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Post by Admin on Aug 11, 2015 13:50:30 GMT -6
The Hive's armies were on the march, this time to the massive science complex at Ezrian. In light of the difficulties involved at Torgau the Asteron army had changed its tactics, choosing to focus on evacuating civilians and blunting the bug's advance instead of an apocalyptic battle. The First Union Army now planned to fight the Hive's columns en-route while marines helped evacuate the sector. Victory here was a matter of delay and casualties: the first union army needed to slow and distract the bugs without being overwhelmed. Air support from the defunct 2nd army would provide some assistance through a long-range sortie, but their aid was limited by fuel constraints.
The territory between the sectors was less heavily populated, being a mixture of suburbs, urban clusters, and green belts. A long, wide highway and maglev system cut across the terrain and was the fastest, easiest, and most exposed route between sectors. This terrain would lend itself more to long range and open combat than the dense, industrial setting of Torgau.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ORDER OF BATTLE Union of Asteron Hive Unity Modmark
Union of Asteron Commander: Gustavus Kruger (General Agent) Callous - This general has developed a reputation as a callous leader willing to sacrifice his own men. Penalty to army morale/cohesion. Bonus to army combat.
1st Union Army Group -- Infantry: IV -- Armor: III -- Artillery: III -- Airpower: II Traits: 52nd Air Defense Regiment: -- Composed of the most advanced surface to air missiles within the Asteran arsenal, the 52nd Air Defense Regiment has a bonus to anti-aircraft fire.
Hive Unity Commander: It-That-Eternally-Hungers (General Agent) Horror Tactics - This General has a reputation for cruel and grotesque measures that make others terrified to face him. Slight penalty to enemy morale/cohesion checks
Rak'Nil <Bunker Buster Siege> Infantry:I Armor: III Artillery: IV Airpower: II Traits: Plasma Parasite- Artillery unit that sends a very simple, living projectile, that directs its payload in such a way as to penetrate hardened structures.
Rak'Tik Infantry: IIIIII Armor: - IV Artillery: - Airpower: - Traits: Brickbreaker Regiment- A regiment of heavy armor bugs capable of burrowing or smashing through defenses.
Rak'Tak Infantry: IIIIII Armor: - IV Artillery: - Airpower: -
NOTES Union of Asteron can call in a sortie of III Airpower once in the battle This battle will consist of 1 or 2 modmarks The longer Hive forces are delayed, the more civilians will be evacuated and the less biomass the sector will provide
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Post by dragonlord7012 on Aug 11, 2015 14:30:51 GMT -6
The pickings where slim as It-That-Eternally-Hungers drove its force onward through the outskirts.
Annoyance.
That was the word to describe It's feelings when it saw these outlying structures.
Too far way from anything, The population spread thing and inefficiently, they would have to travel long distances just to acquire a rest cycle here.
He ripped the population from their homes as he gathered the pittance of biomass.
There was one advantage to the terrain as the area served as a massive ground for the raising of their admittedly high functioning larva, They could keep them alive until they expire. Fortune smiled upon It when it discovered the hive dwelling where they kept their young while the adult drones weren't to their Duties. It would keep an eye out for these nest.
He drove his army forward, spearheading its way inexorably to their next feeding spot.
----------------------------------------------- Armored lead the way!
-Rak'Tik and RakTak lead a push with their Armored units, fireing down any opposition, while Infantry support nearby units, collects the ocassional Biomatter, and gathers "defenses"
-Rak'Nil travels slightly behind the attacking wall of bugs, Its artillery firing upon clusters of infantry, but their primary focus is to stand vanguard against enemy air units.
-Schools are raided for children to carry into battle to give enemy pause. (Think of the children! >:3 )
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Post by killer spork on Aug 11, 2015 14:35:27 GMT -6
General Kruger bounced in his command tank, watching dozens of armored vehicles and battle mech's begin their assault on the Hive columns that were swinging towards Ezria. The boom of the first shots was already beginning. Kruger adjusted the periscope, bringing the battle into focus, while a holographic map of his forces appeared before him. Kruger's first objective and only real objective of the battle was to slow the enemy, but he was also focused on the larger picture of the war. The enemy armor and artillery represented the biggest threat to the Tambov Sector (where the bugs would ultimately turn and have to cross). The enemy couldn't break through his fortified lines without it.
'' Signal the Second to begin their attack. '' The orders went out to the AWAC's aircraft circling overhead. Soon, the fields of Ezria would be covered in fire and smoke as the Asteran fighters descended. They were joined by the First Air Corp, a massive bombing campaign to keep the bugs at bay.
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The aircraft weren't the only one's to try and get glory however. The artillery duel between bug and human began almost immediately as the two sides closed in. Kruger knew that he couldn't match the enemy in a long, drawn out slog. This was a long range engagement, the infantry if Kruger had his way wouldn't see a fight. Their job (along with the armor) would be to fend off any enemy counter push against his lines, allowing Kruger to withdraw his troops in good order when it became feasible. When the enemy came within range... the tanks began their own artillery bombardment to keep the masses at bay.
SUMMARY:
-- +3 Air Sortie called in against Hive armor.
-- +2 Air Sortie from the First Corp will focus on suppressing enemy artillery.
-- Artillery have begun a long range duel with enemy troops, targeting infantry formations.
-- 52nd Anti-Air Regiment has been tasked with destroying enemy fliers that threaten the formation.
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Post by RWU on Aug 12, 2015 14:08:09 GMT -6
Moderation Mark
The Battle of the Ezrian Outskirts would begin as something of a slow-motion duel. Thousands of Asteran jets took off and made their approach, while hundreds of thousands of large guns and launchers on both sides deployed and began firing in each other's direction from many dozens of miles away. Then came the delayed reaction: A loud and searing hot cacophany of explosions across a front at least ten miles in length. The Hive Unity would see the worst of this initial exchange. Armor-piercing missiles tore through columns of giant bugs like flaming molten butter, but the advanced of Hive Armor continued at full speed. The bigger problem was Asteran artillery fire, which had caught multiple units of smaller drones unprepared. The carnage and confusion ground their already somewhat conservative advance to snail's pace, and soon the infantry were trailing far behind the unrelenting advance of their larger cousins. The bulk of the Asteran 1st Union Army Group saw minimal casualties from the Hive artillery. Many assumed that either the enemy artillery was too wounded or their own position too strong for the bugs to do much damage, but what they didn't know was that Rak'Nil was saving its firepower for air defense. While the remnants of the 2nd Army Group saw little resistance in their bombing run against enemy armor, the air forces of the 1st Group were in for a far tougher fight. Their approach to Rak'Nil was filled with acidic fire and shrapnel from airburst shots, and a last-minute sortie by the Hive's flying monsters forced the survivors to retreat in disarray without delivering a single major blow to their intended targets. The pace of the duel increased by several orders of magnitude once the implacable advance of Hive armor entered the range of Asteran tanks and mechs. The ensuing chaos could only be described as a slugfest. Though neither side landed any decisive blows, the roar of autocannons and rockets and the liquid fire of acid spelled fear and disorder for both. What saved the 1st Union Army Group was their armor's infantry support, and the fact that their opponents had none. While the Asteran defensive line stayed more or less cohesive with steady lines of supply and communication, the armored beasts on the other side were soon in disarray without their smaller companions to guide them. Their advance ground to a halt, exactly as General Kruger had intended. As things stood, except for their major loss in airpower, the Asterans held the superior position. Although the Hive army immensely outnumbered them, the Asterans only had to deal with a manageable, disordered fraction. If It-That-Eternally-Hungers failed to bring up reinforcements in time, it might have a quagmire on its hands. For their part, the Asterans would now have to decide whether or not to hold the line and risk engaging the whole of the insectoid forces. Most of the civilians had either evacuated safely or had enough time to make it before their ravenous enemies arrived, but there were still many more who could be saved. Would General Kruger stay to inflict all the damage he could and leave no civilian behind, or would he fall back with a tactical victory under his belt? __________ Union of Asteron Commander: Gustavus Kruger (General Agent) Callous - This general has developed a reputation as a callous leader willing to sacrifice his own men. Penalty to army morale/cohesion. Bonus to army combat. 1st Union Army Group -- Infantry: IV -- Armor: III -- Artillery: III -- Airpower: I I (Shattered Retreat) Traits: 52nd Air Defense Regiment: -- Composed of the most advanced surface to air missiles within the Asteran arsenal, the 52nd Air Defense Regiment has a bonus to anti-aircraft fire. Hive Unity Commander: It-That-Eternally-Hungers (General Agent) Horror Tactics - This General has a reputation for cruel and grotesque measures that make others terrified to face him. Slight penalty to enemy morale/cohesion checks Rak'Nil <Bunker Buster Siege> Infantry:I Armor: I IIArtillery: IV Airpower: I ITraits: Plasma Parasite- Artillery unit that sends a very simple, living projectile, that directs its payload in such a way as to penetrate hardened structures. Rak'Tik Infantry: IIIIII Armor: - IIII Artillery: - Airpower: - Traits: Brickbreaker Regiment- A regiment of heavy armor bugs capable of burrowing or smashing through defenses. Rak'Tak Infantry: IIIIII Armor: - IIII Artillery: - Airpower: - NOTES -- 2nd Army Group air forces have expended their fuel and munitions, and 1st Army Group air forces are in a shattered retreat. Union of Asteron has no air forces for the remainder of the battle. -- Rak'Tik and Rak'Tak infantry forces are lagging behind their armor forces, which are suffering in combat. Until they are rejoined, armor forces are disorganized, suffer in combat from no infantry support, and cannot advance against enemy fire. -- This battle will consist of 1 more modmark -- The longer Hive forces are delayed, the more civilians will be evacuated and the less biomass the sector will provide
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Post by killer spork on Aug 12, 2015 15:27:33 GMT -6
'' Caution. '' He could practically hear the old General Kayani wheezing in his ear, begging for him to call the retreat and fall back. Gustavus Kruger was an aggressive field commander however. While he would certainly have to retreat, inflicting maximum damage on the enemy had to be considered. Besides, if he allowed the enemy to reform, what was to stop them from pursuing him back to Tambov? It was a gamble but one that the Butcher had to take. No, with his knife at the enemies thorax, Kruger would go for the kill. Only when he had left the enemy armor burning on the battlefield would he withdraw. The vox blasted his orders, the tank commanders knew their mission. Engines growled, the whine of advancing Battle Walkers sent tremors racing the earth. Thousands of tanks, mechs, and supporting infantry began their assault. Asteran tanks fire on the Hive Captain Dio peered out of his periscope as the Scorpion Mark IV MBT rumbled forward. The Lucky Bastard had so far claimed two kills today and its commander was hungry for more. With the flyboys in retreat however, he felt exposed more than ever. For the first time in a long time, there would be no air cover. With the battle about to get underway, the Captain quickly dropped down into the innards of the tank and closed the hatch behind him. Infantryman were loping behind them, using the tanks for cover like giant moving mountains of steel. Their support would be invaluable in directing fire and fending off enemy bugs. He hoped that it would be enough to stop those bastards and their acid attacks. He'd seen more than one infantryman with his face burned into unrecognizable mush after being hit by one of those monsters. '' C> Form up on me. '' He voxed to the company, his gunner deftly avoiding the burning corpses of Hive '' hunter '' units (as the Asteran's had begun calling them) and drove on. The autoloader hummed as a fresh shell was loaded into the chamber, readied to be fired. Now all that Dio and the Sixth Company needed were targets. SUMMARY:-- Asteran tanks and infantry begin a mass push, targeting the disorganized enemy Hive armor, intending to cause mass casualties. -- Asteran artillery units (having already zeroed Hive infantry within their sights) continue their bombardment. Their objective will be to keep the infantry from linking up with the Hive tank units. -- Once the Hive begins arriving in major strength to reinforce their vanguard, Kruger will begin disengage and begin withdrawing back to Tambov. If the enemy follows, continued aerial sorties from Tambov will be used to keep the enemy at bay.
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Post by dragonlord7012 on Aug 12, 2015 16:10:59 GMT -6
It-That-Eternally hungers watched as the great managery of armored donated to the army by the many queens, grew confused, and disorganized under the enemy attack, without the scents and support of the smaller infantry drones they stopped advancing, the enemy attacking them to slow their progress. Yet again did his foe slow his feeding. It was unacceptable. He left the safety of his current position. Enough delays. Enough waiting. He would consume them himself. ===== -With the air broken, The all available artillery focus entirely upon the enemy infantry. (Not the only one who needs infantry support ) -Mobilize what little air we possess against the enemy Armored divisions in precisions strikes. - Armored units of Rak'Tik, and Rak'Tak, who are are to regroup on the enemies left and right flank respectively, while their infantry come up to support them. Once they have caught up. they will push together, and forward , to crush the enemy between them in a flank, while attempting to cut off their retreat. It-That-Eternally-Hunters personally takes control of this series of manuvers.
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Post by RWU on Aug 12, 2015 19:08:17 GMT -6
Moderation Mark
At first, General Kruger's gamble seemed to pay off. Despite grueling artillery bombardment, the tanks and mechs and troops advanced in good order towards the disorganized line of Hive armor. When a small horde of flying bugs tried to interfere, the 52nd Air Defense Regiment reduced them to shreds and embers with a punishing volley of surface-to-air missiles. Unfortunately, when the Asteran and Hive armor collided, the humans' luck began to fade. Although they remained disorganized and failed to fall back, the giant bugs' sheer numbers were enough to hold the line. The 1st Union Army Group's advance slowed...just in time for the Hive infantry to arrive in force. They too had managed to push through a grueling bombardment, and their arrival at the flanks of the Asteran army was a total surprise for the humans. The bugs' advance was rushed and resulted in more of a pell mell than an organized assault, but they had done their job. The bulk of the enemy army was encircled on three sides. Newly-invigorated by the arrival of reinforcements and the arrival of their general in person, the armored insects charged along with their smaller comrades. Soon the Asteran formations were just as disorganized as their enemies', but the Asterans didn't have the numbers to sustain the loss in cohesion. Attempts at an organized retreat quickly devolved into a full rout: Vehicles turned tail and careened away at full speed while foot soldiers sprinted away, some jumping on vehicles and others even dropping their weapons to run faster. They were engulfed in mass panic at the seemingly endless hordes of terrifying bugs. Rak'Tik and Rak'Tak would manage to pursue their foes for a full fifteen miles, annihilating the entirety of the 1st Army armor and all but a single corps of infantry. It was only the impressive professionalism of the 1st Army Artillery, laying down covering fire throughout the pursuit, that allowed even them to escape. The Battle of the Ezrian Outskirts would be extremely bloody for both sides, but the end result was a nearly-fatal defeat for the Asterans. Almost all civilians escaped the carnage, but the 1st Union Army Group had been encircled and reduced to a pitiful fraction of its former strength. What the insects lost in biomass from the evacuation was at least partly made up for by all the soldiers they devoured. General Kruger would escape with his life, but his reputation would not. Callous but efficient in one battle and reckless in the other, he could elicit neither fearful respect nor admiration. It-That-Eternally-Hungers, on the other hand, now had two bloody but decisive victories under his carapace and a budding reputation for personal bravery. __________ 1st Union Army Group -- Infantry: I V-- Armor: III-- Artillery: III -- Airpower: I ITraits: 52nd Air Defense Regiment: -- Composed of the most advanced surface to air missiles within the Asteran arsenal, the 52nd Air Defense Regiment has a bonus to anti-aircraft fire.Hive Unity Commander: It-That-Eternally-Hungers (General Agent) Horror Tactics - This General has a reputation for cruel and grotesque measures that make others terrified to face him. Slight penalty to enemy morale/cohesion checks Rak'Nil <Bunker Buster Siege> Infantry: I Armor: I IIArtillery: IV Airpower: IITraits: Plasma Parasite- Artillery unit that sends a very simple, living projectile, that directs its payload in such a way as to penetrate hardened structures. Rak'Tik Infantry: IIIIII Armor: - IIII Artillery: - Airpower: - Traits: Brickbreaker Regiment- A regiment of heavy armor bugs capable of burrowing or smashing through defenses. Rak'Tak Infantry: IIIIII Armor: - IIIIArtillery: - Airpower: - NOTES -- Asteran 1st Union Army Group is in serious disarray and cannot act next GC turn except to defend its Military Sector or send air raids -- Asteran 1st Union Army Group and 2nd Union Army Group merge into a single army of composition Infantry: 1 / Armor: 0 / Artillery: 3 / Air: 4 -- Rak'Tik and Rak'Tak merge into a single army of composition Infantry: 5 / Armor: 2 -- Virtually all civilians escape, so sector only provides 1 Biomass for Hive Unity -- Hive Unity gains 4 Biomass from devouring enemy soldiers and 2 Biomass from losses -- General Kruger loses trait Callous and instead has trait Arbitrary - This General has a reputation for sudden, unwarranted changes in strategy and tactics. Slight malus to cohesion, morale, and combat ability.
-- It-That-Eternally-Hungers gains trait Brave Soldier - This General inspires their troops from the front lines. Extra bonus to morale when personally leading units into combat.HIVE UNITY VICTORY
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