Armored Vanguard

Waveri Plains, Mimban

“Target in range. Awaiting orders, sir.”

“Fire,” Captain Don Randar ordered without hesitation. The enemy had yet to attack the incoming imperial tanks, but Captain Randar knew they would eventually. The local Mimbanese, likely backed by the New Republic, were holed up in what had previously been Imperial trenches and fortifications. Structures that had once protected the Imperial Army now harbored the treacherous aliens who had fought against them. Soon, Randar thought, they would finally be back in Imperial hands.

The Mimbanese line would be nearly unbreakable, but if the 17th Breakthrough Armor regiment was good at anything, it was finding a way through even the most durable defenses. Leading the charge was Archer Company, with TX-130s supporting larger MAVr A7s. Following close behind was Lancer Company, sporting similar models but with a greater focus on carrying troops. Finally, a pair of heavy armor companies consisting of Scythe class repulsortanks trailed behind to give artillery support to the vanguard units.

As his Broadsword tank cleared the first few trenches, Randar called to the pilot. “Put us down here, I’m joining the infantry to seize a command post,” he shouted over the boom of the cannons. He signaled to one of the stormtroopers, who opened the rear hatch. The mixed squad of Imperial Army and stormtroopers quickly hopped out into the deep mud that covered much of the planet's surface.

The fighting was brutal, even with support from Lancer Company’s sizable infantry force, the Imperials still found themselves outnumbered. Determined to hold position until more reinforcements could arrive, Randar ordered his men to take shelter in or behind their vehicles; the incendiary rockets favored by the Mimbanese weren’t as effective against armored targets.

One thing was clear, this would be a long battle.

I learned quite a bit from the last tank I tried to build.