Vanessa Bisla
Vanessa Bisla | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal | |
| Born | 2987[1] |
| Died | 22 January 3073[2] |
| Affiliation | Federated Commonwealth |
| Career | |
| Rank | Field Marshal |
Vanessa Bisla was the commanding officer of the Robinson Operational Area during the Clan Invasion, FedCom Civil War and early Jihad.[3][1][4][5][2]
History
Early Life
Vanessa was born on Tamar in 2987. During her mandatory term of national service, she found that the military life appealed to her and dropped out of the University of Tamar over the objections of her family. Obtaining a commission in the LCAF, Vanessa rose to battalion command by 3019.[1]
Thirteenth Battle of Hesperus II
Serving as a Battalion commander with the Twenty-fourth Lyran Guards during the Thirteenth Battle of Hesperus II, Vanessa was blown out of her Warhammer, losing an arm and a leg. The prosthetics she received were adequate for everyday use but could not restore her ability to pilot a BattleMech.[1]
Staff Positions
Rather than mustering out, Vanessa shifted to focusing on the administrative aspects of command, and by 3027, had risen to command the 'Mech regiment of the Twenty-Fourth just as the unit was expanded to RCT status. During the Fourth Succession War she oversaw the unit's offensive actions on Sabik before being promoted to the rank of Leutnant-General and getting a position in the LCAF's Strategy and Tactics Division.[1]
Federated Commonwealth
During her time with the Strategy and Tactics Division, Vanessa also served as a liaison to the Federated Suns, spending a great deal of time on the Davion capital world of New Avalon and eventually purchasing a home there. She and her husband were estranged at this point, and Vanessa began an affair with a mid-rank AFFS officer, sparking a minor scandal before her divorce was finalized and she married the officer. She continued to build ties to the Davion military, aided by the dual citizenship she gained through marriage, for the next several years.[1]
War of 3039
Now holding the rank of Field Marshal,[6] Vanessa was the embryonic AFFC's pick for their thrust towards Dieron in the War of 3039, given her strong ties to both militaries and the support of her close ally General Nondi Steiner. Bisla's campaign, ostensibly an LCAF operation, was termed Operation STURMHAMMER. STURMHAMMER initially expected little resistance in the first wave, with few front-line units in the area. Bisla and other AFFC leaders planned to cut off supplies and reinforcements from key targets like Al Na'ir that were goals in subsequent waves.[6]
Headquartered on Caph, she was in command of the largest concentration of troops in the war, with the Third Crucis Lancers, Davion Assault Guards, Thirty-ninth Avalon Hussars and Wolf's Dragoons all on the world when the Ryuken-ni and Ryuken-san attacked the planet as part of Theodore Kurita's daring counterattack. With forces spread throughout the planet, the Ryuken's initial attack overwhelmed the Lancers before a battalion of the Guards and the bulk of the Dragoons could arrive to run them off.[7]
While the ISF had little luck fomenting rebellion on Caph, Bisla faced pushback by the local duke, Ban Gustafson, as he decried what he called military interference in his affairs as AFFC troops took priority at local spaceports.[8] Additional counteroffensives throughout the area forced Bisla to pull back, sacrificing gains in some areas to preserve her territorial gains and troops in the face of a concerted assault by Sword of Light and Genyosha regiments.[6] This caused particular trouble for Bisla's career, as her choice to pull the Seventeenth Skye Rangers and Seventh Donegal Guards off fortified positions on Kervil to reinforce Pike IV and Nashira was met with condemnation by leaders of the Federation of Skye, who said she chose to withdraw rather than let the province gain territory. Most, however, recognized the Kervil withdrawal for what it was: abandoning a position to save others.[9]
As the AFFC faltered in the face of the DCMS counterattack, Vanessa pulled back into a defensive stance, her forces leaving worlds like Pike and Telos IV to preserve their strength. Bisla was also caught up in the fiasco on Fomalhaut, where the Second Davion Guards began a long series of unauthorized raids on the world, which had long been their base but had fallen to DCMS forces. Bisla attempted to bring officers of the Second up on charges, only to run headfirst into powerful opposition: James Sandoval and Ran Felsner. Both Field Marshals had given extensive aid to the Guards under the table. Her misstep would dog her for years after the war ended.[10]
Bisla and Sandoval clashed throughout the war. Sandoval, in his capacity as Field Marshal of the Draconis March, issued commands to the Eighth Crucis Lancers and Twelfth Deneb Light Cavalry, which were operating within her theater. She saw Sandoval's actions as an attempt to play the hero, and voiced her dissatisfaction to the AFFS High Command. However, the command sided with Sandoval, who cited his authority to issue orders directly to any unit within the Draconis March. Though she attempted to punish the commanders of those units for going over her head, her political connections were no match for the Duke of Robinson.[11]
Post-War
Vanessa retained the rank of Field Marshal after the war and was cleared of any wrongdoing or malfeasance during the conflict. In 3043, she was assigned to command the Robinson Operational Area of the Draconis March, effectively making her Sandoval's second-in-command. Although the two did not have a warm relationship, they nevertheless cooperated for the security of the new Federated Commonwealth, and Bisla became an important brake on Sandoval's actions.[11][1]
She continued to hold her post throughout the turmoil of the Clan Invasion and FedCom Civil War. Following the Lyran secession, Vanessa's origins on Tamar became a mark against her, isolating her during the civil war. She also failed to build a rapport with James' son Tancred after the latter's ascension to the Duchy of Robinson.
Jihad
During the Jihad, Vanessa was the senior officer in the AFFS delegation to the Arc-Royal summit of January 3073. She was among the victims of the Donner Bombing.[2]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Historical: War of 3039, p. 22, "Vanessa Bisla profile"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents p. 36
- ↑ 20 Year Update, p. 21, "Deployment Tables"
- ↑ Shattered Sphere, p. 27
- ↑ Field Manual: Updates, p. 140
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Historical: War of 3039, p. 69
- ↑ Historical: War of 3039, p. 61
- ↑ Historical: War of 3039, p. 78
- ↑ Historical: War of 3039, p. 83
- ↑ Historical: War of 3039, p. 87-88
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Historical: War of 3039, p. 98