Why is the Warrior trilogy so popular? (Spoilers)

[Niopsian]

Could be. I don't recall that in particular, but it's been a while since I read it and I don't have the books anymore.

I believe there's also a "Why not Hanse and Katrina?" sidebar in one of the original House Books as well. Pretty sure it's Davion.

[idea weenie]

I believe there's also a "Why not Hanse and Katrina?" sidebar in one of the original House Books as well. Pretty sure it's Davion.

You are right:
Sociopolitical Structure -> Interstellar relations -> same page as Lyran Commonwealth

Some of the arguments why it was not done are:

• Make sure that any disagreement between Hanse and Katrina didn't affect the alliance
• Give the alliance 8 years to test (i.e. the time between the agreement and Melissa being legally old enough
• If Katrina had an heir, what would the heir inherit?

[DOC_Agren]

Like many of the others this was the "big book series" that tied our early Battletech universe together.  And Oh my what interest "World Building we had".  The Fedcom was going to usher in a new Star League era..  yep because they were going to control 2/3 of the Inner Sphere.   Oh my Comstar not playing fair and gee they have an army of mechs
Max mental breakdown at the wedding
Wolf and Takashi with sword bundle

who again was Marik??   ::)

[Cat]

I'm almost tempted to write off the whole novel as an in-universe Davion holofiction

I could go along with that!
 
I just finished an every so often re-reading when I've forgotten a number of the plot twists.  It's still entertaining light summer reading (with a great many flaws).
 
The best part for my tastes are mechs in sensible military formations of mono or limited types that make much more sense for unit maintenance and supply.  I've never been fond of the motley assortment of mechs in every lance approach for the larger forces.  Stackpole is my go-to inspiration for building Alpha Strike battalions.  I'm back to working on my battalions again, and hence re-read the trilogy.  And my Capellan battalion has a full company of Cicadas so I can do the battle on Kittery (with the Valkyrie:Rifleman duel somewhere off-table).
: 3
 
As always, the book ends with the baddies winning again.  With all the villain characters abounding, Hanse Davion is the biggest villain and jerk in the Inner Sphere, announcing he already started the 4th Succession War at the wedding.  In-universe holofic is a great way to explain him as the supposed hero.
 
Not only is the marriage creepy, but Melissa Steiner goes from wailing over people dying for her sake to blithely drinking tea, watching holovids, and being kept in her chamber while 100,000,000 die in the war that was her wedding present.
 
Kym Sorenson is quite badly written, and inexplicably absent from the wedding and a confrontation with Justin.
 
Clovis Holstein is so cringely written, gah.
 
But overall pulpy styling, and big battles, yay!

[Dubble_g]

I think the grand scale more than anything is what appealed to people. BT suddenly went from company sized skirmishes to massive planetary invasions spanning the galaxy. All very Tom Clancy Red Storm Rising. Didn't like the books much myself, as the central conflict involves a massively superior force catching a smaller weaker one by surprise and, er, winning easily. Which is the opposite of tense or dramatic.

I kind of feel Stackpole's writing is better suited to Star Wars, where his good vs bad pulpy writing fits the setting, than to Battletech which has evolved into something a bit more nuanced. It was early days for BT back then so perhaps that's understandable. It's interesting to me that BT fiction encompasses a range of "reality levels" from grimdark to gritty to pulp heroics, and from small scale to galaxy spanning. I also like the idea that everything is from an in universe source, like I believe the 4th Succession War history is by Katrina's court historian, so hardly an objective source. Gives you a bit of wiggle room to headcanon things as you'd like.

[BrianDavion]

I'll admit that Stackpole isn't my favorite BT author. His characters are very one-dimensional and his protagonists are invariably superiorly skilled supermen who can plan even for the weirdest and most convenient random events three steps ahead of their moustache-twirling cardboard villain opponents. I recognize the deliberate pulp fiction writing style, I just don't like it very much anymore.

In fairness the "leader who can plan for even the most wildest and conveniant random events" is a hallmark (unfortunatly) of battletech writing. In fact I'd argue it's gotten WORSE. Hanse Davion wasn't NEARLY as obnoxisis as STL or Alaric.