Battle for Hill 122
Template:Battle (fixed)The Battle for Hill 122 was a battle which took place in the larger Red Horde War, which took place from 2065-2066. The battle occurred between the 12th and 13th Zokesian Airborne troops, freshly landed as part of the Coalition Offensive, and the 4th Cavalry Division of the Red Horde.
Background
The Coalition landings in Spice and Algiza in January were a prelude to the invasion following a month later. The beginning of the Operation was February 6th, following a fierce air battle the skies were finally cleared and Coalition jets could begin working away at the anti-air cover.
Command of the 12th Sky Warriors was led by Lt. Col. Gordon Simon Kerman, veteran of the First Vanadian war. The 13th Puge Volunteers was being led by Maj. Morderous Kerman, a noble from the Tatar region who was well versed in massed cavalry charges. Both would be dropped on their first wave of aircraft into the target zone. The 12th and 13th got the go-ahead to make a combined drop in two waves, on 20 Duck Transports in the south of Red Horde. In preparation Blackout 100B-1 stealth bombers flew over the area taking out AAA and gun sites, allowing an unhindered corridor for the drop.
At the last second, however, the NMC's front became active with more enemy units than expected, and the brunt of the fighting looked to be there. In an effort to prevent what looked like a complete ambush, the Airborne divisions were ordered to drop south of Hill 122 and hold the left flank of the NMC's advance.
Battle
The first drop went without problem; at 1700 local time 20 Airwatch 65' IFVs and 20 HVHL Badgers dropped out on the north slope of Hill 122 and got to work unloading equipment. However, the second wave of Duck transports did not vector in on the same coordinates as the first wave, and the result left 20 Badger HVHL LAVs to the southeast of the hill by a good 10 kilometers. To get to the IFVs, they would have to Advance west, turn at a large basin full of marsh water, and drive south up the hill. They would miss the battle due to the misdrop and confusion in the night.
Unbeknownst to them, the 4th Horde was to the north, fortified in the slopes of the mountain and as the first wave unloaded they began to realize they were being attacked. They moved down the hill in an effort to ambush the Zokesians and ran straight into the IFVs 90mm guns. The Zokesians on the hill were caught by surprise but the cannons made quick work of the first few vehicles, and the 4th Horde fell back to the north side of the basin to regroup, out of the range of Zokesian guns.
From the number of vehicles that had advanced down the hill, it was clear this was not a main assault, but rather a scout force of a dozen or so vehicles. From their position accross from the bowl, Maj. Morderous could see the large array of dug-in light vehicles and knew they were facing at least twice or three times as many troops as they had. Unfortunately for them this attack left the radio on the Command Badger damaged, isolating the Airborne divisions.
It wasn't long before they made the first charge down the mountains and up Hill 122. Some 40 technicals, mostly jeeps, pickups, and trucks armed with 30mm chain guns, decended amongst a hail of heavy automatic fire from supporting vehicles.
"Such fire was almost impossible to comprehend - bullets flying over [your] head, thumping behind you as they impacted the ground . . . Then we saw the trucks. Dozens of them. At full speed down the hill. They seemed to be moving slowly at first like tiny ants, but soon it was clear they were armed to the teeth and ready to kill us all."
- Private Stinson Kerman
The trucks were being either destroyed, disabled, or forced to turn away as the Zokesian guns lit up the night. The first wave got stuck in the marsh of the bowl, making them easy targets for Zokesian gunners. Dozens were picked off before the second wave descended around the sides of the bowl. The technicals in the marsh that were still able to fire were laying down effective fire on the lighter LAVs and Lt. Col. Gordon feared they would break through and surround the small Airborne force up on Hill 122. Still unable to receive radio signal from the damaged Command Armored Car, he had no way of knowing how far the rest of the Badger force was from them.
The Airborne were in an awkward position. The NMC's armored forces were advancing south to their left flank, and they were facing north on Hill 122 while the 4th Horde stared down at them from the mountains, just south of the Algizan border. If the enemy reinforced, they would surround them from the south and wipe them out. If the NMC army pushed far enough to their left flank, they might mistake the Zokesians for enemy units and attack. Gordon feared the other Badgers of the Second Wave were KIA on the drop or captured or engaged elsewhere. Their small group had been taking a beating, and though the IFVs were better armroed than the Badgers, they were taking most of the fire and a few had been knocked out.
Mak. Morderous's quick thinking saved the day. Using the lighter Badger HVHL vehicles and the dark of night, he would meet the counter attack on the left side of the bowl, attempting to essentially outflank the flankers on one side with their high speed and small profile. The IFVs in the center would advance down the hill and continue taking the brunt of the fire while the LAVs hit targets of opportunity on the left flank. This would also allow NMC units to enter the bowl and rout the Horde.
The Airwatch 65's of 12th and 13th began advancing down Hill 122 in a suicidal charge. They began taking heavier 30mm explosive shells from the mountains, and the technicals in the marsh were able to still fire effectively. The IFVs were light and not designed to fight armor, and when they became bogged down as well in the bowl they succumbed to the thick peat bog and enemy fire. Some IFVs blew up, some stalled and shut down, and some simply were abandoned by their crew. The bog provided some cover and the men of the IFVs began firing personal weapons at infantry in the bowl as they attempted to advance past the IFVs. The technicals, likewise, were also attacked with ferocity with handheld grenades, which proved to be effective against unarmored trucks and jeeps.
On the flanks, Major Morderous' gamble paid off, and the quick and small Badgers made quick work of the advancing techncials. Caught by surprise in the cover of dark, the morale of the 4th Horde diminished quickly. In addition, NMC armor made radio contact on an unsecured channel to the Zokesian position on top the hill. Relaying effective fire coordinates from his Badger on Hill 122 Lt. Col. Gordon watched as the 4th Horde broke ranks and began scrambling to get out of the combat zone. Another dozen or so technicals bogged down in the bowl as they made their escape, but approximately 80 of the light vehicles made it out before Maj. Morderous's flank managed to return to Hill 122. By morning the technicals left in the bowl were all knocked out, and by the end of the next day the NMC army had advanced southeast and intercepted the remnants of 4th horde and, combined with the other Badgers of 12th and 13th, wiped them out 45 kilometers south of Hill 122.
Aftermath
Of the 20 IFVs that made the attack down the hill that night, 8 had been stuck permanently in the thick mud and quicksand, 2 were taken apart for parts, 4 were blown open by enemy fire and 6 were so badly full of bullet holes they had no better use than refugee housing. But the charge drew the Horde's fire and let Maj. Morderous and the LAVs to sneak around and win the upper hand. In the bowl lay the blown out wrecks of all 20 heavy Marder guns, taken out by Lt. Col. Gordon's effective calling of fire support, and another 60-70 technicals were lying either stuck, knocked out, burning, or abandoned in the bowl. Not a single technical made it up Hill 122.
The battle significantly helped secure the Eastern flank of the NMC's army. With the dropping behind heavily fortified troops onto Hill 122, the Zokesians denied a powerful ambush position to the Horde and despite being grossly outnumbered were able to knock out twice as many enemies as they had units. Fighting odds in excess of 4 to 1 they took one fifth the losses of the enemy, and for the 12th and 13th Airborne, a legendary battle was added to the annals of their history.