Gundam: From Piece to Player

"Yes."

The staff officer dared not say more. The 5th Army belonged to the Earth Far East Area Army, and the commander of this unit who participated in this battle was Major General Ethan Leia.

He always squinted, appearing gentle on the surface, but in reality, he was a stern officer who would stop at nothing to achieve victory.

Even though the MS units on the gravity front were not fully trained, Ethan still brought an MS squadron of 9 units with him to the operation: 3 Gundams (Ground Fighters) and 6 GMs.

The plan is to deploy it in this campaign, because there is no better testing ground than actual combat.

Upon receiving the order, the federal troops began to halt and rest.

The CIC (Combat Information Center) on the land cruiser monitored the rice grain concentration and found that it was all below the measured average... so they became complacent.

Unbeknownst to them, right under their noses, on the other side of the mountain, lay ten one-eyed mobile suits of various models.

It's just that it's in a powered-off state.

The same situation occurred in about a dozen mountains and valleys, after reconnaissance revealed that the federal troops were about to reach the ambush point.

The Zeon army's mobile suits also began consuming liquids, coffee, and other foods that could boost their mental state.

Because Lala has been busy with various related testing missions recently, and her assigned Kau has been left in North America, Char has had to act alone in his Mobile Zaku.

However, Karma granted him the right to move freely... allowing him to roam the battlefield and attack targets he deemed valuable.

He walked over to the blonde girl who was often seen as Karma's bodyguard at the camp... who was sitting at ZUDA's feet, warming her hands with a hot coffee cup.

"Lieutenant Colonel Char?"

"Captain Haiwen, I'd like to ask, who was the overall commander of the ambush?"

"...Commander, each MS squadron has an on-site commander, but the overall commander is Major General Song Ren, who is in charge of long-range fire support."

"Is there no overall commander on MS's side?"

"If I had to say, it would be me, since I can contact the general directly, but I usually only do so when unexpected emergencies arise..."

“In combat environments with high concentrations of Minovsky particles, setting up an on-site commander is not very meaningful… We will divide the combat objectives through reconnaissance before the battle. As for how to accomplish them, the squadron leaders of each MS are free to do so. It’s like successfully completing a mission – a good cat is one that catches mice.”

"The objective of my squadron in this operation is to attack and destroy the obstacle clearance support vehicles in the D43 sector, as well as the three Median transport planes that are suspected of carrying mobile suits and moving intermittently."

Haiwen spoke slowly and deliberately, his eyes somewhat unfocused.

I picked up the cup and took a sip of hot coffee, but it seemed I had misjudged the heat, and I stuck out my tongue because I was burned... just like a cute little kitten.

"What decisions will be made if the operational objectives are successfully achieved and not successfully achieved?" Xia Ya continued to press.

"If the operational objectives are achieved, then we will conduct additional sweeps of resisting armored targets before the troops' ammunition and propellant reach their critical point."

"If we run out of ammunition and propellant and the objective cannot be achieved... then we should retreat to the rear of the battle line to report on the strike situation and adjust the next attack."

“Ammunition…aren’t there still melee weapons?” Char recalled his experience in space battles.

When you run out of ammo, just grab the thermal axe and start hacking.

Haiwen understood his thoughts, "You want to use a thermal axe to cut down a Type 61 tank? That's a very dangerous move... It means you have to actively lower the MS's torso height, which would prevent you from taking advantage of the MS's top armor attack capability."

"Can't I just kick or stomp on it?" Xia scratched his head.

"Please don't use the methods used in space warfare to kick fighter jets and mobile suits... to kick or stomp on these tens of tons of iron turtles on the ground. It will drive the maintenance crew into a frenzy."

"Thanks for reminding."

Char thought to himself that if the other party hadn't said it, he really would have liked to kick the tank with his Zaku.

“From a holistic perspective, we are the first wave. The second and third waves of MS forces will also launch attacks successively. While other waves of attacks are taking place, we will prepare to replenish ammunition, rest for an hour, and then return to the battlefield. This cycle will continue until the mission is completed.” Haiwen continued, “This is the idea behind large-scale MS ambush operations.”

Char understood; wasn't that just a war of attrition?

Although the logic of naval warfare differs from that of space warfare, the logic of MS land warfare might be surprisingly simple.

However, this tactic is quite extravagant; it's only feasible if you have more than a few MS squadrons (over 100 units) in a short period of time...

Seeing that Xia Ya didn't press the matter further, Haiwen thought to himself that he had finally gotten away with it.

In fact, thanks to the elder brother's efforts, there were still ways to conduct command and communication even in an environment with a high concentration of Minovsky particles.

However, in order to achieve complete secrecy during the final battle... black swan events such as the capture of intelligence personnel and pilots should not occur.

Major General Song Ren was instructed to train only armored company commanders of the North American and European Fronts on the use of [that equipment].

After completing their training, these officers remained in the Crimean Peninsula, where the "final battle modifications" of the Type 79 tanks were secretly carried out.

He was only recently allowed to return to his unit to teach platoon-level officers how to use the new equipment... The command of his combat unit was being acted by the deputy platoon leader, and it would only be made public to the armored deputy platoon leader a week before the counterattack. By then, even if the Federation knew, it would be too late.

It was still for the sake of secrecy.

The purpose was to play this decisive trump card when the land battle reached its climax.

After the 5th Army finished its rest and reorganization, night had completely fallen over the Caucasus region, and the various units turned on their lights to prepare for the night's march.

The drowsiness that comes after eating cannot be completely eliminated, especially after continuous marching through mountains and valleys all night, negative emotions will gradually amplify.

The federal mechanized torrent forces continued their advance along the roads.

Three Cartier transport planes flew low over the middle of the road, each equipped with three GMs... The Federation's mass-produced mobile suits will be officially put into use in this battle.

"Instructor Amada, should I say I'm a little nervous? I have a bad feeling about this."

Sergeant Sanders, a ground-type Gundam pilot with Native American ancestry, speaks in the team's communication system.

"Sandas, are you still bothered by the rumors about 'Death'?"

“We survived such a difficult mission last time. You are an ace who shot down 5 Zakus, not some grim reaper who brings death to your teammates.”

Shirou Amada, from the Space Force, is an instructor sent by Luna II to guide ground troops in using mobile suits for combat. Shirou actively sought out this option, which allows him to accumulate various military merits on the ground.

"Didn't Lieutenant Colonel Kojima instruct us that this time we're operating with the main force, and all we need to do is cooperate with our allies? He also told us not to stand out too much and that we wouldn't be in any danger?"

Sergeant Karen's indifferent voice came through the voice screen.

In addition to Shiro Amada's RX-79 [G], two Ground Type Gundams from the 08th MS Team of the Southeast Asian Mechanized Mixed Battalion were also temporarily incorporated into the 5th Army.

Since it was not a rainforest guerrilla war but a fortress assault, the squad originally assigned to carry out intelligence and reconnaissance missions, along with the Type 74 air-cushion truck driver Corporal Eretol and Michel, did not accompany them.

The mission of MS units, besides cooperating with friendly forces in combat, is simply to collect more combat data.

boom! boom! boom!

The ground trembled slowly and deeply, followed by a series of sharp popping sounds from the surrounding mountainsides, but no sparks were produced.

"what happened?"

"An earthquake?"

Almost simultaneously, the three-person MS team looked in the direction from which the vibration came.

The nearby federal allies immediately fired flashbangs, illuminating the area, but there was no missile attack from the enemy guerrillas as expected. Public communication channels were filled with static.

Shirou was the first to notice the anomaly: the Minovsky particle distribution.

"Prepare for Level 1 combat readiness."

"Yes."

Sandas and Kallen of the squad responded, and the Ground Type Gundams activated the safety devices on their weapons.

Meanwhile, Shiro Amada, the commander, had already skillfully used laser communication to call a familiar colleague in the forward troops, realizing that the danger might be greater than he had imagined.

"The land foundation of the bridge ahead has been blown up. It was a pre-planted explosive. Lieutenant Nick, let's get on the transport plane and go check it out."

The RX-79 Gundam reached out and touched the transport plane, making communication easier and eliminating the noisy signal.

"Lieutenant Amada, there are no relevant orders yet."

“We can’t wait at a time like this. Our situation is very dangerous. I’ll take responsibility for taking action on our own.” Amada Shirou’s tone became much more serious.

Shirou's maturity, despite his young age, stemmed from his combat experience, which led the lieutenant piloting the transport plane to believe him.

The Media transport plane took off without authorization amid the astonished gazes of its allies.

Before the friendly forces could question them about why they had abandoned their posts... the next moment, dust storms several meters high erupted on both sides of the marching road, and unlucky tanks were destroyed in the explosions, while countless armored vehicles were brought to a standstill by the impact of their road wheels and tracks before they could even participate in combat.

Then, countless meteor showers flashed across the night sky, covering the roads and surrounding areas where the Federation was located, while explosions and flames roared and reaped death.

The 5th Army, which was in marching formation, did not make any defensive preparations and suffered countless casualties in a short time.

"Where did the attack come from?"

"...Northwest?"

Shirou Amada couldn't bear to watch the chaos below. He used the onboard computer to calculate the trajectory of the 'meteor' and finally figured out where the enemy had launched their attack from.

This is a rocket launcher fired from Kerch, Crimea, a city in enemy-occupied territory!

With a high concentration of Minovsky particles dispersed... how could it hit a target over 300 kilometers away?

Chapter 118 Engineer-Mentor

In a suburb outside Kerch City, a total of 600 rocket launcher transport vehicles are scattered across a field area of ​​several hundred acres.

After angrily spewing flames into the night sky, the rocket launcher transport vehicle immediately drove away from the launch site.

Although the Federation's European air force is unlikely to launch an attack immediately at this moment.

However, long-term air defense training has instilled a habit in the commanders of the rocket artillery transport squads.

"General, do you think the Federation's 5th Army can be completely crushed by this wave of firepower?"

Inside the jeep, Barney, sitting in the driver's seat, looked to his right at Major General Song Ren.

The other person is looking at an electronic map in their hand.

"Even if there is still a chance to resist, it can't escape the war trampling of the MS forces. I want to save some rockets... These things are too expensive and their firepower duration is too short."

Song Ren folded the map. "You were recently transferred to the Development Department of the Deep Space Industrial Equipment Division. How's it going?"

“It’s much tougher than in the military,” Barney laughed. “But I can really feel myself growing, and choosing to stay on your committee is probably the best decision I’ve ever made.”

Barney recalled his experience at the 101st Division and found it all very surreal.

At first, he thought it was just a direct organization set up by Lord Kalmar, like the Kycilia Agency or the Kylian Commander's personal guard.

But Your Excellency did not actually form it as a personal guard.