The North PacificBoard

”Good morning Yelkies! It’s a beautiful day here in Coningsby, a warm 96 degrees and a light wind, this is Radio United Yelacapeva, bringing you the newest songs from home and abroad, up next is ‘Running Through the Jungle’ from Tanabon...”
The Radio in a Triple-T transport truck plays, as the truck moves past a burning set of huts, two HL-1s fly by, one getting fired at by ground HLA forces, and going down.
“Dismount!” The Sergeant of the truck says, having the entire squad follow him into a ditch aside the road. Following rifle fire comes at them.
“Get the mortar up, range...” he peaks up, tucking back down after suppressive fire nearly cuts him down, “300 yards, fire three rounds.” The following rounds slide up in the air, and back to the ground, landing 50 or so yards too short; The adjustment is made, and the next set doesn’t miss...
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A convoy of YSF forces make their way down the road, eerily empty. The lead tank soon goes up in an explosive fireball.
It appears the FSMA forces have mined the only way to their territory, and have set up rudimentary militias with the little rifles they have.

"Get that Vickers to the other side, we'll det this place to 'ell!" A Sergeant said, having a Vickers team and Rifle team fall back across the bridge to the other side of the river, the other side of Conigsby.

As the two teams fall back, futher up the road stands a CT MK III "Lighting." It is covered by rubble and sandbags, the turret knocking one or the other every time it traverses. The gun fires THW-POUGH, hitting, and bouncing off, a HLA Type 69 MBT, a Chinese tank. The crew hurridly loads another round, meanwhile backing towards the Bridge. The Type 69 turns its 100mm towards the seemingly puny CT MK III, and fires, burning most the crew and leaving a gapping hole through the forwards hull. Before the ammo cooked off, the Tank Commander crawled out, semi-limping as he runs to the bridge. He passes YSF troops, armed with only Lee-Enfields, as they retreat in full force across the bridge, no order, simply a full route.

As the YSF troops finally make it across the bridge, it is immediately destroyed, taking a couple HLA Type 69s and a Type 79 with it into the watery depths of the 'River Mulwazibund'. With this left only one other bridge across the river, the Capital, and without a crossing, the HLA couldn't continue its offensive.
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YSF Forces are in full route, luckily faster than the advance of the HLA. Some groups hold out until they themselves must fall back, a plan for a defensive line is set up, else the Capital, and Yelacapeva itself will fall.
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A message is sent to the only real trade partner with Yelacapeva, Tanabon:
STOP URGENT STOP REQUEST ASSISTANCE AGAINST COMMUNIST THREAT STOP PLEASE SEND ANTI-TANK AND ANY OTHER POSSIBLE ASSISTANCE STOP

MESSAGE END
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The YSF quickly began to adapt the Lee-Enfields to the jungle, making 'Jungle Gun' variant out of the reserve rifles, and beginning to rotate those out with the ones in current use. Meanwhile they desperately scrambled to buy a tank capable of actual destruction of a Type 69, as the only guns they made in Yelacapeva were far too light to deal with the threat, not to mention the small industry of the new nation.

”How’s It lookin’ Troopie?” A Corporal, intimidating a Sergeant says, before coming up to the Troopie laughing. “Oh I’m sure it’ll be fine, the M67s that the Tanabonians gave us are sure to knock ‘em over there feet.” The Private, a young man of no more than 22, equipped with a Jungle Gun and a M67, responds, “It’s not the firepower I’m worried about, it’s if we run out of shells...” He turns back to the seemingly few boxes laying next to him. The Corporal, with a small worry in his eyes, turns back to the Private, “Don’t worry, as long as the Tanies’ keep throwing us some shells, we can hold of the HLA. Now, I’m goin’ back to my position, and don’t worry a thing about it.”

The Private returns to glaring at the newly cut, or well... burned, area that stretches 1 mile in front of the trench lines. The jungle, however, was only a couple hundred yards behind him, if he fell back, only the monkeys and the birds would be safe from the horde...

“Man positions, man positions!” A Lieutenant whispers, running through the trench warning everyone of the impending HLA Force. Two Privates, both wearing the tigerstripe Standard uniform, and boonie hats, run up to the Private holding the M67, laying down their rifles (a Jungle Gun and a M16), and loading the recoilless with HEAT.

It felt like forever.... the long, agonizing pain of waiting for a tank to exit the jungle ahead. The smell of a month unwashed Troopie, mud, and gunpowder. The Private combed the tree line, waiting. Then a Type 69 exited, going at a slow pace. Instinctively the Private aimthrough his scope, and fired THW-DUFFGH. The HEAT shell, almost as soon as it entered, hit the HLA tank, and it soon went up in flames, the ammunition beginning to cook off.

Throughout the trench the Troopies cheered, finally they had witnessed something that could end these Commies’ tanks and save the Republic. Alias, soon more tanks and riflemen came out of the trees, and the Private waited for the reload, and fired...

It soon was a onslaught of HLA troops and tanks charging out of the jungle and to the trenches. The nonstop firing of the recoilless guns at the tanks, and the Tanabonian-sent M60s gunning at the HLA riflemen. The only thing you could see from the trenches was tracer and smoke from the recoilless guns, the saving graces of the YSF units. The gunners of both machine gun and recoilless alike not stopping until the HLA had to fall back, in this lull, they counted how many recoilless shells they had left, only 30% of their original numbers. Troopie highers knew that the amount of shells received daily would barely be able to maintain the 20% mark, but their was nothing one could do about it except wait for the Tabanonians to arrive.

This ‘siege’ of sorts lasted 8 days. 8 days of onslaught of tank and Troopie recoilless, of Lee-Enfield and M60. The Troopie lines were covered in brass casings, the casings of recoilless shells, and dead Troopie. The dead could only be evacuated during the lulls in fighting, of which were few, even at night, so it became a constant reek of gunpowder and death. The heat from the cooking tanks were sometimes close enough to feel...

The Troopies persisted however, barely holding of the HLA Force, and suffering major amounts of lost ammo, the YSF would have to wait for the Tanabonians, and their expensive tanks and tons of AT, before they could think of an offensive. With the HLA now pulling back into a semi-Defensive posture, the incoming Ammunition, both recoilless, 5.56, and even a bit of homemade .303 Standard, could now be stockpiled. Morale drastically improved compared to the retreat, and the YSF had finally some time to relax, even if it was only slightly.