[A] Wild Tempest

Wednesday the 23rd,
Aerie Peak, 157th HQ.

Major Thaymond,

Date: Tuesday the 22nd.
Location: Arathi Highlands. Hammerfall.

Objective: Intelligence gathering.

To support the approaching war-effort to arathi, the 157th Company has been performing intelligence gathering operations in and around Arathi.

- Prelude: Friday the 18th,

First platoon, first squad, performed their first scouting missions in arathi after the conclusion of the northern gathering:

we noticed, heavy patrolling between the wall and stromgarde, which resulted, in the company, ambushing one of said patrols, dispatching it swiftly.

After giving a proper look at Hammerfall, we noticed the red-blades camped there, signified by the wolf-masks, additionally, we noticed a large concentration of children for a border fortress.

Additionally we located multiple positions for mortar placements to bombard Hammerfall from. none were found around stromgarde yet.

- Tuesday the 22nd.

The 157th, first platoon, first squad, decides to venture into arathi towards Hammerfall.

With the Army planning to cross from the Thandol-span, with stromgarde being the objective, our flank is clearly vulnerable, with a hostile force in hammerfall. Our objective was to find out the co-operation between the forsaken and the orcs, determine whether we'll find a united front, or scattered war-bands. Through a Parley.

I split up the squad into two groups. Sergeant Stormclaw and Recruit Roque, would take a gyro, and two mortars, and approach one of the mountain positions and set up as an insurance policy. While Private Strongbrew, Corporal Tinkertron and myself hoisted the white flag, and approached hammerfall for parley.

Our talk made two things very clear:

One: The forsaken and the orcs don't like each-other, they are unlikely to form a unified front.
Two: The Orcs are going to push heavily against our troops, even though their seems to be internal resistance. And they wouldn't mind the forsaken blight be destroyed.

I pushed to make clear that opposing our efforts to fight the forsaken would have severe consequence, and that their children would clearly be in jeapardy. That we had the option of razing hammerfall to the ground.


Aftermath
Once the parley was over and my group was retreating, as expected the orcs came after us. Private Strongbrew was too slow to set off the warning flare for support mortar bombardment, and The corporal and strongbrew were captured.
I double backed to our mortar position, and started devising the extraction plan.

The red-blades had split into two forces:

Three orcs took the prisoners to a guard-tower for interrogation, the rest of the red-blades were drinking tea on the observation deck. Our vantage point gave us perfect view of hammerfall, and our extraction consisted of having Sergeant Stormclaw fire his mortar onto the observation deck as a diversion, in three round burst. I would take the second mortar and blow up the roof of the guard-tower where the interrogation was happening. Recruit Roque would fly in with his gyro and use his grappling hook to get our men out of there.

The bombardment, went perfectly, shooting a hole in the observation deck, making the orcs scatter for cover, the guardtower roof got blown and the gyro swooped in.

Unfortunately, the gyro-had problems getting our people. them being naked and bound, they were busy being carried away or had toppled over the wall and out of my sight, eventually, i noticed the chopper moving away with just the corporal.
At that point, I send in sergeant stormclaw, who spend his ammunition to extract Odgan, knowing there was only one orc left with him.
We managed to escape, with all our people intact.

Result:
we lost a mortar. All our people survived, we damaged the horde base and morale and managed to return with valuable intel

Signed:

Captain Amaryl,
157th - Wild Tempest - Company.

Three orcs took the prisoners to a guard-tower for interrogation, the rest of the red-blades were drinking tea on the observation deck.

Ildranor / Odgan wrote:The Wild Tempest is still in need for some proper cannon fodder to throw at the Horde war machine!