Nomad Squadron: AAR Log 2
As reported by members of Nomad Squadron
Recovered by: Wen "Professor" Mirthstone
The Abyss - Ep.14-16
Wing Designations
NX01- LT. Noshi "T" Ennex
NX02- FO. Laransir "Doc" Vel Aath
NX03- FC. Anya Cortesse
Blue Flight
NA04- FO. Raskter "FTL" Fenni
NA05- FC. Joachim "Jokin" Emala
NA06- FC. Aeshix Mod
Gold Flight
NY07- FO. Gwirr "Whiplash" Seast
NY08- FC. Tuli D'rozaq
NY09- FO. Gussky Trubold
NY10- FC. Jaskono Germorz
Green Flight
NY11- LT. Leena Avin
NY12- FC. Sovun Fraild
NY13- FO. Oryn "Ghost" Thalo
NY14- FC. Charli Sarr
After Action Report Narrative
Battle Preparations
- Prior to the engagement above the planet Refnar in the system by the same name, Nomad Squadron carried out a few preparatory actions in order to try and obtain an advantage in what they knew would be a challenging encounter
- First, a ground team was dispatched to the surface of the planet Refnar where we had learned the pirates had established themselves as the oppressors of a community of salvage workers who resided there.
- Gussky Trubold was able to spread some propaganda supporting the Rebel Alliance as a viable alternative to their condition of oppression under the boot of the Eternal Maw, the response to this propaganda was positive and elicited intelligence about the complement of fighters aboard the station
- This intelligence provided us with information regarding a wing of ARC-170 fighters stationed aboard the Abyss which were in a state of constant maintenance
- Using an alleged discovery of fresh ARC-170 parts as cover, a transport was rigged with explosives and would be dispatched to the ship intending to arrive in conjunction with Nomad Squadron's attack.
- Gus was very convincing, and the group they had gathered on the surface indicated they would make this happen one way or another.
- Gus then returned to the Wayfaring Stranger.
- At the same time, Cadet Anya Cortesse aided the engineers aboard the Dragon's Tooth in more properly maintaining the makeshift gravity well generators the ship had been modified to carry
- The repairs she helped to oversee proved essential in protecting the area immediate to the Abyss for the majority of the battle
- Wing leaders spent the week of prep going over the orchestration of the attack with the cadets who would take part - guiding them through maneuvers time and again to help them prepare for the difficult assault
- The preparations concluded with Lt. Ennex giving the entire squadron a motivating speech which lifted our spirits, entwined our dedication, and kindled the fire of rebellion in our hearts
Battle Commences
- Blue Flight served as the vanguard of the engagement, the A-Wings jumped into the system first immediately engaging their ECM jamming devices to blind the stations sensors and interrupt communications
- Some Z95 were already present and patrolling the region immediate to the Abyss
- A freighter was also seen on final approach to one of the stations hangar bays
- Nomad 4, 5, and 6 strafed the top-side of the station seeking to destroy as many concussion missile launcher emplacements as possible
- NA05 was destroyed in the attack, but managed to eject before their craft fully disintegrated
- NA04 managed to avoid the attack of an N95 after the strafing run
- Following this initial strike, the remainder of the Nomad strikeforce arrived while the station scrambled additional fighters
- NX02 engaged and destroyed a TIE-ugly, Javelin 2
- NA04 pounced on and destroyed Viper 2, a Z95
- NY11 strafed the station destroying two laser turrets - one with proton bombs and a second with a spray of laser fire - her Y-wing took a few hits on its departure from the strafe
- NX03 set upon Spear 2 and destroyed it
- NX01, flying close to the cadet, eliminated Spear 1
- NA06 engaged with Viper 3 chasing them away from the Y-Wings
- NY13 was close behind the initial bomber, destroying two more laser turrets with bombs and lasers
- NY07 deployed a proton bomb on a laser turret - the explosion cascaded through the main structure of the station and opened a hole in the superstructure of Abyss
- This was the last of the defensive emplacements on the topside of the station
- NY09 followed immediately behind 7 and destroyed two shield generators with proton bombs and a shower of laser bolts
- Viper 4 chased down NY14 who was forced to break off from their attack run to avoid destruction
- Javelin 1 pursued NY08 who was also forced to veer away from the station, despite her maneuvers she was hit and her shield were stripped while working to lose her pursuer
- NY10 destroyed one shield generator and lands some laser fire on a second to no effect
- NY12 destroyed the final generator with proton bombs and then unleashed a barrage of laser fire on the comms tower causing significant damage but it was likely still intact and functional
- At this point, the Dragon's Tooth engaged its interdiction field and the Wayfaring Stranger engaged their own communication jammers
- The freighter on final approach to the station entered one of the fighter hangers and moments later a massive explosion destroyed both the upper and lower hangar on that face of the station; it is assumed one or both of these hangers contained the ARC-170 fighters as we did not see any during the conflict
- Wings of TIE-uglies and Y-wings are launched from the Abyss
- Gasses and flame shot out of the gaping hole in the Abyss
- Midnight, aboard the Wayfaring Stranger, calls out over squadron coms that there were new contacts emerging from the station
- SAR was launched from the Wayfaring Stranger to recover NA05
- A shuttle had launched and the station released six large canister bombs which sensors indicated were seeping Zrii gas
- The bombs were on a trajectory to enter Refnar's atmosphere
- NA04 chased down Viper 3 and reduced it to a debris
- NY11 & 13 destroy two of the canister bombs
- NX02 swooped in behind the Y-Wings to destroy another canister
- NX03 maneuvered into the slot behind Viper 4 and tore them apart with laser fire
- Spear 3 & 4 lock onto NX01 stripping her shields and landing a few shots on the hull of the fighter
- NY08 made skillful maneuvers to avoid the majority of the laser fire from Javelin 1, armor deflected the few stray shots that landed
- NY14 destroyed another Zrii canister bomb
- NX01 remained undeterred by flash of laser fire flying around her and destroyed another canister
- Javelin 3 & 4 ganged up on NY07 which attempted a K-Turn maneuver avoiding most of the shot but suffering a few hits to her shield; a near perfectly executed K-Turn allowed her to put Javelin 3 dead in her sights and reducing it to a flaming shrapnel
- NA06 engaged a full wing of Y-Wings on approach to the Dragon's Tooth
- NY10 eliminated the final canister bomb of Zrii gas
- NY09 and NY07 exchanged a quick message via coms and split targets
- NY09 unloaded a highly effective barrage of ion cannon fire into the shuttle Kriss, disabling it completely
- Hound 1-3 strafed the Dragon's Tooth destroying both gravity well generators
- NY12 fired at the station's com tower but missed and then took out a fighter hangar with a proton bomb
- Additional TIE-uglies and Y-Wings Hound 10-12 launch from the Abyss
- Hounds 10-12 attack Dragon's Tooth with torpedos and take out a shield generator
- NX03 eliminates a Hound with a proton torpedo, Hound 7
- Hound 8 takes fire from the Dragon's Tooth on withdraw from its strafing run
- NA04 lashes out at Javelin 1 to save Tuli from its pursuit and destroys the TIE-ugly
- Javelin 5 & 6 hunt after NY07 who executes another perfect K-Turn and punishes 5 for the attack, eliminating it
- NX02 destroys Hound 1 while it was on approach to the Dragon's Tooth
- Hound 2 & 3 destroy one of the Tooth's main batteries
- Spear 3 & 4 attack NY08 who tries to shake them, but still takes a few hits
- Spear 7 & 8 focus on NX01 who attempts her own K-Turn destroying Spear 7
- Javelin 4 locked in on NY09 who also attempts the defensive K-Turn but fails to destroy the attacker
- NY11 pursued Javelin 7 & 8 flying in close formation, and destroyed 7
- NY13 lobbed a proton bomb into one of the station's hangars destroying it and then finished off its comm tower with laser fire
- NA06 launched a concussion missile at Spear 5 & 6 causing them to make a defensive break
- NY12 eliminated another hangar with a proton bomb and then sent a spray of laser fire into another hangar bay
- NY14 & NY10 destroyed two more hangars with closely timed proton bomb attacks
- Wayfaring Stranger & Dragon's Tooth approached to within firing range of the station and opened fire
- As they began to engage, Imperial ships dropped out of hyperspace in the immediate area
- Nebulon frigate Rumik Vast and Arquitens-class light cruiser Invictus appeared from hyperspace
- NA04 dove upon Hound 10-12 and damaged the lead bomber
- NY11 launched proton bombs into the hole blown into the superstructure of the Abyss, at first it appeared that the bombs had no effect but then the secondary explosions began to cascade throughout the body of the station culminating in a large and bright flash below the station which caused the spokes of the structure ot separate and begin to drift apart
- The Abyss was destroyed
- NX03 charged at a wing of TIE-Fighters that had been launched from the Rumik Vast, she caused some damage to the lead fighter but failed to eliminate any
- Hound 10-12 attack the remaining main battery of the Dragon's Tooth destroying it and disabling a section of the ships engines with a spray of laser fire
- Hound 12 takes some fire from the Tooth's defenses withdrawing from the attack
- NX02 screams after NX03, attacking the two TIE-Fighters that broke the opposite direction from her attack
- Hound 8 & 9 strafe the Dragon's Tooth taking hits on their way in leaving Hound 8 sparking with damage; they destroyed the bridge of the ship with proton torpedoes and then disabled more engines with a barrage of laser fire
- NX01 pursues Hound 2 & 3 who are myopically focused on finishing of the DT, she reduces #2 to a flaming hulk
- Spear 5 & 6 fail to destroy NY14 before it jumps to hyperspace
- Spear 3 & 4 pursue NY08 as she makes her way to depart the system
- Spear 8 and Javelin 6 jumped out of the system
- NA06 & NY12 departed to hyperspace
- NY13 destroyed Javelin 8 as it attempted to jump away
- NY07 stalked in behind Hound 3 and lined up a perfect vector to deploy a proton bomb into the fighter absolutely obliterating it
- NY09, taking a lead from his wing lead, used a similar maneuver to send a proton bomb against the cockpit of the shuttle reducing it to dust
H
- ound 3 breaks off its vector to depart to hyperspace
- Beta 1, a wing of TIE-Bombers, conducts a strafing run on the Wayfaring Stranger destroying two shield generators
- Wayfaring Stranger preps its hyperdrive to depart the system, calls for cover from fighters to make an escape
- SAR jumps to hyperspace having recovered the ejected pilot of NA05
- Despite having no functional bridge, the Dragon's Tooth manages a jump to hyperspace thanks to the work of a particularly skilled engineer aboard the ship - it would later be determined he used a method he was taught by Anya Cortesse when the two worked together to fortify the grav well generators
- Invictus & Rumik Vast launch more TIE-Fighters & Bombers
- NY09 destroys the lead bomber of Beta 1
- NX02 & NX03 follow 9 in and eliminate the remainder of the Beta wing
- NX01 engaged the second wing of TIE-Bombers causing structural damage to the second craft of the wing
- NA04 makes a vital call-out to NY13 who makes a sudden maneuver to fall into an attack against the bomber wing destroying one of the crafts
- NY07 swings over into Alpha 2 with a spray of laser fire, the wing of TIE-Fighters makes a defensive break from the attack
- Alpha 1 wing of TIEs make a strafing run at the Wayfaring Stranger - the wing lead is destroyed on approach but the remaining fighters disable the last shield generator on the frigate
- Rumik Vast rakes the aft of the Wayfaring Stranger with turbolaser fire causing significant damage as it preps to jump out of the system
- Invictus launches a proton torpedo at the frigate, but defensive emplacements destroy the torpedo
- Another pair of Imperial ships arrived on scene: Nebulon frigate Firewind and Arquitens-class light cruiser Bloodrunner
- Both new arrivals launch fighter wings
- NX02 destroys the second fighter of Alpha 1 wing
- Gamma 1 attacks NY07 causing minimal damage
- NA04 attacks Tau 1, a wing of Gunboats with a reckless maneuver. The attack does not pierce the shields.
- Two full wings of TIE-Fighters swarmed NA04 who managed to only lose shields from the onslaught
- TIE-Bomber wing Beta 2 returned to the Rumik Vast
- All remaining Nomad squadron fighters, save NX02 and NA04, jump to hyperspace
- NA04 overtunes his engines to put distance between himself and the pursuing TIE-Fighters, jumping to hyperspace
- NX02 dives into the debris field of the destroyed station and uses it to avoid his pursuers, he perfectly timed his emergence from the field with the hyper calculation and jumped out of the system safely
- Just prior to NX02 departure, a lancer frigate arrived in the area of the station debris
Action Summary
It is said that even the best laid plans will not survive first contact with the enemy, however every rule has an exception. The Battle of Refnar falls within that area of exceptionalism. The command of the Wayfaring Stranger along with the leadership of Nomad Squadron coordinated and executed an intricately designed multi-phase plan to systematically dismantle the pirate stronghold of the Eternal Maw in the Refnar system. Despite the loss of an A-Wing in the vanguard strike and significant damage to the Dragon's Tooth and Wayfaring Stranger; the station was utterly destroyed along with the leadership of the organization. Refnar and its inhabitants were saved from the attempted retaliatory use of Zrii gas and no assets or personnel were lost to the Imperial response. A symbol and force of oppression was eliminated from the galaxy opening a possible avenue for new allies to the Rebellion.
The Wayfaring Stranger and Nomad Squadron carried out a substantial attack against a significant Imperial ally in the region, destroying them utterly out from under the nose of Captain Su-Min Shee and her Task Force Omicron. They did so in the face of overwhelming numbers and through the display of numerous acts of heroism and bravery. This momentous victory would not have been possible without the skill and valor of the Wayfaring Stranger's crew nor the gallant pilots of Nomad Squadron.
Professor glared intently into his datapad, as if he were hoping the intensity of his gaze would find the information he sought. It had been hours since he'd decoded this report, and upon realizing the same Frigate was used this time, the bright idea of searching for the whereabouts of the Wayfaring Stranger to hopefully gain a bead on his cousin's location or fate had completely taken hold of him. He now wasn't so sure his cousin was even dead, though the lack of contact was still worrisome.
Unfortunately, typical spotty Alliance record-keeping had proven the task to be much harder than he'd anticipated. He was going on hour 3, and he'd only managed to find a few instances of the ship's existence as well as a few false leads that turned out to be incorrectly entered data by some clerk that probably hadn't cared too much about the quality of their work.
"You're missing quite the party," Freak said, suddenly appearing in the door of their shared bunk, one arm hidden behind his back.
Professor jumped with fright at the interruption to his solitude, his back straightening up and his heart seizing slightly.
"Woah, hey," Freak said in a calmer tone. "Didn't mean to scare you, Five."
Professor calmed himself and chuckled as he shook his head at his own jumpiness. "No problem, Lieutenant. Was just really stuck in a rabbit hole of incomplete Alliance records."
Freak smirked. "During downtime, don't call me 'Lieutenant'." He pulled his other arm from around his back and produced a piece of frosted cake on a saucer. "Saved you a piece before all the jackals destroyed the thing. It's not bad, but it's no Rhyshcate."
Professor took the offering and nodded his thanks. "Rhyshcate... I haven't had a good piece of that since I was last on Coruscant."
Freak snorted. "Whatever you ingested on that cesspool doesn't hold a candle to the real deal on Corellia, Prof."
Professor laughed at the defensiveness of his Corellian wingman. "Of course it doesn't. I ate my weight in Rhyshcate one week when I was visiting Corellia for research on my doctoral thesis. But that was decades ago, sadly, and the last time I'd eaten any was from some Corellian bakery in the middle levels of Coruscant. It was decent."
Both men smiled, but the silence hung in the air palpably as both pilots were suddenly thinking about their respective homeworlds and how they'd been away for too long. Freak broke the silence as he jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "Party's still going on if you want to join..."
Professor opened his mouth to decline immediately, but the words caught in his throat. As he got deeper into his cousin's reports, the importance of a solid team was growing within his mind. With this latest report, there was no way his cousin and the Nomads would have survived such odds arrayed against them if they weren't a strong team.
He stood, turned off his datapad, and nodded toward the door. "After you, Lieut- I mean Malcom."
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