14 August, 3061
Mission 1: Base Attack (Attacker) -
Result: Victory - +2 to contract score
After-Action Report: Taking an immediate mission prior to landing, the Lyrans ordered to attack a lunar base with their own units in tow. Our obejctive was to take out 2 buildings to allow for the rest of our unit to land. We all dropped off as close to base as possible. Pilum, being new to the unit and worried his pilots would die from breach, struggled to land with the Firestarter. Fury and Jazz began to take point against active units, while the rest of Alpha and Bravo worked on taking pot shots on "inactive" units. Our bird tried to take out enemy ECM on a Puma, missing the location that had the equipment. Paladin and Lancer began to look for these buildings in question, finding one early on. Lancers sunder went to scan for buildings in the West, only to take a bunch of fire from the turrets and forced a lucky breach in the Crab and breaching both legs in Crusader before returning to the center. Foil pushed up the West to hold a few of their IS chassis back as best as possible, ended up losing a leg on a Dragon, which led to a strategic fall back.
Pilum began to work on building demolition, while Paladin did his best to support the lance. Lancer newly acquired bondsman got a big eager and pushed ahead hard, losing 2 leg actuators before retreating. Fury and Jazz began to slowly push West as numbers in the East began to fell. The battle in the center began to heat up as the opposing units numbers started to rise from units that came from the North. When forces began to push into the South, they heavily ganged up on Paladin Actual, overwhelming his Marauder II in the end. We struggled to find the second building for a bit as they began to chip away at us. Fury's No-dachi helping to clean up once again with the central units. Turrets all routed at this time. Fenris ended up getting far enough back to help rout the lone Black Lanner.
As Paladin, Foil, and Pilum worked on destroying buildings, Lancers units began to help with the 2nd building. The Battle Armor team that came with Lancer started to be harassed by a Nova. With luck, the team was able to take down the unit, suffering 3 losses in the entire lance. enemy forces began to break through the West and started to cripple Pilum when Lancer began to back up the lances. In an attempt to take out a Kingfisher, a Sunder from Lancer pushed up close by, but had a Mad Cat support him. Lucky shots from the Kingfisher ended up breaching the Sunder, killing the pilot in the process. This harsh terrain has left us weakened for a short time, with minimal lost equipment and casualties, we were able to drop the required units and buildings at the last second, securing the base. Lets not have to do this again, if able.
14 August, 3061
Mission 2: Breakthrough (Attacker) -
Result: Victory - +2 to contract score
After-Action Report: 2nd Rangers Charlie and Delta companies hot dropped into a ruined town that had not recovered from the initial Jade Falcon planetary assault back in '50, not far from where the 1st Rangers left Somerset. The Objective was to break through the Jade Falcon lines to establish a forward operating base from which to further harrass the Clan. Ranger forces were support by a brave lance of Lyrans in Blitzkriegs and the liaison officer, the formidable Captain Anne Cockburn in her Nightstar.
Ehreschuld, Fire and Marigold landed east / center east and pushed for the forces that had taken up positions in the urban zone to the east of the ruined fortifications as well as the fortifications themselves. Norbotten and Blitzkrieg landed center west while Zeta and the Lyran Blitzkriegs took the western drop zone, with the west / center west forces lateraling eastward, seeking to use the buildings as a screen against the approaching reinforcements and into the softer medium star anchored by the Viper and Phoenix Hawk IIC. Perhaps anticipating the easier breakthrough point to the west, the Jade Falcons deployed their assault star there anticipating being an anvil with more assaults reinforcing from the west and the faster elements moving in from the east. Alas, for them at least, not the case. While Ranger forces lateraled east, so did the medium star to reinforce the heavy star that came under concentrated fire from first Ehreschuld and Captain Cockburn and rapidly by Fire and Marigold. The ARC-LIGHT's early deployment further withered the eastern defender's numbers blowing the leg off a Loki and vaporizing a point of elementals. Focus fire brought down the various turrets, though a miscommunication between myself and Marigold Actual left the southeastern most ER PPC turret functional a bit longer than necessary. The only things that could have gone much better in the east would have been to avoid the unlucky strike against the good Captain's Nightstar, signficantly compromising both it's engine and gyro despite enough remaining armor to make a light mech pilot weep for want. Already slow and having gotten slower, it was unable to escape the clan elementals or concentrated fire from the Thor's deadly UAC/20 despite Ehreschuld's attempts to draw fire. The combined efforts of Ehreschuld, Fire and Marigold broke through the Jade Falcon forces. The rest of the Rangers however struggled, as it became two smaller engagements.
The strategy for the Rangers using the buildings as cover worked initially until the Falcons with no care for civilian lives simply started dropping buildings with combined fire in order to get to the other Ranger lances. SGT Patton of Blitzkrieg's lance accepted a duel with a Turkina and then kept a running engagement as a way to survive it, while one of the Lyran Blitzkriegs was challenged by a Thor and sadly lost. The willingness to simply level anything that got in their way put the Ranger and allied forces in the west on their back foot. They attempted another lateral to take advantage of the screening of the buildings but the delays put them out of position and the Falcons were too quick in burning down buildings to get to their opponents. The second ARC-LIGHT run along with the bombings helped, but not sufficient to sway the outcome. In the end both Blitzkrieg and Norbotten lances sustained heavy damage. MSGT Trick in Ehreschuld's Marauder took focus fire from the Falcons in their pique for having lost the engagement, losing both arms, side torsos and almost completely cored out just before they disengaged.
Success through a difficult fight, though not without its cost.
3 September, 3061
Solo Mission: Fury - Ace Duel
Result: Victory - no effect on contract score
After-Action Report: Newly-assigned LT SG Elsa Ward found herself called out, by name, by an aggressive Jade Falcon Bloodnamed pilot. Even though she now served with the Numenorean Rangers, and not Clan Wolf, she still felt honor-bound to accept the challenge for a duel. A quick radio conversation settled the boundaries of an impromptu Circle of Equals; an idyllic valley, with a large lake under the shadow of a forested hill. She wasn't sure if accepting such a duel was inside the approved rules of engagement for her new command, but she figured she'd win the duel first and bother informing HQ about it afterwards, couched by the good news of her inevitable victory. She was only fighting a Jade Falcon, after all.
The enemy Night Gyr made a conventional entry onto the battlefield, utilizing the only cover available, taking up a forward-slope position inside a small copse of trees. It's centralized position gave away nothing of its pilot's plans, and so Elsa jumped forward to a sheltered position, using a tall hill to block mutual line of fire. With the heavy storm battering the area, along with both Mechs, she didn't want to enter into a general medium-range engagement. The enemy Mech carried greater throw-weight (though the wind gusts would make the enemy's ballistic-heavy armament less accurate), more structure, and more armor, and she would lose a straight shootout. She needed to hold the range open where her long-range lasers could pick apart the enemy, or else take her chances with a point-blank fight.
The Night Gyr committed to its left, moving along the lake edge, and thusly Elsa shifted her Viper to the left, holding open the distance and jetting from cover to cover where the woods grew denser. Autocannon and Gauss Rifle fire rained about her, mixing with the falling raindrops, but only a single autocannon burst made significant contact with her Mech. Her return laser fire hit more often than not, all but stripping the Night Gyr's left leg of protection. Both Mechs wavered in the gusting wind, but neither Mech overbalanced and fell to the earth. The Falcon pilot was canny and cautious, holding open the range and not committing to a charge into close range. Both Mechs sparred back and forth, but Elsa drove the pace of the battle, closing and running her Mech warm while firing her three primary lasers, before falling back into denser woods to cool off. The Night Gyr maintained its own discipline, raining down ballistic ammunition to the limit of its loaders, but always holding the range open and never letting Elsa exploit her jump capability to close for a decisive salvo. Elsa kept trying to put more fire into the Night Gyr's damaged leg, but was stymied by the enemy's repeated lucky breaks that always put the leg out of reach at a critical moment.
Then the Night Gyr planted itself on top of a hill in heavy woods and took careful aim. Not wanting to be in the enemy Mech's short range, Elsa jumped backwards, out of cover, to open the range. She sensed that the Night Gyr was going to fire this salvo, and then close in, and she wanted to be near the hill overlooking the valley for that phase of the engagement. Unfortunately, her Viper couldn't quite jump far enough, and she was left out in the open. The Night Gyr's salvo rocked her Viper, driving deep into the Mech's right arm internals, and practically stripping away all the armor from the entirety of the Viper's torso. Her Mech would be unable to repel further firepower of that magnitude, and she needed to end the fight quickly.
Her instincts proved correct, however, and the Night Gyr closed forward, leaping into a forest nearby. Elsa briefly considered breaking contact behind the hill - however dishonorable that might be - when in a flash of inspiration she saw the possibility. She jumped *forward*, into close range. Through the trees, she could barely see her enemy, but she knew where the Night Gyr had to be; and through all of the trees, and the raised terrain she sheltered behind, she was betting the Night Gyr could barely see her, either. And then, there it was: the Night Gyr, shifting around to get a good line of fire, exposed its damaged leg. Elsa let fly with every forward-facing weapon on her Mech, and damned the heat that slammed into her as if hitting a wall. The heavy laser in her Mechs right arm flashed a purple beam that would have taken the Night Gyr's head off, were it not for a falling tree, snapped off at that moment by the storm, which took the blow, vaporizing with a sharp crack of superheated steam. The overheat alarm warbled in her cockpit, and she barely overrode it in time before a safety-mandated shutdown, but it was enough. The Night Gyr was down, missing a leg, with engine coolant leaking from both side torsos, and the enemy pilot slowly climbing from the cockpit ladder of her shut-down machine. Elsa flicked on the searchlight and pinned the enemy MechWarrior in its glare, and over the loudspeaker gave the enemy MechWarrior notice: "I take you prisoner in the name of the Numenorean Rangers."
4 September, 3061
Solo Mission: Lancer - Probe (Defender)
Result: Loss - no effect on contract score
After-Action Report: Lancer holding the line when a binary of mechs came into view. A star coming in from both the East and West. Slowly losing the edge during the game, Lancer started to fumble right from the start. Taking heavy hits from the Stormcrows Ultra, the mechs began to lose too much armor fast, while the liason helped in the West to work on enemy Kit Fox. Lancer new pilot worked valiantly to take it down, but got overwhelmed and taken out early on, taking out the Kit Fox with it. Sentinel decided to punch out after a possible jam. Holmes in one of Lancers Lokis tried to land many shots, but was struggling to make a target, ended up being dropped as well. Mayer and Conner fought desperately to get the win, and ended up also having the COs Night Gyr falling in the end as well. The Falcons let the Bondsman go, knowing the shame of this utter defeat.
7 September, 3061
Solo Mission: Ereschuld - Probe (Defender)
Result: Victory - no effect on contract score
After-Action Report: While out on patrol we came across a binary of Clan forces that was moving into our operations zone, likely looking for us. Heavy rain and fading light made things challenging. I deployed my lance to come up over the northwest hill and started sniping at the slowly advancing forces. Apparently unaccustomed to resistance the Falcon forces probed, maneuvered and pulled back all while remaining largely within the southwest portion of the OZ. Price and I quickly took out the Uller, before following up shortly after with dropping the Loki having cooked off a couple ammo bins. As they seemed more cautious than many of their ilk I pressed forward with Rosado's Grasshopper and Lee's Cauldron-Born jumping into their midst, inflicting damage and pulling out, taking minimal damage in return. The environmental conditions working in our favor.
It was about this time that a star's worth of reinforcements showed up and they started advancing though cautiously. We made them pay for it dropping the Cougar through focused fire and with Trick blowing the head off the Puma. That ended up killing two pilots as it had picked up the Cougar's pilot just before. The ferocity of the attack and pulling back into a line coincided with night falling. There may have been a full moon out, but it was hazy light through the heavy rain. Shots even at close range didn't hit often given terrain and movement. Their second Loki turned a search light on initially focusing on our Cauldron-Born before switching to Trick's Marauder that had been hidden in the woodline and simply sniping from there. It was dense enough to limit sight and contact against the southwest most forces. Knowing the spotlight could cause us serious problems I ordered the team to burn that Loki down and down it went with me finishing that one off as well. Perhaps incensed by our success and the limited amount of damage taken, they pushed at us in earnest.
They would eventually wash over us, but by then their line was broken. It devolved into smaller close engagements and duels, it being too hard to target to focus too much. The liaison officer we'd kept safe behind the hill until they came over it. While Melanokos took some damage, he dished it out too, legging the Dasher. Which Lee closed on and finished off. I ran down the Stormcrow managing to charge it once successfully, and we'd opened structure on it. He fled, trying to get away from me by running into the river which of course was a mass of rapids. It swept the Stormcrow off its feet and he drowned. The mech was salvageable at least. The Koshi was the first to break from our engagement through the northern edge of the OZ with the remainder of their forces attempting to do likewise.
In the end we took down a Thor, 2 Lokis, Uller, Puma, Dasher and Hunchback IIC. The Ryoken died fleeing, no clear kill there. Rosado's Grasshopper saw the worst of it with some gyro and engine damage, as well as a hand and medium laser to replace not to mention a three areas of structural damage. The ER LL was damaged, but repairable. Otherwise Trick's Marauder took some structural damage to it's left arm but the rest is just armor across the board. Lee got a bit scraped up and I've sent her over to the Doc to get checked out. Wouldn't surprise me if she's cleared for duty tomorrow.
All in all, a good days work and nice to be able to give a bit of payback to the clans for what they've done to my family and the Commonwealth.
8 September, 3061
Mission 3: Recon Raid 2 (Attacker) - Foil, Jazz, Lancer, Fury, Pilum
Result: Victory - +2 to contract score
After-Action Report:
Bravo Company, along with Alpha, were tasked on collecting cargo from an undisclosed building in what appeared to be an abandoned city that our employer wanted to keep intact. Lancer, Fury, and Jazz in the South, with Zeta and Foil in the North. Getting a head start, we were able to scan a few buildings before enemy forces were able to plan a strategy. To protect the extraction of the cargo, we laid down some smoke that helped ensure getting the minimum amount out by the end of the scuffle. During this time, a turret of theirs laying down artillery fire was erratic, damaging buildings and units alike the entire time. ASF forces failed to take out the artillery turret due to cover they had planned out, forcing Lancer to take it out near the end of the encounter. Very little fire occurred in the beginning, but Lancer lost Battle Armor to a shell that veered off course.
Paladin, coming in late to the party, was able to secure the first load with a LAM that got into smoke fire and taking pot shots at range. At this point, the artillery fire slowly cleared our smoke, but somehow left the hexes required to take containers from. An assault Star came out of nowhere in the SE that just stayed in that general area, scuffling with Jazz and Fury. Foil was having issues with the Owens, realizing that the techs forgot to fill its pod space. Lancers Battlemaster was able to secure a container, but immediately became a target and almost got downed after trying to retreat to exfil. Fury's No-Dachi dropped a mech before picking up its own container, asking for a bombing run on the infantry that laid under his mech, while a Demolisher kept in the smoke to cover for mechs in vicinity. Fearing the loss of one demolisher, the team shut down to avoid taking more fire, but took out the leg of a black lanner beforehand. Foils Grand Dragon got overwhelmed in the center and was the first mech casualty.
Enemy units began to push towards our line from the center, working on units trying to steal containers. All turrets were taken down at this point, not without the erratic shells dealing damage to its own forces. Paladin was able to secure another 5 tons with Nova, and a 2nd helping with the LAM while enemy forces still targeted the poor Battlemaster just doing his best. Both Thors just wrecking havoc behind our line, while Fury and Jazz slowly got back to the center. The Assault star still just sitting in that corner. Lancer helping clear some of the smaller enemies to try and push them back, while the rest of the unit held onto cargo or ensured the movement of those with cargo til the end of the fight.
In a panic, Mayer was in a daze trying to get our units out, tripped after light fire from a Thor that was harassing him for a bit at the time, while Trueborn Conners took out mechs, cleaning as much as possible. Jazz's Stormcrow fell. Knowing that we got our minimum amount needed, we ended up in a retreat. During this time, a Nova got a lucky shot, hitting the gauss on Mayers Thunder Hawk, tossing him out the mech, and losing it in the end. Do not think this mission was worth what we got out, but we shall see. Mayer was caught by Judi's BA team that was hidden inside the Maxim before its destruction, secured for evac.
29 September, 3061
Mission 4: Extraction (Defender) - Fire, Norbotten, Pilum, Zeta
Result: Victory - +2 to contract score
After-Action Report: Ranger forces were tasked to interdict logistical transports and escorts. Data gave Ranger forces time for transport, refit, deployment. However geological data was not entirely as expected forcing decisions that delayed positioning and impacted the battle.
Rangers deployed heavily center / center West. Once eyes were on the terrain the variables changed. One split second change to be made but noticed to late. Clan deployment of the northern hills strong point was as expected but not seeing a large force also set on strong pointing a hill formation in the East. Fire lance was deployed a fraction out of place in center. Norbotten and Zeta were deployed forward to East. Intent being a blocking and occupation force on the hill strong point. Expecting screening and terrain cover this would open lanes of fire to the artillery if needed as well as isolate the flank. Expecting to isolate focus down and move on before clan reinforcements arrived was ideally the expectation.
Clan forces deployed as a picket and shifted into a reverse wedge once Ranger reinforcements arrived. Logistical forces being spread to the rear of the Ranger lines a known variable forced Pillum to be deployed as asset denial. Secondary Ranger reinforcements would push to.reinforce the line mopping up logistical and reinforcements as they came forward.
As is true no plan survives contact and even more so when there is no true plan. This being largely on the go small variables compound and eventually force either preemptive moves or reactive action.
Clan units would take the initiative through aggression even when the initiative was squarely with the Rangers. Norbotten and Zeta as ordered attempted to isolate and focus down units but just could not follow through. Fire sent preparatory fire downrange attempting to open anything it could see. This serving to hopefully allow easier mop up on the following cycles. As intended Ranger ASF made their runs in the artillery turrets and although damaged would knock out the turrets. This would be the only thing to go according to plan.
Rangers hearing damage assessment on the first volley were ordered to rotate armor and screen positional using the terrain. Aggression on the Rangers end did not result in a tactical advantage like it did for the clan side. Ranger forces did not perform to expectation and not due to lack of intent. This was to be a bad day with bad luck for the Rangers.
A clan hellbringer and lone mackie would trigger the dominoes. The Mackie would take on an entire lance and pretty much withstand until Ranger reinforcements came in but even still took needed time. Pillum would be removed from the greater fight the entire battle while taking significant damage. Jazz would reinforce from the south helping to mop up, tie up additional clan forces. Paladin would insert to the east in an effort to pin and kill secondary forces. This would take Paladin out of the larger fight the remainder of the mission.
Norbotten and Jazz would engage in close fighting. Fire would continue to hammer, position and try to draw fire. The hellbringer would go critical in the close end fighting severely damaging multiple Ranger mechs. Shortly followed by outright destruction of Zeta CO Yu Huang. His Warhammer would shut down to avoid damage and preservation shortly after. Norbotten would be ordered to pull back with Pillum. Fire pushing forward presented armor and tried to correct the failing fight. A glimmer of hope came on the final furthest push north..
Norbotten and Fire would combine to drop multiple clan mechs. This would not be without its own issues in the form of return fire. Fire XO would lose half a pristine Dire Wolf on a rear shot popping a gauss rifle but remained operational. Fire 3 would have the near almost entire destruction of his Spartan but somehow was recoverable. Attempting to maintain momentum and screening Fire had pushed forward again. The result as mentioned was not the desired result and Fire lance was largely dropped due to engine shielding destruction. Clan reinforcements would swing further momentum but would be nearly wiped out. Paladin would make a contribution downing a further pair of mechs while also having a unit downed.
The larger bulk of clan forces would finally commit but would be essentially too late to stop destruction of logistical forces. Seeing the resulting destruction of the logistical forces they withdrew. Parting shots would down the engine of Fire actuals Dire Wolf. Ranger objectives were accomplished but at one hell of a price and painful lessons learned.
Guess now I see how Victor felt some years ago...
13 December, 3061
Solo Mission: Star League Cache 2 - Norbotten
Result: Victory - no effect on contract score
After-Action Report in the early hours of 12/31/61, Norrbotten lance was issued the command from Ranger HQ to go out and cause some ruckus.
Breaking off into dedicated pairs and the C3 net broken for the time being, Smyth declared "Rank hath privileges" and reconfigured his Sunder to its normal complement of the LBX20, but swapped its normal laser array out for ones of Clan manufacture - the machine running slightly hotter but nothing unmanageable.
pairing off with Dan Pope in his Warhammer IIC, they found and cornered a Kraken in a bombed out industrial district. Leaving the Warhammer outside on overwatch, Smyth took the Sunder inside and found the Kraken setting up a retrograde ambush. The Kraken unleashed all 10 of its autocannons, holding down the triggers and sanding off a significant amount of armor, but the return fire of laser and autocannon made the Kraken falter, and decided to retrograde into further into the complex. There, rushing in and getting in a few quality hits, and a fortitous autocannon pellet blowing an arm clean off, further sanding of the armor made Jhef realized he had without realizing it, destroyed the head of the Kraken, as it fell to the ground, pilotless.
Scouting around a bit inside the cavern to secure the area, he found a pristine Star League era Rifleman II - it was later determined to be assigned to the 741st Royal Striker Regiment, Echo Company.
14 December, 3061
Mission 5: Base Assault (Attacker) - Paladin, Fury, Ereschuld, Blitzkrieg, Marigold
Result: Victory - +2 to contract score
After-Action Report Deployed against a Jade Falcon force expecting a deployment by Delta Company, base defenses prominently featured Guardian ECM towers to account for IS C3 networks that weren't deployed against them. Instead, the Rangers led by Major Kelswa deployed a broad front against the Falcon line. Fury and the Lyrans deployed in the West to crush and roll up the western flank, taking out key turrets and civilian units. Paladin and Marigold charging up the center to hit the forward deployed elementals and threaten to envelope either Falcon flank if they moved, mostly holding them in place, while Blitzkrieg and Ehreschuld anchored the eastern flank with a goal of taking the ridge and tying up the Assault Nova coming to assist. The eastern flank went smoothly, steady progress being made grind down the OpFor as well as harry and drop civilian forces and turrets. The central forces also succeeded in pinning down and removing deployed forces outside of the elementals, though were tied up a bit doing so. Blitzkrieg and Ehreschuld were successful in helping clear the ridgeline with supporting fire from central forces while keeping the attention of the Assault Nova. Early artillery shots while not as accurate as desired, were able to keep the Falcons moving to avoid becoming easy targets. Concentrated fire from Blitzkrieg and Ehreschuld destroyed an Uller including breaching the containment field on the fusion engine. The resulting explosion took out the heavily damaged Hoplite next to it, also destroying it's containment field and fusion core with further spillover damage in the form of heat and light melting nearly 2T of armor off the Flashman nearby. While brilliant and near blinding, investigation afterwards determined that the Crusader pilot knocked unconscious early in the fight slept and lived through the two nuclear detonations despite his downed mech being within the shockwaves.
After this Paladin and Marigold were able to start moving to support the eastern flank with the Lyrans and Fury having the eastern flank well in hand. Blitzkrieg and Ehreschuld were doing their job, but at a cost taking combined fire from both the Assault Nova and elements of the 2nd Line Star anchored by the Marauder IIC. Ehreschuld's Cauldron-Born was crippled and forced to withdraw to the edge of the OZ, but kept up long range fire. Major Kelswa's pristine Battlemaster took concentrated fire and was forced to shut down after losing 8T of armor in a blink with CT exposed and LT internal. Command was picked up by Paladin's LT Wellston, who is a better tactician and performed well. Ehreschuld's Marauder sacrificed itself to give the Cauldron-Born time to pull out and was successful in breaching the rear armor of the Man O' War, but was cored for its trouble. The Falcons seemed on the edge of turning the eastern front or putting extreme pressure on it when the Rangers bombing runs began, launching 5 simultaneously. While the attack on the Man O' War failed, the others did significant damage to their Marauder IIC, cleared the two Points of Elementals off Blitzkrieg's Avatar and killed two other Points as well. Clearing the threat the armored infantry posed gave the Rangers the space to reinforce and hold.
As the western front moved into mop up mode and more Ranger forces shifted west the fighting in the east continued. Repeated heavy bombings would eventually bring down the Man O' War while concentrated fire from the central and eastern Ranger lances felled the remainder of the key Falcon forces. It is with deepest gratitude and heavy hearts that the Rangers gave a final salute to Smit, highly skilled Mechwarrior and honored comrade who gave his life bringing down the Mad Cat that killed him. As the Rangers finally broke the majority of forces in the west including a couple of Thors destroyed along with the Man O' War, they were able to claim victory and the field.
14 December, 3061
Contract ends with victory
16 December, 3061
Lift-off for Inarcs, Lyran Alliance factory world.
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Topic: Operation IKARUS August 3061 - February 3062 (Read 21688 times)