Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars

[Wrangler]

Dog eat dog world of Clan civilization.  Thanks Nick.  #P

[Mendrugo]

----- The Following Day -----

Date: July 3, 3024

Location: Marshall

Title: Seven Years' Bad Luck

Author: Philip A. Lee

Type: Short Story

Synopsis:  Sonja reports to the crowded Steel Viper Command Post, and finds that Tanya has convened the command staff to address an inbound Cloud Cobra raiding force which has requested safcon.  Tanya scoffs at Sonja's suggestion that the two Viper clusters might not be sufficient to repulse the Cobras, saying the Cobras do not pose a credible threat.

Cloud Cobra Star Colonel Adalmar Spaatz of the 214th Cobra Fangs Cluster opens a channel and declares a Trial of Possession against Steel Viper Genetics Research Facility Alpha.  Tanya accepts the batchall and directs the Cobras to proceed to Constrictor Range, near the Morten Plains. 

Star Colonel Violet asks Tanya about the operational status of her just-arrived Cluster, and Tanya informs her only two Trinaries are combat ready.  She bristles when Sonja suggests she will need infantry support to counter Spaatz's aerospace fighters.  Sonja asks that she not bid away the entire 131st.  Violet concurs, noting that the Vipers need to retain the genetics facility.  She recalls it is where both Tanya and Sonja were decanted.

Following the batchall, Sonja seeks an audience with Chief Geneticist Jose at the research facility.  He accepts the meeting, but warns her that it could lead to their execution for violating the ban on inter-caste fraternization.  He recalls working on the creation of her sibko, and tells Sonja the only difference between her and Tanya is a radioisotopic marker they inserted to differentiate the two.  She asks why they are so different in personalty, and Jose references "nature vs. nurture."  He says he's been following her career and had high hopes that the two would eventually become Khan and saKhan.  He blames the Sandsea handlers for nurturing the rivalry between the twins and for pitting them against each other in the Molting.  He expresses confidence in her future success, and tells her to leave and prepare for the coming trial.

Notes: The 214th Cobra Fangs (the "Black Sheep") are the largest aerospace unit in the Clans - an Elite/Reliable Cluster with a reputation for massive strafing attacks in its formative years.  Appropriately, Spaatz is one of the Cobra's Aerospace pilot phenotype bloodnames.  By 3067, it is 100% operational and stationed on Homer.  They come through the Wars of Reaving at 90% strength, circa 3085, one of only four Cloud Cobra aerospace clusters to survive.

It's interesting that the Cobras would be after the entire genetics research facility.  Without an enclave on Marshall, how would the Cobras maintain it?  Would they just bundle up the staff, data, and equipment and move it back to Homer?  Or would the next step be to challenge what remained of the Viper garrison for the entire civilian enclave?

I'm somewhat surprised that Violet thinks Tanya or Sonja would have any emotional attachment to their birthplace.  The Clans training program seems designed to eliminate emotional attachments, and to inculcate a healthy disdain for other castes, including the Scientists.  Sonja's aware that the scientists intentionally tried to pit her against Tanya in the sibko, so one would think she'd be prejudiced against them from the outset.

With a ban on inter-caste fraternization in place, one wonders how information flows from one caste to another in the Steel Vipers.  How did the twins pick up information about Civilian Caste superstitions?  Are there Scientist Caste workers at Sandsea who gather and disseminate data on Warrior performance?  It would make sense, but how does that square with a death-penalty ban on contact?  Likewise, are the Technicians similarly isolated from the Warriors?  How do the Merchants know what to buy/sell if they aren't in contact with the consuming and producing Castes?  The Steel Vipers are said to have their own unique interpretation of The Clan Way, which leads to a pure Trueborn touman and a general policy of isolationism - not just from the rest of the Clans, apparently, but between castes within the Clan as well. 

[Mendrugo]

Regarding the Skylar/Vicente discrepancy in "High Value Target," author Philip Lee replied that fact checking missed the reference to Vicente being on Janos' council in 2991.  He offered this explanation:

Vicente is a cousin of Reinhard and Skylar Orloff, and his father (who I believe is unnamed?) still had some political pull but was removed from the line of succession due to estrangement or some unforgivable slight. In the story, you might notice that the characters all refer to the head of the duchy as "Duke Orloff," not "Earl Orloff."From Orloffian perspective, an earl can't head up a duchy: it'd be called the "Earldom of Orloff" if that were the case. So Reinhard and Skylar style themselves as "Duke," much to the nobility's dismay, and Vicente's father, technically an earl under Reinhard despite the estrangement, still has the Captain-General's ear, and thus so does his son—hence why he was invited to dine with Janos Marik in 2991. A lot of legitimate dukes in the FWL don't take kindly to Reinhard's arrogance for using the title, so when Reinhard is killed by a Maskirovka assassination (which was designed to give the CCAF leverage for the attacks on Tsinghai and a failed thrust into the Duchy of Orloff) and Skylar the buffoon takes over the duchy as "Duke," Reinhard's enemies seize their chance to exert political pressure on the duchy and get  "Duke" Skylar stripped from political power (or assassinated by rivals, perhaps?). Then Vicente's father is installed as the proper "Earl of Orloff."

[Mendrugo]

----- The Following Day -----

Date: July 4, 3024

Location: Marshall

Title: Seven Years' Bad Luck

Author: Philip A. Lee

Type: Short Story

Synopsis:  On the Constrictor Firing Range, Sonja awaits the order to join the battle with the rest of her Trinary in an Indra.  Out on the field, Sonja can see that Tanya's uninspired tactics are getting the Vipers massacred by successive waves of aerospace strafing attacks.  Tanya, commanding from a Crossbow, initially  refuses to call Sonja's Trinary into the battle, but relents after Sonja offers to exploit holes in the Cobras' ground lines and use flak guns to clear the skies, then taunts her that her placement of her personal pride over the good of the Clan will prevent her from ever ascending to Galaxy Commander. 

While the Viper 'Mechs fruitlessly pursue the more mobile Cobra ground forces and continue to fall prey to airstrikes, Sonja's Trinary sets up field guns and begins to smash Cobra OmniFighters out of the skies, while the rest of the infantry and armor push forward in support of the Fusiliers' OmniMechs.  They shoot down a Batu point, then engage a quartet of Bashkirs and Avars.  The Avars strafe their position, followed by another pair of Batus.  Even with her Trinary being cut down around her, Sonja feels a sense of triumph, because these fighters have been diverted away from Tanya's 'Mechs.  She races over to a still functional field gun, surrounded by the bodies of its crew, jumps into the gunner's seat, blasts away at an incoming Avar before being knocked unconscious. 

Notes: Sonja's final attack, for me, recalled the opening scene from Firefly, where Mal Reynolds fights his way to an anti-aircraft platform and knocks out an Alliance fighter, barely getting out of the rig before the crippled fighter smashes into it in an all-consuming fireball.  This is the first time we've seen field guns or infantry support vehicles in use by Clan forces in the fiction.  Previously, unarmored Clan infantry were shown simply as cannon fodder, equipped with small arms and thrown into combat in the hopes they can die gloriously.  The use of LB-X autocannon flak definitely makes these infantry a serious threat to aerospace units.

The Field Manual: Warden Clans section on Cloud Cobra battle tactics reveals that their standard doctrine is to use superior numbers of aerospace fighters and assault ships to soften up enemies.  They then use artillery on enemy formations, and finally move in with swift 'Mechs to crush the last resistance.  Per the Cobra TO&E, the 214th Cobra Fang Cluster has four Trinaries of aerospace fighters and one of fast Medium/Light OmniMechs.  Interestingly, the Cobra doctrine would seem to run counter to the main Clan focus on one-on-one duels.  Is that only reserved for 'Mechs, while units outside of one's own weight class are fair game for massed attacks?  (I can't recall ever having seen a Clan MechWarrior issue a challenge against a BattleArmor point, or vice versa, and the Cobras don't seem to be taking the time to pick exclusive targets to duel from among Sonja's three field gun points.)

Despite the carnage wrought on her troops, Sonja's glee at having distracted the Cobras reflects a deeply ingrained belief that 'Mechs are worth far more than individual infantry lives, and that the second chancers' only real value is to be meatshields for the frontline hardware.  In her view, victory in battle will earn her and her troops a tiny slice of the glory they were denied in the Molting, and allow them to realize the only remaining outlet for pride and accomplishment remaining to them - achieving a battlefield victory for the Clan as a whole. 

[Decoy]

There's a reason why clans like the Snow Ravens and the Cloud Cobras are among the smaller clans. If you run contrary to the Clan system, you will be nudged into a position of irrelevance. Between safcon and the ability to choose the battlefield even on offense , if one is willing to make the concessions to do so. I imagine if the Steel Vipers played their cards better in bidding this scenario, there would have been a way to whittle it down so that they need only have fought the 214th's 'mech trinary.

Also since you didn't mention it, the 214th is a shout out to VMA-214, a United States Marine squadron that was formed in WWII as VMF-214 under the command of Greg "Pappy" Boyington, a medal of honor winner.

[Mendrugo]

----- Eleven Days Later -----

Date: July 15, 3024

Location: Marshall

Title: Seven Years' Bad Luck

Author: Philip A. Lee

Type: Short Story

Synopsis: Kept in the dark by Tanya following the conclusion of the Trial (a narrow Steel Viper victory), Sonja resolves to take matters into her own hands.  Bursting into the command center unannounced, she finds Tanya, Violet, and the newly arrived Galaxy Commander Ahmed Zalman, head of Beta Galaxy.  Tanya tells her infantry Star Captains are not welcome in the Trial strategic review.  Tanya apologizes to Zalman for Sonja's outburst, saying her sibkin is upset about her Trinary's poor performance.  When Zalman asked why Tanya broke her bid and called in an inferior infantry unit, when she clearly had the ground battle well in hand (crediting Tanya for Sonja's tactics), Tanya says she just wanted to give the poor infantry some experience.  Zalman tells her not to worry about the casualties, since they were "only infantry."

Outraged, Sonja confronts the two, demanding to know how Tanya dares claim Sonja's strategies as her own, and even standing up to Zalman for his having maligned the honor of the 131st.  Zalman responds that he doesn't care about who did what in the Trial.  He explains that leaving the genetics facility under-garrisoned was a ploy by the Viper saKhan to draw out Cobra raiders, leaving Cobra targets of opportunity vulnerable to punitive Trials launched by Beta Galaxy.  Tanya tells Sonja she could have won the Trial without Sonja or her infantry.  Sonja tells Tanya she is only where she is because of a lucky shot in the Molting.  When Tanya asks how Sonja dares to presume to be her equal, Sonja needles her by asking about the Sanra Mercer question from the test in 3007, subtly reminding Tanya of her inferior performance and discipline throughout sibko. 

Goaded into a fury, Tanya challenges Sonja to a Trial of Grievance.  Sonja accepts, secretly delighted at having successfully maneuvered Tanya into challenging her, since Tanya would have been well within her rights to refuse if Sonja had issued the challenge.  Zalman initially refuses to allow Sonja to pilot a 'Mech in the Trial, since she is not a Molted MechWarrior, but Tanya (always aggressive) threatens him with a Trial of Grievance, which would render his command of Beta Galaxy vulnerable to Trials of Position if he were to lose.  He relents, and decrees that the twins must use identical 'Mechs, and mandates that Sonja, being long out of practice, have one week to train.  Tanya chooses the Battle Cobra B - the same configuration they used in the Molting. 

Later, in the cockpit of her Battle Cobra, Sonja weeps with joy at being back in a BattleMech - finally given a chance to live up to the legacy of her genemother - Sanra Mercer.  Realizing she will never again be able to pilot a 'Mech, she spends the whole first day in the cockpit, eating and sleeping while in the command couch.  The following morning, she decides to make her own luck, and cuts her hair to match Tanya's exactly - once again becoming a mirror image of her more successful twin.

Notes: Zalman's explanation that the Cobra attack on Marshall was a strategic ploy by the saKhan opens up numerous questions.  Why would there need to be a justification for the Vipers to launch punitive Trials against the Cloud Cobras?  I don't recall any other Clan ever needing a reason to declare a Trial other than that the other party existed, was ready at hand, and had something the attacking Clan wanted.  Perhaps, in 3024, Clans felt some need to justify their Trials.  Presumably an unprovoked Trial (or a pattern of them) could trigger grudge Trials that drift away from the Clans' focus on conservation of resources and begin to cross the line into waste (like the ongoing - at this time - heavy Trialing between the Burrocks and the Blood Spirits).

Based on the picture from Invading Clans, Sanra was a brunette, so the blonde twins can't be exact copies of her.  The Jade Falcons made entire sibkos out of a single  set of gene parents' giftake.  I would presume, from the particular attention Sonja and Tanya are getting, that they were in a mixed sibko with sibkin from different pairings, rather than a troop of 101 Sanra Mercer genemother offspring.  Otherwise, what would make the girls special other than the random embryo split?

Zalman's disdain towards the infantry can be understood in the context that they're a second line Nu Galaxy Cluster comprised of second chancers.  Notably, his Beta Galaxy doesn't have any Phalanx Clusters - just Tanya's Viper Fusiliers, two Striker Clusters, a Battle Cluster, a Guards Cluster, and a Newt training Trinary (circa 3061).

[Decoy]

It's a single set of geneparents, not just one individual. EG one of the things that got Aidan Pryde's sibko special attention was that the genefather, Ramon Matlov was Ter Roshak's best friend and they resembled him greatly. As far as justification goes, everyone likes to have it.

[drakensis]

The Golden Century ended 2930 so it's hardly recent past.

Any raid seems to have knock on effects with the losing Clan needing to replace whatever they lost and striking at others to do so. Being the one to 'start' such a chain could disrupt alliances in the Grand Council and only a few clans ignore this in the Political Century. The Cloud Cobras are one of the exceptions which looks like biting them in the tail this time.

[Mendrugo]

----- One Week Later -----

Date: July 22, 3024

Location: Marshall

Title: Seven Years' Bad Luck

Author: Philip A. Lee

Type: Short Story

Synopsis:  After a week of training, Sonja takes her Battle Cobra into the Pit - a circular crater, several hundred meters wide, dug into the ground with enough room to hold a Point-on-Point Trial of Grievance.  She resolves that, win or lose, she needs to make this battle worthy of the Remembrance.  Both women exchange hits as the Trial commences, and continue to deal damage in roughly equal measure.  This continues until both 'Mechs are simultaneously disabled. 

As her 'Mech collapses, Sonja is sure she's lost once again, but then sees Tanya's 'Mech is down as well.  She climbs from her cockpit and sees Tanya doing the same - the Trial is still on.  They fight hand to hand, still arguing about who should have won the initial Molting.  Tanya pledges that once she wins, she will use her influence to ruin Sonja's career by having her assigned to the worst backwater possible.  Enraged, Sonja launches herself at "Big Sib" with renewed fury, and soon finds herself kneeling atop Tanya, her hands locked around her twin's throat.  Tanya continues to mock Sonja for being too weak to seize victory. 

Sonja realizes her only fault was in letting Tanya cheat in the first place, and not allowing her to wash out.  She rationalizes that if she had, she would have won her Molting and been on her way to a Khanship by now.  Tears begin to rain from her eyes as she squeezes the life out of her sibkin.

Having won the Trial, she looks at the lifeless body of her Big Sib and wonders if it was worth it.  She muses that even during her seven year stint as an infantry trooper, she found some comfort knowing that her twin was making a life for herself as a prestigious MechWarrior, and now even that is gone. 

Unless...

Notes:  The Steel Vipers favor the Pit as a Trial setting, because the high walls make it impossible for any combatant to forfeit by leaving the circle.  I recall from the Jade Phoenix trilogy that Trials in regular circles sometimes end when one combatant accidentally goes outside the circle.  The Vipers appear to disapprove of Trials that result in accidental forfeiture, and prefer a clean takedown by one party or the other.  I wonder to what extent the FASA design concept of Circle of Equals (with defined borders) was influenced by the map-based game rules that dictate that combatants which move off the edge of the map are removed from the engagement?

Circa 3000, the Steel Viper Khan is Royce Chapman, and the saKhan is from the Breen bloodhouse.  By 3048, the Khan is Natalie Breen, and the saKhan is Perigard Zalman.  As far as I know, we have no data on who was Khan between Royce and Natalie.  Given all the talk about "being on track for Khanship," I wonder if Sonja ends up becoming Khan for a period in the late 3030s/early 3040s.  Or is that sort of talk just standard shorthand in the Clans for being a ristar?

Interestingly, neither of the women took a personal sidearm into the cockpit - a standard practice for Inner Sphere MechWarriors, but something apparently unheard of for Clan Warriors (especially since, usually, once the 'Mech goes down, they become bondsmen, rather than fighting to the death). 

Sonja's hope that this battle enters the Remembrance begs the question - what is the criteria for getting in?  There must be innumerable Trials taking place throughout Clan space - are they all chronicled?  Just the unusual ones?  If someone later becomes a great leader, do they go back and add chronicles of earlier battles to the Remembrance to show his/her progression to glory?

[Decoy]

It's all up to the Loremaster as they are the ones who handle the remembrance.

As far as being on track for Khanship, several Clans have additional prerequisites for nomination, in addition to merely holding a bloodname. Technically, an infantry grunt may be considered as Khan as long as he has a bloodname. Needless to say, political support factors heavily into it. However, the Snow Ravens are not likely to nominate someone who doesn't have the honors they require and is from a bloodhouse they do not control. Before the Invasion, Nadia Winson's rise to Khanship of the Ghost Bears was seen as near miraculous as the Ghost Bears tend only to elect Khans from the Jorgensson or Tseng blood house.

Anyrate, Tanya's position as commander of an elite frontline cluster descended from an influential Khan and possibly with a prestigious blood heritage would indicate that she was being put into a position to be considered as a potential Khan.

[Mendrugo]

----- Six Days Later -----

Date: July 28, 3024

Location: Marshall

Title: Seven Years' Bad Luck

Author: Philip A. Lee

Type: Short Story

Synopsis: Star Captain Clive Moffat brings offworld transfer orders to Star Colonel Tanya Mercer of the Viper Fusiliers...or so he thinks.  Sonja switched codex bracelets with Tanya after winning the Trial, and rather than go back to her "second-chancer" life, she decided to use her identical appearance to take Tanya's place.  Ever the strategic planner, Sonja has spent the last few days learning every detail of Tanya's life, and the troops under her command.  She is still working out how to circumvent the encryption protocols on Tanya's Crossbow, and regrets having to assume Tanya's brusque mannerisms, but she considers it a small price to pay for her new exalted status.

As she opens Tanya's codex file to review it again, she notices the header has changed, indicating that Tanya was implanted with a radioisotopic marker to distinguish her from her twin, Sonja, along with a notation that the information was put in by Chief Geneticist Jose (Crick) in 2996.  Simultaneously worried that Jose figured out the switch and gratified that he seems to want her deception to succeed (having hacked the records to cover her tracks), "Tanya" resolves to issue Jose additional work credits by way of thanks. 

With the deception complete, Sonja ceases to exist, and "Tanya" Mercer prepares to move on to greater glory in the Steel Viper Clan.

Notes:  With the same fighting skill as Tanya (just slightly less luck) and vastly superior strategic and tactical skills, Sonja seems well positioned to become a ristar in the Steel Vipers.  Given the repeated mentions of expectations that she should be on her way to the Khanship, I would say it's a good bet that "Tanya Mercer" preceded Natalie Breen as Steel Viper Khan.  Natalie Breen became Steel Viper saKhan "at a young age" according to Era Report: 3052.  If she was born in 3014, she'd be 25 in 3039, which would be an appropriately young age to become Khan, but not implausible in the youth-oriented culture of the Clans.  Sonja is 28 in 3024 (born in 2996).  It wouldn't be unreasonable for her to achieve Khan status by 3030, giving her a nine year Khanship.

Scientists in the Clan often pick names of famous historical scientists to recognize special accomplishments.  Chief Geneticist Jose goes by the Science Name of Crick.  Appropriately, Francis Harry Compton Crick, OM, FRS was a British molecular biologist, biophysicist, and neuroscientist, most noted for being a co-discoverer of the structure of the DNA molecule in 1953 with James Watson.

I must admit that I really enjoy "long form" BattleTech fiction, which revisits the same characters across a span of decades.  The BattleTech fiction ur-example is, of course, Heir to the Dragon, but we've also had it in Fall From Grace, the unfinished ClanGrunder trilogy (of which we only have Fall From Glory in English), Blaine Pardoe's Son of Blake series, and now Seven Years' Bad Luck, which is an excellent example.  I particularly enjoyed the "happy" ending, where the sympathetic protagonist essentially discards the characteristics seen as positive by readers in favor of Tanya-esque traits that lead to greater success in the Clans - ruthlessness, deception, arrogance, and deadly ambition.

[Decoy]

If it makes the ending happier for you, "Tanya" Mercer was likely the last generation of Vipers "untainted" by the Innersphere. If her genetic material received the "all clear" she may have progeny among the Coyotes, who claimed the Mercer bloodhouse after the War of Reavings.

[Mendrugo]

----- Ten Years After the Beginning of the Second Succession War -----

Date: 2840

Location: Draconis Combine

Title: DCS Galedon II

Author: Nick Marsala

Type: Sourcebook (BattleCorps Ship Profile)

Synopsis:  This Ship Profile takes a look at the DCS Galedon II, which operated under the command of Cho-sho Greg Hossu from 2840 until its destruction over Hesperus in 2853.  Hossu had previously commanded a Baron-class destroyer, until it was crippled repulsing a Lyran raid on New Caledonia in 2840. 

The ship is escorted by three Achilles-class assault DropShips and one Mammoth, along with the Samarkand's own complement of 72 fighters (homegrown Combine fighters of all weight classes).  According to the scenario, this consisted of 18 Slayers, 12 Lightnings, 12 Shilones, 12 Sabres, and 18 Sholagars.

Notes:  This ship profile is a companion piece to author Nick Marsala's two-part scenario "Tactics of Desperation," which pits the last Combine WarShips against the LCS Invincible in the Hesperus system in 2853.

This profile states that the Galedon II was the last Samarkand circa 2840.  However, the Samarkand entry in TRO: 3075 says one ship, the DCS Togura, survived to 3075 as a museum piece orbiting New Samarkand.  Perhaps the Togura had already been crippled and removed from active duty by 2840, leaving the Galedon II as the sole Samarkand in active service at that time.

The Galedon II's battlegroup consisted of the Baron-class DCS Yedo, the Vigilant-class DCS Wyrm, the Vigilant-class DCS Pacheco, the Bonaventure-class DCS Tamura, and the Bonaventure-class DCS Georgia.  With one carrier, one destroyer, and four corvettes, the Kurita battlegroup was no match for the massively armed and armored Tharkad-class LCS Invincible, but was able to seize the system's recharge stations and rebuff numerous Lyran attempts to retake the system without WarShips.

For Hossu, the promotion from Baron to Samarkand was a massive upgrade in every respect, since the Samarkand has more weapons, more armor, and is even faster than the under-engined Baron he commanded from 2818 to 2840.

Interestingly, while Greg Hossu and Lewis Gohmann have Draconis Combine Admiralty ranks (Cho-sho:Commodore and Dai-i:Lt. Commander, the gunnery master and fighter wing commander are both called Sho-sa (Major), rather than the Admiralty rank equivalent of Dai-i (Lt. Commander).  I'd guess that's an oversight, but the correct use of Dai-i for security chief Gohmann may indicate it was intentional. 

The officer profiles include some revealing "sign of the times" tidbits - the DCMS supply network was starting to come unraveled at this point due to the ongoing economic raids, and Dai-i Gormann uses his ISF contacts to get better supplies and equipment for his troops.  Also, the Combine caste system at this point regards technicians as "lowly," so they haven't yet become prized assets (vital to maintain ancient LosTech gizmos), as they are in the Third Succession War, when a raid is as likely to be for technicians as for water or parts.

Looking at Handbook: House Steiner, the Galedon II under Hossu spent 13 years wiping out Lyran shipping (both WarShips and merchant JumpShips) in a series of roughly 38 engagements prior to its doom in 2853.  During this period, the Lyran government was fractured and demoralized.  Archon Marcus Steiner died of meningitis on Loric in 2843, leaving his wife Melissa Nin in charge for five months.  She was deposed by Claudius Steiner, who disbanded the Estates General and instituted a reign of terror on Tharkad (including using LosTech medical equipment on prisoners in a chamber of horrors within the Royal Palace).  During his reign, LCAF operations ground to a halt, exposing the Commonwealth to Combine attacks until he died in 2849.  A triumvirate regency took charge until the child heir, Elizabeth Steiner, came of age in 2859.  So Hossu and his fleet had fairly easy pickings on the Commonwealth front, and were able to strike at industrial targets deep within Steiner territory. 

[Wrangler]

Woah, i didn't know the Lyrans were in that bad of shape. I'm surprised someone didn't depose Claudius sooner.

Thanks you for shedding light with these ship profiles, Mendrugo!

[Mendrugo]

Real credit goes to Craig Reed and Nick Marsala - the actual authors. 

I must say, doing my research, I was surprised that so little text was given to Claudius' reign.  The original Steiner sourcebook had more detail, noting he was a prime example of latent depressive tendencies that run through the Steiner bloodline, and that he took delight in perverting LosTech medical equipment as torture devices. 

Tharkad wasn't raided during the Succession Wars, and its universities were intact.  He reigned from 2843 to 2849.  Given 110-year lifespans, people born in 2766 were only in their 70s.  How, then, had the doctors at Tharkad's most advanced hospitals forgotten how Claudius' medical doohickeys worked?  It seems a bit early, yet, for such items to be LosTech (unless, perhaps, they were some sort of cutting edge gadgets salvaged/looted from annexed Hegemony worlds, and were unfamiliar to Lyran medicos).  Since traditional medical tools would presumably be easy to puzzle out, these may have had truly exotic effects:

Claudius:  "Und zo, Herr Zschmidt, today ve are goink to use this device to resekvence your DNA into somezink...marzupial, ja?"

[Mendrugo]

----- 76 Years After the Founding of the Marian Hegemony -----

Date: 2996

Location: Marian Hegemony

Title: The Ghosts of Spartacus

Author: Christopher Purnell

Type: Sourcebook (BattleCorps Unit Digest)

Synopsis:  This Unit Digest takes the form of a report to Imperator Gaius O'Reilly about a pirate group named the Ghosts of Spartacus, under the leadership of Melissa Wen - a gladiatrix who led a slave revolt on Baccalieu in 2995, capturing weapons and DropShips, then joining with other pirate bands to form a battalion-strength unit.  They continue to support rebel slaves on Baccalieu with weapons and propaganda, and seek to spread their revolution to other Marian worlds. 

The ex-slaves were mostly either taken from League or Canopian worlds, or were the children of Marian slaves.  They are receiving covert military aid from the Rim Commonality, which provides aerospace support.  The notable personalities include an escaped gladiator (abducted from Lesnovo in 2993), an FWL fighter pilot, a bastard-born plebian Protestant convert, an abused Wiccan former child slave with bloodlust for vengeance, and an embedded IrTech entertainment war correspondent/propagandist.

Notes:  Imperator Gaius O'Reilly is apparently the son of Hegemony founder Johann Sebastian O'Reilly, and the father of Marius (who is 10 in 2996, and assumes the throne in 3009).  The Periphery sourcebook notes that Marius began attempting to make peace with the Magistracy of Canopus in 3009, but also notes that he views expansions as the key to the Hegemony's survival.  Oddly enough, Marius' bio notes he was born on Andurien.  So what the heck was Gaius (or at least Gaius's pregnant wife) doing way over there in 2986?

Previous accounts have painted the Marians as piratical aggressors in the conflicts with the Magistracy and FWL border worlds.  This account puts a more nuanced spin on that, suggesting that the Marians were retaliating against neighboring states that were sponsoring slave revolts and trying to bring down the Marian social order.  It's quite possible that this whole endeavor ends in fire and blood, especially given the special rules that indicate what happens when key personnel die, and the fact that the slave revolt is a distant footnote in Marian history by the time Marius' rule is chronicled in the Periphery sourcebook. 

The Marian Hegemony's insignia has gotten decidedly more hostile over the years.  The initial logo was a Roman carrying a standard and a scepter.  The second version was an armored centurion with face in shadow and a purple mohawk crest.  The third changed the crest to a spike and made the armor's inhabitant a zombie.  By this progression, the dark age version should have tentacles, wings, and a fondness for shoggoth.  Oddly enough, the flag's progression towards the dark side was the inverse of the state, which was moving from being a cosplaying bandit kingdom to a major Periphery power.

As with Christopher Purnell's other BattleTech works, he conspicuously works religion into this setup - establishing one leading character as a gentle Protestant who identifies with the plight of the slaves, and another as a vengeance-obsessed Wiccan, while other characters place side bets on how long it will be before the two start sleeping together.

[Mendrugo]

----- Seventeen Years Later -----

Date: 3013

Location: Taurian Concordat

Title: Hawke's Horde

Author: Jason Schmetzer

Type: Sourcebook (BattleCorps Unit Digest)

Synopsis: This Unit Digest is a companion piece to Jason Schmetzer's scenario, Unleash the Horde.  The unit is a corporate mercenary-turned-pirate band that launched resource raids on Taurian worlds between 3012 and 3014, operating with impunity from an abandoned training base on the island of Little Idaho on Laconis.    The Horde consists of a battered 'Mech lance, a former mercenary cavalry company that joined the Horde after their officers were arrested for embezzlement, a mish-mash armor group with captured Taurian militia equipment, a former FWL commander, and a mix of CCAF and AFFS deserters as crew, resulting in friendly fire incidents, and a special operations team comprised of hardened prisoners freed during a raid on Samantha.

Aside from the Capellan/Davion divide, the character profiles show massive internal divisions in the pirate group.  Commander Charley Hawke rules through fear and intimidation.  Cavalry commander Sera Bly is looking for an opportunity to break her command free of the Horde.  The group also includes Hawke's lover, who is cheating on him, an undercover TDF agent, a bloodthirsty Vedette commander, and a sadistic torturer reveling in the lack of inhibition that comes with piracy.

According to the scenario, the TDF failed to stop the Horde when it raided Landsmark in early 3013, but found and defeated the Horde at their Little Idaho base in 3014, and executed Charley Hawke in 3015.  (It occurs to me that the image from the cover (unpostable due to Unseen presence) of FASA's "Record Sheets Volume 5 - Vehicles," which shows a convoy of Bulldogs driving past the wrecked carcass of a pirate Griffin, could well depict the takedown of Hawke's Griffin in 3014.)

Notes:  At this point in history, the Concordat is ruled by Zarantha Calderon (who will not be succeeded by her son, Thomas, until 3017).  Zarantha was primarily known for giving huge tax breaks to Aramis Dunn's Far Looker movement, which advocated for expanding the Concordat's frontiers through a new wave of colonization.  This tracks with the note in the Unite Digest that the Horde seized a DropShip filled with colonization supplies during a raid on Brisbane. 

Laconis has been written up as a "lush, rich world of lightly forested plains and extensive mineral deposits.  The capital, Barkston, is a heavily fortified (gun emplacements and minefields) bluewater port home to large aquaculture vessels and petrochemical refineries. 

The Horde is a typical example of Periphery pirate bands.  Mercenaries who have disgraced themselves in the Inner Sphere and are no longer able to get contracts (thanks to ComStar's Mercenary Review Board rating system) often flee to the Periphery hoping to start over.  There, they begin the slide down to piracy, first scrounging for legitimate jobs and then taking raiding contracts for Bandit Kings. 

Few have bounced back from a Periphery decline, though Wilson's Hussars (of all commands) did manage a comeback after being abandoned by their employer, the Oberon Confederation, in the Outworlds Alliance while en-route back from a failed raid on the Taurian Concordat.  (The Longbow Mountain raid is one of the more jawdropping elements of the Mercenaries' Handbook, given the distances involved.  My guess is that Hendrik Grimm III dispatched the Hussars on the raid mostly as a perverse joke on the Hussars, rather than a real resource raid, and probably had them ride along with an archaeological team attempting to retrace the path of the Minnesota Tribe (as described in Interstellar Expeditions), given the routing through the Outworlds Alliance and on into the Concordat.  I can't imagine Grimm allocating one of his scarce JumpShips for a 2+ year round trip to the Concordat and back.)  Steele's Eagles (an OpFor for the Black Widows in More Tales of the Black Widow) also returned to the Inner Sphere after a tour of duty in the Periphery, as did Camacho's Caballeros (after a contract on Crotch New Horizons).  Far more commands end up turning pirate if they retain transport, or simply "dead merc" if they are stranded on a place like Antallos.

The Horde's Zeus pilot is Danielle Radcliffe.  I can't help but wonder if that's an in-joke reference to Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe?

[Decoy]

(whisper whisper) 3012 and 3014. I don't think anyone was raiding the Taurian worlds....unless there's something going on I don't know about.... ><

[Mendrugo]

----- Meanwhile, on the Game World -----

Date: 3013

Location: Solaris VII

Title: Gilgamesh Stables

Author: Jason Schmetzer

Type: Sourcebook (BattleCorps Stable Report)

Synopsis: This Stable Report profiles Gilgamesh Stables, a moderately successful Marik-aligned stable founded in 3010, which managed to get two fighters into the top 20 in both 3010 and 3012.  The stable was bankrolled by former FWL shipping magnate Hector Riviera, who sold his business for billions and moved to Solaris City to "enjoy the good life."  As of 3013, Gilgamesh had 29 MechWarriors and 18 'Mechs. 

Notes: Gilgamesh wasn't mentioned in the 3050-era Solaris VII boxed set list of major stables, so (per the boilerplate at the front of all the BattleCorps exclusives) it may have ceased to exist soon after this profile was written.  The character notes hint at the seeds of the successful stable's probable downfall - an increasing number of disgruntled MechWarriors buying out their contracts; run-ins with the Solaris City Police Department and possible links to the local Mafia; and a simplistic and camera-unfriendly arena strategy of standing behind partial cover and mashing down on the firing button, rather than trying crowd-pleasing, showboating maneuvers. 

Mafia deals and disgruntled MechWarriors are par for the course, but failing to put on a good show is one of the worst sins imaginable on Solaris VII.  The profile notes that Rivera brought in trainers with military backgrounds to bring his gladiators' skills up to par.  Thus, they use tactics that would make sense on a battlefield, but not in an arena.  They're basically fielding fixed gun emplacements in these battles, and run the risk of getting flanked by not maneuvering.  Granted, you don't need to worry about artillery in Solaris VII's arenas, but you do need to do something more than just stand there and shoot if you want to win the crowd.

Looking at the Random Assignment Table for Gilgamesh, I see several units with maximum engagement ranges of 270 meters.  Woe be unto the Hunchback, Jenner, Stinger, or Commando pilot that faces any foe with medium or long-range weapons.   

[Mendrugo]

----- Two Months into the Galtor Campaign -----

Date: July 29, 3025

Location: Galtor III

Title: Life and Death in the Big City

Author: Cory Glaberson

Type: Scenario

Synopsis:  As the battle for Galtor III rages on, the 5th Galedon Regulars launches a multi-pronged attack against the planetary capital, New Derry, attacking in five columns of two companies each.  Four of the companies bogged down among industrial ruins on the north side, but the fifth penetrated the outer defenses undetected and hit the supply depot and field command center in Elliot Park.  The park is defended by elements of the 12th Vegan Rangers and the Lone Wolf Regiment.

The scenario gives the AFFS HQ unit 24 unarmed/unarmored vehicles, a JagerMech, an Ostsol, a Thunderbolt, an Archer, an Awesome, a Victor, 2 Orions, an Assassin, a Spider, a Wasp, a Stinger, two Vedettes, two Goblins, two Pack Rats, two Skulkers, two Long Toms, one Sniper, the Leopard DropShip "Marion Davies," and 100 points of mines.

Against this, the 5th Galedon Regulars column consists of a Victor, Charger, Orion, Marauder, Thunderbolt, Catapult, Ostroc, 3 Dragons, Warhammer, Rifleman, 2 Grasshoppers, JagerMech, 3 Griffins, 4 Panthers, Wasp, 2 Wolverines, 3 Jenners, 2 Snipers, 4 Thunderbirds, 2 Lightnings, and 4 Sabres.

All told, the Davion side defends with roughly 950 tons of equipment, against an attacking force with 1,550 tons of ground equipment and ten aerospace fighters.  The odds are evened, somewhat, if/when the Davion player rolls a 5 or a 6 (checked each turn), bringing reinforcements into play.  A roll of 5 brings in 2 Sabres and 4 Sparrowhawks, while a roll of 6 brings in 2 Hellcats, 2 Stukas, and 2 Sparrowhawks.

The Davion side gets victory points for destroying enemy units.  The Kurita side gets a plethora of scoring opportunities, in addition to the standard points for killing enemy units.  They get bonus points for each support vehicle lance they destroy, for taking out the DropShip, and for killing Sir William Dobson, the Davion commander.  The scenario ends when one side is completely destroyed, or when the Kurita side exits all of its forces off the map after destroying either all the vehicles or half the vehicles and the DropShip.

Notes:  The support vehicle lances aren't fleshed out in BattleForce.  Looking through TRO: Vehicle Annex, they probably mostly consisted of Skoda "Growler" Service Utility Trucks (1 ton, 6/9, 1 point of BAR 2 armor on each facing), or equivalent vehicles, if you want to play it out in Alpha Strike or BattleTech rules.  (Other support vehicles aren't viable candidates, because they have weapons and/or BAR 10 armor).

The fact that the AFFS forces were relying on scouts and aerial reconnaissance indicates that the orbital paths were still hotly contested, or that the DCMS had full orbital control, preventing the AFFS from putting surveillance satellites up over New Derry.  (We know surveillance satellites were in use in this era, because Hawke's Horde launched a raid to prevent the TDF from putting a satellite in orbit to find the pirate base in 3012.)

Strategically, the DCMS should use its early aerospace superiority to pile on Sir William Dobson's lance, since it's a huge point payoff for taking it out.  The artillery should hammer the DropShip, because unlike the support vehicles, it won't be fleeing.  Once those targets are down, send your fast moving units to take out three support vehicle groups, then fall back and win on points - hopefully before the Davion air cover shows up.

The Davion side should bunch up as much as possible and form a wall between the attacking forces and the support units.  The heavy volume of firepower could either bring down the Combine fighter group if they try for the high-point-value targets (which should be huddling under the main battlegroup's umbrella of protection), or keep them back (waiting for the ground forces to engage and distract the AFFS defenders) until friendly air support can arrive.  Make sure your ground forces deploy to keep the DCMS forces away from your support vehicles. 

The Lone Wolves are an interesting unit in BattleTech's history.  They played a major role in the Galtor Campaign, but then dropped off the radar until being featured in a Jihad-era Mercenary Update.  It's a unique regiment in that it's a framework for smaller mercenary groups that have banded together to be able to take on contracts that none of them would be able to handle alone.  While many mercenary groups have been formed out of amalgamations of smaller units, they tend to merge into a unified command, rather than continuing to retain their own discrete identities within the larger framework. 

[Mendrugo]

----- One Day Later? -----

Date: July 30, 3025?

Location: Buckminster

Title: No Profit in Dying

Author: Cory Glaberson, L. Ross Babcock III, Kevin Stein, Tara Gallagher

Type: Scenario (BattleForce)

Synopsis:  During a disastrous raid into Combine space, the Osaka Mercenary Legion calls for a retreat after losing one battalion and taking heavy damage to the remaining two.  The Legion's goal is to get as many units as possible to its DropShips and offworld, while the Combine wants to inflict maximum casualties.  The Legion's command group and DropShips set up on the western edge of the map, while the survivors of the Legion's Daisho and Do-Maru battalions start within four hexes of the eastern edge of the map. 

The Combine force may hold six units off the map and drop them from orbit during the scenario. 

The Osaka player scores points for destroying Sworder units, while the Sworders get points for any Legion unit destroyed or left stranded without transport, counting those as captured.

Using the BattleForce->BattleTech conversion tables (Steiner) in Volume I of the Atlas of the Fourth Succession War, the Osaka Mercenary Legion has the following TO&E:

Daisho Battalion HQ: Crusader, Catapult, Quickdraw, Archer
Katana Company: Assassin, 3 Phoenix Hawks, Centurion, 2 Whitworths, Trebuchet, Catapult, Shadow Hawk, 2 Javelins
Wakizashi Company: Phoenix Hawk, Hatchetman, Wolverine, Spider
Tanto Company: Locust, Spider, 2 Commandos, 2 Cicadas, Stinger, Wasp

Do-Maru Battalion HQ: Thunderbolt, Archer, Shadow Hawk, Quickdraw
Kabuto Company: 2 Victors, 3 Zeuses, 2 Banshee (S), Marauder, Warhammer, 2 Orions, Awesome
Do Company: 2 Cicadas, Stinger, Wasp
Kote Company: 2 Wasps, Javelin, Stinger, Locust, Spider, 2 Commandos
Sode Air Company: 2 Centurions, 2 Lightnings, 2 Eagles

Regimental HQ: Warhammer, 2 Orions, Awesome, Phoenix Hawk, Hatchetman, Wolverine, Spider
Yari Artillery Battery:  2 Pack Rats, 2 Skulkers, 2 Long Toms
Transport Group: 3 Leopard DropShips (Regimental HQ), 3 Union DropShips (Do-Maru Battalion), 1 Overlord DropShip (Dasiho Battalion). 

The unit is also described as having support vehicles that have already evacuated offworld. 

The players are given 700 points to construct the 2nd Sword of Light.  However, the NAIS Atlas helpfully provides a full BattleForce listing, showing the 2nd as having a total point score of 912 (though, granted, the 4th War TO&E ignores the fluff that the Sword of Light regiments are typically outfitted with a fourth battalion).  Taking out the Regimental Battlegroup and Support Battalion (since the Sworders are executing a combat drop, rather than defending a fixed position), that drops the point score down to about 648, which is in the ballpark.

Using the conversion tables:

1st Battalion HQ: Dragon, Warhammer, Rifleman, Grasshopper
Alpha Company: 2 Dragons, 3 Grasshoppers, JagerMech, 2 Griffin, Panther, Thunderbolt, Catapult, Ostroc
Bravo Company: 3 Wasps, Stinger, Spider, 2 Panthers, Jenner, Dragon, 2 Griffins, JagerMech
Charlie Company: 4 Trebuchets, Griffin, 2 Panthers, Wasp, Crusader, Dragon, Catapult, Thunderbolt

2nd Battalion HQ: Thunderbolt, Catapult, Ostroc, Dragon
Alpha Company: 3 Dragons, 2 Grasshoppers, 2 JagerMechs, 2 Griffins, Thunderbolt, Catapult, Ostroc
Bravo Company: 3 Wasps, Stinger, Spider, 4 Panthers, Jenner, 2 Locusts
Charlie Company: 3 Griffins, 2 Wolverines, 6 Panthers, Wasp

3rd Battalion HQ: Dragon, Grasshopper, JagerMech, Griffin
Alpha Company: Crusader, 3 Dragons, 2 Grasshoppers, 3 Catapults, 3 Thunderbolts
Bravo Company: Whitworth, 2 Javelins, Stinger, 4 Wasps, 2 Stingers, 2 Spiders
Charlie Company: 3 Hunchbacks, Rifleman, Stinger, Griffin, Wolverine, 2 Panthers, Scorpion, Phoenix Hawk, Whitworth

Notes:  While most of the scenarios presented in BattleForce are fairly generic, "No Profit in Dying" pits the previously (and subsequently) unknown Osaka Mercenary Legion against the 2nd Sword of Light.  Since early BattleTech products were generally assumed to take place in/around 3025, and this features a fighting withdrawal by the Legion following a failed raid, that would place the action on the 2nd's garrison posting of Buckminster.  (It can't be before 3025, because the Legion has a then-new Hatchetman, per the conversion tables.)

The Osaka Mercenary Legion is an interesting "fish out of water."  It carries a heavy Japanese cultural theme, with this engagement focused on the Dasiho and Do-Maru Battalions and their Katana, Wakizashi, Tanto, Kabuto, Do, Kote, and Sode Companies.  Despite the Combine's near monopoly on Japanese culture, these are mercenaries attacking the Combine. 

Looking through the planetary fluff files, I find there is a city named Osaka on Minowa II (in the Benjamin Military District), where the most prestigious local sports franchise is the Osaka Lightning.  Benjamin itself hosts the Osaka Fields proving grounds.  My pet theory is that the Osaka Mercenary Legion consists of a group of MechWarriors that trained at the Osaka Fields and decided to form a mercenary unit.  (Alternatively, they may hail from the Lyran world of New Kyoto, which is one of the few ethnic-Japanese worlds outside the Combine.)

I would presume that the canon outcome was that the Legion got smashed by the 2nd Sword of Light and that very few of its forces made it off Benjamin.  This would account for a regiment-sized Elite 'Mech regiment not appearing on any TO&E rosters in the 3025-era House books or thereafter. 

The Legion is fairly fast, on average, so the 4-hex head start should be sufficient for many of them to get to the DropShips.  Kabuto Company and the Battalion HQ lances aren't so lucky, being heavy and slow.  I would advise the Legion player to deploy his heavies as a rear guard, spreading out to tie up the Combine (with aerospace and artillery support), while the lighter elements fall back to the DropShips.  Keep the Regimental HQ forces close in to the DropShips to protect them in case the Combine successfully drops its six 'Mechs nearby. 

For the Combine, the most important target is those DropShips.  If you can take them out, all the Legion's ground troops are doomed.  Bundle your fastest units (your 5/8/5, 6/9/6, and 8/12/8 'Mechs)  into a strikeforce and try to beat the Legion's forces to the DropShips.  Take advantage of the ability to drop units.  Pick out six heavies (Grasshoppers will do nicely) and have them drop as close to the Legion's DropShips as possible, with the mission of taking out the Overlord first, and then working their way down through the Unions then the Leopards.  Hopefully, by the time the desperate Regimental HQ manages to take them out, your speedsters will have arrived on the scene and can mop up the remaining droppers.

[Wrangler]

Where is this scenario, Life and Death in the Big City, from?  The main book for Battleforce?

[Mendrugo]

Life and Death in the Big City is from "The Galtor Campaign" scenario pack.

No Profit in Dying is in the BattleForce rulebook (1st Edition) on p. 58.  (p. 60 of the PDF)

[trboturtle]

It also could be the Osaka Mercenary Legion is originally from Ozawa, in the Federated Suns (Addicks PDZ, Draconis March). There is a population of Japanese decent there, and they really don't like the Combine (The Combine nuked it during the Sucessor War, and there's still areas on-planet that are a no-go).

Craig

[Mendrugo]

----- Two Days Later? -----

Date: August 1, 3025?

Location: Galatea

Title: Mercenary's Star

Author: William H. Keith, Jr.

Type: Novel

Synopsis:  Six months after relocating the Gray Death Legion to Galatea to look for work, money is running out.  Grayson is finding his Green reinforced Lance unable to compete against other experienced mercenary commands ranging from company to regimental size.  The Legion ran out of the C-Bills in mid-July, and has been paying its 186 troops (infantry, techs, administrative staff, ship crew, pilots, and MechWarriors) in promissory notes. 

Grayson's only contract offer is from Devic Erudin, who represents Verthandi's Revolutionary Council, and needs help fighting House Kurita.  Over water and lugen coladas, he tells Grayson and Renfred Tor the domestic rebellion was crushed when the Combine brought in BattleMechs, and he was sent to Galatea to hire mercenaries and buy guns, radios, and other equipment to equip a popular uprising against hundreds of 'Mechs from one complete and three partial Combine regiments.  The contract he offers is for the Legion to train cadres of Verthandian rebels in anti-Mech infantry tactics so they can support the main rebel army of armed AgroMechs.  Desipte his misgivings, Grayson takes the deal, because the alternative is breaking up the Legion and letting his staff seek employment with other mercenary outfits onworld.

As the Legion prepares to embark, Galaport representative Lt. Murcheson signs off on Grayson's manifest, and notes that Legion techs are painting over the Phobos' identification marks, indicating they're going on a covert mission.  Sergeant Ramage reports that the boarding is going well, but says the troops are nervous about the assignment.  Lori Kalmar, Grayson's XO, returns from the ComStar office to report the money from the sale of smuggled Verthandian vanadium has successfully been transferred into the ComStar holding account, so the rebels have the funds to hire the Legion.  Grayson muses wistfully that his brief romance with Lori on Trellwan has cooled, and Lori has become distant. 

Lt. Murcheson's aide, Syneson Lon, is a spy assigned to monitor Galatea, and he has been scrutinizing the Legion for weeks, though he remains unaware of the details of their contract.  He continues to surveil the activity on the DropPad, hoping to learn where they're bound.  His binoculars allow him to pick up Grayson's last statement by lipreading: "Either we starve on Galatea or we're stranded on Verthandi."  Payday!

In the Phobos, Grayson briefs his command team - JumpShip captain Renfred Tor, DropShip pilot Ilse Martinez, infantry commander Ramage, MechWarriors Lori Kalmar, Davis McCall, Delmar Clay, Hassan Ali Khaled, Piter Debrowski, and Jaleg Yorulis, and fighter pilots Jeffrie Sherman and Sue Ellen Klein.  Grayson goes over the contract - they're to be in-system 900 hours (about a week of transit and 30 days on the surface) doing cadre duty.  For this, they'll be paid 750,000 C-Bills.  Delmar Clay does the math and complains that it works out to only 4,000 C-Bills per person, minus expenses.  (It's about $40,000 (2014) - minus expenses - per person.)

Notes:  The date of August 1, 3025 for this story is a rough guess based on backtracking the book's internal chronology from the dates of the Verthandi scenarios in the Gray Death Legion scenario pack. 

It appears that Morgan Kell's 3010 housecleaning on Galatea (from "Not the Way the Smart Money Bets") hasn't noticeably improved Galaport, since Grayson notes that the only way to cut through bureaucratic red tape was to bribe port officials.

Interestingly, Grayson muses that the term "Lostech" refers not to pieces of advanced technology that can no longer be manufactured, or even fully understood, but refers to worlds that have technologically regressed more than average in the Inner Sphere.  This seems to more or less correspond to the Federated Suns' term of 'Outback' for its low-tech, regressed worlds.

Erudin explains that there was a major Kurita offensive at Dahlgren, which forced the Commonwealth to cede a number of border systems after LCAF forces were pushed offworld.  Grayson recalls that Carlyle's Commandos fought in that campaign, and had to withdraw offworld after being flanked by a Sword of Light regiment.  Here we have another case where William H. Keith's exquisitely detailed universe-building failed to receive follow-through in subsequent products.  Handbook: House Steiner's historical maps shows that Verthandi fell to the Combine in the 2nd Succession War, and no historical maps show any system named Dahlgren, putting it into the ranks of Drune II and the Erit Cluster as unmapped Keith creations.

A reasonable handwaving of the situation could be that the maps show border changes from the start of the war to the end, and the Lyrans may have reconquered Verthandi early in the Third Succession War, then lost it again in 3015.  As far as Dahlgren goes, it could be the name of a world in any one of the systems that were lost to the Combine.  The Commonwealth lost three groups of worlds in the 3rd War - members of the "contested pocket" around Buckminster and Port Moseby, and the buffer of worlds around Tamar, plus Csesztreg up near the Periphery border.  Buckminster became a Prefecture capital in 3005, so it and the worlds around it can't have been part of the 3015 Dahlgren cessation, meaning Dahlgren was probably up near Tamar or Csesztreg.  The only reason I can think of to cede worlds after losing a completely different world would be that the entire Lyran border defense strategy for those worlds depended on the now lost world.  Therefore, Dahlgren was probably not a colony world, but was a military outpost and staging ground, similar to the Davion outpost of Dragon's Field in the Capellan March.  With it overrun by the Sword of Light and its military infrastructure wrecked, the LCAF may have judged itself unable to reach those worlds to defend them.  (Erudin notes that Verthandi had been totally reliant on the Lyrans for military support.)

Worlds ceded by the Commonwealth as part of the 3015 Dahlgren treaty appear to include Csesztreg (held by the Lyrans at the start of the 3rd Succession War), Harvest, New Caledonia, Verthandi, and possibly Kirchbach (held by the Combine at the start of the 3rd War [conquered in 2840], but reconquered by the Lyrans in 2885).  The House Kurita sourcebook section on the Rasalhague District (p. 97) says that Kirchbach is the seat of a separatist movement where rumors abound of movements sympathetic to the neighboring Lyran Commonwealth (which would be consistent with having been under the Dragon's thumb for only a decade).  The section notes that troops from New Caledonia, Csesztreg, and Harvest are assigned to the opposite end of Combine space, because they are suspected of being disloyal.  Harvest Meat Lettuce is known as a prized delicacy on Tharkad (implying a recently existing trade relationship).

Prices are fairly high at Galaport, even at a dive like Marauder Bill's.  An ice water costs 3.25 kroner, while a lugen colada costs 2.25 kroners.  Circa 3025, that works out to $34.82 and $24.10 (in 2014 dollars), respectively.  No wonder Grayson's money from Trellwan went so fast.  (In 3025, 1 kroner = $5.50 in 1984 dollars, or $10.71 in 2014 dollars)

These chapters introduced WorkMechs for the first time, mentioning AgroMechs and LoaderMechs.  It would take another twenty years for those units to get game stats in TRO: Vehicle Annex.

Had the Lone Wolves not been heavily engaged on Galtor III at this very moment, it sounds like they would have been a perfect match for the nascent Gray Death Legion.  The GDL could have joined up as an autonomous command within the Wolves' framework and used that support structure to gain much needed experience while participating in contracts.  It was just Grayson's bad luck to be on Galatea looking for work while the Wolves were offworld under contract.

Pure vanadium goes for about $100/ounce today (which works out to 10.28 C-Bills/ounce circa 3025), implying that Erudin smuggled about three tons off Verthandi to earn 1 million C-bills.  I hope Grayson was wearing gloves when he determined the vanadium was malleable, since it's highly toxic in its pure form.  So you'd need about 4.5 tons of pure vanadium to buy one LCT-1V Locust, or 30 tons to buy an AS7-D Atlas.  I hope Grayson isn't planning on taking any battlefield losses, since the Legion's cut of 1 million C-bills will pretty much just cover salaries, not leaving anything to increase the Legion's capital assets.

Hassan Ali Khaled is introduced as a member of the Saurimat ("Quick Death"), the legendary ninja/Hashshashin-style martial brotherhood.  He addresses Grayson as "Kolarasi" and says Grayson has his bond, and that he will follow where Grayson leads.  William Keith left Khaled's background mysterious, but more detail came out in Interstellar Players, which revealed that Khaled is the last survivor of a heretical Saurimat sect which had moved away from temple guardianship to being assassins for hire.  The mainline brotherhood descended on their fortress and killed all but one recent recruit, whom they sent into exile in the desert, to serve as a warning to all of the folly of such heresy.  The message seems to have been pretty well lost on Grayson, who sees Hassan and thinks "Cool, my own creepy ninja/assassin!"

Davis McCall's primary character definition at this point is that he's from Caledonia and speaks with a heavy Scottish brogue.  The TVTropes page for "Violent Glaswegian" actually mentions BattleTech as the main Tabletop Game example.  "In BattleTech, this trope is in full force with planets such as Caledonia and Northwind being among the planets settled by Scots."  The trope page notes that a Scottish accent is a literary shorthand for conveying bravery, due to the Scots' reputation as being fierce fighters.

[Frabby]

"Use Martinez" is of course a frequent OCR misreading of the DropShip captain's real name "Ilse Martinez".
(I'm assuming it's an OCR problem because similar stuff - "rn" becoming "m" etc. - frequently creeps up in the BC PDFs. Guess the original files were paper-based, as was the norm for manuscripts in the eighties.)

As for planets, Keith did a lot of background homework here. Duke Ricol's writeup in BattleTechnology #0102 expands a little on the topic:
"The de facto lord of 14 worlds within the Rasalhague Military District [...], from Kufstein's World to the twilight barrens of The Edge, he maintains his capital and ducal court at Alexis on Rodigo, barely 20 parsecs from the Lyran border [...].
"In 2785 General Henri Ricol became the first Duke of Rodigo, and for more than two centuries after that, the Ricol domain was restricted to the world of Rodigo. It has only been within the past 30 years that 13 worlds formerly belonging to Steiner - some of the Tamar Pact worlds - and ceded to House Kurita in three separate campaigns, have been placed under the administrative jurisdiction of the Duchy of Rodigo."
Verthandi is later expressly named as "one of the seven Tamar Pact worlds ceded to House Kurita by House Steiner in 3015" and yet later it is mentioned that "Verthandi's near-independence has raised hopes among the resistance forces on all of the old Pact worlds. New Caledonia, [...] Basiliano and Dahlgren as well. [...] At least one mercenary regiment has been hired and stationed on Auric II (Harvest), and [...] several mercenary companies are scheduled to be deployed within coming weeks to Basiliano and others of the former Tamar Pact worlds now controlled by the Draconis Combine."
Yet later: "All of the Tamar Pact worlds within Kurita domains are habitable without the need for special suits or equipment, and all possess cities where numerous recreational facilities and services may be enjoyed."

[Mendrugo]

You are correct - I've been using PDFs of the novels (when available), which were offered on BattleCorps for a few years before being removed.  Fortunately, PDF downloads aren't like the Amazon Kindle, where Amazon reached out and deleted certain books off people's readers after the fact, so I've still got them.  Thanks for the correction on Ilse's name.

The claim of Tamar Pact world habitability has since been contradicted by canon accounts, rendering the original citation non-canon.  Masters and Minions detailed Csesztreg as a world where inhabitants need to live in climate controlled domes.

[Frabby]

Bah - you can live without a special suit or equipment in those climate-controlled domes so all is good. No conflicting information. Nothing to see, move on.  ;)

[Mendrugo]

----- Three Days Later -----

Date: August 4, 3025

Location: Udibi

Title: Pawns of Crystal, Board of Stone

Author: Dale L. Kemper, Blaine Lee Pardoe, Anthony Pryor, and John Theison

Type: Scenario

Synopsis: Sorenson's Sabres is assigned to raid an AFFS supply depot on Udibi, near the city of Bouville.  Surrounded by Davion forces when promised support failed to arrive, the Combine raiders, under Lt. Cedrick Sveinson, nonetheless seized supplies and successfully broke out of the encirclement and retreated offworld with minimal losses.  Takashi Kurita blamed the lack of support on a communications breakdown, executed a pair of innocent subordinates, and awarded the Sabres a Distinguished Unit citation.  In actuality, the raid was a diversion intended to draw AFFS attention away from Galtor III.

The scenario itself pits Sorenson's Sabres' Medium Lance (Longbow, Rifleman, Trebuchet 7K, Stinger) against elements of Kurtland's Company of the 3rd Ceti Hussars (Warhammer, 2 Riflemen, Archer, Phoenix Hawk, Wolverine, Wasp).  The Sabres attempt to escape off the north or south map edge with as many supply counters as possible by the end of turn eight, scoring one point per 'Mech and one point per cargo container.

Notes:  When the Sorenson's Sabres scenario pack was published, the exact date of the Galtor Campaign hadn't been fixed.  The Galtor Campaign scenario pack didn't even give that information - just that it was some time in 3025.  The Historical: Turning Points - Galtor sourcebook has it beginning on May 18.  It's retroactively odd, therefore, that House Kurita would launch a diversionary raid on Udibi to "cover the real Kurita attack on Galtor III," since 1) the AFFS was already well aware of the Kurita attack, and 2) the AFFS wanted the DCMS to attack Galtor, and had created a false Star League depot there as bait for an ambush, so they were unlikely to draw off units required for the ambush to respond to the raid on Udibi.  This makes more sense as a DCMS attempt to tie down potential AFFS reinforcements, to ensure they could not be dispatched to support the Davion troops on Galtor III without sacrificing other targets along the border.

The establishing narrative, "In the Dragon's Lair" is almost unique, because it shows a Takashi Kurita at rest, rather than his usual mode of raging at his Generals, his son, or his spymaster.  He is playing chess with his favorite concubine, Mara (apparently having great trust in his screening process, despite the assassination of a previous Coordinator by a Lyran agent code-named "Snow Fire," who infiltrated the palace as a concubine), using crystal pieces on a marble/onyx board.  He muses that the Succession Wars are a game he plays with Hanse Davion and Katrina Steiner every day, and he regards his BattleMechs and MechWarriors to be expendable pawns in the game. 

The presence of a concubine reflects the fact that, while Jasmine is Theodore's mother, she is still only his official Consort, and not his wife.  Takashi apparently marries Jasmine sometime between 3019 and 3033, though Mara's presence at the chess game may indicate the marriage was between 3025 and 3033.  (At which point, given the tenets of the Dictum Honorarium, Mara was probably promptly executed by ISF agents.)

The narrative is definitely a winking meta-shout out to the players, since treating war as a game is pretty much what BattleTech is all about, both as a FASA "beer'n'pretzels" giant robot shoot-em-up game, and on the battlefield, where combat is (circa 3025) conducted according to informal rules of engagement that make it less of a knock-down, drag out fight for survival, and more of a battle of maneuver - in essence, more of a game.  (Some of the background material in the sourcebooks indicates that battles were often interrupted for mutually agreed "time outs," during which combatants could cool down, undertake field repairs, and recover/treat the wounded.  The Clans, of course, completely ritualize combat.)

The author clearly hadn't seen the art for many of the 'Mechs when he wrote this scenario.  He notes that "each 'Mech with hands (i.e. all but the Rifleman) may carry one supply counter for each functional arm."  Going by the visuals, the Stinger has one available hand (since the Medium Laser is occupying the other one), the Trebuchet's right arm is a missile launcher, not a hand, and neither the Rifleman nor the Longbow even have lower arm actuators, let alone hand actuators.  Short of assigning UrbanMechs, Goliaths, or Scorpions to the job, this is just about the worst possible configuration for a "smash'n'grab" operation.  At best, going by current rules covering picking things up, the Sabres could get three cargo containers (two, if you rule that the Stinger's laser precludes grabbing supplies with that hand), for a maximum score of 7 (Defender Marginal Victory). 

You can compensate for this by ruling that the Sabre 'Mechs are equipped with cargo nets to hold up to two supply containers per 'Mech.  The extra carrying capacity (giving the Rifleman the ability to carry cargo) is sufficiently offset by the fact that the Trebuchet and the Stinger have to spend time loading the other two 'Mechs, slowing down their departure from the depot if they want to be fully loaded.  (Though, if you follow the Total Warfare rules from p. 261 to the letter, you need friendly infantry and three turns of immobility to strap on cargo or put it in slings, so the Sabres have pretty much lost by default if they use the Total Warfare ruleset.) 

An alternative workaround would be to rule that the Longbow has been fitted with two cargo hoists, and the Trebuchet has been fitted with one, while the Stinger can clip its hand-carried Medium Laser to its arm and use both hands, Macross style.

From a tactical point of view, the Sabre lance has to move either nine hexes north or nine hexes south to escape by the end of Turn 8 - two or three turns of running (depending on how much you have to turn), given the Longbow and Rifleman's top speed of 6.  There are enough multi-level buildings that, if you move quickly, the forces arrayed on the north won't be able to support the forces on the south end.  Determine which side of the map has the weakest defense, and, once loaded, charge full speed towards it.  Take maximum advantage of movement modifiers and cover, and don't worry too much about making your own to-hit numbers better.  You score no points for taking out the Ceti Hussars.  With luck, your armor will hold for the two turns you're exposed to enemy fire (you exit in the movement phase of turn three, so there's no shooting).

For the Hussars, anchor the northern end with two Riflemen and an Archer, and defend the southern side with the Warhammer, Wolverine, Phoenix Hawk, and Wasp.  If Sabres move north, the fast southern units can pursue and hopefully get in some back-shots.  If the Sabres move south, the fast units can move to intercept, while the Archer provides LRM barrages in support, and the Riflemen try to get close enough to open up with their arm guns.  It's going to be very hard, given 3025-era equipment, to strike a killing blow in the 2-3 turns you'll have to take shots.  Your best bet, I would think, would be to try to goad the Sabres' player into standing and fighting it out, giving you time to move in and catch them in a crossfire.  Perhaps let the air out of his tires, or take the last slice of pizza, then laugh about it.  Otherwise, you're just going to mar the paintjobs while the supplies walk off right past you.

Alternatively, if players agree to use the grabbing rules, you could use your Phoenix Hawk, Wasp, and Wolverine as a "capture the flag" squad and either try to grapple the fleeing Sabres to hold them in place for your big guns to kill, or grab the supplies out of their hands/lift hoists.  If this option is used, you should concentrate the slower units' weapon fire on the Stinger and the Trebuchet, letting the speedsters take care of the slower Rifleman and Longbow.

Looking at the Field Manual special abilities, there's nothing here to help the Ceti Hussars.  "At the beginning of the game, the [Hussars] player must designate a command unit. As long as the command unit remains in play, the Third receives a -3 Initiative penalty."  The Fifth Sword of Light's special unit ability circa 3058 (tech upgrades) isn't applicable to the Sabres in this engagement.

[Wrangler]

Mendrugo, are you going to mix in the Starter book: Sword and Dragon?  Sorenson are also cover in there, it may fix some discrepancies that are popping up in your reviews.