Clan Occupation - Less Pleasant Considerations

[Crimson Dynamo]

Idle thought struck me today: on the Inner Sphere worlds conquered in REVIVAL, what do you suppose happened to the facets of society that didn't fit into the caste system? Say a newly-conquered city had a mental hospital, a few nursing/convalescent homes, and a prison, what would happen to the occupants of these? If they weren't simply put to the sword, what roles could they serve to benefit the Clan?

And before anyone says it, yes, I doubt the Smoke Jaguars thought twice, it's more the OZs of the other Clans I'm wondering about.

[Tai Dai Cultist]

The nature of civilian life is a matter of some acrimonious debate in the past on the forum here.

My point of view is only the local "collaborators" would be absorbed into the Clan's lower castes, and the vast majority of the population just carries on as if a rival great house came in and switched the flags on the flagpoles and the bills that are accepted in the banks onworld.

From the Clans' point of view, these occupied sphereoids would  just be a variant form of Dark Caste.  One that can be milked for resources.

Of course this is all during REVIVAL.  By the time we get to a hundred years later in 3150, there may well be significant numbers of worlds completely assimilated into the Clan Caste system.  But pretty much only in the Falcon, Horses, and former Wolf OZ.  The Wolf Empire's holdings have only been held for a small number of years- no time for assimilation.  The Ghost Bears rolled over and subordinated themselves to local Rasalhaguian rule rather than having absorbed them.  And in the Raven Alliance the Ravens just live in exclusive enclaves rather than trying to impose militaristic regimentism on the freedom loving Outworder hippies.

[JadedFalcon]

To be fair, the Jags kept the prison, and just kept adding to the occupants.

Some professions, such as soldiers, would simply be dumped into the laborer caste unless they had skills that let them trial for another caste or subcaste. And if the area of civilian life was not worthy of notice by the warrior caste, then it may be up to the civilian administrators to make policy. Which is one reason they let Comstar run their worlds before that went sideways.

The individual administrator of each world can also have a major effect on the situation, determining which group gets incarcerated, which gets evicted, and which gets left alone. One example is the academy on Blackjack. The Falcons were suitable impressed with it and used it for training conventional troops. When the Steel Vipers took over Blackjack, they flattened the academy after seeing it as an insult to the Way of Kerensky.

[Warship]

At first, the Clans would keep out of the minutiae of local supply chains, unless there was an immediate need for the war effort.  IIRC, Comstar began working with the Clans rather quickly to smooth over the transition of conquered worlds.  That said, without such 'assistance', the normal Clan True-born saw invalids, elderly, and the mentally ill as wastes of resources.  Hospitals to 'repair' common laborers would stay in supply provided those injured would return to work.  Those injured who would never return to work, would not receive care.  Prisons would most likely find their inmates eliminated if said inmates could not be rehabilitated to Clan standards, again saving resources.  Harsh, but in the Homeworlds, none of those folks would be tolerated, especially by the Warrior Caste.

[Colt Ward]

IMO the best look you get at it is in the Operation Icestorm fiction which shows what is like over 20 years under the Falcon control.  Each world had a representative of each caste that met (or could meet) with the senior Clan officer at need.  They also exhibited a understanding of the Clan system- IIRC one going in so far as to tell saKhan Connor Rood that even though Falcon saKhan Samantha Clees had tried to give them orders, the Falcons had not yet won the trial for the world and could be ignored.

Its also one thing that tripped up some of the more inflexible and rigid members of the Hellions, they expected to find enclaves on IS worlds- figuring the Falcons could have forced the residents into the caste system & duplicating the Homeworlds.

And the Jaguars were not the only ones who had problems understanding- the Vipers did too IIRC.

[Kitsune413]

I don't know how it would go for people in nursing homes. But I imagine that a lot of disabilities the clans can simply cure. Some people who weren't productive members of society in the Inner Sphere may have simply become productive when Clan technology and medicine became available.

In, "To Ride the Chimera" there is a brain surgeon that would kill to have the Clan Medical Scanner technology.

[Tai Dai Cultist]

I don't know how it would go for people in nursing homes. But I imagine that a lot of disabilities the clans can simply cure. Some people who weren't productive members of society in the Inner Sphere may have simply become productive when Clan technology and medicine became available.

In, "To Ride the Chimera" there is a brain surgeon that would kill to have the Clan Medical Scanner technology.

The difference between what the Clans can cure and what they DO cure has always been dependent on the caste of the individual in question.  It's the extraordinary non-Warrior who's "worth" healing as opposed to replacing.

[Kitsune413]

The difference between what the Clans can cure and what they DO cure has always been dependent on the caste of the individual in question.  It's the extraordinary non-Warrior who's "worth" healing as opposed to replacing.

At the same time I can't imagine them having medical personell sit around all day waiting for something to happen to a warrior. The majority of the cost of healthcare, skilled care, isn't really costly to the Clans at all. The energy costs for running high tech pieces of equipment is also probably not prohibitive for people using fusion engines.

Which means being taken care of outside of being maimed just comes down to resources required. Also some treatments that might be considered complicated in the Inner Sphere may be simple to the Clans.

So if you're in a lower caste and manage to avoid getting your arm torn off you're probably in pretty good shape.

[Kitsune413]

On the other hand they've got a Clan Warrior in The Anvil that has a caste on his arm.

I cannot imagine a world where they don't immediately go for an open reduction internal fixation and send them back out there. With the cast the guy would have to go in frequently to get new casts made and wouldn't be able to use the arm while he waited, he could also develop contractures which would limit his range of motion. I also cannot imagine that the clans wouldn't go out of their way to get every degree of ROM for their warriors. No reason not to open that guy up and put a plate and a few screws in him and then send him out to the next battle.