First Strike : Zero Down follows an epic tale of humanity’s fight for survival in the face of an alien race that wants humans exterminated. Humanity’s fight is long-fought and bitter sweet.
Reach fell, and when hope seemed lost, humanity stood face-to-face with the possible extinction of all life in the galaxy and lived to tell the tale. But that was just one epic battle, and the war rages on . . . The Covenant shows no mercy as they continue to assault every human world they can find, but in their way lies humanity's great champion, Spartan-117, the Master Chief. Together with his AI companion Cortana and the last remaining Spartans, the fight continues on two fronts. One takes a crew of Spartans to the charred surface of Reach, the only planet they've ever known as home. But beneath the surface, Dr. Halsey has discovered an ancient secret...one that could alter the course of the war. Meanwhile, Master Chief and Cortana head towards a gathering of Covenant warships because the UNSC's worst nightmare has come true: the Covenant has discovered the location of Earth and is forming a massive fleet to destroy it...and all who oppose the will of the Prophets. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Force on Force brings the drama and action of modern warfare to the tabletop using miniature soldiers. The rules cover all aspects of modern warfare from the confidence and supply level of troops to air-strikes and off-board artillery and accommodates scenarios set anywhere from the end of World War II to the conflicts on today's news without sacrificing either character or playability. Quick to learn and play, the game rewards players who use well-considered modern tactics to try and achieve victory. From infantry and armor to artillery and air support, Force on Force presents everything that players need to recreate post-World War II warfare involving both conventional, combined-arms forces and the irregular guerrilla units that have become the hallmark of 21st century warfare.
As a SEAL sniper and combat veteran, Webb was tapped to revamp the U.S. Naval Special Warfare (SEAL) Scout/Sniper School, incorporating the latest advances in technology and ballistics software to create an entirely new course that continues to test the skills and even the best warriors. In this revealing new book, Webb takes readers through every aspect of this training, describing how Spec Ops snipers are taught each dimension of their art. Trainees learn to utilize every edge possible to make their shot--from studying crosswinds, barometric pressure, latitude, and even the rotation of the Earth to becoming ballistic experts. But marksmanship is only one aspect of the training. Each SEAL's endurance, stealth and mental and physical stamina are tested and pushed to the breaking point. Webb also shows how this training plays out in combat, using real-life exploits of the world's top snipers, including Jason Delgado, who led a Marine platoon in the Battle of Husaybah and made some of the most remarkable kill shots in the Iraq War; Nicholas Irving, the U.S. Army Ranger credited with thirty-three kills in a single three-month tour in Afghanistan; and Rob Furlong, who during Operation Anaconda delivered the then-longest kill shot in history. During Webb's sniper school tenure, the course graduated some of the deadliest and most skilled snipers of this generation, including Marcus Luttrell (Lone Survivor), Adam Brown (Fearless), and Chris Kyle (American Sniper). From recon and stalk, to complex last minute adjustments, and finally the moment of taking the shot, The Killing School demonstrates how today's sniper is trained to function as an entire military operation rolled into a single individual--an army of one.
In 1918, the Royal Air Force became the first major independent air force in the world. Formed to serve a strategic need in the most intensive war that Britain had then fought, the RAF continued in the inter-war era to play a key role in the political and diplomatic world, and in defending the Empire. During the Second World War, the RAF was pivotal in defending Britain from invasion in the Battle of Britain, and then in leading the assault on the Axis powers, most notably through the contentious bomber offensive against Germany. In the post-war world, the RAF adapted and developed into a force to meet the needs of the United Kingdom during the Cold War, the retreat from Empire, and most recently in the move to coalition warfare against low intensity threats, all against a backdrop of diminishing resources and shifting priorities. This is the story of the RAF over the first century of its existence: how it has confronted the many challenges and threats it has faced — from the Luftwaffe in 1940, through the spectre of nuclear holocaust in the Cold War, to the fight against terrorism in the 21st century — and how it has contributed to the defence of the United Kingdom throughout that period.
“The high-octane action scenes make this a must-read for military thriller fans”—from the national bestselling author of Besieged (Publishers Weekly). Direct Fire brings the war on terror to America. A powerful banker, gunned down in cold blood. A military family, senselessly slaughtered as they sleep. A key general, kidnapped from his farm near Fort Bragg. Atrocities like these are all too common in the Middle East. But this is the United States of America . . . Time is running out for Jake Mahegan. Terrorist cells are gathering in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Hackers are emptying the nation’s banks. And their final act of vengeance will bring the whole world to its knees. For Mahegan, it’s time to kill. Now. “Horrific at times, spine-tingling throughout, A. J. Tata once again proves capable of writing a firestorm that’s even scarier because it is all too real.” —Suspense Magazine Praise for the Jake Mahegan series from #1 New York Times-bestselling authors “Tata’s books are absolute rollercoaster rides . . . fun and fascinating reads.” —Mark Greaney “Tata writes with a gripping and gritty authority.” —Richard North Patterson “Absolutely fantastic . . . pulse-pounding.” —Brad Thor “An explosive, seat of your pants thriller!” —W.E.B. Griffin “Topical, frightening, possible, and riveting.” —James Rollins
In May 2011, after a Mediterranean exercise to prove the Apache's ability to work shipborne, HMS Ocean and her embarked Apache attack helicopters from 656 Squadron, Army Air Corps were about to head home. But the civil war in Libya and the resulting NATO air campaign intervened.A few days later the Author and his fellow Apache pilots were in action at night over hostile territory. Within the range of Gaddafi's capable air defense systems and land forces once in sight of the coast, they had to fight their way into Libya, complete their mission evading lethal ground fire, before the hazardous return to Ocean.Despite Libya's state-of-the-art arsenal of ground-to-air weapons, the Apaches made nightly raids at ultra low-level behind enemy lines.Apache Over Libya describes the experiences of eight Army and two Royal Navy pilots who played a significant role in the NATO-led campaign. Despite fighting the best armed enemy British aircrew have faced in generations, they defied the odds and survived. Thrilling first hand action accounts vividly convey what it means to fly the Apache in combat at sea and over enemy-held terrain. An unforgettable and unique account which gives a rare insight into attack helicopter operations in war.
SCP Foundation anomalies SCP-1000 through to SCP-1999, including containment procedures, auxiliary documents, experiment logs and interview transcripts. An encyclopedia of the unnatural. The Foundation Operating clandestine and worldwide, the Foundation operates beyond jurisdiction, empowered and entrusted by every major national government with the task of containing anomalous objects, entities, and phenomena. These anomalies pose a significant threat to global security by threatening either physical or psychological harm. The Foundation operates to maintain normalcy, so that the worldwide civilian population can live and go on with their daily lives without fear, mistrust, or doubt in their personal beliefs, and to maintain human independence from extraterrestrial, extradimensional, and other extranormal influence. Our mission is three-fold: Secure The Foundation secures anomalies with the goal of preventing them from falling into the hands of civilian or rival agencies, through extensive observation and surveillance and by acting to intercept such anomalies at the earliest opportunity. Contain The Foundation contains anomalies with the goal of preventing their influence or effects from spreading, by either relocating, concealing, or dismantling such anomalies or by suppressing or preventing public dissemination of knowledge thereof. Protect The Foundation protects humanity from the effects of such anomalies as well as the anomalies themselves until such time that they are either fully understood or new theories of science can be devised based on their properties and behavior. ———————————— About the ebook This ebook is an offline edition of the second series of fictional documentation from the SCP Foundation Wiki. All illustrations, subsections and supporting documentation pages are included. All content is indexed and cross-referenced. Essentially, this is what a SCP Foundation researcher would carry day-to-day in their Foundation-issued ebook reader. The text has been optimised for offline reading on phones and ebook readers, and for listening to via Google Play Book’s Read Aloud feature. Tables have been edited into a format that is intelligible when read aloud, the narration will announce visual features like redactions and overstrikes, and there are numerous other small optimisations for listeners. The SCP text are a living work and the SCP documentation is a gateway into the SCP fictional universe, so links to authors, stories and media are preserved, and will open your reader’s web browser. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License and is being distributed without copy protection. Its content is the property of the attributed authors.
Humanity’s last surviving heroes must protect a shattered civilization from an all-conquering enemy in this thrilling sequel to The Cruel Stars. “[The Shattered Skies] is a delightful military space adventure that runs at full tilt.”—Booklist The Sturm, an empire of “species purists,” have returned from the farthest reaches of Dark Space to wage a war against what they call mutants and borgs: any human being with genetic or neural engineering. In a sneak attack, they overwhelmed almost all of humanity’s defenses, blasting vicious malware across galaxy-spanning networks, dark code that transformed anyone connected to the system into a mindless psychotic killer. The Sturm’s victory seemed complete, their final triumph inevitable, until one small band of intrepid, unlikely heroes struck back. Commander Lucinda Hardy and Admiral Frazer McLennan used the Armadalen Navy’s final surviving warship to fend off the Sturm, destroying the massed power of an entire Attack Fleet. With brilliant tactics—and support from drunken, grief-ravaged pirate Sephina L’trel and treasonous battle-rig operator Booker—this ragtag crew sent the Sturm running, managing to save Princess Alessia, the sole surviving heir to the gigantic Montanblanc ul Haq Corporation and perhaps Earth’s only remaining senator. Now left with the remains of a fallen civilization, they must work together to rebuild what was lost and root out the numberless enemies of Earth. The Sturm invaders remain vastly more powerful—and they may not be the only threat lurking in the darkness of space.
