C-J6MT system, Insmother region. Drone Regions Federation (DRF) forces have been stepping up their attempts to capture the system, which serves as Red Menace Coalition (RMC)’s main staging in the region. While previous attempts have failed, this time DRF seem to be fully committed, prompting a series of long bloody battles that are not expected to end before the conclusion of the week.
After managing to take the infrastructure hub and later on the territorial claim unit for C-J6MT, DRF forces found themselves on the defensive as RMC attempted to regain these important structures. RMC forces had reinforced the infrastructure hub deployed by the DRF, forcing the latter to attempt and defend it or lose the progress it had gained in the assault of the system.
DRF forces managed to muster 300 pilots in two Machariel battleship fleets and several stealth bomber squadrons. This force also included a Pandemic Legion [-10.0] Tengu strategic cruiser fleet, estimated at 70 pilots, as well as a Northern Coalition. [NC} stealth bomber squadron.
RMC forces managed to pull similar numbers into one Tengu fleet with The Initiative. [INIT.] once again supplying the bulk of the stealth bomber wing.
At approximately 19:00 EVE Standard Time, DRF forces split up and bridged into two neighboring systems before jumping into the C-J6MT system, the main Machariel fleet warping to the station to set up camp as its sister fleet entered the system. While RMC forces did not camp the gates as DRF fleet commanders feared, they did undock their Tengu fleet to engage the main Machariel fleet on the station grid.
The joint Red Menace Coalition and Stain-Wagon Coalition Tengu fleet engaging Drone Regions Federation forces on the C-J6MT station
The battle between the two was once again brutal, with both sides exchanging missile and artillery fire. Unlike in previous fights, RMC forces seemed to be trading far worse than usual, managing to destroy a few Machariels but losing a lot of logistics and mainline ships in return.
Regardless the Tengu fleet continued to kite around the Machariel fleet, exchanging blows as the second Machariel fleet landed at range and to join the action.
However, stealth bomber activity reached a peak in this battle, with the second Machariel fleet forced off the field due to successive bombing runs. Bombers kept harassing both sides, forcing the DRF’s main Machariel fleet to keep blanket itself with interdiction probes in order to prevent the bombers from landing on top of them to deliver their devastating payload.
Pandemic Legion also entered the system around this time, warping to the grid at maximum range of the RMC Tengu fleet and maneuvering into optimal range from which to snipe at the RMC logistics. The second DRF Machariel fleet had rejoined the battle as well, also focusing on the RMC logistics wing, which was hemorrhaging ships.
Pandemic Legion Tengus sniping at a distance on the C-J6MT station
With the RMC logistics wing taking a beating and the DRF forces managing to hold, RMC fleet commanders attempted a risky gambit. Knowing that the robust triage carrier supporting the DRF Machariel’s enabled them to tank the RMC’s assault, RMC fleet commanders ordered dreadnoughts to undock. With the carriers near the station itself, RMC fleet commanders probably hoped the dreadnoughts could reach optimal range and siege in time thus destroying them and breaking the DRF’s logistical backbone.
This however, did not happen. RMC lacked a sufficient number of dreadnoughts, not to mention the problem of the fight being located so close to the station, meaning the dreadnoughts could not warp out and re-position on the grid. Four of the dreadnoughts were soon separated from the main group at the station’s undock, leading to them being torn apart by the DRF and allied forces.
Red Menace Coalition Moros dreadnought in the moment of its destruction
During the battle at the station the DRF infrastructure hub was destroyed, as RMC managed to capture the command nodes that de-cloaked during the fight uncontested. Hoping to quickly deploy and activate their own infrastructure hub while the opposing forces were preoccupied on the station. However, the DRF quickly wised up, warping their main Machariel fleet to the infrastructure hub, the second Machariel fleet remained to give cover to the carriers as they warped.
Once on the infrastructure hub, the main DRF fleet quickly dispatched the RMC Entosis link ship, instead using a carrier as an Entosis ship, as it had done in previous battles. Realizing quickly that their plan was foiled, RMC forces attempted to re-ignite the fight at infrastructure hub. Both the second Machariel fleet and Pandemic Legion’s fleet attempted to join the fight, but the latter was quickly forced to retreat, as RMC forces to landed on top of them, managing to tackle a few Tengus before the rest of the fleet was able to warp away.
The fighting on the infrastructure hub proved costly to the RMC, whose logistics wing had already been severely compromised. Their Tengus were easily broken as monstrous volleys from the Machariels ripped them apart, the remote shield transfers failing to have the sufficient critical mass to keep them alive.
The fighting on the Infrastructure Hub in the C-J6MT system
After another bloody and one sided exchange, the infrastructure hub was captured by the DRF, prompting RMC forces to disengage and dock up, conceding the field.
Battle report for the third day of the assault of C-J6MT can be found here.
The third day of fighting has so far been the shortest and least bloody, with the two sides engaging for only an hour and a half with the system hosting approximately 800 pilots throughout the battle. Time Dilation, however, was a major factor in the fighting unlike in previous rounds, hovering between 10% to 30% for most of the exchange and only slightly subsiding at times.
The destruction caused by this battle is once again less than that of the previous day, with only 248 ships destroyed for a total of 61.94 billion ISK damage.
DRF forces suffered 62 ship losses including 15 battleships and five strategic cruisers for a total of 14.51 billion ISK damage.
RMC and allied forces suffered 186 ship losses including four dreadnoughts and 22 strategic cruisers for a total of 47.43 billion ISK damage.
The fighting is expected to continue for at least a week. Should DRF forces manage to win the assault, it will be a terrible blow to RMC, as well as being the first time a constellation capital system has been captured under the new Aegis sovereignty system. Regardless, EVE News 24 will continue to report on the assault on C-J6MT.
Salivan Harddin is a member of Reikoku, Pandemic Legion, and covers battles across New Eden
