WoWS3 Chpt 61

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==Weapons of War Saga: The Final March- Chapter 61 - ==
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===Order of Battle===
;Wiki Note: This written as a playable Tabletop game scenario. Game stats for unique units including Record Sheets, Alpha Strike Datacards, and MegaMek ship files for them are linked to the unique vessels.Treat M5 Caspers as normal ships when using MegaMek, as of this writing there is no AI functionality for those units. 
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====Naval Battle for Terra====
Combat Operations as of 7 May 3145
Attackers: Clan Wolf
Target: Terra
Task Force Homecoming
Flagship-McKenna Class Battleship McKenna’s Pride
Cameron Class Battlecruiser Kerensky’s Spear-Formerly Turkina’s Pride
Cameron Class Battlecruiser Bloody Fang
Liberator Class Cruiser Victoria Ward
Lola III-Clan Class Destroyer Fenrir
Aerospace Fighters: 130 Clan OmniFighters (Roll on FM:3145 Front Line Clan Wolf RATs as desired)
Reserve formation (Regular/Fanatical)*
Flagship-Liberator Class Cruiser Jerome Winson
Congress Class Frigate Rogue
Lola III Class (Clan) Destroyer Space Wolf
Aerospace Fighters: 50 Clan Omnifighters
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Defenders: Republic of the Sphere
RAF Main Fleet(Veteran/Fanatical)
Flagship-Essex II Class Destroyer Abundantia
Lola III Class Destroyer Triumphus
Luxor Class Cruiser Gladius Terrae
Essex II Class Destroyer Glory of the Republic
Essex II Class Destroyer Fire of the Republic
Essex II Class Destroyer Shield of the Republic
Dreadnought Class Battleship Dolabra
Monsoon Class Battleship Ciaravella
Aegis Class Cruiser Auspicium
Quixote Class Frigate Redemption
Aerospace Fighters: 90 ASF (Roll on RotS RAT FM:3145)
Screening force (Regular/Fanatical)
8 Castrum Class Pocket Warships
8 Tiamat Class Pocket Warships
*:The intention is the reserve force is to be deployed as one fighting force, not split between the two operations.
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====Operation Hephaestus====
Target: Titan Shipyards
Task Force Werewolf
Flagship-Uratha Class Battleship Luna’s Fury
Black Lion II Class Battleship Canis Lycan - Formerly Jade Aerie
Aegis Class Cruiser Canis Rufus - Formerly Red Talon
Sovetsky Soyuz Class Cruiser Dire Wolf
Aerospace Fighters: 110 Clan Omnifighters
Reserve formation (Regular/Fanatical)*
Flagship-Liberator Class Cruiser Jerome Winson
Congress Class Frigate Rogue
Lola III Class (Clan) Destroyer Space Wolf
Aerospace Fighters: Aerospace Fighters: 50 Clan Omnifighters
RAF Reserve Fleet (Green/Questionable)
Flagship-Farragut Class Battleship-Modified Gaia-Formerly SLS Larry Nichols
Congress Class (Modified) Frigate Anzio - Formerly SLS Olivia Hazard Perry
Type 51-Predreadnought Gunboat Fire Ant
Cruiser Class Cruiser Sao Paulo
Essex I Destroyer Earnest P. Wainwright
Essex III** Prototype Destroyer Test Article 1
Lola II*** Prototype(salvaged) Caspar Cadmus
Riga Block 1 Destroyer/Carrier Woody Guthrie
Aerospace Fighters: 78 ASF(Garrison)
Supplemental Force (Regular/Reliable) 
4 Castrum Class Pocket Warships
4 Tiamat Class Pocket Warships
6 Bastion Class SDS
Aerospace Fighters: 144 ASF (Garrison)Aerospace Fighters: 
*: Trade cargo to get 36 ASF
**:Just to make it quick and easy grab the stats of the M-5.2.
Moral rules:
The RAF reserve Fleet upon the First Round of Fire, Third Round, and Fifth Round or any time they take a CiC critical hit make a moral check. On a critical failure(an unmodified 2 on 2d6) results in the vessel making for the farthest edge of the map from combat, plotting a course to avoid other pockets of combat as best as possible, or if using on map jump points and the vessel has a drive charge the nearest jump point. On a 12 on the Moral check for the next turn calculate Gunnery and Piloting/Control as if two better.
While retreating the Reserve vessel may make a check to recover morale. Results of 2 or 12 result as above. Target number to act normally though is based on the distance to the nearest enemy unit with a base target number of 6.
If the nearest enemy is within:
Short Capital Range +6
Medium Capital Range: +4
Long Capital Range: +2
Extreme: +0
Out of Range: -2
If the enemy is:
Capital Warship: -0
Assault Dropship: -1
Star of Clan ASF: -2
Use the least favorable modifier if there are multiple units that are equidistant
+1 for each unit within Extreme Capital Range or less
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====Operation Gumdrop====
Attackers: Helena Cameron’s SLDF in Exile
Target: Bolan orbital/deep space facilities
Cherry Group (Regular/Reliable)
Flagship-Arcadia-Export Class Cruiser, SLS Ghoul
Arcadia-Export Class Cruiser, SLS Ghast
Lime Group (Regular/Reliable)
Flagship-Flower Class Corvette, SLS Rose
Flower Class Corvette SLS Columbine
Flower Class Corvette SLS Daisy
Flower Class Corvette SLS Dragonsnap
Flower Class Corvette SLS Pansy
Aerospace Fighters: 174 Star Seeker ASF (Veteran/Reliable)
Task Force Notes: Lime Group is to provide recon/screening to Cherry Group.
Defender: Clan Wolf and Native Bolan Forces
Bolan Garrison Cluster (Veteran/Fanatical)
5 Isegrim Class Assault Dropships
Aerospace Fighters: 50 Clan Omnifighters (Roll on Secondline/Garrison FM:3145 Clan Wolf RATs)
Native Bolan Forces (IS Veteran/Reliable)
2 Vengeance Class Dropship Carriers
4 Achilles Class Assault Dropships
6 Bastion Class SDS
Aerospace Fighters: 72 ASF (Roll on Garrison FM:3145 Lyran Commonwealth RATS)
Target:
4 Large Unpressurized Shipyard stations
====Operation Jellybean====
Attacker: Helena Cameron’s SLDF in Exile
Target: Orbitals infrastructure of the Dieron system
Group Grape (Veteran/Fanatical)
Flagship-M-5.4 Class CASPAR Destroyer/Carrier SLS Haida
M-5.4 Class CASPAR Destroyer/Carrier SLS Cossack
Group Lemon
Flagship-Pinto-Hazard Class Corvette, SLS Daffodil
Pinto-Hazard Class Corvette SLS Lily
Pinto-Hazard Class Corvette SLS Tulip
4 Arsenal-Carrier Class Drophips
36 Void Seeker Drone ASF
90 Star Seeker Heavy ASF
Dieron Defense Force (Veteran/Fanatical)
Fredassa Class Corvette/Raider War Wolf - Formerly Jade Tornado
Aerospace Fighters: 20 Omnifighters (Frontline Clan Jade Falcon)
10 Isegrim Class Assault Dropships (Veteran/Reliable)
50 Omnifighters (Garrison/Secondline Clan Wolf)
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===Operation Little Red Riding Hood===
Hazard Class Corvette, SLS Orchid
Ross 248, Unhabited System - Republic of the Sphere
8th May, 3145
The mission was a convoy escort across potentially hostile space. Six merchant ships, escorted by the Orchid. The convoy were ships loaded with trade goods and diplomats.
At least the demands of the service let her have a honeymoon. Lt. Commander Anh Lee Cu'ong-Fowler had experience before she joined the SLDF in Exile. She also spoke a variant of the Lingua Franca of Ross 248, and she knew the Wolf Empire's habits. 
So far, all this meant doing a bunch of hand-holding for the diplomats and other officials riding with the trade convoy, or coordinating the small groups of fighters assigned to each commercial jumpship in 'alert drills' as they paused in empty systems to let the cargo ships recharge their drives.
“Well at least with the Fortress Wall down this is a shorter trip than it would be otherwise.” Sears commented from her post.
"Yeah. Shorter trip…"
“You think the Wolves are up to something. I’d be lying if I said the hairs on the back of my neck weren’t standing on end too. Something just seems… off.”
Anh studied the empty sweep while their charges were recharging before speaking. "I think they're going for the big prize, Lea." she said, "I think they're already moving to hit Sol, and that's why it's been quiet."
“And here we are running a diplomacy mission. Honestly I’ll take it over some of those big battlewagons staring us down and having to pray they shoot someone else instead. Even depressurized I’m pretty sure some of those Wolf ships could tear us in half with one volley.”
"In our context, Lea, we're the someone else for six Merchants." Anh noted, "At least WE can shoot back."
“True. And I know I have my key ready.”
"Ever seen a live nuke detonation, Lea?" Anh asked, "Not in training, but live?"
“No. Just what they had us go through in training.”
"Let's keep it that way. Pray to god that the Wolves are too interested in Sol to have outrangers lurking near Ross."
“Agreed.” Lea nodded.
Sometimes you don't get what you want.
"Contact! Emergence Wave at the Zenith!!" Sensor Ops Tech reported
"Size?" Anh demanded.
"Class Alpha, mum, under a half million tons estimated."
"Telescope, get a bead on whatever is out there right ****** now, it's almost four Light Hours out, they could be in a burn and the merchies won't know! XO, get the fighters assigned to the fleet scrambled and out of their barns, then send our dropship out to coordinate that perimeter!"
“Roger that. Checking War Book. Either Clan Wolf has something new to play with, their Fredassa has left Dieron, or it’s someone else.”
"Confirmed, Fredasa class!"
"Get a visual!"
Minutes streamed by like seconds, then dragged as the corvette's computers recomposited light-adjusted imagery from the dropship's telescopes and the scopes of the rest of the convoy.
"Clan Wolf markings, but it's not the one on the intel sheets. Hull number's different."
Well, ******. 30 Astronomical Units out. Two weeks at a hard burn, or one jump if they're using batteries and know where to look.
"Tightbeam comms only, He might not have seen the convoy."
"You're not going to attack?"
"He's Four Light Hours out." Anh turned to her friend, "That's thirty astronomical units, which at one gee is how many days under thrust if he's the distraction and we have to get back to our convoy?"
Lea Sears-Brighton understood immediately when Anh put it in that context, "We spotted him because he tripped a 'squeaker' on his emergence…"
"Yep. if this is a planned move, then he's the distraction. If it's just a random stop, he's still got HPG commo to call in friends to hit our convoy if we get his attention…but space is big, so he'd need to already be looking, and if he already saw us, he can call in friends to hit us."
"Passives only?"
"Passives only."
“Convoy has confirmed.”
“Okay, Lea, pop quiz time. If it comes to a fight?”
“Honestly it is their fight to lose. We match thrust profiles but that’d mean driving us away from the Convoy and if they did that, well even if we’re really good on coming back around they can chew up the Convoy before we can really do much to them…”
On the telescope, other forms resolved from hyperspace into normal space-clan make transports.
"He's doing what we're doing…that's a transport convoy."
“Alaric’s main fleet base is Dieron, which is one jump from Terra. Okay that changes the tactical calculus. We still can't beat him in a ship duel, but we can observe him for a while, and mark this system as on their convoy route to their main holdings in the Wolf Empire."
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For the next seventy two hours, Anh felt like she was holding her breath, the Wolf corvette held position guarding its convoy, patrolling among them in their formation, not straying more than a few light-seconds from its charges.
The last cargo vessel in her convoy signaled their drive was charged, it was time to go.
"By the numbers, Bury, Gleason, Lamplighter, Korra, Davineu and Liesse. We go last." she ordered.
“Aye ma’am. You know this means Alaric’s going, and soon if we’re seeing convoys like this.” Lea observed.
"Yeah, they're running convoys, they're on the offensive." Anh agreed, "Comms, send by HPG, everything we've observed for the last three days, if they pick it up, they'll be picking it up after we've left."
"Aye, Captain."
Observe, and Report…and hope someone can follow up. "Message sent."
"Is the convoy cleared?"
"Aye."
"Drive, are we charged?"
"Primary and secondary, Captain."
"CAG, pull our fighters and dropship in, Engineer, be ready for the signal, I've already uploaded the next coordinate set, acknowledge."
“Engineering, we’re ready to go as soon as everything is docked.”
"Lea, verify it, make sure our outriders aren't being left behind, then inform me over the O1C sound powered."
"Aye ma'am." Lea got up and headed for the docking ring.
"Incoming on the HPG, emergence point six light seconds port." Her comms officer spoke up.
"Put it on."
<<"This is Kyle Fetladral of the Clan Wolf vessel Red Pack to SLDF Corvette. I will catch you next time. Message End.">>
"******" cursed Anh.
“Permission to taunt back, Ma’am, before we jump?”
"Make it good." Anh said. "You notice he sent video through that? Nice chin, makes me want to punch it..."
”All you can catch are fleas Fluffy Puppy.”
"All smallcraft are secured, docking lights are green on our dropship."
"All hands, all hands, we are initiating jump in three, two…one…"
///////////Discontinuity\\\\\\\\
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Star Commodore Kyle Fetladral chuckled as the enemy corvette replied to his message. "Drives, how many hours left to recharge?"
"Ninety one hours, ovkhan, for both LF battery and main drive."
He sighed, "I will catch them next time. Maintain double CAP among the convoy, they have to have spent at least some of the last few days watching us."
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"...still don't understand, why Amusing Anecdote? Why not something…historic or powerful?" 
"I liked the name." The AI for the independent cruiser Amusing Anecdote answered. "Ooh, look, there's a wolf convoy, all by themselves in the big black empty. You know what Amanda would say, right?"
Samuel ran a finger around his collar. "She'd say 'hit it', and then 'yo ho ho'."
"She would indeed. Arnold, we're shadowing OUR convoy operations, should we disrupt Alaric's?"
"We are at war, let's go to war." Amusing Anecdote's AI answered, "as for why the name? As I said, because I like it."
"Secure for jump everyone!!"
///////////Discontinuity\\\\\\\\
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"Jump point emergence!!"
"Where?" Kyle demanded.
Alarms sounded as the pulse hit almost loudly enough to cause brown-outs. "Right on top of us?"
Kyle spun in his command chair, "Range!"
"Two hundred Kilometers and closing, estimate a Cruiser level vessel, no IFF!"
Forty eight hours from being able to leave this system.
“Bring us around. Scramble fighters. We will buy our convoy every second possible.”
Visual came up on several targeting screens. She was definitely cruiser-sized, with almost organic curves to the outer plating, curves that were calculated to present an angled facing to incoming fire.
The firefly like sparks of fighters streaming from recessed bay doors declared more intent than the flat-haze-gray of the hull, which sported only a single roundel. A seven pointed star in the center of an eye.
"Warbook confirms no known force uses that roundel!!"
“I don’t care if we risk burning out our mobile HPG, I want it sending constant logs and imagery. Every scrap of data possible must be transmitted to the Clans.”
"Incoming Transmission!"
<<"Stand down and heave to or be destroyed. You have five minutes.">>
"Warbook's got confirmation!!"
"On the ship?"
"No, the fighters! They are Voidseeker automatic Fighter drones!!"
“Savashri! Jamming to maximum.”
This was when the consoles started humming.
"They are jamming US!!"
“All batteries fire!”
Pinpricks showed a few hits on the oncoming foe…
And then…damage alarms sounded as pressure decks ruptured.
Kyle found himself spinning across his own CIC, the anchors of his command couch were broken. His vision spun as his flight suit switched to onboard air., and he saw a rent in the wall, where Gunnery Station three had been, and starlight beyond, dirtied with loose items tumbling out into space.
They didn't even give us a chance!! it felt so…unfair!!
He saw the bulkheads ripple, tearing wider, and then, he was outside.
Unfair!!
His ship, his command was burning from a dozen holes punched raggedly through the outer armor, a broken, spinning, burning pinwheel of death.
They didn't even give us a chance… Mercifully, he blacked out.
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"...nicer than being on the other end." Mister Samuel clarified. "I think he's waking up."
"Star Commodore Kyle Fetladral, Clan Wolf Naval Warship reserve, you are a prisoner of war. Do you understand?"
Their prisoner groaned and nodded, then strained at his restraints. 
"Please don't do that, you suffered spinal injuries, anoxia, and thermal injuries before being recovered." the spider-like robot that was speaking, loomed, "you and the other survivors are to be treated in accordance with SLDF Regulation 189A-1/212b, subsection eleven, as amended by the mutual conference on Tharkad in 3145."
"There were other survivors?" he asked.
"We recovered ten members of your crew, and one hundred forty personnel from the convoy you were escorting. Nod if you understand."
Kyle meekly nodded. "Who……are you?"
"You have been taken by the Independent Contract Warship Amusing Anecdote, you will be delivered to a designated Prisoner of War Holding facility under the authority of the Star League in Exile. Nod if you understand."
Kyle nodded again, still slowly and weakly. “How…long?”
"You were out for forty hours, we engaged in search and rescue after your remaining fighter pilots were neutralized."
“You should also regain limited mobility, enough to walk in three days.” Doctor Pittman added.
"You did not give us a fair chance…"
"That's war." Samuel told him, "Fairness is for games."
"We got a message out." Kyle snarled.
"Yes, and they will find the debris field, along with marker buoys. Unlike you, we still had a reserve charge on our LF batteries and left as soon as the SAR missions completed. Anyone we missed, will be found by your reinforcements."
Kyle tried to look away from his captors but winced in pain as he tried to turn his head.
"At least let the stitches close before you try that, son." Dr. Pittman said kindly, "Escape attempts in your condition just means I have to put more pieces back together to keep you from dying. Healthy men are the only men who manage to successfully escape from anyone's holding, and you've no where to run out here.
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