Editing Ursa Major

{{infoBoxIndividualSpacecraft
| image      = 
| vesselname = Ursa Major
| prevname   = 
| type       = [[WarShip]]
| class      = [[Nightlord]]
| prevclass  = 
| servicesince = 
| serviceuntil = 
}}
==History==
As of [[3061]], the ''[[Nightlord]]''-class battleship '''''Ursa Major''''' was serving as the CGB ''Ursa Major'' within the [[Clan Ghost Bear Touman|Clan Ghost Bear ''touman'']] as a part of the Ghost Bear flexible naval reserve.<ref name="FM:WCp86">''Field Manual: Warden Clans'', p. 86: "Naval Assets"</ref> The ''Ursa Major'' remained an active part of the Ghost Bear ''touman'' for the next decade.<ref name="FM:Up60">''Field Manual: Updates'', p. 60: "Naval Assets"</ref>

===First Combine/Dominion War===
In late [[3062]] efforts by elements of the ''[[Kokuryu-kai]]'' to build on the discontent within elements of the [[Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery]] over the occupation of former Combine worlds by the Ghost Bears resulted in several units launching a rogue attack on the [[Ghost Bear Dominion]]. The ''[[Tatsumaki]]''-class destroyer [[Dragon's Last Tear|DCS ''Dragon's Last Tear'']] led the attack, escorting the [[Alshain Avengers]] in an attempted assault on [[Alshain]], the Ghost Bear capital world at the time.<ref name="ER:3062p25">''Era Report: 3062'', p. 25: "The Combine-Dominion War"</ref>

The result was disastrous; far from being the invulnerable bastion of strength the Avengers believed, the ''Dragon's Last Tear'' and a regiment of the Avengers were easily destroyed by the ''Ursa Major''; the surviving two regiments of Avengers made a hasty planetfall to escape the ''Ursa Major''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s guns, only to be quickly wiped out by enraged Ghost Bear forces. The effects of the battle echoed beyond the destruction of the ''Dragon's Last Tear'' and three regiments of rebellious troops, however; it precipitated the [[1st Dominion-Combine War|First Dominion/Combine War]].<ref name="ER:3062p25"/>

The ''Ursa Major'' was then sent to [[Idlewind]] to lead the [[Battle of Idlewind (3062)|invasion]] against the [[Ninth Pesht Regulars]]<ref name=ToVc10/>

===Second Naval Battle of Alshain===
In May [[3067]] the ''Ursa Major'' was involved in the [[Trial of Retribution]], also called the Second Naval Battle for [[Alshain]], a [[Trial of Possession]] initiated by forces from [[Clan Nova Cat]] for the ''[[Leviathan (Battleship)|Leviathan]]''-class battleship [[Rasalhague (Individual Leviathan-class WarShip)|CGB ''Rasalhague'']], which was undergoing construction in the Alshain shipyards at the time. The Trial was devastating for both sides, with half the Ghost Bear fleet destroyed and similar losses on the part of the Nova Cats; while the Ghost Bears were ultimately victorious, the victory was pyrrhic at best and the ''Ursa Major'' was the only Ghost Bear WarShip to survive the Trial, albeit while suffering damage that intelligence agencies predicted would take years to repair.<ref name="FM:Up81+">''Field Manual: Updates'', p. 81: "The Second Naval Battle of Alshain"</ref>

In this battle, the [[DropShip]]s ''[[White Bear]]'', ''[[Ice Warrior]]'', ''[[Frost Blade]]'' and ''[[Bugbear]]'' were attached to the ''Ursa Major''.<ref>''Trial of Retribution''</ref>

===The Jihad===
Involved in more naval battles during the [[Jihad]] than any other [[WarShip]] in the Ghost Bear ''touman'', the ''Ursa Major'' fought at [[Luthien]], [[Dyev]] and [[Dieron]] before joining the allied coalition's [[Operation SCOUR]] forces in [[3078]] as a part of [[Task Force CRONUS]] for the capture of the [[Titan Yards]].<ref name="FR:Cp11"/>

====Luthien====
In December [[3074]], the [[Alpha Galaxy (Clan Ghost Bear)|Alpha]], [[Omega Galaxy (Clan Ghost Bear)|Omega]] and [[Rho Galaxy (Clan Ghost Bear)|Rho Galaxies]] of [[Clan Ghost Bear]] swept onto Luthien, intent on wiping out all [[Word of Blake|Blakist]] forces.<ref name=JTPL7-Alpha>''Jihad Turning Points: Luthien'', p. 7: "Alpha Galaxy [Clan Ghost Bear]"</ref><ref name=JTPL7-Omega>''Jihad Turning Points: Luthien'', p. 7: "Omega Galaxy [Clan Ghost Bear]"</ref><ref name=JTPL7-Rho>''Jihad Turning Points: Luthien'', p. 7: "Rho Galaxy [Clan Ghost Bear]"</ref><ref name=JTPL-11>''Jihad Turning Points: Luthien'', p. 11: "Damnation"</ref> Having landed on both Luthien and [[Pesht]] on the 15th of December, the Ghost Bear forces never once offered ''[[zellbrigen]]'' to any of the Word units on either world, and effectively eradicated the Word forces on both worlds by the 20th of December. Very few survivors from the Word of Blake managed to flee or become captives, and the Ghost Bear forces destroyed any [[Draconis Combine]] forces that attempted to interfere in the Ghost Bear campaign against the Word.<ref name="JHS3076p55">''Jihad Hot Spots: 3076'', p. 55: "Timeline of the Jihad"</ref><ref name="J:FRp53">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 53: "The Jihad in Review"</ref> The Ghost Bear assault also claimed a WarShip from the Blakist core fleet, the [[Vincent (WarShip class)|''Vincent Mk. 39'']]-class corvette [[Blade of Righteousness|WoBS ''Blade of Righteousness'']],<ref name="J:FRp128"/> and in [[3075]] the Blakists lost another ship, the ''[[Aegis]]''-class heavy cruiser ''[[Vision Quest (Individual Aegis-class WarShip)|Vision Quest]]'', one of only three Clan-tech WarShips to have been captured by the Word of Blake during the Jihad.<ref name="J:FRp128">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 128: "Captured Ships"</ref>

As suddenly as they had arrived, the Ghost Bear forces left Luthien at the end of January, leaving the [[DCMS]] to frantically redeploy forces to fortify the world; the relief units began arriving two weeks later on the 14th of February, only to find no sign of any Blakist troops in the wake of the Ghost Bear withdrawal.<ref name="J:FRp53"/><ref name="JHS:Tp14">''Jihad Hot Spots: Terra'', p. 14: "Timeline of the Jihad"</ref> The destruction of the [[42nd Shadow Division]] on Luthien at the hands of the three Galaxies of Ghost Bear troops represented the first instance of a [[Shadow Division]] being destroyed completely.<ref name="J:FRp125">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 125: "Shadow Divisions"</ref>

====Dyev====
As the allied coalition created by [[Devlin Stone]] began striking against [[Word of Blake Protectorate]] worlds the combined Ghost Bear and [[Clan Snow Raven]] task force which had agreed to support the coalition struck at a number of Blakist worlds on the 21st of July [[3076]]. Dyev was one of the worlds targeted by the Clan forces, along with the nearby worlds of [[Kervil]], [[Ko]], [[Lambrecht]], [[Moore]] and [[Sabik]].<ref name="JHS:Tp22">''Jihad Hot Spots: Terra'', p. 22: "Timeline of the Jihad"</ref><ref name="J:FRp56">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 56: "The Jihad in Review"</ref> The Word of Blake launched a counterassault on Dyev in mid-December, with the Blakist ground troops receiving support from a number of WarShips and [[Pocket WarShip]]s.<ref name="J:FRp56"/><ref name="JHS:Tp23">''Jihad Hot Spots: Terra'', p. 23: "Timeline of the Jihad"</ref> The resulting battles saw three Blakist WarShips destroyed, the ''[[Whirlwind]]''-class destroyer ''[[Fire Fang]]'', the ''Aegis''-class [[Righteous Fury (Individual Aegis-class WarShip)|WoBS ''Righteous Fury'']] and the ''[[Congress]]''-class frigate [[Hollings York (Individual Congress-class WarShip)|WoBS ''Hollings York'']].<ref name="J:FRp128"/> However, the Blakist vessels took on three Ghost Bear WarShips<ref name="JHS:Tp20">''Jihad Hot Spots: Terra'', p. 20: "Autopsy Of Dyev"</ref> - the ''[[Leviathan II]]''-class battleship [[Rasalhague (Individual Leviathan-class WarShip)|CGB ''Rasalhague'']], the ''Ursa Major'' and the [[Clan Snow Raven]] ''Aegis''-class [[Scabbard|CSR ''Scabbard'']]. As the Blakist WarShips and their accompanying Pocket WarShips and Assault [[DropShip]]s engaged the Clan WarShips, a second Blakist force arrived and delivered multiple troop DropShips onto Dyev, with two-thirds of the troops surviving and dispersing to avoid orbital bombardment from the Clan ships. The Clans took a heavy toll on the Blakist WarShips, however; the ''Scabbard'' was destroyed and the ''Ursa Major'' was heavily damaged.<ref name="JHS:3076p87+">''Jihad Hot Spots: 3076'', pp. 87–88: "Dyev Hit by Blakist Counterattack!"</ref>

====Dieron====
A massive allied coalition task force drawn from the DCMS and Clan Ghost Bear led the assault to recapture Dieron in a campaign that began on the 8th of October [[3077]] and which lasted for several months before Dieron was free.<ref name="J:FRp58"/> The [[Voice of the Dragon]] news service reported that there had been a brief friendly fire exchange between Ghost Bear second line forces and elements of the [[Dieron Regulars]] - for which it claimed the Ghost Bears had apologized to ''[[Gunji-no-Kanrei]]'' [[Kiyomori Minamoto]] - but dwelled more on two actions within the campaign that highlighted the superiority of the DCMS troops within the task force. The first was the [[2nd Dieron Regulars]] assault that secured a breach into the Fortress Dieron complex; the second more significant action was that fought by the [[8th Dieron Regulars]] alongside the Ghost Bears' [[Omega Galaxy (Clan Ghost Bear)|Omega Galaxy]] atop Mount Shanyu, where the two units fought against the Word of Blake's [[2nd Division (Word of Blake)|2nd]] and [[19th Division (Word of Blake)|19th Militia Divisions]], a battle that saw the 8th Dieron Regulars press on despite the death of ''[[Tai-sa]]'' [[Jerry Sims]].<ref name="JHS:Tp34+">''Jihad Hot Spots: Terra'', pp. 34–35: "Official Update 4"</ref>

In January [[3078]] the Draconis Combine and Ghost Bear commands deployed the newly liberated [[Northwind Highlanders]] to Dieron to accelerate the mop-up operations against Blakist holdouts.<ref name="J:FRp58">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 58: "The Jihad in Review"</ref>

The Blakist forces on Dieron represented one of the largest commitments by the Word of Blake during the Jihad; in terms of ground support the Blakists had deployed a task force consisting of [[Protectorate Militia]] Divisions from [[Acamar]], [[Asta]], [[Fletcher]], [[Liberty]] and [[Milton]], along with the [[2nd Division (Word of Blake)|2nd]], [[3rd Division (Word of Blake)|3rd]], [[14th Division (Word of Blake)|14th]], [[19th Division (Word of Blake)|19th]] and [[23rd Division (Word of Blake)|23rd]] [[Word of Blake Militia|Militia Divisions]].<ref name="J:FRp127">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 127: "Word of Blake Militia Divisions"</ref> Backing up the ground forces was a substantial naval force - substantial enough that no less than ten Blakist WarShips were destroyed or captured during the campaign, more capital ship losses for the Word of Blake in a single engagement than any other battle of the Jihad save the battle for [[Terra]] in [[3078]]. From their core fleet, the Word of Blake lost three vessels, the ''[[Baron (WarShip class)|Baron]]''-class destroyer [[Light of Glory|WoBS ''Light of Glory'']], the ''[[Essex]]''-class destroyer [[Dawning Horizon|WoBS ''Dawning Horizon'']] and the ''[[Lola III]]''-class destroyer [[End of Wisdom|WoBS ''End of Wisdom'']].<ref name="J:FRp128OF">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 128: "Original Word of Blake Fleet"</ref> The Blakists also lost seven WarShips from their fleet of vessels suborned from the [[Free Worlds League]] navy: the ''[[Zechetinu]]''-class corvettes [[Karelia|FWLS ''Karelia'']] and [[Tirana|FWLS ''Tirana'']], the ''[[Zechetinu|Zechetinu II]]''-class corvette [[Araneida|FWLS ''Araneida'']], the ''[[Agamemnon]]''-class heavy cruiser [[Aineas|FWLS ''Aineas'']], the [[Eagle (WarShip class)|''Eagle'']]-class frigates [[Mordred (Individual Eagle-class WarShip)|FWLS ''Mordred'']] and [[Tristram|FWLS ''Tristram'']] and the ''[[Thera]]''-class carrier [[Sardis (Individual Thera-class WarShip)|FWLS ''Sardis'']] - although the latter was captured rather than destroyed, and would be pressed into service by the Snow Ravens<ref name="J:FRp128"/> as the renamed SRS ''Raven's Nest''.<ref name="JHS:Tp68">''Jihad Hot Spots: Terra'', p. 68: "Flight of the Raven"</ref>

The underground news agency known as [[Drake (News Agency)|Drake]] released what it claimed to be the combat logs kept by [[Star Admiral]] [[James Lankenau]], the Snow Raven [[Star Admiral]] commanding the ''[[Conqueror]]''-class carrier [[Ark Royal (Individual Conqueror-class WarShip)|CSR ''Ark Royal'']]. If the logs are accurate - and it is noteworthy that the logs contain no mention of the FWLS ''Araneida'' or the WoBS ''Dawning Horizon'' - the major naval combat actions took place on the 20th of November, after the Blakist task force jumped in-system on the 19th. The logs record that the Clan forces in the system comprised the ''Ark Royal'' and two Clan Ghost Bear WarShips, the ''Ursa Major'' and the massive ''[[Leviathan (WarShip class)|Leviathan]]''-class [[Leviathan (Individual Leviathan-class WarShip)|CGB ''Leviathan'']]. The ''Ark Royal'' reportedly suffered light damage and the ''Ursa Major'' moderate damage, but the ''Leviathan'' was evidently scuttled, as the Blakists had concentrated the fire from their WarShips and their considerable [[Pocket WarShip]] fleet on the Ghost Bear battleship.<ref name="JHS:Tp68"/>

During their retreat from Dieron the Blakists attacked the military industry on Dieron, damaging the [[Luthien Armor Works]] and [[Terada]] factories so badly that by mid-[[3081]] the plants were considered a complete write-off that wouldn't be worth attempting to rebuild.<ref name="J:FRp107">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 107: "Draconis Combine"</ref>

====Titan====
Commanded by [[Star Admiral]] [[Tomoe Gurdel]], the ''Ursa Major'' was heavily involved in the battle for the [[Titan Yards]], taking substantial damage in the process from both conventional weapons and repeated nuclear capital missile strikes.<ref name="JHS:Tp97">''Jihad Hot Spots: Terra'', p. 97: "Highest Honor"</ref>

Despite the damage taken at Titan the ''Ursa Major'' survived the Jihad and continued to serve the Ghost Bears as a part of the naval forces of the [[Ghost Bear Dominion]].<ref name="FR:Cp11">''Field Report: Clans'', p. 11: "Fleet Assets"</ref>

=== Second Combine-Dominion War ===
The ''Ursa Major'' was destroyed during the [[Second Combine-Dominion War]]. The Draconis Combine had become aware that the planet Rasalhague was only protected by the ''Ursa Major''; [[Coordinator]] [[Hohiro Kurita (31st c.)|Hohiro Kurita]] acted on this information by dispatching a large part of the Combine WarShip fleet to attempt to kill the ''Ursa Major''. The first ship to enter the Rasalhague system was the ''[[Kyushu]]''-class frigate [[Draconis Rift (Individual Kyushu-class WarShip)|DCS ''Draconis Rift'']]. Arriving near the fifth planet in the system on the 29th of April [[3100]] before burning towards Rasalhague's moon Sigurd, the ''Draconis Rift'' was detected and pursued by the ''Ursa Major''. An hour after the pursuit began the ''Ursa Major'' was surprised by the ''[[Inazuma]]''-class corvette [[Winds of Heaven|DCS ''Winds of Heaven'']], the ''Kyushu''-class [[Dieron Star|DCS ''Dieron Star'']] and the ''[[Tatsumaki]]''-class destroyer [[Lair of Mighty Wyrms|DCS ''Lair of Mighty Wyrms'']] which jumped in directly ahead of the ''Ursa Major''.<ref name="H:WotREp35">''Historical: Wars of the Republic Era'', p. 35: "The Fall"</ref>

The ''Ursa Major'' attempted to retreat back towards Rasalhague to join the [[6th Valkyrie (Clan Ghost Bear)|Sixth Valkyrie Cluster]] which had launched from the surface of the planet. Intercepted by the ''Winds of Heaven'', the ''Ursa Major'' exchanged fire for ten minutes with the much lighter Combine WarShip until the ''Winds of Heaven'' retreated having suffered almost catastrophic damage from the Ghost Bear battleship. The ''Winds of Heaven'' had succeeded in delaying the ''Ursa Major'' long enough for the other three Combine WarShips to engage her. The resulting battle was savage; the ''Lair of Mighty Wyrms'' was heavily damaged before the ''Dieron Star'' was subjected to a brutal broadside that cracked her structure and detonated the ammunition magazines, causing the crew to begin abandoning ship at 1827 hours. The ''Ursa Major''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s killing strike on the ''Dieron Star'' left it open to heavy fire from the ''Draconis Rift'', and the ''Draconis Rift'' succeeded in crippling the ''Ursa Major''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s engines. The ''Lair of Mighty Wyrms'' and ''Draconis Rift'' continued to battle the ''Ursa Major'' as the [[Clan Ghost Bear|Ghost Bear]] battleship span towards Rasalhague, increasingly out of control. At 1843 hours a final strike from the ''Draconis Rift'' caused the ''Ursa Major'' to explode, the centrifugal forces involved in her death spin preventing the battleship from launching escape pods and distributing debris from the explosion across the Rasalhague system.<ref name="H:WotREp35"/>

The ''Dieron Star'' made a close pass to Rasalhague at 1940 hours before a combination of reactor overloads and outgassing tore her apart; the Ghost Bears surveyed the remains but declared the wreck unsalvageable due to the destruction of her K-F drive and the stress damage caused to her structure. The ''Lair of Mighty Wyrms'' would fare little better than the ''Dieron Star''; having managed to retreat from the Rasalhague system, the ''Lair of Mighty Wyrms'' suffered a catastrophic jump drive failure two jumps later in an uninhabited system and was scuttled by her crew to prevent the [[Rasalhague Dominion]] from recovering her.<ref name="H:WotREp35"/>

In retaliation for the destruction of the ''Ursa Major'' the Dominion dispatched the [[Polar Galaxy (Rasalhague Dominion)|Polar]] and [[Taiga Galaxy (Rasalhague Dominion)|Taiga Galaxies]] to seize the worlds of [[Richmond]] and [[Idlewind]].<ref name="H:WotREp38">''Historical: Wars of the Republic Era'', p. 38: "New Ground"</ref>

==Commanders==
{| class="wikitable"
|- 
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Rank
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Name
! scope="col" width="220" style="background: #dedede;" | Command
|-
| colspan="4" style="background: #efefef;" | '''Commanding Officers of the ''Ursa Major'''''
|-
| [[Star Commodore]]||[[Angelina Devon]]||[[3062]]<ref name=ToVc10>''Test of Vengeance'', ch. 10</ref>
|-
|}

==Notes==
In some sourcebooks the ''Ursa Major'' is referred to as the ''Ursus Major''.<ref name="JHS:Tp98">''Jihad Hot Spots: Terra'', p. 98: "Classified: Eyes Only - Top Secret"</ref>

==References==
<references />

==Bibliography==
* ''[[Era Report: 3062]]''
* ''[[Field Manual: Updates]]''
* ''[[Field Manual: Warden Clans]]''
* ''[[Field Report: Clans]]''
* ''[[Historical: Wars of the Republic Era]]''
* ''[[Jihad Hot Spots: Terra]]''
* ''[[Test of Vengeance]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Trial of Retribution]]''


[[Category: Individual WarShips]]
[[Category: Individual Battleships]]
[[Category: Individual Nightlord-class WarShips]]