Author Topic: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars  (Read 480656 times)

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #300 on: 12 July 2013, 07:06:48 »
----- 19 Years Later -----

Date: May 30, 2972

Location: Botany Bay

Title: Godt Bytte

Author: Kevin Killiany

Type: Short Story (BattleCorps)

Synopsis:  Olaf Jespersen and his father Bjorn, JarnFolk traders, are negotiating a trade deal with Goodman Giles, a representative of the local governmen who is negotiating to secure supplies that will help the colony become self sufficient and, eventually, build the space habitats and orbital factories necessary to exploit the system’s natural resources.  Right now, they need building materials that can withstand the relentless obsidian sandstorms that scour the surface of Botany Bay and a reliable supply of uncontaminated water.

Notes:  This is Olaf’s first trading trip outside the JarnFolk cluster, and he chafes at the differences in protocol.  He also has to keep reminding himself to speak in Star League English, noting that “to trade in Star League, one must think in Star League.”  It’s interesting that the JarnFolk still think of the Inner Sphere as the Star League 200 years after its collapse.

The description of Botany Bay as being covered in sand comes from the Savannah Master entry in TRO:3026, which mentions that a group of traders dumped their load of Botany Bay industrial sand to make room when they found a cache of LosTech.

The inhabitants of Botany Bay use the term “mate,” implying Australian origins for the colonists.

At this point in history, Botany Bay appears to be an independent Periphery world, though within 50 years it will be part of Morgraine's Valkyriate.  It at least seems to have more ambition than other worlds in its vicinity (also destined to become Valkyriate members), which the 1st Edition Periphery book describe as being frozen planets where small bands of nomads eke out a living herding reindeer. 
« Last Edit: 12 July 2013, 07:18:21 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #301 on: 13 July 2013, 06:43:21 »
----- 2 Months Later -----

Date: July 11, 2972

Location: Oberon VI

Title: Godt Bytte

Author: Kevin Killiany

Type: Short Story (BattleCorps)

Synopsis:  Accompanied by their guards (Nils, Frieda and Alice – all professional assassins), Olaf and his father approach the trading center on Oberon VI with caution, having noted the presence of a Hanseatic League trading mission in the system.  The JarnFolk regard the Hansa as “upstart shopkeepers lacking in honor.”  This is the first time the Hansa have been seen in the Oberon Confederation in the century since the JarnFolk began trading with them (presumably shortly after Hendrik Grimm I and his 65th Lyran Regulars settled there in 2855).

The main Oberon Confederation trading center is a broad building of pillars and arches – a structure resembling a village of great tents.  Olaf is impressed by the elegance of the Oberonians, while the Hansa delegation wears heavy robes and broad, richly colored hats.  The Hansa are demanding exclusive trade rights with the Confederation, but the Oberon representative, Lady Marsa, reminds them that the matter has not yet been decided.

The Hansa offer the technical expertise to further industrialize Oberon VI and exploit its natural resources.  Olaf’s father agrees that the JarnFolk aren’t construction contractors, and do not compete on price with Hanseatic slave labor.  However, he notes the dilapidated state of the Hanseatic JumpShips in comparison with the immaculately maintained JarnFolk vessels, if Oberon is looking for quality craftsmanship and value.  Afterwards, Olaf’s father analyzes the negotiations with his son, and comes to the conclusion that Oberon VI must have obtained a new source of water purification technology, if it hopes to restart its industrialization plans.

Notes:  The Oberon VI seen here is quite a contrast from its depiction in the Periphery sourcebook, where it notes that Hendrik Grimm founded the colony's government in 2855 as a mockery of a state, and Hendrik Grimm II "continued the family business of brutality."  The high fashion of the trade representatives and the elegant architecture of the trade center is quite a contrast to what we see about 60 years later, under Hendrik Grimm III, when the government center is the squalid Grimfort, with an ambiance that evokes Jabba’s palace.  It's possible that the civilized veneer at the trade center became unnecessary once an exclusive trade deal was reached with the Hansa.

The tensions between the JarnFolk and the Hansa indicate that the two nations have actually maintained a higher level of technological knowledge than many Inner Sphere states, since their pilots aren’t afraid to venture out into the vast reaches of the Deep Periphery due to the risk of drive failure.  (One of the stated reasons for why Inner Sphere ships feared to venture alone into the Deep Periphery was the risk of blowing a liquid helium tank or having a control computer fail.  If they were off the charts, nobody would ever come to assist.) 

Given the distance between the Hansa and the JarnFolk, they probably only meet when they compete for markets along the Inner Sphere’s X=0 axis, where the Oberon Confederation lies.  One wonders what role the merchant princes of the Khwarazm Empire (profiled in Explorer Corps - conquered by the Clans in 3049 and extinct by 3080 as a side effect of the Wars of Reaving, according to Herb) and the traders of House Mailai of the Erit Cluster (from Decision at Thunder Rift) play in this apparently highly competitive market.  Both of those trading powers likewise exist in the JarnFolk/Hansa zone of competition in the coreward Periphery.
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #302 on: 13 July 2013, 06:49:54 »
Notes:  The Nova Cats’ use of the term “Trial of Refusal” seemed odd to me, since what they were proposing seemed, to me, more in line with a new Trial of Possession.  I posed the question to the Line Developers, and received the answer that it is not possible, under Clan rules, to conduct a Trial of Refusal against the outcome of another Trial.  Trials of Refusal can be issued against, say, executive decisions by commanders or by the Clan Council (or Grand Council), but Trial results are considered final, lest things degenerate into a permanent feud.  Trials of Possession also generally don’t continue ad infinitum back and forth, so after a loss, the losing Clan doesn’t declare a new Trial of Possession unless the situation on the ground has markedly changed.  In this case, the arrival of the 179th provides the impetus for a new Trial. 

Given the clarification from the Line Developer, Lucien seems to have misspoken when he called for a Trial of Refusal, when he actually meant a Trial of Possession.  (Line Developer Herbert Beas did cite this incident as a sign of the Nova Cats’ early deviancy from Clan ways…though that may have been tongue in cheek, given that Clan’s eventual shuffle off the mortal coil.)

Author Philip A. Lee explains why Trial of Refusal was used:

Quote
As the author of "Whispering Death," let me clarify:

In the novel Roar of Honor a planet was in danger of being won via a Trial of Possession, and Star Captain Angela Bekker said: "I will send an HPG message to command. They will most likely send a force to issue a Trial of Refusal should we lose possession of Toffen." Note that she says "Refusal," not "Possession," indicating that if they lose the planet, the Bear reinforcements that arrive at Toffen would issue a Trial of Refusal over the Possession—not a second Trial of Possession—and if they win, then the Wolves' Trial of Possession would be overturned as though they'd never won the planet.

After reading that book, my assumption was that if someone won a ToP, the loser could declare a ToR—essentially demanding a rematch but at standard ToR odds based on how badly the ToP loser lost—and the winner of the Refusal would take or keep possession of the object in question. Then, if the loser still wanted the object, they would have to declare another ToP. Herb and Paul make a good case against this, and having just reread the ToR section in WoK, I agree with them.

Pardoe using "Refusal" instead of "Possession" may have been an unintentional error on his part that no one caught, but I had just finished reading this book while writing "Whispering Death," so it made perfect sense to me at the time, and no one in factcheck had an issue with it.
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #303 on: 13 July 2013, 07:22:46 »
As side note: Is Kevin Killiany still writing Battletech stories?  He was among my favorite of later authors writing novels/stories.
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Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #304 on: 13 July 2013, 08:10:36 »
As side note: Is Kevin Killiany still writing Battletech stories?  He was among my favorite of later authors writing novels/stories.

According to the BattleCorps "fiction by author" page, his last story for BattleTech was "Crucible at Campoleone" in 2010.
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Frabby

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #305 on: 13 July 2013, 13:08:38 »
Author Philip A. Lee explains why Trial of Refusal was used:
While a factchecking oversight is the most likely answer, I note that in the Toffen situation the ToR was issued by an inbound reserve force that had no chance to be included in the original ToP - but who might have played a part in the battle if it had been a drawn-out engagement instead of a short trial fight. Perhaps that gives them leverage to demand a ToR in this case.
(That's how I read Phil's summary. I'm away from my books and don't recall the novel.)
« Last Edit: 13 July 2013, 13:11:19 by Frabby »
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Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #306 on: 13 July 2013, 23:24:57 »
----- 11 Days Later -----

Date: July 22, 2972

Location: Sigurd

Title: Godt Bytte

Author: Kevin Killiany

Type: Short Story (BattleCorps)

Synopsis:  Olaf and his father arrive on the frozen ice moon Sigurd, which orbits the gas giant Odin.  The small colony there survives by mining minerals from meteorites embedded in the moon’s shell and growing food in hydroponic bays.  Lichen lines the tunnels in the ice caves, providing both insulation and oxygen.

Colony representative Tomas welcomes Olaf and his father, and notes that it has been generations since the last JarnFolk trading mission (from the Heyerdahl clan) visited, leading the colony to believe itself forgotten.  The Sigurders need to import fertilizer, fabric, and raw materials for limited manufacturing from offworld.  If I were giving Sigurd a USIIR value, I’d put it at D for most categories except for technological sophistication, since it has to import almost all its raw materials and manufactured goods, plus a good amount of agricultural inputs, exporting heavy metals in trade.  It only sees Oberon trading vessels twice a year, and barely acknowledges its membership in the Oberon Confederation.

Olaf realizes that the Sigurders have developed a highly cost effective water purification system, with the intent of stripping away the ice to get at the metals inside, discarding the water as “dross.”  However, their mining is limited by having to use scrapers to dig to the ice, to avoid generating too much heat and causing the tunnels to collapse as the ice melts.  Olaf asks his father about the feasibility of using sandblasting technology in such conditions.

Notes:  Sigurd, as portrayed here, has a number of significant differences compared to the Sigurd that Lori Kalmar reminisces about in the Gray Death trilogy.  Here, it’s a frozen moon of endless ice plains orbiting a gas giant, where the small colony of 2,000 people of uniformly African descent lives in caves carved out of glaciers and imports soil from Oberon VI for its hydroponics bays.

In the Decision at Thunder Rift recollections of blonde Caucasian Lori Kalmar (dating back to when she was growing up on Sigurd between 3005 and 3024), the world is a “bitterly cold and isolated world of frozen seas and towering glaciers, a stark and bleak wasteland of ice spires and mounds of snow under a sky of midnight blue, the moon of a sullenly glowing gas giant.” This fits the Sigurd seen by the Jespersens, but in The Price of Glory Lori notes that Helm is a lot like Sigurd: “cold…rockymountainous – but beautiful.  There were mountains to the south three thousand meters tall, the tallest spires capped with eternal snows, with endless glaciers – so much like home.”  Lori also recalls her parents’ home as a low, thick-walled house of logs, clay and handmade bricks.  This is quite different from the Jespersens’ debate over whether Sigurd had a rocky core deep under the icy shell, or whether the core was pure water.  It’s unlikely that the JarnFolk brokered a deal to import 3,000-meter tall mountains and forests to go with hydroponic topsoil. 

The political situation on Sigurd also appears to have gone through some changes.  The Jespersens note that in 2972 the colony on Sigurd barely acknowledges that it’s part of the Confederation, and that traders from Oberon VI only come twice a year.  According to Lori, dissidents calling for independence from the Confederation were crushed by Confederation troops in 3017, and the colony’s government had shifted to a highly militaristic dictatorship.  Rather than being a miniscule and peaceful colony (as it was circa 2972), it formed its own Sigurd Defense Forces (including a Sigurd Independent Light Assault Group) under the command of Vice Regent Alisaden, a warleader that also serves as Sigurd’s Defense Minister.  That’s quite a shift in just 30 years. 

One possibility for reconciling the accounts is that the economic boom resulting from the Jespersens’ dealmaking led to a wave of immigration, ending the mono-ethnic character of the original colony and allowing the colony to afford a significant amount of terraforming.  The greater prosperity and larger population may have incentivized the Grimms to move to exert stronger control over the previously neglected colony, leading to the fighting that killed Lori’s parents in 3017.  As for the mountains, perhaps the Jespersens approached from the wrong side of the planet to see that the rocky core did punch through to the surface in some parts, forming high mountains (and potentially supporting some cold-resistant tree species). 

The Heyerdahl clan would still have been a major trading family in 2972, dominating the world of Trondheim, so it’s interesting to speculate why they stopped trading with the colony on Sigurd.  The Heyerdahls didn’t lose their prominence amongst the JarnFolk until they lost their JumpShip during an encounter with the Clans in the mid-3060s.
« Last Edit: 13 July 2013, 23:28:32 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Nerroth

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #307 on: 14 July 2013, 00:03:09 »
I haven't stopped to count out the stories so far, but it seems that the coreward near and Deep Periphery (to include the Clan Homeworlds) is fairly well represented in BattleCorps fiction set in this era, at leat prior to 3000.

Do things taper off in that direction once the early print novels pick up, or does BC cover much of what was going on "out there" in the time between the forging of the Dragoon Compromise and the onset of Operation REVIVAL?
« Last Edit: 14 July 2013, 00:05:32 by Nerroth »

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #308 on: 14 July 2013, 06:23:59 »
It's interesting - the Succession Wars era of BattleTech fiction is almost universally dominated by Clan stories.  Aside from a cluster of stories dealing with the outbreak of hostilities in the First Succession War, the Kentares Massacre, and the Chain Gang raids, all of the fiction is Clan or Periphery focused.  Once we cross the year 3000 threshold, however, it shifts back to pretty much exclusively cover the Inner Sphere.

We see a few Periphery stories post-3000: 3008's "Opportunity;" 3028's "Unholy Union" and "Starfire;" and 3041's "Rules of Salvage" and "Bad Water." 

We don't see the Clans again until 3028's "Zeroing In" and "Way of the Clans," which introduce the Jade Phoenix trilogy characters and track them through 3031.  "Bloodname" picks up in 3036 and continues through 3037.  The prologue to "Exodus Road" gives us some Smoke Jaguar action on Londerholm in 3037.  Other than that, the Clans don't get any page time until showing up in "Lethal Heritage," the "First to Fall" ClanTroops scenario, and "Skirmish at the Vale's Edge" in 3049.
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #309 on: 14 July 2013, 08:15:13 »
One wonders, though, exactly how Khan Bennett got word of the events out on the Exodus Road so quickly.  Since the story establishes that they were on the seventh jump from the Pentagon on the Exodus Road, that's up to 205 LY away, and the maximum range of an HPG burst is only 50 LY.  The following scene establishes that the Muninn is still at Gamma 4617 4E.  This also begs the question of how the Muninn checked in with Lum while they were parked at Iota 53136 9F (up to 174 LY from the Pentagon).  One possibility is that the Muninn was operating in conjunction with a Naval Star of communications vessels - ten JumpShips with onboard HPGs that formed a relay back to Lum and adjusted their positions to stay in contact with the Muninn as it pursued the Hailstorm.  If that's the case, then there could have been another ship in the chain at Zulu 11981 TZ, and so on.  That would give the Muninn a 550 LY range in which it could remain in communication with Lum.  I think this is the most likely response, since I find it highly doubtful that there would be the kind of automated HPG repeater stations like the Clans built for communications between the Homeworlds and the Inner Sphere in support of Operation REVIVAL, since the Exodus Road was supposed to be a secret at this point.

Author Philip Lee addressed this question as well, via PM, noting that his intent was to show the urgency of the communique with the 15 minute interval, but admits he forgot about the 50 LY range limitation.  He suggests that perhaps the Exodus Road winds back and forth as it approaches the Pentagon worlds, and that the 7th leg of the route might still be less than 50 LY from the nearest fixed HPG relay.
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #310 on: 14 July 2013, 23:23:34 »
----- 3 Months Later -----

Date: October 12, 2972

Location: Botany Bay

Title: Godt Bytte

Author: Kevin Killiany

Type: Short Story (BattleCorps)

Synopsis:  Back on Botany Bay, Olaf and his father meet with Goodman Giles to supervise the loading of containers of sand for export to Sigurd.  Giles is flabbergasted that the Sigurders are willing to trade advanced water purification technology in exchange for worthless (to him) sand.  The Sigurders plan to use the obsidian sand for mining, then collect it and mold it into building materials.  The Jespersens also made a bundle trading JarnFolk wool, topsoil and other luxuries to the grateful Sigurders in exchange for exceedingly pure heavy elements. 

Since it was Olaf’s idea, his father stands back and lets him handle the trade negotiations by himself, his first solo deal.

Notes:  The Jespersens are still around in 3060, with the family headed by Jon Jespersen (Olaf’s grandson? Great-grandson?)  Perhaps, along with the wool and topsoil, the JarnFolk traded the Sigurdians logs for use as construction material.

The basis for this economic exchange still mystifies me.  If the JarnFolk wanted pure heavy elements from meteorites that fell onto Sigurd's icy plains, why not just scoop up the meteorites while they're still in space, and even more uncontaminated?  No need for mining, drilling, purifying, etc.  Just fly the DropShip over, match velocity, and bring it aboard.  No need to muck around with gravity wells, either, and they wouldn't even need to pay the locals for the privilege.
« Last Edit: 14 July 2013, 23:35:23 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

FedSunsBorn

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #311 on: 15 July 2013, 20:37:54 »
How hard would it be to find said meteorites in space?

Space is a big place though I would think certain technologies might make looking a lot easier.
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Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #312 on: 16 July 2013, 05:44:47 »
How hard would it be to find said meteorites in space?

Space is a big place though I would think certain technologies might make looking a lot easier.

With 21st century technology, NASA can find and track a huge number of asteroids, and we're Tech Level C at best on the USIIR scale.  Tech Level A sensors should be able to pinpoint asteroid locations and analyze their mineral content without undue difficulty.  A recent SB featured the Snowden-class mobile mining station, which is expressly designed to wander systems harvesting asteroids.
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #313 on: 16 July 2013, 05:59:33 »
----- 9 Years Later -----

Date: May 11, 2981 [See Notes]

Location: Oriente

Title: Final Exam

Author: Bear Peters

Type: Short Story (Shrapnel)

Synopsis:  At Princefield Academy on Oriente, cadets participate in a tactical exercise under the critical eye of retired General Sizigmund MaqAloo, now Professor of ‘Mech Deployment and Assault Strategy.  Leading the exercise, Cadet Willis Crawford is assisted by his XO, Cadet Anton Marik, the younger brother of the Free Worlds League’s Captain-General, Janos.  Anton and Willis have bonded during their time at Princefield, and Willis’ strategies reflect Anton’s influence.

A bold feint surprises the computer controlling the OpFor, drawing off opposing air support and allowing Crawford’s ‘Mechs to massacre the enemy ground forces.  Anton congratulates his friend on a successful gambit, but Professor MaqAloo cautions that, while the tactic worked against the conservatively programmed computer, it would result in disaster against a competent human commander.

Anton dismisses the professor’s cautionary words, and tells his closest friend that “together, we can lick anything.”  Crawford overcomes his own inner doubts, and exits the simulation room feeling that with his own military talent and Anton’s backing, nothing could go wrong.

Notes:  This short story from the Shrapnel collection introduces the relationship between Anton Marik and Willis Crawford in their cadet days, laying the foundation for the ruinous Marik civil war of 3014.  Historical: Brush Wars notes that Crawford had been promoted to General on Anton’s recommendation, but that his war record was terrible – including a disastrous invasion of Solaris VII in 3002 that cost his command half its troops.  Despite Anton’s pleas for clemency for his friend, an enraged Janos had Crawford court-martialed and shot.  The incident caused an irreparable rift between the brothers, triggering a catastrophic sequence of events (much to Maximilian Liao's delight).

The story itself is undated, but Historical: Brush Wars notes that Anton graduated in 2981, and since the title of the story is “Final Exam,” it makes sense to date it near graduation.  May 11, 2586 marked the last major exercise before Rhean Marik’s graduation from Princefield in Fall From Grace, so that sounds like a likely date to place Anton Marik’s final exam as well, since it’s the same school.
« Last Edit: 16 July 2013, 07:07:34 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #314 on: 16 July 2013, 23:23:20 »
----- 4 Years Later -----

Date: October 24, 2985

Location: Priori

Title: Jumping the Diamond Shark

Author: Ken' Horner

Type: Scenario (BattleCorps)

Synopsis:  The ultra-conservative Smoke Jaguars have launched a punitive assault on Priori against the newly re-named Diamond Shark Clan in retaliation for its having allowed the Sea Fox civilian castes to participate in the vote on the name change.

This scenario focuses on a Binary of the 214th Jaguar Dragoons attempting to outflank the Diamond Sharks through the Lackelland Swamp, while a Binary of the 369th Striker Cluster attempts to hold the line.

Historically, the Diamond Sharks lured the Jaguars into the swamp with their Recon Star and, once they were spread out, crushed the Jaguar command star with combined fire, since Khan Clarke had authorized “whatever tactics were needed.”

Notes:  The Smoke Jaguars have a BV of 16,638 with an average gunnery of 3.5, while the Diamond Sharks have a BV of 18,829 with an average gunnery of 3.9.  With a significant edge in mobility and firepower, the Diamond Sharks should have no problems rebuffing the Smoke Jaguar advance.

The 214th Jaguar Dragoons are listed as part of Beta Galaxy in Invading Clans, but may have been destroyed on Tukayyid, since they aren’t shown on the TO&E of the Occupation Zone afterwards.  The 369th Striker Cluster (The Hammerheads) is part of Gamma Galaxy, and also appears to have been wiped out on Tukayyid, since they don’t appear in Field Manual: Warden Clans.  They were last noted as battling the Com Guards 301st Division (The White Sharks) in Tukayyid’s Kozice Valley during the Diamond Shark withdrawal.  Thus, neither have any known special unit abilities that could apply in this scenario.

It’s easy to see why the Jaguars would want to seize this world from the Sharks.  Priori has extensive orbital facilities, including a shipyard defended by a small SDS network.  The Capeton enclave manufactures Kingfisher and Man'O'War OmniMechs, while the Haderich enclave (the planet's largest city) has vast industrial complexes.  Priori is a breadbasket world, and exports significant volumes of food.  Circa 3062, the world is nearly evenly split between the Diamond Sharks and the Star Adders, per The Clans: Warriors of Kerensky.
« Last Edit: 17 December 2013, 09:36:24 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #315 on: 17 July 2013, 23:12:28 »
----- 4 Years Later -----

Date: August 3, 2989

Location: Farhome

Title: Biendieu

Author: Annie Reed

Type: Short Story (BattleCorps)

Synopsis:  A tribe of French-speaking primitives shelters in the Montag caves on Farhome’s northern continent, hiding from the “lezards de tonnerre” and relying on their tribal totem – Biendieu – to protect them.  One day, a new arrival appears in the sky, making a noise like thunder.  As the savages emerge from their caves, they observe a shiny moon-that-isn’t-a-moon (spheroid DropShip) hovering over the mountain, moving towards the jungle valley below.

The tribe’s keeper of oral histories, Henre, warns that it carries invaders from other worlds, who bring evil and corruption.  The tribe’s tradition holds that they came from another world, long ago, to save their spirits and live in harmony as Naturists.  He warns that the DropShip carries an evil that smiles as it corrupts.  The narrator’s mate, Mautre, vows to fight such an evil.

Mautre leads a scouting party through the jungle, trying to avoid large striped cats and giant lizards – especially the 30-foot tall “lezard de tonnerre.”  Unfortunately, one catches the party and devours one of the hunters.  Before it can eat them all, however, the megasaurus is slain by a torrent of laser fire from a BattleMech.  The savages do not feel fear, recognizing the giant metallic humanoid as the avatar of their guardian spirit – Biendieu. 

Notes: Farhome has been profiled in both the 2nd Periphery sourcebook and the Interstellar Expeditions sourcebook (aka Interstellar Players 3).  These accounts note that it was initially settled in the “first years of hyperspace travel” by francophone religious naturalists who wanted to live without the corrupting influence of modern technology.  The timing makes it extremely odd that the Montag Cave tribe would worship a guardian spririt (biendieu) that resembles a BattleMech, since the naturalist colony formed there in the mid-22nd century predated the development of BattleMechs by roughly 300 years.
 
Perhaps other ships arrived at one time with ‘Mechs, and were woven into the oral and visual traditions of the tribes?  Farhome does lie roughly on the path that was said to be taken by the Minnesota Tribe as it worked its way around the perimeter of the Inner Sphere towards McEvedy’s Folly and beyond.  For a tribe with only an oral tradition, 150 years would be about right for a major happening to have long since dropped out of living memory and become a legend.  Perhaps a Minnesota Tribe scouting party dropped in on the Montag tribe and saved some of them from becoming dino-dinner, creating a situation somewhat like the opening bit of Star Trek: Into Darkness.  (Notably, the ISP3 profile of Farhome goes out of its way to comment that people looking here for signs of the Minnesota Tribe should not be bothered.  Go about your business.  These aren’t the droids you’re looking for…) 

Periphery 2nd Edition clarifies that the ship was a ComStar Explorer Corps vessel, and that ComStar decided to keep the planet’s existence quiet at first, though its existence was made public prior to the publication of the second Periphery sourcebook.  By 3090 (per Interstellar Expeditions), cultural anthropologists have established a research outpost on Farhome to study the people living there, and have set up a de-facto quarantine to prevent any undue cultural contamination by offworlders.
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #316 on: 19 July 2013, 05:57:47 »
----- 13 Years Later -----

Date: July 2, 3002

Location: Campoleone

Title: Bank Shot

Author: Jason Schmetzer

Type: Track (BattleCorps)

Synopsis:  The Campoleone Defense Force attempts to fend off a raid by a pirate band known as the “Corsairs of Comstock IV.”  The attackers outmatch the defenders by 25% at the start of the engagement, but the defenders’ strength doubles over the course of the battle as reinforcements arrive.

Notes:  Based on the intro fiction, the Corsairs have been raiding Campoleone and other planets in the region for decades.  The prior commander, Black Bart McGirk, had a reputation as having a sense of decency, while the current commander, Boris Carey, is a murdering psychopath. 

The fact that the raiders are from Comstock is quite interesting.  The original Periphery sourcebook notes that Comstock was a demonstration colony for the Star League’s economic specialization program, and focused exclusively on the manufacture of footwear.  As offworld trade fell apart after the Amaris coup, Comstock fell to a subsistence level of existence.  When Marian exploration vessels landed on Comstock in 3005, they found widespread famine, disease, and malnutrition, but found that the factories had continued to operate and make shoes, since imports of leather and meat from the nearby world of Francas had continued.  The colony’s leaders hoped to regain their role as a major shoe exporter at some point in the future when the interstellar economy recovered.  (An apparent homage to a scene in Douglas Adams’ The Restaurant at the End of the Universe on a world where people were in suspended animation on a crashed spaceship on a post-apocalyptic planet, while the ship’s computer was waiting for the world’s economy to recover to the point at which lemon-scented moistened towelettes would again be available.)

Apparently, the Comstockians were supplementing their beef and shoe-leather diet by raiding neighboring worlds for necessary goods.  It appears that they’re hiring themselves out as muscle to people like Carey and McGirk at this point, rather than organizing raids themselves, though, since one of the Campoleone officers says that he doesn’t care if Carey’s “got those fools from Comstock with him.”

Neither Comstock nor Francas have ever been put on a map, to my knowledge, but this (to me) would indicate a location between Campoleone and Marian space.  The story of the shoes has been dismissed in the past as apocryphal (just one more inexplicable element of the 1st Edition Periphery SB), but here it is, getting by via a little piracy on the side.
« Last Edit: 19 July 2013, 06:05:48 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #317 on: 19 July 2013, 23:31:55 »
----- 2 Years Later -----

Date: February 3, 3004

Location: Luthien

Title: Heir to the Dragon

Author: Robert N. Charrette

Type: Novel Chapter (Heir to the Dragon)

Synopsis:  Assistant ISF Director Subhash Indrahar finds his friend Takashi Kurita standing over the bloody corpse of his father, Hohiro, who has just been stabbed to death with a katana by a member of the Otomo.  Subhash tells Takashi that the assassin has been apprehended on the palace grounds.
On their way to view the assassin, the pair are approached by Takashi’s wife, Jasmine, who panics seeing the blood on his tunic.  Takashi informs her that Hohiro is dead.  Also roused by the commotion, six-year-old Theodore Kurita runs up to his father, evading the guards and Zeshin, the elderly O5P monk assigned as his minder.

Jasmine wants to shield the boy from the tragedy, but Takashi insists that he face it like a Kurita.  He shows Theodore his grandfather’s body, and tells him that will be his fate as well if he is not a strong Coordinator.  Theodore announces his intention to personally kill the assassin, but Takashi informs him that, when he becomes Coordinator, he must work through others.

Together, they go to where the ISF has detained Talon Sergeant Ingmar Sterenson, who has already been beaten nearly to death.  The man declares that he has struck a blow for Rasalhagian independence.  Takashi orders an Otomo Tai-i to shoot the traitor.  When Subhash protests that the ISF director would have liked to interrogate the man, Takashi responds that he wants to speak with Subhash’s superior himself, as to how a traitor rose to such an elevated rank.

Young Theodore is left confused and afraid after seeing the traitor shot at close range, prompting Subhash to reach out to comfort the boy with his ‘ki’ and resolve to guard the young heir’s future.

Notes:  Heir to the Dragon kicks off in grand style.  In a few short pages, we’ve got palace intrigue, the Otomo, the ISF, Subhash Indrahar – the Smiling One, O5P, Free Rasalhague, Kuritan philosophy on gender roles and their place in the universe, and the roots of a severely dysfunctional father/son relationship, with Subhash trying to play a moderating role.

Indrahar notes that Takashi, upon being invested as the new Coordinator, will directly control the lives of billions of loyal citizens.  At this point, the Combine had about 400 systems, so at most the average planetary population could have been about 2.4 billion.  Averaging the published populations of Combine worlds (about 101 canon numbers over a 50 year span), we get 2.2 billion, so that looks about right.  (As opposed to, say, the de-canonized trillion+ reference in Touring the Sphere with Bertram Habeas.)

Subhash’s reference to using his ‘ki’ to affect Theodore’s mood reflects the early era of BattleTech fiction, before mysticism was declared anathema to the setting.  This was the era that saw game rules for “Phantom ‘Mech Syndrome” and had Minobu Tetsuhara using his ‘ki’ to outperform Jaime Wolf’s hi-tech crossbow with a traditional bow.  (In fact, one quote regarding ‘ki’ from an early book implied that a skilled ‘ki’ master could throw an opponent across the room without touching him.  What skill package lets my AToW character do that?)
« Last Edit: 20 July 2013, 07:05:22 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #318 on: 21 July 2013, 02:11:09 »
----- One Year Later -----

Date: February 6, 3005

Location: Poulsbo

Title: Vanish

Author: Michael A. Stackpole

Type: Short Story (A Time of War – Limited Edition)

Synopsis:  Eighteen-year-old Morgan Kell, freshly graduated from the Nagelring, arrives on Poulsbo with his cousin, Duke Arthur Luvon of Donegal, as part of a post-graduation Grand Tour of the Lyran Commonwealth.  (The prodigal Kell entered the Nagelring at 15 and graduated in three years.)  As they exit the terminal, the pair are greeted by a stunningly attractive blonde, who passionately embraces Arthur, much to Morgan’s embarrassment.  Morgan recognizes her as Leutenant-General (and designated heir to her uncle, Archon Alessandro Steiner) Katrina Steiner, the guest speaker at his Nagelring graduation eight months previously.  It turns out that the true purpose of the trip to Poulsbo was to surreptitiously allow Arthur and Katrina some time together, while appearing to be just one more stop on the Grand Tour.

The two had been corresponding for years, and realized their true feelings when Arthur’s JumpShip blew a coolant seal and couldn’t make it to Tharkad for Morgan’s commencement.  They exchanged pledges of love via ComStar couriers and set up the Grand Tour hoping to meet on the sly.

As they proceed to The King House hotel, Morgan notes that Poulsbo looks about a century out of step with the Lyran core, both in terms of style and level of technology, which degraded noticeably during the Succession Wars.  Wanting to give the lovebirds some time alone, he sets off to explore the city of Bangor Heights.  Morgan notes the city’s low-rise urban sprawl and the use of non-standard time units, due to the local rotational periods, and gets a local pocket watch to keep on schedule.

Morgan stops for dinner at a bar (“The Lost Locust”) where the locals peg him for an outsider and won’t give him the time of day.  He notices a dartboard with Alessandro Steiner’s silhouette on it – a tribute to the carnage engendered by the Archon’s “Concentrated Weakness” strategy.  He notices a rainbow-themed mobile hanging over the dartboards, and makes a special drink order (“bifrost yellow”) at the bar – actually a recognition code for the local Heimdall cell.  Shortly, he’s approached by a man calling himself “Grison,” while Morgan introduces himself as “Hound.”

Grison asks Morgan why he’s on-world, worrying that it might be connected to a recent upswing in Loki activity.  He says he’s heard that Loki is worried about a potential attack on a high profile governmental official connected to the dedication of a memorial to the Stealths’ defense of the world in 2812.  The two suspect that Katrina Steiner is the target, since Poulsbo’s remoteness would allow Alessandro Steiner to control the flow of information onto and off-world.  Heimdall believes that an Archon who is willing to leave key systems defenseless would be more than capable of marginalizing and assassinating any potential threat to his power base.
 
Morgan wants to alert his friends, but Grison warns him off, fearing that if Katrina ever learned that Morgan was Heimdall-affiliated, she could use that knowledge as Archon to unravel the entire Heimdall network.  Grison tells Morgan to meet him at another bar, the Lone Pine, if he needs to.

Morgan returns to The King House and briefs Arthur, who acts as though he expected something like this.  He notes that Loki hasn’t bugged his rooms yet (according to his surveillance-detecting chronometer), but expects that they soon will.  He isn’t specifically worried about Alessandro, but his position as Duke of Donegal has made him a lot of enemies across the spectrum.  He pulls two needler pistols out of a hidden compartment and gives one to Morgan.

Notes:  This was included as a special premium story in a limited “collector’s edition” release of the first printing of the A Time of War rulebook.  Stackpole has commented that he really wanted to tell the story of Katrina Steiner as the Red Corsair in a novel, but FASA/ROC insisted his novels be set in the 3050s to carry the ongoing story forward, so his pitch for Katrina’s “Red Corsair” adventure had to be reworked as the Clan/Kell Hound novel Natural Selection, explaining the Jade Falcon commander’s use of the “Red Corsair” identity.  When AToW came out, he got the chance to tell at least the prologue to Katrina’s big Periphery romp.

Granted, Poulsbo is about as far out from the Lyran core as you can get before you’re either in the Free Worlds League (Cerillos is just across the border) or the Circinus Federation (also just a few light years away).  However, rather than being ignored by Tharkad, one would think that it would be a major military staging point.  Writeups on the world show that it was indeed used for such a purpose during the Age of War, but that the LCAF closed the base in 2632, during the Good Years and Tharkad pretty much let Poulsbo go its own way, despite the severe hit to the local economy.  The base was reopened in the early 2800s, so they’ve been “back on the grid” for nearly two centuries by this point.

So, ComStar, at least, already knew that Arthur and Katrina were an item.  This was still the “age of innocence” regarding ComStar’s reputation.  Everyone trusted them as neutral servants of the whole Inner Sphere, never suspecting that ComStar was reading everyone’s mail, or that the First Circuit’s manipulations played a major role in the decline of technology and the continuance of unending warfare.  (Check that – they certainly did suspect that ComStar was reading everyone’s mail and leaking it selectively, but after the battering the Free Worlds League took during the Interdiction of 2837-2838, nobody felt like calling them on it again.)

I’m not clear exactly on how Poulsbo’s remoteness would allow the Lyran Archon to control the flow of information onto and off-world.  Doesn’t ComStar have an HPG station there?  Wouldn’t ComStar’s INN and/or other media outlets be able to pretty much immediately file stories about the death of an Archon-designate?

Morgan modifies the recognition code to “yellow” due to it being Thursday.  That would imply that Tuesday = Red; Wednesday = Orange; Thursday = Yellow; Friday = Green; Satuday = Blue; Sunday = Indigo; and Monday = Violet, if they’re going by the rainbow spectrum charts, which conveniently synch up with the days of the week (not counting ultraviolet and infrared).  Bifrost, is, of course the rainbow bridge of Norse mythology which is guarded by the god Heimdall.  Sort of an obvious recognition code, but no one ever accused the Lyrans of being subtle...
« Last Edit: 21 July 2013, 02:17:09 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

Wrangler

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #319 on: 21 July 2013, 10:34:43 »
Wow, Mr. Stackpole actually got to make the story of the original Red Corsair???  That's awesome, i hope he was able to write up enough for serial.   Is the story purchasable thru the Battlecorp/BattleShop???
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Mendrugo

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #320 on: 21 July 2013, 11:08:53 »
Wow, Mr. Stackpole actually got to make the story of the original Red Corsair???  That's awesome, i hope he was able to write up enough for serial.   Is the story purchasable thru the Battlecorp/BattleShop???

It's only the prologue of the story.  It ends with "To be continued..." but on a later BattleChat, Herb said that no continuation was planned at present.  The story only appeared in a limited print version of the A Time of War rulebook, and not in any PDF version, to my knowledge. 

Per Sarna.net, it was part of a preview download on this site, but doesn't appear to have been reposted after the big forum hack a few years back.

You might try eBay - I see a signed LE AToW copy there as of this writing.  (No links to active auctions allowed, per site policy, but you can search for "A Time of War limited")
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #321 on: 21 July 2013, 12:40:27 »
It turns out that the true purpose of the trip to Poulsbo was to surreptitiously allow Arthur and Katrina some time together, while appearing to be just one more stop on the Grand Tour.

The two had been corresponding for years, and realized their true feelings when Arthur’s JumpShip blew a coolant seal and couldn’t make it to Tharkad for Morgan’s commencement.  They exchanged pledges of love via ComStar couriers and set up the Grand Tour hoping to meet on the sly.

Which, of course, contradicts what Stackpole wrote in the Warrior Trilogy. ;)

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #322 on: 21 July 2013, 18:23:58 »
Still sucks he didn't get to do a full serial for it.  That must be among of one of the great untold stories of the Inner Sphere.   Warriors: Triology has alluded to other bigger stories lurking in the background.  Such as the Spica campaign where Justin Allard indirectly meet and fought Candice Liao during the Third Succession War.
« Last Edit: 21 July 2013, 21:09:36 by Wrangler »
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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #323 on: 21 July 2013, 20:57:21 »
Oh yeah, he was in a Blackjack and she was in a Vindicator and they both had nightmares about the other....
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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #324 on: 22 July 2013, 05:41:44 »
----- One Day Later -----

Date: February 7, 3005

Location: Poulsbo

Title: Vanish

Author: Michael A. Stackpole

Type: Short Story (Total Warfare – Limited Edition)

Synopsis:  Morgan accompanies Katrina Steiner on an inspection of Bangor Military Base, during which the Archon-designate attempts to shift attention to Morgan by hinting that he’s a candidate to assume control of the planetary militia.  The two take some ‘Mechs out on the training course and end the day with a reception.  On the way to The King House for dinner with Arthur, Morgan and Katrina discuss whether or not MechWarriors become one with their machines, as well as the backwards-looking attitudes of most inhabitants of the Successor States.  Katrina states her intention to create a better future for herself and her children, and Morgan infers that it is this quality that makes Alessandro see her as a threat to his power.  He suggests that House Davion has a similarly ambitious vision for the future.

At the hotel, Morgan changes for dinner and finds a concealable knife hidden in his drawer to go with his needler pistol, apparently from Arthur.  Appropriately attired (and armed), he awaits Arthur and Katrina in the lobby, where he’s surprised to learn from the hotel manager that their departure offworld has been moved up to later that night (to throw off any potential Loki attack).  During a fabulous private dinner, Morgan stops to ask the time of one of the waiters.  The man answers according to Terran Standard Time, rather than Poulsbo local, tipping Morgan off that he’s an offworlder (likely a Loki agent).  Katrina knocks him out and, searching him, they find confirmation that he was equipped for an abduction.  They suspect that Katrina's security detail is either compromised or dead. 

The group resolves to flee, and Morgan pulls the fire alarm to cover their escape.  They disguise themselves as kitchen staff on the way out.  Loki agents are covering the door, but Morgan and Arthur easily dispatch them.  The group heads for the Lone Pine, where Grison had told Morgan to contact him if he needed help.  Grison joins them and says that Heimdall is committed to keeping Loki from carrying out their plans.  As they get ready to go, feeling safe, the night sky lights up as The King House explodes.

Notes: Morgan notes that he inherited his Archer, implying that the Kells were a MechWarrior family through the Third Succession War, at least.  He states that he grew up around a ‘Mech factory on Arc-Royal, and has watched new machines coming off the line.  The Kell Hound SB names the Arc-Royal factory the Eire MechWorks, but adds the caveat that it manufactures only components.  Once Arc-Royal acquired LosTech and became the HQ for the Arc-Royal Defense Cordon and the home-away-from-home for Clan Wolf-in-Exile, it started spewing out all sorts of high-tech designs, but we have no data on what it might have been making in the late 2900s.  (Grasshoppers, perhaps, since that’s the only Arc-Royal-produced design that isn’t a post-3000 design or one based on a Clan/Dragoon blueprint.)  One option for reconciling the accounts is that the Eire plant used to manufacture Grasshoppers (or some other design) in the 2900s, but got damaged by a Kuritan raid and had to revert to just making parts around the turn of the millennium, a role it continued to perform until being upgraded following the Clan invasion.

The story ends with a “to be continued…” but Herb said in a BattleChat some time back that no continuation was planned at that time.  We know from scenes with Alessandro in The Warrior Trilogy that Arthur was the true target of the Loki operation, mostly because of his suspected ties to Heimdall.  Alessandro wasn’t threatened by Katrina – he was grooming her as his heir, but the attempted abduction of her lover soured their relationship, leading to him being deposed upon her return from her journey in the Periphery as the Red Corsair.  That would have been a great story – fleeing through the Periphery, working their way up through the former Rim Worlds Republic with Loki teams in hot pursuit, establishing themselves as “dread pirates,” finding a cache containing Black Box technology, and then returning in triumph to the Commonwealth to seat Katrina on the throne.

Stackpole has something of a penchant for having his heroes escape from assassination/abduction attempts through a combination of their own uber skillsets and general incompetence on behalf of the bad guys.  Here, Loki plays the role traditionally played by the Maskirovka in his later works, right down to the building exploding after the targets have already slipped the net.  (We'll see this trope again when the Mask tries to take down Pavel Ridzik in Stackpole's Warrior Trilogy.)
« Last Edit: 22 July 2013, 10:13:49 by Mendrugo »
"We have made of New Avalon a towering funeral pyre and wiped the Davion scourge from the universe.  Tikonov, Chesterton and Andurien are ours once more, and the cheers of the Capellan people nearly drown out the gnashing of our foes' teeth as they throw down their weapons in despair.  Now I am made First Lord of the Star League, and all shall bow down to me and pay homa...oooooo! Shiny thing!" - Maximillian Liao, "My Triumph", audio dictation, 3030.  Unpublished.

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #325 on: 22 July 2013, 06:01:18 »
He states that he grew up around a ‘Mech factory on Arc-Royal, and has watched new machines coming off the line.  The Kell Hound SB names the Arc-Royal factory the Eire MechWorks, but adds the caveat that it manufactures only components.
That's the old BT question from the SW era - when is a factory a factory (as opposed to a well-stocked spare parts depot, an assembly plant, a repair/refit workshop, or any combination of these)?

I tend to agree with the assertion that Eire MechWorks must have been producing full BattleMechs at some point, presumably up until during Morgan Kell's early life, and was reduced to producing parts only recently (i.e. in the late 2900s).
I disagree with the Grasshopper being produced there though; this is a relatively rare design typically seen in the CC and FWL area. As a counter-proposal, I'd suggest the Goliath. It's apparently out-of-production by 3024, yet there's a curious sidenote in HB:Marik p. 114 (PDF: p. 116) where it says the Lyran regiments are well-stocked with Zeus's and Goliaths, which to me seems to indicate the Lyrans used to produce Goliaths.
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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #326 on: 22 July 2013, 07:39:17 »
Didn't Defiance Industries of Hesperus II make Goliaths at some point?  They found some prototypes there after a landslide uncovered a long buried bunker, per Project Phoenix's entry, explaining the radical appearance change.  (Or am I getting that confused with the Scorpion LAM project?)

The safe bet on Eire MechWorks would probably be that it made Archers, since Morgan had one and it seems to be a design that everybody and their brother made at one point or another.
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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #327 on: 22 July 2013, 11:27:39 »
Didn't Defiance Industries of Hesperus II make Goliaths at some point?  They found some prototypes there after a landslide uncovered a long buried bunker, per Project Phoenix's entry, explaining the radical appearance change.  (Or am I getting that confused with the Scorpion LAM project?)
I think maybe the latter - the TRO: Project Phoenix entry for the Scorpion details Defiance finding a long-forgotten bunker containing records and prototypes from the defunct Scorpion-LAM programme, and using the work on the modified chassis to develop the the Barghest and Tarantula. It also talks about the Scorpion being dropped from production by Brigadier prior to the Succession Wars and the design fading from memories and life. Page 28 refers.

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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #328 on: 22 July 2013, 16:59:40 »
I think maybe the latter - the TRO: Project Phoenix entry for the Scorpion details Defiance finding a long-forgotten bunker containing records and prototypes from the defunct Scorpion-LAM programme, and using the work on the modified chassis to develop the the Barghest and Tarantula. It also talks about the Scorpion being dropped from production by Brigadier prior to the Succession Wars and the design fading from memories and life. Page 28 refers.

Ahh...they found those plans and prototypes in the 3065.  Tarantula was developed early 3050s in attempt to rebound Quad designs  after the success of the new 3M version of the GoliathTarantula was being made on Steward by Corean, i doub t they have anything to do with Defiance until Fed Com Civil War era.

If Arc-Royal was producing anything, could have been the Archer.   There suppose be least six factories according to the TRO:3025, was widely produced though out the Inner Sphere, not just by Earthwerks.  Eire MechWorks could had a licence to produce them. 

Given frequency of 'Mech raids cross the borders, i could see how Eire being damaged enough not produce the Archer or any other design that was common and known to be still being produce in some numbers. 
« Last Edit: 22 July 2013, 20:55:03 by Wrangler »
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Re: Chronological BattleTech Fiction Review - The Succession Wars
« Reply #329 on: 22 July 2013, 18:51:09 »
There may never have been a raid, perhaps, like Red Devil  on Pandora, Eire was a jury rigged mess that partially gave up the ghost in the late 2900s.
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