Brushfire Conflict in Aulari Constellation

YC109.10.15

The Hungarian Operations Team, a small corporation based in the Osmon system of the Aulari constellation, declared war against the Reserve on 12 October. Efforts to make diplomatic contact with .HOT. proved unsuccessful, and combat began in earnest on 13 October, with the Reserve scoring first blood against the attacking corporation in a number of skirmishes between small groups of combatants. Hunter-killer squads largely made up of advanced frigates, cruisers, and other light ships were sent by Reserve fleet operations forces to harass the enemy in their home space as Reserve intelligence began to put together a more complete picture of enemy operations and capabilities.

By the end of the first day, .HOT. had begun adapting to Reserve tactics, with its more senior members deploying recon cruisers and command battlecruisers against the lighter Reserve forces. In response, Reserve fleet command put together a heavier combat force on 14 October, moving a dozen combat vessels to the Aulari constellation. For nearly two hours, Reserve and enemy fleets skirmished, scouted, and maneuvered for advantage until the Reserve fleet was able to force the enemy into an engagement on the Olo gate in Osmon.

In a pitched battle, the Reserve fleet destroyed a Megathron-class battleship, two command battlecruisers, and a Hurricane-class battlecruiser, and drove the remaining enemy ships off the field, losing only a frigate and a Blackbird-class cruiser. Once salvaging of the enemy wrecks had been completed, the Reserve continued their patrol, leading to a number of other skirmishes over another two hours, with both sides scoring opportunity kills against the other largely through the use of snipers.

This pattern of skirmish continued on 15 October, with Reserve forces and .HOT. forces continuing to clash in the Aulari constellation during the day. Though the enemy managed to score their single heaviest kill, taking down a Reserve Raven-class battleship, Reserve forces exacted a heavy price for the loss, taking down an enemy Pilgrim-class recon cruiser, Megathron-class battleship, and Drake-class battlecruiser, plus a veritable swarm of frigates. These losses were evidently more than the enemy could bear, and shortly after the loss of the Megathron, the Reserve was notified that the war declaration had been withdrawn. The past 24 hours, during the CONCORD-mandated "cool down" period, have been relatively quiet, with no further engagements.


Operation Just Redress Final Report

YC109.10.08

After last week's relatively heavy fighting, the third week of Operation Just Redress was relatively quiet. Electus Matari, having suffered significant losses against Reserve forces despite support from a variety of underworld organizations, appeared to retreat back into their stations and only probed Reserve forces on a few occasions. This tactic had two results; the first was a reduction in the losses taken by Electus Matari forces, and the second was an increasing amount of pilot fatigue on the part of Reserve officers, who continued to run patrols despite a relative lack of enemy activity. Despite the lack of kills, Reserve forces continued to maintain an upper hand, holding a strong advantage in space superiority despite being outnumbered by Electus Matari, Fate Weavers, the Black Rabbits' Gurista forces, and the Sansha-aligned Naqam corporation.

The last significant threat made to Reserve forces during this operation occurred on 3 October, when close to 30 Electus Matari and allied vessels laid siege to the forward base in Vullat. Outnumbered 2 to 1, Reserve forces chose to disengage and then challenged the enemy force as it withdrew piecemeal. Unfortunately, LCDR Ayari, who was attempting to hold down an enemy Scorpion, was not able to escape in time as the Electus Matari fleet warped back to assist the ship that had been left behind. As the rest of the fleet withdrew in the face of the large enemy force, LCDR Ayari managed to keep them occupied long enough for the rest of the fleet to pull out in good order. Though her Brutix-class battlecruiser was lost, her sacrifice enabled the rest of the Reserve forces to escape unharmed. Unfortunately, no losses were inflicted against the enemy during this battle.

Friday and Saturday would see the bulk of the fighting by Reserve forces during this last week. The fighting began with an attack on relatively inexperienced Reserve officers in Vullat on Friday morning; hoping for a quick strike against a Naqam battleship, four Reserve pilots engaged the enemy near the Reserve forward base. Unfortunately, without adequate firepower and with a number of intelligence oversights, the Reserve pilots were ambushed by an enemy fleet waiting a pair of jumps out. The Reserve lost a Scorpion and a Drake and inflicted no losses.

Later that day, a Reserve fleet led by CDRE Ladel Teravada began a patrol in force against Electus Matari, forcing most of the enemy fleet to retreat back to its stations. Though only a single kill was scored, an Electus Matari Vigil, Reserve forces demonstrated a stranglehold on space superiority in the operational area. With Electus Matari effectively contained, the Reserve fleet began looking for their underworld allies; scouts located a Black Rabbit force in the Oddelulf system, preying on civilian traffic, including their leader, Napthalia. Reserve forces split into two groups, with the first led by CDRE Teravada and the second under the command of CAPT Scarlet. As the Black Rabbits moved to strike at a civilian vessel jumping into the system, CDRE Teravada's group warped in and began to hold down the enemy as CAPT Scarlet's force quickly followed to reinforce, lagging behind to draw out the enemy. Despite the loss of a Hyperion,Malediction, and Myrmidon, Reserve forces managed to eliminate the entire Black Rabbit fleet with the exception of a single Deimos, including Napthalia's own Vulture-class command ship.

Fighting continued into the early hours of 6 October, with a small Reserve force meeting a slightly larger Electus Matari force in the Eystur system, trading a single Myrmidon battlecruiser for an enemy Myrmidon and Typhoon, and four hours later, a similar engagement resulted in two battleship losses for Electus Matari and no losses for the Reserve. After these engagements, Electus Matari withdrew until the conclusion of the war declaration some 16 hours later. War declarations against the Reserve by the Sansha-aligned Naqam corporation and the Black Rabbits-led Gurista forces expired soon after, another indication of the coordination between Electus Matari and these outlaw corporations despite the protests of the Electus Matari leadership.

Though fighting continues against the Fate Weavers Minmatar extremist alliance, Reserve forces have concluded major combat operations and withdrawn to Caldari space. With over 1.5 billion ISK in losses inflicted against Electus Matari, not including kills against their allies, and less than a billion ISK in total losses by Reserve pilots, the command staff is largely satisfied that the punitive goals of Operation Just Redress have been a success. In addition, it has exposed Electus Matari's links to a number of underworld organizations, something which has opened a rift between the alliance and other more reasonable Minmatar paramilitary forces -- something which will hopefully reduce their belligerence in the future. However, CDR Char and her staff seem to have no remorse for their actions in Tannolen and over the last three weeks, and as a result the Reserve has classified Electus Matari as a hostile force to be engaged whenever possible.

The potential remains for Electus Matari to redeem itself diplomatically with the Reserve and others, however, under the current leadership, it seems unlikely that such a reproachment will occur.


Brothers of Freedom Crushed in Combined Reserve/Navy Operation

YC109.09.02

Caldari Navy forces, in concert with those of the Reserve, raided a Republic Security Services station in the Tannolen system on 1 September 109, capturing or killing most of the remaining members of the Brothers of Freedom terrorist group. Despite their efforts, however, Brothers of Freedom leader Melarius Torvil was able to escape into the Minmatar Republic, where he has apparently taken refuge from Caldari law.

Despite a large presence from the Star Fraction alliance in the target system of Tannolen -- an anarchist terrorist group which has clashed with the Reserve on several occasions -- the only resistance to the Navy operation encountered by the Reserve was from the Electus Matari paramilitary force. After successfully escorting a pair of Caldari Navy battleships to the station, the Reserve force jumped into Tierjiev and then returned shortly thereafter. Upon their return, a number of Reserve vessels were destroyed without provocation and without warning by a number of Electus Matari ships as they came through the gate.

However, shortly after the fleet reformed in Tannolen, Navy officers informed Reserve command staff that Melarius Torvil was not in fact on the station as had previously been reported -- Brothers of Freedom sympathizers on the station had been sending messages out in order to maintain the illusion while Torvil made his escape from the State into the Republic. The Reserve scrambled immediately, with a number of Reserve vessels immediately heading for Republic space, but by the time they arrived at Torvil's location some sixteen jumps away, the terrorist had managed to dock in a Republic station and remained there, seeking asylum from Republic authorities.

With no way to pursue Torvil onto the station legally, as he was out of Caldari jurisdiction, Reserve forces had little choice but to return to Caldari space. However, despite the failure to capture Torvil, the systematic dismantling of his organization that the Navy and the Reserve have engaged in over the last three months has made the Brothers of Freedom significantly weaker than they once were, and intelligence estimates now suggest that the Brothers of Freedom are unable to engage in their previous activities within the State and that their base of support among the Caldari populace seems to be consistently decreasing, both good indicators of success.

The unprovoked attack upon Reserve vessels by Electus Matari has caused a significant diplomatic incident between the Reserve and the Minmatar alliance, and hostilities look increasingly likely as a result of the action.


Operation Just Redress Status Update, 1 October 109

YC109.10.01

The second week of Operation Just Redress has seen slightly higher activity by opposition forces, most likely due to the withdrawl of KIA Alliance forces from battle against Electus Matari. However, Electus Matari remains unable to seriously challenge Reserve forces in the Minmatar core systems and they have received surprisingly little support from their allies, possibly due to internal disputes.

There have only been a pair of large-scale engagements between the Reserve and Electus Matari and their allies this week, the first of which occurred on Wednesday. A Electus Matari force of cruisers with a small number of heavier and more advanced ships numbering around 15 moved into Vullat, location of the Reserve's base of operations. CDRE Ladel Teravada, who had been leading a Reserve patrol at the time, returned and rallied a counterstrike force on short notice as Reserve scouts tracked down the enemy fleet in space. In short order, the Minmatar fleet was located and the Reserve fleet prepared to strike.

Unfortunately, as the fleet moved in to strike, one of the Reserve battlecruisers lost its navigational control, and another of the fleet's cruisers warped in out of range of battle, giving the Minmatar fleet nearly a two-to-one numerical advantage. With the rest of the fleet at close range, CDRE Teravada ordered Reserve forces to engage despite Electus Matari's numerical superiority. The Reserve vessels tore apart six enemy cruisers and a battlecruiser and forced the enemy to flee the system, though at the price of the Reserve's heaviest losses of the operation so far. The Reserve lost an Eos-class command ship, two advanced cruisers, and another cruiser; though nearly half the Reserve's total losses during the entire operation so far, they were still less expensive than the single Rapier-class reconnaissance cruiser piloted by CDR Char that was shot down last week.

The second major engagement occurred on Sunday, when 11 Electus Matari ships again tried to besiege the Reserve operations base. Though outnumbered at first, Reserve pilots responded quickly to a general alert, and within minutes a fleet had been raised under CAPT Svetlana Scarlet. Thanks to quick work by Reserve scouts, the enemy fleet was located and followed as it moved, until Reserve forces were able to pounce on the enemy at an asteroid belt. As the Minmatar forces scattered, one lone cruiser was left behind as his compatriots ran, and he was quickly dispatched.

The Reserve force then split to cover the stargates leading out of the system to cut off an enemy escape; Electus Matari forces attempted to slip out through the Magiko system and suffered another loss as the Harbinger serving as the center of the enemy force was nabbed by Reserve forces covering the gate. The rest of the Minmatar ships fled back to Pator, where they remained encamped for the rest of the day.

The remainder of combat between Reserve and Electus Matari forces during this week have consisted of small engagements; the Reserve inflicted over 15 kills against enemy combat forces, including two battleships and a pair of recon cruisers, while suffering a dozen of their own. However, the number only show an incomplete picture, as the Reserve continues to hold space superiority. The largest contributor to many of the Reserve's combat losses has been pilot fatigue, with Reserve forces flying almost constant patrols with little action, with Electus Matari forces unwilling or unable to challenge Reserve dominance.

At the moment, barring a significant change in tactics from Electus Matari or the involvement of third parties, the situation seems unlikely to change, and the Minmatar alliance appears unwilling to make any sort of diplomatic compromise. With the operational window specified in the command staff's original operation order coming to a close at the end of this week, it seems that the most likely conclusion to Operation Just Redress will be an unresolved conflict, leaving the possibility of future combat operations against Electus Matari.