Feel free to start off your prelude in the far flung drekhole of your choice.

Just flash up an introductory post of your unit deploying into the mission and we'll start from there...

I like Bug City, but it's up to you

Battalion HQ, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, UCAS Army located at Gary/Chicago International Airport on the southern perimeter of the Chicago Containment Zone
Mike Recon Team, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, UCAS Army
9th September, 2055
06:13

Staff Sergeant Jared Tranes slipped the chin strap of his combat helmet into position as he strode over to where the other five members of his recon team were waiting for him, sat on some white, plastic garden chairs they had scrounged from somewhere. The strap rubbed a cut on his chin and it itched a little but he didn't let it bother him. It was bound to scar when it finished healing up, as gashes on the chin always did, but he wasn't overly bothered. As an Ork his face had a rather battered look anyway so another small scar didn't make much of a difference to his appearance. He was never going to be described as handsome.

His conversation in the Battalion CP with the XO, Major Laubenstein, had been short and too the point, just some succinctly issued orders for his latest mission. Take his reconnaissance team on an extended patrol to investigate a series of potential locations where refugees escaping from the Zone could embark on vessels to cross Lake Michigan. That briefing sounded simple but the amount of ground they had to cover on foot was large and for parts of it they wouldn't have drone overwatch above them, spotting any threats and relaying their status up the command structure. That meant that there could be a delay before the Quick Reaction Force arrived to bail them out if they got into a situation they weren't able to cope with and that was something that Jared wasn't pleased to have been told. Organised people smugglers extracting paying civilians from Chicago tended to be well armed and prepared to fight it out with the UCAS forces maintaining the Zone's perimeter.

At least the Bugs, as the troops were now calling them, weren't found this far from Downtown Chicago.

His mood wasn't good and it showed on his face when he joined his team. They kept quiet, waiting for him to explain their latest mission, wondering whether they were chasing down refugees who had managed to get through the gaps in the wall that was being built round the CCZ. The bulk of their Battalion was deployed maintaining that perimeter and defending the teams of engineers constructing the wall but they, along with the other recon teams, had the unenviable job of tracking down those people who managed to evade the patrols and defensive positions in a bid to escape the hell that was Downtown Chicago. Arresting them and passing them over to the Military Police wasn't always possible. Many of the refugees were desperate enough to shoot it out rather than be taken prisoner and it had become a hideous task for the soldiers in some respects.

"OK guys, listen in to the latest Op," Jared said, despite the fact that the others were all staring at him, waiting for him to start talking. "Command are worried that some blockade runners have started up again, operating along the lake shore, smuggling people out of the Zone. This might be related to that rumor we heard a couple of days ago about a Panzer. They've got a load of drones scouting particular spots and generally keeping watch but we've been assigned a mission to check out some of those locations. I've marked some waypoints on your HUDs and our planned route but we'll start with Buffington Harbour and the Majestic Star Casino and then move on to the East Chicago Marina and the Ameristar Casino and Hotel. After that we've then got to patrol round the whole of the Indiana Harbor complex. That's gonna take us a little while so we need to draw some rations as well as spare batteries and plenty of ammo. Comms are as normal so I'm Mike Kilo One and so on. Our QRF is Charlie Company but if we get out stuck somewhere that the drones can't operate then they might take a while to get to us in their busses so we're gonna need to stay frosty at all times. Grab your gear and meet back here ASAP as our overwatch is scheduled for 06:35 and we need to maximise its duration."

At the appointed time Foxtrot Recon team set off, the point man taking the lead and Jared, as Team Leader, walking slack behind him, heading north west from the defensive perimeter around the airport. They were dressed in a standard manner, all of it UCAS Army issue equipment, uniforms and lightweight body armour in a forest camouflage pattern that wasn't much use in a mostly urban environment, assault vests festooned with grenades and pouches containing ammo clips and helmets with extensive awareness enhancement and comms suites. Only their weapons varied by soldier.

Jared noted the drone icon on his HUD as the camp's gate closed behind them. "Mike Kilo One reporting in to all call signs on this freq. Am now leaving the ball pen. Out."

++Roger Mike Kilo One, Bull Pen acknowledges, we have you on the tac comp++

This kind of patrol was the absolute worst duty you could pull.  You had to feel for those poor bastards out there.  A few months ago they were all just regular people trying to make a life for themselves.  Now all they can think about is trying to cut out of bug City and get to safety.  The guys in the patrol all knew that most survivors were probably bug free, probably just too afraid to think it over rationally.  Probably just trying to avoid the lengthy decontam and quarantine that official rescues had to endure in an Ares lab.

Battalion command knew it too, that you all had bit of a soft spot for runners.  Rumor had it that the old man had sat the company leadership and laid it all out for them.  The long and the short of it was simple: the best way to ensure that these fraggin' spirits didn't get loose and spread across the whole damn continent was to respect the quarantine.  No one wants to live in Bug 'Mecria, so suck it up, buttercup...

Your attention is continually drawn to the noises of the city, the sight of a dark cloud of smoke on the horizon inside the CCZ, a distant gunshot.  You're constantly scanning for threats.  The abandoned city is way too much to take in all at once, but that's not enough to cause you to frag up this mission.

Kaufmann on the other hand is a fraggin' mess.  All of maybe eighteen years old, the fresh out of boot buck private is struggling to stay focused on his first patrol.  It's not the first time since he arrived in the unit that he's been a step behind.  This is why recon are normally drawn from experienced grunts instead of fresh meat.  Fraggin' selection officers cutting corners.

Get a grip, boot! What kind of leadership style does Jared employ to get Kaufmann back into the game.  Is he a bully or a coach?

Remedial training! Kaufmann needs help with technical skills.  Choose two weapons that Jared has mastered and can train him on: Rifle, Pistol, SMG, Shotgun, Heavy Weapons, Combat Knife, Combat Axe, Cyber Blade.

Get your head in the game! Kaufman's gotta learn one thing.  When Jared shares his philosophy, he says:
(1) Kid, you gotta be able to stay in the fight, no matter how much damage you take.
(2) Listen soldier, failure is not an option, you keep going no matter the setback.
(3) Don't be a fool, you're only as good as your equipment, bring as much heavy firepower as you can carry.
(4) Ya wanna know what won't ever let you down and never runs out of ammo?  Cold steel and your fists.
(5) Only an idiot picks a stand up fight.  When the shooting starts, get to cover and fight on your own terms.

I'm going to start referencing the other five members of the recon team so how does this sound as a synopsis of each of them prior to me writing up my IC post:

Recon Team composition

Sergeant Marko Szeto
 - Human
 - Age 24
 - Primary Weapon - Colt M22A2 Assault Rifle with underslung grenade launcher
 - Sidearm - Colt Manhunter
 - Notes - assistant team leader, calm and experienced

Corporal Joel Chernik
 - Elf
 - Aged 23
 - Primary Weapon - Colt M22A2 Assault Rifle
 - Sidearm - Colt Manhunter
 - Notes - primary scout, cool temperament & very agile, experienced

PFC Chad Scherwinski
 - Ork
 - Aged 19
 - Primary Weapon - Colt M22A2 Assault Rifle with underslung grenade launcher
 - Sidearm - Colt Manhunter
 - Notes - tough and sometimes overly aggressive, experienced

PFC Jacob "Hoop" Hooper
 - Human
 - Aged 21
 - Primary Weapon - Ingram Valiant LMG
 - Sidearm - Colt Manhunter
 - Notes - physically big and strong, experienced

Private Eric Kaufmann
 - Human
 - Aged 18
 - Primary Weapon - Colt M22A2 Assault Rifle
 - Sidearm - Colt Manhunter
 - Notes - a capable athlete who did well in basic training but is extremely nervous and dangerously inexperienced/green

Please note that Jared is carrying a Colt M22A2 Assault Rifle with underslung grenade launcher and a Colt Manhunter. They all have combat knives, smoke grenades and frag grenades as well.

---

I'm fine with Get a grip, boot! and Remedial training! and will address those when I post IC but I have a question over the last one.

Get your head in the game! Can I suggest an alternative please:
(6) We're a team and that's the key thing to remember if the shit hits the fan. Get into cover and then follow orders but back your buddies up. They need to know that they can rely on you but if they know that then they'll back you up. If shit happens then we all fight and we fight hard until we can dominate the firefight or break contact.

your #6 option is great narrative but it doesn’t help me link Kord’s personality to a Merc’ move (the questions in the prelude are meant to suss out the remaining chargen details).  Feel free to use that dialog as your reply, by all means it’s great fiction, but also let me know if Kord is more likely to (1) bash his way through obstacles despite the physical hurts he suffers (2) grit his teeth and face personal failures (3) shoot his way out of a bad situation (4) punch or stab his way out of a bad situation or (5) find cover and take a moment to assess the situation.

No stress about decisions you don’t like in prelude. At the end you get to veto anything on the character sheet and make changes to ensure the character is what you’re after.

Understood and thanks for explaining. My version was an expansion of #5 so I'll re-write it to include that in my IC post. That will be tomorrow though as I need to crash for the night now.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:39, Sat 15 Feb 2020.

Null persp.  Thanks for the awesome stuff so far!

They were nearing their first check point and could just about see the entrance to the Majestic Star Casino which dominated Buffington Harbour. Chernik, their lead scout, had paused the patrol while he went ahead to check on something he had seen and Jared had spread the others out in an all round defence. Noting that Kaufmann was drenched in sweat, Jared had moved over to him so that they could talk quietly.

"How you doing Kaufmann?" he asked quietly, receiving a nervous OK in response as the kid turned to face Jared. "Keep watching your arc," Jared replied, prompting Kaufmann to turn back away and stare off into the distance. Jared then continued talking to him. "Remember your training, keep your rifle safety set to safe unless you see an actual threat and don't put your finger on the trigger unless you're actually intending on firing at someone. When you do fire, none of that Hollywood bullshit where you spray bullets fragging everywhere. You'll fire at almost the same rate if you stick to semi auto and just keep pumping out the rounds and you'll be a hell of lot more accurate with your grouping."

Pausing briefly to glance back to see what Chernik was doing, noting that he seemed to be studying some tracks in the grassy bank alongside the road, Jared then continued giving Kaufmann some on the job training. "Remember what I told you back in camp. We're a team so if the shit hits the fan then get into cover and take a moment to assess the situation. Someone will be barking orders at you so you just need to follow them and back your buddies up. They need to know that they can rely on you when the rounds start flying and it goes both ways as they'll back you up. If shit happens then we all fight and we fight hard until we can dominate the firefight or break contact. Understand?"

Receiving yet another nervous nod from Kaufmann, Jared patted him on the shoulder reassuringly and then moved off, back to try to find out what Chernik had discovered.


Kaufmann's Training:

Get a grip, boot! He's a coach.

Remedial training! Rifle & Pistol.

Get your head in the game! (5) Find cover and take a moment to assess the situation.