Yes, they use the naval forces to attack enemy logistics. During the Jihad it seems they split between a naval arm watching the CP and the Vendetta. This doesn't preclude their transport units remaining as transport units. As I said, it's pretty evident the TDF didn't face trouble moving their units during the war.
Based on? They had trouble resupplying and reinforcing the Pleiades attackers even before the Jihad was in full swing, and were unable to re-allocate their forces to mount a successful defence against Hansen's Rough Riders, much less the AFFS proper.
well it will be answered when the periphery objectives info comes out.
Which will post-date the period in question. We already know what the Concordat's capabilities were during the Jihad, and they are not as advanced as you claim.
The Concordat, in the 3020s, had something like over 1/3 of their planets with heavy factories on them... and many of that were coveted heavy battlemechs. It's very safe to say that the Concordat, particularly Hell's Heart worlds, is very heavily industrialized. That does not mean they are a match to Quentin, Hesperus II, Grand Base... but they are still churning out a lot of mechs... so much so that surplus sales are a significant portion of their economy.
As you note, they were not large producers in terms of volume; so far as exports go, the Taurian Bull has never been particularly strong on the market so export in general is relatively lucrative no matter the field. In any case, having factories for heavy 'Mechs of primarily 3025/Introductory Technology level does not provide for heavy AeroSpace engineering, or the ability to recover lost capital weapons.
Nobody knows what's up with the Vandenburg, but they have to be spending the cash on something.
Again, we know exactly what's up with the
Vandenberg; its condition is so bad it requires essentially a full rebuild, rather than the refurbishment the Taurians are attempting to conduct with massive outside assistance. Anything that can be made locally has to be done at staggering cost due to the technologies involved, and everything else the Capellans are free to conduct price gouging on since they know how desperate the Concordat is to get the vessel operational. They are also free to charge the Concordat an exorbitant rate for their assistance, because the Concordat's choice is between paying that money or having no help at all.
Smartest thing to have done would have been getting the drive core operational and sending her to the Necromo yards, but the Taurians insisted on doing it on-site.
Without outside assistance, the Concordat had no ability to maintain or repair
Vandenburg, much less
Vendetta- which is mentioned in the JHS series and, I believe, in the
Blake Documents section as well.
WarShips are a drain to the coffers of the Great Houses, never mind Periphery budgets.
I noted what lead to that conclusion.
TC gained FFA and SSRM-2 on their own efforts, at least initially. TC produces XL engines, Endo, ER PPCs and more on their own. During the war they were producing everything from light autocannons to AC ammo to new PPCs. Look at the fluff on the Asterion and elsewhere for why the TC isn't a big user of Stealth or Mimetic armor. This is even literally stated as the set policy of one of their Calderons for tech development.
It's not a conclusion, it is a statement of fact; p. 169 specifically states that no Periphery power obtained advanced technology on their own efforts, and MSII provides us with tables to indicate when factions have useful access to advanced technologies. Aside from those three exceptions mentioned, the Concordat has nothing until the Trinity Alliance.
The Concordat's ability to recover or create technologies is clearly limited; capital missiles were not recovered until 3051 by the Federated Suns, and they were the simplest of the naval-grade weapons.
Using captured equipment for reverse-engineering (perhaps with Blakist assistance to boot) or stealing the schematics is one thing. Redeveloping the ability to construct a class of weaponry more advanced again, without any such effort being noted in any source, without any supporting infrastructure to upgrade for the effort, is something else entirely.
TC didn't make as much advancement as the MoC in infrastructure because in 3025-3050s they already had a strong and stable infrastructure. The MoC did not. MoC gained a tech and size leap by selling goods to a civilian-goods starved market and tying themselves to the CC for parts and equipment. Even with their late advances in production their military could not keep up it's own logistics solo. The TC can and did, despite the carnage and damage.
Alternatively, the Taurian efforts were neither as concentrated or successful as those undertaken by the Magistracy or Outworlds Alliance.
There's a difference in figuring levels like that. The tech rating in 3085 is after suffering a particularly harsh hit to core infrastructure.
Those tech levels are not from 3085, but from a time in Taurian history which you note as having been remarkable for the amount of advanced technologies they were using.
The Periphery has always lagged behind the Great Houses. It is what it is.
Also, basic WarShip armour is the same as 'Mech or AeroSpace Fighter-grade standard armour. If the
Vandenberg had used that, or even ferro-aluminium, they might have been able to make the repairs locally. Unfortunately, it uses the second-most advanced type of naval-grade armour available.
The Taurian Concordat is not like Davion skid row worlds, Stormfury.
I know. It is, however, closer to those than it is to some of the most advanced worlds of the Inner Sphere, which is the kind of capacity you are positing the Concordat as having.
