Unreviewed Ploo Sector Cavalry Regiment

[Dacian Quee-Paddox]

"Where the hell did those speed junkies come from?" ~anonymous High Republic infantrymen during the skirmish of Graneesi III​

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: To provide the High Republic with a highly mobile army unit
• Image Credit: "Foundation | Hover Car Design" by Paul Chadeission modified by yours truly using Grok AI
• Role: Repulsorlift Regiment,
• Permissions: N/A
• Links: Ploo Sector, The High Republic

GENERAL INFORMATION

• Unit Name: Ploo Sector Cavalry Regiment
• Affiliation: The High Republic
• Classification: Repulsorlift Regiment
• Description: The Ploo Sector Cavalry Regiments (PSCRs) are an unofficial grouping of repulsorlift regiments in the Ploo Sector who have standardized their training and equipment once their member worlds joined the High Republic. Riding fast repulsorcraft into the thick of battle, PSCR soldiers are renowned for using speed, daring, and sudden overwhelming firepower to overwhelm their foes on the battlefield before quickly jetting away beyond their enemies' reach. While this is a simplistic doctrine, it serves the PSCR well on multiple organizational levels, much to the chagrin of their allies and enemies alike - it can be very frustrating to keep track of their movements, especially when the situation is tactically fluid. Still, few doubt that the PSCRs have been useful. Their sudden charges into barely noticeable enemy weak points and their ambushes have developed a reputation for the cavalrymen of the PCSR as fine skirmishers - a reputation which the men of the PSCRs are keen to keep.

COMBAT INFORMATION:

• Unit Size: Large
• Unit Availability: Common
• Unit Experience: Trained
• Equipment:
  • 160 Narglatch-class Speeder Bikes
  • 450 Reevo-class Patrol Speeders
  • 75 Thrinx-class Utility Speeders
  • 50 Howlrunner II-class Repulsor Tanks
  • All troops: Fenwolf-series Reinforced Uniforms with Bantha modular Load Bearing System
  • Typical Cavalry Squadron layout with equipment
    • Recon Element
      • 1 scout (1 Narglatch-class Speeder Bike, 1 LPD-58 Stormwrath Shatter Pistol, 2 LPD-30 Flameblossom Cluster Thermal Detonators, 2 LPD-56 Firewrecker Anti-Armor Grenade with disposable launchers each)
      • 1 L2/4 Praecursator Tactical Probe Droid
    • Fire Team Aurek (embarked on 1 Reevo-class Patrol Speeder)
      • 2 Riflemen (1 LPD-66 Flashfire Blaster Rifle with TruSight-series Multi-Optic Sights, 1 LPD-58 Stormwrath Shatter Pistol, 2 LPD-30 Flameblossom Cluster Thermal Detonators, 1 LPD-56 Firewrecker Anti-Armor Grenade with disposable launcher eah)
      • 1 Gunner (1 LPD-75 Stormbolt Magnetic Accelerator Carbine with Zolta-series Targeting Scope, 1 LPD-58 Stormwrath Shatter Pistol, 3 LPD-30 Flameblossom Cluster Thermal Detonators)
      • 1 Sniper (1 LPD-59 Stormlance Shatter Rifle with Zolta-series Targeting Scope, 1 LPD-58 Stormwrath Shatter Pistol, 3 LPD-68 Hammerblast Mines, 1 LPD-56 Firewrecker Anti-Armor Grenade with disposable launcher)
    • Fire Team Besh (embarked on 1 Reevo-class Patrol Speeder)
      • 2 Riflemen (1 LPD-66 Flashfire Blaster Rifle with TruSight-series Multi-Optic Sights, 1 LPD-58 Stormwrath Shatter Pistol, 2 LPD-30 Flameblossom Cluster Thermal Detonators, 1 LPD-56 Firewrecker Anti-Armor Grenade with disposable launcher each)
      • 1 Gunner (1 LPD-75 Stormbolt Magnetic Accelerator Carbine with Zolta-series Targeting Scope, 1 LPD-58 Stormwrath Shatter Pistol, 3 LPD-30 Flameblossom Cluster Thermal Detonators)
      • 1 Heavy Gunner (1 LPD-55 TwinStar Rocket Launcher, 1 LPD-58 Stormwrath Shatter Pistol, 3 LPD-30 Flameblossom Cluster Thermal Detonators)
• Combat Function: Ploo Sector Cavalry Regiments (PSCRs) combine the speed of their repulsorlift vehicles and the versatility of the common infantryman to bring decisive force to key points on the battlefield. Ploo Sector Cavalry commanders are well aware of this ability, and seek to bring it about with speed and surprise. To that end, PSCRs train extensively to use environment and natural phenomena to mask their movements and positions. Repulsorlift craft and cavalrymen are often dispersed and cleverly hidden in terrain such as forests or caves before mounting surprise offensives, often using rain, sandstorms, fog, and other weather to conceal their approach when it does occur. While known for their bravery, the cavalrymen's bravado is not unintelligent, and units typically use probe droids and cavalrymen on speeder bikes to gather extensive information and probe for weak points before committing their full force in a decisive push, typically with a handful of Howlrunner II tanks in the vanguard. PSCR charges are usually abrupt, sudden affairs with repulsorcraft jetting forward while turbo-boosting and a huge volume of blaster cannon fire to provide a shock and awe effect. Cavalrymen riding in the open-topped landspeeders can also fire, meaning that missiles, mag-pellet sniper shots, MAC explosive rounds, self-propelled anti-armor grenades and other specialty rounds can all add their own unique punch into the charge. These charges are often completed with the cavalrymen throwing their thermal detonators into clusters of enemies or into enemy fighting positions to add further immediate carnage before the cavalrymen jet off for another attack, or begin to dismount to fight on foot. While fighting on foot, the two fire teams in a squadron usually work in tandem, with one fire team providing stationary supporting fire while the other advances to take a new position before the pair will switch out. Within the fire teams themselves, the gunners with the magnetic accelerator carbines typically act as grenadiers, slinging explosive and specialty rounds to suppress groups of enemies or knock out particularly difficult targets. A sniper in the first team further allows the cavalrymen opportunities to pick out and eliminate important targets, while the heavy gunner in the second fire team with a rocket launcher allows the cavalrymen to effectively counter heavy vehicles and enemy aircraft. As the repulsorcraft and the personal armor that the cavalrymen wear is relatively thin-skinned, the PSCR soldiers rely on cover and concealment for defense and rely heavily on ambush tactics. It is not uncommon for cavalrymen on the defense to switch out the arming mechanisms on their thermal detonators to turn them into remotely detonated explosives, which combined with the land mines carried by the team's sniper means that they can bring explosive surprises to their advancing enemies or use clearly planted explosives to try to use psychology to slow an enemy advance. But these instances are often rare, as the cavalrymen prefer to rely on speed and concealment as a defense, often using hit and fade attacks to wear down enemy attackers or eliminate enemy reconnaissance elements.
• Force Abilities (Force User Units Only): N/A

Strengths:

• Mobile: Ploo Sector Cavalry Regiments are entirely embarked on fast repulsorlift craft, giving them excellent mobility. It is entirely possible for them to be present on one part of the battlefield, and then rapidly embark on their craft and be hundreds of kilometers farther away in mere minutes. This can allow Ploo Sector Cavalry to quickly reinforce weak spots in friendly lines or exploit those same weak spots in enemy lines.
• Fearless: Cavalry regiments tend to attract thrillseekers and risk-takers due to the high speed and performance of their thin-skinned craft. This behavior often leaks out to other aspects of their profession - Ploo Sector Cavalry rarely freeze or cower when faced with difficult opponents or situations. Consequently, Ploo Sector Cavalry have earned an enviable reputation for daring and bravery.
• Skirmishers: Ploo Sector Cavalry Regiments are well trained to use terrain, weather, and natural phenomena to obscure their movements. This can allow them to stealthily approach their opponents, strike with sudden and overwhelming firepower before abruptly disappearing as quickly and stealthily as they arrived, leaving frustrated and confused enemies behind.

Weaknesses:

• Lightly Armored: Both the vehicles and the personal armor used by Ploo Sector Cavalry are relatively thin, which makes them not as durable as many of their other soldier counterparts.
• Risk-takers: The flipside of the cavalry's bravery is their tendency to take unnecessary risks, especially when simply trying to live up to their reputation when it would be more prudent to take a less risky course of action.
• Hometown Heroes: These cavalry soldiers from Ploo have not travelled far outside their home space, and they are unaccustomed to fighting far from home on strange new worlds or against exotic foes.

HISTORICAL INFORMATION
Cavalry have existed in one form or another for millenia, and on storied and long-populated worlds near the Core like those in the Ploo Sector, some of these military units have existed uninterrupted for thousands of years in some fashion. With the worlds of the Ploo Sector now part of the High Republic, a number of those worlds have coordinated their actions together to partially standardize their equipment and training to improve their interoperability. The fruits of one of these efforts is a number of repulsorlift cavalry regiments from a dozen worlds within that Sector which are almost identical, save for some minor local aesthetic traditions. While not formally named as such, they have become colloquially known as Ploo Sector Cavalry Regiments within the High Republic and within the Northern Dependencies itself. These regiments are largely continue to serve as highly mobile local defense forces on their homeworlds. However, a number of them have been forwarded to serve the High Republic further from home as they are needed. In this limited expeditionary fashion, the Ploo Sector Cavalry have earned a reputation for daring breakthrough raids deep into enemy positions as well as executing a number of minor ambushes against advancing enemies. While these actions thus far have been relatively minor, commanders hope that they are a sign of greater things to come for these long-storied units.