Clan Protectorate

[Kitsune413]

Well if the Gencon rumor that Kisho and his band of Nova Cats are dead, then all that is left of the Nova Cat tradition is truly in the hands of the Spirit Cats in the Clan Protectorate.  We are the last, true inheritors of our Clan.  May our people grow strong on Marik, safe under the watchful gaze of our warriors.

Seyla. We are with you.

[Nova Cain]

So this is where the Nova Cat remnants check in?  My Wendigo needs repairs.

[Kitsune413]

So this is where the Nova Cat remnants check in?  My Wendigo needs repairs.

Welcome aboard. We are thrilled to have you... and won some spare wendigos from the dracs. :)

[Dragon Cat]

So this is where the Nova Cat remnants check in?  My Wendigo needs repairs.

Wendigo pft poor mans Shadow Cat

[Knightmare]

Wendigo pft poor mans Shadow Cat

You mean the new Nova Cat...errr...,Spirit Cat....err..., the what-are-we-calling-you-guys-now Shadow Cat?

[jklantern]

You mean the new Nova Cat...errr...,Spirit Cat....err..., the what-are-we-calling-you-guys-now Shadow Cat?

I'm calling them tenants.   ;D

[Knightmare]

I'm calling them tenants.   ;D

 O0

[Istal_Devalis]

Well if the Gencon rumor that Kisho and his band of Nova Cats are dead, then all that is left of the Nova Cat tradition is truly in the hands of the Spirit Cats in the Clan Protectorate.  We are the last, true inheritors of our Clan.  May our people grow strong on Marik, safe under the watchful gaze of our warriors.

*eyetwitch* Oh COME ON...

[Captain of C-21]

I have to honestly ask all the older Nova Cat fans, those of you who didn't get into battletech through the clix game, how much have you read on the Spirit Cats?  They so far have appeared in four novels, have dozens of dossiers, and some sporadic mentioning here and there on websites.  I am curious to actually hear how much folks have read.

Kisho's death is extremely letting down, but we still do not know how he went out.  My money is him being brought before Yori Kurita in the throne room, one last gift from his old friend from their time on Terra, when he lets loose in fury, taking down numerous guards and being the first and only person to ever strike fear into the heart of Warlord Toronaga, before finally beign felled.  Just imagine Kisho in place of Leonidas in 300 and Toronaga as Xerxes. O0

EDIT: Yeah that definitely works. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-6M5FukAoE

[Rncavenger]

  I have to honestly ask all the older Nova Cat fans, those of you who didn't get into battletech through the clix game, how much have you read on the Spirit Cats?

 NC fan from 1999 . Read all books about SC. Always see them as part of Nova Cat.

Kisho's death is extremely letting down, but we still do not know how he went out.  My money is him being brought before Yori Kurita in the throne room, one last gift from his old friend from their time on Terra, when he lets loose in hail of fury, taking down numerous guards and being the first and only person to ever strike fear into the heart of Warlord Toronaga, before finally beign felled. 

  I think he take death in trial whith some spirit cat warrior. May be Rikkard .  Trial for leadership , or faction fate (try to reborn "Nova Cat" , or stay "spirit cat"in name). And he himself choose to die in process.

[Captain of C-21]

NC fan from 1999 . Read all books about SC. Always see them as part of Nova Cat.

Spirit Cats saw themselves as both a part of and yet separate to Clan Nova Cat.  According to Cox Devalis, they recognized Jacali Nostra's Khanship, but saw themselves as having a mission separate of the rest of the Clan, that of finding all their Clan new sanctuary.  So they are still Clan Nova Cat, but somewhat independent.

[Kitsune413]

I have to honestly ask all the older Nova Cat fans, those of you who didn't get into battletech through the clix game, how much have you read on the Spirit Cats?  They so far have appeared in four novels, have dozens of dossiers, and some sporadic mentioning here and there on websites.  I am curious to actually hear how much folks have read.

Kisho's death is extremely letting down, but we still do not know how he went out.

Ive just recently read the novels and the dossiers.

Im wondering if he didnt maybe try to navigate the fortress walls.

[Dragon Cat]

I've read Heretic's Faith, the little bits in Fortress Republic, all the Dossiers and all the articles on the old clicks site.

Largely I see the Spirit Cats as the next stage for the Nova Cats I just wish they had done the story differently

Because of WizKids producing the Clicky game the Nova Cats had to be Still in the Combine.  I get the feeling that had they not been locked to that timeline the whole Nova Cat Clan would have gone to Stoner during the Jihad effectively ending the Clan earlier but IMO more cleanly and on a grander scale.

The thing is the Spirit Cats could have still appeared during the Blackout with that kind of story

[Kitsune413]

Clan Nova cat dieing makes the spirit cats visions true. Reinforces their spiritual nature and their backstory. In a game with arguably to many factions it also keeps us from having a minor faction split in two. From a meta gaming standpoint it makes alot of sense.

[Captain of C-21]

I see Catalyst wiping out the Nova Cats in Kuritan territory as just avoiding another Clan Wolf/Clan Wolf in Exile.  After a certain point you can't have fifty thousand iterations of every faction.  I have a feeling one of the two Wolf Factions will get folded up soon enough as well.  We shall have to see.

[False Son]

I can't say why TPTB decided to off the Nova Cats.  However, for them to throw their weight behind a bad cause at the last minute is totally part of their character.  At least they went out doing what they always did, siding with the wrong side of history.

[jklantern]

I can't say why TPTB decided to off the Nova Cats.  However, for them to throw their weight behind a bad cause at the last minute is totally part of their character.  At least they went out doing what they always did, siding with the wrong side of history.

"General, the Nova Cats just joined our forces.  Should I get the white flag prepared?"

[Arkansas Warrior]

"General, the Nova Cats just joined our forces.  Should I get the white flag prepared?"

;D [applause]

[Foxx Ital]

"General, the Nova Cats just joined our forces.  Should I get the white flag prepared?"

Hey, they typically picked the winning horse  ;D its just the only time they bet on themselves...ya know..

[Nova Cain]

"General, the Nova Cats just joined our forces.  Should I get the white flag prepared?"

More like start carving headstones.

In other news:  I can say that the Wolf forces did defeat the Republic (@GenCon), and we should start looking for the ilClan sourcebook before Christmas.

For myself, I started with CBT back around the time of the Clan Invasion, but didn't stick for too long.  Played for a while but didn't get too into it.  Came back to the game through MechWarrior and latched onto the Spirit Cats pretty early (along with Highlanders).  Stuck with the Cats until the end, even through the terrible "Falcon's Prey" years.  I came into the fiction through the MW game and have been learning backwards from the Republic era (as if we could learn forwards with no future to speak of...).

I've always liked the Cats seeming ability to admit high level mistakes and work to correct them.  They saw the invasion was wrong for their future and changed course.  And when they did so, they went all in.  The Spirit Cats have pushed that flexibility even further with the recruitment schemes in the Clan Protectorate.  Where the Nova Cats stood apart from their surroundings, ending up in reservations, the Spirit Cats seem to be working to integrate better with theirs.  As seen in Rasalhague, that is probably the better path.

[Kitsune413]

Yeah. You know something is wrong when you get an 'Enemy Draconis Combine' Trait when you create a Nova Cat character and that's where they live.

[Kamose]

I'm a grognard who became a Nova Cat fan when they were first introduced.  Played through and read all the clicky-tech and Dark Age material.  Always saw the Spirit Cats as wayward children to be reintroduced to the main clan, not successors.  Trying to now that the Nova's are de facto dead, but still not having rousing success with it.  I liked the Nova Cats because they held the Jaguar at bay, went through the meatgrinder of Luthien, and STILL managed to inflict the greatest casualties on ComStar on Tukayyid.  Now that is a Clan.  Especially considering they did it without a "Stackpole" character amongst them, like Phelan or Vlad, to insure victory.  Heck, one of them even managed to kludge up the Dragoons (and look at how many Bloodnamed WERE Dragoons!).  Then, they joined the Second Star League.  For me, that was their highpoint.  I always figured them breaking away from Kurita and declaring independence for the Irece Prefectrue, not dying as cannon fodder.  So that is why this old NC fan has some difficulty warming up to the SC's.
Regards,
Kamose

[WONC]

I have to honestly ask all the older Nova Cat fans, those of you who didn't get into battletech through the clix game, how much have you read on the Spirit Cats?  They so far have appeared in four novels, have dozens of dossiers, and some sporadic mentioning here and there on websites.  I am curious to actually hear how much folks have read.

Enough to know they aren't the Nova Cats. Oh, they may be kin to them, but they represent only a fraction of what the Cats were as a whole. They've been influenced by the Republic and the Foxes, for good or for ill. That makes me fairly ambivalent towards them, to be completely honest. And to put it even more bluntly, I'd much rather be given a Hunchback IIC and told to die well than to lap up the "consolation prize" that we older Nova Cat fans have been instructed to accept. That's no reflection on any of you who are Spirit Cat fans, simply my honest, personal opinion on the whole mess.

Do I wish them well? Sure, but come on. With a heritage that reads Nova Cat, you best be prepared to have the entire weight of the universe smash you into nonexistence. That's about all the Nova Cats ever truly were good for, in the end. Best be hedging your bets as you can; of course without me there to "improve" your luck, you may just end up ilClan.

[Kitsune413]

Enough to know they aren't the Nova Cats. Oh, they may be kin to them, but they represent only a fraction of what the Cats were as a whole. They've been influenced by the Republic and the Foxes, for good or for ill. That makes me fairly ambivalent towards them, to be completely honest.

The Nova Cats of 3130 bow to people and use Japanese honorifics when they are talking to people... they would have all went to the Republic if they could have. As it was, their three best and brightest galaxies are the ones who left.

The Nova Cats of the 3100's live on reservations and end up invading the Republic because Katana Tormack can push them around and threaten them.

The Spirit Cats are the descendants of the best of Clan Nova Cat who went where they wanted to go. Who then followed a Nova Cat Mystic on a Spiritual Quest.

They may represent a fraction of what the Cats were as a whole. But it was the important fraction. I think 'Spirit' Cat is appropriate. Because its definitely where the Spirit of the Nova Cat went. What was left in the DCMS was more of the rotting carcass of the Nova Cats...

History will look back at them and see a Clan bent to the Dragons will who at the end were following the commands of and revering a bloodline of Minoru Kurita. Who died trying to put a different Kurita on the throne.

And to put it even more bluntly, I'd much rather be given a Hunchback IIC and told to die well than to lap up the "consolation prize" that we older Nova Cat fans have been instructed to accept.

Consolation prize sounds pretty ironic. In this situation it would be like getting the Gold Medal instead of the Silver.

Do I wish them well? Sure, but come on. With a heritage that reads Nova Cat, you best be prepared to have the entire weight of the universe smash you into nonexistence. That's about all the Nova Cats ever truly were good for, in the end. Best be hedging your bets as you can; of course without me there to "improve" your luck, you may just end up ilClan.

Whats so unlucky about the Nova Cats? Invaded the Inner Sphere, gave a good account for themselves, moved into the draconis combine, lived there for awhile, got in a fight with some ghost bears, duked it out in the jihad, joined the republic. Changed their name, became a cult, moved into the Free Worlds League and building up like usual?

Coming from a guy in a Clan that changes its name frequently, I'm not sure what the big deal is... Unless you were from Xi, Lambda or Omicron Galaxies during the Jihad Years...

then things got a little lame I guess.

[Istal_Devalis]

... and end up invading the Republic because Katana Tormack can push them around and threaten them.

...The Nova Cats had to be BRIBED to invade the Republic. They were promised something in exchange for their cooperation. What that was is likely to be a dangling plot thread, as I doubt it matters anymore.

[Captain of C-21]

Pretty sure Era Report revealed that to be Katana promising to help the Nova Cats gain an independent Irece Prefecture, which she then tried to uphold when they began their rebellion and Katana's Dieron District supported them.

[Kitsune413]

...The Nova Cats had to be BRIBED to invade the Republic. They were promised something in exchange for their cooperation. What that was is likely to be a dangling plot thread, as I doubt it matters anymore.

You are correct. I forgot about the paper thing. A lot of that book is pretty unresolved. Not really sure who's brutally cutting up mystics either. Still really not impressed with the DCMS Nova Cats in that book.

Pretty sure Era Report revealed that to be Katana promising to help the Nova Cats gain an independent Irece Prefecture, which she then tried to uphold when they began their rebellion and Katana's Dieron District supported them.

That could be. Though she displays quite a lot of shock.

[Captain of C-21]

In that encounter, it's Jacali who was shocked, not Tormark.  I don't remember any shock from Tormark in the Era Report, but it has been a while since I read it.  If anything, she waits just long enough before sending her own troops into rebellion.

[Kitsune413]

I just looked it up in the book and Jacali's reaction is like she was shown a picture of Alexander Kerensky and Stefan Amaris high fiving eachother over Cameron's headless body.

[Kamose]

*Cut for space*

Whats so unlucky about the Nova Cats? Invaded the Inner Sphere, gave a good account for themselves, moved into the draconis combine, lived there for awhile, got in a fight with some ghost bears, duked it out in the jihad, joined the republic. Changed their name, became a cult, moved into the Free Worlds League and building up like usual?

Coming from a guy in a Clan that changes its name frequently, I'm not sure what the big deal is... Unless you were from Xi, Lambda or Omicron Galaxies during the Jihad Years...

then things got a little lame I guess.

Simply that what we see now is not what we think of "Clan Nova Cat".  The Spirit Cats are, in an of themselves, a faction worthy of their own name, history, traditions and fans.  The fact that it shares some of that history with the Nova Cats, however does not make them Nova Cats.  As an example, when I hear the words "Red Dawn", I automatically think of a 1984 movie starring Patrick Swayze, Carlos Estevez (Charlie Sheen) in his first role, Soviets, Cubans, etc.  You might think the same thing; or you might think of a 2012 movie starring the guys who play Thor & Peeta from the Hunger Games.  I have seen both, but consider myself a fan only of the first.  I am not saying anything bad about the more recent one; it was a quality production, reasonably well acted, and I enjoyed watching it.  But to me, it is an apple, not an orange.  I have no emotional connection to it.  If you were alive in 1984 (and not a child), the Cold War reality had much more of an impact (at least for me) than some fantasy invasion by North Korea of the U.S. in 2012.  Those emotional ties are what make us fans.  Another example is Battlestar Galactica.  I grew up with the original; most people I know prefer the "reimagined" version.  For a long time, I didn't - until my wife suggested I forget the title and just watch it as a show for its own merits.  I would now say that I am a fan of both.  I some things, I make the jump.  In others, I don't.  Neither position is wrong; it is simply a matter of personal choice and perspective.  Some people see the Spirit Cats as the logical and spiritual heir to the Nova Cats; others see them as a mockery.  Choose as you will, but please do not denigrate the other side if they do not share your choice.
Thanks,
Kamose