2. Fighting Escalates: The War on Faner

8 November 2013

This is INN anchor Bobby Tiberius giving you the up to date news of space and space affairs. Tonight we give you an update on the Faner War.

Since the beginning of hostilities last month, the Martian 1st Army has been engaged with the forces of Faner’s RE near the Kepler province in Mars's Southern Hemisphere. The 1st has confirmed to have surrounded the majority of the Faner groups and has them pinned near the outpost Erotes V. General Bronislav of the Martian 1st has reported that the enemy is running low on supplies and manpower and should collapse shortly.

As of the 30th of October, the forces of Faner had been forced from Titan after a joint campaign by General Kharkov of the Martian 2nd Army and the Goombas launched two spearheads that broke through the defensive lines Faner had established within their occupied territory. While the enemy was ultimately routed, the Faner groups on Titan managed to escape via launchpad. Imperium High Command believes the retreating Faner groups will head to Mars to assist their pinned troops in the Kepler province. General Kharkov will not be returning to Mars immediately after his victory on Titan, however.

"On the 1st of November, the Imperium managed to re-establish contact with our allies in the SSSR, and quickly joined them in the battle against Faner in the Plutonian system. The situation is less than favorable.", said General Thompson of the Imperium High Command

The Plutonian System has been the site of the most intense fighting of the war so far. The highest concentration of the Faner groups have established military installations and heavy ordinance on Pluto and its moon Charon. Parts of the Martian 2nd under Major General Dmitriy along with forces of the SSSR have been fighting the forces of Faner there to a bloody stalemate. Imperium troops in the system have been heavily outnumbered by Faner, and have been struggling to keep the enemy from pushing deeper into SSSR territories on Pluto and Charon. Our SSSR allies, while numerically superior to the Faner landing force, have found themselves outflanked or outmaneuvered multiple times, and have suffered heavy losses. In response, the Adrestia has ordered that General Kharkov and the majority of the Martian 2nd Army, which was stationed on Titan, will be sent to Pluto to turn the tide of events in Imperium favor.

Current estimates put Imperium dead at 2,270 throughout the Plutonian system, with another 3,500 captured, totaling to more than ten percent of the force sent to the area. SSSR casualties have been much higher: estimated 80,000 have either been killed in action or wounded. An additional 65,000 were caught in encirclements and knocked out of the fight. While estimates are less accurate, sources suspect a Faner death toll of around 30,000 with 5,000 Faner troops captured by SSSR units.