TexMechs – The Home of the Royal Dragoon Guards

Captain Hugh Craig III, MDS Rorke’s Drift

Hugh Craig served in the Federated Suns Navy from 3020-3030, mustering out when his DropShip, HHDS Rorke’s Drift, was unexpectedly decommissioned for “unrecoverable maintenance wear”.  Captain Craig and his crew pooled what resources they had and found that with the help of a Lyran holding corporation known as Royal Dragoon Guards GmbH, they would be able to purchase their old vessel in the hopes of keeping her spaceworthy.  Craig’s crew were all released from their AFFS Navy terms and immediately signed on to remain with their beloved vessel.

Captain Craig is well liked by his crew, he is affable and easygoing unless the crew’s frequent shenanigans get truly out-of-hand.  He is aware of the boredom and rigors of space travel, and goes out of his way to make sure his crew and passengers are entertained and comfortable – as each combat drop may well be their last.  Craig insists that his crew be able to put on a good show of being a proper Navy crew, even now that they are mercenaries, as he knows that appearance can make or break a concract offer.  

Leftenant Sean Hopper, First Lieutenant/Navigator

  Mister Hopper began his carrer aboard freighters at the age of 13, working his way up from deckhand to cargo master, then sitting for the merchant marine deck exam.  After becoming a certified watch officer, he was offered a reserve commission by the AFFS Navy, which he eagerly accepted in anticipation of extra pay.  When the Fourth War broke out, he found himself on the active rolls and assigned as Captain Craig’s executive officer.  An approachable and friendly officer, Hopper lacks his captain’s military background, but definitely has the “old salt” experience of being a spacer for twenty years.

Leftenant John “Johnny” Colla, Engineer

    Often crawling deep inside the Rorke’s Drift‘s massive V250 main drive, Mister Colla is the man the crew often looks to as a barometer of how serious a situation is.  In a normal operation, Colla watches over his engines from the engineer’s station on the bridge.  If things are in doubt, he will be down in the engine spaces taking personal charge of goings-on with a spanner and swift boot to his engineers’ backsides.  Colla has said he can’t rememeber a time before he was an engineer, and isn’t sure he wants to.  He’s also possibly the only crewmember aboard who actually finds the inevitable smell of the ship’s air circulation “homey”.

Ensign William Gibson, Cargo Master

  Mister Gibson is the youngest officer on the Rorke’s Drift at 25.  Pulled out of his plebe year at the Naval Academy of Robinson and rushed into service on the eve of the Fourth War, Gibson served as a midshipman aboard a fighter carrier before being made a brevet ensign and transferring aboard the Rorke’s Drift as Cargo Master.  He refers to himself as “Bombardier” due to his duties as the one who plots and executes BattleMech drops.  Gibson is a bit frustrated that he never earned an official commission with the AFFS Navy, but his mercenary commission on the Drift shows him that his Captain and his crew have confidence in him. 

Chief Boatswain’s Mate Mario Cipollina, Bosun

  Chief Cipollina is the senior non-commissioned officer aboard, and helps keep the crewmen and MechWarrior passengers (who he refers to as “cargo”) in line.  A veteran of the Third Succession War (some of the crew say the First and Second as well), the Chief is quite at home under battle acceleration, null gravity, or any other situation aboard ship that makes the “cargo” feel awkward.  The Chief is fatherly to his small band of crewmen, making sure they’re well taken care of.

Senior Cook Alfred “Opa” Apfel

  The oldest member of the crew at 65, “Opa” is also the only member of the regular crew who is not a Davion expatriate.  Hailing from the Lyran Commonwealth, “Opa” brings a knowledge of culinary traditions that spans the Inner Sphere.  Meticulous about hiding away foodstuffs to break out when morale is low, or on a long journey, “Opa” insists on doing the ship’s shopping and provisioning himself and loathes any time where the crew must be served pre-packed rations.  “Opa” would rather make and hand-deliver sandwiches during battle maneuvers than force the crew to eat something in a foil or plastic baggie.

The Engineering Watch

• First Engineer Ross Castronovo
• Second Engineer Neal Cain
• Drive Hand Jonathan Schon
• Drive Hand Deen Valory

The Deck Watch

• Quartermaster Arthur Pineda
• Able Spacehand Steven Lynne 
• Able Spacehand Jeff Perry
• Able Spacehand Paul Harrison