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August 16, 2007
A Short History of Mechwarrior ‘Verse From the reborn Star League Until “Today”
For those unversed in the “recent” history of the Mechwarrior universe, here’s a quick thumbnail history from Wizkids of what’s happened in Battletech-land since the arrival of the Clans:
3059 To better fight the Clans, the leaders of the Inner Sphere create a new Star League. Apparently united once again after centuries of warfare, the members of this fragile union attempt to end the Clan threat once and for all. The new Star League Defense Force targets the most aggressive Clan—Smoke Jaguar—for destruction, pushing them out of their Inner Sphere occupation zone and following them to their Clan homeworld, where they are utterly destroyed. Having proven their martial prowess to the Clans, the SLDF troops meet the Clans on their own capitol world of Strana Mechty and challenge them to a Trial of Refusal (a Clan ritual that uses a military engagement to repeal and/or abrogate a previous decision or action) against their very invasion of the Inner Sphere. The Clans lose.3063
With the threat of the Clans diminished, the Houses of the Inner Sphere once again look to one another as ancient enmities flare anew. The Capellan Confederation conquers its errant Commonality, the St. Ives Compact, while allying with the two largest Periphery realms—the Magistracy of Canopus and Taurian Concordat, a turn of events that lead to the Confederation becoming notably strong for the first time in centuries. An errant Combine unit attacks Clan Ghost Bear, igniting a war between the Bears and the Draconis Combine. At the same time, the fabulously powerful Federated Commonwealth (FedCom) shatters under the weight of greed and aggression; a full-fledged civil war begins between the Lyran Alliance and Federated Suns across more then eight hundred worlds and a thousand light years.3067
At the end of the FedCom Civil War, the various leaders of the Inner Sphere realize and admit that their new Star League was simply a political maneuver to be used against the Clans. They dissolve the League. Almost immediately the Word of Blake zealots—a reactionary splinter group from ComStar—unleash a jihad against the entire Inner Sphere.3071-3081
Devlin Stone escapes from a Word of Blake Re-education Camp and slowly builds an army to push back against the Word of Blake. The battles are fierce, and Stone’s forces win victory after victory. With each new success more warriors flock to his banner, speeding victory and final triumph. The honor and respect accorded Stone among the general populace across the Inner Sphere is unprecedented.
With a new vision of how the Inner Sphere can rebuild itself—and a huge following of military and civilian personnel from every faction in the universe—Devlin Stone asks for and receives control over all worlds within a 120 light-year radius of Terra, whether by treaty or by force. Splinter groups within the Capellan Confederation reject the ceding of worlds to the Republic, and for several years engage in skirmishes aimed at retrieving ancestral planets. Peace otherwise begins its reign.3081-3129
Under the guidance of Devlin Stone, the Republic of The Sphere is born. The hatreds and contentions of centuries are subsumed into the greater good, as key elements of populations on a number of worlds are resettled in an attempt to end the factionalism of the past. Decades pass, and a new generation is indoctrinated into this new philosophy—a whole generation that knows only peace and is insulated from the rest of the Inner Sphere.One of the prime tenets of the new society is the decommissioning of the majority of BattleMechs and a retooling of the wartime economy. People are motivated to turn in their BattleMechs and other machines of war through programs including financial and federal incentives including the receipt of Republic citizenship. As the Republic’s prosperity booms, the rest of the Great Houses follow suit until BattleMechs have become exceptionally rare except among the military or the propertied nobility. Given the limited demand, the ability to build their specialized fusion engines becomes limited as well.
3130
Devlin Stone announces his withdrawal from public life. He swears that he will return if ever the Republic, or the rest of the Inner Sphere, needs him—then he vanishes.
3132
Hyperpulse Generator Alpha Stations around the Republic and throughout the Inner Sphere suffer attack from without and sabotage from within, effectively ending interstellar communications for 80% of all populated worlds. No group takes responsibility; no clues point to a single perpetrator. Tensions heighten between political and social factions, each suspecting the others of responsibility for the communications breakdown. Fighting breaks out where social pressures reach critical mass. To compensate for the rarity of military-grade BattleMechs, many groups and governments mount IndustrialMechs with weaponry and use these machines in combat. A new battle for control begins, threatening the very existence of the Republic of the Sphere.
Posted by Discoshaman at August 16, 2007 07:26 AM