Battle of Mars

From Beyond the Frontier
Battle of Mars
Conflict: War of Secession
Date: April of 2029 - January of 2030
Location: Mars, Sol System
Outcome: Initiative Victory
Aftermath: Earth fleet forced to retreat to Earth, remaining UN forces isolated & eventually destroyed
Combatants
The Initiative United Nations
Commanders
Strength
3 Battleships
6 Cruisers
11 Destroyers
8 Frigates
1st & 2nd Infantry Regiments
Support vessels
4 Cruisers
3 Destroyers
2 UN Regiments
Support vessels
Casualties
2 Battleships (damaged)
1 cruiser (damaged)
2 frigates (damaged)
2nd Infantry Regiment partially wiped out
1 cruiser (damaged)
3 destroyers (damaged)
2 UN Regiments
Civilian Casualties: 2,000 UN Colonists
Similar Events
Concurrent To: War of Secession (Various Skirmishes)
Followed By: Battle of Luna
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The Battle of Mars refers to a ten-month long campaign across Mars, as well as in orbit above Mars. This campaign would result in the isolation, and eventual destruction, of the nascent Mars colony established by the United Nations, preventing it from serving as a staging base for extrasolar campaigns against The Initiative.

History

Noticing that many of the Initiative's vessels passed into or near Martian and Lunar orbits, the United Nations opposition to the Initiative sought to establish a garrison force on both solar bodies. While much of the Initiative's fleet was occupied in various skirmishes, the UN rushed a contingent of civilian construction teams and soldiers to guard them to Mars with a small escort. The Initiative countered by establishing an orbital blockade, but not before the UN had managed to land over two thousand civilian engineers, scientists, and miners on Mars, and an accompanying two regiments to guard them during their efforts to create a colony to support the fleet's forward deployments.

Unwilling to resort to indiscriminate orbital bombardment, a bluff which the UN called fairly early on into the campaign, the Initiative deployed two regiments onto the surface of Mars, with the express orders of digging out the entrenched UN forces.