View source for 403rd Division (ComStar)

{{infoBoxMilitaryCommand
| image          =
| Designation    = 403rd Division [[Level IV|IV-phi]]
| formed         = [[thirty-first century|Early thirty-first century]]
| Disbanded      =
| Previous Designation =
| Nickname       = Przeno River Rats
| Affiliation    = ComStar
| Parent Command = [[4th Army (ComStar)|4th Army]]
| Sub-Command    =
}}

Noted for their actions against [[Clan Diamond Shark|Clans Jade Falcon]] and [[Clan Smoke Jaguar|Smoke Jaguar]], the '''403rd Division''' is considered among the most elite and fanatically loyal units in the [[Com Guards]].

==History==
Immediately prior to the [[Clan Invasion]] the regular ranked 403rd Division, then an upsilon-based formation referred to by the nickname of ''Forceful Words'', was assigned to the [[11th Army (ComStar)|11th Army]], and was headquartered on the [[Federated Commonwealth]] held world of [[Yorii]].<ref name=20YU-71>''20 Year Update'', p. 71</ref>

===Battle of Tukayyid===
Along with the rest of the relatively green Eleventh Army, the 403rd faced Clan Jade Falcon during the Battle of Tukayyid. Assigned to defend the approaches to Robyn's Crossing from the vanguard of the advancing Falcons, the 403rd prepared a series of fortified positions two kilometers from the bridge and the [[388th Division (ComStar)|388th Division]] dug in around it.<ref name=T-58>''Tukayyid'', p. 58: "Campaign: Clan Jade Falcon"</ref><ref name=JF-32>''Jade Falcon Sourcebook'', p. 32: "Battle of Tukayyid"</ref><ref name=FMCS-27>''Field Manual: ComStar'', p. 27: "4th Army V-Iota: The Defenders of Honor"</ref>

Leading the charge, the elite [[Star Colonel]] [[Rard Hoyt]] led [[1st Falcon Striker (Clan Jade Falcon)|1st Falcon Striker]] sent its faster [[OmniMech]]s to enfilade the 403rd forces while the [[Cluster]]'s heavier 'Mechs launched a direct assault against their reinforced positions. Despite the near constant assault from the 1st Striker's heavy 'Mechs, [[OmniFighter]]s and [[Arrow IV]] bombardment, the 403rd successfully held its position and bought time for the Com Guard forces at the bridge to prepare, until a [[Star]] of [[Elemental]]s succeeding in slipping behind the division's lines.<ref name=ER3052-49>''Era Report: 3052'', p. 49: "Factions - Clan Jade Falcon - First Falcon Striker (The Pursuing Peregrines)"</ref><ref name=T-58/><ref name=JF-32/>

Launching a "headhunter" attack against the 403rd's HQ, the Falcons eliminated the 403rd's CO [[Precentor]] Robert Maigatter as well as vital supplies and communications equipment, sending the division into disarray. As the 403rd broke, the Strikers breached their lines, annihilating more than 70% of the division.<ref name=ER3052-49/><ref name=JF-32/>

===After ComStar Schism and Operation Bulldog===
Rebuilt as a IV-phi formation, the now tempered and elite 403rd chose a new nickname based on their experiences against Clan Jade Falcon, ''Przeno River Rats''. After the [[ComStar Schism]] the 403rd was reassigned to the [[12th Army (ComStar)|Twelfth Army]] to defend against any further [[Clan]] aggression, taking up headquarters on [[Ueda]].<ref name=CS-85>''ComStar'', p. 85: "12th Army V-Beta"</ref>

The 403rd's elite standing earned them a place in the Com Guard contingent that took part in [[Operation Bulldog]], launching from [[Tanh Linh]] to act as unneeded support for the [[1st Proserpina Hussars]]' [[Trial of Possession]] against the [[9th Nova Cat Regulars (Clan Nova Cat)|Ninth Nova Cat Regulars]] for [[Kanowit]] during the first wave, the 403rd then joined the [[8th Alshain Avengers]], [[1st Davion Guards]] and [[2nd Kell Hounds]] in facing [[Psi Galaxy (Clan Smoke Jaguar)|Psi Galaxy's]] [[11th Garrison (Clan Smoke Jaguar)|11th Garrison Cluster]] on [[Yamarovka]] in the second wave. Among the most fierce and costly fighting during Bulldog, when 11th Garrison [[Cluster]] refused to withdraw, the 403rd and the rest of the [[SLDF]] taskforce were forced to kill the Smoke Jaguar unit down to the last man.<ref name=TDR-10>''The Dragon Roars'', pp. 10–11: "Unit Summaries - Operation Bulldog"</ref><ref name=TDR-24>''The Dragon Roars'', p. 24: "Wave Two: Driving Forward"</ref>

===Capellan-St. Ives War===
With the lessened Clan threat after the [[Great Refusal]] and increasing tensions in [[St. Ives Compact]], the new [[Precentor Martial of ComStar]] [[Victor Steiner-Davion]] transferred the 403rd along with the along with the [[321st Division (ComStar)|321st Division]] to bolster the [[4th Army (ComStar)|Fourth Army]] in [[3061]]. Headquartered on the Compact world of [[Nashuar]], the 403rd attempted to maintain peace and defuse tensions on that world and those surrounding it.<ref name=FMCS-27/> While the Compact was ultimately forcefully reintegrated into the [[Capellan Confederation]], the 403rd remained in the recreated [[St. Ives Commonality]] as peacekeepers with the blessing of Duchess [[Candace Allard-Liao]].<ref name=FMU-85>''Field Manual: Updates'', p. 85: "4th Army V-Iota (The Defenders of Honor)"</ref>

==Officers==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Rank
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Name
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Command
|-
| colspan="4" style="background: #efefef;" | '''Commanding Officers of the 403rd Division (ComStar)'''
|-
| [[Precentor]] IV||[[Robert Maigatter]]||[[3050]]- [[3052]]<ref name=20YU-71/><ref name=JF-32/>
|-
| Precentor XVI||[[Darrel Burns]]||[[3055]] - [[3067]]<ref name=CS-85/><ref name=FMCS-27/><ref name=FMU-98>''Field Manual: Updates'', p. 98: "4th Army V-Iota - (The Defenders of Honor)"</ref>
|-
|}

==Tactics==
The 403rd Division is able to use small units with great effect.<ref>''Field Manual: ComStar'', p. 137</ref>

==Composition History==
===3050===
'''403rd Division''' (Division/Regular)<ref name=20yup71>''20 Year Update'', p. 71</ref>
: Note: At this point in time the 403rd Division was stationed on Yorii.<ref name=20yup71/>

===3055===
'''403rd Division ''' (Division/Elite)<ref name=CSSp85">''ComStar'', p. 85</ref>
: Note: At this point in time the 278th Division was stationed on [[Ueda]].<ref name=CSSp85"/>

===3062===
*403rd Division (Przeno River Rats IV-phi)<ref name=FMCS-27/>
**Harbingers of Victory III-chi - [[Demi-Precentor]] II [[David Ushkow]]
**Looking Glass III-tau - Demi-Precentor IV [[Daryn Waite]]
**The Thunderheads III-phi - Demi-Precentor VII [[Nicole Morin]]
**Misguided Fortune III-phi - Demi-Precentor X [[Jean Jubelt]]
**Natural Enemies III-upsilon - Demi-Precentor IX [[Derek Cook]]
**The Sentinels III-psi - Demi-Precentor VIII [[Harold Junge]]

===3067===
*403rd Division (Przeno River Rats IV-phi)<ref name=FMU-98/>

==Notes==
* The 403rd's insignia is a water rat bearing a helmet and rifle.<ref name=FMCS-27/>
* The recent ''[[BattleTech: Battle of Tukayyid]]'' spells the site of the battle as Pr'''ez'''no.

==References==
<references />

==Bibliography==
* ''[[20 Year Update]]''
* ''[[ComStar (sourcebook)|ComStar]]''
* ''[[The Dragon Roars]]''
* ''[[Era Report: 3052]]''
* ''[[Field Manual: ComStar]]''
* ''[[Field Manual: Updates]]''
* ''[[Jade Falcon Sourcebook]]''
* ''[[Tukayyid (scenario pack)|Tukayyid]]''


[[Category:ComStar Division Commands|Division, 403rd]]