Third Canopian Light Horse

Originally destroyed during the War of Star League Aggression, the Third Canopian Light Horse was reformed in 3057. This was mainly done in response to the increase in technology available at the time, along with the threat of a growing Capellan Confederation and Free Worlds League. For some reason, they are disliked by the Rim Worlds Republic, who has manipulated the MAF to have the unit dispatched deep in the Capellan Confederation.

Jihad

While they were reformed earlier in the century, the Third Canopian Light Horse had never been really battle-tested. They were underequipped and underarmed even as the Jihad began, the MAF hoping that “keeping their head down” would lead the Word of Blake to ignore them.

The Third was one of the biggest casualties of this poor decision, with the regiment almost being destroyed on Adherlwin. The 41^st Shadow Division landed on the world and hunted down the Light Horses command staff, leaving Major Joe Cataio as the only surviving senior officer.

Rebuilding

After the Jihad, the now Colonel Cataio started a rapid reconstruction of his unit, focusing not only on getting quality recruits but on modernizing his unit. Stationed on Borgan’s Rift, the Third commissioned multiple companies to provide them with equipment. A lot of these came from the Capellan Confederation rather than internally, but this was not seen as a problem by the Canopian state.

Dark Age

The Third Canopian Light Horse was seen as a skilled military unit by most. However, their leadership was more loyal to the Horses than they were to the Canopian state. Observers believed that the regiment “could go mercenary” without a constant deployment and long-term operations. As such, the Troisieme Regiment de Chasseurs a Cheval were deployed in the Capellan Confederation, on the Duchy of Andurien border.

Capellan – Star League War

The Capellan state attempted to mobilize the Troisieme Regiment de Chasseur a Cheval as a unit of the CCAF as they moved against Clan Wolf. The response from Colonel Mello was quick and brief: “You do not own us.” Instead of supporting the Capellans, the Third mobilized to support the Duchy of Andurien. They secured the border worlds between the two states quickly.

Andurien War of Liberation

The Third Canopian Light Horse was in an odd situation as the relationship between Canopus and Andurien collapsed. Not being stationed in Canopian space at the time, they were ordered to retreat to the Magistracy, even though they were in an ideal position to attack some Andurien assets. It was the loyalty of the regiment, which was put in question, that caused this decision. The regiment was then mobilized to the front line against the Andurien forces.

Tactics

While a Chasseurs à Cheval unit, the Third keeps an heavier battlemech force compared to many others. They prefers to hot drop from DropShips. Opposed to this, the Armor Guard is mainly composed to VTOL and hovercraft to emphasize mobility.

Unit Composition

• Third Canopian Light Horse (Mech reinforced battalion, Veteran / Fanatical)
  • Colonel Yukiko Mello
• Third Light Horse Air Guard (Air wing, Veteran / Fanatical)
  • Major Thomaso Zalman
• Third Light Horse Armor Guard (Cavalry armor reinforced battalion, Veteran / Reliable)
  • Colonel Guiseppe Morey
• Third Light Horse Infantry Guard (Reinforced Infantry battalion, Veteran / Fanatical)
  • Colonel Kiyoko Ragan

The unit is operating at about 80% of their full strength, with mostly modern military assets.

Third Canopian Light Horse military colors

The standard parade colors for the Third Canopian Light Horse is black or dark purple. The trim and highlighst are silver.