encouraged to use their own company-sized [[BattleMech]] unit instead for a campaign game.
-Each campaign has a detailed introduction explaining the role of this particular world within the Ronin Wars and the nature of the local conflict (written from an omniscient perspective), and each scenario has an introductory piece of fiction and an after-action report on the historical outcome.
+Each campaign has a detailed introduction explaining the role of this particular world within the Ronin Wars and the nature of the local conflict (written from an omniscient perspective), and each scenario has an additional background section, introductory piece of fiction and after-action report on the historical outcome.
 ===First campaign: Bruben===
-On [[Bruben]], [[Chu-sa]] Miato Kekkonen announced that the local [[DCMS]] garrison, consisting of the the 937th tank regiment and the 3592nd infantry regiment, would be disbanded and moved off-world with the formation of the [[Free Rasalhague Republic]]. Erik Davidson, the new military governor of Bruben (and previously the local [[Tyr (Resistance group)|Tyr resistance]] leader for many years) hired Camerons Legion to provide security and oversee the removal of the old garrison.
+On [[Bruben]], [[Chu-sa]] Miato Kekkonen announced that the local [[DCMS]] garrison, consisting of the the 937th tank regiment and the 3592nd infantry regiment, would be disbanded and moved off-world with the formation of the [[Free Rasalhague Republic]]. Erik Davidson, the new military governor of Bruben (and previously the local [[Tyr (Resistance group)|Tyr resistance]] leader for many years) hires the Camerons Legion mercenary unit to provide security and oversee the removal of the old garrison.
 ====Scenario 1: Banzai!====
 :Bruben, 2 May 3034
-; Background information :The old Chu-sa of the DCMS garrison on Bruben died seven days before the approaching DCMS DropShip makes planetfall to pick up the last garrison troops. His successor assured the government that all will proceed as planned, but [[ComStar]] [[Demi-Precentor]] Corvin Mantyrius has asked Erik Davidson to divert some troops to guard the [[HPG]] compound. Following suit, the inexperienced new military governor issues orders to the mercenary unit's light [[lance]] to guard the HPG, together with some militia.
+; Background information :The old Chu-sa of the DCMS garrison on Bruben died seven days before the approaching DCMS DropShip makes planetfall to pick up the last garrison troops. His successor assured the government that all will proceed as planned, but [[ComStar]] [[Demi-Precentor]] Corvin Mantyrius has asked Erik Davidson to divert some troops to guard the [[HPG]] compound. Following suit, the inexperienced new military governor issues orders to dispatch the mercenary unit's light [[lance]] to guard the HPG, together with some militia.
 ; Fiction :As he approaches the HPG compound from the lakeside in his hovercraft, [[Tai-i]] Marcus Hirimatsu ponders his treachery and how he and the other officers killed Chu-sa Kekkonen to become [[Ronin]]. His emotions equally dampened and elated by TekkRokk music, he again experiences death-wish feelings at the beginning of the battle reminiscent of those he had when he survived the destruction of his unit by [[Lyran Commonwealth|Lyran]] [[Aerospace Fighter]]s on [[Kirchbach]].
 ; Scenario :Ronin hovertanks (four [[Condor (Combat Vehicle)|Condor]]s and [[Maxim]]s each), carrying two laser rifle platoons, try to occupy the HPG compound without damaging it. Camerons Legion's light lance, consisting of a ''[[Valkyrie]]'', two ''[[Jenner]]''s and a ''[[Stinger]]'' supported by a militia [[Ontos]] and three [[Bulldog]] tanks, defend the compound. ComStar has one assault rifle platoon's worth of guards.
@@ Line 42: / Line 42: @@
 ====Scenario 2: Drache im Schafspelz====
 :(''Dragon in Sheep's Clothing'') - Bruben, 2 May 3034
-; Background :Ronin leader [[Marcus Kurita]] was fully aware of the role that ComStar had played in the formation of the Free Rasalhague Republic and did not hesitate to declare their installations military targets with the intention to capture them intact. This would allow the rebels to maintain communication even against ComStar's wishes, and they also hoped it would disrupt the cordial relationship between ComStar and Theodore Kurita. Hence the first attacks on many planets were aimed at the HPGs, and most were successfully seized. While this led to surprsingly few casualties and no installation was damaged, Primus Waterly later used these events to justify a re-arming of ComStar against internal resistance.<br>[[Sho-sa]] Ito Hanaka, successor of the (murdered) Chu-sa Kekkonen, requested and was granted permission to parade his withdrawing DCMS garrison forces through the center of the planetary capital, Nystaad, on their way to the starport. It is obviously a bad idea (to be blamed on the military governor's lack of experience) to allow heavily armed troops to parade through a city full of hostile civilians, and worst of all the remaining elements of Camerons Legion minus the light lance sent to the outlying HPG station are ordered to escort the parade.
+; Background :Ronin leader [[Marcus Kurita]] was fully aware of the role that ComStar had played in the formation of the Free Rasalhague Republic and did not hesitate to declare their installations military targets with the intention to capture them intact. This would allow the rebels to maintain communication even against ComStar's wishes, and they also hoped it would disrupt the cordial relationship between ComStar and Theodore Kurita. Hence the first attacks on many planets were aimed at the HPGs, and most were successfully seized. While this led to surprsingly few casualties and no installation was damaged, Primus Waterly later used these events to justify a re-arming of ComStar against internal resistance.<br>[[Sho-sa]] Ito Hanaka, successor of the late Chu-sa Kekkonen, requested and was granted permission to parade his withdrawing DCMS garrison forces through the center of the planetary capital, Nystaad, on their way to the starport. It is obviously a bad idea (to be blamed on the military governor's lack of experience) to allow heavily armed troops to parade through a city full of hostile civilians, and worst of all the remaining elements of Camerons Legion minus the light lance sent to the outlying HPG station are ordered to escort the parade.
-; Fiction :From the cockpit of his ''[[Warhammer]]'' an unhappy Colonel Thomas Cameron watches the parade; he can see the DropShip waiting to pick up the garrison troops at the starport. Just as the protests begin to turn into a riot Cameron receives a scrambled message from his troops at the HPG, half drowned in ECM noise. Realizing that his worst suspicions are coming true, he orders his troops to power up for a fight while a [[Demolisher]]'s twin guns swing in on him.
+; Fiction :A decidedly unhappy Colonel Thomas Cameron watches the parade from the cockpit of his ''[[Warhammer]]''; he can see the DropShip waiting to pick up the garrison troops at the starport. Just as the protests begin to turn into a riot Cameron receives a scrambled message from his troops at the HPG, half drowned in ECM noise. Realizing that his worst suspicions are coming true, he orders his troops to power up for a fight while a [[Demolisher]]'s twin guns swing in on him.
-; Scenario :In a concerted action, and simultaneously with the attack on the HPG (scenario 1), the parading garrison troops open fire on the mercenaries and militia troops. The parade train consists of four Devastators, four [[Schrek]]s, and altogether six platoons of motorized infantry, half of them with MGs and the other half with SRMs. The Union-class DropShip deploys a 'Mech lance in support of the Ronin attack, consisting of a ''[[Shadow Hawk]]'', a ''[[Wolverine]]'', a ''[[Hunchback]]'' and a ''[[Whitworth]]''.<br>Camerons Legion is present with their Alpha (''Warhammer'', ''[[Marauder]]'', ''[[Grasshopper]]'', ''[[Zeus]]'') and Beta (''Hunchback'', ''[[Assassin]]'', ''[[Griffin]]'', ''[[Wolverine]]'' lances, and the Bruben milita supports them with two [[Rommel]] tanks and four platoons of motorized rifle infantry.
+; Scenario :In a concerted action, and simultaneously with the attack on the HPG (scenario 1), the parading garrison troops open fire on the mercenaries and militia troops. The parade train consists of four Devastators, four [[Schrek]]s, and altogether six platoons of motorized infantry, half of them with MGs and the other half with SRMs. The Union-class DropShip deploys a 'Mech lance in support of the Ronin attack, consisting of a ''[[Shadow Hawk]]'', a ''[[Wolverine]]'', a ''[[Hunchback]]'' and a ''[[Whitworth]]''. Camerons Legion is present with their Alpha (''Warhammer'', ''[[Marauder]]'', ''[[Grasshopper]]'', ''[[Zeus]]'') and Beta (''Hunchback'', ''[[Assassin]]'', ''[[Griffin]]'', ''[[Wolverine]]'' lances, and the Bruben milita supports them with two [[Rommel]] tanks and four platoons of motorized rifle infantry.
 ; Outcome :The fighting amid the amassed protesters in the middle of Nystaad caused massive damage, but had no clear winner. The DropShip withdrew into space at some point with what remained of its 'Mech lance. 493 civilians were killed, including more than 100 children who died when the defending mercenary ''Marauder'' piloted by Ron Dexter destroyed a school building during combat. May 2 became a memorial day on Bruben.
 ====Optional RPG scenario: Der Schwarze Mann geht um====
 :(''Bogeyman on the loose'')
-The Ronin [[DEST]] assassin who killed Chu-sa Kekkonen attempts to kill the mercenary unit's leader at their HQ in the militia barracks in preparation for the attacks of May 2. If the assassin is captured alive, the players might uncover and solve the murder case of Sho-sa Kekkonen. In any case, they might uncover a plot to assassinate Erik Davidson during a reception at the city hall on May 4 and possibly even thwart the plan. Davidson survives in any case, as he continues to issue orders to the mercenaries.
+In preparation for the attacks of May 2, the Ronin [[DEST]] assassin who killed Chu-sa Kekkonen attempts to kill the mercenary unit's leader at their HQ in the militia barracks. If the assassin is captured alive, the players might uncover and solve the murder case of Sho-sa Kekkonen. In any case, they might uncover a plot to assassinate Erik Davidson during a reception at the city hall on May 4 and possibly even thwart the plan. Davidson survives in any case, as he continues to issue orders to the mercenaries.
 ====Possible additional scenario: ComStar HPG-Station, Die Zweite====
-:(''ComStar HPG Station, Revisited'')
+:(''ComStar HPG Station, Take two'')
 If the Ronin forces managed to occupy the HPG compound in the first scenario, the players can try to retake the compound. Both sides may commit any and all of their forces, but any lost units will obviously not be available in the next scenario. The players may commit the four motorized infantry platoons here already which they are given for scenario 3, but these platoons, too, will not replenish losses between scenarios.
 ====Scenario 3: Aufräumkommando====
@@ Line 56: / Line 56: @@
 ; Background :The Ronin forces have retreated into a ''Kiudo'' fortress 20 kilometers south of Nystaad. They claim that their continued presence on Bruben is neccessary to protect the asian population from transgressions by the population of scandinavian descent, and by now such transgressions are in fact taking place. In fact, many civilians with asian features had to flee to the relative safety of the Ronin fort. The damage incurred from the fighting in Nystaad's city center has soured relations between the mercenaries and the government, and the mercenaries now must take the fortress while under strict orders to avoid civilian casualties at all cost.
 ; Fiction :In preparation for the upcoming assault on a heavily fortified enemy position, Löjtnant Sven Gunnarson examines the ''Kiudo'' fortress through his binoculars, then mounts his Yamaha Milcountry to ride into battle...
-; Scenario :The entire mercenary company (minus losses from the previous scenarios), reinforced with four motorized laser platoons, attacks the Ronin ''Kiudo'' fortress that is defended by four [[Galleon]]s and four rifle platoons; the defenders may have additional forces from previous scenarios. Unless they could be convinced to leave, four "platoons" of civilians are also present in the fortress and must not be harmed.
+; Scenario :The entire mercenary company (minus losses from the previous scenarios), reinforced with four motorized laser platoons, attacks the Ronin ''Kiudo'' fortress that is defended by four [[Galleon]]s and four rifle platoons; the defenders may have additional forces from previous scenarios. Unless they could be convinced to leave, four "platoons" of civilians are also present in the fortress (following special rules) and must not be harmed.
 ; Outcome :In a first-semester lecture at the [[Nagelring]] Academy in [[3038]] the teacher tells his class about how a mixed unit of mercenaries and milita had to storm a weakly defended ''Kiudo'' fortress on Bruben during the Ronin Wars, hampered by civilians who were to be spared. In the end, the attackers succeeded without hurting a single civilian, but it cost them all but four of their 'Mechs.
 ====Optional RPG scenario: Verhandlungsbasis====
@@ Line 96: / Line 96: @@
 ; Outcome :Dr. Banzai's book furter recounts how the Steel Dragon company successfully destroyed the artillery and how the Ronin were overrun in a 3-hour battle. Some lead elements under Sho-sho Sven Johannsen, however, managed to withdraw deeper into the Shiro mountains.
 ====Possible additional scenario: Die Schlacht in den Shiro-Hügeln====
-:(''The battle in the Shiro hills'')
+:(''The battle in the Shiro Hills'')
 Fresh from the previous battle the Steel Dragon company squares off against the light company of the Sun Zhang Academy Cadre as described in Scenario 8. This gives the players an additional opportunity to damage the enemy 'Mechs before encountering them again in Scenario 8.
 ====Scenario 8: Old McDonald had a farm====
 :Predlitz, 7 August 3034
 ; Background :The Ronin Wars were not considered true civil wars, because the civilian population hardly took part in the conflicts. Still, the civilian population had to suffer the consequences of the fighting among the split military.<br>With orders to pursue the retreating Ronin officers deeper into the Shiro mountains, the Steel Dragon company and elements of the Tyr regiment clash with Ronin forces near a farmstead.
-; Fiction :Farmer Gregory McDonald is relieved that the twenty-thee passing 'Mechs have ignored his farm building and only devastated his Skondia-Wheat fields. His eight-year-old daughter shoots a rifle at a ''Stinger'', and the 'Mech just prepares a response when it is driven off by low-flying jets.
+; Fiction :Farmer Gregory McDonald is relieved that the twenty-thee passing 'Mechs have ignored his farm building and only devastated his fields of Skandia-Wheat. His eight-year-old daughter fires a rifle at a ''Stinger'', and the 'Mech just prepares to respond when it is suddenly driven off by low-flying jets.
 ; Scenario :The remaining elements of the Steel Dragon company (having lost a ''Locust'', ''Stinger'', ''Whitworth'', ''Shadow Hawk'' and ''Warhammer''), together with a detachment from the Tyr regiment (two ''Hunchback''s, two ''Trebuchet''s, a ''Catapult'', two ''Thunderbolt''s, an ''[[Orion]]'', two ''Rifleman''s, a ''Dragon'' and a ''[[Charger]]'' supported by a Transit aerospace fighter and a rifle platoon of workers from McDonald's farm face off against the remaining elements of former 8th Rasalhague Regiment (two ''Griffin''s, ''Hunchback'', ''Trebuchet'', ''Rifleman'', ''Thunderbolt'', ''Crusader'', ''[[Ostroc]]'', ''BattleMaster'', ''[[Cyclops]]'', ''[[Stalker]]'', ''Zeus'') and the 12th Sun Zhang Academy Cadre (two ''Locust''s, ''Wasp'', ''Stinger'', two ''Jenner''s, two ''Panther''s, ''[[Vulcan]]'', ''Wolverine'', ''[[Scorpion]]'', ''Trebuchet''; Sholagar, Killer).
 ; Outcome :Överste-Löjtnant Malte Norköpping reports after the battle that the rebels sacrificed their lighter units in order to allow their heaviest units to escape the battlefield, pursued by the Steel Dragon company.

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