Book excerpt: Now with a new foreword by David Drake! THE SAGA OF THE SLAMMERS BEGINS! COLONEL ALOIS HAMMER: He welded five thousand individual killers into a weapon more deadly than any other in the human universe. When a planetary government faces unfriendly natives, guerrilla insurgents, or ruthless terrorists, they do the only thing that might save them¾ they hire Hammer's Slammers, the toughest, meanest bunch of mercs who ever wrecked a world for pay. Known throughout the galaxy for their cold, ruthless ferocity, the men of Colonel Hammer's indomitable armored brigade routinely accept impossible missions. Again and again, they go up against overwhelming forces, or fight a two-front war against ferocious opposition, all without atomizing their civilian employers. Can they keep doing it Not if they abide by the rules of civilized warfare...but nobody ever said the Hammers were nice. Even when their chances are not good¾those who oppose them have no chance at all! Publisher's Note: THE TANK LORDS contains two full volume's worth of the Hammer's Slammer's saga, for the first time presented in chronological story sequence as determined by the author. At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).