- Alpha Squadron motto.(src)
Alpha Squadron, also referred to as the "Blood Hawks," is a former Terran Confederate military squadron that later aligned with the Terran Dominion.
Alpha Squadron prided themselves as being the "first group in and first group out" of any hot zone. They had a notorious reputation for lightning quick attacks on unsuspecting enemy encampments. The fatality rating of Alpha Squadron was the lowest amongst the Confederate Armed Forces due to their skill and precision in quick tactical maneuvers.[1]
History[]
Onuru Sigma[]
- Main article: Battle of Noranda Glacier
Captain Edmund Duke of Alpha Squadron brought a unit of Alpha Squadron marines and goliaths to Onuru Sigma. He met with 33rd Ground Assault Division commander Brantigan Fole and promising young captain Arcturus Mengsk. Fole was ordered to combine active squads, and attached the 33rd's Dominion section to Duke's own troops. Duke would hold command authority and would evaluate Dominion section's performance. They were to attack a Kel-Morian Combine-operated mining facility at the Noranda Glacier.
The battle turned into a trap. The dilapidated refinery was a carefully hidden series of strongpoints, and Duke's aggressive tactics resulted in him and his forces being trapped. Mengsk took over command, calling in Wraith fire to strafe the complex before his forces rushed into the complex and rescued Alpha Squadron. The two formations were forced to retreat as a massive Kel-Morian force approached. The Guild Wars were declared as a result of the battle.[2]
Insurgency[]
In 2491,[3] Alpha Squadron members under Duke engaged with the battlecruiser Hyperion, under the command of the newly formed Sons of Korhal rebel group. Those who boarded the craft were repelled and the Norad II was fended off, allowing the rebels to escape.[4]
The Sara System[]
The Sara System
Eight years later, Alpha Squadron was summoned to Chau Sara to deal with an attack by Sons of Korhal insurgents. They were instructed to take no prisoners. There they encountered xenomorphs and Cerberus Recon Squad during the assault.[5] Alpha Squadron found itself following Cerberus' orders and defending the planet from the xenomorphs. Duke himself led Alpha Squadron in its defense of the city of Los Andares, fighting from a siege tank. They successfully defended the city and were then ordered to attack the main xenomorph hive cluster in the planet. The attack was a success.[6] However, these efforts only delayed the inevitable and could not stop the zerg taking control of the planet.
After the incineration of Chau Sara, Alpha Squadron made a clumsy counterattack against the protoss fleet to defend Mar Sara. However, they did not engage the protoss, as Executor Tassadar withdrew and spared the colony.[1]
On Mar Sara, Alpha Squadron had the core colonists relocated to the wastelands.[7] They subsequently arrested Marshal Jim Raynor and local militia forces on the pretext of destroying Confederate property at Backwater Station.[8] They avoided action against the zerg[9] and abandoned the planet once it was almost completely overrun. The chaos of their evacuation allowed Raynor to raid the Jacobs Installation,[10] where they had experimented with captured zerg specimens.[11]
The Antigan Revolt[]
A large detachment of Alpha Squadron troops was stationed on Antiga Prime, which was ready to begin open revolt against the Confederacy. However, they failed to suppress the full-scale revolt that the Sons of Korhal stirred up.[12]
Change in Loyalty[]
Norad II crashes on Antiga Prime
Over the planet, the Norad II was attacked by the zerg[13] and crash-landed on the planet. General Edmund Duke sent out a priority one distress call that was answered by the Sons of Korhal. Duke was convinced to join forces with Arcturus Mengsk.[14] The rest of Alpha Squadron followed suit. As part of the Sons of Korhal the squadron fought two more months against Confederate reinforcements and zerg.[15]
The Fall of Tarsonis[]
Alpha Squadron assaulted the central orbital platform over Tarsonis, defeating the Delta and Omega Squadron troops there[16] and planting psi emitters.[17] Due to the genocidal actions caused by Mengsk and Duke, a number of the Alpha Squadron's troops deserted, joining Raynor's Raiders.[18] When Raynor deserted, Duke activated the Ion cannon. However, Alpha Squadron was unsuccessful in defending it.[19]
Char[]
The Alpha Squadron strikeforce
After forming the Terran Dominion, Mengsk sent Alpha Squadron to Char to flush out the zerg there.[20] The mission was an absolute disaster. Alpha Squadron encountered heavy resistance from the zerg and was unable to retrieve Kerrigan. The ground force was dislodged from their drop zone with over fifty percent casualties. The fleet came under attack by zerg and attempted to withdraw. While the Norad III managed to escape much of the remainder was destroyed by the protoss expeditionary force.[18] The Amerigo was infiltrated by Sarah Kerrigan.[21] A few months later, an Alpha Squadron fleet engaged Tassadar's ships[22] but was defeated.[23]
The Hunt for Schezar[]
An element of Alpha Squadron was ordered to attack the notorious smuggling organization, the Schezar's Scavengers, on an unidentified world. The Scavengers were surrounded by zerg which seemed to be cooperating with them, but Alpha Squadron was able to defeat the combined forces.[24] The Squadron then traveled to a larger Scavenger base, where the Scavengers had control of a Cerebrate and also held several protoss prisoner. Mengsk ordered the Cerebrate killed. The protoss praetor Mojo, imprisoned in a Stasis Cell on Aiur, contacted the local commander and asked him to rescue the protoss instead, as Alan Schezar, leader of the Scavengers, could simply acquire another Cerebrate.[25] The Squadron detachment disobeyed orders and eventually traveled to Aiur, rescuing Mojo and working with the protoss.[26][27]
Bhekar Ro[]
Despite his services, Mengsk did not entirely trust Duke and sent the squadron on a series of survey missions, mapping potential colony worlds and re-establishing communications with colonies that had fallen on the wayside. This changed with a distress signal from the Fringe World of Bhekar Ro—the colonists had discovered a xel'naga temple and there were signs of other alien interest. Mengsk, wanting to investigate and knowing that the assignment would still leave Alpha Squadron at arm's length, dispatched them to investigate. The Squadron regarded the mission as trivial.
The Squadron lost a number of battlecruisers to the protoss in the orbital battle with the protoss and zerg. Terran forces landed just in time to save Free Haven, the world's only town, from the Kukulkan Brood. The town was heavily damaged in the fighting and promptly fortified to serve as Alpha Squadron's headquarters.
Duke ordered a general advance on the temple despite heavy protoss and zerg activity in the area. The terran suffered heavy casualties and were repulsed by the protoss. The general ordered the temple to be nuked, believing the protoss and zerg would withdraw if the temple was destroyed. The temple's destruction released an energy creature that absorbed the protoss and zerg. The remainder of the Squadron's fleet in orbit fired on the departing creature with Yamato Cannon, but the creature merely absorbed the fire and destroyed the ships.[28]
In the immediate aftermath Alpha Squadron's few remaining ships[29] were not interstellar-capable and left the survivors temporarily stranded.[28] It was months before anybody thought to check on them.[29]
The Reckoning[]
- Main article: The Reckoning
In the final battle of the Second Great War, with his palace under assault by the zerg and Raynor's Raiders, Mengsk sent Alpha Squadron's elite battlecruisers to destroy the Hyperion, but they fell to the combined firepower of the Raiders and the Swarm.[30]
Known Members[]
General Edmund Duke
- Officers
- General Edmund Duke (commander, formerly)
- Captain Morrow
- Captain Ragay
- Captain Sandler
- "The Lieutenant"
- Lieutenant Samir Duran (formerly, at least by his own account)
- Lieutenant Scott (formerly)
- Lieutenant Emily Swallow
- Enlisted
- Sergeant Roosevelt Brannigan
- Ghost Agent MacGregor Golding
- Chuck Ayers (formerly)
- Jacobs
- Malkovitch
Notes[]
- In StarCraft: Brood War, the squadron's white color is assumed in-game by the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Force's Cronus Wing.[31]
- Bloodhawks are a type of creature in the Diablo series.
References[]
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