GM - Fusilier
Chapter 10 - Silesia - In the Service of the Markgraf : September 6, 2000
Summary: The team works for the Markgraf. The team kidnaps the Markgraf. A huge chase plays out trying to get the Black Madonna out of Silesia.
Mad Dogs Unit Roster:
John Jameson McCarthy - player
Helmut Meyer - NPC
Varis Babicevs - player
Arthur Fox - NPC
Francis "Frank" Benucci - player
Mike Catchings - player
Anna - NPC
Caleb Mulcahy - player
Ferro - player
Luis Ortega - player
Billy “Crack” O’Brien - player
Alex Michaels - NPC
Joe Morgan - NPC
Thomas Cooper - player
Aleksandar Mazurek - NPC
Thomas Marshall - player
Per Kolstrup - player
Johnny Leota - player
Roy Barnett - player
Owen Hollister - player
PC Assets:
Nothing
- The team is transported to Raciborz, only 3 hours away by truck. They are taken to a local school which will be their new billet while working for the Markgraf, who should should be there in a few hours to speak with JJM and Ortega about their new duties. At the same time, O’Brien, Mulcahy, Morgan and Ferro are carted off to the local hospital to get additional care for their wounds. Corporal David "Tosh" Lines is present at the school to take the unit to their quarters. The group then splits into 3 teams.
- JJM and Ortega go to meet with the Markgraf at his well-guarded estate at the north end of town. He asks the Mad Dog officers a strategic question to which they give good answers.
- Strategic update: The Markgraf’s territory is beset by enemies on all sides - Krakow to the east, Czech forces not more than 30km away in the south, and to the west are the Soviet 129th motorized rifle division. The Soviets are stretched thin, and there is fear of them heading through the Markgraf’s territory, pillaging all the while as they slowly pull back toward Russia.
- The Markgraf then lets the officers know that he wants a small, elite unit formed to help with covert operations. He asks McCarthy if he and his NCOs would lead and train this platoon-sized unit. JJM agrees. JJM and Ortega then discuss their options in a hallway, and discuss their plan to follow the Markgraf only until they have a chance to escape. A janitor was then found just inside a doorway, and was clearly listening to their discussion, but attempts to play it off as though he wasn’t. Then JJM and Ortega leave the estate.
- Meanwhile - Kolstrup, Cooper, Leota, Marshall, Hollister, and Lines go to the Silesian army’s quartermasters for some resupply.
- And also at the same time - Catchings, Benucci, and Barnett go to visit the team’s wounded, Ferro, O’Brien, and Mulcahy, and Morgan in the local hospital where they are being well cared for. Ferro and O'Brien are discharged at this time, and the group heads out.
- The unit, minus Morgan, Mulcahy, and Fox reconvene at the town’s open air market.
- Sept 7th. The unit meets their new platoon mates, which include Lines, one female soldier (named Sawiki), and another American, as well as many Poles. They also finish filling out paperwork (brought by one Maj. Stranski) and taking their oath, and begin putting together a training plan. They will also have two teachers present to teach the unit Polish during night classes anytime they aren’t doing night training.
- Huge list of new recruits on chapter 10 page 6. The list notably includes Lt. Roman Wozniak, who will help get the new side of the platoon up to shape and will learn from JJM. He will eventually start up a second ranger platoon, and his uncle is the CO of 3rd battalion.
- JJM goes to meet with the first battalion CO, Maj. Geissmar, and introduces himself as a courtesy to the CO. Geissmar seems like a bit of a dick. JJM also calls on Fox to come on in and surrender himself.
- Training montage happens, with the unit spending a week together training hard. The new men and unit vets are blending together into an effective fight force, but it seems that Wozniak, and his 2ic, Leon Ostrowski, are keeping some secrets. Mulcahy is back with the unit, as is Morgan. Also Fox comes in and finally rejoins the unit.
- JJM and Ortega go to meet with the Markgraf at his well-guarded estate at the north end of town. He asks the Mad Dog officers a strategic question to which they give good answers.
Time skip of 1 week takes place. It is now Sept 13th.
- Lt. Wozniak informs McCarthy that he thinks the Markgraf will doom them all by attempting to fight both the Czechs and Krakow, and asks for the Mad Dogs' help in unseating him. Wozniak also states that the men under him in the platoon were all picked because they largely feel the same way. There’s apparently a movement here that wants to take down the Markgraf in favor of a more free Silesia. JJM agrees with Wozniak’s plight - the Mad Dogs will help take down the Markgraf.
Group 1
- Wozniak then takes JJM and Ortega to meet with the other mutineer officers. The officers, including Lt Wozniak’s uncle, informs JJM that Filipowicz is expecting a coup against him at some point due to an increasing paranoia. As a result, he is planning on hosting a false coup against himself in 3 days, in order to consolidate power, taking place on September 16th at Hotel Raciborz. It will be at this time that the Mad Dogs platoon will need to kidnap the Markgraf amongst the confusion of the false coup. In other words, turning the false coup into a real coup. JJM is informed that the Markgraf should not be killed during the coup, but that Major Stranski should be, being charged and sentenced in absentia by the coup leaders. The Markgraf will then be driven to the border and handed off to the Czechs to go into exile. A local former Lieutenant General named Lt. Gen. Wladyslaw will take control of Silesia in Filipowicz’s place as new Markgraf.
1st Engagement at Raciborz
- JJM, Lt Wozniak, and Ortega head back to base, and on the way are stopped by 4 police. Wozniak doesn’t have his day pass, and the encounter quickly devolves into a firefight. The trio are able to put down the police officers, but not before Ortega takes 2 hits - one in the chest and one in the shoulder. He seems to be largely okay though after briefly losing consciousness. After they kill the police officers, they set some demo charges to make the crimescene look like bandit activity. The group then returns to Raciborz, ditches their shot up sedan with a friendly local garage, and head back to their billet.
Group 2
- Back at base, Lt. Wozniak's 2ic Ostrowski, informs the rest of the platoon that orders have come in - to immediately head out to quell a nearby bandit group. The platoon heads out under Kolstrup’s leadership. It turns out the bandits are just south of the border, in Czechoslovakia.
2nd Engagement at Raciborz
- Kolstrup’s team crosses the border and assaults the bandits, who have 3 wagons, with overpowering firepower. Another group then strikes the platoon, and Kolstrup sees one of his former squaddies, Simon D'Arcy. Kolstrup coordinates a ceasefire and starts asking D'Arcy questions about Wright's former 'A Team'. D'Arcy informs Kolstrup that Wayne is dead. Tim Seeley may be alive but captured and held captive in Raciborz. D’Arcy and his “bandits” were part of a rebel team (similar to Emil Strama's rebels), and they had taken possession of some French weapons/gear that was supposed to be part of a ransom to the Markgraf in return for the French Foreign Legion being released. The stolen goods were being sent on to rebel forces in Opava. The Mad Dogs, led by Kolstrup, let D’Arcy know of their billet’s location, and expect to bring him home with them when they finally head back to Gdansk. The Mad Dogs then return to their billet in Raciborz.
(Continued)
- Once all together again, the Mad Dogs go about performing recce on the hotel where the false coup/real coup will take place in a few days. The officers go into the hotel proper to look around, while the rest of the Mad Dogs' half of the platoon go for a drink on the town while checking out the hotel area, avenues of escape, etc. Then everyone heads back to the billet to share notes.
- D’Arcy stops by the billet at this time to inform JJM that he has new info - the Black Madonna is somewhere in Raciborz. He wants to get Seeley released from the prison in Raciborz, and grab the Black Madonna himself, then meet the Mad Dogs at a rendezvous site.
- The next day is spent in preparation. D’Arcy comes back to inform the unit that Seeley has been moved to a hospital, which should make releasing him easier.
- JJM radios Wright for a final check in. The plane, the 'Midnight Express', will touch down in a field at 1000 hours about half an hour north of Raciborz the day of the coup.
- D’Arcy stops by the billet at this time to inform JJM that he has new info - the Black Madonna is somewhere in Raciborz. He wants to get Seeley released from the prison in Raciborz, and grab the Black Madonna himself, then meet the Mad Dogs at a rendezvous site.
It's now very early on the 16th, and the coup mission begins.
Sniper Detachment
- The sniper detachment (Kolstrup, Hollister, Fox, and Leota) depart the billet early to set up their OP on the roof of a boarding school across from the hotel. They stash a Land Cruiser nearby which is protected by Ferro and the female Polish member of the platoon, Sawiki.
Assault Team
- 3rd Engagement at Raciborz
- The assault team moves into the hotel and quickly take Filipowicz and Stranski prisoner, and bind and gag them. A quick response force 8 blocks away starts to mobilize, including at least one T72, but it’s unclear if this was a part of the plan for the false coup. At first, the Silesians think that the Mad Dogs are in fact part of the fake coup. Only when one of the teams around the rear of the building start opening fire does the Markgraf’s security detail figure out what’s happening, and start returning fire.
- Instead of going out the back of the hotel like in the plan, JJM makes an on the fly change and the group extracts to the waiting trucks out front. A firefight ensues, with the snipers doing a lot of effective work while the ground team pushes their prisoners into the trucks and make to escape. During the firefight, Catchings takes a brutal hit, leaving him unconscious and bleeding out. The team pull him into one of the trucks as well. Morgan takes a hit to the side, and the ground team starts driving off, leaving the snipers to their own extraction with Ferro and Sawiki.
- And yes, Benucci takes a grazing hit to the arm, but due to adrenaline doesn’t realize that he’s been hit until the trucks are already rolling toward the edge of town. As they’re flying down streets through town, the assault team find one of the T72s and a BMP exiting an alleyway, cutting in between the Mad Dogs two trucks by sheer luck. The lead truck keeps rolling, while the truck in the rear has to swerve madly to avoid a collision.
- Instead of going out the back of the hotel like in the plan, JJM makes an on the fly change and the group extracts to the waiting trucks out front. A firefight ensues, with the snipers doing a lot of effective work while the ground team pushes their prisoners into the trucks and make to escape. During the firefight, Catchings takes a brutal hit, leaving him unconscious and bleeding out. The team pull him into one of the trucks as well. Morgan takes a hit to the side, and the ground team starts driving off, leaving the snipers to their own extraction with Ferro and Sawiki.
Assault Team: Rear Truck
- The truck in the rear then comes upon more loyalist forces, which open fire, hitting the Polish driver, Ortega, and putting another wound into Morgan. The polish driver dies, but before doing so is able to move the truck into an alley and out of sight, but the loyalists are coming.
Sniper Detachment
- Meanwhile in the snipers post, Ferro and Sawiki get into a firefight with 3 police officers as the snipers start pulling back downstairs. They dispatch two of the officers while the third runs, but Sawiki takes a hit to the neck and another to her arm - she’s not looking good. The snipers make it to the ground floor, load Sawiki into the Land Cruiser, and make off at speed, being followed by a UAZ and a police cruiser.
- The sniper detachment manages to shoot and stop the chasing UAZ, but not before an AK round burrows itself into Kolstrup’s leg.
- The sniper detachment is able to scare off the police cruiser, but on the way out of town, Ferro stops at the hospital to drop of Sawiki.
- The sniper detachment manages to shoot and stop the chasing UAZ, but not before an AK round burrows itself into Kolstrup’s leg.
Assault Team: Rear Truck
- Back with the rear vehicle from the ground forces, Marshall moves the dead driver out of the way and takes the wheel, getting the truck moving again after Ortega puts some CS gas at the edge of the alley, discouraging the loyalists from entering.
- The rear truck is the first to make the edge of the city.
Assault Team: Lead Truck
- The lead truck carrying the high value prisoners hits an allied checkpoint as it reaches the edge of town and stops. The checkpoint looks over the Markgraf to ensure he’s there, then let the vehicle pass without incident.
Assault Team: Both Trucks
- The two trucks are able to pull off the road and reconnect close to the border of Czechoslovakia, but the sniper vehicle is still missing. Mike Catchings has died from his wounds. Lt. Wozniak reads off Stranski’s charges, then shoots him once in the head.
- Ostrowki’s vehicle shows up next, carrying Tim Seeley, who we learn was actually the commander of Wright’s 'A Team'. The Assault team takes Filipowicz to a meeting with a unit from Czechoslovakia, and turn him over into exile during a friendly exchange.
Sniper Detachment
- The sniper detachment decides to make for the plane LZ instead of chasing the main body of the Mad Dogs, which turns out to be a great idea when the Land Cruiser finally gives up about six klicks from the LZ. The sniper team has about 2 hours remaining to hike the rest of the way, with Kolstrup on a wounded leg. After a bit, one of the snipers climbs an electrical tower, and sees the plane, already landed about 40 mins before the rendezvous time. Looking around, the Mad Dog sees another man on a tower nearby, doing the same thing, with horses nearby. Presumably the other group is polish Calvary, watching the plane. The sniper detachment decides to act, and take the Polish Calvary by surprise. They’re able to dispatch 3 men, taking one prisoner, and head for the plane using the patrol’s horses to assist with Kolstrup’s wounded leg. Ferro is the first to reach the plane, yelling for it to stop as it begins to taxi. Running down the ramp is Varis Babicevs, in Soviet gear with a medal pinned to his chest. The flight crew gathers the sniper detachment, and then state that they are leaving immediately - 25 minutes ahead of schedule.
Assault Team
- A little earlier in the timeline than the Sniper Detachment, the main force of Mad Dogs say goodbye to their Silesian platoon counterparts, and take possession of one of the two trucks for their trip to the plane. With most of the Mad Dogs together again, they start making for the plane rendezvous, stopping every few minutes to try and raise the still missing sniper detachment via radio. At one of their scheduled stops, they meet up with Simon D’Arcy again, riding in quickly on a motorcycle. He states that he has the Black Madonna with him, but that half of Raciborz is on his tail.
4th Engagement at Raciborz
- Driving along, they quickly encounter 9 Polish Calvary riding after them as well as another squad off to the side of the road which joins in the chase. Along the way, two full platoons of mounted calvary join in the chase as well, and the Mad Dogs' journey quickly becomes one of mounted combat.
- Barnett takes a ricochet shot to his rear end during the frantic flight.
- An enemy DSHK-armed technical enters the pursuit from another angle along with a FAV. The FAV cuts into the Polish Calvary pursuing the Mad Dogs, but the technical heads straight toward the Mad Dogs truck, firing as it comes. The Mad Dogs truck then performs a “half-crazy Ivan”, and turns at the last second so that its side is fully exposed to the technical, essentially performing a broadside against it and crossing the truck's T. The Mad Dogs kill the dshk gunner, and as the two vehicles pass one another, the unit recognizes some faces in the gun-truck. It’s the French! Captain Beloq’s men, the Mad Dogs, and the Polish are again in a 3-way fight for the Black Madonna. The FAV then accelerates toward the Mad Dogs' truck, which finally is able to make out the taxi’ing plane ahead. The aircrew continue taxi’ing away from the Mad-Dogs, and pray that they’ll get on board in time and with enough room to spare for a quick exit.
- Driving along, they quickly encounter 9 Polish Calvary riding after them as well as another squad off to the side of the road which joins in the chase. Along the way, two full platoons of mounted calvary join in the chase as well, and the Mad Dogs' journey quickly becomes one of mounted combat.
(Continued)
- At the same time, the Mad Dogs in the truck are giving it everything they have, firing madly at the huge numbers of pursuers. Just then, and to everyone’s surprise, a jet aircraft (a Mirage) flies down and drops a heavy payload, obliterating the two platoons worth of mounted Calvary at the Mad Dogs rear. About 20 escape the blast and rally/dismount near a farmhouse. The FAV breaks away.
- With only about 200m to go to the plane, the bullet ridden truck finally breaks down and comes to a halt. The dismounted horsemen at the farmhouse see it happen, and start heading toward the players again, determined to exact some measure of revenge before the Mad Dogs can escape. The Mad Dogs then dismount as well and execute a fighting withdrawal toward the plane. Babicevs and Leota exit the plane to help provide covering fire. On the way to the plane while helping to carry Catching’s body, Morgan finally drops unconscious from his wounds. The withdrawing unit grabs him and carries on toward the plane.
- Benucci takes a shot to his sternum which is stopped by his Kevlar, but on the run to the plane he starts coughing up some blood.
- The plane starts moving again when a grenade lands not far from it. Ferro puts her weapon against the co-pilot's head in an effort to stop the plane so that the rest of the Mad Dogs can get aboard. Marshall throws out his back trying to get Morgan into the plane's rear hatch.
- The unit starts clambering aboard the aircraft. Billy, still outside, takes a grazing wound across his cheekbone.
- Everyone finally makes it onboard, and the plane starts taking off.
- Once airborne, the unit secures their packs, put weapons on safe, and start addressing all the wounded. Barnett asks for help with dressing his own embarrassing wound, and JJM orders Babicevs, “Varis, get to work on that man’s ass.”
- The team has successfully completed their mission to Silesia, and recovered the Black Madonna...or so they think.
- With only about 200m to go to the plane, the bullet ridden truck finally breaks down and comes to a halt. The dismounted horsemen at the farmhouse see it happen, and start heading toward the players again, determined to exact some measure of revenge before the Mad Dogs can escape. The Mad Dogs then dismount as well and execute a fighting withdrawal toward the plane. Babicevs and Leota exit the plane to help provide covering fire. On the way to the plane while helping to carry Catching’s body, Morgan finally drops unconscious from his wounds. The withdrawing unit grabs him and carries on toward the plane.
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