System: Dobson

[3039] Except for New Ivaarsen or perhaps Le Blanc, the strike on Dobson in September was in the most precarious position of any of the Operation Orochi attacks – the Draconis Combine’s feigned counter-invasion of the Federated Suns during the War of 3039. While many of the worlds targeted had relatively strong military garrisons, none except Dobson and New Ivaarsen were home to any significant ’Mech forces. It was well-known that the Second Chisholm’s Raiders served as a “feeder” unit for the First Raiders, but the fact of the matter was that it was also a full BattleMech regiment and would represent a significant threat to any forces assigned to the world.

In part, that was likely why one of the combined mercenary/Ghost battalions was chosen for the operation. In fact, it was almost as if the strike on Dobson was designed to keep the Second Chisholm’s Raiders from redeploying to counter any additional Combine moves (though no official documents or interviews have ever surfaced to support that inference).

The “Ghost” strike on Dobson was tragically short for the Combine MechWarriors and their hired guns. They struck in early September, attempting to fight a mobile campaign and to convince the Chisholm’s Raiders that they were a much larger force than they really were. The trouble with that, however, was that the mercenaries hadn’t had the chance to work closely with the Ghost MechWarriors for very long, and as a result the coordination between even lances often broke down.

Colonel Kilian Reason, recently installed as the Second Raiders’ commander, almost immediately recognized his enemies’ weakness, but he also had to deal with the fact that he had just taken over as commander in July and was still getting to know his regiment’s capabilities. He had no choice but to face the crucible on the battlefield, however. Reason had come to the Raiders from the Tenth Deneb Light Cavalry, and brought with him concepts of maneuver that his battalion commanders proved all but unable to comprehend. It was for that reason alone that the Ghosts survived on Dobson for as long as they did.

Colonel Reason literally had to lead from the front and show his MechWarriors their true capabilities. Taking direct command of the heaviest and least maneuverable battalion in his regiment, he literally astounded both his enemies and his own officers with what he could accomplish. He initially struck the Ghosts from through a mountain pass thought impossible to cross, destroying more than a company in the first hour and forcing the Combine battlegroup into retreat. Reason pushed hard for three more days, keeping pace with the Ghosts as they leapfrogged their DropShips in an attempt to rest long enough to load up and retreat from the world.

The Raiders’ leader never gave them that chance, though, and they had to make a final stand at Port Angel, near the world’s southern pole. The two forces fought amid the mountains and deep snow in a battle that was nearly the end of both battalions. The Ghosts ultimately retreated out over an ice flow; though on average several meters thick, there were a number of weak points and cracks. One Combine DropShip literally fell through the ice after landing, taking with it several ’Mechs. Several more ‘Mechs from both sides were similarly lost when some MechWarriors took to targeting the ice instead of their enemies.

Colonel Reason quickly recalled his battalion’s survivors, rather than let them be swallowed by the icy waters. The Ghosts retreated shortly thereafter.

There are no functional factories located on this planet.