Apologies Wobbly Guy, Fire Scorpion IIC or anyone I might have offended, I had no intention to derail or "create an argument for argument's sake" and I certainly didn't intend to blame the clans for the atrocities of the Sphere - House Lords will do House Lord things.
I was looking for a measure by which one could be considered a Warden or Crusader in more than just name by attempting to identify the true underlying motivations of different Clans (characters and sub-factions) and their philosophies. Considerations such as honor adherence, martial strength, political influence, treatment of freebirths/other castes, choice of allies, etc, might add some shades of grey, but they don't necessarily reflect an individual's position between Ulric and Lincoln on the spectrum.
Sadly, there is a tendency to view Clan characters from the perspective of their clans because, for the most part, it's all there is to work with. In fiction, characters tend towards a blanket adherence to whatever their Khan or internal alternate faction leader advocates.
Aiden Pryde, Joanna, Ter Roshak, Horse, Dianna, Kael Pershaw and Marthe were all well defined individuals with their own histories and differing opinions on various rules and aspects of Jade Falcon society, but on the question of Clan Jade Falcon's stance as staunch Crusaders fully entitled to re-establish the Star League, there is no significant deviation between any of them. Ulric and Vlad were strong representations of each philosophy within their clan, and basically every member of Clan Wolf pre-schism was of the same mindset as one or the other.
The Nova Cat and Ghost Bear Khans had a change of heart along the way which suggests their adherence to the Crusader cause was somewhat fickle and/or ill-informed to begin with, but there was little indication that these khans faced significant internal backlash for their shifting views ... they brought their clans along for the ride. Diamond Sharks swung away from their traditional Warden views under Khan Ian Hawker, his passing restored influence to that clan's merchant caste and Warden influences resurfaced. If I recall, Asa Taney and the Hellions were as aggressive as the Falcons in championing the Crusader cause ... if not so empowered to actively pursue it. The Coyotes were a once powerful clan weakened by sustained conflict with numerous Crusader clans as 'punishment' for their very staunch Warden views - views no doubt shared by their Khans on most given days. And the Steel Vipers were always an intriguing faction when considering clan philosophy. Natalie Breen leans conditionally towards the Warden camp, while Crusader leaning Brett Andrews ultimately slammed the door on the relevance of the whole Warden/Crusader debate. I wouldn't initially put Andrews in quite the same category as Osis or Chistu, but he seemed to lean somewhat Crusader early, and ran off on a relatively new tangent.
But overall, with limited knowledge of the motivations, plans, actions and beliefs of many in Clan society (at least beyond a superficial level), it becomes difficult to say whether the Snow Ravens or the Cloud Cobras of the pre/early Clan Invasion were the stauncher wardens. It is possible that one Cloud Cobra Khan may have been an Ulric level Warden whose influence was somewhat compromised by a weaker military and a saKhan whose only motivation to vote along Warden lines was a personal vendetta against Elias Crichell. People and politics are complex like that, makes for an interesting read, particularly when punctuated by battles between giant stompy robots.
I hope at least some of this answers the original question. For reference, most of my understanding of the history of the Clans/Clan Invasion was established during the 90s and 00s, and while I have tried to keep up, real life commitments have restricted time I have to invest in more modern releases of fiction.
I kind of wonder what kind of project you're working on, whether it's a story, a campaign plotline, NPC's or the like.
Because, thanks to the (I think intentional) lack of details, you can go a LOT of ways for a "Warden" or "Crusader" character and still be plausible, even within the context of a given clan.
YOu just first have to decide that these are
people and people don't really march in lockstep no matter which pundit is claiming they do.
For example, we got lots of examples in the canon of Crusaders who wanted it for their personal glory, or because they think the Spheroids don't deserve what they have (but they do).
you know, the villain take you might find in 1970's era D.C. or Marvel comics from the Comics-Code period. They want it because they want it, or because they want the resources, or the prestige.
But!!! there's another take, on the Crusader philosophy that doesn't get a lot of coverage in the Canon, but just might work if you're trying to run a Crusader character in a predominantly warden-inclined group in your RPG campaign.
"The Inner Sphere is a Humanitarian
crisis where they've lost so much basic knowledge they will never get back on their own...we have to conquer them, to save them." He said, letting the holorecordings from the intelligence effort play, "Millions are dying every day tht could be saved, potentials are wasted by the hour that could have ended the plunge, but they are gone. If we go now, we may be late, but we will not be
Too late to end the horrors and bring them
order and JUSTICE in place of the chaos and decay fostered by the Traitor Lords."
In other words, a
positive spin on the Crusader cause. We mostly didn't get that, because the Crusaders were set up to be 'The Big Bad'.
but they don't have to be, and there's room thanks to what the Authors left unsaid (but implied) for that.
HUman beings are human beings, even Trueborns, we all want to be the heroes of our own story, we all want to believe our actions, especially the drastic ones, are coming from a
good place.
Almost nobody aside from the genuinely mentally ill, actually and honestly
wants to be evil.
Best part of the bit I just tossed out as an experiment? it's completely incompatible with most Warden philosophies, while also being roughly humanitarian and thought out in tone, our hypothetical Crusader character is a Crusader
After seeing the mess the Inner Sphere is in, and being properly horrified by the conditions thus revealed-to the point of belief that
Something must be done.
For the most part, nobody bothered to use that kind of viewpoint with Crusaders in the canon, and with good reason-the Crusade was supposed to end, to
lose. It had to be at least somewhat irredeemable because the audience for Battletech, on the whole, want (whether they admit or not, the sales figures prove it) clear lines between 'good' and 'evil', as defined by Western Morality.
at least, on the macro scale. This is why the Jade Falcons got Malvina, instead of someone else. Because they were
supposed to be the bad guys. Giving them someone in a leadership position who's attacking because they're trying to 'fix things' doesn't have the same vibe as giving them a nihilistic narcissist in that role.
