Order of Battle (part 1)

A quick peek at the Vargr Orbat for the Feri campaign...

Vargr

Ngath Confederation Invasion Fleet

Battle Squadron 5 (4 x Vargr Dzough "Empire Builder" Class Light Battleships)

Battle Squadron 8 (4 x Vargr Dzough "Empire Builder" Class Light Battleships)

Cruiser Squadron 3 (4 x Foghoks class Vargr heavy cruisers)

Cruiser Squadron 4 (4 x Foghoks class Vargr heavy cruisers)

Cruiser Squadron 7 (4 x Foghoks class Vargr heavy cruisers)

Tanker Squadron 1 (3 x bulk hydrogen carriers with fuel shuttles and refinery capacity)

Assault Carrier Squadron 12 (5 “Gvurrdon” class assault carriers)

The Ngath Confederation Army

Initial Drop

101^st Lift Infantry Army (Tech Level 13)

105^th Lift Armored Corps (Tech Level 12)

1^st Lift Cavalry Division (Tech Level 10)

2^nd Armored Lift Cavalry Division (Tech Level 10)

Vargr Second Invasion Lift

37^th Lift Infantry Corps (Tech Level 12)

5^th Lift Infantry Corps (Tech Level 13)

12^th Lift Armored Division (Tech Level 13)

The Feri Campaign

The focal point of the invading Vargr fleets during the early months of the war was Feri. Not just a key defensive system protecting Regina, Feri was one of the economic centers of the subsector. Its tech level 11 industrial base, rich mineral resources and large population creates an prize the ‘free-booting wolves of space’ could hardly resist.

The Feri campaign consisted of a number of distinct phases.

Phase 1 - Dance in the Shadows (the years leading up to the war)

The Ine Givar guerilla movement is active through the Spinward Marches. While the action on Efate get much of the attention, the Zhodani carefully nurtured the movement on Feri as well. As war neared, the insurgency had grow to the point where it fielded about 10% combat power of the combined Feri Planetary Defense Forces. More than just an insurgency, the Ine Givar capitalized on the anti-Imperial feelings within all of the major powers and had successfully diverted military hardware from each to equip various insurgent units. The insurgency was mostly political, but a campaign of sabotage and harassment of Imperial interests becomes commonplace. Some of the insurgents can be classed qualitatively as regulars – as capable as the troops of the PDF and the various national armies.  

Phase 2 - Invasion (Week 3)

The first phase of the campaign has the Vargr fleet jumping into the Feri system from hyperspace. Stopping briefly to  allow the tanker squadron to re-fuel the Batrons and assault carriers, the battle opens with a skirmish between the cruiser squadrons and the 12 system defense boats (SBD) defending the system.

Space Combat

While Feri does deploy significant numbers of SDB, the relatively low technology level at which they were built makes them fragile in the face of a capable star fleet. The SDB will either conduct a rearguard action (fight a short action, then flee into the asteroid belts in the outer system) or elect to be passive from the outset. Per standing doctrine, the 12 SDB should race for cover and hide in the asteroid belts. Fighting a fleet action is NOT in their best interest. But their day is coming in the next phase of the campaign!

           

Once the short space combat has been resolved, the actually planetary invasion opens with the

Vargr fleet moving into proximity with the planet of Feri. The cruisers take a high guard position and prepare for bombardment while the assault carrier disgorges landing boats and assault riders (think a mix of LCVP, LCI and LST) to descend on the planetary system.

The initial landings

It’s raining dogs! Well, it’s raining Vargr and by raining, we mean that a complete field army is hitting the surface. Job one is reducing the defenses of Feri. Following a quick surface bombardment of the PDF bases, the landing boats and assault riders drop this massive Vargr force into the region around the starport. The initial landing force consists of the Vargr 101^st Army, the 105^th Armored Corps and two divisions – the 1^st Cavalry and 2^nd Armored Cavalry.

The 101^st and the 105^th bring a decide tech edge to the battlefield with their TL13 standard equipment. The 1^st and 2^nd Cav are actually fighting at a disadvantage with their TL 10 equiement. These units are held in reserve or serve to ‘soak off’ casualties and protect the irreplaceable hi-tech troops.

Phase 3 - Conquest in the balance (Weeks 4-9)
The Vargr fleet departs to retrieve the remaining troops. They will be gone for 6 weeks - a significant amount of time for the soldiers on the ground. This leaves the ground troops 6 weeks to complete the capture of the world. This is no idle timeline. Without control of the planet, the Vargr squadrons cannot refuel and without fuel, they cannot jump to another star system. The CruRon’s are already committed to staying in the system with the now empty tanker squadron. They have enough fuel for the power plant and maneuver drive, but cannot jump.  There is no gas giant in this system. The only way for the fleet to leave is for the planet to be conquered.

In the absence of the battle squadrons, the 12 SDB have a slightly better chance to hit the Vargr cruisers. This is a crap shoot. The cruisers had most of the firepower to thwart the SDB’s in the initial invasion. But each successful strike reduces the bombardment ability of the cruisers and will enable the PDF to hold on a little longer.

The other option weighing on the SDB commander’s mind is the long term option. The Vargr fleet won’t stay in Feri indefinitely. If the SDB can survive long enough, they can return after the Vargr have left, bomb the doggies back to the stone age and liberate the world from the Vargr.

Back in the dirt, the Vargr ground commander must push hard. The 101^st must aggressively destroy the numerous PDF battalions, while the 105^th Grav Tank Corps engages the Feri Armored Lift Cavalry Corps.

The Imperial Governor-General faces a similar problem. The Vargr must be defeated – and quickly! The PDF must preserve its strength for the inevitable follow up wave of attacking Vargr. Better to deal with them piecemeal than allow all the Vargr to mass their fighting potential.

Hanging over both commanders is the critical issue of supply. The Vargr have none and the Feri PDF either must defend theirs, torch it, or lose it to the Vargr. In some ways this campaign is like Rommel in the desert. If you have supplies you can attack. Without supplies you sit on the defensive. Battles rage over sources of refined hydrogen, refinery complexes and access to water resources.

Options

What can happen during this time? Does the Duke of Regina divert critical troops from the larger battles raging against the Zhodani and try and stop the Vargr? One possibility is a “Tiger Run” in which a small battle fleet dashes into Feri, swats the defending Vargr ships out of the way and delivers some badly needed reinforcements.

What’s available? Imperial Marines? The 4518^th Lift Infantry? Army forces ranging from lightly armed jump troops to a brigade of lift infantry?  Whatever it is, it needs to turn the tide of the battle and provide a rude shock to the returning Vargr.

Do the Zhodani push on from Efate and perform a ‘drive by’ to finish off the last of the resistance on Feri? It’s possible that one of the fleets is moving rapidly in an effort to meet the Imperial Navy as close to Rhylanor as possible.

Lastly, it’s entirely possible that both sides are so badly battered that the campaign grinds into a stalemate in which neither side can gain the advantage. While grueling, this is actually a short term win for the Imperium as the PDF is slowing the Vargr advance deeper into the Spinward Marches.

Phase 4 - The Vargr Fleet returns

The additional two corps and two divisions are too much for Feri’s weakened defenses. Barring a miracle, the planet will fall to the Vargr invaders. While there is some degree of looting, the weary victors refuel their fleet and embark upon their warships, leaving a division behind as garrison for the world.

The Occupation

Occupation is a bitter pill for the Imperial citizens of Feri. Sure, the Ine Givar collaborators are savoring their victory against Imperial oppression. But all is not lost! Small bands of the PDF remain intact, hiding in the remote recesses of the planet. Using their encrypted communications gear, they are in contact with the SDB that may still survive in the outer system. A daring plan is formed to designate targets for the SDB in an attempt to destroy the occupiers from space.

Optional events: Units of the IISS may be available to perform bombardment at this time. A scout squadron could slip in from coreward and lay down the hurt on the Vargr occupiers. Combined with any surviving SDB, this could make the occupation a short lived affair. But the Scouts don’t take ground and they don’t hold ground. If the Vargr and Zhodani follow up the campaign with additional forces, Feri could change hands again.

Liberation

If the war goes badly for the Zhodani, an Imperial counter-attack could push back into the Regina subsector – maybe even onward into Gvurrdon Sector and the homeworlds of the Vargr invaders. The appearance of a substantial Imperial battlefleet with several squadrons of state of the art dreadnoughts paired with several Tech level 15 field armies will quickly end Vargr aggression in the system.

This generally marks the end of the campaign, but can the Empire hold against a last ditch Zhodani counter-attack? Or must the new liberating garrison hunt down smaller bands of Vargr and their Ine Givar allies that have ‘gone to ground’ in the unsettled wilds of Feri?

           

The Feri star system

Astrography

Feri is a binary system in which the secondary star (an M3D red dwarf) orbits the primary (a G4 V series star). The system consists of 6 lifeless rocks, two asteroid belts and the main world orbiting the primary at 1.4 AU. 

Planetary geography

Feri is an odd combination of a dense atmosphere coupled with a low gravity planet.

Attribute            UPP              Description                                       

Starport:             B                 Good Facilities. Spacecraft Shipyards. Refined Fuel. Diameter:           3                  Small (4800km)

Atmosphere:      8                  Dense

Hydrographics:  4                  Normal (40%)

Population:         8                  600 Million

Government:      7                  Balkanization. Multiple regional governments.

Law Level:         9                  High law (weapons outside home prohibited)

Tech Level:        B                 Average Stellar (Large Starships)

Core Type: Rocky

Density: 0.96

Earths Mass: 0.05Earths

Gravity: 0.35G

Rotation Period: 60hours

Orbital Period: 404days

Axial Tilt: 22degrees

Orbital Eccentricity: 0

Satellites: 2 (Diamond and Khalil)

Surface Pressure: 2.212atm (equivalent pressure to swimming in 35 feet of water)

Feri has three unique traits that make campaigning unusual.

First is the rotational period of 60 hours. 60 hour days make for a large diurnal temperature swing, especially given the axial tilt of the world. In the equatorial zone, the day divides out into 28 hour periods of daylight and night, with a 2 hour period of dawn and dusk.  Much like Terra, the axial tilt of the planet compounds these effects in the higher latitudes of the planet. Daylight is much longer during the summer and night correspondingly longer in the winter. The inhabitants of Feri have adjusted to these conditions.  In the tropical and summer region, the days start cool, with heat building all day. In later afternoon, the amount of energy in the atmosphere triggers a near daily storm.

Next is Feri’s low gravity. At 0.35g, troopers can move at a pace which can only be dreamed of on a standard gravity world. Use the following movement rates for tactical/rapid movement;

• Infantry 12”/24”
• Battledress: 16”/32”
• Vehicles: 20”/40”

In addition the following modifiers are used.

• The effects of slopes are reduced by 1 level for all vehicles
• Grav vehicles act as if they were 1 class better for movement performance ( i.e. TL1 move as if they were TL2 vehicles.)

Lastly is the effect of the dense atmosphere. The biggest impacts are;

• Attenuated penetration for kinetic, laser and energy weapons (+2 defense dice if shot at by these weapons at above their optimal range)
• Increased performance of medical care due to oxygen saturation (+1 to die roll on medical checks)
• Preventative care requirements due to oxygen toxicity (handled through dietary supplements and breathing more nitrogen. Low supply troops suffer a -1 die roll on medical checks-this results in a net zero when paired with the +1 above AND a -1 to reaction checks to model their impaired performance)

Economic Geography

Feri has a robust economy. Resource extraction is a major part of the economy. The outer asteroid belt is rich in valuable minerals. At tech level 11 Feri supports a booming space mining industry. While extraction activities are focused in the asteroid belt, the raw materials feed a growing manufacturing sector both in orbit and on the planet. While the planets low gravity means the cost to lift 1 kg to orbit is cheap enough that orbital platforms would make little sense, the dense atmosphere promotes corrosion. The starport does have an orbital complex, mostly intended to service unstreamlined or extremely large starships.

The riches of Feri are not the sole source of wealth in the system. Feri is an important trade and communications hub connecting the coreward elements of Regina and Jewell subsectors with the sector capital and the rest of the Imperium. The starport services the hi-jump freighters serving Jewell and Regina on the primary trade route.  The lack of a gas giant and the low gravity of the planet make Feri and ideal port for the mid-sized to larger atmospherically capable freighters.

Recognizing its importance, the Imperial Interstellar Scout Service maintains a Scout base on Feri. The base serves two purposes.  First as a service station for the Express boats and their tenders, as well as the scout ships, couriers and survey vessels that keep the communication lines open. This provides a good source of revenue for the local ship yards and helps impart the knowledge needed to aid Feri in developing the capacity to build its own starships. Second, the base serves as an administrative hub for Scout activities in the Feri cluster of J-1 worlds.

All this results in a planet with a high per capita income – and one that can be expected to continue to increase.

Settlements run the gamut. The high pressure of the planet does have long term effects on physiology. While the permanent inhabitants of the planet don’t suffer from long term exposure to the excess nitrogen, those who are traveling off world, or travel in the upper atmosphere (aviation and mountain areas) must take precautions against decompression sickness.  Hotels at the spaceport have decompression suites designed to acclimate travelers and transport them to waiting ships at 1 atmosphere. There are also dedicated transports that perform the same task, albeit in a much more spartan manner.

Geo-political Situation

            Large tracts of Feri have been divided into baronial estates for the Imperial nobility. Most famous of these estates are those of Baron hault-Oberlindes, owner of the Oberlindes shipping line. Ironically, Baron hault-Oberlindes was granted the title and estates in recognition for his work in expanding trade into the Vargr worlds of the Gvurrdon sector. Beyond the Noble Lands, there are three competing regional governments on Feri. These are the Tawantinsuyu Confederation, the Orinoco League and the Chitral Republic. While all are subservient to the Imperium, none is willing to submit to rule by the others. The Imperial Governor General is content with the status quo as it is as long as all three states continue to acknowledge Imperial sovereignty and abide by the Imperial rules of war in resolving their differences.

The result of the planetary geo-political system is a strategists nightmare - a planetary defense organization that consists of three unique regional armies, all equipped at the same tech level, but each using unique equipment and hardware.  The System Defense Boat squadrons are not managed directly by the nation-states, but instead operate as an element of the Colonial Fleet under direct control of the Feri Military Cooperation Council (FMCC). The planetary defense battalions, though united for the duration of the conflict, are a diverse mix of unit types and equipment.

The Vargr and the Fifth Frontier War

Just coreward of the Regina subsector lies the Vargr domains of Gvurrdon Sector. One Vargr warlord – the leader of the Ngath Confederation - has been influenced by the Zhodani Consulate to throw in with the Consulate against the Third Imperium. While larger than any corsair raid could ever hope to be, the Vargr warfleet is small by the standards of modern interstellar war.

As with many endeavors, logistics drives strategy. The Vargr were not immune to this constraint. Specifically, the Vargr had tens of thousands of ground fighters available, but insufficient shipping capacity (‘star lift capacity’ to use the naval term) to move all the troops simultaneously with the fleet. The result is a campaign that often appears to ‘lurch forward’. The assault carrier squadron carries the initial combat drop, but then has to fall back and retrieve the second wave. (Author’s aside: you find similar constraints in the operations of the 7^th Amphibious Force in the Southwest Pacific during World War Two).

Coupled with that is the bottleneck nature of the Feri star system. Feri has no gas giant, so in order to refuel, a fleet must control the planet. But the Vargr could not lift enough troops to quickly conquer the planet.

The Ulithi Fleet plan called for a six week campaign by the 101^st Army and 105^th Tank Corps, supported by the cruiser squadrons of the Fleet. Meanwhile the battle squadron’s accompany Assault Carrier Squadron 12 back to Vargr space to pick up the remaining corps and divisions of the invasion force and return to Feri. Ideally, by the time the fleet returned, the only thing left to do would be hold the victory parade, load up the troops and push on to the next objective.

Hungry Like the Wolf

Long time players of Traveller and no doubt familiar with the Fifth Frontier War – an epic clash between two massive empires – the Third Imperium and the Zhodani Consulate. What is often overlooked are the ‘minor allies’ of the Zhodani – the Swords Worlds and the Vargr. This supplement details the actions of the Vargr forces in the Fifth Frontier War, with special focus on one of the major planetary campaigns the Vargr forces participated in – the battle for Feri.

The Vargr are an alien race descended from Terran canine stock (i.e. wolves). While the Vargr occupy an impressive volume of space to coreward of the Third Imperium and the Zhodani Consulate, this size is not reflected in effectiveness. Vargr society is best know for two polar traits – first a fierce loyalty to the clan, tribe, nation and race. Second an equally fierce belief in the loyalty to the chieftain (derisively referred to by humans as the ‘pack leader’.

Vargr culture tends to inhibit larger governmental organizations, resulting in many competing ‘pocket empires’ that are nominally aligned into a greater whole. If you are trying to wrap you head around how the Vargr work as a socio-political force, two historical analogies would be similar to the princely states of the mid-13^th Century Holy Roman Empire or the Barbary states of mid- 17^th Century North Africa. Moderately powerful political units that cannot quite fully integrate at a larger scale, but still capable of acting on the larger stage.

The Vargr are best known throughout the Imperium as a constant threat of piracy and raiding (the infamous “Vargr Corsairs” of Little Black Book fame) mostly aimed at the Imperium. Anti-piracy patrol has long been a standard task for coreward frontier elements of the Imperial Navy.

In the Fifth Frontier War, this infamy operated on a broader scale. A small fleet embarked on the “pack mother of all raids” against the Imperium. Striking in conjunction with the Zhodani, these Vargr would set out to help bring down a mighty prize – the Third Imperium’s Spinward Marches sector.

Planting the banner!

Greetings! These pages support our additional to tabletop gaming with miniature figures. Specifically, Skill Level 0 supports gaming the battles of the Fifth Frontier War using the Tomorrow's War tabletop gaming rules.
We've formalized our rantings in a document titled "The Stars Afire". Its a collection of rules modifications, troop organizations and scenarios that support our gaming.

Factions;
The Third Imperium - The Empire of Man. 11,000 worlds under the Emperor. State of the art technolgy
 The Zhodani Consulate - Just as big and ruled by a humanoid telepaths. Almost as hi-tech as the Imperium.

The Swords Worlds - a minor ally of the Zhodani Consulate. Average interstellar technology.
The Vargr - "Freebooting wolves of space". More minor allies of the Zhodani. Any alien race evolved from canines.

Derived from the background setting for the Traveller role-playing game, the supporting board game Fifth Frontier War, and the old GDW miniatures rules Striker.

All aspects are welcome. The current focus is on 15mm gaming, but that is open to interpretation.