Joseph Hartsock
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Contents |
[edit] Joe "Red" Hartsock
| Joseph Hartsock | |
|---|---|
| 1922-present | |
| Nickname | Joe, Red |
| Place of birth | Laramie |
| Allegiance | USA |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Rank | Sergeant |
| Unit | 2nd Squad, 3rd Platoon, Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne |
Joe "Red" Hartsock, voiced by David McGarry is a secondary character in Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 and the playable protagonist of Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood. He also appears in Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway.
[edit] Background
Joe "Red" Hartsock (so nicknamed because of his red hair) was born July 26 1922 in Laramie. Before the war, he worked on a ranch in Wyoming and has hunted all his life. As a youth, he was wild and rebellious and gained a large scar during a bar fight with what he describes as "an angry lumberjack". He married a woman named Erma and had a daughter with her just before being sent to basic training. It was from Erma that he became not only a more 'peaceful man, but God-fearing too.' He joined the 101st Airborne Division and was eventually deployed to England with the rest of his unit to train for the invasion of Normandy. At this time Hartsock was a Corporal and led 3rd Squad's Fire Team.
[edit] Road to Hill 30
On June 6 1944, Corporal Hartsock and his squad were paradropped behind enemy lines in Normandy. During Road to Hill 30, Hartsock followed Sergeant Matt Baker through some of the bloodiest battles in the early days of the invasion. Most notably, Hartsock helped Baker secure "Objective XYZ" and the town of Vierville, paved the way for glider reinforcements, led his fire team through Purple Heart Lane, Lieutenant Colonel Robert Cole's charge, and the Battle of Carentan, and finally helped with the frantic and bloody defense of Hill 30.
Following the defense of Hill 30, Harsock was promoted to Sergeant and became the Squad Leader of 2nd Squad.
[edit] Earned in Blood
After Hartsock is promoted to 2nd Squad's leader the left overs from 1st Squad (Cpl. Jacob Campbell, Pvt. Will Paige, and Pvt. Derrick McConnel) are folded into 2nd as the squad's Fire Team. Hartsock helps Baker push the remaining Germans out of Carentan, leads most of what was left of 3rd Platoon to clear out the unit's left flank during the defense of Hill 30, and finally helped Cpl. Doyle and the 82nd to capture and clear the strategically important city of St. Sauveur, France.
[edit] Hell's Highway
In Hell's Highway, Hartsock and Baker take part in Operation Market Garden. Hartsock leads a squad consisting of the survivors of 2nd Squad (Campbell, McConnel, Paddock, Friar, and Marsh) in addition to new replacements (Pfc.Jasper, Pfc.Conner, and Pvt.Roselli). On September 22nd, 1944, while in a small cafe in Veghel, Holland, Hartsock confronts Baker about his mental health. This is due to what happend prior in Endihoven's hospital. While the two sergants argued a mortar shell hit the cafe and killed Friar, injured Campbell, gave Baker a nasty scar, and paralyzed Hartsock which sent him home and gave Paddock role as second squads leader.
[edit] Trivia
- Hartsock, and Sergeant Matt Baker (who was at that time a Corporal) were good friends.
- Other good mates of Hartsock include both Doyle and Desola.
- During his drop Hartsock's leg bag which held his M1 Carbine (M1A1 variation) was ripped from his leg, so he was unarmed. Hartsock's chute got entangled in a tree and as he dangled in mid air a German soldier came across him. The German was about to kill him until he was cut down by rifle fire. Hartsock was saved by Corporal Seamus Doyle from the 82nd Airborne Division, who quickly became one of his best friends during the Normandy invasion.
- Pvt. Muzza was killed in the C-47 by flak before he had the chance to jump. During the first few days of the operation Hartsock led Privates Allen and Garnett until they were killed during a flanking maneuver against an enemy held farm when they were under the command of Pfc. Kevin "Legs" Legget, whom Hartsock blames for their deaths.
- While in St. Sauveur he witnesses his friend Doyle getting killed by a tank shell from a Panzer tank. The blast disoriented Hartsock, and Pvt. Paige (who had a sucking chest wound from a piece of the shell) used the last ounce of his strength to pull Hartsock to safety before dying right in front of him.
- Hartsock is most often seen in the games using an M1A1 Carbine during the early parts of D-Day and the BAR during the later stages. However during an assault on the city of Baupte, France, Hartsock's ring finger is blown off at the tip and on top of this the stock of his BAR is shattered by a piece of shrapnel that took his finger. After this incident Hartsock is seen wielding the M1 Garand rifle and Thompson submachine gun.
