ComStar Historical Archives

Baxter Arbuthnot rose to command of Epsilon Regiment of Wolf's Dragoons upon the death, on 22 June 3019, of its commanding officer, Colonel Harold Jones. Col. Jones fell during the Thirteenth Battle of Hesperus II, when the defending Lyrans bombarded Epsilon's position. Arbuthnot quickly stepped in to fill the void and was later rewarded with permanent command of Epsilon and a promotion to Colonel.

Though he did not match the traditional view of what a MechWarrior should look like, with his frail frame and thinning hair, Arbuthnot was known throughout his unit as an easy-going, though no-nonsense commander. Soft-spoken at most times, he could suddenly fly into a rage when pushed too far. His tolerance was high, however, as evidenced by his calm acceptance of the trials and tribulations experienced by Epsilon at the hands of their Kurita employers in the years leading up to the Fourth Succession War. His officers respected Arbuthnot's temper and gave him little cause to display it, carrying out his orders swiftly and dutifully. His temper could be displayed in his personal life as well, as in the strained relationship Arbuthnot maintained with his brother-in-law, Captain Tony Ziulkovski of Beta Regiment.

In late 3022, the Dragoons signed on with the Draconis Combine and Epsilon Regiment was assigned to garrison the world of Thestria. Epsilon fought alongside the Black Widows on Hoff in April and May of 3023, where they faced a Federated Suns force that included the Eridani Light Horse. Within a few years, though, relations with their Combine employers had deteriorated to the point where elements within the DCMS hierarchy were actively interfering with the ability of the Dragoons to perform their duties. For Baxter Arbuthnot, this campaign of harassment came to a head in two incidents involving his command.

The first incident, which occurred in early 3025, involved a raid on Thestria by the 1st Chisholm Raiders, during which they managed to completely outwit Epsilon and get away with a large assortment of spare parts and equipment. Though Epsilon and Verhoffen's Support Battalion fought well, they were largely ineffective againt the Raiders, who lifted off from Thestria with few casualties. In the aftermath of this embarrassing incident, Colonel Arbuthnot exhibited his well-known capacity for anger and made loud accusations that the Davion forces must have been privy to details of his unit's deployment that they should not have known. Despite their precautions, the Dragoons either had a spy in their ranks or their employers were possibly selling them out.

Epsilon, and Baxter in particular, came under fire the next year while suppressing rebel activity on the Combine world of Kawabe. Exactly what happened is unclear, but the unfortunate deaths of a number of civilians was enough for Warlord Samsonov to tag Arbuthnot with the label "the Butcher of Kawabe" and demand that he be turned over to the Coordinator for justice. Jaime Wolf, of course, disputed the facts in this case and Arbuthnot was not turned over, but the Combine public, already predisposed to distrust mercenaries, believed the propaganda disseminated by Samsonov and his agents. The morale of the unit, especially that of Epsilon Regiment, which along with Natasha Kerensky and her Black Widows bore the brunt of the Kuritan antipathy, began to suffer. Despite the fact that his command seemed to be the target of the most interference from Samsonov, Arbuthnot managed to somehow maintain a calm demeanor, assuring his troops that they would get their chance for revenge later.

The entire Inner Sphere knows that the revenge exacted by the Dragoons on their former employers began on a cold world named Misery, where the might of all five regiments came to bear on the soldiers of the Ryuken and three other units. In this horrific battle, which lasted almost a month, the Dragoon regiments were devastated by high losses, but managed in the end to inflict greater damage on the Combine forces and defeat their opponents. Epsilon spearheaded the final battle on Misery when they broke through Kurita positions in the Trolfjel Highlands and destroyed a large number of Ryuken 'Mechs.

After the devastating battles on Misery, Wolf's Dragoons did not rest, instead plunging back into the newly-launched Fourth Succession War in defense of the Federated Suns' border with the Combine. Baxter Arbuthnot and his Epsilon Regiment were assigned to the world of Harrow's Sun, along with Wilhemina Korsht's Gamma, and set up defensive positions at Fort Belvoir, the local AFFS base. On 12 September 3028, the 8th Galedon Regulars arrived on Harrow's Sun and immediately fell under harassment by several Gamma companies. However, eventually the Kuritans were able to rally their superior numbers and push the Dragoons back behind the fortifications they had constructed around Fort Belvoir. Constant pressure from the Regulars forced the Dragoons to abandon the first ring of their defenses by early February 3029. However, the Combine forces could not take full advantage of their numbers and were contiually foiled by the determined defenders. By the end of April, Combine General Nicholas Victor ordered the construction of tunnels beneath the Dragoons' defenses. Though the defenders discovered the tunnels on 25 June, they were sufficiently advanced, even with the destruction of one tunnel, that enough Combine infantry were able to get inside the defensive walls to wipe out the militia garrison and seize the high ground. Now faced with enemy troops behind them, the Dragoons turned to face this new attack just as the 8th Galedon chose that moment to launch another assault against the Dragoon defenses.

The ensuing battle was vicious, eventually deteriorating into hand-to-hand 'Mech combat amid the rubble when the Dragoons ran out of ammunition. During the battle, all of Epsilon's senior commanders were killed. Baxter Arbuthnot went down with his regiment, falling to an ambush during the street fighting. The survivors of Epsilon and Gamma were led offworld by Colonel Korsht and rendezvoused with the survivors of the other Dragoon regiments on Crossing, where they would have their final showdown with the Draconis Combine.

• Sources Used:
• NAIS 4th Succession War Military Atlas Vol. 1;
• NAIS 4th Succession War Military Atlas Vol. 2;
• Wolf's Dragoons Sourcebook;
• Wolves on the Border