Operation Lorica Sacra

Belligerents| Federal Republic of Giad* Western Army
	+ Myrmecoleo Free Regiment
* Western Army Relief Expeditionary Force
* Strike Package 1st Armored Group
	+ Spearhead Squadron
	+ Brísingamen Squadron
	+ Nordlicht Squadron
	+ Lycaon Squadron
	+ Claymore Squadron
	+ Scythe Squadron
	+ Sarissa Squadron
	+ Stinger Squadron
	+ Fulminata Squadron
	+ Archer Squadron
	+ Quarrel Squadron
* Strike Package 2nd Armored Group
	+ Razor Edge Squadron
	+ Falchion Squadron
	+ Glaive Squadron
	+ Mace Squadron
	+ Skyhawk Squadron
	+ Other Squadrons
* Strike Package 3rd Armored Group
	+ Longbow Squadron
	+ Other Squadrons
* Strike Package 4th Armored Group
	+ Sledgehammer Squadron
	+ Other Squadrons

Commanders| * MG Richard Altner†
* COL Grethe Wenzel
* COL Vladilena Milizé
* CPT Shinei Nouzen
* 1LT Siri Shion
* 1LT Canaan Nyuud
* 1LT Suiu Tohkanya

Strength| * Reginleif
* Vánagandr
* Scavenger
* Transport Trucks
* Armée Furieuse
* Mantle of Frigga
* Kampf Pfau
* Grauwolf
* Löwe
* Dinosauria
* Skorpion
* Morpho
* Rabe

Casualties| * The entire headquarters defense regiment
* Richard Altner KIA
* 70% of the population of the Republic of San Magnolia

**Operation Lorica Sacra** (オペレーション・ロリカサクラ,, *Operēshon Rorikasakura*?) was an operation which took place in Dies Passionis. Its goal was to withdraw the Federacy's Relief Expeditionary Force from the Republic of San Magnolia following the Second Great Offensive, with a secondary objective of escorting Republic refugees to the Federacy.

## Background

On the 1st of October SY 2050, The Legion launched a new large-scale offensive, overturning the achievements of humanity and forcing their militaries into retreat. The Federacy had acted quickly to mitigate damage, swiftly and orderly withdrawing from their front line to begin setting up new defenses. Despite losing advantageous terrain and progress from their previous campaigns, the Federacy managed to keep the Legion at bay.

Meanwhile, the Republic had emerged from the Legion's offensive essentially unscathed, but in a vulnerable position. The Republic government appealed to the Federacy to accept the evacuation of all its citizens, citing a lack of defensive facilities and an insufficient military force to defend their territory. As the Federacy itself could no longer afford to maintain an overextended force within the Republic's unfavorable territory, the Federacy drew up an urgent plan to withdraw all of its military forces from the Republic and assist the Republic's evacuation into the Federacy.

## Preparation

Operation Lorica Sacra was created in order to achieve two objectives.

1. The withdrawal of the Relief Expeditionary Force and all vital equipment back to the Federacy.
2. The evacuation of as many Republic citizens as possible into Federacy territory.

The situation posed many challenges to the completion of the mission. The expeditionary force had over 50,000 personnel and 700 vehicles in total. Furthermore, the number of remaining Republic citizens was still nearly a million. Finally, they needed to travel over a long distance of four hundred kilometers before reaching the safe zone.

The Federacy decided to utilize the high-speed railway connecting the Federacy's Berledephadel city and the Republic's Ilex City. The infantry and non-combat units would be transported back to the Federacy via trains. Meanwhile, the armor detachment from the expeditionary force and the Strike Package would secure and maintain the retreat route until the last train left the Ilex station. Major General Richard Altner oversaw the operation as its commander.

The operation area had 14 identifiers used as reference points.

* The operation's starting location was Point Zodiac. It was within the Western army's defensive line.
* The Ilex terminal was Point Sacra, where the expeditionary force and civilians began evacuation.
* The phase lines were designated at every 30 kilometers point from Point Zodiac to Point Sacra. The names of phase lines were as follows: Pisces (closest to Point Zodiac), Aquarius, Capricorn, Chiron, Ophiuchus, Antares, Libra, Regulas, Virgo, Cancer, Gemini, Taurus, and Aries (closest to Point Sacra).

The operation would be complete when all Federacy forces and civilians reached Point Zodiac.

The Federacy and the Republic agreed that the Republic would handle the evacuation process of its people, while the Federacy would only provide security assistance. However, the evacuation plan, crafted by the Republic government, was remarkably shameless in the eyes of Federacy personnel. The evacuation priorities were blatantly lopsided in favor of the upper class. The order of evacuation was as follows:

1. Government officials and first-ward VIPs
2. Military general
3. Commissioned officers
4. Noncommissioned officers and soldiers
5. Normal citizens

In addition to existing difficulties, the Republic's internal politics further hampered the operation. Due to the high risk of blunder or failure, no higher-up in the Republic wanted to be in charge. The Republic even requested the Federacy for Colonel Milizé to take command of the evacuation. Since the Republic merely wanted her to be a scapegoat, The Federacy decisively rejected their request.

## Battle

### Operation began

On the morning of October 11th SY 2050, the Federacy began the first phase of the operation to secure the escape route and destroy the Legion forces around the high-speed railway. The Western Army launched an offensive against the Legion aided by electromagnetic catapults, Armée Furieuse. At the same time, the Strike Package landed all four armored divisions behind the Legion's line. Then, they started pushing through the railway toward the Republic. Meanwhile, the expedition force also went offensive from the other side in tandem with the Strike Package. The two units eventually met and secured the railway between Point Zodiac and Point Sacra.

The evacuation started soon after the route was declared safe. The first group to evacuate was Federacy's noncombatants, followed by the Republic's VIPs, such as politicians, high-ranking government officials, and the old nobility living in the First Sector. The evacuation of the first two groups went by without significant issues, aside from a few spoiled VIPs complaining about the lack of luxury.

The evacuation of the Republic's military personnel faced some hassles, however. The Republic's higher-ups intentionally had civilians evacuate right after the military and saw their soldiers left before them. Hence, civilians would divert their anger toward the military instead of the higher-ups. The quarrel between the two groups inevitably happened, which increased workloads for the people involved.

## Aftermath

Overall, the operation is mostly successful. The Federacy expeditionary force was largely intact after the retreat from the Republic. The Federacy's losses were minimal, and they retrieved satisfying numbers of essential equipment. The Strike Package also successfully escorted over 30% of the Republic's population back to the Federacy.

Regrettably, 70% of the Republic's population did not survive the Legion onslaught. Furthermore, the Federacy lost Major General Altner and an entire headquarters defense regiment which acted as a rearguard. The deaths and destruction befall on the Republic also dealt a heavy blow to the morale and mental health of the Strike Packages' personnel.

## Trivia

* Lorica is a Latin word meaning "body armor" or "armor".
	+ It is also a prayer recited for protection against evil in the Irish monastic tradition.
* There was speculation that the Republic's higher-ups, comprised of Celena, deliberately designed the evacuation plan to drive a wedge between Adularia and Alabaster. By siding with one of two ethnic groups, the higher-ups effectively turned another group into the minority, which they could exploit like what they had done to the Eighty-six.
* Although they cited the humanitarian reason for the operation, the Federacy had another motive. Due to the losses incurred in the war, the Federacy military faced a severe shortage of personnel. The incoming refugees, therefore, were a potential source for recruitment. While they might never experience an actual war, the Republic citizens could at least hold a gun or an explosive, excluding the young child and most infirm elderly.