FSRB Chpt 18

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==The Federated Suns Reborn- Chapter 18==
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Unit Profile - 1st Dragonlords RCT: Avalon's Silver Claws
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===Unit Summary===
The reborn 1st Dragonlords in 3062, which took place under the orders of First Prince Victor Davion, differed slightly from it's previous incarnation. While the previous Dragonlords Brigade had consisted of reinforced regiments of BattleMechs with an attached aerospace wing, the new and hopefully improved version would be formed on a Regimental Combat Team basis. However, the RCT in question would differ from other such units within the AFFS. The unit would consist of a reinforced regiment of BattleMechs, with an attached aerospace brigade of 3 aerospace fighter wings but where the previous 1st Dragonlords hadn't had attached conventional units the newly formed unit would. Added to the 4 battalions of 'Mechs would be two reinforced armor regiments and two full battle armor regiments each consisting of a full 4 battalions and additional supporting forces such as artillery and engineers. At full strength the unit would consist of 156 BattleMechs, 60 aerospace fighters, 312 tanks and over 2,000 battle armor troopers along with a battalion of artillery, a battalion of VTOL gunships and another of engineers loosely grouped into a "1st Dragonlords Combat Auxiliary" and attached to the armor brigade. 
The idea was that these new formations would combine the very cutting edge of modern military technology in such a way as to provide maximum firepower for their size. The 1st Dragonlords would be the template around which the rest of the brigade would later be formed and was partnered with the Davion Assault Guards RCT just as the previous unit had been. No less than 3 of it's 4 battalions would consist of assault weight BattleMechs with the 4th designated as a cavalry unit with fast heavies and medium BattleMechs. The armor regiments were to be patterned on a similar basis, with tanks like the Challenger X and Alacorn VI heavy tank being common. Whether in defense or in attack the 1st Dragonlords RCT was to be able to lay down a staggering weight of firepower and stand toe to toe with any and all comers and destroy them utterly. Relentless in advance and implacable while holding the line was the goal of those High Command staff officers designing it's TOE. 
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===History===
When the unit was formed up Colonel Susie Stokes, aide to Marshal Stephan Cooper, was offered a full promotion to Major General entirely skipping the rank of Leftenant General and command of the reborn 1st Dragonlords. She was allowed to hand pick a small staff of veteran Davion Guard officers and draw upon the wider AFFS to flesh her command team out and her pick of the graduating classes from every Academy and Training unit within the FedSuns to form her unit. She deliberately concentrated on getting her first pick of officer candidates and assembling them and only then did she begin working her way through the various records of the cadets who she would use to form her new unit. Every single Mechwarrior for instance wasn't just chosen by his own Captain or Major, but each choice was agreed at every single stage of the process by the entire command staff right up the line to Major General Stokes. While as expected the graduates of Albion and NAIS dominated the new formation, a surprising number of candidates were drawn from more peripheral academies such as Point Barrow or Kilbourne. Major General Stokes was offered enough candidates to fill out her entire roster, however when she and her officers had finished their evaluations she had merely assembled enough troops to put a little over 2 battalions into the field. They had deliberately chosen quality over quantity and additionally wanted time to train and form established units to then flesh out and expand upon with a second wave of cadets in the following year. Her chosen armor and infantry officers did the same with their own commands and largely formed up a unit that hovered around 60% of it's full intended strength across the board, although the battle armor regiments were slightly higher than this drawing heavily from NAIS. The intention is that when the class of '63 graduates from the various Training Cadres and Battalions for the unit to be brought up to full strength. Many also suspect that in the fullness of time additional Dragonlord units will be reactivated. 
With the core of her unit now formed the Major General led them onto the training fields of New Avalon and was soon engaged in a series of war games against the defending Davion Heavy Guards, New Avalon CrMM, and elements of the 1st New Avalon Cavaliers. Between mock battles the unit underwent a series of training exercises that were more in line with a Cadre unit than a full combat command, yet Major General Stokes was relentless. Her new command would drill and drill again until it reached her high standards. When the 1st Dragonlords were finally called into action they would uphold the glorious history of their Brigade and bring nothing but added honor to their historic regiment. The first training exercises were of course almost total disasters. A new unit, with new officers often promoted from their previous positions and with new equipment, facing formed and experienced units was bound to take a series of hard knocks. Which was the entire point. After a number of almost humiliating performances against even the New Avalon CrMM the unit's new members threw themselves into the training regime with a passion, desperate to not suffer another humiliating defeat. Over the course of 3063 the Dragonlords steadily improved until they began to prove a tough and challenging opponent for not only the New Avalon CrMM, but even the Davion Heavy Guards. Although still listed as a green unit the Silver Claws were able to hold their heads up as they made even the Davion Heavy Guards work for their victories while managing to pull of a few surprising victories of their own against the New Avalon CrMM. 
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===Unit Officers===
Major General Susie Stokes had been a longstanding Davion Assault Guards officer and yet had taken the lessons of Marshal Stephan Cooper to heart when he took command of The Crushers. Having been shown that many of the limitations of an assault weighted regiment were largely in the heads of it's officers she was now determined to bring that same fresh outlook to the 1st Dragonlords from the start. Again and again she was able to move her forces with speed and elan more befitting a cavalry unit. In this she was particularly helped by her use of the 2nd Battalion, 1st Dragonlords Combat Auxiliary who's Yellow Jacket and Hawk Moth VTOL gunships gave her a lightning fast and hard hitting response unit to tie down enemy formations and allow her to deploy her heavier BattleMechs. 
In this she was helped by Leftenant Genearl Lisa Nicole Schon, formerly Colonel of the 3rd Federation armored Regiment of the Davion Assault Guards Armored Brigade, who now commanded the 1st Dragonlords Armored Brigade. Leftenant General Schon was an expert in the sort of hard hitting armored warfare that was considered a perfect fit for the new unit. Her formation of armor rapidly became the anvil upon which the BattleMech's of the 1st Dragonlords would hammer their opponents. 
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===Unit Components===
1st Dragonlords
Reinforced Regiment/Green/Fanatical 
CO: Major General Susie Stokes
Aide: Colonel Nate Zibler 
Aerospace Brigade: Rear Admiral Joshua Cullen 
The first three battalions are all weighted as assault class units, with the 4th battalion listed as a cavalry force consisting of fast heavies and medium BattleMechs. Almost all of the BattleMech's are produced in the Federated Suns but are drawn from all over the realm, Templar-Os produced in the Capellan March standing side by side with Draconis March produced Sagitairre and Crucis March produced Marauder II and Longbows. Despite being under strength the core of each battalion had been formed. 
The 1st Dragonlords Aerospace Brigade consists of the 1st Dragonflight, 1st Dragonwings, and 1st Dragonclaws Fighter Wings. At least a squadron of Dagger-O's would be present in each wing. 
1st Dragonlords armored Brigade
3 Regiments/Green/Fanatical 
CO: Leftenant General Lisa Nicole Schon 
Aide: Colonel Xander Davids 
1st Dragonlords armored Regiment
2nd Dragonlords armored Regiment
1st Dragonlords Combat Auxiliary
The 1st and 2nd Dragonlords AR are both filled with heavy and assault class vehicles and are each built around an entire battalion of Challenger X Main Battle Tanks. The 1st Dragonlords Combat Auxiliary consists of a collection of individual battalions grouped together for administrative purposes. 
1st Dragonlords Battle Armored Brigade
2 Regiments/Green/Fanatical 
CO: Leftenant General Georgina Schmidt 
Aide: Lt Colonel Fraser Peterson 
1st Dragonlords Armored Infantry Regiment
2nd Dragonlords Armored Infantry Regiment 
Each Battle Armored Infantry Regiment consisted of 4 battalions, each consisting of 256 battle armored troopers, along with a separate command company. This would give each unit on paper at least 1088 officers and men. Cavalier and Infiltrator II battle armor designs were present in every battalion and it was hoped to soon add a heavier battle armored design to the units.
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