I've had a couple of PMs recently and noticed in my AU thread that those who have read it like how it takes place across the Inner Sphere and beyond and I wanted to explain a little about how I do it (and welcome others who have written their own to share their own perspectives)
Mods this isn't fan fiction but it's all about fan fiction so I didn't know where to put it...
Ages ago I wrote a piece for the OBT Site which Knightmare assisted me on making look cool
https://www.ourbattletech.com/2012/alternate-timeline-with-thanks-how-its-done/When I started I used about 40 documents to track the AU each faction's units were in their own section separate from each other. This worked for me quite well but it didn't allow me to share much with others since posting a bunch of notes on each faction would take forever and be a jumbled mess.
So I moved forward a little I still have those 40 documents and I still use them to track personalities and special things about each faction but I've move on to working around four "working" documents.
The Timeline thread (I'll explain that in a second)
Active units which is done on Excel and if you read you've probably seen at the end of each year. But if not it's a list of each faction's regiments broken down by regiment/battalion of what they have. (I know I still need to fix the Periphery and Mercenaries)
Active WarShips also done on Excel and details the active WarShips (there's a few in this AU - I like them but I also get to have fun in ground battles)
And a map which is modified in paint which works for me and can be found on OBT
https://www.ourbattletech.com/forum/index.php?topic=1092.0I know it doesn't look too pretty (other than the first one which was done by Blacknova) but if you do want pretty Vition2 did make a few very cool maps
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B8rxH42gchMhakxpUG1OOE5lVEkAnyway that sort of explains what supports my timeline it's how I keep units, WarShips and the map clear in my head. I said above I wanted to share how the timeline itself works. I do this in four ways.
1) I have my base timeline thread this is essentially one Word document that runs the course of time which currently runs until 3160-ish. Some months currently have a single event happening
February 3114
Jeremy Kincaid-Cameron is shot out of his aerospace fighter over Vestallas by Capellan forces he is severely injured during the battle.
But each time I add a new character or something that will have a knock on effect in the future I go through the timeline and add where they have made changes. So another example would be I've recently returned to the Clan Homeworlds (based on factions there not the Inner Sphere Clans returning... yet) so that's had an effect on certain future events.
This helps me control where the timeline is headed long term and chart the path of my characters, units and factions.
2) the yearly trek. When I end a year in the timeline. I more often than not move immediately into the next year and chart the course of the whole year with 7-8 events each month giving me an idea of what is involved. Anyone who has looked at the thread will know that rarely do I run eight events but this is where I start.
Once I've looked through the whole year I'll then decide if I want to keep events where they are, delay them or bring them forward. Occasionally I'll eliminate an event completely. I once had a storyline where the Minnesota Tribe returned to the Inner Sphere - the whole arc was spread over about a decade - but it's now gone. I've found a far cleaner way of introducing the changes I wanted without doing it that way. Instead I might use the Minnesota Tribe descendants elsewhere or they might be dead.
3) The monthly breakdown. Each month brings new challenges they say and this timeline is no different. I take the eight events I described above and I break them down to the core sections I want to explore and normally end up with four or five distinctive sections for each month. The whole point of the AU is to keep the stories going and to explore events across the Inner Sphere and beyond.
In the past I've focused a little too much on certain areas of the AU but as time has gone on to broaden the factions that get attention. If anyone wants to see areas of the AU I haven't covered post in the thread or PM me anytime I like a challenge and like introducing different elements to the overall story.
4) External contributions - the people who have read my AU have been absolutely fantastic honestly the amount of views and comments it's had has been amazing. It's really kept my obsession going as long as it has so a massive THANKS from me to everyone. When I go through each month I factor in what additions I can add to what I've done myself and see what sections need expanded on or what I can use.
Already on a regular basis James Tanaga, marauder248 and Vition2 contribute small things that expand this AU beyond what I could have ever dreamed it could be. JA Baker designs awesome WarShips with cool fluff and has accidently built my Federated Suns navy and added to the Capellans and Combine (though most of them I've stolen and adapted - still appreciated for letting me use them in the first place). While others have added units, characters, entire worlds, and ideas.
I sort of approach my storyline (and fan fiction in general) the same way that BattleTech approaches everything else. You can build your own combat and support units, your own Companies/Stars and Regiments/Galaxies, your own star systems all within the rules of this fantastic game so why not tell a story?
Thanks for reading this (if you've gotten this far) I hope it gives those who are interested an insight into how I write and gives others ideas on how to approach their own stories. Please feel free to share your own ideas on how to build an AU or write a story in this thread we're all fans of this great universe it doesn't hurt to share.
Dragon Cat
