Any -major- periphery powers?

[ArkRoyalRavager]

I refer you to my "post-Blackout" statement.

[Wrangler]

I think there going be a time where the definition of "Inner Sphere" needs to be stated.

When the original Free Worlds League broke up, entire reach of space within that stretch of space becomes Periphery.  Why?  No central authority?  No strong government?  No significate military?   What heck was Chaos March?  Inner Periphery?  Way things was going, that seems to be the way it falls if were fact it was surrounded by Inner Sphere nations trying to grab worlds half-heart-off-ly.

Raven Alliance dugged into the side of the Inner Sphere, you'd think they were part of the Inner Sphere.  I certainly would call them a Major Periphery power. Clan or not.

[Adacas]

As for the Raven Alliance I disagree, State Os not, in any case Clan, but not periphery.
As for those in the Lyran Alliance or FWL  who were separated from their states are clearly peripheral worlds

[Red Pins]

IIRC, its a measurement of distance from terra.  Look on the maps, and you see a series of circles the further from the center of the map you go.  The Periphery starts about 500 LY from Terra, I think.

[verybad]

As for the Raven Alliance I disagree, State Os not, in any case Clan, but not periphery.
As for those in the Lyran Alliance or FWL  who were separated from their states are clearly peripheral worlds

Not really. The Raven Alliance is essentially 2 nations in one location with the Ravens holding the reins of power, but the Alliance folks being the basis for the economy, which in the long run, is always the true base of power.

The civilians in the Alliance are certainly NOT clan.

[Wrangler]

Well, the Raven Alliance has grown and nibbled away at both the Federated Suns and the Draconis Combine.  What heck do they have to do be recognized as being part of the Inner Sphere?

[ArkRoyalRavager]

The Taurians and Marians have likewise taken IS planets, but they're also still labelled as Periphery nations

[Offworlder]

Well as far as speculation goes, there may be another power out there beyond the Jarnvolk but most (like me) assume that they are speaking of the clans...

[Aleksandr]

The Periphery is more a regional designation than a status one. In regards to the former FWL, I'd consider the Rim Commonality a Periphery state, but not the Marik-Stewart Commonwealth. The Rim Commonality is not only regionally peripheral, but really had more interaction and concern with the other Periphery realms nearby (namely the Marians) than the rest of the Sphere.

Just because one isn't a house can't make it a periphery state - otherwise the Word of Blake Protectorate, St. Ives Compact and Free Rasalhague Republic are all Periphery states.  :D

That said, there is something to Periphery being an attitude, but to cross that threshold is pretty difficult. The Raven Alliance should still be considered Periphery, imo, since the Ravens are so insular and haven't absorbed or overtaken the Alliance's culture.

As is, I think the Inner Periphery might in store for a name change if the Deep Periphery becomes a bit more populated. The 'Outer Sphere' states wouldn't be much different than the Rasalhague Dominion or Regulan Fiefs - powerful states that post-date the Star League, and can't really be considered a Successor State.

[Josva Valdreki]

Unless IE are deliberately covering up the existence of a state for some reason...

In IE's book, they pretty much stated that they actually are hiding (or trying to hide) at least two worlds: Farhome and… the one with the mutants. So I'd say that IE is almost certainly hiding more.

...I guess I'm a biased, but I love the idea of more factions.  The big, empty-seeming space at the bottom of the maps past the MoC and TC/CP just gives me an itch, since its where I put my own AU groups, but apparently Herb the BT-line dev is intent on reducing the number of factions to something more managable.

Basically this.

I look at a map of the Deep Periphery and I see all the blank spaces of the map and filling in those blank spaces begins to seem more important than keeping the peace on former Rasalhague and Republic worlds or protecting the Galatean League and the Remnant. I want to delve the ruins of ancient fortresses, to seek out new mutants and new civilizations… to boldly go where no MechWarrior has gone before (well, in living memory).

Makes me want to name a DropShip Galileo and refit a Frigate or a Light Cruiser for deep space exploration and name her Enterprise.

ETA: And Deep Periphery exploration makes me feel less silly about my 'Mechs having hands. Although I feel that battle armor might be more useful….

[ArkRoyalRavager]

Maybe those spaces really are blank? It is a fact that the farther you go from Terra the less likely you'll find planets suitable for habitation

[Josva Valdreki]

They're clearly not, or any Deep Periphery adventure campaign would be pointless.

As made plain by the Jihad and IE, even the blank spaces in the Inner Sphere haven't entirely been filled in.

[ArkRoyalRavager]

That was due to the first 2 Succession Wars, but the Deep Periphery is different. Secret bases and caches, sure, but full-fledged space-faring nations? Very rare

[Offworlder]

That was due to the first 2 Succession Wars, but the Deep Periphery is different. Secret bases and caches, sure, but full-fledged space-faring nations? Very rare

Problem is, we don't actually know how far did periphery nations, the SLDF or random colonists actually ventured out in the dark. To be perfectly honest, I find it very hard that especially during the Star League, there weren't any more ventures out in the deep periphery.

Actually the farthest was Colombus and frankly I find that a bit suspicious given the location of where the SL Army settled after it went into exile.

However, a rather indirect indication of how far humanity went is the number of 'known' colonies we find in the IE book and especially astonishing, RWR bases popping up all over the place.

[Josva Valdreki]

Yup.

There are RWR Outposts that have been uncovered thousands of lightyears from the Inner Sphere - Rimward, Spinward, and Anti-Spinward. (The Rimward Outposts being on the complete opposite side of the Inner Sphere from the furthest known extent of the RWR.)

[Offworlder]

Does anyone remember the celestial body that Comstar sent a ship to in the past in order to try the feasibility of very long range deep periphery travel? Was it somehow connected to Orion? Can't find the quote...

[Red Pins]

....I remember the mention of such a mission assigned to the explorer corps, but can't remember anything else about it, but iirc it was to a black hole somewhere.

[Medron Pryde]

I seem to remember reading somewhere that Star League outposts went out something like 2,000 lightyears from Terra.

Actual physical Star League built structures to support actual Star League people.

And that we explored further out than that.

And then of course we know that Clan Wolverine is holding off the Alien menace somewhere to the south.  ;)  That's the real reason we haven't seen any deep periphery stuff out that way...hehehe

[rebs]

Indeed, and first exodus parties disappearing, some to mechanical/technical failure, but that couldn't have been all of them or even most, I would hope.  :)   Then a second exodus after the TA fell, then people disgusted and fleeing Age of War IS, or Shiro Kurita.  And then the aforementioned Star League expansion/possible outposts, that IE couldn't have fully accounted for.

I think there's room for anything, and it was set up that way from the start.  Comstar's original handbook/reports were everything as far as they and their various "business" was concerned, so the POV is strong in its sphere of influence, no pun intended, but beyond that they had to have te Explorer Corps, and even that was mostly focused on limited areas of search, ie, Kerensky's trail.

[Offworlder]

I seem to remember reading somewhere that Star League outposts went out something like 2,000 lightyears from Terra.

Actual physical Star League built structures to support actual Star League people.

Up to a point, it would explain why Kerensky went the way he went. Decent planets, hidden from view by a nebula and sufficiently distant not to be in easy contact with the IS. After all, Tanis (a SL colony) was only 2 jumps away from the 'promised land'.

BTW the area described (ie the 2000LY) would actually encompass the known universe at this point...

There is something else. It could be that there are a lot of planets in the deep periphery that are quite unremarkable - say agricultural colonies, with 18 century tech with a few hundred or thousand people. They would slip under the radar unless some big shot organization from the IS or clans decided to base themselves out of it.

[ArkRoyalRavager]

I think they did that 400 years ago. It's called Rim Worlds Outposts.

[Hairbear541]

Afternoon guys, It's been a while since I really went on a buying spree. I know I need to get all new sourcebooks,field reports and such. You keep mentioning  The Imperio quite a bit. Where can I find more information IT.
Thanks

[Deadborder]

The Wars of Reaving and Interstellar Players 3 have the sum total of all that's been written about Escorpion Imperio so far

[Archangel]

The Wars of Reaving and Interstellar Players 3 have the sum total of all that's been written about Escorpion Imperio so far

There is also a brief update in the Wars of Reaving Supplemental.

[Offworlder]

Actually, wouldn't it be nice to have a powerful deep periphery power being 'discovered'? I know that the going axiom is that the further one is from Terra, the more one closer to a Neanderthal... but it would be nice that we are surprised by some power cropping up in the deep.

Or maybe one of the existing deep periphery factions somehow gaining enough strength to become a distant player in IS affairs?

[Archangel]

Actually, wouldn't it be nice to have a powerful deep periphery power being 'discovered'? I know that the going axiom is that the further one is from Terra, the more one closer to a Neanderthal... but it would be nice that we are surprised by some power cropping up in the deep.

Or maybe one of the existing deep periphery factions somehow gaining enough strength to become a distant player in IS affairs?

That would be the Clans.

[Offworlder]

That would be the Clans.

Nah... that has grown old now...

What I mean is that a power that is not clan, clan affiliated or whatever.

Given the fact that the Clans are seemingly all over the place (especially in 3145) maybe its time to limit the usage of this particular deus ex machine all over the place in the BT universe.

[YingJanshi]

Actually, wouldn't it be nice to have a powerful deep periphery power being 'discovered'? I know that the going axiom is that the further one is from Terra, the more one closer to a Neanderthal... but it would be nice that we are surprised by some power cropping up in the deep.

Or maybe one of the existing deep periphery factions somehow gaining enough strength to become a distant player in IS affairs?

Isn't there a big one (ish) out anti-spindward way that's described in ISP3?

[Wrangler]

Isn't there a big one (ish) out anti-spindward way that's described in ISP3?

I wish there really was a large couple deep periphery powers out there, it  would freshen things up a bit.
Ones may not have BattleMechs, but something else. Maybe like Bolo style machines, Mobile Structures without sluggishness of what technology we current have.

[Korzon77]

While rare, there's no reason in universe why there couldn't be-- by the Age of War colonization was more or less old hat, so you were unlikely to make the stupid mistakes the early colonists made and jumpships were far more available than they were post-succession wars. 


as for distance, assuming one jump per two weeks which is a VERY slow rate but one I'd expect of people wanting to baby their engines, you get 780 LY per year.  Three years and you're a long, long way from anyone.  As for habitable planets, the IS isn't special in any sort of astrographic manner-- you're likely to find about the same percentage of planets at your destination. 

Now, the question of population in crease is always a dicy one because there are a lot more issues than simply "number of women who can have kids" but even a modern population increase can take a small seed population and blow it up to millions of even billions in the time period we're talking.  Technology ditto-- the reason there are no jump ship production facilities is pure and solely authorial fiat.  Given that the technology actually predates the battlemech there's no reason even close worlds like the TC shouldn't have it, so again Authorial fiat.

And that's the real reason-- fundamentally the periphery is supposed to be something that is acted upon by the IS. Notice how even the clans are not effectively IS powers.  So I doubt if we're ever going to see any sort of advanced periphery power that doesn't have some odd and logic defying explanation for why it suddenly nuked itself into oblivion.