Tiamat Starzone
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'Tiamat' redirects here. For the star itself, see Tiamat (star).
The Tiamat Starzone (Japanese: ティアマト星域) is a starzone, located in the Iserlohn Corridor, which is notable for having been the location of Iserlohn Fortress. Because of its strategic importance, the Tiamat Starzone saw many of the fiercest battles in the FPA–Imperial War.
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Notable battles
Third Battle of Tiamat
This battle between an Imperial expedition striking into FPA territory from Iserlohn and the FPA fleets amassed to intercept it ended in a substantial Imperial victory. While Vice Admiral Holland of the 11th Fleet's unorthodox, chaotic tactics threw the Imperial formation into temporary disarray, his refusal to stop and consolidate his forces eventually left him open to a concentrated attack by the Imperial reserves under Vice Admiral Reinhard von Müsel.
Fourth Battle of Tiamat[clean-up needed]
The Free Planets Alliance's fourth attempt to capture the Galactic Empire's Iserlohn Fortress began with several fleets congregating in the Tiamat. Once there, a single fleet was dispatched directly towards Iserlohn to scout the area and test the fortress's defences. This fleet was intercepted by Reinhard von Lohengramm's expeditionary fleet and lured into the upper atmosphere of the gas giant Legnica. There, Reinhard managed to outwit the enemy admiral and obliterate the the FPA fleet.
Undaunted by their devastating defeat at Legnica, the FPA chose to continue with their plans to assault Iserlohn. The Imperial forces stationed at the fortress, under the command of Gregor von Mückenberger, rallied forth to meet the Alliance fleet; Reinhard von Lohengramm's fleet was positioned at the left wing of the formation. Determined to be rid of the 'Admiral of the Skirts' once and for all, Mückenberger ordered Reinhard to advance on the FPA forces head-on as a diversionary measure; meanwhile, the rest of the Imperial fleet would maintain its position, leaving Reinhard's smaller fleet to be annihilated by the vastly more numerous FPA.
Complying with his orders, Reinhard advanced his forces towards the enemy formation alone. Rather than open fire on them once he was in range, however, Reinhard had his forces turn 90 degrees to the right. Reinhard's fleet then slowly sailed in front of the FPA fleet, utterly exposed. Unable to comprehend an enemy intentionally making itself so vulnerable, the FPA fleet commanders refused to attack Reinhard's forces, believing his manoeuvre to be some sort of elaborate trick. Their inaction allowed Reinhard to reposition his forces along the left flank of the FPA fleet.
By the time they realised their error, the main Imperial fleet had entered combat range, forcing the FPA invasion force to ignore Reinhard's forces. The Imperial fleet was roughly equal in size to the Alliance forces, turning the battle into a violent brawl. Realising he had been outsmarted by Reinhard, Mückenberger refused to ask Reinhard's fleet to attack; Mückenberger believed that Reinhard was similarly petty, and would not move to aid the besieged Imperial forces unless ordered to do so.
Reinhard, however, realised that the gratitude of the thousands of soldiers whose lives he could save by attacking the FPA flank far outweighed the ire he would earn from embarrassing Mückenberger. He ordered his fleet to attack, and in moments the FPA Fleet had been thoroughly routed.
At this point, the FPA forces realised they had no choice but to retreat. They determined to launch a diversionary attack directly against Iserlohn Fortress, to draw off the bulk of the Imperial fleet and buy enough time for them to escape. Commodore Yang Wen-li volunteered to lead the diversionary attack; he took a single destroyer with a skeleton crew, along with four drone ships, and headed straight for Iserlohn. Using sensor decoys, Yang was able to fool the main Imperial fleet into thinking he was leading a formation of several-thousand warships towards the undefended fortress. Mückenberger immediately ordered his forces to turn around and head back to defend Iserlohn. Reinhard realised the FPA fleet was a decoy, however, and managed to reveal this fact to Mückenberger. This prompted Mückenberger to resume the attack on the FPA forces, preventing them from retreating.
Determined to save the lives of his fellow soldiers, Yang flew his small destroyer straight into the heart of the Imperial fleet. There, he assumed a position immediately beneath the Brünhild. In an instant, he could have fired the destroyer's dorsal cannons and destroyed the Brünhild — he had effectively taken Reinhard hostage. Reinhard ordered his forces to disregard his own safety and open fire on Yang's ship, but they refused. Both the Imperial and FPA fleets refused to open fire on each other until they had passed. Once the FPA were in a position to safely retreat, Yang's destroyer followed. Reinhard, determining that the battle was over, ordered his forces to stand down, allowing Yang to escape the battlefield.
After the Fourth Battle of Tiamat, Reinhard was granted a special commendation, and firmly established a reputation for himself as a brilliant tactician. Furthermore, he went to lengths to learn the name of the destroyer captain who had managed to open up a path to safety for the retreating FPA forces; at the same time, Yang sought out the name of the commander of the white ship. The rivalry between Yang Wen-li and Reinhard von Lohengramm that began with this battle would shape and define the history of the galaxy in the years to come. (My Conquest Is the Sea of Stars)
Fifth Battle of Tiamat[clean-up needed]
On 14 May 796 UC (487 IC / 3596 CE), the Rosen Ritter flew a damaged Imperial cruiser to the fortress, pretending to be wounded Imperial forces. Walter von Schönkopf then demanded to see the fortress's commander immediately, claiming to have access to vital intelligence concerning an FPA invasion of the Iserlohn Corridor.
Yang Wen-li then drew the Iserlohn fleet away from the fortress, and advanced toward Iserlohn whilst the Imperial fleet was too far away to maintain contact. The 13th Fleet then began manoeuvring back and forth just outside the range of Iserlohn's main cannon, the Thor Hammer.
Iserlohn's commander, Admiral Thoma von Stockhausen, was confused by the odd movements of Yang's fleet. The Rosen Ritter infiltrators, brought to the fortress command room, indicated that the strange movements were part of the Alliance's plan to seize the fortress. The Rosen Ritter were then allowed close to Stockhausen, enabling Schönkopf to tackle the admiral and hold him hostage. Within seconds, the Rosen Ritter infiltrators seized complete control over Iserlohn's command centre. Stockhausen surrendered, and the Rosen Ritter were able to lock down the fortress and disable all of its weapon systems.
Yang was able to bring the 13th Fleet inside the fortress unmolested; he then sent a message to the Imperial fleet commander, Admiral Hans Dietrich von Seeckt, informing him that he had occupied Iserlohh Fortress, and asking for Seeckt to surrender. Of course, although Yang's fleet had access to the fortress, and the Rosen Ritter were in control of the command centre, the Imperial forces stationed within were still active. Seeckt's staff officer, Paul von Oberstein, advised Seeckt to attack the fortress, correctly determining that Iserlohn was not yet under Yang's control. Seeckt, however, ignored Oberstein's advice, and kept his fleet a safe distance away from the fortress to observe the situation.
This gave Yang and the Rosen Ritter ample time to complete their take-over of Iserlohn. Once the fortress was firmly in Yang's hands, the 13th Fleet exited the fortress, baiting Admiral Seeckt. Seeckt ordered the Imperial fleet to attack, and Yang used the massive destructive power of the Thor Hammer to rout the Imperial forces, destroying more than 1000 Imperial ships with a single shot. Yang again sent a message to Admiral Seeckt, requesting that he either surrender or withdraw from battle.
Admiral Seeckt responded, saying, 'You do not understand a soldier's heart: our code will not allow us to endure living with dishonour. Dying to fulfil our honour, that is our code. For the glory of the Kaiser, all ships will charge to die in an honourable defeat.' Seeckt then ordered the Imperial fleet to advance; in an effort to prevent excessive casualties, Yang targeted Seeckt's flagship with the Thor Hammer and destroyed it (along with several nearby Imperial ships). With Seeckt dead, the Imperial fleet broke away, and withdrew from the Tiamat Starzone, thus ending the Fifth Battle of Tiamat in a victory for the Free Planets Alliance.
Six times before, the FPA had attempted to take Iserlohn from the Empire, and six times before they had failed. Yang managed to take the fortress with the smallest fleet out of the seven total attacks, and did so without a single allied casualty. For this, he became the greatest hero in the FPA, earning the nicknames 'Miracle Yang' and 'Yang the Magician'. (LOGH: 'Iserlohn Captured!')
Appendices
Appearances
- My Conquest Is the Sea of Stars (first appearance)
- LOGH: (1)
Background information
The name Tiamat is a reference to the Babylonian goddess Tiamat.
| [hide]v•d•e | |
|---|---|
| Sagittarius Arm (Free Planets Alliance) |
Ba‘alat • Doria • Gandharva • Lesavik • Lycus • Marovia • Palantia • Phiazard • Porewit • Raigarh • Rantemario • Rio Verde • Thanatos • Tripura • Vermilion |
| Orion Arm (Galactic Empire) |
Aldebaran • Altair • Altena • Alviss • Betelgeuse • Bilrost • Canopus • Castrop • Dverger • Freya • Jafnhár • Kyffhäuser • Proxima • Sirius • Sol • Valhalla • Vega • Wanstedit |
| Other | Fezzan |
