Post subject: Part 2, Drassen
On the way from Chitzena to Drassen Ironman gives one of the opposing troops a bad case of lead poisoning. Now this is hardware you can do something with!
On the evening of day 9 we arrive to Drassen. First phase of the engagement is to clear the perimeter - it's too bad the tracer bursts look a lot better in-game.
There are at least two new tactics the opposition is using: when new engagement starts they get on the horn and start screaming for help to anybody who'll listen, which can result in patrols that are in the vicinity to converge on the location. So unless you KNOW that flank is secure, better assume it isn't. The second tactic is to conduct immediate counterattacks in cities after part of one has been taken, if they have personnel in reserve. Now this is rarely critical but can be insanely annoying if you're looking the wrong way. In this case, however, team Ironman was prepared.
Pumping the local hicks for info. If you can tolerate more than one sentence of his accent, you find out that there is a helo pilot holed up in a swamp somewhere around here.
Meet Pablo, employee of the month of the local FedEx office. I guess he's the only one they could find who'd work in this shithole.
Advancing to the next sector we find it almost devoid of enemies. So much so that Ira handles most of the fighting. Ironman smells a rat.
A sweat shop is being run right in the center of town. The horror! A few quick words with the manager while convincingly displaying assault weaponry - and snap! - we have an instant born-again christian. I do wonder where the locals will get their hard currency now.
On to the next sector and the REAL reason we're here - the Drassen mine. The second team Ironman arrives we get shot at by some guy whose upper body seems to be in the sector to the north. And things go downhill from there.
The main reason for the following clusterfuck was deployment: we advanced in a skirmish line spread out across the entire front, while they were apparently bunched up somewhere around the mine admin building. So when the human wave hit our right flank things got really interesting really fast.
Finally the rest of the squad join the fight, but Igor and Ira are up the shit creek without a paddle.
Fidel demonstrates precision cranial ventilation techniques with a Valmet M76.
...As well as area-effect epithelial perforation maneuver.
Team Ironman finally emerges victorious, but the cost is high: Igor succumbs to his wounds. One of the bastards got him with a lucky shot as he lay unconscious. The crew forms an honor guard amidst the carnage.
Sometimes I wonder if all Arulco's problems come from the fact that Deidranna has permanent PMS.
Meanwhile, militia in the north-west are fending off determined attacks from Deidranna's forces.
Our newly-acquired source of capital allows us to hire new personnel: Barry, Grumpy and Flo. Grumpy and Flo will form the auxiliary training squad, even though how Flo could possibly train anyone is beyond me. Because the team belatedly got the rebels their chow, we get Dimitry as an added bargain (?).
Oooookay. Better keep Fidel and Flo in different teams, then. For sake of public peace and harmony and stuff. (Ironman discovers a hidden calling as an HR manager)
After hours upon hours of wading through filthy muck our search detachment locates the missing helo driver a.k.a. Skyrider. Bastard better be worth it.
Naturally, the first thing we hear from Skyrider once we get to Drassen is an excuse why we CAN'T fly around in style. Apparently the bitch-queen of Meduna has the whole country covered by SAM sites that make helicopter travel an iffy proposition at best. We've taken out the north-west site but there are several more including one some distance east of Drassen. I guess that's our next objective then.In this case the night-fighting techniques employed by the opfor are singularly unimpressive.
I call this "assault rifle-assisted exaltation of flight"
Having lost the airspace coverage for the northern part of the country, Deidranna throws another tantrum. Hindsight is 20/20, bitch.
2-week review: Both northern cities and SAM sites are controlled by friendly forces. Militia in the north-west are being worn down by continuous attacks and will have to be reinforced if we intend to keep those places. Training in the north-east is proceeding apace. Equipment for the primary combat squad is almost adequate - assault and battle rifles for the most part and half-decent armor (of course, equipment is something that never truly becomes adequate, is it?). Daily income more than covers the merc contract payments and will soon allow exuberant shopping sprees at Bobby Ray's. Despite losing Igor, team morale is high, due to our unstoppable march through the country.
The enemy uses their patented multi-directional assault(TM) against the north-eastern SAM (note the minimap). Our rear guard on the control building camps successfully and nips that shit off at the bud.
Now that both SAMs are out of action we can get airdropped to Chitz... Holy fuck, what's POOPERSCOOPER doing here?!
Our aerial antics provoke another fit at the palace.
Another attempt by Deidranna's boys to reclaim the north-west SAM. This is the first time I felt I was getting my money's worth out of militia - they used cover, employed overwatch and even tossed flares appropriately. I'm almost having a tear in my eye here.
Having trained up the militia, everyone assembles back in Drassen waiting for the next move. There we run across Carmen, the international bounty hunter who employs a rather macabre way of verifying his targets - namely, you have to bring him the target's head. Well, about bloody time you showed up, you wanker, that bloody head has been stinking up my backpack for a week now!
Then we get this email from our stuck-up client. The prick seems intent in micromanaging this into a goatfuck from a continent away. Next thing you know it will be hourly situation reports.
Client opinions notwithstanding, it IS time to move out. Question is, where...
Burst MP5. One of the bullet grazed Igor lol
Any tips would be appreciated.
When can we expect the next update?
