Heavy Gear - Rumble in the Jungle

Lt. Kovacs surveyed his immediate area via virtual reality provided by his HUD. The wetlands and jungle vegetation of the Mekong played out in bright green, contrasting with the friendly blues points that denoted his unit's Gears. Suddenly a large insectoid the size of a Thunderhammer smashed through his units and the jungle, scrambling everything in his VR suite. "Environmentally sealed my ass," he muttered as he tore off his helmet to swat the now tiny bug that that infiltrated the cockpit.

Command had been tracking a small force of Dominion troops ever since they led an assault on a Northern-controlled research facility in the Badlands. The Mekong government denied any involvement, but you could never trust a Southerner, no matter the League they came from. His force had set up camp for the night along a sparcely settled road, and hunkered down for the inevitable assault the Dominionite forces would try for through the evening. Kovacs listened to the swaying of the long grass and tree limbs in the dark. Any other time it would be peaceful, but now it hung over them like a cloak to hide the approach of Southern Gears.

Fellow DP9 forumite John Prins and I got together for a 1000 TV battle this weekend down at X Planet. I was anticipating not only a great fight, but a wonderful battle report as well, since John has one of the nicest painted Southern forces around. He brought a PL3 Mekong force that consisted of 2 Paratroop Cadres and a Fire Support Cadre. His Paratroop Cadres had all the bells and whistles, with buffed skills, a Long Fang Black Mamba and Iguana Paratroopers with LBZKs. I brought a PL3 UMF force with a GP Squad, a Recon Squad, a FS Squad and an Infantry Platoon. Just the GP Squad had buffed skills, and half the Infantry Platoon came with ORVs and AGMs.

At 1000 TV you have 6 OP. I rolled for Defensive Objectives and elected to Blockade my deployment zone, have my FS Squad leader Survive, and Recon John Prins's FS Cadre. John's Objectives were to Breakthrough to my deployment zone, Seize the building with the elevated walkway, and Wipe Out my Recod Squad.

Here's a shot of my deployment zone, with all my models at the start:

John elected to keep his two Paratroop Cadres off the board, and started with his FS Cadre as the lone combat group on the board:

My ORVs press up the right flank to engage John's Python and Stripped-Down Hunter (with Snipered HAC):

On the opposite flank, my Antelope take advantage of the road to engage another Stripped-Down Hunter and Support Cobra:

The greater bulk of my forces wait for the arrival of John's Paratroop Cadres and their assault on my deployment zone:

By the end of Turn 2, John's FS Cadre had been heavily damaged, in part to the sacrifice of my ORVs and their AGMs:

At the end of Turn 2, John brings in one of his Paratroop Cadres on my left flank:

Behind the safety of cover, John drops his other Paratroop Cadre on my right flank. A lone Bobcat stands in their way:

My Bobcat is still in the fight after 10+ attack attempts on him. Meanwhile, elements of my GP Squad, FS Squad and Infantry Platoon stand ready to repel his charge over the hill:

Throughout Turn 4, a strong yellow line of Northern Forces still stands ready to defend their deployment zone:

It's Turn 5, and John pops smoke to protect his Gears from further attack while they hold their Seize objective:

When the dust had settled, I had acheived 4 VP to John's 2. My thoughts on this battle were that I won more by accident than well-planned tactics. I wasn't familiar with the Airdroppable rules, but the high model count, the push forward by a few scout Gears, and the inclusion of 2 Weasels in my Recon Squad meant that he had to drop his Gears in well back from my deployment zone. I also totally forgot to use the Artillery Strikes I bought with my SPs. The really could've come in handy to try and take out his Paratroop Cadres who made great use of cover. John is a great opponent, and I look forward to our next game. He supposed to be at CanGames as well, and I hope we can get some practice in to make the GTA proud at the Canadian Championship come May!